As mentioned, I have spent several summers glued to the Tour on tele. One of the real attractions was listening to the fascinating commentary of David Duffield. He really could talk and his passion for cycling was self evident. It was this passion that made you forgive many of his eccentricities.
I’ll never forget the time when the race was flying up Mont Ventoux and David found time to some how recite Psalm 21 as the race passed the Simpson memorial. Only David could have carried it off with such dignity and passion.
David also had a great interest in the culinary and cultural aspects of France and he would often go off on detours about these whilst the race was in progress. On some stages, for several hours, nothing would happen then at the moment someone attacked, poor old David would probably still be talking about the local wines of the regions and how he enjoyed a very nice bottle of Beaujolais the previous evening. These are some of his classic quotes.
David Duffield Quotes
“I am sitting here with my chin on the counter, my mouth open like a great big whale scooping up plankton. I am gobsmacked!”
“Look down the valley…if you’ve got vertigo, sort of…don’t look down the valley.”
“Laurent Fignon just got bombed by a baguette!”
“As the french say, there’s nothing so long as a day without bread, and Laurent Fignon just got some but there’s nothing in it!”
If we had a yo-yo championship of the day, Riis would get the award.
No it’s not the bedouins! (roadside info tents).
In the blue shoulders, that is Jalabert.
One day they’ll tell him (El Diablo) where to put the fork, and it won’t be very pleasant either!
People are almost stripping down to their next-to-nothing.
The mountains look black and white. The white is snow because the snow is still up in the sky.
This is not for the lads back there who have any problems with their ticker-tockers! (on the descent).
If I wasn’t grey already, I’d go even greyer.
And the gap is down to 40 seconds, as I’m getting carried away by the statues!
This is like Wimbledon., Ascot and Silverstone all wrapped in together and plonked in the middle of Paris: amazing!
It could be all over bar the shouting, or until the fat lady sings.
It’s every man for himself- man the lifeboaaaats!
Monet was born in Le Havre or Paris, or was brought up there and then went to Paris to do his painting.
See now as they go up: the stunted trees, the sparse grass, the special alpine flowers that can withstand the hard winter.
Any of you who have just finished hoovering the house out and have turned on the old TV…..
My (steering) wheel’s on the right-hand side, and when you look down you can almost get vertigo and bumps on your tummy, it’s so far down!
Apurov (=Abdujaparov!).
If you ever get the chance to visit Paris, do go up to the d’Orsay….I love painters; they’ve got Monet, Ceganne and Déjà.
2, 4, 10, 20: there must be 100 photographers here on the line!
He had time to throw his hands up in the…er…
De las Cuevas is so far down on GC you could time him in with a calendar!
They cycle through the toll – and no one’s got their money out!
Escartin has a pursuiter’s hooter. A big nose spread all over his face to suck in lots of oxygen.
This is what I call a “beyond comprehensible” climb.
If you’ve got a grandmother in a wheelchair, now’s the time to take her for a walk so she needn’t see this!
Stephen Roche: What are they doing there, Dave? – DD: They’re riding their bicycles!
“It’s curtains for Karpets” (Vladimir Karpets)
“I heard a rumour that Karpets was off to Quick Step, but they were worried they tread all over him.”
Photo by: Will Davies Flickr
Related
- The Tour de France – Love and Hate
- Tour de France FAQ
- Dave Duffield Page at Addiscombe Wheelers
Great quotes!
I am surprised that no commentator picked up on …. Schleck went from 31secs ahead to 8 secs behind ,aloss of 39 secs due to chain mishap ……….he lost the race by 39secs ….so if one removes the chain loss it is a dead heat….!!!!! Thqt is really remarkable .
whether the lens care about winning this Tour de France after he spoke to him this jadnje participation in the Tour de France
You seemed to have missed the classic:
“It’s curtains for Karpets”
And I think Dave Harmon said the following but I’m not sure.
“And the peleton has swallowed up Gatto”
The David Duffield pages have now been moved to
http://www.retrocyclingvintage.com/category/davidduffield
Have never watched the UK covereage…
Paul Sherwin & Phil Ligget always have interesting commentray when watching the north american feed. Bobke (Bob Roll) always injects some humour as ell… it’s the “tour – day – france”
hi
just wondered if lance will b useing his spinning tactics when climbing the alps etc
regards
gary