My Mom was an avid fan of the Tour de France! Her favorite part of it was seeing the wonderful scenery and historical buildings when the Tour was shown on TV! The actual competition was secondary to her. I used to call her on the phone and we would talk about the favorite things she saw each day. I will raise a glass and think of her as I watch the Tour which begins on July 4th.

The 2026 Tour de France features a massive 2071 mile route across 21 stages, 177,165 feet of vertical climbing, 2 time trials, and 8 brutal mountain stages. The 113th running of the Tour begins on July 4th and finishes with a dramatic grand finale in Paris on July 26.

Stage 4 will start in magical Carcassonne on July 8th. Marla and I loved our visit there last summer.

In 2002 I booked a cycling tour during the Tour de France. We rode our route early in the morning before the pro riders came by hours later. The roads were packed with excited fans from around the world. It was a real thrill to be here! The photo is high above Lac Annecy before the tour started.

My son-in-law Stan joined me on this adventure.

Stan and I rode our bikes around Paris hours before the pro riders came into the city for the finish! Marla and Stacy arrived in town to join us. There were literally thousands of riders enjoying the excitement!

I’ve summitted L’Alpe D’Huez on three occasions. It will be featured in this year’s Tour de France in Stage 19 & 20. I can’t think of two tougher back-to-back stages!

There are 21 switchbacks to the summit.

One year I rode the Alpe d’Huez with my son-in-law Ray. It was really cold at the summit when we finished.

Son-in-law Ray and I on the summit of famous Col du Galibier. This route has been used many times in tour history. It was without question my hardest day riding! It began as very hot in the low valley and as we went over the summit we experienced frozen rain and could barely feel our hands.

This is an old image of one of my very favorite riders in the Tour de France, Gino Bartali. He won the race in 1938 and in 1948. He is remembered for much more than being a champion cyclist as he risked his life helping to save almost 800 Jews during World War II. Click on the highlighted link to read about his truly amazing story.

Excited fans watch as the riders enter Paris for the final day of racing last year.

For the 2026 Tour de France the final day will include racing up Montmartre in Paris. This will be totally amazing!

The overwhelming favorites for 2026 are Tadej Pogačar and Jonas Vingegaard. The smart money is probably on Pogacar…but I’m a huge fan of Vingegaard.

In a few weeks we’ll begin our own unique cycling event which I’ll call the…”Tour of Vail.” This is a 2018 photo of Vaughan, Logan, Owen, and Paxton, before a ride in Vail.

I had the Tour de France on TV while in Vail years ago. The twins thought I was in the race.

The Girls like to be part of action as well. This was in Vail in 2019.

In 2019 I summitted Vail Pass with Vaughan and his dad Stan.

This is an early image of Vaughan before hitting the sidewalk in Dallas.

This is Vaughan getting ready for the Boulder Peak Triathlon last year. He has become a truly excellent cyclist and triathlete! I can’t wait to ride with him again in Vail. I’ll probably only see him at the start of the ride!

Stacy took this photo of me struggling up toward the summit of Vail Pass in 2019. Her husband Stan was already at the summit!

Stacy and I at the summit of Vail Pass in 2019.

Photos: Dick Gentry & misc. Not to be shared without permission.