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Outside Magazine, July 2004
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2004 Tour de France: The Ultimate Guide
Six-Shooter
Lance's 2003 Tour victory was almost a loss–in his own words, he "dodged a bullet." This year the Tourminator is plenty fit, a little less furious, and hungrier than ever. A revealing interview with the greatest rider on earth.

By Hampton Sides

Lance Armstrong in LA
Tex appeal: Armstrong at ease in Los Angeles (Anton Corbijn)
SIX IS THE LONELIEST NUMBER. Across a century of Tour de France history, only four riders other than Lance Armstrong have managed to stand atop the podium five times. For whatever reason—be it physiology, psychology, or some mysterious Gallic curse—no one has yet been able to win six times, much less six in a row. But this July, the 32-year-old cancer survivor, best-selling author, and international sports phenomenon from the Texas Hill Country aims to do just that.

In April, I caught up with Lance at his girlfriend's place in the Hollywood Hills—his girlfriend being Grammy Award–winning rock star Sheryl Crow. (Last September, Armstrong and his wife of five years, Kristin, said that they were divorcing; the couple now share custody of their three children.
He's Only Getting Started…
CLICK HERE to read the full version of this interview.
Since then, he and Crow have been seeing as much of each other as their schedules allow.) He had just finished a four-hour ride in the Angeles National Forest and was taking a dip in Crow's infinity pool. "Not a bad place to mooch a stay, huh?" he said as he climbed out. Armstrong is notoriously strict when it comes to time, so our interview was conducted during his post-training massage. Before I knew it, he was buck naked, and Dave Bolch, his massage therapist, was kneading those celebrated quads like twin slabs of Kobe beef. Full and frank disclosure: Armstrong wasn't entirely naked. He still wore his watch—a Nike Lance 4—which he repeatedly glanced at. With this guy, every second counts.


Tour de France 2004
CLICK HERE for Outside’s Guide to the 2004 Tour de France, and follow the race July 3-25 with our SPECIAL ONLINE COVERAGE.


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Editor at large HAMPTON SIDES is the author of Ghost Soldiers. A collection of his nonfiction work, Americana (Anchor Books), was published in April.
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