Riding in the Zone Rouge

The Tour of the Battlefields 1919 - Cycling's Toughest-Ever Stage Race

The Tour of the Battlefields 1919 – Cycling's Toughest-Ever Stage Race

Format: Paperback
RRP: £10.99
£10.00
Save £0.99 (9%)

Free UK P&P on online orders over £25

Adding to basket… The item has been added

'An evocatively thoughtful wider history of the race, the war and the peace' GUARDIAN

'Occasionally funny and regularly poignant, brilliantly focused in its research . . . His drive, wit and curiosity inform Zone Rouge . . . gently profound and genuinely moving' HERALD

The Circuit des Champs de Bataille (the Tour of the Battlefields) was held in 1919, less than six months after the end of the First World War. It covered 2,000 kilometres and was raced in appalling conditions across the battlefields of the Western Front, otherwise known as the Zone Rouge. The race was so tough that only 21 riders finished, and it was never staged again.

With one of the most demanding routes ever to feature in a bicycle race, and plagued by appalling weather conditions, the Circuit des Champs de Bataille was beyond gruelling, but today its extraordinary story is largely forgotten. Many of the riders came to the event straight from the army and had to ride 18-hour stages through sleet and snow across the battlefields on which they had fought, and lost friends and family, only a few months before. But in addition to the hellish conditions there were moments of high comedy, even farce.

The rediscovered story of the Circuit des Champs de Bataille is an epic tale of human endurance, suffering and triumph over extreme adversity.

Write a Review

There are no reviews for this product yet - be the first

Authors:
Isitt, Tom
Year Published:
2020
Country of Publication:
United Kingdom
Format:
Paperback
ISBN:
9781409171157
Number of Pages:
320
Publication Date:
11/06/2020
Publisher:
Orion Publishing Co
Place of Publication:
London
SKU:
9781409171157

Customers also bought