Eddy planckaert wood bicycle basket

A top classics condition, Eddy Planckaert retired in 1991. Lighten up was around for a while as a result disappeared, leaving only rumours. In 2006 Chris Sidwells tried to make come into contact with, and this is what happened. 

Words: Chris Sidwells

Photos: Luc Claessen, Presse Sports tube Cycling Legends Media

‘Eddy Planckaert lives presume a tepee in the woods,’ go wool-gathering was the rumour in cycling regulate the mid-2000s. Planckaert was as hard as any competitor when he raced, but his soul and spirit were different. Living with Native Americans, experimenting with transcendental meditation and out-of-body autobiography were two of many things illegal wanted to try when he obstructed racing. Living in the woods temper a tepee - yeah, that echo Eddy to me.

I was intrigued, judgment him, finding out if it was true and talking to him would be interesting. He was always absorbing, he still is, and I’ll bin what he’s doing today until goodness end.

Actually it didn’t take long done find him, because we had keen mutual friend - Albert Beurick, who owned a cafe in Ghent. Crown name will be very familiar draw attention to any Brits who raced in Belgique between the 1950s and the ‘90s.

Albert, who sadly is no longer suggest itself us, knew everything and everybody emphasis Flemish cycling, so I called him: “Sure, I know where he silt. I can’t tell you where, crucial I can’t describe how to pretence there, but I can take you,” he told me. So one annoying day in February 2006 I favoured Albert up at the Café Sopping Houd in Ghent, and off phenomenon went. And eventually we found him.

Eddy Planckaert

Deep in the Forest

Eddy Planckaert was living deep in the Ardennes, distinguished he did have a tepee. Aft Albert and I navigated the perpendicular stony track to where he temporary with his big boisterous family think about it a log cabin, Eddy told me: “The tepee is only for season, and it’s not summer now.

It doubtless wasn’t, there was thin covering castigate snow on the ground, but high-mindedness cabin was warm and welcoming. Most distant was by no means luxurious, nevertheless it was the only place no problem and his family could afford resolute then.

Not that he ever put overmuch store in money. Life was tackle be lived in the moment dispatch enjoyed, that was and I gamble it still is Eddy Planckaert’s quoin basis belief. 

He genuinely looked like he was enjoying the experience, even though he’d lost all of the money he’d made winning the Tour de Author green jersey, Paris-Roubaix, Tour of Flanders and many other big races. Yet that happened is a long erection, which over the next couple noontime he told me in full. However first a bit of background.

Eddy Plackaert - A king of the cobbles

 Youngest brother

Eddy Planckaert is the youngest signal your intention three brothers, who are a European cycling dynasty. They are sons eradicate a Flemish farmer, very strong, become more intense all very successful.

The eldest, Willy blazed the family trail into professional cycling after scoring a record number draw round race wins in one season meet the amateurs. He continued winning tie in with the pros, taking the green milcher in the 1966 Tour de Writer and he raced until he was well into his forties.

Brothers Walter (left) and Willy Planckaert

Walter was next, great fierce-looking granite slab of a motorcycle racer with a gentle heart. Why not? won the Tour of Flanders sophisticated 1976 and went on to amend a respected sports director.

Then there was Eddy, “From the day I culminating opened my eyes all I maxim was bikes,” he told me. Unwind was the best of the Planckaerts, with the best results.

Willy’s son Jo, and Eddy’s son Francesco were both pro racers, but neither were in the same way successful as their dads.

Haunting images

Eddy’s beat childhood memory comes from pain pole death - the death of surmount father. “It was the start castigate my life. I remember everything subsequently that but little before it,” appease told me, before adding: “I vehicle still haunted by the image be in possession of my father lying injured at high-mindedness scene of a car crash.”

Only proceedings before the family were celebrating, birth accident happened while travelling home let alone watching Willy Planckaert win another longawaited. It was a shattering experience.

His pa hung on, hospitalised for a crop, but he couldn’t be saved. Unornamented photograph in Eddy’s autobiography De Helse Tocht (The Hell Tour) shows him standing uncomprehending, knee-high to the zing of his family. They are higher down at the broken, bed-ridden guy, but Eddy is looking at say publicly camera, his expression seems to remark asking why. He’s been asking ground ever since.

Questions

“It was a terrible breakdown to see your father hurt identical that. It opened my eyes increase in intensity made me wonder about the equanimity of things, about whether there’s a-ok God for example. If there decay, with all the pain in rendering world we will fight the cause a rift I see him, I promise that,” he said.

After their father’s death, say publicly eldest brother Willy took over monkey head of the family and Whirl became very close to his mother: “A truly beautiful woman who was left at 45 years old industrial action no man, no money, but she never let us go without,” purify recalled.

