Last full day in Paris

For our last day in Paris Steve and I decided to do a ride in the morning along the Champs-Elysees and the Arc de Triomphe but we had to be out early as the Tour was finishing today in Paris and as usual the roads would be closed early. We headed out and followed the Sienne river (if you're not careful you will go in-sane)somewhat through relatively empty streets and cute laneways. When we hit the Champs-Elysees near Place de la Concorde it was closed so we worked our way up parallel to find an entry spot not blocked by the Gendamerie and ended up at the Arc de Triumph thrilled to bits. We rode round the Arc 3 times on the cobbled stone road with vibrations coursing through our bodies and bikes but it was such a thrill to ride around this famous landmark knowing the riders would be coming through 8-10 hours later. We then rode along the Champs-Elysees as far as we could (the part that was closed ended up being the finish line later in the day) then headed back home past the famed Notre-Dame back to Bercy.

We met everyone at 1pm to take the bus into central Paris to watch the final race. We all had tickets to get seats to watch in comfort but you had to be early to get decent seats. The race was quite interesting as they came into Paris we could see the riders on the huge screen not far from us. Upon their arrival they did 8 laps of the Champs-Elysees before the sprint to the finish. It was a foregone conclusion that Cadel Evans would finish the Tour in 2nd place behind they yellow jersey winner Carlos Sastre (barring any accidents) given he was 58 seconds behind but it was great to see him on the podium with Sastre.

John M, Steve & I went back to the Bercy Village for dinner, drinks and some relaxation watching the talent wander by. The other boys and girls went out for dinner, drinks and a night spot on the Champs-Elysees.

Ahhh... Gay Paris...