Who would have thought that I'd be so fascinated by the Tour? And no, this does not fall into the "I'll watch anything" category.
Because see, I am just fascinated by these guys. They're amazing. Also, as I watched and listened (there was a live radio broadcast online each day), I learned so much. The commentators talked about all kinds of things: the history of the Tour, the professional histories of the different riders and teams, the bikes, the roles of the different members of a team, the feeding stations, and the French countryside, to name just a few topics.
"But it dawned on me that the Tour’s great lesson is to push forward, always forward. There’s always a way. You just have to keep looking for it." (From Martin Dugard's 7/13/05 active.com Tour blog entry Bike Spike -- almost.) You have to want it and you have to be willing to work for it. And then, anything is possible.
And yes, of course, I'm also interested in Lance's story. That wasn't why I started watching. I saw that the Tour was on OLN, watched one day, and was completely hooked for the rest of the three weeks. I'll watch again next year. Next year when Lance will not be there. So it is not a Lance obsession that drew me in.
However, since we're talking about Lance, what is it about him? I read an editorial in the Times the other day that had a big hint of an answer. He plays offense. He doesn't sit around and wait to see what's going to happen. He doesn't just react, respond. The man has a plan. Always. He starts a year in advance and he spends the year training and his team spends the year training and as a result, they're well known as one of the best (many say The Best) team in the world. And to prove it, Lance now as 80-some yellow jerseys and 7 straight Tour victories to his name.
And let us remember that he did this after being diagnosed with testicular cancer, which had spread to his lungs and brain. Yes, his brain. How many people survive brain cancer? Though I don't have the stats in hand, I know the answer is "not many." And yet, there he is with his 7 Tour wins. That, to me, is amazing.
Was it a miracle? Was it determination? Mind over matter? Or just pure luck? Well, those questions can never be answered. We just know that this is what has happened. And it's amazing to me.
Since my current obsession is Rent the movie, let's tie them together. Here's a line from one of the songs "people living with… not dying from disease." That's Lance. Not living with, of course, as he is now disease free. But when he found out, when he was diagnosed (Oct. 2, 1996, just in case anyone has forgotten), he didn't sit down to die. He didn't decide that it was a life sentence for him. He was determined to do everything he could to overcome that cancer. And—whether it was luck or attitude or straight out miracle—he did just that.
Furthermore, he hasn't forgotten. His Foundation educates and supports those with cancer and works to change related health care legislation. He has a plan and he's following it. He's on the offense, not the defense.
If more of the teams in the Tour would take a page out of Lance and the Discovery Channel Team's book, the Tour could be even more fascinating next year. Imagine all those teams on the offense. We could be completely blown away by the winners and even more records could be broken. Oh what a Tour it would be.
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