Take two Belgian cyclists. The one on the left is Eddy Merckx. He rode professionally from 1965 till 1978 and won hundreds of races. Eddy was a serious type. Then there’s Roger De Vlaeminck. He rode from 1969 till 1984. Roger definitely had a sense of humour.

Rouleur magazine had a story to tell:

It was the 1970 Tour of Lombardy in Italy. Roger and Eddy were riding in a big group of cyclists (the peleton). Roger announced that he had to pee. He’d ride ahead into the upcoming tunnel, do his business and then rejoin the pack.

Off he went. As the peleton later flowed through the tunnel, guess what? No Roger.

Merckx was livid. His great rival had lied. He’d entered the tunnel and then attacked (rode faster to get ahead of the group). Cheater! As the riders emerged into daylight, Merckx ordered the other riders on his team to speed up. I bet his language was … colourful.

Mr. De Vlaeminck, however, had hid himself and his bike in bushes past the far end of the tunnel, enjoying the spectacle of the peleton riding merrily by.

Man, they were going at nearly 60 km/h. At first, I had to dig deep to rejoin. Little by little – it must have taken half an hour – I moved up, until I suddenly found myself next to Merckx.

“Hey, Eddy, who is off the front?” I asked.

You should have seen his face. Priceless. As if he’d seen a ghost.

***

Oh, Roger …

I love you