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Tour de France Explained For Newbies
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- Published on Mar 16, 2026
- The Tour De France is the biggest bike race in the world, here's a crash course in how it works for rookies, or perhaps a refresher!
Thanks to the ASO for usage of their excellent photos and Credit to Astana, Decathlon AG2R, Tudor for extra footage.
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Ah yes my favourite RUclipsr, Tour de Francis Cade
My favourite fun fact about the TdF is that back in the days, riders were basically allowed to behave like they wanted to, as the race was such a big event. That being said, as things weren't as professional as today, during the stages riders were running in restaurants or cafes, demanding to quickly eat a sandwich or croissant, even drink a beer. These were called Drinking Raids. They then left without paying. It happened so fast, it was in style of a robbery. It sometimes took the restaurant owners weeks to get their money back, while many of them didn't get paid at all. They would then sometimes send a bill to the organizers of the TdF.
That's absolutely not true. In the past they didn't have the support and the nutrition they have now. And the restaurants would offer some of the products free of charge
@Microbit0 Where did I say that they have the support and the nutrition they have now? It is absolutely true and there are numerous documentaries about it. Just search for Tour de France Drinking Raids...
My favorite fact about the early Tdf is that they had cigarettes before climbs to free up the lungs for oxygen
My favorite fact about the early Tdf is that they used trains to get to the finish quicker. That was cheating of course
@Microbit0 I've never said that they have nutrition and support like today? And yes, this is absolutely true there are numerous documentaries about it. These were called Drinking Raids, there are even Videos on RUclips of it, just search for it.
The best thing is when the Tour de France passes through your own city. In 1980, the Tour started in Frankfurt am Main, Germany. At the time, I was standing on a bridge over the autobahn near a village that belongs to our area, but the riders were going up the bridge faster than I thought.
honestly i am surprised the payout is that low. Is most of the actual profit gained from sponsorship, cause it honestly seems like a bad payout for such a big event.
it's mainly the sponsors of the teams who brings money into the sport, and the best of the peloton can have truly massive contract.
You have to remember that the entry cost is free! 😅if that was in an stadium or a pro track it would be much much more money
Think about it in U.S. football players in the NFL The players are given huge contracts with and paid by their teams.
Players get league paid bonuses for winning for winning certain games ( Super Bowl etc.) or individual awards (All-Pro etc) but these are tiny compared to their contracts.)
Thats so much beacuse in professional soccer, players get zero prize money. Just medals.
@tholo86and massive salaries
4:17 can you imagine doing this when you're NOT 26?
Most of the Best in the world where over 30 years
@angelicafernandez9831 yeah, your physical peak is usually in your early 30's
Mads Pedersen is a massive car-nerd and all money he won in TdF 2023 was donated to a small race-track in Denmark that was struggling to stay in business :)
That sounds like something Mads would do. He’s my favorite rider among all. True class at all times. An example I support and share as such.
Great insight. My favourite 3 weeks of the year
Very nice intro for newbies! I know it's impossible to cover everything in a reasonably brief video, but some other topics that are useful to learn about: radios (and on a related note, the order of the caravan of team cars, medical cars, referees etc), feeding stations, how riders deal with pee breaks, and maybe a little more on team tactics and strategy overall (e.g. often teams and their leaders will opt to "give away" the yellow jersey (race lead) for a few days so they don't have to waste so much energy defending the lead, and on the assumption they can/will regain the lead later on). Vive le tour!
Wow. The giving away the leaders jersey for a few stages is new to me. I woulda never thought but it does make good strategic sense to do so
Thanks for the info of Grand Boucle.
Thank you, Cade Media, for reigniting the joy of cycling in me.
I had lost the spark in my mid 20s due to stress in uni and beginning with work, but now I’m back in my mid 30s on my 20-year-old road bike, riding 2-3 times a week and loving every kilometer. You've helped me remember why I fell in love with cycling in the first place. 🙏🚴♂️
i love how jimmy is visually covering the whole eating section :)
I appreciate how you weave your request for comments so smoothly into the video. I felt it deserved some praise.
Super informative. Thank you!
