Mike Miller and his crew were mopping and vacuuming Tuesday morning around 7 when a cyclist rolled up to the door and asked if he could come in. “We had the Tour on the big screen,” Miller said. “We said, ‘Sure.”‘
The guy parked his bike in the bar and settled in to watch the first stage in the Alps for the Tour de France as the staff at the Handlebar and Grill got ready for the onslaught.
The Tour de France is a 21-day Super Bowl for bicycle enthusiasts, and the Handlebar at Alameda and Downing is the place to be if padded shorts and racing jerseys carry the same cachet for you as plunging necklines and peekaboo thong underwear do in LoDo.
Hubba hubba.
Yellow shirts are everywhere in here, as are yellow Livestrong bracelets, steely quads and six-pack abs. And if you aren’t rooting for Lance Armstrong to win his seventh Tour, it’s best to keep it to yourself.
This is Lance country.
“During the Tour, I come here for lunch,” said Dan Wegner, who lives in Boulder and works near the Handlebar.
Like most everybody in the room, he’s read Armstrong’s books and knows how to evaluate the strategies and the challengers at every stage of the race.
His most recent ride: Leehill Canyon in Boulder. “I got up early and did 20 miles before it got too hot,” he said.
The big crowd usually arrives around 5:30 p.m. for the replay of the Tour after work. On this night, a pack of cyclists from the SouthEast Area Racing team has gathered near the big screen.
“I love to watch Lance Armstrong in the hills,” said Monica Ryan, a SEAR member.
At the bar were two tourists who were thrilled to have stumbled upon the place. Mark Ullmann and Bill Nagel were in town from Philadelphia for a week of biking.
“We had an awesome day down here,” said Nagel, nursing a tall one after the two had conquered Green Mountain, Red Rocks and Dakota Ridge trails. Next up was a trip to Vail for five days of mountain biking – and, of course, apres-bike cheering for Armstrong each night.
“I’m a big fan,” said Ullmann. “I even named my dog Lance.”
While the patrons clearly are behind the six-time winner, they’re thrilled to see all the elite cyclists in this race.
If a rider takes a spill, they gasp and rub scarred elbows knowingly. When riders power up the steeps, their heart rates rise in sympathy.
These fans know the names of the Discovery Channel teammates, every French town that’s a stop on the Tour and when to start worrying if their man isn’t wearing the yellow jersey.
“Tuesday is critical,” said Miller.
And like movie fans who tune in the Academy Awards to see the clothes, these viewers pay close attention to the fabulous bikes.
It’s one of the sport’s hazards, said Kimberly Nuffer, captain of the women’s team for SEAR: “Unfortunately, we all spend a lot of money on bikes.”
Miller said Tour de France mania hasn’t always been big in Denver. When he first opened the restaurant eight years ago, a loyal following came together every year for the old Coors International Classic bike race. The Tour was no big deal. Neither was Armstrong.
“In ’98, we did a Lance Armstrong fundraiser for his foundation and people were like, ‘Who’s Lance Armstrong?”‘ he said. “One year later, we did another one, and the tickets sold out instantly.”
Miller, who has been a bicycle nut for 35 years, figures there will always be cycling fanatics and Tour fans, but 2005 marks the end of an era.
“This is it,” he said, talking about Armstrong’s decision to make this his last Tour. “We won’t see this type of domination again as long as we’re on this planet.”
It’s enough to make his tanned, muscular customers cry in their beers. But not until after a quick ride up Lookout Mountain and a couple of bottles of water. Shower optional.
Diane Carman’s column appears Sunday, Tuesday and Thursday. She can be reached at 303-820-1489 or dcarman@denverpost.com.
