Cyclist753

I agree with your sentiments about Boyer and didn't say anything about awards for him but he was a bit of a 'door opener'. Major Taylor deserves better!

I remember LeMond's first Tour win well. It was huge!

John E

That would be another interpretation of "Do I know where hell is? Hell is in 'hello.' Heaven is 'goodbye forever, it's time for me to go.'" -- "Wand'rin' Star" from "Paint Your Wagon," Alan J. Lerner

uncle uncle

I think you have to divide Trek's effort into two piles: the early stuff, and the stuff made by Trek that was a big corporation (and was influenced by their relationship with Armstrong). I might make room for an early/American brazed Trek. I definitely would make room for a LeMond, if one came my way. I'm happy for Greg though, everything I ever read or watched about him has been positive, and he comes across as a genuinely compassionate human being. His tour efforts came at my impressionable years as a bicyclist, and help inspire my own passion for bicycles and bicycling. He didn't need to win a tour to be inspirational in my eyes, but the fact that he did is/was great.

mountaindave 

Ditto. My LBS is over a hundred years old and was carrying Trek long before LA. No corporation is perfect. I have vintage Treks, but no new ones... but then again I don’t really have any new bikes either. But I do support my LBS when I can.

mountaindave 

Ditto again. I was in high school when he won and he inspired me to ride. I never really raced, but I became a roadie then and never really looked back. My roads may have more gravel in them than before, but they’re still roads.

Wildwood 

I'm a Lemond fan-boy.

Bought a solid yellow jersey in '86.

As for Trek, well - they wanted to be the dominant force in the industry more than anything else, so American.
When I was looking at a CF bike in mid-90s, the OCLV (bladder formed bikes) were deadwood compared to tube and bond, but their sales people could only brag about Trek superiority and dominance. Two 'Trek arrogant' sales people turned me off to the brand back then. Blind allegiance to dominant companies = not my thing. But when my daughter wanted a blue beachcruiser, the LBS closing out Trek had one. So I proudly own a Trek (as she didn't take it with her upon moving out).

noglider 

Not only was Lemond a great champion, but he is also a genuinely nice guy. No one has stories of him mistreating them. You can't say that about all the greats. When he raced in Europe, he spent winters in Belgium to train, and he learned to speak French so he could get along. Europeans could have felt annoyed or threatened by him, but he became their friend.

himespau 

Cool, one day I'd like one of his frames from the 90's. It's on a (long) list.

jamesdak 

How I feel too. Not much one for new bikes anyway but the local trek shop is my go to place for all my vintage jobs that I don't get time for. Great bunch there.

Heck I even rode my one Trek ('99 Y-Foil) on a century bike ride yesterday. This despite being an ultimate Lemond fan.

Me and some of my Lemond's after a recent Greg "tribute" ride.

gbi

The green/orange/yellow frame Lemond, on your left in the photo, is striking.

jamesdak 

One of a unique handful made by the man himself and given to friends.

Another example of his positive influence on U.S. cycling.....

sheddle

Well apparently his positive influence didn't extend to the fashion world...

gbi

Wow! thanks, with that info in mind, I revise my rating.

RobbieTunes

Great minds, James, great minds....
106.87mi --- 6:26:24 -------- 2,530ft
Distance -----Moving Time------Elevation

A lady there took a picture of it, sent it to her Trek shop, and he wrote back "blast from the past..they rode like crap but they were neat bikes."
I beg to differ. It doesn't ride like a Wraith, but it's a long way from crap. So far.

Lemond Definitely Deserves The Award.
As Forrest Gump said, "that's all I have to say about that."

Lemond1985

The mystery Mrs. Lemond's missing tablecloth ... solved.

crank_addict

Outstanding~

freeranger

Good to hear LeMond is finally getting recognized. Glad I got my '06 Reno when I did, and my wife has an 06 Reno also (WSD-for real). Really like that bike (my avatar) and no plans of ever parting with it, and my wife feels the same with hers. Didn't know anything about a Trek-LeMond parting of the ways or problems between them at the time, but if they parted in 08, probably started before then.

canklecat

That photo of LeMond with his restaurant tablecloth team jersey shows how much champions sacrifice to make race weight. In that photo he looks like a normal athlete, maybe 3-5 lbs above peak weight. But in his real peak form he probably weighed 15-20 lbs less.

