Last Stage of Le Tour

My favorite pic of the day...I snapped this shot of Andy Schleck just as someone else put their camera in front of mine



Lance: up close and personal



The "man blockade" protecting all from angry Parisians!! (when our barriers were knocked down by the French)



If you look closely, I'm doing a handstand at the base of the Eiffel Tower



View from the top

July 25th
Today was a busy but fun day that forced us to be on our feet from the moment we left our hotel until about 9:30pm when we made it back. The day started off with an hour long walk to the Eiffel Tower (Tour Eiffel as they call it in France). This walk took us past several beautiful sites such as the Louvre Museum, Museum of D’Orsay, National Assembly, the Grand Palace, and of course Palace de Chaillot which sits directly across the canal from the Eiffel Tower. When we arrived at the Eiffel Tower we didn’t expect there to be many people because after all it was a Sunday morning. However, we found lines going all over the place and we quickly jumped into one of them until we could figure out what line was what. So after some questioning we learned we were in the line for the elevator and the line for the stairs was much shorter and cheaper (7 Euros for both of us). So we took off for this line but shortly after getting our ticket we heard some loud screaming by a girl up in the tower. Come to find out some poor gentleman passed out while climbing the stairs, broke his arm and then proceeded to puke (we assume that is why the girl was screaming as she probably got hit from some of the splatter.) Anyway, they of course shut the stairs down for about 20 mins while they cleaned up the mess and then we proceeded up the tower. Once arriving on the 2nd floor (as high as the stairs go) we were stunned by the beauty of the city and all the monuments we were able to pick out.
We didn’t have long to stay there as we had to go catch the last stage of the Le Tour. So, we made a quick lap around the 2nd floor deck to get some pictures and took off toward the Arc of Triumph (Arc de Triomphe) on the Champs Elysees (one of the most beautiful and recognizable streets in the world) where the tour would be finishing. Once we got there we met up with some great friends from Cyclists Combating Cancer (CCC) whose dedication has brought them to Europe in support of the Lance Armstrong Foundation every year Lance has competed in the tour… Anyway, this couple (Jerry and Angie) arrived on the Champs at 5am to save enough spots for the rest of us that would come later to join them.
Finally after the crowds of French people broke down the barriers they had constructed and we were crammed, the tour procession started. Then after about another hour to hour and a half the riders started coming and made the 8 laps on the Champs before the finish. Then after the finish and award ceremony the riders came down with each of their teams to take pictures in front of the Arc de Triumph near where we were standing. This of course set us in perfect position to congratulate the riders as many of them came by to say hi to the fans. This was really neat because you could see the riders were really enjoying a moment to relax and celebrate as they knew all the racing was over. So we were pleasantly entertained by Bradly Wiggins as he cracked jokes about Lance, as well as others who greeted us such as Carlos Sastre, George Hincapie, Cadel Evans, Andy Schleck, and others including a former collegiate racer Brent Bookwalters who I last raced at collegiate nationals a few years back. Then Lance made his star appearance and spent several minutes taking pictures by us… However, all I really remember was about 6,000 flashes from nearby cameras that left me blinded as Lance stood in front of me after just completing his last Tour de France ever.
All and all it was one very neat and long day filled with lots of standing and some incredible sights. It was one to remember for many years to come.

Nate