TIL where the channel name lantern rouge came from
same
This is my 2nd tour I’m fully watching. Didn’t know about the last place thing. Really cool actually
There's a van that drives on the course at a speed consistent with the time cut for the day (more or less to be honest). It is called "voiture balai" in french or "broom wagon" (apparently) in English. Its job is to sweep the stragglers off the road if they are incapable of riding fast enough to stay ahead of it. Riders will actually dismount and get into the voiture balai if they can't continue.
I've always found it brutal and somewhat entertaining...
Thank you for sharing this !!! now i understand everything 😅
I want this video also for the next Giro D’Italia
BEST VID. EASILY BEATING 3 NETFLIX SEASONS OF EXPLANATIONS! ;)👍👍👍
Thank you. I learnt a lot.
This was an enormously helpful, clear and fun explanation! Thank you!
Very interesting. Thanks for all that info. I have never really understood how it all works.
Very good work. It's ridiculous that the final stage now isn't even a race. The best, most exciting Tour of my entire lifetime was in 1989, when Lemond edged out Fignon by eight seconds on the last stage. We need more of that.
I think that if the GC riders were close enough together in time during the last stage, there definitely would be more effort given. The problem is that the overall leader in most cases is ahead by like 5 or 6 minutes by the last day, making it nearly impossible to for other riders to make up that time on a flat stage. I agree though, they should definitely have more tours where stage 21 is a TT.
Hell no. @aidanboyce3950
The last stage being ceremonial was a tradition before 1989. And it is still done even if the riders are within seconds of each.
1989 was different because the last stage was a Time Trial. Since I started following, the final stage was a TT only twice. Once in 1989 and again in 2024 when the finale was moved from Paris to Nice because Paris was being prepared for the Olympics which started one week later
The last stage isn't ever really a factor in the overall classification. But that also goes for pretty much every single sprint stage as well. Winning on the Champs Elysees is the pinnacle of a sprinter's career.
@neutronium9542 1989?
Although I am not a newbie I wanted to check how you can describe and explain pro cycling with TdF example in a few minutes. You did it great, I am amazed. The script is so well structured and balanced and the videos and pictures support it very nicely. Great job indeed. I will definitely point some mates and family to this clip so they get insights in this spectacular sport and event; and can better understand why I can stay hours in front of the screen watching riders in July!
Excellent - I’ve been watching it for years on and off. I would have liked a bit more about the tactics, especially how the domestiques in each team work out what they are going to do and when.
Bon résumé my friend
Perfect video. You should have a podcast!
i grew up watching Yowamushi Pedal, an anime about bike racing. it’s my first time actually following the TdF and i’ve been pleasantly surprised to see how life-accurate a lot of the rules and racing structure were in the show!
As someone who love to cycle but has never really paid attention to racing, this was a great video! Thanks!
is such a shame I am 70 and only in last 5 yrs have I really got into the tdf and cycling in general...You have the most precise and easy to understand analysis... I miss Sagan! Thanks so much!
Why do you have so much footage of Jimmi eating? 🤣
That was enlightening. Appreciate you, man
First rate transference of information about a complicated system ,for the casual viewer,, thank you,,!
Thanks
Your already good story telling and humour has advanced greatly! 😊
Very interesting. Thank you!
Awww heck yeah, I know all this already but I'm still watching!
Me too, but I just enjoy listening to Francis 😁👍
Thanks! That was salient and succinct ❤
great i needed to know a few things as new to cycling my self
1:57 Pantani 🏴☠❤
That was wewlll done. Filled in a few gaps in my understanding, in a reasonable length.
So what is the small device in the back of the saddle (as shown in thumbnail) ?
A insane sport for insane athletes.
I love it.
This is an excellent overview. I've been watching the TDF off-and-on for 25 years or so and very carefully the last 10+ years. This video would have helped me immensely when I first started watching. Thank you for posting.
Best description ive seen in a while would love more of this content on youtube
Not much new stuff but I would still like to check it out
Perfect. Thank you
They don’t have heads up displays.
thank you, sir.
I like this series. Francis just chatting up like in a pub.
