100 Best Cycling Books of All Time

We've ranked the best cycling books using expert recommendations, sales data, and millions of reader ratings. At Shortform, we know books. Our book guides are the best in the world. Learn why.

The Secret Race: Inside the Hidden World of the Tour de France book cover1

The Secret Race: Inside the Hidden World of the Tour de France

Tyler Hamilton, Daniel Coyle

5.0
“The holy grail for disillusioned cycling fans . . . The book’s power is in the collective details, all strung together in a story that is told with such clear-eyed conviction that you never doubt its veracity. . . . The Secret Race isn’t just a game changer for the Lance Armstrong myth. It’s the game ender.”—Outside

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • WINNER OF THE WILLIAM HILL SPORTS BOOK OF THE YEAR AWA
It's Not about the Bike: My Journey Back to Life book cover2

It's Not about the Bike: My Journey Back to Life

Lance Armstrong, Sally Jenkins

4.9
It is such an all-American story. A lanky kid from Plano, Texas, is raised by a feisty, single parent who sacrifices for her son, who becomes one of our country's greatest athletes. Given that background, it is understandable why Armstrong was able to channel his boundless energy toward athletic endeavors. By his senior year in high school, he was already a professional triathlete and was training
3

The Rider

Tim Krabbé

4.8
A literary sports classic, finally available in the U.S.
Originally published in the Netherlands in 1978, The Rider became an instant cult classic, selling over 100,000 copies. Brilliantly conceived and written at a breakneck pace, it is a loving, imaginative, and, above all, passionate tribute to the art of bicycle road racing.
Not a dry history of the sport, The Rider is beloved as a bicycle od
4

Racing Through the Dark

David Millar

4.7
Once tipped to be the next English-speaking Tour winner, David Millar's promising career was almost ruined when he succumbed to the temptation of performance-enhancing drugs. Now clean and reflective, David holds nothing back in this account of his dark years.Longlisted for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year Award 2011.
Slaying the Badger: Greg LeMond, Bernard Hinault, and the Greatest Tour de France book cover5

Slaying the Badger: Greg LeMond, Bernard Hinault, and the Greatest Tour de France

Richard Moore

4.7
Bernard Hinault is "Le Blaireau," the Badger. Tough as old boots, he is the old warrior of the French peloton, as revered as he is feared for his ferocious attacks. He has won 5 Tours de France, marking his name into the history books as a member of cycling's most exclusive club.

Yet as the 1986 Tour de France ascends into the mountains, a boyish and friendly young American named Greg LeMond threa
The Cyclist's Training Bible book cover6

The Cyclist's Training Bible

Joe Friel

4.7
The Cyclist’s Training Bible is designed to help amateurs create a training plan and refine the skills needed to succeed in the sport. Divided into five parts, the book covers commitment and common sense, general concepts, training with a purpose, designing a yearlong plan, and practical strategies for reinforcing training. Dozens of photos, charts, tables and worksheets are featured in this editi
It's All About the Bike: The Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels book cover7

It's All About the Bike: The Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels

Robert Penn

4.6
Robert Penn has saddled up nearly every day of his adult life. He rides to get to work, to bathe in air and sunshine, to travel, to go shopping, and to stay sane. He's no Sunday pedal pusher. So when the time came for a new bike, he decided to pull out all the stops and build his dream machine.

It's All About the Bike follows Penn's journey, but this book is more than the story of his hunt for two-
8

Rough Ride: Behind the Wheel with a Pro Cyclist

Paul Kimmage

4.5
An eye-opening expose of and a heart-breaking lament for professional cycling

Paul Kimmage's boyhood dreams were of cycling glory: wearing the yellow jersey, cycling the Tour de France, becoming a national hero. He knew it wouldn't come easy, but he was prepared to put in the graft. The dedication paid off – he finished sixth in the World Championships as an amateur and in 1986, he turned professio
Draft Animals: Living the Pro Cycling Dream (Once in a While) book cover9

Draft Animals: Living the Pro Cycling Dream (Once in a While)

Phil Gaimon

4.5
From the author of the cult favorite Pro Cycling on $10 a Day and Ask a Pro, the story of one man's quest to realize his childhood dream, and what happened when he actually did it.

