Tour de France Trivia

The Devil Rides with the Tour de France

The Tour attracts massive crowds with all kinds of people, supporters,
exhibitionists and eccentrics:

The photo of the devil was taken by Bogdan Cristel and Le Diable is known as
Didi and is a common sight on the tour de France.

• 
  Top Ten Fun Trivia About the Tour de France
• The Devil Rides with
  the Tour de France
• Tour de France Jerseys
• Five Funny Cycling Shorts
• Who will
  be 'Le Patron' of the Tour de France in 2009?

Will
and Guy's Top Ten Fun Trivia About the Tour de France

1. 123,900 - calories burned by a rider in the course of the Tour.
2. 324,000 at 60rpm, 486,000 at 90rpm - number of pedal strokes taken
   per rider over the Tour.
3. Three - average number of chains worn out by a single rider.
4. 792 - total number of tyres used by the peloton.
5. 28 minutes 27 seconds - biggest ever winning margin. [Fausto
   Coppi over Stan Ockers, 1952]
6. 22 minutes 50 seconds - biggest winning margin on stage win.
   [Jose Luis Viejo, 1976]
7. Seven - highest total number of "King of the Mountains"
   victories. [Richard Virenque]
8. Eight seconds - smallest winning margin. [American Greg LeMond
   over Laurent Fignon in 1989]
9. 55.152 kph over 7.2km - fastest prologue. [Chris Boardman,
   1994]
10. Ten - fewest ever finishers [1919, out of 69 starters].

Two More

• 37 - age of the oldest winner. [Firmin Lambot, 1922]
• 20 - age of the youngest winner. [Henri Cornet, 1904]

Mario Cipollini, the rather flamboyant sprinter from Italy, was well
known for his non-standard kit. It often got him into trouble with the race
authorities and he and his team were fined.

The Devil Rides with the Tour de France

The Tour attracts massive crowds with all kinds of people, supporters,
exhibitionists and eccentrics:

The photo of the devil was taken by Bogdan Cristel and Le Diable is known as
Didi and is a common sight on the tour de France.

More Tour de France Trivia

• The first race was in 1903 and was won by Maurice Garin.
• Lance Armstrong has the most wins - 7.  One of those records we
  may never see beaten.
• Frenchmen have won the most Tours (36), Belgium (18), United States
  (10).
• Ottavio Bottechia held the coveted golden jersey from start to
  finish in 1924.
• Floyd Landis is not the first rider to be disqualified, in 1904
  Maurice Garin was disqualified for catching a train for part of the Tour
  de France.

Tour de France Jerseys

Yellow - Maillot Jaune
The Yellow Jersey of the Tour
de France is awarded to the rider with the quickest overall time and is,
therefore, the race leader. It was created in 1919 as an homage to the
yellow paper of l'Auto magazine, founder of the Tour de France in 1903.

Eddy Merckx wore it for a record 111 days.

Green - Maillot Vert
The next most prestigious jersey
is given to the leader in the points classification which rewards sprinters.  During each stage, points are attributed during the intermediary sprints and
at the finish. The jersey was introduced in 1953.  Germany's Erik Zabel won
it a record six consecutive times between 1996 and 2001.

Polka Dot - Maillot à Pois Rouges
Awarded to the
rider who earns most of the points at each summit of a hill or pass. The
winner is known as the King of the Mountains.

Although the award was introduced in 1933, this distinctive jersey was
not introduced until 1975.

White - Maillot Blanc
The newest jersey, the white,
was introduced in 1975. Given to the best young rider [under 25] in the
general classification, it was abandoned in 1989 but reintroduced in 1999.

Ten Items of Bicycle Trivia

1. The term 'bicycle' first became popular in the 1860s, in France
2. The first mountain bike was developed in 1977.
3. 10% of New York workers use bicycles as transportation.
4. There are over half billion bikes in China.
5. In the US there are more cyclist than golfers, skiers and tennis
   players combined.
6. Only 1% of Americans commute by bicycle. In Japan it is 15%.
7. With the same energy and resources that takes to build a
   medium-sized car, a hundred bicycles can be produced.
8. In China, there is 1 car to every 250 bicycles.
9. Fred A. Birchmore circled the globe by bicycle in 1935.
10. On a bicycle you can travel four times faster than you can walk
    using the same energy.

People Do Strange Things At The Tour de France

Dave Watson, an American, gap-jumped the Tour de France peloton during
the Alp d'Huez stage. Preparations were kept secret to prevent the
authorities stopping it. The jump took place just before the summit of the
col de Galibier. Jumping just over the back of the peloton as to take no
chances of injuring riders Dave sailed approximately 45 feet before touching
down. He was slightly injured but Will and Guy can report that he has fully
recovered.

An Alternative View: French Testing Methods Revealed
Thanks to Terry
C Wise

Anti French Sentiment [not supported by Will and Guy]
CNN is reporting
that Lance Armstrong may be stripped of his 7th Tour de France title.  In a
random check for banned substances, three were found in Armstrong's hotel
room.

The 3 substances banned by the French, that were found in Lance's hotel room
were as follows:

1. Toothpaste
2. Deodorant
3. Soap

Footnote:
Please send us your Tour de France trivia