Yes! I remember emailing the podcast last year about this after struggling to keep up with your coverage. Now I can enjoy even more cade media
Very well explained . Many thanks .
The last competition is a really interesting one. I think they should also get money prize for it.
Thors the exact Video i needed! Thank you!
4:12 "can you imagine doing this when you're 26". Imagine doing this when you're 30...
EXCELLENT VIDEO- with good sense of humor---WELL DONE
Team time trial - the coolest of 'em all!
This video is such a good idea! Thanks for the 101!!
I've ridden over Mt. Ventoux. It is a tough ride for an amateur.
Great video, dude!
Loved the sound design on this video, gang!! Us editors notice!! Very nicely done.
Longtime fan, still enjoyed this break-down!
Great video, for sure! This year, it appears like another win for Tadej, with only Jonas being a serious threat for him.
Wonderfully and well explained. Thanks for that.
Even for experienced ones it was fun to wach!
Great vid, got me psyched on this epic event. Cheers from USA!
U did good cade.. subscribed
this introduction is very, very good!
in my personal opinion, it could have been emphasized, how extraordinaire those elite riders are, even those ones on the lower ranks and how completely out of range those performances of the top riders are.
for example, several years ago, one of those sprint riders was caught while doing training units, exceeding the speed limits on a motorway in australia.: he reached a speed more than 90 km per hour on flat terrain which he achieved by accelerating on a descending motorway entry.
Thanks for the refresh 😊
You forgot that in 1998, the grand depart was in Dublin Ireland.
How do you make a time cut when it's based on the winner's time and you don't know what his time is because you're nowhere near him?
Thanks so much--I had no idea! 😀🚴♀🚴♂🚴
Love the way you explained this, would love to have a podcast like this !
Finally the video i didn't know i needed that answers and explains all the questions i had
Great! Now i have a video to send to all my not so cycling friends!
there's a great vdieo on here of a bunch of normal guys that try to just complete the course period, not even racing, and it's brutal. An emotional journey.
Great explanation. I really enjoyed it. Thank you!
Great job! Best explainer for beginners!
3:29 - The Jensie!!!
Great job Francis with all of the explanations!
@11:45 GAN! Lemond!!!!!
I didn't know about that lantern Rouge! That's funny, they seem to not mention it on all the other highlights 😂
Great explanation, this helped.
And it begins today!!!!
Looking forward to the daily TdF podcasts with the Cade Crew.🥰
Cheers 🌞🚴♀️🖖
I think an interesting race fact that perhaps newbies don’t know is the idea of all riders receiving the ‘same time’ during pack finishes.
Holy crap this was useful thanks! 🎉
very well explained and articulated! I tried to follow last year's race and got lost. this clip answered all my technical questions about the race. the only question I have left is for the men's race production, Are the racers in any significant danger by the encroaching spectators along the race? personally, I got very annoyed watching their obnoxious cheering and stepping onto the course itself. But I confess that I don't care for soccer fans in Europe either or NFL fans here in the USA. But during the race, it's looks a bit dangerous and certainly distracting for the riders.
Brilliant!
Best TDF introduction
Thank you!
What if you are wearing the yellow jersey and you are under 26? What happens to the white jersey?
Love this video, we need more straight to the point videos like this, Thanks!
Nice clear explanation! Thank you! I have watched the TDF for years and never knew about the slowest rider challengers!
I won the tour a few years ago. I'm still exhausted.
Excellent episode
Been watching it ever since I was a kid and I approve that you have summarised the tour well. What I think you could have added is how the GC tactics can play out on a given stage. I find that so exciting, when there's a breakaway with a GC rider - they could literally change the entire race if they don't get chased down. Or remember that absolutely crazy descent by Chris Froome in 2015/16? That stuff is so exciting
Got a fun fact about this year's edition: This year is the first time (aside from the first edition) there have been no riders who have lived to experience a French overall win. Last French win was in 1985, oldest rider will be Geraint Thomas (From Team Ineos and UK), born in 1986 (and winner in 2018)
Bloody brilliant!
Mention the real heros of TdF, the doctors and "nutritionists".