Elefantino
02-16-2009, 09:50 AM
So we're in Santa Rosa yesterday, chilling (literally) between the women's crit and the men's finish. My father-in-law is watching Daytona at a local pub and I'm wandering the bike expo when I see a tent marked "Tour de France."
Fade to flashback...
In 2003, on the rest day of the Tour, we climbed Mont Ventoux. It was about 90 degrees in the Provence that day, and sunny. I wore my pink Mercatone kit. We get to the top and it's about 45 degrees and misty. Really, really cold. I stop long enough to get my medal, have my picture taken on the roof (above the 1912m sign), and to buy an ugly red windbreaker for the descent because I don't want to, um, die. We get to the bottom, shed our clothes, pack our bikes and hit the TGV for the ride back to Paris and home.
I left the windbreaker, unfortunately, somewhere, lost, never to be found.
Fade back to present ...
At the TdF booth who do I see but the owner of Custom Getaways, Chris Tardy, and his friend, business partner and former nationally-ranked tri guy George Altieri at the TdF booth. Custom is the outfit I went with in 2003 and is now the U.S.'s only official Tour tour provider (Aside: I give them my highest vacation rating, ever; PM me for further endorsments) and Chris and George and I caught up on things, reminiscing about our great trip and how George pulled me up all those cols. Because it was sub-arctic yesterday in Santa Rosa, I asked Chris if he was cold (he lives in Florida half the time) and he said that is why he was wearing his red Mont Ventoux jacket.
Hey, I said. I had one just like that that I bought the day we climbed it but I lost it.
Long pause.
"Someone left this one in the van that day," he said.
Yep. It was my windbreaker.
We all fell over laughing. And, to show you that a good tour host always thinks of his customers first, he immediately peeled off the jacket and handed it to me.
Nearly six years later, I have my windbreaker back. Unfortunately, it's an XXL, because that's all they had that day. But it's not meant to be worn, I guess. I think I'll frame it!
:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana:
Fade to flashback...
In 2003, on the rest day of the Tour, we climbed Mont Ventoux. It was about 90 degrees in the Provence that day, and sunny. I wore my pink Mercatone kit. We get to the top and it's about 45 degrees and misty. Really, really cold. I stop long enough to get my medal, have my picture taken on the roof (above the 1912m sign), and to buy an ugly red windbreaker for the descent because I don't want to, um, die. We get to the bottom, shed our clothes, pack our bikes and hit the TGV for the ride back to Paris and home.
I left the windbreaker, unfortunately, somewhere, lost, never to be found.
Fade back to present ...
At the TdF booth who do I see but the owner of Custom Getaways, Chris Tardy, and his friend, business partner and former nationally-ranked tri guy George Altieri at the TdF booth. Custom is the outfit I went with in 2003 and is now the U.S.'s only official Tour tour provider (Aside: I give them my highest vacation rating, ever; PM me for further endorsments) and Chris and George and I caught up on things, reminiscing about our great trip and how George pulled me up all those cols. Because it was sub-arctic yesterday in Santa Rosa, I asked Chris if he was cold (he lives in Florida half the time) and he said that is why he was wearing his red Mont Ventoux jacket.
Hey, I said. I had one just like that that I bought the day we climbed it but I lost it.
Long pause.
"Someone left this one in the van that day," he said.
Yep. It was my windbreaker.
We all fell over laughing. And, to show you that a good tour host always thinks of his customers first, he immediately peeled off the jacket and handed it to me.
Nearly six years later, I have my windbreaker back. Unfortunately, it's an XXL, because that's all they had that day. But it's not meant to be worn, I guess. I think I'll frame it!
:banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: :banana: