We Were Young and Carefree

'We Were Young and Carefree' Laurent Fignon translated by William Fotheringham
What a great read. It's a must for all cycling aficionados. So great I am going to share a few moments that made me dog-ear the page.

'.. I resolutely glued myself to Hinault's wheel.....After a little while he began to wonder what this display was all about. He wasn't born yesterday, so he pulled to one side and said: 'What are you doing stuck to my backside?' I answered:'I've never ridden my bike behind a world champion so I wanted to feel what it felt like'. A similar thing happened a long time after my racing career ended. I was riding a cycle-tourist event in which Eddy Merckx was taking part and made sure I sat in behind him. Just to see if you could still see the whole world behind his two wheels.'

'...One thing that must never be forgotten: I did not have the class that was Hinault's. To me, that was obvious, there was no question of it. Dominating as I did in that 1984 Tour did not mean that I had lost my grip on reality, or my zest for life and basic pleasures. On a bike, all facades gradually fade away. Stylistic effects don't last long. Cycling is the naked truth.'

Throughout the book Fignon talks about his opposition. Mainly Hinault, Lemond and Bugno. Sometimes he just attacks them or laughs at them, but always he is full of respect, recognises their talents, their passion and their humanity. Although Bugno certainly gets the short end of the stick and the are chapters at the end of the book devoted to his time with Bugno's team and he never once mentions the name of the team.

'I personally worked on the design of the jersey using the same colours as the Renault kit, with the logo resembling a wheatsheaf pointing upwards. My idea was to make the rider look a bit more slender and maybe more muscular.'

Which means that Fignon had a hand in designing one of my favourite jerseys of all time!!

But then he kinda ruins it by admitting he can be blamed for the worst!

'Guimard, who was always at the forefront of technical development, had made us wear some of the very first pulse monitors to hit the market....After tests the doctors advised me that '165 beats per minute is your absolute limit'....The second I noticed my heart-rate monitor above 165, I would rein myself in.'

Seems like technology was a bug bear throughout Fignon's career, you will have to read the book to discover why. He firmly believed in being from the last 'physical' era of cycling. Lemond's 1989 victory ushered in a whole wave of technological advancements which changed the style of racing. Even the drug taking he believes was different. Prior to HGH and EPO, which is the drug of the 1990's on, doping primarily involved amphetamines. Although they could induce you to greater efforts thy did not transform average riders into those capable to defeat the greats, unlike now.

I feel like I have so much more to share from the book, so many little insights and I fear I have given too many away. The book is terrific. It is actually great to read an autobiography by a cyclist looking back on his career as opposed to a biography written by an outsider or an autobiography written way too early (looking at you Cav).

Credit must be given to William Fotheringham's translation. It truly conveys the spirit of Fignon it feels like you are reading his words and he is not 'Word 2010' he is human.
I hope to one day be able to translate similarly with paint.

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