Thanks, Aldo, in the second photo, one can clearly see that the bike is marked Louison Bobet, not Mercier. As the Tour winner the two prior years, Bobet could obviously demand privileged treatment. I have no clue who actually made Bobet's 1955 bike. Earlier in his pro career he rode Stella, and I think took at least his first and perhaps his second tour victory on one. He then rode for the Mercier team several years, but evidently on Bobet-branded frames. Those who have the original (1970) version of Sloane's Complete Book of Bicycling may have noted that in the comparison of models and specifications, Sloane lists a Bobet model in each of three cost categories of quality lightweights. This must mean that in the late 60's Bobet bikes were not only produced in quantity, but widely available in the United States, or at least those parts of the US market Sloane was familiar with. The Sloane book was published nearly a decade after Bobet retired from competition, so one can't assume he still had a connection with Mercier. Anyone know who made the Bobet bikes sold in the late 60's? Stella? Mercier? Someone else?
I guess this leaves Lapebie and Leducq as the only winners of the Tour who might have won it on a Mercier-badged bike.
Regards,
Jerry Moos
big Spring, Texas, USA
> From: Aldo Ross <aldoross4@siscom.net>
\r?\n> Subject: [CR] Pic of the Day Bobet's Bobet Bike 1944 tour de France
\r?\n> To: classicrendezvous@bikelist.org
\r?\n> Date: Sunday, August 16, 2009, 9:26 AM
\r?\n> Pic of the Day
\r?\n> 16 August 2009
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Bobet's Bobet Bike, 1955 Tour de France
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Hi Jerry et al,
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Re: Mercier bikes and the TdF...
\r?\n>
\r?\n> I'll start with 1955, since it is the easiest. The
\r?\n> cover of "Vous Fait
\r?\n> Revivre: Le Tour (1955) has a nice image of Bobet and
\r?\n> Gaul. It is probably
\r?\n> "colorized", but they were pretty good at getting the
\r?\n> correct colors in the
\r?\n> right places (fans were probably just as picky then as they
\r?\n> are today).
\r?\n> Bobet's bike is yellow with blue seattube panel, and World
\r?\n> Champion stripes
\r?\n> in several places.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Another image (b&w) shows a three-quarter shot from the
\r?\n> drive side. Note
\r?\n> his mechanic is still mounting the rear qr lever on the
\r?\n> drive side. Not a
\r?\n> perfect print, but I'll leave it large for details - you
\r?\n> can even make-out
\r?\n> the lacing pattern on his shoe!. Note the head lugs
\r?\n> and fork crown details.
\r?\n> Someone will have to remind me who built Bobet's personal
\r?\n> bikes.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Click pics for larger images.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> I'll cover 1937 next time, and then 1930 & 1932 - right
\r?\n> now we're off to see
\r?\n> the ATP Women's Tennis Finals.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> http://aldoblog2008.blogspot.com/
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Aldo Ross
\r?\n> Middletown, Ohio, USA
\r?\n> "Requests? We love requests!"
\r?\n>
\r?\n> ----- Original Message -----
\r?\n> From: "Jerome & Elizabeth Moos" <jerrymoos@sbcglobal.net>
\r?\n> To: "Classicrendezvous" <classicrendezvous@bikelist.org>;
\r?\n> "Amir Avitzur"
\r?\n> <avitzur@013.net>
\r?\n> Cc: "Nick March" <nicbordeaux@yahoo.fr>
\r?\n> Sent: Saturday, August 15, 2009 7:17 PM
\r?\n> Subject: [CR] Mercier TdF Winners?
\r?\n>
\r?\n>
\r?\n> After further research, I'm not so certain about my answer
\r?\n> that Mercier
\r?\n> never won the TdF. Wikipedia says that riders from the
\r?\n> Mercier team won the
\r?\n> 1937 and 1955 TdF. That would be Roger Lapebie and Louison
\r?\n> Bobet. But in
\r?\n> those years the TdF was contested by national teams, so
\r?\n> technically the
\r?\n> Mercier team did not win. I don't know if either Lapebie or
\r?\n> Bobet was riding
\r?\n> a pink Mercier while competing on the French national team.
\r?\n> Anyone know if
\r?\n> the TdF riders used the bikes provided by their trade teams
\r?\n> when riding for
\r?\n> national teams? In Bobet's case it is possible he rode a
\r?\n> Louison Bobet frame
\r?\n> as I believe he did much of his career - don't know who
\r?\n> made those. It was
\r?\n> also mentioned that Mercier founder Emile Mercier long
\r?\n> sponsored Andre
\r?\n> Leducq who won the Tour in 1930 and 1932, in the national
\r?\n> team era. But it
\r?\n> was also said the Mercier team started in 1935. Don't know
\r?\n> if Mercier might
\r?\n> have sponsored Lequcq individually in his winning years or
\r?\n> whether he rode a Mercier. Evidently there was a
\r?\n> long, bitter and public
\r?\n> feud between Emile Mercier and Henri Desgrange over
\r?\n> Desgrange once leaving
\r?\n> LeDucq off the French team for the TdF.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> This seems the perfect reseach project for Aldo. Aldo
\r?\n> can you delve into
\r?\n> those archives of yours and dredge up some photos of Leducq
\r?\n> and Lapebie in
\r?\n> their winning TdF's and of Bobet in the 1955 Tour? We
\r?\n> may not be able to
\r?\n> tell if the bikes were pink, though, in those black &
\r?\n> white photos.
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Regards,
\r?\n>
\r?\n> Jerry Moos
\r?\n> Big Spring, Texas, USA