A Ride Through the Greatest Cycling Stories

by Giles Belbin, Daniel Seex (Illustrator)

Cycling's vast history is a fascinating mix of gripping sporting moments, inspired pursuits, and a whole host of heroes, hellions, and legend-makers. A Ride Through the Greatest Cycling Stories brings together the most important, memorable, and intriguing moments of cycling's illustrious past.

From the death of the great Fausto Coppi through to the dominance of Sir Bradley Wiggins and the intrepid pursuits of iconic cyclists on the peaks of the Tour de France, cycling historian Giles Belbin brings together the most important, memorable, and intriguing moments of the sport’s illustrious past.

With striking illustrations throughout, each inspired by the stories told, this is a sporting treasure trove of human virtue, vice and cycling trivia.

177 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 2, 2017

Reviews

[Doug Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

There were three things I really liked about this book. Firstly, it canvasses a lot of different cyclists across the history of pro cycling. Secondly each portrait is a brief snapshot which can be read in just a few minutes (I had to discipline myself not to rush ahead and gobble it all up too quickly!). Thirdly, the illustrations add a nice counterpoint to the text. Belbin, who is a specialist cycling journalist, is clearly engaged with his topic. Each vignette is well written - often quite poignantly.

[Joseph Ernest · Rating 4 out of 5]

made me want to read biography of gino bartali

[Carlosfelipe Pardo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es raro la forma de organizarlo, no me pareció tan chévere porque no termina siendo lógico. Pero es bonito leer tantas anécdotas.

[Terry Pearson · Rating 4 out of 5]

You wouldn't expect a book about professional cycling to be pink and sea-foam green but it is and it's a smart marketing move. Smart because the colors draw attention to the female readers / sports enthusiasts that otherwise would have more than likely walked right past the book had it been predominantly masculine in color.

The book chronicles fascinating stories of triumph, legends, and heroes in the cycling world.

I've always been a fan of the Tour de France but that's as far as my cycling enthusiasm goes so I wasn't sure how receptive I would be to this book. It's a fascinating compilation of stories about different cyclists and their achievements, loses, births and deaths. Some unknown to me and others well known: Perhaps the most disheartening story for me to read was the one of Lance Armstrong. A die-hard Armstrong fan, it made me uncomfortable to once again read about his doping and admission to lying. I wish the story had have mentioned a sentence about the good he did: the starting of the Lance Armstrong Foundation. Now for the illustrations ...WOW! They are literally pieces of art and there's a few I wouldn't mind actually framing. I love the illustration on pages 103 and 111, want to eat the candy on pages 66-67, and try to paint the Babushka on page 152.


They say you learn something, one thing, new every day. Within these pages I learned how far back professional cycling actually goes. Well that's news to me!

I found the book to be informative; the perfect amount of information given without boring me or weighing me down with useless knowledge.

I gave the book 3.5 stars