Phil Stead watched his first live Tour de France in 1994. During the past 25 years he has slept in a car on the Ventoux, frozen on the Col du Galibier and hitch-hiked to a time trial in Morzine. He has cheered on legends like Ullrich, Indurain and Contador from the roadside in France, and been sworn at by Marco Pantani. In the saddle, he has struggled up the famous mountains of the Alps and Pyrenees. He's ridden the Roubaix cobbles on a fold-up Brompton, and once gathered a record 34 madeleine cakes from the Tour caravan.
He thought he had seen it all. But he never thought he would see a Welsh winner in Paris. In 2018, all that changed when Geraint Thomas took the yellow jersey, and of course, Phil was there to witness one of the greatest moments in the history of Welsh sport. This is the story of 25 years as a cycling fan. This is the story of how a Welshman won the Tour de France.
