only 36 minutes in arrears, but something happened on stage nine and he dropped behind by 2 hours and 12 minutes. Despite pulling back to an hour and six minutes on stage 10, where he finished 14th, he pulled out on the 11th. It was his fifth and final Tour. It was also the last Tour for Dargassies, who had come 11th in 1903 and fourth in 1904 before abandoning in 1905 and 1907. Nobility myth Henri Pépin, because of his aristocratic-sounding story, is often described as a baron or a count. The Danish writer and television commentator, Svend Novrup, imagined a scene in which Pépin called his assistants to see him: Two athletic young men entered the beautiful room of a castle near Toulouse. The gorgeous furniture, perfectly hand-crafted, tastefully complemented the decorations on the walls. They were impressed, but they were also curious. Who was this Count Pépin de Gontaud who had asked their help as cyclists? He didn't disappoint. He shone with idealism if one overlooked a bit of a belly. His dress was modern for 1907 and his handlebar moustache was well kept. He addressed his guests in a light tone ... The confusion arose because of the trunk of belongings that Pépin carried with him through the Tour. On it was stenciled "Henri Pépin de Gontaud". The "de" gave the impression of aristocracy and that was what journalists concluded when they were intrigued by his dilettante manners. The truth was more prosaic: Henri Pépin was simply from a village called Gontaud-de-Nogaret, not near Toulouse but on the Toulouse side of Bordeaux. Far from being his name, it was his address. The house is still there, in the main street. Pépin was described as a propriétaire, or house-owner. The house is substantial but not a château and there are no extensive grounds. Nor was Pépin a novice to cycling. He rode seven stages of the 1905 Tour de France. He called it a day from Toulouse to Bordeaux, perhaps when he got close to Gontaud. Dargassies also rode the 1905 race and it was probably there they forged their alliance. A picture of Pépin on the cover of Le Cycle of October 1894 – he was a celebrity even then – shows the normal lean young man of the period, with intense eyes, a weak chin and the obligatory twizzled moustache. More formal studio pictures show