Ooh-la-la! Tout le monde! La plume de ma tante! Fromage!
Pardon?
Sorry, I was coming over a bit French there. You see, I'm all excited about the upcoming Tour de France.
Ah, into your bikes are you? I was rather more interested in the fact that we'll get our first sight of Jaguar's first ever SUV once the push-bikes have gone whizzing by.
Quoi? Qu'est que c'est?
It's the F-Pace - Jag's first ever SUV-style vehicle, which platform shares with the really rather lovely new XE saloon. As Jag has been the official vehicle supporter to the victorious Team Sky cycling squad (usually with XF Sportwagon estates) it makes rather a lot of sense to give the F-Pace a first outing as the official four-wheeled back up to the speedy Froome. If nothing else, being used as a team car will give the prototype a good battering to see how it stands up.
The F-Pace prototype will support Chris Froome on the first of 21 stages, the individual time trial, which starts at Utrecht in the heart of the Netherlands on Saturday, 4 July. The time trial heads south towards Belgium over a twisting route of 8.5 miles, the riders setting a blistering pace and pushing themselves to the limits of endurance even at this early stage of the competition.
Froome, said: "Team Sky is built around performance, and Jaguar's engineering expertise and technological innovations, especially over the last 12 months co-engineering the Pinarello Dogma F8 and Dogma K8-S bikes, consistently helps get the best out of the team. I'm sure the F-Pace will be no different."
He added: "The tour is everything to me. There's something special about it. The hype, the passion, the crowds. Everything is completely overwhelming. I can't wait to get on the road now and get into the race. I'm back with a vengeance this year."
The Team Sky F-Pace prototype will also sport a cutting edge bike racking solution, developed by Jaguar Land Rover's Special Vehicle Operations. The rack has a unique telescopic clamp, designed specifically to optimise the quick-release of Team Sky's Pinarello Bolide Time Trial bikes.
"We are delighted to be supporting Team Sky again at such a prestigious sporting event and are excited at the prospect of the F-Pace being seen in action in public for the first time," said Kevin Stride, Vehicle Line Director, Jaguar F-Pace.
"The Jaguar F-Pace is a striking balance of performance, style and practicality," he continued. "And what better way to showcase the vehicle's attributes than on this crucial first leg of the Tour de France."
The cars will still be covered in a subtle camouflage though, wearing Team Sky branding of course, so we will have to wait until September's Frankfurt Motor Show to see the F-Pace in all its glory.
Ah. Voulez-vous coucher avec moi ce soir?
Not just now, thank you.
Neil Briscoe - 1 Jul 2015