Serge Laget was eight years old when, on holiday in the south of France, he watched the Tour de France go by. He was hooked and has followed the Tour ever since, covering it as a journalist for LEquipe newspaper since 1987. He has written many bookson cycling, including Le Cyclisme, La Saga du Tour de France and La Belle Epoque du Cyclisme. He lives in Paris.

Luke Edwardes-Evans is a freelance writer who regularly contributes articles to Cycling Weekly and the author of two Tour de France guides. He lives in Tonbridge, in Kent, a short hop from France, and enjoyed watching the 2007 Tour pass within a few miles of his home.