feature/ Thierry Gaudillère / 2024 Tour de France in Burgundy
cold bottles of wine or cans of beer, because it is early July and the heat is torrid. The most far-sighted have unfolded tables, chairs, and parasols. “I came for the advertising caravan,” says a cheery mustachioed man sporting a polka-dot cap and a green T-shirt touting the PMU (the state-controlled betting system). He had come from the neighboring region of Franche- Comté with his wife, children, and grandchildren. Flags in the colors of France and the Tour de France are planted or waved. Many of the spectators are there for the freebies distributed from the sponsors’ vehicles that lead the procession, well ahead of the racers. They dish out caps and T-shirts, alcohol-free beer (not wine), cheeses and sausages, discount vouchers for the Parc Astérix or Disneyland Paris. To win the favor of the gift-givers, some savvy would-be recipients brandish homemade cardboard signs festooned with the brand of their preferred booty: “It’s better to attract attention,” says one with a knowing smile. And it works. Witness the boy wearing four hats. More reserved and serious, a young Spanish couple and their daughter picnic on the edge of premier cru Les Demoiselles. In their cycling clothes, they show their love for the sport and the Lotto–Soudal team. But they know their