Rest Day 1 - Coffee stops and Tat collections

After nine days of hard spectating its time for a break from the racing. Since Normandie last Saturday, through nine stages of racing and French towns and countryside (plus a dabble in Spain and a biblical storm in Andorra) we reach the first of the two allotted rest days.  Of course it isn't a complete rest day for the riders, as well as their media and sponsor related duties they will go for a leisurely spin on their bikes. For the cycling obsessed Tour follower there must still be a chance to spot or maybe even pester the odd pro, surely?

Otherwise for today, I'm on a normal holiday, on my own in one massive duty free shop and that would frankly be no fun.

After a small lie-in and breakfast I headed in to town...for those mapping my movements in Andorra that is UP (i.e towards France). I managed to easily resist the urge to buy fags, booze or perfume, struggling a bit harder not to buy the hand held catapults and my word the rifles were enticing. I did however buy a small electrical item that I eventually found out I didn't need (so vague).

The purchase went like this...
So I already have model A in black, that's our starting position. But if upgrading I'd quite like model B, which they have in red but I want black.
Me - do you have model B in black?
Man 1 (M1) asks Man 2 (M2), do we? M2 runs to the window - they don't.
M1 - I will ring friends!
Me - ok (said confusingly)
M1 on phone - Alexis do you have mobel B in black. No only in Red says Alexis
Now repeat M1 ringing three more friends Tecko?, Gabby and Jordi and having the same conversation - No all have red.
Me - (mumbles something to myself). Ok, I'll have model A do you have that in Black?
M1 asks M2 do we? M2 runs to window, comes back, no only blue.
M1 - I will ring friends...and he did, all four of them again. I bought a blue one.

Soon after this shopping incident I saw my first pro's of the day when 6 riders from Cavendish's Team Dimension Data rode past, as you do, just out for a spin (without Cav) I missed a photo as I was
doing an impression of a man juggling a phone at the time. Shortly after as I was about to cross the road 5 riders from BMC rode past, camera success this time and they came to halt outside a cafe. In an attempt to be as casual as possible I just happened to walk past the bikes and take some photos of them in the cafe. One bloke went up to Greg Van Avermeart  (Wore yellow for two days) and chatted to him and then had a photo. Very jealous I decided to head off and go to Starbucks round the corner (safe with what you know). On the way three riders from IAM cycling went past and I was standing behind a BORA rider in the queue. Somehow the name of my cup went from me saying Tim to them writing CHAP and as I was paying the next customer is asked for a name, Tejay he says. I look round and standing next to me is Tejay Van Gaadaren, joint team leader and probably the USA's biggest hope of winning (but won't ever) since the one we don't mention. I'm now standing waiting for my drink with 3 pro's. Now I did actually speak to Tejay as he gave his name but it didn't work, so let's move on. Still I didn't ask for a picture, they were there and I bottled it. My inner voice was raging with itself about once chance, don't bother them, it's 20 second tops, it's their day off...

What was much better to do was to sit by their bikes, still with race numbers, computers and data transmitters attached and a combined value of who knows what, which was also directly opposite where they were. They had a good chat, to which I would surely have added lots, as I did in my head. Then the make or break moment arrived. Tejay got up first and walked to his bike and from nowhere I asked him if I could have a picture. Of course he said, I took it and wished him good luck for the
next 2 weeks. Not sure what all the fuss was about.

After that Andorra could offer me no more, so after some faffing it was time to leave. Stage 10 tomorrow also starts in Andorra and makes its way to Revel. There is one way out in that direction and the race is using the first 40 miles so it would have been impossible to see the finish. Hence why I left today.

The route is the same I waxed on about on the way in to Andorra and was equally stunning the other way. It will look great tomorrow. It did involve a toll for a tunnel, with an actual man in the booth taking the money, so it wasn't embarrassing at all when I stalled the car with an almighty jolt. He looked at me like a man who was pleased I was leaving his country. Border control was even more pointless as they couldn't even be bothered to stare.

Which all brings me to Foix where I am staying tonight. Foix is a small town, in fact it is the smallest department capital in France (Eastern Pyrenees fact fans) but boasts three impressive things and that doesn't include the obligatory old bridge/river combo. First is an amazing warren of small streets with some very old buildings hidden away. Then you have an impressive castle (Chateau des comtes de Foix) and an Abbey (Abbatiale Saint-Volusien). I would like to bring you culture on this trip so i would like to give you a bit of the history that I translated from signs at both.

The Castle - this version was built in the 13th century, something happened, 1840 it became a monument, in 1864 they thought sod that (it actually said that) and they made it a prison. Now a museum.
The Abbey - There is an abbey.
You are welcome.

For dinner I once again ate alone but next to a couple who didn't stop smoking, shouting and eating the whole cow he had ordered.

So that's it, good job no cycling today as I wouldn't have fitted it all in.

Stat Corner
Miles driven - 1775
Days since pizza - none, 4 cheese.
Time the Portuguese stopped celebrating last night - not by 1am at least
Number of pro's who had their photo taken with me today - 1
Number who wanted to - impossible to confirm
Number of conversations regarding the colour of an electrical item, including me asking - 12 (11 too many)

Way back on stage 1, I mentioned that at some point I would run through the tat that I had collected in the first days of the tour. Mostly collected from the publicity caravan but not all. Some of which I have no idea what it is but no money was exchanged for any item.

Firstly, there were a large number of packs of Haribo, madelaines and Apple juice but they have mostly disappeared.

So 9 stages of 21, here we go...
1 Carrefour cap
1 Carrefour top
3 Cochonou sun hats
2 Krys caps
4 skoda sun hats
2 LCL caps
4 McCain shopping bags
1 Cannondale bidon
4 Generation Peche car sun visors
3 packs of Bic pens
1 Kleber tyres thing - maybe a bandan
2 Bearn region neck scarves
3 packs of washing powder
5 packs of pencils
1 Fire brigade key ring
5 packs of vouchers for Bostik
5 chicken fridge magnets
2 cofidis phone covers
1 big chicken toy
2 small chicken toys
3 coffee samples
7 cornetto utterly pointless things
3 ibis hotel inflatable pillows
7 madelaines (ate loads more)
2 packets of sausage
10 plastic drink stirrers
7 Kyrs mini glasses thing - use undetermined
2 tissot watch things
Greipel gel sachet - used
2 packs of Haribo
1 Beau travel key ring
1 bike ankle refector
1 Micky mouse thin
1 leaflet
1 campagne de France wristband
3 cow key rings
1 campagne de France torch key ring
7 Enedis mini van key rinds
1 ouest France key ring
1 cyclist key ring
1 McCain thing
1 plastic sack thing
Clicker thing, replica of a US army thing
2 Brittany ferry Union Jack baggage tage

9 stages! Plus newspapers, bottles of Vittel water and stuff I gave away. Quick mention for the Vittel crew, they had vans out on the road handling out water to those cycling up yesterday, which just taking a bottle on move makes you feel the business but when the main caravan comes through, they give out papers to all apart from the cyclists, we get another bottle of water. Nice touch.

The Foix Abbey

Tim meets Tejay

The tat collection 

IAM Cycling out for a spin 

Bora rider

The Foix castle