Crowds line streets for Tour of Britain in St Helens

3:47pm Monday 10th September 2012 in News

Tour de France champion Bradley Wiggins in full flow on Main Street, Billinge, where large crowds gathered. Picture by BERNARD PLATT Tour de France champion Bradley Wiggins in full flow on Main Street, Billinge, where large crowds gathered. Picture by BERNARD PLATT

THOUSANDS lined streets in the borough today to watch some of the world's best cyclists compete in the Tour of Britain.

Stage two of the event saw the riders heading from Nottingham to Knowsley.

Part of the route took them through Garswood, Billinge, Crank and Rainford.

The race finished at Knowsley Safari Park where Team Sky's Mark Cavendish was beaten to the line by Australian Leigh Howard, the Orica-GreenEDGE sprinter.

The peloton had earlier arrived in the borough shortly after 2pm. Large crowds gathered at locations such as Main Street, Billinge, in Crank and on Higher Lane, in Rainford.

Hundreds of schoolchildren were there, keen to get sight of Tour de France champion Bradley Wiggins.

Among those gathered on Higher Lane were residents Tony and Ann Griffiths, who showed their support in an extra special way.

Keen cycler Tony, 61, and his wife Ann, 60, painted a banner to support Olympic hero Wiggins.

Tony told the Star: “Today has been wonderful! It’s great to see so many people coming out to support British cycling and see these amazing athletes.

“It may have only lasted a few seconds when they passed but we enjoyed the build up.”

Tony and Ann, of Rainford, watched both the Olympic and Paralympic events and were delighted to see so many people supporting the Tour of Britain.

Ann added: “It’s just wonderful to see so many people come to our village to see the event. The children from the school seemed to really enjoy it and that’s what it’s all about!”

There were a few unhappy residents in Rainford, however, after the ITV coverage of the event cut to an advert break as the tour went through the village.

Comments(16)

smith&weston says...
5:22pm Tue 11 Sep 12

Crowds.... you mean conscripted school kids whose teachers were only to happy to escape the classroom for a few hours. How is watching, drug abusing, lycra wearing, self serving egotists clog up a main road educational... well I'll leave that for some one else to explain.

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jimstevo says...
8:43am Wed 12 Sep 12

smith&weston wrote:
Crowds.... you mean conscripted school kids whose teachers were only to happy to escape the classroom for a few hours. How is watching, drug abusing, lycra wearing, self serving egotists clog up a main road educational... well I'll leave that for some one else to explain.
Here you go again 'Mr Grumpy!! It was a great event and 1000's lined the route.I am sure that you will be hearing from Bradley Wiggins,Mark Cavendish and the other 98 Cyclists' solicitors ,about your "drug abusing" allegations!

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fatherjessup says...
9:20am Wed 12 Sep 12

Why were the people of St.Helens conned into believing that the race was passing through here by the fancy LED signs on the ringway and the constant claims of "Tour of Britain comes to St.Helens". Well it didn't. Instead it skirted the town and passed through the backwaters of Billinge and Rainford where nobody wants to go anyway! Still it was a opportunity to use the fancy signage other than telling us that the Saints are playing and traffic flow in the area may increase.

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jimstevo says...
9:25am Wed 12 Sep 12

fatherjessup wrote:
Why were the people of St.Helens conned into believing that the race was passing through here by the fancy LED signs on the ringway and the constant claims of "Tour of Britain comes to St.Helens". Well it didn't. Instead it skirted the town and passed through the backwaters of Billinge and Rainford where nobody wants to go anyway! Still it was a opportunity to use the fancy signage other than telling us that the Saints are playing and traffic flow in the area may increase.
Those so called "backwaters" of Garswood,Billinge and Rainford just happen to be in St Helens! Sorry that they could not divert the Race to pass your home but it passed mine and it was great!

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frankly says...
9:43am Wed 12 Sep 12

Jimstevo....you should know by now, what to exspect from the likes of the two previous posters and their like,moan moan moan.God what happy little lives they must lead and are great role models for their siblings, "if they have siblings that is" A barrel of laughs are they not...."NOT" i assume.

