March 13th, 2010

Fignon: jeune et insouciant4
Guy WR posted in Climbers on January 25th, 2010

Ah, mais je vous reconnais: vous êtes celui qui a perdu le Tour de huit secondes!

-Non, Monsieur, je suis celui qui en a gagné deux.

Good news indeed that William Fotheringham has taken on the task of translating Laurent Fignon’s book Nous etions jeunes et insouciants, We were young and carefree. Seemingly the epitome of Parisian haughtiness and hardened professional during his career, the excerpts available from the published French version suggest – like the title itself – that Fignon has taken a very nostalgic view of his career and racing days. (more…)

Goals, nostalgia1
Guy WR posted in Local Climbs on January 11th, 2010

Nostalgia is a file that removes the rough edges from the good old days. ~ Doug Larson (newspaper columnist)

In cycling, as in perhaps all human behaviour, nostalgia is a powerful force. The ‘good old days’ always present a simpler template for the complexity we face today, as well as a stylistic cachet. What is Rapha, for example, except for nostalgia well-filed and with an extra lustrous sheen added?

Nostalgia is an opportunity to strip away the excess baggage of complications and view the past with the comforting glow of fondness. Ah, how much better it was in the 80s (substitute your favourite era here), with Hinault, Fignon, LeMond, Herrera, Hampsten, Roche and so on. (Of note, someone remarked recently that 2010 is to the 80s as 1990 was to the 60s, in terms of time elapsed – a sobering thought.) (more…)

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