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Austin savors Armstrong's Tour
Posted: Wednesday July 21, 1999 08:46 PM
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) -- Eleven-year-old Kelly Davidson often stays up after midnight to catch footage of Lance Armstrong racing toward victory in the Tour de France. It's not easy. Her chemotherapy can make her tired and sick. But watching Armstrong, a cancer survivor, has inspired the girl from Armstrong's adopted hometown. "We talk about how many miles he does each day," said Jamie Davidson, Kelly's mother. "She's so proud of him." Armstrong leads cycling's biggest race by 6 minutes, 15 seconds. He was 11th Wednesday in the last climbing stage and most likely will cross the finish line on the Champs Elysees in Paris on Sunday as the winner. "I just think he's really strong and it's great," said Kelly, who met Armstrong two years ago while they both struggled through chemotherapy. She won't be in Austin as the race winds down, however. After helping Armstrong's foundation raise $17,000 with a radio charity drive, she discovered her neuroblastoma, which started as tumors behind her kidneys, had re-emerged. Kelly's family was forced to move her closer to her doctors in Fort Worth. On the nights she spent in the hospital, which didn't carry the cable channels broadcasting the race, her doctor videotaped the footage for her to watch later. She is confident Armstrong will win. "I'm just crossing my fingers," Kelly said. "And hoping." So are many people in Austin. Armstrong's bid to become only the second American to win the Tour de France has quietly captured the attention of the city where he lives and trains part of the year. Unlike the hype surrounding Ricky Williams, the Heisman Trophy-winning running back from the University of Texas, there are no highway billboards urging Armstrong to victory. There hasn't been a sudden rush on yellow jerseys, the signature shirt of the Tour leader. But this city is a hotbed of amateur cyclists. And many are watching television, the Internet and the sports pages to see if the 27-year-old Armstrong can complete his astonishing comeback from testicular cancer that had spread to his lungs and brain. After his 1996 diagnosis, he had two operations and underwent extensive chemotherapy. He began his comeback early last year and doctors say there is a tiny chance the cancer will return. "I've been following it like the Super Bowl. If I could afford to go to Paris, I would go," Austin resident Charlie Jones said. "I don't ride myself, but I have found myself at the bike shop looking at bikes." Jay Aust, manager of Freewheeling Bicycles, said interest in the race is greater than ever. "Lance is a local hero," he said. "The place where I go to breakfast, people are always asking me about Lance." At the Lance Armstrong Foundation, which raises money to fight urological cancers, director Karl Haussmann spent Wednesday watching the race on the Internet. "It's tough to get good live coverage or even taped coverage," he said. Corporate interest in the foundation has skyrocketed as Armstrong charges toward Paris, he said. The foundation has been flooded by correspondence from cancer patients who have heard Armstrong's story. "Those folks are just e-mailing like crazy. These people are so fired up by Lance's success," Haussmann said. "A woman who just started chemo for breast cancer said she was motivated by what Lance was doing." Interest in Armstrong has hit the morning radio talk shows as well. Listeners hear as much about his looks as his ride through the French countryside. "I love Lance. He's gorgeous," one female caller cooed on the radio Wednesday. Austin Mayor Kirk Watson wants the city to honor Armstrong when the race is finished -- win or lose. "One of the great things about Austin, we still feel like a small town," Watson said. "This is one of our guys doing good. That's why everybody's talking about it. We've watched him through some highs and lows. The city toasted Williams and the Texas football team with a downtown parade in January that drew thousands. "We'll do something special for Lance," Watson said. "He's won as far as I'm concerned. I hope he's wearing the yellow jersey when it's all over." As for Kelly, she might be wearing a shirt from Armstrong on Sunday. Since meeting him at a 1997 autograph session, Armstrong has given her T-shirts from various races. She sleeps in them every night. He also gave her a bike. "I used to ride a lot, but a lot of the times I've been tired. So I go fishing and drive a golf cart around," Kelly said. Jamie Davidson welcomes the race as a respite from the rigors of Kelly's chemotherapy and blood transfusions. "It's a distraction and gives her a reason to keep going," the mother said. "It's a big part of our life right now."
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