This book is a real page turner. I was fascinated by the history, the stories of triumph over hardship, heroism, cheating and also the bad luck. It has not always been the best rider who has won the race. Especially in the early days when the draconian rules sometimes made the race a farce.People often say that the Tour de France is the toughest sporting event in the world and although this is probably true it is also probably true to say that the race was much tougher in years gone by. Stages were much longer, road surfaces were poor, clothing was poor and bikes only had 2 gears. By 1926 the route had grown to a whopping 5745 kilometers. Race founder Henri Desgrange once said that the perfect Tour de France would be one that only one rider is capable of finishing. The title of Sidwells book is very fitting then. A race for madmen indeed!. My only complaint is that Sidwells does not even mention the feed zone ambush on Jean Francois Bernard in 1987. Sidwells says that Bernard lost the 1987 tour because he went too far in to the red when he won the Mont Ventoux time trial. However there is reasonable doubt that this is what cost him to lose the tour. On the stage after the Mont Ventoux time trial Bernard lost touch with the other favourites when he punctured. Then at a feed zone they attacked just after Bernard's chain came off. Bernard was then stuck in the second group of riders which did not have enough riders in it to bridge to the larger first group, so the chase was hopeless. He lost over 4 minutes by the end of the stage. Despite losing over 4 minutes on that stage Bernard finished only just over 2 minutes behind Roche in Paris. He also won the Dijon individual time trial the day before Paris. The fact that he won that time trial so late in the race indicates that Bernard was still strong. The glaring omission of the famous food zone incident (famous in cycling circles, even if not to the average person on the street) is the only reason I gave 4 stars and not 5 stars. In general the book is a very enjoyable read.
