Hello to the CR list,
I am new to the list but was a member a long time ago. I find all types
of bicycles interesting & ride anything from a 1886 High Bicycle to a
1950's roadster. But my main interests lay with the 1890 to 1950's
racing bicycles. I'm slowly building up a small collection of
interesting racing bicycles with interesting provenance. My latest find
was a bicycle I found while my new wife & I were on honeymoon in the
Loire valley in France in the summer. Bought from a seller in a street
market near to Sancerre (the famous wine region). The bicycle is a
FONTAN & made in Pau which is a town in the Pyrenees, looks to be about
1929/ c1930'ish in date. Having done a search on Google for Fontan &
came up with a Victor Fontan who was a tour rider in that period.
According to the various documents on the web about the tour in that
period, Victor Fontan was top tour rider & Won the Tour DuCatalogne in
1926 & 1927. He apparently was most famous though for being the rider
that nearly won the the Tour in 1929, but during riding through the
Pyrenees with the yellow jersey, his forks broke & had to knock on the
doors of the villages houses to borrow a bicycle, the rules at that time
stipulated that a rider had to finish the tour with the bicycle he
started with. So he had to carry the brocken bicycle on his back for the
remainder of the stage. He lost so much time that he lost the stage win
& the tour. Desgrange; the tour organiser at that time apparently
changed the rules for the 1930 tour so as back up bicycles could be
used. I'm no expert on the Tour Du France, but this is the reason for
asking the CR list if anyone out there knows more about Victor Fontan,
his bicycles & this story.
The bicycle i have is more or less identicle to the picture of Victor
Fontan in the 1930 tour. You can see the picture here :
http://photos.bravenet.com/
The photo is very evocative of the tour in that period.
If I get time today, I will take some detailed pics of the Fontan bicycle so the CR list can see it. The bicycle is very original with all decals. wooden sprint rims & all componants are engraved with Fontan. Decals read Fontan / Pau/ Tour Du France / Type, Hendaye Lucon. There is an very interesting oiler on the saddle tube for oiling the chain. While out at L'Eroica this year, i saw Bartali's bicycle from 1930 & it too was fitted with this type of oiler.
Kind Regards, Tim
Tim Gunn (Director) The Old Bicycle Co. Cut Elms Farm, Aythorpe Roding, Near Great Dunmow, Essex, CM6 1PQ. United Kingdom.
Electric Showroom: http://www.theoldbicycle.co.uk
Electric Post: Tim@theoldbicycle.co.uk