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If you had a time machine, which year of Tour De France would be your first?

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If you had a time machine, which year of Tour De France would be your first?

Old 07-14-19, 03:26 PM
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uncle uncle
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If you had a time machine, which year of Tour De France would be your first?

If you could, what year of the Tour De France would you like to return to? I think my first choice would be the '49 Tour, with Fausto Coppi and Gino Bartali, battling things out for the yellow jersey (even though they were on the same team). I'd love to walk among the bikes of that vintage, and gawk at the whole spectacle of things. I could pick years where I would be more attuned to the bicycles, but I just would want to see these two legends so much, that the bicycles would take a back seat. How about you?
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Old 07-14-19, 03:33 PM
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2903.

I'd like to know if it lasts a millenia.
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Old 07-14-19, 05:12 PM
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Mid '70s ... where 531 ruled the road and rock ruled the radio.
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Old 07-14-19, 05:22 PM
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Originally Posted by iab
2903.

I'd like to know if it lasts a millenia.
Per the Associated Press of the future:
Carbon bearings cause 178 deaths and 784 injuries in bloodiest Tour ever
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Old 07-14-19, 05:34 PM
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I'm with Kraftwerk, any year Eddy Merckx is in it. (Cue that beautiful TdF footage)

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Old 07-14-19, 05:35 PM
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1987 just to see Stephen Roche bury himself up La Plagne. If you don't finish in the back of an ambulance with an oxygen mask, you haven't tried hard enough.
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Old 07-14-19, 06:00 PM
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1903. I'd live to watch some of those epic early stages, then afterwards, bop over to Austria and kill teenage Hitler.
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Old 07-14-19, 06:04 PM
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1986 lemond, hinault,
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Old 07-14-19, 06:26 PM
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Just watched Bob Roll being interviewed on NBCSN so the mid to late 80's for me, I want to see the "American" invasion. Sounds like they had a real time winning the '88 Giro. Bob is quite a character!
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Old 07-14-19, 06:29 PM
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I’d get the genetic engineering option on my time machine and go back to race it in 1957 without support vehicles. I want a good excuse to wear a tire over my shoulders.
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Old 07-14-19, 09:18 PM
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Originally Posted by Rollfast
I'm with Kraftwerk, any year Eddy Merckx is in it. (Cue that beautiful TdF footage)



Yeah, you could argue that seeing Merckx at his peek would be right up there with a Bartali/Coppi tour. Kraftwerk gets the musical nod, but John Tesh's stuff is really great too. Different, but great.
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Old 07-14-19, 09:24 PM
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Originally Posted by Goofball
1986 lemond, hinault,
Like Coppi/Bartali,or Anquetil/Poulidor, it's hard to argue which face off in history represented the greatest Tour battle... I guess maybe your favorite bicycle era might help one decide.
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Old 07-14-19, 11:18 PM
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1969 When Eddy won ALL the Jerseys and then probably 86 Slaying the Badger
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Old 07-15-19, 01:22 AM
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1957, Jacques Anquetil.
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Old 07-15-19, 12:51 PM
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I'd want to see a 50;s tour, too! My favorite era for bikes--familiar but different in important ways, and I'd be doing the most bike-snooping possible like who was really making the Peugeots, Stellas, Helmets, etc.
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Old 07-15-19, 01:14 PM
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Youtube works pretty well for me as a time machine. 1954 TdF time trial:


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Old 07-15-19, 05:38 PM
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1998.

I'd win after they kick out the cheats.
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Old 07-15-19, 08:03 PM
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Originally Posted by non-fixie
Youtube works pretty well for me as a time machine. 1954 TdF time trial:


https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_c...&v=9r9_Y3JzbaY
Yeah, there is some really great old time bicycle racing stuff on youtube. Stuff that I'd probably never get the chance to appreciate, if youtube wasn't a thing. I kinda dream of breathing in the atmosphere of the event, taking in a 360 panoramic view, so I could not only take in the race itself, but all the pre-race carnival atmosphere, and absorb the response of the crowd.
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Old 07-15-19, 08:06 PM
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1988

Technically, if I can only go back once to a Tour de France, it'd be 1989. Fignon and Lemond dueling it out for 8 seconds time difference.

I would like to go back a year before that though and stay for two tours and in between see Andy Hampsten win the Giro d'Italia.
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Old 07-15-19, 08:14 PM
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Originally Posted by mechanicmatt
Technically, if I can only go back once to a Tour de France, it'd be 1989. Fignon and Lemond dueling it out for 8 seconds time difference.

I would like to go back a year before that though and stay for two tours and in between see Andy Hampsten win the Giro d'Italia.
I was fortunate enough to be in my bicycling heyday when Lemond was in the Tour. If would be great to see this tour live though, instead of taking it in on the TV. Lemond's and Hampsten's successes were a big contributing factor to my interest in bicycling.
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Old 07-15-19, 08:49 PM
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Originally Posted by uncle uncle
I was fortunate enough to be in my bicycling heyday when Lemond was in the Tour. If would be great to see this tour live though, instead of taking it in on the TV. Lemond's and Hampsten's successes were a big contributing factor to my interest in bicycling.
Mine too. 9-10 year old me. Fell in love with cycling forever those years.

Lemond's success was at least covered on TV. Hampsten's was like a tall tale passed around by cyclist's like a retelling of Paul Bunyan.
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Old 07-16-19, 11:14 AM
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Best part of that 1954 video of time trial starts was lardbutt in the white linen suit shoving the cyclists to a start. I wonder how many cyclists were "accidentally" dumped with an errant shove before the tour switched to neutral starts from a short ramp with only balance assist.
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Old 07-16-19, 12:28 PM
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Originally Posted by SurferRosa
Mid '70s ... where 531 ruled the road and rock ruled the radio.
I thought you'd pick 1988 - when Surfer Rosa came out! Come On Pilgrim!

I'd pick '88 anyway for Lemond/Fignon.
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Old 07-16-19, 11:02 PM
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2019, that would give me a lot of money
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Old 07-17-19, 05:23 AM
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Originally Posted by Goofball
1986 lemond, hinault,
I'll second that ^ one.
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