Racing Around; My Sunday Pastry Versus La Tour de France

Listen, this may seem like a pretty petty post.  The title borders on the ridiculous perhaps.  Anyhow, I am writing; however vapid the subject, except for my reflections on La Tour de France.

Nothing serious or important, just a glimpse into one of my recent Sundays and my thoughts on competition.

Why?  Racing came into my head today as I was trying to cram too much into a Sunday afternoon.  Not a good idea!

From covid confinement to now seems like a strange burst of sudden freedom and a little of Deja Vue.  Paris now is back to looking and feeling like Paris!!!!!!

Is it too good to be true?  Probably.  But, well vaccinated and despite my concerns about Delta, I have rejoined taking in some of the many cultural ventures Paris offers; still masked of course.

From practically nothing to do, except stay alive and dream, I love that Paris has blossomed again with all sorts of activities.

Now, La Tour de France happens only once a year, but always ends in Paris!  I must confess that I am not much of a fan.  Ditto for most competitions!

Nevertheless, I have made a few efforts to catch it ending here in Paris from time to time.

Mostly on Rue Rivoli or by accident,   This time when I read it would pass near my place and continue up my avenue, I thought, why not?

I did have conflicts.   Perhaps crazy to others, but Sunday I love making my only pastry of the week.    Yes, it is one of my simple joys.  The few carbs I allow myself to indulge!

My pastries are always made with love using seasonal fruits or choice ingredients in the rhythm of life’s celebrations.  I generally do not follow recipes, except for a few, but get ideas from them.

Sundays in Paris generally offer too many events that I want to see.  If it is free museum Sunday, then it makes choosing even more difficult!

So I often find myself either doing half of the pastry before going out and the rest when I get home.  Simple fruit tarts can be put together upon my return, but not complicated pastries.

Ripe apricots here are just succulent now, as well as all sorts of peaches and nectarines!  Jewels of the summer market, I can’t resist!

I wanted to marry an apricot mousse with chocolate.  A gateau Reine de Saba is probably my favorite chocolate cake.  Made with ground almonds and little flour, it is super fudgy.

Back to that later!  First was to make it to Mass.  I figured I could make half of the pastry when I return, then take in a dance review on Place Chatelet, put on free by the classy Theatre de Châtelet.   Afterward, I could try to catch some of the bicycle race.

Walking home from Mass, I ran into a neighbor who asked me to out to lunch.  With some hesitation, thinking of my time squeeze, I nevertheless accepted his kind offer.

Back at little after two, my own little pastry race was on! Not how I like to do pastries!

Melting chocolate, grinding nuts and measuring out my ingredients, I flew around my little kitchen.   By 3:30 the luscious chocolate cake was ready to set out to cool.

Reading that the La Tour de France was expected to arrive around a little before 4, I squashed starting my apricot creme mousse and regretfully realized that I would have to choose between the bicycle race and Châtelet.

Thinking it would be ridiculous to miss this historic race passing nearby, I headed out to get a good place in front,  expecting a huge crowd.

The police were out patrolling and keeping people from crossing the street barriers in place.   I found a good spot,  under some shade as it was getting hot.

Around 4, I starting hearing music and suddenly started seeing these floats whizz past.  It dawned on me that they were the same floats I saw driving to Saint Malo!

I remembered being quite puzzled seeing them stream past me on the route, knowing there wasn’t a festival taking place anywhere near.

I found it strange that they were all publicity floats for French products or places.  What was going on? Well, they were simply en route to lead a stretch of the Tour in Brittany, advertizing to the masses before the big event.

 

 

My favorite was the red Vittel mineral water float that was spraying us with a cooling vapor mist!

When the floats finished whizzing by, I thought surely the bicyclists would be hot on their tails.  Wrong!  I kept waiting and waiting, for over an hour, fearful I would miss some action if I left for more pastry making.

I finally asked a couple nearby if they knew when the riders would appear.  “They have 38 kilometers to go”; “A good 50 or so minutes before reaching Paris”.

With that, off I ran! Hop and I was back in my kitchen, not a second wasted before the pastry cream was finished.

I flew back, leaving the pastry cream to cool in front of the window.   The crowd had thickened, but I found another clear spot.

More waiting ensued,  then finally I heard the off-distance beat of music drawing closer. More speeding cars and sirens go by,  and with little time to pose my camera, I saw riders fast approaching; defying gravity as they whirled leaning around the corner heading up the street.

Suddenly a whole mass of riders with colorful shirts zoomed past me in a split-second blur and then they were gone!  Whew!! They always go quicker than my eyes or the lens of my camera can catch.

The final stretch, from Chatou to Paris was a total of 108.4 kilometers to the finish line.  There was a little letdown after waiting so long to see the riders.  Why?

Simply because the riders pass by you at such great speed, that the race of the year is over before you know it! Just a whirling profusion of flesh and metal that lasts for maybe 30 seconds or so!  I waited around to cheer on some stragglers but surprisingly there weren’t any!

I do admire the strength and endurance of these racers and the grueling training involved.     Even though only one can finish first, they all deserve at least a medal of recognition!

Back in my kitchen, it was close to 7, and  I felt spent.  Knowing I had a leftover piece of my tarte aux rhubarbe, I tossed finishing my mousse till the next day.   No sense in ridiculously competing against myself!

It was time to celebrate with some bubbly and get going with dinner!  I could finish the apricot creme/mousse tomorrow.  No more sprinting around.  Race finished!

My apricot chocolate pastry turned out to be a luscious combination of flavours, yet frankly, the Reine de Saba chocolate base was exquisite enough as is!

A perfect example of how “Gilding the Lily” is not needed when the Lily is fabulous by itself!  Can apply this same dictum to La Tour de France riders.

Any bicycle rider who is good enough to qualify for the La Tour de France, is already an accomplished champion in their own right!   Being first or best is oversold and rated.

What is this obsession of being the best?  What real merit is there at being first? First of what?  Certainly not of the circuit of life.  We can train for ages on end and life can throw us a curveball. And end it all.

The hunger and lust for recognition that sports competition creates,  may tempt some to break the rules with doping.  La Tour has been scandalized in the past and probably will again in the future.

After all,  finishing first isn’t the most important thing,  but just finishing!  Bravo to all riders!

P.S.  Ditto for all the super talented Olympic contestants!  Reflections on Olympic training can be found in a post from August 2012.