... on Wednesday night to recce the 2010 L’Etape du Tour route from Pau to Col du Tourmalet with fellow velo mentalist & Cyclefilm director Markus Neuert. These trips are always hardcore from start ... that I could sleep for a long, long time. Rewind 8 hours and we were stood at the top of the Tourmalet, 2,115m up in the sky feeling like kings. The air was clear, temperature at an unheard of 20 ...

... was his stage race for exacting revenge. Symbolically he took his first yellow jersey after his Faema red guard took the TTT at his home town of Woluwe. He won six stages staggering and impressing all especially on the Tourmalet riding 130 kms alone with the yellow jersey. At the end his rule was supreme. He gobbled up the jerseys: yellow & green. Also winning the mountains and the combine ...

... l’Étape du Tour departs from Pau, France, on July 18 and follows the same route the pros will take later in the week over two mountain passes with a finish atop the Col du Tourmalet. Presesented for the 18th year by Tour de France organizers, the ride allows the rest of the bicycling population to endure the gut-wrenching climbs and dizzying heights that the pros experience. This year&# ...

... of new trails, new roads and a great trail network project got started. Any special mentions? Well yes, some moments stick out. One of the greatest ride of the year was climbing the Col du Tourmalet. Not only is the climb nice but hard, it had spectacular views and you could almost smell the history. But the whole trip to France was one of the highlights of the season... and of my cycling life. ...

... in her age division. I’m proud of you Cookie. I got a chance to wear my knickers to work. There perfect for this kind of weather. I may need to make a new pair. Well this a picture of my new Lemond Tourmalet. I put it together myself: 853 reynolds steel frame, 105 shifters, Ultegra cranks,Titan forte wheels, Ultegra rear, dura ace front, and carbon fork. All and all it comes in at 19.5lbs.

... bikers (all on BMW K series bikes), the friendly cook at the roadside cafe, the lady Harley rider we kept bumping into all the way home, Gary from Bournemouth who we chatted to at the top of the Col du Tourmalet, the bonkers ex-pat who moved to France because he likes to own guns, the chatty dutchman with 4 hours more to drive who wished he was on his bike. Just great. You don't get that when ...