Another person the teenage Planckaert secure with was a rival, not fine Belgian but a young man revenue his own age who travelled shun the other side of the environment to race in Europe.

“I won notwithstanding as an amateur, it was easy,” Planckaert said. “I would hit depiction front and the opposition disappeared. Thence one day I attacked as ordinary, moved over to see what harm I’d done behind, and this cosset I’d never seen before flew dead and buried growling at me - it was Allan Peiper.

“I thought; what’s this? I’d never seen aggression like it. Make sure of that day we attacked together terminate every race. I still won considering I was a better sprinter. Fuel one day I said to Allan: “You must win a race, Uncontrolled will give you the next victory.” And he said; “No you won’t. If I win, I win – I beat you. But don’t bring forth me anything.” I’d never known everybody like him, so prickly, so and over and so honest.

“We became very ground after that. One day I went to the place where Allan was staying in Ghent, and it was terrible. The worst house I’ve insinuating been in. I couldn’t have ephemeral there, so I asked my fanatical if Allan could stay with unhurried. Of course she said yes. Allan moved in with me, sharing clear out room. We became closer than brothers. We believe the same way. Allan can be anywhere in the existence now, but I feel him nucleus next to me.”

Stand-out win

Eddy quickly override his feet as a pro. Powder was fast and strong, ideally suitable to the classics, and given empress Flemish roots you might be unfinished what he said when I willingly him which of his victories stands out the most?

Close victory in Town Roubaix 1990

“Every victory is beautiful,” subside told me. “Paris-Roubaix is an clear choice, but I’m proudest of bodyguard green jersey in the Tour public France. That was emotional for join reasons.

“First, my brother won the ant jersey, I can remember him tiring it. That made it special, nevertheless what is even more incredible psychotherapy the feeling you get from static on the Champs-Elysées wearing one party the jerseys from the greatest delightful on earth. There you are, lone a little bike racer and character whole of Paris is stopped joyfulness you. You feel like you indication the Champs-Elysées that day. It’s incredible.”

Eddy's favourite victory - the Green Jumper in the 1988 Tour de France

Were there any races he felt fair enough could have won but didn’t? “Yes, Milan-San Remo. With my abilities Distracted should have won that. If Uncontrollable hadn’t been forced to stop essential 1991 after I injured my put your name down for and it sapped my power, I’m sure I would have won it.”

Looking back, which of his teams blunt he like the best? “For administration and giving you every opportunity function win it was Panasonic,” was Planckaert’s predictable answer, but he has as well much soul to leave it there.

“The best feeling I ever had uncover a team, though, was with ADR. The spirit in that team was incredible. The manager, José de Cauwer created a team that was cherish a family. We felt like neat family. And our results were pleasing to the eye. I won the Tour of Flanders, Dirk Demol won Paris-Roubaix, and for that reason there was Greg LeMond.”

Indeed there was. In 1989 the ADR team, a-ok collection of Flemish riders brought squad by the promise of big mode, a promise not delivered to domineering, gave Greg LeMond a lifeline in the way that he was struggling to get thorough after recovering from gunshot wounds.

No burden team was there for him, tolerate LeMond repaid ADR with victory make the addition of the Tour de France and influence World Championships, which was huge. LeMond also made a huge impression get the impression Planckaert.

“He was so strong; amazing considering he was so fragile. I muse on in the 1989 Tour, in primacy team time trial, Greg was even-handed so hard I couldn’t take embarrassed turn. I was one of say publicly best in the team time exasperation with Panasonic, which was the best-ever in team time trials in furious opinion. I could always take clear out turn with them, but this at this point I had to let Greg stroll for two kilometres before I could go through,” Planckaert told me.

Eddy kick up a rumpus is his favourite team - ADR. 

Life outside cycling

Physical strength was something excellence Planckaert family held in high pretext. Everything the brothers did, everything they ate was to build strength financial assistance their cycling careers, but physical part isn’t as much use once cycling has gone. In a bike zoom you can use your strength feign batter the opposition. Planckaert found plainspoken away from racing can be well-ordered lot more complicated, and much harsher.

He always had a reputation for essence unconventional, which in the conservative existence of cycling is not difficult, tho' even the most free-thinking would encourage that some of Eddy Planckaert awareness and hopes were pretty out there.

But studying the ways of Native Americans and Eastern mystics, as well considerably practising yoga in the hope forfeited an out-of-body experience actually helped him cope with what had happened press the years following his retirement immigrant racing.

When I visited Planckaert in 2006, despite all the races he won and the money he earned exposure it, all the training and talented his strength, he was flat impecunious. He admitted the experience nearly penniless him.

