Cycling's 50 Craziest Stories

Cycling's 50 Craziest Stories PDF

Author: Les Woodland

Publisher: McGann Publishing LLC

Published: 2010-02-17

Total Pages: 160

ISBN-13: 9780984311712

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Professional cycling has been around for more than 100 years, more than enough time for nearly anything imaginable to have happened. Whether it's the Tour de France racer who thought the worst thing that could happen to him was being forced to wear the Yellow Jersey, or the communist team director who insisted, on a whim, that a rider have a toe amputated or the fit of jealousy that started the Giro d'Italia, the sport has an endless supply of examples of human folly. Les Woodland has the perfect knack for telling these improbable, silly, crazy and absurd stories.

Cycling's Strangest Tales

Cycling's Strangest Tales PDF

Author: Iain Spragg

Publisher: Portico

Published: 2017-06-12

Total Pages: 246

ISBN-13: 1911042904

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Extraordinary but true stories from 200 years of cycling history. Part of the bestselling Strangest series, Cycling’s Strangest Tales is a quirky and fascinating collection of stories from cycling’s history. Included are stories of Thomas Stevens, the doughty Englishman who circumnavigated the world on a penny farthing, the 1904 Tour de France winner who was disqualified for catching the train, the 1937 Japanese invasion of China spearheaded by 50,000 bicycle-mounted troops, and the man who soared over nine circus elephants on an ordinary yellow bike. The stories come from every corner of the cycling world, whether it’s the open road, the velodrome or the BMX track. Brought bang up to date for 2017 with a selection of new stories, Cycling’s Strangest Tales is the perfect gift for anyone who’s in love with life on two wheels. Word count: 45,000

Into the Suffersphere

Into the Suffersphere PDF

Author: Jon Malnick

Publisher: The Crowood Press

Published: 2016-08-31

Total Pages: 240

ISBN-13: 0719820529

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According to the website of The Velominati, the self-professed Keepers of the Cog, the optimal number of bikes owned is n + 1, where n is the number of bikes owned. But there's also an important corollary, s-1, where s is the number of bikes that will cause your wife or partner to leave you.' Into the Suffersphere: Cycling and the Art of Pain is a brilliantly witty account of one former racer's exploration of whether cycling is the one sport that pushes its participants to the very limits of human endurance, and delves painfully into the role that physical and mental suffering can play in this elite endurance sport. Drawing together sporting history and pro-cycling interviews, and investigating current medical, business and psychological theories, this is the story of the extraordinary lengths to which minds and bodies can be pushed. Peppered with recollections from the author's own racing experiences and offering a fascinating insight into the unique allure of pain in a sporting context, Into the Suffersphere explores a side of cycling that you would never have dreamed of - not even in your worst nightmare. An essential read for all MAMILs (middle-aged men in Lycra) and fans of sports writing and smart thinking.

50 Ways to Cycle the World

50 Ways to Cycle the World PDF

Author: B. Castello

Publisher: Lannoo Publishers

Published: 2021-05-26

Total Pages: 320

ISBN-13: 9782390251514

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- 50 unique cycling trip stories from 70 cyclists that will inform and inspire - Answers to over 700 questions that relate to bike travel around the world - Beautiful photography combined with practical advice 50 Ways to Cycle the World presents 50 unique cycling adventures gathered from more than 70 cyclists representing 22 nationalities. It is the ultimate visual guide and encyclopaedia to travelling by bicycle, whether you are travelling alone, as a couple, or as a family with small children. Featured here are inspiring stories and advice, accompanied by breathtaking photographs taken all over the world by the many contributors who share their cycling stories.

The Best of Bicycling

The Best of Bicycling PDF

Author: Peter Flax

Publisher: Rodale Books

Published: 2011-11-15

Total Pages: 193

ISBN-13: 1609614070

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Bicycling magazine celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2011. For half a century, the magazine has been the world's leading authority on bicycling, bringing its readers the latest advice and some of the most sharp and illuminating sports stories ever told. To celebrate Bicycling's rich tradition of top-notch narratives, Editor-in-Chief Peter Flax has selected a collection of its best pieces. The 19 stories anthologized here are simply the best stories the magazine has ever published, and they feature some of the best writers working today, including Christopher McDougall, Mary Roach, and Bill Strickland. There are more than a few unforgettable profiles of legendary cyclists, and there are pieces that brilliantly demonstrate the transformative powers of riding a bike. There is comedy, suffering, beauty, and existential angst, as well as writing that will make you smile and maybe break your heart, too.

