From the Sublime to the Ridiculous

From one culture to another, today is MY Day. We went to the Tour de France stage in Revel, just outside Toulouse. Weather was threatening all day but no drops were spilt. Going for the fabulous atmosphere? the Circus that follows the TdF? the Fud? Well, no - we were Xmas shopping at the Boutique - something for everyone except the very best objet d'art was only available via the interweb site. Opinel pocket knives with either yellow or polka dot handles - drool! It's not like I've never seen a bike race before - probably 1,000 races in the last 40 years (that's 1,000 divided by 40 = 25 per year. Whoa! Then I've probably been to MORE than 1,000 DBR since then (dumb bike races). Formidable or pathetic!)

Somebody scored a cool TdF chair!

If you're a big shot or sponsor or sponsor's friend you'll get a "backstage pass" so you can enjoy champagne and other goodies in these double-decker palaces.

Yes - loads of Razz Matazz, theater, noise, Whoopee! at the podium ceremony. We sat just opposite because they had a very nice jumbotron screen entertaining us during the race. Peter Sagan, the BIG star of cycling - gets his 30 seconds.

For the squeamish, better skip this last photo

For any and all folks involved in the bike racing game - here's the interior of a TdF porta potty - I'd call this a "Squatty"

But the last picture for today is all about family - after the race we waited through the podium ceremonies and then another 30 minutes for the crowd to disperse and then hit the road home. By this time it's nearly 7:00 pm and dinner time. We saw this hotel/restaurant with a bunch of semi trucks parked n their lot and think, "Score! if truck drivers like to eat here we can't miss". We discovered this is where the LCL employees who were supporting the race were staying for the night -"Credit Lyonnaise", the bank that's the yellow jersey sponsor. We sit down and have an awesome dinner - we're in the southwest, heartland of cassoulet - how could I NOT order duck and beans? But sitting in a table of 6 other LCL people was a white haired grandpa

For cyclocross people, this is Mathieu Van de Poel's Grandpa. For road racing afficianadoes, this is "Pou Pou", Raymond Poulidor. If he was Japanese we'd call him a "Living Treasure". And no, I didn't bug him for either an autograph or selfie - I surrepticiously turned my phone in his direction and we both continued to chow down.