Gary Verity: Roll up, roll up and help make this Tour’s grandest ever Grand Départ

The Grand Départ of the Tour de France will be one of the most historic sporting events ever to happen in Yorkshire’s illustrious history.

Its sheer size and spectacle will, we know, simply blow people away.

Those that see it on TV in 188 different countries will wish they were here, we hope, and maybe one day venture to Yorkshire to see for themselves the county which the race’s owners, ASO, deemed worthy of their event.

The people of Yorkshire are coming to realise that this is it, it’s happening, the biggest free show on earth will be coming to their county next July.

As long ago as December 2012 when it was announced that our bid had been successful, or even further back in March 2012 when we launched the Back le Bid campaign, there was a huge amount of support for bringing the Tour to our county.

The campaign received over 160,000 pledges of support. However, a lot of people still didn’t really appreciate exactly how far-reaching and diverse the benefits of bringing this massive spectacle to Yorkshire would be.

Selling the county as a world-class cycling destination worthy of Le Tour was about much more than demonstrating that it has suitable roads and challenging climbs.

As anyone who has watched the Tour in person or seen the TV coverage can tell you, if cycling is the leading man of the show then the host must be more than the set: it’s the best supporting actor.

The key to a successful bid was convincing the organisers that Yorkshire has the potential to stage not just the Tour but a beautiful, delicious, historical and fun Tour, harnessing some of our great attractions, mouth-watering food, world-class heritage and gorgeous landscapes.

The grandest of Grand Départs if you will.

As part of that, Welcome to Yorkshire and our key partners worked to bring these things to national and international attention: taking the Tour organisers on a guided helicopter tour, serving up some of Yorkshire’s finest cuisine, gaining the backing of star riders such as Mark Cavendish and showcasing the county in a series of special promotional films.

Our bid fortunately won them over, but a knock-on effect has been the awakening of this great passion for their county for which Yorkshire folk are famous. The torch, as it were, has been lit.

The evidence can be seen all over the visitor economy.

Hoping to earn a piece of the estimated £100m windfall that the Tour will bring to the Yorkshire economy, many hotels and guest houses are already booked solid over the Tour week, French themes and flags already fly in cafes and beers already brew in anticipation.

It’s inspiring to see the groundswell of enthusiasm for the Tour take hold over Yorkshire but there’s still a lot to be done, and a lot to do, before the world comes to our great county.

Plans are well underway for a Cultural Festival to take place in the 100 days prior to the Tour that will see communities, artists and performers throughout Yorkshire bringing their own ideas to life about how to showcase the region’s culture to the world.

We all know that God’s own county has what it takes to stage the grandest ever Grand Départ, all it needs to succeed is the continued effort, enthusiasm and entrepreneurialism of the great Yorkshire public to leave a mark on the hearts and minds of cycling fans worldwide.