I remember some YouTube armchair athletes criticizing LeMond, decades after the fact, for being "fat" after his 1989 Tour de France win. He gained maybe 2-3 lbs and didn't quite look skeletal anymore.

Those guys weren't just ruthless on opponents. They were ruthless against themselves.

Which brings to mind one of the few incidents that slightly tarnished LeMond's halo: the 1982 World's finish. LeMond was criticized for leading a pack to regather Jonathan Boyer, whose solo breakaway looked like he might snag the victory. After the race LeMond said:

LeMond was probably correct. Unsupported by a teammate, Boyer was on the verge of being reeled in anyway. But Boyer's strength was the solo breakaway, which he showed in winning the 1985 Race Across America, arguably tougher than any multi-stage race. With a little help during the 1982 World's he might have retained that breakaway lead longer and won.

And in the heat of competition, particularly immediately after a stage that didn't go well, LeMond could come across as petulant and a bit whiny. Thanks to edited YouTube videos you can find several examples.

But ya know what? I don't care. Nobody gets to that level of indomitable championship form without a few warts. I admired LeMond from the time he was a teenager when I first read about his US victories. And I admired him more later, maybe even because he occasionally showed a few human flaws.

Much as I admired Merckx, and still do, Eddy was out of line criticizing LeMond for not taking the traditional European approach toward at least participating in more one-day races, crits and more of the Big Three GC races. But LeMond slowed down considerably after surviving a gunshot injury and focused on the TdF. Eddy had his injuries -- a bad crash that he said hindered his form the rest of his career, and being kidney-punched by a spectator -- but Eddy was never shot.

But that's not unusual for elite athletes. Much as we'd like to venerate them as saints, in reality they can be ruthless, even vicious and occasionally petty in the heat of competition. That's what separates them from equally skilled but less ruthless opponents and teammates.

And I'd still rather listen to LeMond than Wiggins.

RobbieTunes

Lemond still has lead in his body, unable to be removed surgically. If he gets too thin, he suffers. People that look at him and call him fat, well, he's not, and he's alive. That's enough for me, as I prefer one of my cycling heroes to live life and enjoy it.

I don't see why anyone would expect a person to look like he/she did 30 years ago.

jamesdak 

Met up with a guy locally to get a bike a few months ago. He mentioned doing a event type ride just a few years early where Greg rode also. Talked about how nice Greg was and that even though he looked fat he still kicked everyone else butt. So.....

jamesdak 

Distance: 99.05 Moving time: 5:29:41 Elevation: 13:29.

I was about a mile or so into the ride before I remembered to start the Garmin. And....like an idiot....I noticed I still had me reading glasses dangling on a cord around my neck. I'm getting senile, LOL!

I decided to take the Y-Foil at the last minute and through on the C.F. Reynolds 46 wheelset. I found the bike perfectly comfortable except for the Fizik Kurve Snake saddle on it. I prefer the Chameleon shape for longer rides. I really have no complaints about how the bike rode, even took my first real cattle guard at speed on it. Crazy good time.

Lemond1985

I have a ton of respect for both Lemond and Armstrong. You don't need to pick a side, IMO. To reward one, while taking a dig at the other, I feel is totally unnecessary, unfair, and divisive. They're both great athletes. Heck, why not give Lemond the Congressional Medal of Honor. For slaying the badger.

My '99 Tourmalet, FWIW:

georgiaboy

Remember, enemy of my enemy is my friend"

VtwinVince

Maybe, but with Armstrong it was the way in which he reacted to criticisms that shows what his real personality is like, and the way he treated his critics, including LeMond. One guy has class, the other was obsessed with winning at any cost, and selling his soul along the way.

RobbieTunes

Celebrating for Greg should be possible without even mentioning the other guy. Lemond is why I kept a bike around, even when I thought cycling was sort of silly. I wanted to capture what he showed us all, and in my mind, he won when his support was iffy at best, against guys who weren't just "there," but there with serious cred. That doesn't happen every Tour.

I kind of wish the US Congress had a little more credibility....