Cyclopedia: It's All About the Bike (Paperback)
If it's on the bike, it's in the book.
The world of cycling is one of death-defying feats and obscure mechanical oddities, heroics and geekiness in equal measure. In Cyclopedia, renowned two-wheel aficionado and acclaimed sports writer William Fotheringham delves deep into this world to unearth rare nuggets of amazing facts and enthrallling anecdotes.
This essential book is an A-Z compendium of everything you could ever want to know about the bicycle, from the history of the Tour de France to Chris Hoy’s dominance of the Beijing velodrome, from the origins of the quick-release system to the diet that powered Graeme Obree to the world hour record, from Lance Armstrong’s rise and fall to the slang words used for performance-enhancing substances, from the literature of cycling to the perils of vicious dogs.
Cyclopedia has all the equipment, the races, the chases, the faces, the places, the drugs, the sex, and the scandals to convert any amateur cyclist into a fully fledged bike expert.
The world of cycling is one of death-defying feats and obscure mechanical oddities, heroics and geekiness in equal measure. In Cyclopedia, renowned two-wheel aficionado and acclaimed sports writer William Fotheringham delves deep into this world to unearth rare nuggets of amazing facts and enthrallling anecdotes.
This essential book is an A-Z compendium of everything you could ever want to know about the bicycle, from the history of the Tour de France to Chris Hoy’s dominance of the Beijing velodrome, from the origins of the quick-release system to the diet that powered Graeme Obree to the world hour record, from Lance Armstrong’s rise and fall to the slang words used for performance-enhancing substances, from the literature of cycling to the perils of vicious dogs.
Cyclopedia has all the equipment, the races, the chases, the faces, the places, the drugs, the sex, and the scandals to convert any amateur cyclist into a fully fledged bike expert.
William Fotheringham is the cycling correspondent at the Guardian, covering the Tour de France as well as the Olympic Games. He has written biographies of Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, Fausto Coppi, and Tom Simpson.
“A thorough, well-written, and absorbing love tome to the bicycle.” —Austin Chronicle
“A handy A-to-Z collection of facts and stories and quotes and people and places and ideas and beliefs and remedies and terms and history—good, bad, and honest—that have anything to do with [the] sport.” —Bicycling magazine
“Catholicism, literature, sex, thieves, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec each rate an entry in Cyclopedia. Longtime cycling journalist William Fotheringham packs this grab bag with wacky characters, heated debates (is sex good or bad for racing performance?), and trivia (England in the early 20th century had bike-powered generating stations). He decodes cycling slang and weighs in on magic remedies for racers.” —Boston Globe
“A handy A-to-Z collection of facts and stories and quotes and people and places and ideas and beliefs and remedies and terms and history—good, bad, and honest—that have anything to do with [the] sport.” —Bicycling magazine
“Catholicism, literature, sex, thieves, and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec each rate an entry in Cyclopedia. Longtime cycling journalist William Fotheringham packs this grab bag with wacky characters, heated debates (is sex good or bad for racing performance?), and trivia (England in the early 20th century had bike-powered generating stations). He decodes cycling slang and weighs in on magic remedies for racers.” —Boston Globe