Olympian recalls glory days in the saddle

Come the early hours of Sunday morning, Kaikohe's Laurie Byers, like millions of cycling fans worldwide, will be turning on the television to catch the opening time trial of the Tour De France.
But the difference for Byers is that he is one of a handful of Kiwis who has completed the event.
Byers, 68, competed in the 1964 tour as an amateur, riding the "Tour de l'Avenir" or the tour of the future which ran back then as an important part of the professional tour.
In 1964 the amateur tour included such greats of the sport as Belgian Eddy Merckx - who would go on to win the Tour de France five times - and that year's winner Felice Gimondi, who went on to win the professional tour in 1965. Byers received few accolades in New Zealand at the time - back then the tour was too remote to receive much recognition - but in France he made something of a name for himself.
"I got headlines in the local papers about me for five days in a row, because I was very consistent in the mountains and coming out of the mountains into the Central Massif," he said.
There were four Kiwis in the mixed New Zealand-Luxembourg team but the language barrier proved difficult - and their middling overall performance wasn't helped by a disastrous start.
"We lost two New Zealanders on the first stage because it was extremely fast and they punctured ... in those days if you finished so many minutes outside of the winning time you were eliminated from the Tour and that was that," he said.
Despite impressing in France, he and his Kiwi teammates were forced to return to New Zealand to qualify for the 1964 Tokyo Olympics - a ruling that still rankles.
"There were 4000 A-grade (amateur) riders registered in France at that time and I was ranked number three on the list and they still made us come back," he said.
The reception on their return wasn't always the friendliest either.
"I can remember turning up to a local meeting after returning from France and I was wearing a tracksuit from there with advertising on it and the reaction was severe. They were going to leave me at home, as far as they were concerned that was professionalism and I shouldn't go to the Olympics," he  said.
Byers went to the Olympics anyway and was in a strong position among the leaders to win the 200km road race - so strong that he was picked to win by Mercyk in the final stages of the race.
"He thought I was going to win, as we approached the finish line he got on my wheel but it had rained just before the finish and two Englishmen fell right in front of us and by the time we got out of that check, it was all over," he said.
The disappointment in his  10th place faded quickly and to be able to say he beat Mercyk at the Olympics would go down as a highlight in a fantastic career.
Byers was one of 17 Olympians honoured last week by the New Zealand Olympic committee in Whangarei. The Kaikohe farmer has also been a district councillor in the Far North for the past 18 years.
He said Kiwis still impress on the international stage and wishes Julian Dean and Hayden Roulston the best of luck on the 2009 tour.
"It's a great thrill for them to participate, you have to do what you're told but at the same time it's a great experience," he said.
Biers - or Huck as he is widely known - is planning to watch the great race every night.
"I'll sit up each night watching. You don't realise when you're sitting in your armchair; it looks easy but when you're climbing the mountains it's incredibly hard."