News: Simpson at the Pedal Club

Marking the fiftieth anniversary of Tom Simpson’s tragic death, the Pedal Club’s guest for its September lunch was his daughter, Joanne.

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News: Simpson at the Pedal Club

By Chris Lovibond

Marking the fiftieth anniversary of Tom Simpson’s tragic death, the Pedal Club’s guest for its September lunch was his daughter, Joanne.

Knocker Shields, Keith Butler, Ron Beale,Joanne, Doug Collins and Peter Wison.

She proved to be a riveting speaker as she explained how her interest in her father had grown as she matured and came to realise just how an important and influential figure he was.

Since she was only four years of age when he died, and as his busy career meant he was often away, her direct memories are limited. She gave as an example an occasion when, returning from a training ride, her dad came into the kitchen, took some milk from the fridge and drank it straight from the bottle. Little Joanne remembers thinking ‘Mum told us not to do that.’ When, relatively recently, she heard his voice recorded on a film clip, she was surprised to discover that he had a strong Yorkshire accent, which she found hard to reconcile with her mother’s Oxford style of speech.

Joanne signing the Golden Book with Steve Bullen (Club President)

However, having discovered her dad’s significance she has become a treasury of knowledge on the subject and, apart from facts and figures she is now a pilgrim, riding up the Ventoux herself on several occasions. The mountain had been a taboo subject within the family, and uncertain of her capability, for the first of these visits she started her ride just from the bottom of the climb.

However as she had, in her own words, ‘over trained’ for this task, she reached the summit with ease and thought: “Is that all?” On a subsequent visit she upped the ante by riding from home – in Ghent, which did make a difference. It begins to sound as though the cycling world has missed out on a second famous Simpson!

Joanne signed the Tom Simpson page of The Pedal Club Golden Book, adding this inscription: “It’s more than an honour that fifty years after my father’s death on the legendary Mount Ventoux, to be invited to The Pedal Club and to meet all these wonderful people. Thanks so much for keeping these memories alive.”

Among those present, keeping the memories alive and demonstrating the great continuity of the cycling world, were five Pedal Club members who had raced with Tom, including some of the members of the team which supported him in his 1965 World Championship victory (see photo above).

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