Tomorrow is Stage 7 of the Tour de France, and I know at least one person who will be with every sprint, climb, bump, jolt and crash on the route: my sister.

She’s into cycling. Really into cycling. She told me about some fantastic ways that she keeps connected with the cyclists in France even though she’s in the US.

(photo via http://www.everymantri.com)

Letour.fr: Find all the official information including maps and real time coverage.

Lots of Tour de France cyclists on Twitter (like super-Twitterer Lance Armstrong): “After the live coverage is over, I just give it about 30 minutes before all of the riders start updating Twitter. They post pictures from their team buses and give firsthand accounts of the day’s ride.”

Cyclist’s blogs (like Chris Horner’s and Simon Gerrans’): Many cyclists update every day on their experience of the race, giving you a personal perspective on the day, sometimes in harrowing detail.

And my favourite bit…

Google Maps live tracker: You can track the Colombia-HTC team (sponsored by Google) live on Google Maps. See each rider’s location on the course and even check each rider’s heart rate, power output and speed as well as the elevation of the climb live as they cycle. “Today on Stage 2 of the tour, there were lots of crashes due to a wet, steep course. The TV coverage only had limited access, so I checked out the Google tracker to figure out where everyone was, who had crashed, who was off the back of the pack, etc.”

And a bonus: Chalkbot. Send a short message and it will get printed in chalk on the streets of the course.

I think it’s brilliant that there are so many ways to get involved in such a personal and interactive way in something you love that’s happening so far away.

It makes the world seem smaller and people feel closer together.