Epilogue
A Pile of letters sits on the table in Helen and Barry Hoban’s farmhouse high on a mid-Wales hillside: three big bundles, perhaps 150 or 200 of them. Every kind of envelope, postmarks from around the world – Arizona, France, Tahiti, Germany, New Zealand, Britain. They arrived at Helen and Tom Simpson’s house in Vijverstraat, Mariakerke, in the weeks after his death, as cycling fans around the world shared in Helen Simpson’s grief. The message is overwhelmingly universal: the writer does not know what to do, and finds an outlet in writing to Helen.
Some letters are addressed simply ‘Mrs Tom Simpson, Mariakerke, Belgium’. One has been sent to the Saint Martha Hospital in Avignon. Another is directed ‘care of the French Cycling Federation’. They are from fellow cyclists, old ladies in rural France, the British consul in Brussels. Collectively, they are a more eloquent expression than I could ever provide of why Tom Simpson mattered and still matters.
The first one Helen and I opened was written on July 13, 1967, within hours of Simpson’s death being announced, from Tony Dickson of the Catford Cycling Club in south London: ‘Cycling is going to stand still for us all. Although fully grown I keep getting watery-eyed and would not try to conceal it. It’s partly sadness, disbelief and partly pride at having been here when Tom took the world and put Britain on it too. I respect and almost love him without ever having met him.’
Benny Foster, Norman Shiel and Simpson (left to right) ponder Shiel's narrow victory in the pursuit of the 1958 Empire Games at Cardiff, a defeat Simpson resented for the rest of his career.
Racing through the snow in a time trial stage on the 1962 Paris–Nice 'race to the sun', in which Simpson finished second overall.
Playing up to the camera was key for the professional cyclist: in autumn 1963 Simpson turns on the charm with a hula girl to publicise a series of circuit races in the French Pacific colony of New Caledonia.
Victory beckons in the 1963 Bordeaux–Paris motorpaced Classic; the motorcycle rider Fernand Wambst (right) checks Simpson's progress as they tackle the hills in the Chevreuse Valley.
Glory day: Simpson and Albert Beurick (in Great Britain hat) force their way through the crowd after the Briton's victory in the world road race championship in August 1965.
In the world champion's jersey, Simpson (centre) leads the Italians Massignan, Motta and Poggiali on the Intelvi pass en route to a crushing victory in the 1965 Tour of Lombardy.
Helen Simpson rarely saw Tom race, but she was at the finish in Como to savour that win in the 'race of the falling leaves', as Lombardy is known.
Simpson's world title earned him lucrative contracts on the winter indoor racing circuit in events such as the Brussels Six Day, which included motorpaced events such as this.
A gold medal on the wall, a vast picture of the world title podium as a reminder – and time to treat the press to a little music in winter 1965.
Keeping fit in the off-season would include sessions of weights and circuit training, such as at this 1966 Peugeot training camp. The 1967 Tour winner Roger Pingeon is to Simpson's right.
Simpson forces the pace, and the young Eddy Merckx struggles to hold him as they escape together in the 1967 Paris–Nice; the Dutchman Lute is fading and will soon be left behind.
The 1967 Tour was hotter than usual, as Simpson and his team mate Barry Hoban (right) amusingly attempt to illustrate.
In his final moments in the pitiless sun on Mont Ventoux, Simpson's eyes are glazed and his cheeks hollow as his body overheats.
In the fruitless fight to save Simpson's life, Dr Dumas (black t-shirt) has abandoned the oxygen mask. Mouth-to-mouth resuscitation is the only hope now.
Tom Simpson: Race Record
Born: November 30, 1937, Haswell, Co. Durham.
Height: 1.81m.
Weight: 69kg.
1956 Amateur: silver medal, national individual pursuit championship; bronze medal, Olympic Games team pursuit (Melbourne).
1957 Amateur: gold medal, British League of Racing Cyclists national hill climb championship.
1958 Amateur: gold medal, national individual pursuit championship; silver medal, Empire Games individual pursuit (Cardiff); silver medal, British League of Racing Cyclists national hill climb championship.
1959 Independent (until August): major wins: stages in Essor Breton and Route de France stage races.
Professional from August with Rapha-Geminiani team: wins: two stages Tour de l’Ouest. Selected place: fourth in world professional road race championship (Zandvoort, Holland).
