Hello from France. This is a working trip to sell souvenir plates to raise money for the Texas Bicycle Coalition.

Since our arrival Monday, July 4th in Dusseldorf, Germany to pick up the RV, we have traveled through Germany, Belgium and France.

Gayle and I have been to three stages of the Tour so far, two finishes at Montargis and Nancy and a start at Luneville. It has rained off and on every day. It is difficult to follow the progress of the Tour itself since we are not traveling with a group and our French is limited. We have seen Lance every day as a blur in the Peloton.

The French and Germans that we have encountered seem resigned to Lance winning his seventh tour. While mostly they are not cheering for him he is universally respected. Texans and Texas flags are very visible. Gayle and I are wearing our cowboy hats and we get lots of smiles and waves.

Following the Tour by RV is a great way to see it. We have easily found places to park and it is nice to know where we are sleeping. The hotels in the Tour cities are booked. The Share the Road Y’all decals on the RV really attract attention. Everyone is assuming that we are in an official vehicle and it is helping a lot with positioning for each stage.

Gotta go now. The distances between stages are far so we’ve got to get back on the road and start heading toward the mountain stages. WiFi hotspots are hard to find so it may be a few days before we blog again.

Regards,

Robin Stallings