Christian Vande Velde figures he just spent 200 days training for and riding in the Tour de France.

More than 150 of those nights were spent in a hotel room.

That’s a long time away from family and friends, along with having to shy yourself away from the extra snacks or drinks that affect performance.

It paid off for the Lemont native last weekend as he coasted across the finish line Sunday in Paris as the fifth-best rider in the field — his best finish.

However, a couple extra glasses of celebratory champaign and some well-deserved catch-up sleep have to wait as Vande Velde leaves Monday for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.

He will compete in the 245.4-kilometer road race on Saturday, Aug. 9, one day after the opening ceremonies.

“I wish it was at a different time and I’d probably be a little more excited right now,” Vande Velde said three days after the conclusion of the Tour de France. “I know when I get there I will be excited and ready to go, but right now I’d just like to be in a dark room.”

However, with the Olympics on the horizon and fatigue setting in following the grueling 21-stage, 3,500-kilometer tour, it was tough to dampen the spirits of Vande Velde.

His best finish before Sunday was 24th and he was the top American rider. Vande Velde finished the 21st stage in Paris on Sunday in three hours, 51 minutes and 45 seconds to secure fifth place and had a combined time of 87 hours, 55 minutes and 57 seconds to finish just over three minutes behind champion Carlos Sastre of Spain.

“It’s an amazing feeling, but it’s a little bitter-sweet,” said Vande Velde, who moved back to Lemont last fall. “I know now that I can compete with the best guys. But I’m really happy with fifth. It was miles ahead of what I thought I would do.”

Vande Velde, an 11-year professional, said it was more of a mental battle than physical throughout the three-week race.

He was also in a new position on a new team, Garmin-Chipotle, which was another adjustment. Vande Velde spent his first six years as a professional riding with seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong on his U.S. Postal Team and learned from the best what it meant to be a leader.

“I was a true leader from start to finish and that changed things a lot,” Vande Velde said. “I trained solely for the Tour de France. I didn’t want to put too much pressure on myself because if you crash on the first day, it’s over. But I was basing all my success on the tour — it’s the pinnacle of the sport for good reason. Everything we did was a crescendo leading up to this.”

After leaving the U.S. Postal team, Vande Velde rode for Liberty Seguros in 2004 and Team CSC from 2005-2007. It was time for another change and Vande Velde chose Garmin-Chipotle, a smaller team which competed in the Tour de France for the first time this year.

“CSC has been the undisputed best team the last three years,” Vande Velde said. “They have great times and so many amazing riders. I just wanted a change and (team director) Jonathan (Vaughters) put together a great team. It’s based around anti-doping and I wanted to be part of something from the ground up. I wanted a lot of say in what went into it. I didn’t necessarily come to Garmin to be a leader, but that’s what has sort of happened and I am excepting the role.”

Vande Velde showed the true colors of a leader by bouncing back after crashing during the 16th stage. He dropped from third (38 seconds behind) to sixth (three-plus minutes behind). But he got his confidence back and rode strong down the stretch, exceeding his own and other’s expectations.

That made for a picture perfect ride on the Champs-Elysées on Sunday in Paris.

“That is always the best part of the race, bar none, riding up the Champs-Elysées,” said Vande Velde. “You don’t feel any pain and you have goosebumps all over your body. You want to soak it all in and feel the moment.”