1960 Rapha-Gitane: wins: Tour du Sud Est, Mont Faron hill climb, two criteriums.
Selected places: 3rd, Genoa–Rome; 7th, Flèche Wallonne; 11th, Liège–Bastogne–Liège; 9th, Paris–Roubaix; 3rd, stage three Tour de France (29th overall).
1961 Rapha-Gitane: wins: Tour of Flanders, stage 1B Tour of Eibar, two criteriums; joint winner team time trial Four Days of Dunkirk and Paris–Nice, Challenge de France team event.
Selected places: 2nd, Menton–Rome; 5th, Paris-Nice; 9th, World Championship. Abandoned Tour de France stage three.
1962 Gitane-Leroux: wins: Tour de France yellow jersey, stage 12; Challenge de France team event; joint winner team time trial in Paris–Nice.
Selected places: 5th, Tour of Flanders; 6th, Ghent–Wevelgem; 6th overall Tour de France.
1963 Peugeot-BP: wins: Bordeaux–Paris, stage one Tour du Var; Manx Trophy; three criteriums; joint winner: GP Parisien team time trial, World Cup (team trophy).
Selected places: 2nd, Paris–Brussels; 2nd, Ghent–Wevelgem; 2nd, Paris–Tours; 3rd, Tour of Flanders; 8th, Paris-Roubaix; 10th, Flèche Wallonne; 10th, Tour of Lombardy. Did not start Tour de France.
1964 Peugeot-BP: wins: Milan–San Remo, stage Circuit du Provencçal, five criteriums.
Selected places: 2nd, Kuurne–Brussels–Kuurne; 4th, world road race championship (Sallanches, France); 10th, Paris–Roubaix; 14th overall, Tour de France (2nd, stage nine).
1965 Peugeot-BP: wins: world road race championship (San Sebastian, Basque Country); Tour of Lombardy; London–Holyhead; Brussels six-day (track); three criteriums.
Selected places: 3rd, Flèche–Wallonne; 3rd, Bordeaux–Paris; 3rd overall, GP Midi Libre; 3rd overall, Circuit de Provencçal; 7th, Paris–Roubaix; 10th, Liège–Bastogne–Liège. Abandoned Tour de France, stage 20.
1966 Peugeot-BP: wins: nine criteriums; joint winner, team time trial, Four Days of Dunkirk.
Selected places: 2nd, stages 12 and 13, Tour de France. Abandoned stage 17.
1967 Peugeot-BP: wins: Paris–Nice (3rd, stage four; 2nd, stages six and seven); stage and overall, Tour of Sardinia (2nd, stage two); Manx Trophy; two stages Tour of Spain.
Selected places: 33rd overall, Tour of Spain; 4th, stage nine, Tour de France. Died stage 13.
Acknowledgements
This book could not have been written without the cooperation of the following in giving up their time to be interviewed: Bob Addy, Lucien Aimar, Jacques Augendre, Albert Beurick, Chris Brasher, Peter Bryan, Vin Denson, Harry Hall, Helen and Barry Hoban, Jean-Marie Leblanc, Colin Lewis, the late Arthur Metcalfe, Dr Jean-Pierre de Mondenard, George Morris, Peter Parkin, Raymond Poulidor, Alan Ramsbottom, Brian Robinson, Pete Ryalls, Norman Sheil, Harry Simpson, Jean Stablinski, Michael Wright.
George Shaw’s collection of letters from Tom were invaluable, particularly in writing chapter three: I owe him my sincere thanks. Vital material for chapter eight, the interview with Dr Pierre Dumas, was kindly provided by Philippe Brunel, who also gave considerable help and encouragement. Ray Pascoe’s willingness to share Simpson material was much appreciated. Dr Chris Jarvis’s advice and information on physiology were crucial for chapter nine, while Peter Keen’s advice on body core temperatures was also helpful.
In the Equipe archive, Serge Laget provided time, advice and encouragement in equal measure. My brother, Alasdair, hunted down Spanish cyclists on my behalf. My father, Alex, provided valuable 1950s background information. Willy Voet ass
isted with background on Gus Naessens. In the Avignon archive, Mme Hollard dug out documents on my behalf. Martin Ayres and Dave Marsh provided names and addresses.
For the photos, thanks go to Michael Loasby, Presse Sports/Offside, Photosport International and Pete Ryalls.
I should also like to thank my sports editor at the Guardian, Ben Clissitt, for his support, and my colleagues Tim Clifford and Ian Austen for their advice and encouragement. To Rachel Cugnoni at Random House, many thanks for cutting the dead wood and the occasional boot in the backside.
