"Stunning. Exciting. Awesome. Absolutely amazing" - Huddersfield's verdict on the Tour De France 2014

The Tour De France flies down Chapel Hill

They ran out of superlatives as the Tour de France swept through Lockwood.

Stunning. Exciting. Awesome. Absolutely amazing.

And those comments came from many of the thousands of people who packed the pavements, walls and gardens lining every inch of the route in glorious sunshine yesterday.

It was a carnival day, a carnival atmosphere, to rival anything seen in the town before.

Hours before the Tour cavalcade raced though with horns blaring and lights flashing , the party got under way.

Deckchairs. Barbecues. Picnic boxes. Sun hats and cycling shirts. Suncream and chilled lager.

Even the Sunday cyclists testing out the route early in the morning got a cheer and a wave.

Many picked their spot behind the barriers as early as 8am and were in jubilant spirits all day long.

Families trudged down Lockwood Scar and along Meltham Road laden with bottles and butties and bunting.

By the time the colour spectacle that is the Tour caravan hit the road early in the afternoon, there were people four and five deep on some stretches of pavement.

Pc Caroline Newsome, who patrols the patch, was working on a day off and did not want to miss a minute of the spectacle.

“It’s absolutely fantastic. It’s one of the best things ever to hit Huddersfield.

“I was here at 7.10am and there were already people grabbing a spot and determined to make it a day to remember”.

Round the corner at Lockwood Baptist Church, the Rev Brian Dickinson slapped on another coat of suncream and adjusted more bunting and flags.

“We made it a real family day, with seats for the old people who could not stand for long and fun for the kids.

The Rev Brian Davison at Lockwood Baptist Church

“We set up a disabled viewing area for residents of Victoria Court care home and they loved it.

“We even had a big screen inside the church so that people could see the race go past and then watch them tackeld Holme Moss”.

As the caravan started to make its way from Huddersfield towards Holme Moss, the crowd grew more boisterous and more excited.

The trucks, giant bottles, teddy bears and sports cars flashed past to tumultous applause, with staff hurling souvenirs into the crowds.

And then it was time for the cyclists, amazing athletes flashing past at an incredible speed in a blur of noise and colour and excitement.

“It was absolutely fantastic, such a fantastic day”, said Newsome councillor Julie Stewart-Turner.

“What a tremendous job they have done in Huddersfield”.

Young brothers Harrison and George Beattie had a fallout.

Harrison, nine, was adamant that the cyclists were the best. But younger brother George, seven, was more enamoured with the magnificent cavalcade of support cars, trucks, lorries and motorbikes.

They had joined their mum Katy, of Taylor Hill, and sister Elizabeth, 6, to grab a front row seat and waited for hours in the sun, enjoying hot dogs and ice-cream. Katy said: “It has been really exciting and I’m so glad we were here”.

Cycle fans Marion James and John Brown made the long trip from Southampton to watch the event with friends Chas Ball and Gill Clarke. The four of them set up their seats on Bridge Street hours before the race and relished every minute.

“It has been brilliant. We were able to see the fun in St George’s Square on Saturday and the race was the icing on the cake”, said Marion.

Chantelle Bowman and her mum Elizabeth, of Crosland Moor, loved every minute of the day.

The pair bagged front-row seats in the huge crowds thronging Lockwood and cheered loudly at every police car, every motorcycle and every cyclist.

“It was so exciting”, said Chantelle. “It is something that we are probably never going to see in our town again”