Lance Armstrong once seemed superhuman,the man who defied cancer to win the grueling Tour de France again and again.Later,came the doping case and he lost all his titles.This book was published before that and Armstrong is presented as a sporting hero.Cycling is a rather boring sport to watch,but this book makes it interesting by describing the tactics and the rigours of the Tour de France.A day by day account of the 2004 race,which went on for 23 days,and saw Lance Armstrong set a new record.If one forgets about the doping case for a while,this book entertains.

Too bad that time only flows in one direction. I read this before Tyler Hamilton's confessional, "The Secret Race," before I read this. It wouldn't hurt to turn back the clock to 2006 either. Unfortunately, neither of those things is possible.

Wilcockson created an almost hagiographic work with this one. At one point early in the book he likens Armstrong to Lazarus, arisen from the grave. Given the times and the accomplishments of Armstrong I suppose that kind of thing is to be expected. Now, however, it leaves a bad taste in one's mouth.

Almost all of the top riders who competed in that Tour have been exposed for their use of banned substances. Not a few have had their titles stripped from them. Fair or not, it is what happened.

Still, the author does present a fairly engaging day-by-day account of the 2004 Tour and includes many other riders in his tale, both current riders and those form the past. I suppose it would have been impossible to speak of Armstrong and the Tour without including Merckx and Hinault and a few other champions. It was good to read of them in the context of the race without the taint that came later.

I read this book more or less while I was watching the tail about the world's fastest scotsman, which was an interesting counterpoint.

It's not like the other Lance-toling-away-against-all-odds hagiographies (of which I am such a gushing fanboy).

This is one of the best books I've ever read about the Tour de France. I read it during the height of Lance's career, but enjoyed it more for the insight it gave me into the strategies and tactics involved in winning any bike race and especially the Tour de France.

Good book. would have been excellent except for Lance's foul mouth.

less about Lance, more about the behind-the-scenes action of the TdF

I really don't like Lance Armstrong. For real. But this book is an excellent introduction to the Tour and the world of pro cycling.

In-depth look at strategies and lifestyles of the Tour de France

This started off kind of slow for me but then I loved the details - not too many to be boring - that were included in each chapter, particularly those about other racers besides Lance. I really only ever read text updates about the Tour de France and don't see live coverage on TV or interviews with any of the riders so this book provided a glimpse of some of the personalities that I am not otherwise exposed to. Long live the Tour de France!

I really liked this book way cooler than I expected got it for 50 cents used at the library. Is about lance but equally about the top racers in the tour that year and equally about historical races and racers on the different stages. Each chapter is a stage and a story.

Enjoyable read. Focus on Le Tour so opinion of Lance does not detract from reading. Wilcockson intersperses past tours and riders with present stages. Includes points of interest along the route. Appendix covers concepts that may be unfamiliar to the novice of this sport.

This book was fine. I felt like the racing itself could have had more description instead of the various side notes and tangents about the tour itself or random other bits. I mainly was interested in this book to see the author's take on doping in 2004 - he was clearly on Lance's side despite the already rampant doping in the sport and the ridiculousness of Lance's abilities in the race. I guess hindsight is 20:20.