tour of Qatar

[redrhodie]

I watched this on Versus the other day, and was wondering, where are the spectators? There were no people watching along the routes, and maybe <20 people at the start and finish lines. Anyone know why? It seems to me that even if a sport is not popular in an area, people would still come to watch just for the novelty. I wonder if attending is invitation only? Seems sad for the riders.

[lawnchick22]

Couple of reasons, I think.
Not a lot of excitement there...flat stages, no KoM jersey, a 2k TT. It may be considered more of a 'training' ride and.....

the recent doping scandals

[shootingstar]

I wonder what the temperature is like there at this time of year.

I knew 2 different people who worked in Dubai (also in Middle East) at construction sites. The temperatures would climb to 50 degrees C. That's way over 90 degrees F. (I'm too lazy to get the metric to imperial measurement converter here...)

I'm sure there are also women are involved /interested in cycling...but would be expressed different there vs. here in North America. So, I wouldn't expect a ton of local Arab women being spectators on-site at a bike race at this time. Maybe cycling doesn't yet have the same cache /interest as ie. soccer.

There are alot of ex-pats working in those areas..which is where at this time, competitive cycling in that country might have an instant audience/fan base.

[redrhodie]

Couple of reasons, I think.
Not a lot of excitement there...flat stages, no KoM jersey, a 2k TT. It may be considered more of a 'training' ride and.....

the recent doping scandals

None of those things would stop me from coming (obviously, since I even watched it on tv). Boonen making his comeback, Fabian, Cav (who took a good fall in the tt), O'grady, a bunch of guys I'd love to see. I'd pay to watch them train. Who am I kidding, I'd pay to watch them bowl.

I suspect there's another reason, because even if the entire populace cared about doping, the heat, or thought the race would be boring, there should be some people who would be at least a little curious to see some of the world's finest athletes compete in their backyard. There was almost no one. It was weird. I can't help but wonder why this race is put on there. Someone is obviously paying big money for it. Why?

[Laguna]

I watched that race too. That looked to be the flattest, windiest, most boring, race course I have ever seen. I'm sure there must be some nice parts of the country but man...that looked brutal. Not sure the Qatar Chamber of Commerce hit a home run...at least from an aesthetic point of view.

[marni]

plus, most arab women aren't allowed out without a male escort, and the expats all require body guards, plus it is one of the more relatively unpopulated arab countries, and the majority of the population that there is would be found in the cities since that is the only place anything really exists other than heat, sand and wind.

been there, lived there, enjoyed it but it had nothing to do with life in the unfettered US.

[shootingstar]

How long did you live there, marni? I'm glad you spoke up..I did very much want to hint that there were various cultural preconditions that wouldn't be cultivating an intense cycling culture in certain countries like one would get in Europe or parts of North America (however paltry cyclists might be even in certain parts of North America.)

I have applied for jobs in the Middle East but did notice their rather stringent requirements..even for librarian / library manager roles, where there was a clear separation between men and women at the university and college level... by having men's universities and women's universities. For an ex-pat to work with the students, clearly they look for foreign candidates that fit within their restrained lifestyle.

To me, that says volumes about how the sexes should or should not interact even if only at the intellectual level.

I believe I read somewhere in an academic journal that in Kuwait there is actually a problem of rising obesity in certain local groups, particularily if people are affluent....the hot climate (which doesn't encourage intense exercise outdoors or in non-air conditioned buildings), the cultural restrictions particularily on Muslim women to exercise...if the sport requires more "revealing" of the body parts...