When did you FIRST start following the Tour de France?

[ErmOkk]

In 1998, the stage where pantani came in with 8 minuts over Ullrich. That was trully awesome, and pantani was my hero back then.

Then in 1999 I got charmed by the LA story and cheered for him as he was clearly the best that year. In 2000 there was the clash between LA and pantani and I actually kept cheering for LA since then, strange how first love a guy (pantani), and then hope he has a bad day . I've had the same with AC. I was cheering for him big time in 2007-2008, but when Lance came back I just started cheering for him again :s. It's not that I am a LA fanboy consciously, it's a really strange thing .

 

[Francois the Postman]

[trip down memory lane].

Thanks for that, enjoyed reading it.

 

[Chris0701]

I first started watching the TDF when I was 11 in 1991 but became a serious fan from 1993. But I've always listened to cycling stories. Year after year before even 1991 my father would tell me about the time he raced Eddy Merckx on the Isle of Man.

 

[sportzchick]

1995 was my first le tour experiance on Telly - living in Adelaide we made a big deal of it then cause that was Stuey's first tour I believe (if my memory doesnt let me down)

 

[Zoetemelk-fan]

Ouh thats a tough one...oh wait, no it ain't. Just turned 8 years, I heard of Zoetemelk winning the tour in 1980. And then, when I heard of his palmares in his tour, I was an immediate fan.

My first time as a visitor at the tour was in 1986 with my parents, just turned 14 years visiting a memorable etape to Nîmes. Lots of action happened at my standing point, in the middle of nowhere and with abouth 60k still to go.

Days before that, just arrived in France, I grabbed my first l'Equipe and saw Jørgen V. Pedersen in the yellow jersey. That was a big surprise, my big Danish idol by then was Kim Andersen of which I enjoyed seeing attacking for yellow jersey in 1983 and 1985.

So I think i really got hit and an immense tourfan since '86.

 

[ThorFolerSegSterkIDagDu]

The myth about Armstrong was what made me hooked on the Tour back in 2002. It was not until Puerto i started to grow suspicious about him - how could he beat dopers like Basso, Ullrich without being doped himself?? Now i know he is as dirty as a polish ****oar. But my interest in cycling has grown beyond the tour and i now follow every major race!

 

[ttrider]

2005 for me
I liked Armstrong but kept finding myself backing Basso over him that year?!

Always been a massive fan of Basso and Contador, excellent athletes gentlemen and role models, (forget basso doped.....when he had his time off he did charity work put his head down and now dominated the Giro!)

 

[slowoldman]

1985. Page 12 (or last page with the High School sports results) of the sports section in the Press Enterprise (when they felt like printing the results of the stage, once in a great while they would print the GC!) and then that was followed by the few minutes of coverage once a week on ABC's Wide World of Sports complete with a lovely soundtrack by John Tesch . I think that started in '87 after LeMond had won in "86.

 

[RedheadDane]

But have to say though... those years when LA controlled it were rather boring... "He's gonna take the jersey and keep it..." Yaaayyy
I remember watching the final ITT from 2005 and Chicken's disaster, back then I was horrified... now... I think it's kinda funny... "Chicken going down... Chicken going down again..."
Then came 2006; Armstrong was out, those who'd been expected to take-over were out too... the person being crowned winner in Paris later busted for doping... now that was interesting...

 

[ckfrancis]

first

1st race alexi grewal in the 84' olymics

1st tour 85'.

 

[Big Doopie]

1972.

i still remember watching guimard burst into tears when merckx handed him the green jersey at the parc des princes velodrome. guimard had quit the race while wearing the green jersey because of his knee and merckx had subsequently won it. i watched the whole thing on a black and white tv.

 

[Deagol]

the 1st year Greg Lemond won.. can't remember he year right now .....

 

[jaylew]

LeMond for me too; I think it was 1986. They would show highlights of the stages on Sundays.

