Behind the Scenes of ITV4's Dauphiné Commentary

I was invited to come and watch the live commentary of the Dauphiné on ITV4, an opportunity I wasn’t going to miss, especially as Geraint Thomas is sitting in yellow and set to take the overall.

For me, watching cycling on TV is a fairly solitary affair, it’s not like soccer? no, football? whatever you call it...? where you all go down the pub to watch Sky Sports (unless you're watching De Ronde at a roadside/cobble-side pub on the Kwaremont.)

The thought of watching the final stage of the Dauphiné with the live feed and insight of David Millar, Ned Boulting, and Gary Imlach was quite exciting.

I wanted to capture the afternoon in a 'behind the scenes' vibe, shot in black and white on my old camera, the way Gered Mankowitz captured the Rolling Stones in the recording studio; I realise the subject matter is quite different, but there's something cool about capturing people just doing their thing, as if you're not even there.

The final stage of the Dauphiné didn't disappoint, Adam Yates won the stage in the most savage way possible... flying round Daniel Navarro Garcia... on the line...

Geraint Thomas suffered a puncture but was towed back by his teammates, Tao Geoghegan Hart was a super domestique, some seriously good riding and teamwork from T.

This has to be G's greatest victory, yet. It was amazing to see the race unfold on the live feed with the ITV team. David and Ned spotted things on screen before they even happened, attacks, form, fatigue, positioning etc, they have some serious predator-like observation skills.

Thanks, guys.

Gareth