Like countless other kids, Phil Gaimon grew up dreaming of being a professional athlete. But unlike countless other kids, he actually pulled it off. After years of amateur races, hard training, living out of a suitca
10

The Climb: The Autobiography

Chris Froome

4.5
The Climb by Chris Froome - the revealing, inspirational memoir from the British winner of the 2013 centenary Tour de France

The Climb tells the extraordinary story of Chris Froome's journey from a young boy in Kenya, riding through townships and past wild animals, and with few opportunities for an aspiring cyclist, to his unforgettable yellow jersey victory in this year's Tour.

A journey unlike any
11

Seven Deadly Sins: My Pursuit of Lance Armstrong

David Walsh

4.5
From award-winning journalist David Walsh, the definitive account of the author’s twelve-year quest to uncover and make known the truth about Lance Armstrong’s long history of performance-enhancing drug use, which ultimately led to the cyclist’s being stripped of his seven Tour de France titles.

The story of Lance Armstrong—the cyclist who recovered from testicular cancer and went on to win the Tou
12

The World of Cycling According to G

Geraint Thomas

4.5
Sit back or saddle up as double Olympic gold medallist and multiple world champion Geraint Thomas gives you a warts and all insight into the life of a pro cyclist. Along the way he reveals cycling's clandestine codes and secret stories, tales from the peloton, the key characters like Wiggins, Hoy and Cav, the pivotal races and essential etiquette.

Geraint Thomas is treasured for treating his sport
13

Every Second Counts

Lance Armstrong, Sally Jenkins

4.5
The five-time Tour de France winner and Number 1 New York Times bestselling author returns with an inspirational account of his recent personal and professional victories—and some failures—and an intimate glimpse into how almost dying taught him to really live.

Since the release of his megabestseller, It’s Not About the Bike, Lance Armstrong has enjoyed a new series of thrilling rides, culminating
Zinn & the Art of Road Bike Maintenance: The World's Best-Selling Bicycle Repair and Maintenance Guide book cover14

Zinn & the Art of Road Bike Maintenance: The World's Best-Selling Bicycle Repair and Maintenance Guide

Lennard Zinn

4.5
"Zinn & the Art of Road Bike Maintenance" is the world's best-selling guide to bicycle repair and maintenance. From basic repairs like how to fix a flat tire to advanced overhauls of drivetrains and brakes, Lennard Zinn's clearly illustrated guide makes every bicycle repair and maintenance job easy for everyone.

Lennard Zinn is the world's leading expert on bike maintenance and repair. His friendly
Road Rash and Ramen Noodles: True Tales of Pro Cycling on $10 Dollars a Day book cover15

Road Rash and Ramen Noodles: True Tales of Pro Cycling on $10 Dollars a Day

Phil Gaimon

4.4
Phil Gaimon has no business being a professional cyclist.

Inexplicably forsaking his former life as a couch potato and gamer, Gaimon begin riding in 2004 with the grand ambition of shedding a few pounds. By sheer accident, he discovered he was a natural, advancing so rapidly through the amateur ranks that he entered the pro peloton utterly ignorant of a century of cycling etiquette.

During the 201
16

French Revolutions: Cycling the Tour de France

Tim Moore

4.4
Not only is it the world's largest and most watched sporting event, but also the most fearsome physical challenge ever conceived by man, demanding every last ounce of will and strength, every last drop of blood, sweat, and tears. If ever there was an athletic exploit specifically not for the faint of heart and feeble of limb, this is it. So you might ask, what is Tim Moore doing cycling it?

