The roads and fields and forests of France that aretoday the perfectpicnicspot to set up camp and awaiting passage ofthe world’s greatest cycling race, were once fields of fire where killing the enemy was the only thing that mattered. But as time claims the last survivors oftheGreat Wars and rob us of their living memories, it’s even more important to remember the sacrifices of those thousands, which allowed cycling fans like usto enjoy the folly of Le Tour each summer. On November 11th millions of people living around the world will pause to remember the millions of lives lost in wars. What’s known in the UK & Canada as Remembrance Day and in the US as Veterans’ Day, began on November 11th, 1919, in England & other countries of theBritish Commonwealth, on the anniversary of the armistice that ended the fighting of World War I which was signed at 11th minute after the11th hour on November 11th, 1918. While the name of theday varies across countries, it is observed in many nations.On the 100 year anniversary of World War I, the 2014 Tour de France paid its respects byvisiting many of the historic regions and battlefieldsof the war. For me, chasing therace through regions where so many peoplehad died was much more sobering experience than I’d expected from la grand boucle.Unmarked graves at the Verdun Memorial.A central theme of the2014 Tour de France was its recognition of the100th anniversary of theoutbreak of theGreat War, and many of thestages ran across historic...
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