Let me tell you the one about God and Eddie Merckx...

On Saturday July 6 the Tour de France (TdF) will begin its annual pilgrimage around the roads of Europe. This year the race begins in Belgium, honouring the 50th anniversary of the first TdF win of Eddy Merckx. There is a joke that goes: A cyclist who had died saw a massive golden velodrome upon entering heaven, with a solitary rider speeding around its banked slopes. The cyclist asked the angel accompanying him: “Is that Eddy Merckx?” The angel replied: “No, that’s just God – he just likes to think he’s Merckx.”

So is Eddy Merckx the greatest cyclist ever? Perhaps – the Belgian devoured everything there was to win with a voracious appetite that earned him the nickname The Cannibal. He is, without a doubt, the most successful professional road rider there has ever been, with 11 Grand Tour victories, three world championships, a host of track victories and almost every one-day race on the calendar.

In total, his 525 victories as a professional cyclist still stands as a record and is unlikely to be beaten. To put that into context, over a six-year period he won a race a week, something no other cyclist has really come close to. Such was his dominance that in 1973 the TdF organiser, Jacques Goddet, asked Merckx not to compete in that year’s event because of his overwhelming superiority. The four-time TdF champion complied to appease the French public, who were typically becoming annoyed at someone from another nation dominating “their Tour”.

A year later Merckx came back to win his fifth TdF. In 1976 Merckx was again in the leader’s Yellow Jersey and looking set for victory number six. On stage 14

he was climbing the corkscrew road that winds to the summit of the Puy de Dome, above Clermont Ferrand, when a Frenchman, Nello Breton, stepped out from the crowd and punched Merckx in the stomach. Merckx continued, but it was the last time he ever wore the Yellow Jersey and his pursuit of a sixth TdF victory was at an end.

It is hard to argue against Merckx being the greatest of all time. Others may have won a lot of races, but the sheer breadth of Merckx’s wins is incomparable.

He won on the track, on mountain tops, in sprints, single-day races, multi-day stage races – he did it all. While speculation on who is, or was, the greatest will continue among cycling fans, when it comes to the TdF the greatest is Eddy Merckx.

Still not convinced? That Tour that he took part in 50 years ago was the first time he had taken part in the event. Not only did he win the overall Yellow Jersey with a 17-minute advantage but Merckx was the winner of six stages, the green jersey (points classification) and the polka-dot jersey (King of the Mountains classification).

No other rider has done that and it is unlikely any rider ever will again. Eddie Merckx lifts yet another trophy.

Where to Ride: Loch Ard Family Sculpture Trails – Trossachs

OS 1:50,000 Map 57 NN 594924 Distance: Various

Details: There are three main starting points for exploring these trails in the heart of the Trossachs: Aberfoyle Village: NN520010; Milton car park – west of Aberfoyle: NN 504013, there’s an orientation point here which includes a map of the routes and details of key features; Kinlochard village: NN457 021. Loch Ard Forest has a vast network of tracks and trails which require repeat visits and a map to appreciate fully. However, there are five cycling trails, suitable for cyclists for all abilities and signposts have been placed at all junctions along the main cycle routes. The routes also feature a number of chainsaw sculptures and willow weavings, seats and shelters with raised letters, symbols and listening tubes. Maps of the trails are available from the Visitor Centre in the Main Street, Aberfoyle.