I’m really enjoying le grimpeur blog’s series on Défaillance (links below). I love this image of Greg Lemond, bent over his handlebars as his strength ebbs away on Le Col du Tourmalet in the 1991 Tour de France. It reminds me well of going up Alpe d’Huez on July 4. Now that most of my posts fall into the armchair category, it feels apt to reflect on a waning of form.
LeMond watches the ‘91 leaders ride away on the Tourmalet. [via le grimpeur
Défaillance. A sudden weakness. A synonym: un jour sans. A day without. All cyclists experience it sooner or later, from the most hardened professional to the lowliest amateur pretender. It differs from the ‘knock’, when the body runs out of energy, and the remedy for the knock is simple: take on more sustenance. Défaillance is something else, more insidious, its symptoms like a creeping dread. On a climb, one struggles to find one’s rhythm, or settle into the saddle and spin, to find a gear that feels comfortable, to follow wheels as they pull inexorably ahead. The remedy is also not immediately obvious. Overtraining? Undertraining? A myriad of other possibilities, physical or even mental.
Having read his autobiography earlier this year I feel like know the man (at least a tiny bit) personally. All the better to see him doing so well in this year’s Tour. His form in the mountains has been unshakeable, and to see Armstrong grimly talking about ‘the threat of Wiggins’ is a bizarre sight.
Since he moved up from 6th to 3rd after the Verbier stage Wiggo has been interviewed every night by ITV, and has provided a calm voice of reason amid the chaos and politics of the race. He’s like the everyman among demi-gods – an impression reinforced by the certainty (having read his book) that Wiggins is not on drugs.
[As a side issue, is this a reflection of a cleaner Tour? In years past would Wiggo have been able to hold his own amid a fully doped peloton?]
As I write, in the middle of today’s highlights programme, Wiggo is still holding his own and still lies 3rd in the GC. Here’s to a podium finish on Sunday…
Project Le Tour by Brent Humphreys is worth a look. There are some fantastic observational shots of the Tour over the last couple of years, which really capture the spirit of the event and the people who watch it. Thanks to Chris for the link.
On a web note, this is an example of a Flash website, which, rather than creating an immersive, fluid experience for the viewer (which I imagine was the aim), actually just forces the viewer to do what the site wants him to do.
The intro is ridiculous. I was frantically clicking to try and escape it and view some actual content.
The site forces you to view full screen. Sure, you can ESC to exit but why not just give me the option?
Images pop into view from the right hand side. I had to figure out what was going on, it’s not immediately obvious.
What do I do if I don’t want to view the images in the order Brent has decided? They aren’t chronological, so how do I quickly flick through, how do I see the whole lot to figure out how many there are, how do I go back and find the one I like at a later date? Er – I can’t.
A rider from the Cervelo team fires out of the bend at Cournonterral.
Last Tuesday I watched Stage 4 of the Tour – contre la montre par equipe – live in Montpellier. It was awesome, check out the full Flickr set.
I and a couple of others were stationed at Cournonterral, a spot about 27km into the 45km route. We’d been recommended the place by local Tour rider Stephane Goubert, and it was ideal: we could watch the riders coming at us, then looping through the bend, then heading back out up a slight incline. We cracked out the rosé and baguettes and settled in.
I spotted Cavendish in the green jersey, but sadly couldn’t recognise either Wiggo or David Millar. However I did see Lance powering the front of the Astana train. The highlight of the day was probably seeing Fabien Cancellara ride through in the yellow jersey amid his Saxo-Bank teammates. La Maillot Jaune really gleams in the flesh, it was quite a sight.
Another bike-related find courtesy of Christian’s Colourschool blog. The poster is hand-printed by Cricket Press, and you can buy direct from their website (although, sadly, this particular poster is no longer available).
I like the mention of ‘Al’s Bar’ at the finish.
Do zombies’ legs feel pressure or do they ride without pain? I’m thinking of Tom Simpson’s final moments on the Ventoux during the 1967 Tour de France. Ripped on amphetamine and half a bottle of brandy, he demanded to be put back on his bike when he fell off the first time. The second time he fell off he was probably already dead from heart failure, his hands gripping the bars so hard his fingers had to be prised off by the Tour doctor. My guess is Simpson had long since stopped feeling pain on that brutal mountainside – his ascent was indeed the Ride of the Living Dead.
I’ve become slightly addicted to watching video clips of Lance Armstrong riding the Tour. I like the really blurry ones with bad, tinny house soundtracks. Like this one:
Alpe d’Huez – the finale of La Marmotte. Yep, it’s going to hurt.
