Amateur cycling in the UK has never been so popular and the interest is ever growing. In the wake of Bradley Wiggins' success in the 2012 Tour de France, sportives (non-competitive cycling events) attracted more than 75,000 entrants while competitive events doubled that figure. In Kings of the Road, Robert Dineen explores this cultural shift through his own attempt on the most iconic sportive of all, the Étape du Tour. Regarded as the pinnacle of amateur cycling, the Étape follows the route of the torturous stage 18 of the 2014 Tour de France – Pau to Hautacam, taking in the killer climb of the Tourmalet. This personal challenge will be offset against the backdrop of the sport's history, professional and amateur, by dramatizing its defining moments over the past 150 years and profiling (where possible) its most compelling and influential personalities.
