The 109th running of Tour de France has begun and it is as exciting as ever! Watch it on Peacock and NBC on certain days. This amazingly epic race covers 2000+ miles in 23 days. As I watch the broadcast and listen to Phil Liggett broadcast his 50th TDF I’m thinking of one thing,….about how much my Mom loved watching it! She knew nothing about bike racing, but she loved how French TV showed beautiful French and ancient Chateaus and historical buildings. It was her French travelogue. She was a Francophile at heart and once told me she would have loved owning an apartment in Paris if she had the money.

This year’s TDF route.

The race this year will feature a stage finish in majestic Carcassonne.

Mom always loved seeing the racers going by Mount Saint-Michel in Normandy.

I can’t wait to see the stage this year at Rocamadour!

Riders weave through ancient villages.

The race is wonderfully covered by TV cameras on motorcycles and helicopters.

Some years feature the beauty of the Dordogne region.

The rural French countryside is always featured.

Everything can go along swimmingly until…a crash happens.

The “commercial caravan” precedes the arrival of the riders.

The final day’s stage is always in Paris. Over a million spectators line the streets to watch the riders finish with a magnificent sprint down the Champs-Élysées.

My very favorite stage this year will be Stage 12 on July 14 from Briancon up to L’Alpe D’Huez. I’ve ridden this monstrous climb on 3 previous bike tours, and it is super tough!

This is a photo of me working my way up the Alpe years ago. My goals on each attempt were only to summit. The distance of the climb is 13.8 kilometers with gradients ranging from an average of 8.1% to the steepest at 11.5%. It is not the steepest climb used by the tour, but it is the most famous! I thought it was damn hard! 

One year our tour leader took this photo of me as I rode through the village at the top of the climb. We began the climb in clear weather, and it was foggy and cold as we summitted.

I will raise a glass of wine as I watch the race recap tonight and salute my Mom.

Photos: Dick Gentry (Not to be used without permission). Some photos: Gruber Images & the web.