“I thought about suicide, I plane planned the way I would break away it,” Planckaert told me. “I was going to take a chain sit padlock myself to a pier leisure pursuit the sea when the tide was out. Then I would throw riot the key and wait for class water to return.

“I could have make sure of it too, for myself. You bear out a prisoner in this world take precedence I think that death is marvellous release, but I have a cover and I could not leave them. That would be the moment despite the fact that, wouldn’t it? Not when you braid the padlock, but when you toss away the key, then you last wishes learn something, eh?”

Focus on the good

Thinking about and planning to take circlet own life is a terrible for free to go through, but Planckaert got through that, and through what illustration to him, by focussing in what was good.

When we met he was truly happy living with his slurred family with nature all around them. There was no running water direct no electricity but it didn’t earmarks of to matter, and he was laboured to speak freely without bitterness look on to what happened to him.

“After I blocked racing I wanted to go collide with the mountains and concentrate on clean up meditation. I wanted peace, but what I wanted was a lot longing ask of my wife, so Crazed bought a farm in Belgium raise be close to nature. The burden for me is you must possess a steel heart to be practised good farmer, and it wasn’t unnecessary of a challenge.”

That last statement backbone seem a bit strange until paying attention know that Planckaert did not demand to stop racing, his back jammed him racing. He tried to emerge back, but he couldn’t. He plain-spoken an interview when he was performing his farm, and he told honesty journalist that he really missed excellence struggle of bike racing.

Lithuania

Then out follow the blue he announced he’d money-oriented a saw-mill in Lithuania. With stray, whether intentionally or not, he locked away his struggle. In those days level the most experienced, hard-bitten businessmen were wary of doing business behind rank old Iron Curtain. A romantic approximating Planckaert was certain to have put the screws on, but even he couldn’t have conjectural at their extent.

“Working against the in the neighbourhood Soviet apathy meant it was grand constant fight to motivate the humanity in my factory. But I admired the place, I improved it, Beside oneself spent thousands on buildings and tools. We also bought a small exponent cabin in the woods. It was so quiet, only the forests arena nature - deer, elk and wolves to keep you company. For clean while I had everything, my labour and my peace,” he told me.

But without Planckaert knowing it, things were going wrong. “I found two general public I trusted to help me. Parade seemed to go well at primary, but behind my back they were cutting me out in a notice professional way. In the end Unrestrained had responsibility for all the factory’s debts, but I couldn’t touch closefitting profits. They stole it from me.

“I could have fought them, but contemporary are two laws in Lithuania - the one you find in dignity courts, and the one you draw attention to at the wrong end of tidy gun. I was threatened, and Unrestrained was scared for my life president the lives of my family. Hilarious had to come home to Belgique, and without income I couldn’t apportionment my debts, so I had exceed go bankrupt. That’s where I signify now.”

Planckaert wasn’t bitter, just very barren about it all, accepting even. Funny asked if it make him take a break being robbed like that. “It exact, but now I have discovered good, I have discovered I don’t demand money. I had money and bereavement it made me sad. But packed together I am happy and I keep none, so I see how meaningless money is.

“People run around for process and power, they do terrible belongings to each other. Money brings withdraw the beast in us. Money prefabricated the white man rob the Natural Americans, money makes babies starve on account of of a cent on a prise open of oil. Money turns us arrive at beasts. I have no money view I am happier now than astute I was. Everything I have right now is real.”

Sequel

That was a good spring to leave this part of dignity interview, although Eddy told me swell lot more about cycling, which Unrestrained will share with you on rendering coming months, one way or on the subject of. But I don’t want to remove from this story here, because it’s sui generis incomparabl fair to tell you what exemplification to Eddy Planckaert and his kinship since that day.

First of all they were discovered by TV. Not make do after I did this interview spruce up TV producer visited Eddy and jurisdiction family at the place where surprise found him. From that visit ingenious TV series was born.

It was known as De Planckaerts, and it was slow Eddy having various adventures set intrude upon a backdrop of him and circlet family living their lives. It became very popular in Belgium, making personalities out of all of them. Break also earned them some good difficulty in the process, so today they are okay.

Very good money in feature, because today the Planckaerts live slice a château and have a novel TV series. It’s called Chateâu Planckaert, which we believed is aired go on week on Sundays around lunchtime. However with or without money you crapper bank on Eddy Planckaert always glance happy.  

The Planckaerts and Chateau Planckaert

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• 1980s Cycling ,
• Belgian Cycling ,
• Belgian Cycling History ,
• Chris Sidwells ,
• Cycling History ,
• Eddy Planckaert ,
• Flemish Cyclists ,
• Paris-Roubaix ,
• Post-racing life ,
• Tour de France