Ghostman

I have been laid up the last two days with strep throat, which pretty much killed the "build week" I had planned this week. Anyway, to amuse myself yesterday I watched the World Cycling Productions 1986 Greg Lemond Tour de France video.

It is 55 minutes and is more like a "Wide World of Sports" episode than a race video. They do not spend much time showing the actual racing but it is still well worth watching. Many interesting things:

1. It is the first Tour in which Phil Liggett is joined by Paul Sherwen. Sherwen is very young and unpolished and his accent is completely different than the way he speaks today (much more working class British back then). It's cool, 20 years later, watching Phil introduce "young Paul Sherwen" and knowing that these guys will form the greatest commentary team in sports, in my opinion.

2. It is the Tour when 7-11 first raced in Europe, although they do not spend much time focusing on that.

3. There is a great shot of Bob Roll leading a strung out peloton onto the Champs Elysees.

4. The background music goes from porn movie snytho to unlistenable 80's shmaltz. On two of the big heroic mountain stages when Hinault and LeMond are duking it out, they play "When the Going Get's Tough" by Billy Ocean!!!! Suffice it to say that this song has not aged well and completely erases the drama and majesty of those stages. Turn the sound off when you get to that part of the disc.

5. Hinault and LeMond ride across the Alpe d'Huez finish line together with hands clasped -- in a great PR shot, which looks actually like great sportsmanship. But then Hinault attacks LeMond again after that.

6. When Lemond is on the final podium in Paris, you will notice "mayor" Jacques Chirac congratulating him. Of course, Mr. Chirac would later have quite his fill of America's dominance of the world and of the Tour de France as well.

waterrockets 

Nice. Haven't seen it, thanks for the report.

Billy Ocean? <shudder>

YMCA

As silly as the music is, that's what gives the video it's mid 80's feel. Embarassing yes, but timeless.

Second Mouse

Wasn't John Tesh responsible for a lot of that music?

Ghostman

I forgot to mention that Lemond's ass is bigger than Queen Latifah's (and by this I mean no offense to the Queen).

DieselDan

transplant

let us know when you've put it on youtube ^_^

ri_us

I loved that race! Music aside, the LeMond-Hinault battle was amazing!

botto 

correct.

socalrider

If anyone is interested I have the full version of these older races.. I already converted them to dvd and edited all the commercials out.. These are euro live, cbs and abc coverage depending on the year.. They are usually 3 hours in length.. shoot me a pm

-VELOCITY-

So is this the first Tour that Lemond won?

Snuffleupagus

I'll vouch for socal's vids. They're killer trainer motivation.

531Aussie

oo, my big chance...again!

"VN" is the Velo News interviewer, and "KL" is Kathy Lemond




Nutty or legit?

I saw Elvis

Have to say the way shagger Sherwens accent has changed over the years is a source of amusement to me, I think he's been having elocution lessons now he's a TV personality.
You're right though (I think it's a fact), they do form the greatest commentary team in sport.

YMCA

The Kathy Lemond stories are completely realistic. Not sure Hinault would have wanted to tamper with Lemond's bike, but managers will sometimes do anything to help their cause.

Don't forget, sports at the Pro level are all about money. The difference between Hinault winning or taking second can be worth a lot of cash to the entire staff, sponsors, etc...

botto 

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Keith99

A bit of both. The drug testing issue has an interesting historical spin. Merckx was disqualified in the 1969 Giro because of a drug test that he claims to this day was the result of his samples being tampered with. This was well into the Giro and he was leading. Later that year he destroyed everyone in the TDF, which he was allowed to enter because of irregularities in the Giro drug test.

So there were historical reasons to thing tampering could happen. But I find it hard to believe that Gregs own team as the team were out to get him. (That however does not eleminate the chance that one person might).

Voodoo76

Real or perceved, Greg had to win thinking his team was not 100% behind him. Wonder if Lance could have done the same? For the sake of argument say Mig and several trusty domestiqes are hired to ride for Postal in 99 to "help" Lance. Would have been an intresting tour.

Keith99

Yes even perceved it does make it harder.

But it seems the American version is a bit out of line. Now by my standards Hinault did not honor his word. But neither did he ignore it. He found the one way he could sort of keep it and still have his own chance to win. He attacked with a vengence. It tore the field to pieces and Lemond hd only one rider to contend with, Hinault.

If you search the net you can find Andy Hampsten's account. It does point out the perception, yet also points out that the still popular American version is not accurate. Hampsten divides the La vie Claire team thus. Hampsten and Bauer (the Canadien) working for Lemond, Hinaults long time second in command working for Hinault, two veteran French riders riding like veterans and two poor swiss riders who were confuised as can be.

But Hampstens story makes it clear his perception going into the race was different. He recounts a stage where he busted his buns helping Lemond and blew up and was off the back. He figured he was toast, not one would come back to help. Long hard stage and his G.C. position gone. Then what does he see? The 2 French riders dropping back to pull him back to the peleton. That evening he went to thank them and say he hoped they were not in trouble and they looked at him like he was crazy. Their responce? You are in 4th place, that is 70,000 francs.

La vie Claire had a pretty good team result. 1,2 and 4 in the G.C. KOM Best young rider team championship. Only 2 other teams in the non-national teams Tours are at that level.

So it would seem the reality of what Greg was up against is overstated, but the perception at the time was really that bad.