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smith&weston says...
2:06pm Wed 12 Sep 12

I take it you've never heard of Lance Armstrong then..... plus
On 19 January, amateur French rider Alexandre Dougnier (Athletic Club de Boulogne-Billancourt
) was banned for three years by the FFC after a urine sample taking in May 2011 tested positive for twelve prohibited substances, thought to be a record number in an individual case.On 29 August, it was announced that 47 year old Soren Svenningsen tested positive for three banned substances in an amateur race on June 30 of the same year. Svenningsen was a board member of the Danish Cycling Union and of the Clearidium anti-doping agency. He resigned from the Cycling Union.On 18 July, it was announced that Bulgarian Ivailo Gabrovski had tested positive for EPO with his A sample after winning the third stage of the Presidential Tour of Turkey in Elmalı. He subsequently won the Tour, but could face a ban and the loss of his title. All in 2012 and thats only a fraction of the list. Would you like me to post them all ? Great example to be setting kids when so much money is spent on ' Don't Do Drugs " campaigns.

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frankly says...
7:11pm Wed 12 Sep 12

So, sports fans shouldnt follow a sport because members of that sport have been users.Thats claptrap, if that was the case all sports wouldnt be supported, all sports have had users.Yes drugs should not be taken, but you are tying up all in the same brush ,thats a load of tripe. Most sports fans follow the clean sportsmen/women because they know users are in the minority

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jimstevo says...
10:06pm Wed 12 Sep 12

'smith & weston' I would love to know what drugs you are on? They are certainly not 'happy pills'!!

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frankly says...
10:29pm Wed 12 Sep 12

jimstevo says...
10:06pm Wed 12 Sep 12

'smith & weston' I would love to know what drugs you are on? They are certainly not 'happy pills'!!”
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well i dont want any jimstevo,,lol

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Danny094 says...
11:08pm Wed 12 Sep 12

Great that the Tour could pass through Rainford & Billinge and great for the schoolchildren

(p.s. Rainford is not part of St Helens!!!!!!!! Only when St Helens want publicity and taxes from it!!!!!!!!!!! Take us back to West Lancs please!!!!!!!!!!!)

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jimstevo says...
11:24am Thu 13 Sep 12

'Danny094' "Take us back to West Lancs please!!!!!!!!!!!)"
I am sure the pensioners of Rainford would be made up to lose their Merseytravel Travel Passes!

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domformula1 says...
11:56am Thu 13 Sep 12

Danny094 wrote:
Great that the Tour could pass through Rainford & Billinge and great for the schoolchildren (p.s. Rainford is not part of St Helens!!!!!!!! Only when St Helens want publicity and taxes from it!!!!!!!!!!! Take us back to West Lancs please!!!!!!!!!!!)
Except when they want somewhere else to put a waste processing plant, not part of St Helens my back foot

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frankly says...
8:13am Fri 14 Sep 12

jimstevo..bus passes are national now..winners and losers on the train though so that part evens itself out.i can only travel be train from st helens to garswood on one line and to newton le willows on the other. But head the other way by train towards liverpool i can go as far as Chester or Southport, and throw in a ferry ride for good measure.

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jimstevo says...
3:20pm Fri 14 Sep 12

Not if you lived outside Merseyside!Local buses only,which was my point to 'Danny094' about wanting to move to Lancashire. Also National Bus Passes are going up in line with the retirement age,were as Merseytravel passes start at 60.

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frankly says...
4:35pm Fri 14 Sep 12

dont know the train rules for lancashire Jimstevo, but would think those residents could use the trains in that area, as we do re merseyside, and those who live in the greater manchester area would be the same, buses and trains in their area

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jimstevo says...
8:18am Sat 15 Sep 12

Leaving travel passes aside! This was a great event ,with National and Worldwide coverage and if nothing else showed our area in a good light,the shots from the helicopter were brilliant!

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