Big guys can ride up mountains, too!

Going down...

next stop an epic win into Carpentras.

Note: Before the mandatory helmet rule, 

the cutout cycling cap to shade his eyes from the sun!

Tour heroes can come in many guises...

July 18th, 1994: Eros Poli bolted away unhindered on stage 15. 231 kms from Montpellier to Carpentras with the Ventoux in the middle. The Italian was big (6'4", 176 lbs) and was known as the lead out man for Mario Cipollini. More of a sprinter rather than a climber. Defying convention, the friendly giant took off on a unconventional mountain stage. The stage went over the mountain and down into Carpentras without a summit finish. 

Riding alone for 100 kms, his lead of 25 minutes was epic but he knew at the foot of the climb he would have to work... hard. As he slowly staggered to the top, his lead was reduce to five minutes. Then all he had to do was use his size to his advantage and careen downhill to the finish line. He conquered Ventoux and finished 3mins 39secs in front of Alberto Elli and became ...Eros the hero!