Le lonely p'tit velo

While at the Rapha Cycle Club I got another look at the little model cyclists they had alongside their model H Wagon in a display cabinet.

From that moment I realised I had to have some of these fellas. A whole peleton would be nice, or even a 200 rider Tour De France dotted along my desktop, complete with support cars and outriders.

And you know the funny thing? I can. Maybe not the exact same ones as in Rapha, because I didn't check the brand name, but after a bit of Googling at home I discovered the majority of these lead models are made by a French company called Norev, who manufacture commemorative TDF-related models.

Rouleur mag also ran a feature on Le P'tit Velos in issue 11 and there is even a book on the subject, they are that popular.

There are a few on Ebay, and the first one I bought turned up today. He looks a bit lonely navigating those rocks on his own, but as soon as I win a few more, he'll have some fellow riders to help him up the Col De Bureau, past the JBL sponsored woofer mountain peak, before beginning the descent at the Millennium Falcon.

To get the full TDF circus in 1:43 scale miniature might take a bit of effort, but come next year I'll be recreating those stages as they happen. Without a doubt.

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