Cyclopedia

Cyclopedia PDF

Author: William Fotheringham

Publisher: Chicago Review Press

Published: 2015-09-01

Total Pages: 440

ISBN-13: 1613734158

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A path through cycling-specific information: slang, cycling stars, equipment, and nicknames The essential A-to-Z compendium of everything there is to know about the bicycle, this sports reference is full of amazing facts and enthralling anecdotes. Numerous entries have been updated for this paperback edition. A world of death-defying feats and obscure mechanical oddities, the nature of cycling is both heroic and geeky, and the perils of vicious dogs are given the same attention as the perils of drug and sex scandals. From the history of the Tour de France and Lance Armstrong's rise and fall to the origins of the quick-release system and Chris Hoy's dominance of the Beijing Velodrome, no element is omitted from this exploration of the bicycle and its faithful riders. Cyclopedia has all the equipment, the races, and the faces needed to convert any amateur cyclist into a fully fledged bike expert.

The Beast, the Emperor and the Milkman

The Beast, the Emperor and the Milkman PDF

Author: Harry Pearson

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2019-02-07

Total Pages: 272

ISBN-13: 1472945034

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***SHORTLISTED FOR THE TELEGRAPH SPORTS BOOK AWARDS 2020 – CYCLING BOOK OF THE YEAR*** ***LONGLISTED FOR THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR 2019*** 'A joy.' – Ned Boulting Every nation shapes sport to test the character traits it most admires. In The Beast, the Emperor and the Milkman, committed Belgophile and road cycling obsessive Harry Pearson takes you on a journey across Flanders, through the lumpy horizontal rain, up the elbow juddering cobbled inclines, past the fans dressed as chickens and the shop window displays of constipation medicines, as he follows races big, small and even smaller through one glorious, muddy spring. Ranging over 500 years of Flemish and European history, across windswept polders, along back roads and through an awful lot of beer cafes, Pearson examines the characters, the myths and rivalries that make Flanders a place where cycling is a religion and the riders its lycra-clad priests.

Paul Smith's Cycling Scrapbook

Paul Smith's Cycling Scrapbook PDF

Author: Paul Smith

Publisher: National Geographic Books

Published: 2016-05-17

Total Pages: 0

ISBN-13: 0500292361

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A visual celebration of cycling presented through the passions and personal memorabilia of beloved menswear fashion designer Paul Smith Were it not for a serious crash in his teens, fashion designer Paul Smith might have become known as a successful racing cyclist. His cycling career cut short, and after a six-month spell in the hospital, he opened a small boutique in England in 1970. Today, Paul Smith is one of the UK’s most successful exports, with over 350 shops worldwide. It was only relatively recently, however, that Smith publicly returned to the world of cycling. This lively scrapbook illustrates Smith’s favorite people, races, and places in the cycling world through the images and ephemera that inspired him. From his collection of cycling jerseys and his extensive library of cycling publications and brochures of the 1950s and 1960s to the inspiration he has found in his cycling heroes (Coppi, Anquetil, Bartali) and his collaborations with bike-makers (Mercian and Pinarello) and race organizers, this is a personal and highly visual journey that connects Smith’s love of cycling with his love of design. Paul Smith’s Cycling Scrapbook is a winning combination of design and the world’s most increasingly popular pastime, sure to thrill cycling fans and fashion enthusiasts everywhere.

One Man and His Bike

One Man and His Bike PDF

Author: Mike Carter

Publisher: Random House

Published: 2011-06-02

Total Pages: 352

ISBN-13: 1446406040

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What would happen if you were cycling to the office and just kept on pedalling? Needing a change, Mike Carter did just that. Following the Thames to the sea he embarked on an epic 5,000 mile ride around the entire British coastline - the equivalent of London to Calcutta. He encountered drunken priests, drag queens and gnome sanctuaries. He met fellow travellers and people building for a different type of future. He also found a spirit of unbelievable kindness and generosity that convinced him that Britain is anything but broken. This is the inspiring and very funny tale of the five months Mike spent cycling the byways of the nation.

Heft on Wheels

Heft on Wheels PDF

Author: Mike Magnuson

Publisher: Crown

Published: 2005-05-24

Total Pages: 258

ISBN-13: 1400052416

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Take one very large guy. Add booze, cigarettes, and an extreme amount of junk food. Mix in a wry, self-effacing wit. Throw in a bike. The result? Heft on Wheels, a potently funny look at turning your life around, one insanely unrealistic goal at a time. Not that long ago, Mike Magnuson was a self-described lummox with a bicycle. In the space of three months, he lost seventy-five pounds, quit smoking, stopped drinking, and morphed from the big guy at the back of the pack into a lean, mean cycling machine. Today, Mike is a 175-pound athlete competing in some of the most difficult one-day racing events in America. This irreverent and inspiring memoir charts every hilarious detail of his transformation, from the horrors of skin-tight XXL biking shorts to the miseries of nicotine withdrawal. Heft on Wheels is an unforgettable book about getting from one place to another, in more ways than one.