In 2011 GoPro partnered with a number of teams at the Tour of California to mount cameras on both bikes and support vehicles.  The videos from this experiment are nothing short of incredible.  Any amateur cyclist can now see what it actually looks like to be in the middle of the peloton as it accelerates in the sprint.  We get to ride leadout for Matt Goss as he attempts the win.  Finally we get to see what the support personnel see moments after a crash.

Overview

Sprint Finish

Neutral Support

Unfortunately the videos are limited to this single race due to the UCI determining that any technology they are not familiar with must be illegal to race with.  Just imagine how much more exciting watching a race would be if half the footage came from inside the peloton (it works pretty well for NASCAR and F1).  ESPN would be much more willing to broadcast TDF and Giro highlights if part of the highlights show the race from the riders view.

Taken one step further imagine watching cycling where not only can we get live video from inside the peloton, but also onboard data from the cyclists as well.  Whose putting the most power down on the intermediate sprint or whose heart rate is skyrocketing up the Alp D’Huez?  Watching motorsports we can listen in to the pit\race conversations, why could we not do the same in cycling.  Which team is planning the next big attack?  Maybe we couldn’t get this live (since other teams might overwhelmingly benefit from this information), but maybe it can be provided post race.

At this point I believe that cycling (and triathlon) could use any positive news that they can.  With the recent negativity provided by the doping scandals, the sport could use a new exciting light shined on the sport.  Making use of the many technologies already available that could help audiences see just how exciting the sport is would go a long way to making this happen, and luckily we have these GoPro videos to help show us the way.