Alnwick man Quentin Field-Boden to ride Tour de France route

Jul 1 2010 by Sara Nichol, The Journal

A NORTHUMBERLAND cyclist is hoping to become one of the oldest riders to complete the route of the Tour de France.

Quentin Field-Boden, 51, is today gearing-up to start the 3,651km (2,268miles) Tour de France, sometimes biking more than 240km a day.

But the part-time radiographer, of Alnwick won’t be riding out with the likes of his cycling hero, Lance Armstrong or star Britons Mark Cavendish and Bradley Wiggins.

Instead, on what he has called the ‘Tour de Velo’, he will be riding the route alone, a few days before the race proper starts.

Part-time cycling coach Mr Field-Boden has been training for 18 months in preparation for the challenge – which will see him climb 10 major mountains.

Supported by the high-tech clothing firm Skins, which also sponsors several Tour de France teams, Mr Field-Boden’s goal is simply to see if he can complete such a tough challenge at his age.

Mr Field-Boden, who lives with his wife Lorena, said: “It’s a bit unusual what I’m doing and I don’t really know why I decided to do it. I have been cycling for a while and was always interested in the Tour de France. I’ve always wanted to try and push myself so, one day, I wondered if I would be able to cycle the Tour de France route at my age. Obviously, I can’t do it at the same speed as the professionals who do it, so I’m doing it a few days before them.

“I started looking into the logistics of doing the route about 18 months ago and I’ve been training and making preparations ever since.

“The route is done in 20 stages and, on one day when the route is all on road surface, I will be doing 244km. Apart from distances like that, I will have to contend with the Pyrenees and the Alps.”

Unlike the professionals, Mr Field-Boden will be doing it all without any support from fellow riders or a back-up team. The only luxury he has allowed himself is to have his clothing and spare cycle parts transported from stop-to-stop.

He is 15 years older than the oldest winner of the Tour de France, who was Firmin Lambot of Belgium, 36, in 1922, and 12 years older than this year’s oldest rider, the Spaniard Iñigo.

“I’m not nervous but I do have what I would call healthy apprehension. I once did four days of cycling 100 miles a day, which took me from the Lake District to Scotland and back to Alnwick, but that is nowhere near as tough as this.”

He expects to take around three weeks to complete the route.