#TDFSelfie: The New Hazard at the Tour de France

The 2014 Tour de France began on July 5, and it only took a few days of competition for a new danger to arise. No, it's not the cobblestones or the sheer intensity of the race. It's the most modern form of vanity—the selfie. The new selfie craze at the Tour is irritating the cyclists, especially with a near non-existent boundary between them and the spectators. 

Australian racing cyclist Zak Dempster went down in a crash during the final stretch of the first stage on Saturday, but was not seriously hurt. Instead, he shared his views about the other threat the cyclists are facing in the Tour this year.

Other competitors also took to Twitter to express their anger and objection to this year's growing trend, like American Tejay van Garderen. 

The hashtag #TDFselfie is growing on Twitter and Instagram as the Tour continues on, and even some of the selfie-snapping spectators are acknowledging the photos' risks:

And the safer selfie? This guy's got it down: