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Wide-eyed and Legless: Inside the Tour de France (Sportspages Book) [Paperback]

Jeff Connor
3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)

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Book Description

Jun 1988 Sportspages Book

In 1987, the Tour was won by Irishman Stephen Roche. It was the first time the champion had hailed from outside the Continent or the States and the first time in 20 years a British team - ANC Halfords - had competed in the world's toughest and craziest race. Jeff Connor not only stayed with the British team but also found himself an unofficial team member.

In this long-awaited new edition of Wide-Eyed and Legless, now widely regarded as a classic, Connor describes what it takes to compete, survive and win during those 26 days of gruelling effort. Alongside the heroism and athleticism, he reveals the extraordinary amounts of chicanery, from pulling riders along to illicit drug use.

Time has not dimmed the impact of this eye-opening and entertaining close-up look at the supreme endurance event, and Wide-Eyed and Legless is destined to be acclaimed by a new generation of cycling enthusiasts.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product details

  • Paperback: 224 pages
  • Publisher: Simon & Schuster Ltd (Jun 1988)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0671699377
  • ISBN-13: 978-0671699376
  • Product Dimensions: 21.3 x 13.7 x 1.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 242,012 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Review

One of the most vivid and entertaining books ever written about the Tour de France (Richard Moore, From The Foreword )

A true classic of cycling literature (Cycling Weekly )

The British squad were out of their depth but Connor's documentary does not poke fun or seek to humiliate. Instead, it makes you feel like you're there with them, suffering and biting your lip (Cycle Sport )

A fabulously observed diary of July 1987, when the dream of British cycling joining the European mainstream crashed catastrophically . . . side-splittingly funny (Cycling Books.Com ) --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Book Description

A fast-paced, fly-on-the-wall story of courage, endurance, bungling, rows and cheating in sport's greatest marathon --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.


Customer Reviews

3.2 out of 5 stars
3.2 out of 5 stars
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Failure to prepare, prepare to fail 4 July 2011
Format:Paperback
A fascinating and reasonably dispassionate view of cycling in that era. But for the British / UK / Scottish / Anglo-Saxon rise to a level of respect in European cycling over the last 15 years, this book would have been almost too cringe-making to read. It's quite sad as the book reflects on potentially great English cyclists who were simply not understood or looked after properly. To read this book is to gain another dimension and reach a new level of understanding of the world of professional road cycling.

I strongly recommend that you immediately follow Wide-eyed and Legless with Sky's the Limit - that is perfect literary juxtaposition. Maybe Sky was trying too hard and did not know enough about the indefinable T de F factor, but it survived well. ANC Halfords were total novices and also did not know enough about the indefinable T de F factor, and it crumbled miserably but not without many moments of humour and laughable behaviour, amongst days and weeks of unbridled heroism from others on the team.
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3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars Quite an eye-opener 26 Feb 2009
Format:Paperback
I was 19 when I bought and read this book in 1988. To a certain extent it is now historical as times have moved on, not least the drug scandals.
However at the time it certainly opened my eyes. Consequently I have been saddened but not surprised by the Festina affair, Operacion Puerto, etc.
A very interesting insight into the sport and especially into the race, that is hyper-tough, full of drama and high moments, but also has a seamier side that is very dirty and sometimes dangerous.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Great Read 3 Feb 2013
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
A great insight into the way things used to be - Professional sport at a time when pro teams did not have to mean planning and preparation prevents ****poor performance.

Refreshingly honest and unguarded on both the authors and the teams account of inexpereince,
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