Introduction

Chapters in this book

1. Frontmatter I
2. Contents VII
3. Preface to the 2008 Edition IX
4. Acknowledgments XXV
5. Introduction 1
6. 1. La Grande Boucle: Cycling, Progress, and Modernity 7
7. 2. Itineraries, Narratives, and Identities 51
8. 3. The Géants de la Route: Gender and Heroism 95
9. 4. L'Auto s Ouvriers de la Pédale: Work, Class, and the Tour de France, 1903-1939 141
10. 5. The Forçats de la Route: Exploits, Exploitation, and the Politics of Athletic Excess, 1903-1939 180
11. 6. What Price Heroism? Work, Sport, and Drugs in Postwar France 215
12. Epilogue 256
13. Appendix: Racers' Occupations 267
14. Notes 269
15. Bibliography 345
16. Index 363