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4th Tour de France 1906

 
   
 

By Barry Boyce CyclingRevealed Historian

 

 

 

 

The Thrill of Victory, the Agony of Life

The Tour de France in 1906 captured the essence of the successful 1905 Tour by developing the sensation of the mountains. In addition to the climbs in the Vosges region, Henri Desgranges extended the race into the climbs of the Massif de la Chartreuse.

Contrary to predictions of a close competition Rene Pottier, “the first king of the climbers”, dominates the 1906 Tour from start to finish. His reputation as a fierce climber came on the first ever ascent of the Ballon d'Alsace in 1905. Pottier was the only rider to finish the climb of the Ballon d'Alsace without walking any part of the mountain.

This was a grand victory for an intensely quiet Frenchman, whose entire life was bicycle racing. Sadly for Pottier, the thrill of his grand victory was short lived. Less than six months after the jubilation of the Tour victory, Rene Pottier at the age of 29 succumbed to the agonies of life. On January 25, 1907 a Peugeot team mechanic found hanging from a hook used to hold his bicycle. His brother Andre claimed a failed love affair pushed this intense Frenchman over the edge. There is a monument at the top of the Ballon d'Alsace in his honor. The Ballon d'Alsace was the “un-rideable” mountain that Rene Pottier made look easy.

SPECIAL NOTE: The iron fisted Henri Desgranges could not stop all cheating but he was close. At the end of the third stage in Dijon three competitors were disqualified for taking a train to the finish.

Stage and Distance

Stage Winner

Race Leader

Stage 1 Paris-Lille, 275 km

Emile Georget (Fra)

Emile Georget (Fra)

Stage 2 Douai-Nancy, 400 km

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 3 Nancy-Dijon, 416 km

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 4 Dijon-Grenoble, 298 km

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 5 Grenoble-Nice, 356 km

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 6 Nice-Marseille, 308 km

Georges Passerieu (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 7 Marseille-Toulouse, 480 km

Louis Trousselier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 8 Toulouse-Bayonne, 296 km

Jean-Baptiste Dortignacq (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 9 Bayonne-Bordeaux, 338 km

Louis Trousselier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 10 Bordeaux-Nantes, 391 km

Louis Trousselier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 11 Nantes-Brest, 321 km

Louis Trousselier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 12 Brest-Caen, 415 km

Georges Passerieu (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Stage 13 Caen-Paris/Parc des Princes, 252 km

Rene Pottier (Fra)

Rene Pottier (Fra)

 

TdF July 4-29, 1906
4,546 Km

1. Rene POTTIER (Fra) 31 pts

2. Georges Passerieu (Fra) 39 pts

3. Louis Trousselier (Fra) 59 pts

Starters: 75
Finishers: 14
Average Speed: 24.463 km/h

TdF 1905

TdF 1907

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