I don't remember seeing Roche's win the next year, but I distinctly remember rooting for Pedro Delgado in 1988. I remember watching LeMond after that and most of Indurain's wins. I can recall being really sad watching "that bald guy Riis" dethrone him and thinking that the young guy on his team looked even stronger.

I was hooked on the sports page as a kid and remember reading the box scores in every sport. The only time cycling ever showed up was for the Tour and Giro. I always read the Giro results too, but I was always looking for the guys names I knew from the Tour and didn't understand why most of the names were Italian ones I didn't know.

 

[Horizon Deep]

I dunno......the problem with going back so far is age tends to dull the memory specifics.
I actually Googled C4's screening dates, as I was fairly sure some of the stuff I remembered, pre-dates their daily coverage, as indeed, it does.
WORLD OF SPORT ITV maybe?????

World Of Sport indeed! remember Dickie Davies? 1 hour highlight package every saturday.Commentary by Ligget.I remember starting to follow the tour about '83 Fignon Delgado Hererra Millar etc,and not forgetting sherwin of course!

 

[blaxland]

Would have been 1983 Fignon wins the TDF overall and Phil Anderson came 9th,but for me what i can remember was The Dane Kim Anderson (First yellow jersey wearer)and also managed to win stage 12...Memories....

 

[Anonymous]

1985

 

[2beeDammed]

For me i would have to have been the early 90's Indurain was just awesome. Big strong and a real inspiration.

 

[Anonymous]

Sometime back in the late '70's.

The only news was from European newspapers. You had to go downtown to the Central library and hit the newspaper racks.

The news was usually about a week old, at least.

I would know by August who had won the TdF.


Same for the Giro and Vuelta, and all of them.

Seemed funny reading about the Paris-Roubaix in May.

 

[raddone]

The first for me was 1996. I remember the first ever stage that I saw was the Bourg-Saint-Maurice - Val d’Isere ITT won by Berzin.

 

[ScottLeMond]

1989, when my dad won it.

 

[RedheadDane]

Sometime back in the late '70's.

The only news was from European newspapers. You had to go downtown to the Central library and hit the newspaper racks.

The news was usually about a week old, at least.

I would know by August who had won the TdF.


Same for the Giro and Vuelta, and all of them.

Seemed funny reading about the Paris-Roubaix in May.

You'd know by August who'd won the Vuelta which is being held in September... amazing!
(But... the Vuelta used to be earlier... right?)

Anyway... how old are you guys... ?Sorry... no offence...

 

[Hawkwood]

World Of Sport indeed! remember Dickie Davies? 1 hour highlight package every saturday.Commentary by Ligget.I remember starting to follow the tour about '83 Fignon Delgado Hererra Millar etc,and not forgetting sherwin of course!

I vaguely remember footage of Barry Hoban winning at Bordeaux in 1975. By 1976 I think I watched the highlights of the TdF on World of Sport. By 1977 I was watching the short classics round-ups World of Sport did, including some short footage of Merckx, and then watched the meagre coverage of the Tour that summer.

 

[Hawkwood]

You'd know by August who'd won the Vuelta which is being held in September... amazing!
(But... the Vuelta used to be earlier... right?)

Anyway... how old are you guys... ?Sorry... no offence...

I'm 49, I had coffee with an `ex' of mine yesterday, she's 42, boy did I feel old!

 

[Dedelou]

old enough to know better. and to see guys who rode with my kids as juniors now retire from their pro cycling careers

 

[Avoriaz]

this is what im trying to work out..

i definately saw millar get polka and fignon win.. 1984, but im not sure that that was my first tour

channel four started i beleive in 1982

so possibly there coverage started in 1983?

Probably been answered. C4 coverage started in 1985. Prior to that it was a couple of snatches on World of Sport

My own first memory was of Robert Millar winning at Bagneres de Luchon in 1983, and Phil Liggett shouting "all we need to see are the arms, there they are" (referring to a victory salute)