johnmflores

1990 Tour de France Publicity Caravan

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in

A Rolling Carnival

They close mountain pass roads along the Tour de France route early. Many people get there the night before and camp by the side of the road or arrive super early in the morning and then wait hours for the riders to arrive. It’s a lot of free time listening to the race on the radio and enjoying the scenery. Every once in a while, a gendarme will fly by in a car or on a motorcycle. Or some team vehicle. As the race approaches, those fly byes become more frequent. But the publicity caravan is the real tell that the riders will be coming soon.

Photo looking down towards a hairpin curve on a mountain road in the French Alps. It is summer. People are lining both sides of the road as two Jeep Cherokees drive up through the hairpin. Each Jeep has an oversized marketing display on the roof. The first has a sign "Poulain" above the windshield, with oversized sacks of cacao beans, an even larger cacao bean and leaf, and retail packaging. The other is also "Poulain" but the objects on top are black and difficult to discern.

Some of the vehicle have silly things on their roofs. The popular ones are handing out free stuff. Everyone loves free stuff. Even the French.

A promotional RV from the company Karcher drives up the hairpin turn. The RV is yellow and white with a matching yellow and white display on the roof with the name and logo Karcher prominently displayed. On top appears to be a yellow and white generator and scale model construction equipment in yellow. People line the side of the road and reach out to the Karcher RV.

4×4 Fiat Panda!

A red 4x4 Fiat Panda with an oversized Coke can mounted on its roof rack drives by. In the background are trees and distant Alpine mountains.

This caravan follows the entire route, preceding the race every day through small towns, along country roads, and up and over the Alps and the Pyrenees. There’s plenty of music and tooting of horns and people, who’ve been standing by the side of the road for yours, welcome the distraction.

A white Jeep Wrangler with a thick red pinstripe drives uphill in the Alps. The passenger door has "Super Poulain" painted in bright red letters. In back, the rear roof of the Jeep has been removed so that an oversized - maybe 10 feet - drinking cup can be mounted. The cup - blue with "Super Poulain" written on it, hangs off the back of the Jeep, the red base of the cup nearly touching the ground. The oversized conical red lid and straw are tilted off the cup and rest on the roof. A cartoon character - a young blond boy with red tights, blue tunic, red belt, and red cape emerges from the cup. On his cape, "Super Poulain" is written in white.

Two blue Renault minivans drive up through a hairpin turn in the Alps. The roads are lined with people waiting for the Tour de France. The vans have white placards with the words "Vert Baudet" written in large green letters along their sides and hood. On top of the vans are giant green oversized donkey-like figures. They are seated on their haunches, their ears are up, they are leaning back, and the expression on their faces suggest that they are excited to be moving fast.

When I first saw these custom trikes, I thought, “How cool is that?!”

A lively outdoor scene on a mountain road in the Alps shows a person in a yellow shirt and red pants rides a tricycle - a motorcycle that has been modified with two front wheels to carry a white car-like nose. The nose is decorated with French text promoting bread and "La Ronde des Pains." and on top has what appear to be biscuits or some kind of bread. Behind the motorcycle, crowds of spectators line the road. Lush green trees and dramatic mountains rise in the background under a partly cloudy sky.

But, thinking about it now, I hope that seat is comfy. These riders are riding a 3,000 mile loop of France at 20-25 mph!

A colorful parade float features a large cartoonish figure of a man in a blue jacket holding a megaphone, mounted on top of a vehicle. The side of the float displays the French words "La Force en Liberté" in bold, playful lettering. The scene is set outdoors with green trees and mountains in the background under a bright, partly cloudy sky. Several people are gathered around the float, enjoying the event

A bright, sunny, eye-level outdoor shot shows a car, angled from the front passenger side, in the foreground of a gathering of people. The car, which is brown fading into dark yellow, has an open window on the passenger side. On its roof, there is a large, silvery bowl or dish, filled with a white, fluffy substance, possibly ice, and what appear to be a large chocolate bar sticking out of it. Underneath the bowl is a light brown rectangular box with a yellow flashing light. On the side of the box, text in a foreign language is visible, with a few words visible that read "Tout Mo" and "dans une g." Below is the "Mars" logo.. To the left, a person with medium-length brown hair, wearing a purple t-shirt and white shorts, has their back to the viewer and is extending their right arm towards the car. In the background, many people are walking around and standing. One person in a red cap is prominent, while others are less distinct. Beyond them, a few white trailers or trucks are visible. The scene is framed by tall green trees on both sides, and a bright blue sky with scattered white clouds is overhead. The overall impression is one of a lively, outdoor event.

A slightly elevated outdoor shot captures a white convertible car driving uphill with a crowd of people gathered around it under a partly cloudy sky. The car is angled from the front passenger side, with its top down. In the front passenger seat, a person with short brown hair, wearing a yellow collared shirt, is lifting himself above the windshield and taking a picture with a camera held to their eye, facing towards the right side of the frame. In the back seat on the left, a blonde-haired woman in a white and teal top is seated on the folded convertible top, her head above the rollbar The car has a green "PMI" logo with two red stylized horse figures on its front passenger door. Numerous spectators are visible around the car. On the left side of the frame, several people are standing near the car. On the right side of the car, a larger group of people of varying ages and attire are standing and looking towards the general direction of the car or further into the background. The background features lush green trees and a mountainous landscape under a bright sky with scattered clouds. The mountains are hazy in the distance. The overall impression is of a public event, possibly a race or parade, where spectators are eagerly watching.

A young girl stands in the foreground holding a small, vibrant flag from the cycling team Z. The child wears a white T-shirt with blue accents and the word "DOLPHIN" across the front. Behind them, people are relaxing on a grassy hill, some shaded under a white umbrella, with a parked car nearby. The setting is sunny and outdoors, on an Alpine roadside at the Tour de France

A group of spectators lines a curved mountain road in the Alps during the Tour de France, watching a pair of whimsical go-karts drive up a hairpin turn. One go-kart features a large prop shaped like a loaf of bread, while another sports a rectangular box. Both vehicles are labeled “PATIGEL.” The scene is festive, with people casually gathered on the roadside and lush hills rising in the background.

A colorful publicity van drives on a road in the Alps during the 1990 Tour de France. The van is adorned with a red, white, and blue canopy and miniature bicycles perched on top. People in casual summer attire, some with hats, stand on an open platform off the back of the van. Some young boys are in the foreground. The background features tree-covered hills beneath a partly cloudy sky, giving the scene a festive, small-town vibe.

I followed the 1990 Tour de France for a couple of weeks and befriended a bunch of young kids working a summer job in one of the vans in the caravan. We’d bump into each other in one town and then another. I had a crazy haircut so was easy to spot. I’d practice my French and they’d practice their English. Near the finish, knowing that the race was almost over, we took a group photo. I need to find that shot.