In a recent report, the United States has more hours of cycling coverage on television than any other nation… what.. WHAT? Amazing to think about that.
Of course that takes in to consideration 3 weeks of four 3 hour broadcasts of the Tour de France on NBC Sports.
Here are some ways that available in the Palm Springs/Southern California area to enjoy the best in bike racing coverage from around the globe.
Cable Television
NBC Sports (Time Warner Cable 692)
The journey began as Outdoor Life to OLN to Verses to NBC Universal to NBC Sports network. This is where US cycling fans turn to in July to watch the Tour de France. Venerable commentators Phil Ligget and former 7/11 rider and character Bob Roll bring their expertise to some of the year’s biggest one day and stage races.
https://www.nbcsports.com/cycling-schedule
beIN Sport (Time Warner Cable 508)
A new player in the local market, this channel is co-owned by Time Warner and Al Jazeera. It seems that beIN will provide everything that NBC SC doesn’t. Early Belgian races, Tirreno Adriactico, Milan San Remo, and perhaps the Giro de Italia!
On- Line
There are a number of options but 3 very good “Go To” sources provide top shelf access.
What appears to have started out as a bicycle travel site has turned into a great place for the best in cycling. Each race has an all-encompassing dashboard aggregating video recaps, reports from the best news sources, photos, race information including stage profiles, maps, timetables, and results and links to live video feeds from around the world. There is nothing like watching a Belgian Classic on Sporza with the commentators speaking Flemmish.
Sometimes some bouncing between the feeds is needed to find the clearest feed, and the feed for an Italian race begins at 5:30am, but nothing beats a live race from Europe.
A second fee site is CyclingFans. Less informative as it lacks the dashboard, it still has links to numerous live feeds from all over Europe. Another trick used to enhance the joy of streaming these channels is a wireless HDMI connection that can turn your bigscreen tv into your computer’s extra monitor and you can watch the feed on your tv!
UCI Channel, YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/user/ucichannel)
Here you can find live and replays of even more varieties of bicycle racing. Whether it’s the 2013 Track Championships or the Cyclocross Worlds, it’s here.
Mobile
Look for more and more races and channels to add content to your smart phone. Last year’s apps for the Tour of California and the Exergy Tour womens race provided excellent coverage and the addition of the gps driven Tour Tracker to follow riders on the race map.
