So apparently there’s some kind of bike ride around Dubai that’s lasting four days, taking in all the major sights and busiest districts of the city.

I’m sure it’ll be a great race for all those long-legged, pointy-headed, professional cyclists who’ve gathered in the UAE to take part in the Dubai Tour. And for those who spectate, the experience of seeing the world’s top riders flash by at 55-60kph – even if it’s all over in a few seconds – will be memorable.

Not to mention the photos that are bound to circulate of the peloton streaking past the Burj, making its way up the Palm and heading out beyond the sand dunes towards the Haja Mountains (beat that, Tour de France!). I’m craning my neck out the bedroom window to try to get a glimpse, as I write.

Inspired to get on your bike? Try this cycle track located on the Al Qudra Road (past Arabian Ranches).

Residents are being urged to bear with the inconveniences posed by this inaugural race – and by inconveniences, I don’t just mean the wide-scale rolling road closures; I mean the 35+, last-minute school shutdowns announced yesterday.

A shutdown too many for most mums, who’ve already endured cancelled school days due to rain and the Expo win. (What next? A truck carrying bananas and choc chips will collide with a truck carrying ice cream, and schools will be closed because it’s Sundae, predicts my friend K).

Some schools have remained open, including ours, but that doesn’t mean you can actually get there to pick up your child – so plenty of kids have been kept home to avoid a potential New Year’s Eve Palmageddon scenario.

My DH, who happily is on school-run duty today, just set out, two hours early to get 10 minutes down the road. He then has an elaborate plan to feed the kids cheeseburgers to kill time, before hopefully making it back up here when the roads re-open at 3.30pm (that’s if the race is on time).

“Will you be ok?” I asked, feeling horribly guilty about the three-and-a-half-hour school run he had ahead of him. “I think there’s an escape route over the desert, via that bumpy road – then if you just go 20km in the wrong direction, make a U-turn, you might get there.”

“Well, I’ve made it through the Suez Canal. I’ve flown over the Himalayas, crossed the Pacific. I think I’ll be ok,” he replied with an unphased smile, safe in the knowledge it’s probably all going to be a sandstorm in a teacup.

I do hope the race is a success, I really do – but next year, could it possibly not be sponsored by Dubai’s parents?

Water packed (check), snacks (check), entertainment (check), travel potty (check). Pic via Dubai Insider