This book owes most, however, to Caroline Arthur, whose constant patience, keen eye, and brutally honest comments at the manuscript stage made the whole thing happen.
Bibliography
Continental Cycle Racing, Noel Henderson, Pelham, 1970
Cycling is My Life, Tom Simpson, Pelham, 1965
Cycling in the Sixties, David Saunders, Pelham, 1968
Dopage, l’Imposture des Performances, Dr Jean-Pierre de Mondenard, Chiron, 2000
Doping, les surhommes du velo, Roger Bastide, Solar, 1970
La Fabuleuse Histoire du Tour de France, Pierre Chany, Editions de la Martinière, 1997
Le Tour de France, Pierre Chany, Plon, 1972
Le Tour, Geoffrey Nicholson, Hodder & Stoughton, 1990
Le Tour de France, Lieux et Etapes de Légende, Jean-Paul Ollivier, Arthaud, 2000
Les Grandes Heures du Tour de France au Ventoux, Bernard Mondon, Equinoxe, 2000
Mr Tom, The True Story of Tom Simpson, Chris Sidwells, Moushold Press, 2000
Mythologies, Roland Barthes, Seuil, 1957
The Great Bike Race, Geoffrey Nicholson, Hodder & Stoughton, 1977
Watching the Wheels Go Round, Barry Hoban with John Wilcockson, Stanley Paul, 1981
Cycling and Cycling and Mopeds were invaluable sources of reference, as were L’Equipe and Miroir-Sprint.
Ray Pascoe’s film Something to Aim At was an important resource, as were Les Woodland’s 1987 articles on Simpson in Cycling Weekly, Philippe Brunel’s features on Simpson and Dr Pierre Dumas in L’Equipe from 1997 and 1999, David Walsh’s 1999 article on Simpson and Colin Lewis in the Sunday Times, and Julian Barnes’s essay on the 2000 Tour de France in the Guardian.
Index
The page references in this index correspond to the printed edition from which this ebook was created. To find a specific word or phrase from the index, please use search feature of your ebook reader.
Addy, Bob 117
Adorni, Vittorio 136
agents 128, 129
Aimar, Lucien 25, 32, 91–2, 156, 162, 184
alcohol, and judgement 182
Ali, Muhammad 110
Alp 61, 62
Alps 26, 55, 63, 129, 136, 140, 195, 204, 205, 206, 211
Alsace 26
Altig, Rudi 6, 92, 93–4, 103, 126, 166, 170, 191
amphetamines 4, 32, 39, 141, 142–3, 149, 150, 151, 159, 163, 166, 169, 171, 172, 173, 178, 181–2, 187–8, 189
anciens coureurs 132
Andrews, Eamonn 2
Angers 26, 27
Anglade, Henri 106, 136
Angoulême 134
Anquetil, Jacques 74, 91, 92, 100, 103, 123, 126, 127, 159, 160, 166, 169–73, 186, 187, 188
Anquetil, Janine 74
Antenne 2 188
anti-drug operations 169
Antwerp 119
six-day track races 102
appearance money 127, 128, 130
Arles 202
Armstrong, Lance 12, 116, 208
Aspin 87
Aubisque pass 162, 164
Augendre, Jacques 12, 98, 199
Auto, L’ newspaper 165
Avengers, The, television series 109
Avignon 11, 29, 38, 83, 167, 195
Palais des Papes 209
Saint Martha Hospital 227
Baguet, Serge 202
Bahamontes, Federico 87
Bailey, David 75
Ballon d’Alsace 25
Baracchi trophy 191
Barbara (a girlfriend) 56
Barèges 87
Barnes, Julian 209
Barthes, Roland 196, 208
Bastide, Roger: Doping: Cycling Supermen 170
Battistini, Graziano 63
Bayonne 64
Bayssière, André 162, 163
BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation)
‘Sports Personality of the Year’ 105
‘The World of Tom Simpson’ documentary 105, 120–21, 130, 146, 149–50
Beatles 96, 101
Bedoin 196, 197, 198, 202, 203
Bedoin forest 32
Beghetto, Giuseppe 111
Beheyt, Benoni 120
Belfort 25
Benoit, Adolphe 203
Benzedrine 143
Berger, George 51, 52, 180
Beurick, Albert
