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The Lost Cyclist & Tour de France 2010

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Frank Lenz set off from his hometown to bike around the world in 1893 and mysteriously disappeared in Eastern Turkey. We retrace his adventure.

Plus, we preview the Tour de France race, which begins on Saturday.

Lost Cyclist (cover detail)
Lost Cyclist (cover detail)

It was the 1880s, an age of invention, discovery and adventure. The bicycle was the thing in modern, fast human transport.

And daring young men set off to travel this country and the world on their bikes. One of them, amateur photographer Frank Lentz, hauled and pedaled his heavy bike and bags over dirt roads and mountain trails across Asia.

But as Europe loomed on the horizon, he disappeared in a remote corner of Ottoman Turkey.

This hour On Point: The story of the modern cyclist lost in the final days of the old world and the search to find him.
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Guest:

David Herlihy, author and expert on bicycling. He won the 2004 Award for Excellence in the History of Science for his book, "Bicycle:  The History." His new book is called "The Lost Cyclist:  The Epic Tale of an American Adventurer and his Mysterious Dissappearance." (Read an excerpt from the book.)

Also: we preview the Tour de France race, which begins on Saturday.

Guest:

Bill Strickland, editor-at-large at Bicycling Magazine and author of the new book, "Tour de Lance." (See Bicycling's 10 Riders to Watch.) (Subscribe to Bicycling through Amazon.)

This program aired on July 1, 2010.

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