 |
 |
|
 |
||
Go to Bishop McNamara's Website
|
Le
Tour de France Facts
Thanks to Bicycling Magazine for the following information. Calories consumed by a rider per day: 5,900 average, 9,000 max Calories burned by a rider in the course of the Tour: 123,900 (based on 5900-per day average at 21 days of racing) Number of pedal strokes taken per rider for the three weeks: 324,000 (at 60rpm); 486,000 (at 90rpm) Number (or miles) of barricades erected and torn down for the race: 217 miles Number of gendarmes on stage routes: 250 per day Number of chains worn out by a single rider: 3 (Armstrong goes through a chain a week) Total number of tires used by the peloton: 792 (estimate: USPS and Domo both use three sets of wheels on regular race bikes, plus TT wheels) Number of finishers, worst-ever year: 10, 1919 (out of 69 starters) Most stages won by a single rider, career total: 34, Eddy Merckx (1969: six stages and overall; 1970: eight stages and overall; 1971: four stages and overall; 1972: six stages and overall; 1974: eight stages and overall; 1975: two stages) Most number of stages won on single Tour: 8--Charles Pelissier (1930), Eddy Merckx (1970, 1974) and Freddy Maertens (1976) Most riders to wear yellow jersey in one Tour: 8 in 1987 Most days spent in yellow jersey: 96--Eddy Merckx (in 7 participations) Biggest winning margin (since 1947): 28 min 27 sec (Fausto Coppi --Stan Ockers in 1952) Smallest winning margin: 8 sec (Greg LeMond --Laurent Fignon in 1989) Longest solo breakaway: 253 km by Albert Bourlon in 1947 Biggest winning margin on stage win: 22 min 50 sec --Jose Luis Viejo in 1976 Fastest prologue: 55.152 kph--Chris Boardman in 1994 over 7.2km Fastest individual time trial: 54.545 kph--Greg LeMond in 1989 over 24.5km Fastest team time trial: 54.930 kp/h by Gewiss in 1995 over 67km Fastest average over a flat stage: 50.355 kp/h--Mario Cipollini in 1999 over 194.5km (Laval-Blois) Fastest average over whole Tour: 40.276 kph by Lance Armstrong in 1999 Oldest race winner: Firmin Lambot (36) in 1922 Youngest winner: Henri Cornet (20) in 1904 Most number of participants: 16--Joop Zoetemelk, between
1970 and 1986 (finished all). |