Tonight's TdF stage starts in Albertville. The 1992 Winter Olympics were held in this town / area, and it was where Australia won its first ever winter medal. That was a bronze in the indoor short track ice speed skating. Prior to taking up cycle racing, I spent twelve years ice speed skating, and the leader of our team at Albertville was Richard Nisilski, a member of my club in WA at the time. I was very much in the Masters age by then, but trained often with Richard.  It took just that one break through, and quite a few medals followed that occasion. That twelve years of short track ice speed skating gave me a great start in fitness for my first year of cycle racing. In fact, cycling was one of the few off-ice activities that was suitable training for speed skating. Now of course, there is in-line, though very much in its infancy then.

It is just as well that the tour goes through the Albertville area in the summer !