Cycling France

The Tour de France is the greatest bike race in the world, but it began as a humble promotional gimmick for a floundering newspaper. More than 100 years later, the Tour still captivates the world and is broadcast to over 180 countries. How did a few men looking for some way to save their struggling business become masters of a giant, successful enterprise? Les Woodland tells the inside story of the Tour de France through the prism of the men who started it, and those who now run it.

At the dawn of the 20th century, French newspapers used bicycle races as promotions to build readership. Until 1903 these were one-day events. Looking to deliver a coup de grâce in a vicious circulation war, Henri Desgrange - editor of the Parisian sports magazine L’Auto - took the suggestion of one of his writers to organize a race that would last several days longer than anything else, like the six-day races on the track, but on the road. The race was an electrifying success. Held annually (suspended only during the two World Wars), the Tour grew longer and more complex.

The autobiography of a cycling legend that will become a much-loved classic. The much-anticipated autobiography of the greatest Australian cyclist of all time. Famous in the sport for his meticulous preparation and an athlete who prided himself on his ability to leave it all on the road, Evans writes about the triumphs, the frustrations, the training, the preparation, the psychology of the sport, his contemporaries, the legends and his enduring love of cycling. A riveting and forensic account of his life on the bike....

Bloomsbury presents The Cycling Addiction: Suffering, Speed and the Search for Meaning on Two Wheels, written and read by Phil Cavell 'A tour de force' ANDY McGRATH ‘Offers not just insight into what drives us to ride, but also a vocabulary for understanding when that drive becomes too much’...

In this brilliantly entertaining collection, Tim Moore swaps comfort for cobbles, mountain passes, and magnificent suffering as he retraces the routes of two of Europe's greatest cycling events. Armed with determination, glued-together bikes, and legs that are often less willing than his imagination, Moore embarks on unforgettable adventures through France and Italy, discovering the landscapes, history, and eccentric characters that have made the Tour de France and the Giro d'Italia sporting icons. Tim Moore sets off to recreate the most appalling bike race of all time.

As the world's foremost cycling nation, the Netherlands is the only country where the number of bikes exceeds the number of people, primarily because the Dutch have built a cycling culture accessible to everyone, regardless of age, ability, or economic means. Building the Cycling City examines the triumphs and challenges of the Dutch while also presenting stories of North American cities already implementing lessons from across the Atlantic. 

Plump, grumpy, slumped on the couch, and going nowhere fast at age 16, Phil Gaimon began riding a bicycle with the grand ambition of shedding a few pounds before going off to college. He soon fell into racing and discovered he was a natural, riding his way into a pro contract after just one season despite utter ignorance of a century of cycling etiquette. Now, in his book Pro Cycling on $10 a Day, Phil brings the full powers of his wit to tell his story.

FROM GERAINT THOMAS, WINNER OF THE 2018 TOUR DE FRANCE Like no other cycling book, from no other rider - Britain's cycling star shares his unique take on the world of cycling Sit back or saddle up as double Olympic gold medallist and multiple world champion Geraint Thomas gives you a warts and...

The definitive insider account of how professional cycling teams are built, run and won – from Tour de France authorities Anthony McCrossan and Nico Roche. Drawing on their deep experience within the sport, Tour de France commentator Anthony McCrossan and former pro rider Nico Roche take you...

Sean Conway was stuck in a life dead end of his own making when he heard about a round the world cycling race. He was immediately inspired – but it was a huge undertaking and he’d hardly been on a bike in years. Could he really cycle all the way round the world, solo and unsupported? Six...

In this highly original history of the world's most famous bicycle race, Christopher S. Thompson, mining previously neglected sources and writing with infectious enthusiasm for his subject, tells the compelling story of the Tour de France from its creation in 1903 to the present.

Volume one of The Story of the Tour de France concluded with Bernard Thévenet’s dramatic victory over Eddy Merckx in the 1975 Tour. Volume two opens with super-climber Lucien van Impe’s taking advantage of a course made for the riders with wings. His win was followed by the dominating presence of Bernard Hinault, who became the third rider to win the Tour five times.

Experience the thrilling sports history of road racing and the engineering breakthroughs that unleashed human mobility. Perfect for your daily commute or next training session, this immersive narrative nonfiction journey transports you to the crowded, coal-choked streets of nineteenth-century...

Wir schreiben das Jahr 2006, also die Epoche vor Google Maps und Social Media. In "Radreise durch Europa: Eine Reise zurück zur Einfachheit" entführt der Autor die Hörer auf eine abenteuerliche Fahrradtour quer durch Europa. Tauchen Sie ein in die Welt des jungen, mittellosen Studenten, der sich mit einer Straßenkarte, einem Zelt und einem Traum auf den Weg macht, um 2400 km von seinem Heimatdorf in Ostsachsen bis an den Atlantik nach Bordeaux zu radeln. Eine Reise voller Herausforderungen, unerwarteter Begegnungen und unvergesslicher Landschaften.

The first major guide for serious female cyclists – covering everything from saddles and training to hormones, strength and nutrition, all from a 100% female perspective 'We ride like there is no tomorrow and for a better tomorrow.' Marianne Vos More women are getting on the bike. There's more...

The first in-depth look at Lance Armstrong’s doping scandal, the phenomenal business success built on the back of fraud, and the greatest conspiracy in the history of sports Lance Armstrong won a record-smashing seven Tours de France after staring down cancer, and in the process became an...

The Secret Race is a definitive look at the world of professional cycling—and the doping issue surrounding this sport and its most iconic rider, Lance Armstrong—by former Olympic gold medalist Tyler Hamilton and New York Times bestselling author Daniel Coyle. Over the course of two years...

This telling of the 2024 Tour de France is an addition to our two-volume The Story of the Tour de France: How a Newspaper Promotion Became the Greatest Sporting Event in the World, and five supplements.

Except for the two world wars, the Tour has been run annually since that 1903 race, and yearly addendums seem the best way to keep telling the story. So please join us as we go on the 107th trip around La Belle France. Let’s see how those new faces of the 2019 Tour did in 2020.

This telling of the 2019 Tour de France is a supplement to our two-volume The Story of the Tour de France. Volume one told the story of the Tour's origins and each edition of the race from 1903 through 1975. The 2019 edition was filled with surprises with young riders taking control of the race. Every day had something happen that confounded the experts. The winner did not emerge until Mother Nature surprised everyone in late July with snow and ice. With just three stages to go, mud, hail, and ice on an Alpine road changed everything.