Redux

Sunbathers cheer passing riders on the sixth stage of the Tour de France near Quimper.

……These portraits were taken one day before the start of the Tour de France, the second one was taken right after finishing the much feared cobble stone stage in Cambrai. So no staging for the second shot which shows the impact of it all.

I’m not sure if this was intentional on Watanabe-sensei’s part or not, but when Fukutomi and Kinjou cross arms at the wrist to acknowledge their rivalry carrying them as far as it has it mirrors an actual cycling image from the 1986 Tour de France.

Despite being on the same team, Bernard Hinault (right) and Greg LeMond (left) intensely duked it out for the General Classification title that year. Hinault had won in 1985 with LeMond’s assistance, and in 1986 the team wished to create the opposite result. Hinault, however, repeatedly attacked, raising suspicions that he wanted the title all to himself (despite claiming he was trying to dissuade other teams from attacking). Finally, at the top of one of the most notorious climbs on the Tour, Alpe d’Huez, they crossed the line together, arms like this, with LeMond’s wheel just a bit in front (he took the stage) to show they were burying the hatchet. LeMond went on that year to become the first American to win the Tour de France (and now only American since somebody’s results have been nullified due to doping).

At any rate, I thought this was cool.