>I found this ancient piece of history the other day.

In 1986 the 7-Eleven sponsored cycling team rode in the Tour de France. They suffered a lot. The 7-Eleven team was the first ever U.S. team to race in the tour. (Riding for a French team, American Greg LeMond became the first American to win the tour that year.) I had begun my tour fanship the previous year, but 1986 was the big year. Every weekend John Tesh and his team (and Tesh’s new-age style music) would bring us coverage of this great race. It was the first time that most Americans had a chance to be introduced to the sport of bicycle racing, let alone the Tour de France. In my life it was somewhat monumental, but most Americans couldn’t care less, until the Lance Armstrong phenom.

Here is a “get-to-know-them” video of the 7-Eleven team back in 1986. You will see some of the greats of American cycling from that era, including Bob Roll, Chris Carmichael (trainer of Lance Armstrong), Davis Phinney, Alexi Grewal, and Eric Heiden.