....back home now and the camper van returned UNDAMAGED to the depot in Geneva! Some exciting moments getting used to driving something that large through busy streets ( distracted by the window displays in the designer boutiques which line the couture quartier!) and then up into the mountains!
Luckily the gendarmerie did a fantastic job guiding the convoy of vans up the Alpine roads and into position though it as first come first get the best places to park. We were settled into a car park a little way from the top of Alpe d'Huez but had the excitement of seeing them hurtling towards us at what seemed impossibly high speeds.
Chris Froome was easy to identify in yellow and I kept my eyes open to see 59, Thomas Voeckler go by unscathed by barbed wire or team Saxotintoff! And my new man of the moment, Ritchie Porte, who should be very impressive in next year's Tour. (We've already booked hotels for the start in Yorkshire and are sending out local friends to find the best viewing points!)
After this stage, as soon as the roads were passable again, we headed off with the fanatic convoy to Annecy. (More retail opportunities!). The weather had changed to damp and humid and we were relieved that there were very few accidents.
By this time, Gabrielle was totally obsessed with the atmosphere of the Tour and, dressed from head to toe in yellow, insisted on climbing onto the roof of the van to perform a sort of dance of victory as the peleton swept by! Despite assistance from 'the men', I didn't manage to join her- we all collapsed in hysterical laughter as they heaved and shoved to no avail! So, screaming 'Allez, allez, allez', I joined the others on the roadside - wearing a large and totally unsuitable (for the weather) straw hat trimmed with the most enormous red and white spotted ribbon! Gabrielle, naturally, had managed to get hold of one of the sponsor's yellow caps so she was very happy.
At the end of the day, when it was obvious that nothing, bar an horrendous accident or mechanical breakdown, would prevent Chris from winning, we made hasty phone calls to Parisian friends, and drove through the night towards Paris.
By the time we got there, central Paris from Versailles to the Arc du Triomphe was in shut down and we were directed to a large campsite where we left the van. Then by metro to the Marais district and our friends and all the excitement of the final stage!
What a triumph, what excitement as the riders flowed through the city. What a fabulous moment when all the Team Sky riders rode abreast to the finish with Chris in the middle and Ritchie, literally, his right hand man! Loved the Lumiere on the Arc- so inventive and so beautiful. Shed a tear or two over Chris' ' speech......and then to party till the morning! Champagne and happiness all around!
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