his café/guest house in Ghent (Den Engel) 2, 115–16, 119, 120–21, 133, 135
‘cycling schools’ with TS 121–2
disillusionment and depression after TS’s death 135
‘helicopter’ theory about TS’s death 186, 188
and the Hoban stage win 6
meets TS 116–17
at the museum opening 15
the Simpson supporters’ club 120
at the Something to Aim At screening 3–5, 7, 115, 116, 178
the subscription fund 103
the Tom Simpson Grand Prix 120, 133, 135
on TS’s carefulness with money 124
and TS’s drug–taking 150
on TS’s wheeler–dealing 123
Binda, Alfredo 108, 154
Bird, Ken 24, 39
Black Forest, Germany 70
Blackpool United FC 46
Blio, Lucien 116
Bo Larsen, Nikolai 202
Blondin, Antoine 97, 99, 196
Boardman, Chris 9, 10, 95
Bobby (a girlfriend) 56–7
Bobet, Jean 112
Bobet, Louison 126
body temperature 182, 183, 184
Bolts, Udo 202
bon coureurs 126–7
Bordeaux 113
Bordeaux–Paris one–day Classic 9, 65, 79, 81, 96, 113, 129, 145, 164
Botham, Ian 212
Bradley, Bill 62
Brandts, Frans 120
Brasher, Chris 104, 112, 148
Brest time trial (1959) 42
Briançon 28
British Colonial Association, Ghent 75
British Cycling Federation (BCF) 14, 62, 120
British League of Racing Cyclists (BLRC) 48, 58, 101
Brittany 17, 42, 54, 56, 57, 60, 73, 101, 130, 172
Brunel, Philippe 16, 155, 156, 159, 195
Brussels 215
Brussels Six Day 82, 230
Bryan, Peter 209
Burbage road race 49
Burgess, Don 19
But et Club magazine 23
Butler, Keith 4, 5, 117
Caesar, Julius 205
caffeine 159, 181
Campbell, Sir Donald 112
Carnets du Ventoux, Les magazine 210
Carpentras 30, 31, 37, 38, 91, 196, 203, 206, 208
Cartwright, Cyril 52–3, 77
Casartelli, Fabio 40, 89, 90, 91
Casse Déserte 203
Castro, Dr 146
Catford Cycling Club 227
Cavalcade Girls 102
Cepeda, Francisco 90
Cévennes 206
Chalet Reynard 32, 182, 200, 202, 207
Challenge de France team event 229–230
‘Champions’ Concert’, Royal Albert Hall, London 102
Chany, Pierre 99, 163, 165, 170
Chapatte, Robert: When the Doors Slam 188
chasse à la canette, la 31
Château Chinon criterium 126
Chevreuse valley 113
Chez Jean restaurant, La Rochelle 92
Chiappucci, Claudio 100
Churchill, Sir Winston 97
Cin
elli, Mr 128
Circuit du Provençal 218
Clark, Jim 104
Clarke, Petula 75
Cleethorpes 47
Clément company 24, 40
Clermont Ferrand 164
Clichy, Paris 71, 118
Clifford, Peter 103
Tour de France 103
Club Olympique Briochin, Saint Brieuc, Brittany 17
coca 157
Coca Cola France 132
Col de Montgenèvre 175
Col de Peyresourde 87
Col des Tempêtes 201
Col d’Izoard 204
Col du Galibier 26, 28, 29, 175, 203, 212
cola 157, 158
Collège des Garcçons, Carpentras 38
Como 107
Cookson, Brian 14
Coppi, Fausto 9, 46, 47, 51, 63, 75, 100, 107, 154
Corona 103
Corona London–Holyhead one–day race 24, 164, 218
Corsica 3, 55, 70, 77, 82, 83, 84, 123, 133
Côte de Dourdan 113
Côtes du Ventoux vineyards 195
Coventry Eagle 85
Crédit Lyonnais 132
‘criteriums’ 126, 131, 132, 161, 229, 230
Crystal Palace, London 102, 137
cycle race numbers 22
cycle–racing circuit (proposed) 15
Cycling magazine 46, 62, 100, 112, 101, 119, 102, 127,109, 134, 147, 208
Cycling and Mopeds magazine (later Cycling Weekly) 55
Cycling Weekly magazine 10, 11, 34, 55, 209
Daily Express newspaper 133
‘Sportsman of the Year’ 105
Daninos, Pierre 108
Darrigade, André 87, 98
Dartmoor 139
Dauphiné Libéré 203
De Haan, Jo 61
de Leener, Marcel 134
De Roucke, Mr 122
de Wilde, Roger 173
De Wouwer, Kurt 202
Put Me Back on My Bike Page 23
