Back in 1995 I was on a tour in the French Pyrenees with several friends. We were just beginning the climb up to the Col du Souloir on a back road when the cops pulled us over. Soon came a strange procession of vehicles honking horns and throwing souvenirs onto the road. A fourth of July parade in France??? Then helicopters came hovering over. Motorcycles pulled up and guys with cameras jumped off. Then these guys came by. It looked like the Tour de France but they were all riding fairly leisurely in one big pack as if just another Sunday club ride.
Yes, it was the Tour de France! Turns out that the stage win had already been awarded to the Motorola team. One of their teammates, Fabio Casartelli, had been killed the previous day in a crash on the Col de Portet d'Aspet. Today's stage win would not influence the final standings so the Tour awarded the win to the Motorola team to benefit Casartelli's family. We got back to our hotel room in time to watch the touching finish on TV with the team crossing the finish line together in a row.
That's me in the yellow jersey just ahead of Armstrong. (standing on the sidelines with the camera)