An extr
17

My Time

Bradley Wiggins

4.4
On 22 July 2012 Bradley Wiggins became the first British man ever to win the Tour de France. In an instant 'Wiggo' became a national hero. Ten days later, having swapped his yellow jersey for the colours of Team GB, he won Olympic gold in the time trial, adding to his previous six medals to become the nation's most decorated Olympian of all time.

Outspoken, honest, intelligent and fearless, Wiggins
18

Boy Racer: My Journey to Tour de France Record-Breaker

Mark Cavendish

4.4
'Boy Racer' steps behind the scenes of the Tour de France. It unmasks the exotic, contradictory, hysterical and brutal world of professional cycling from the compellingly candid viewpoint of someone right in the thick of it.
19

Bike Snob: Systematically & Mercilessly Realigning the World of Cycling

BikeSnobNYC

4.4
Cycling is exploding in a good way. Urbanites everywhere, from ironic hipsters to earth-conscious commuters, are taking to the bike like aquatic mammals to water. BikeSnobNYC cycling's most prolific, well-known, hilarious, and anonymous blogger brings a fresh and humorous perspective to the most important vehicle to hit personal transportation since the horse. Bike Snob treats readers to a laugh-o
Bicycle Diaries book cover20

Bicycle Diaries

David Byrne

4.4
A round-the-world bicycle tour with one of the most original artists of our day.

Urban bicycling has become more popular than ever as recession- strapped, climate-conscious city dwellers reinvent basic transportation. In this wide-ranging memoir, artist/musician David Byrne-who has relied on a bike to get around New York City since the early 1980s-relates his adventures as he pedals through an en
21

In Search of Robert Millar: Unravelling the Mystery Surrounding Britain's Most Successful Tour De France Cyclist

Richard Moore

4.4
The compelling story of Britain's best-ever cyclist, this book looks to unravel the puzzle surrounding his sudden and dramatic disappearance. Cyclist Robert Millar came from one of Europe's most industrialized cities, Glasgow, to excel in the most unlikely terrain—over the high mountain passes of the Pyrenees and the Alps. He was crowned King of the Mountains during the 1984 Tour de France and rem
22

The Death of Marco Pantani: A Biography

Matt Rendell

4.4
At 9:30 pm on February 14, 2004, former Tour de France winner Marco Pantani was found dead in Rimini. It emerged that he had been addicted to cocaine since Autumn 1999, weeks after being expelled from the Tour of Italy for blood doping. Conspiracy theories abounded—that he was injected in his sleep by a business rival, that the Olympic Committee had framed him, that Italian Industrialists had engi
Just Ride: A Radically Practical Guide to Riding Your Bike book cover23

Just Ride: A Radically Practical Guide to Riding Your Bike

Grant Petersen

4.4
“No matter what or how you ride, read this book and remind yourself just how enjoyable cycling can and should be.”—Eben Weiss, author of The Enlightened Cyclist

Just Ride is a revelation. Forget the ultralight, uncomfortable bikes, flashy jerseys, clunky shoes that clip onto tiny pedals, the grinding out of endless miles. Instead, ride like you did when you were a kid—just get on your bike and di
24

How I Won the Yellow Jumper: Dispatches from the Tour de France

Ned Boulting

4.4
Follow Ned Boulting’s (occasionally excruciating) experiences covering the world’s most famous two-wheeled race. His story offers an insider’s view of life behind the scenes of the Tour, as well as detailing the complexities and absurdities of reporting on the race and confronting the most celebrated riders—Cavendish, Wiggins, Armstrong et al—seconds after they cross the line. Eight Tours on from
25

Fallen Angel: The Passion of Fausto Coppi

William Fotheringham

4.4
The great cyclist of the postwar years: Coppi’s scandalous divorce and controversial death convulsed Italy in the 1950s. Fallen Angel tells the tragic story of the man who became Italy’s symbol of rebirth after the disasters of war, yet died reviled and heartbroken.
26

Put Me Back on My Bike: In Search of Tom Simpson

William Fotheringham

4.3
'The best cycling biography ever written' - Velo Tom Simpson was an Olympic medallist, world champion and the first Briton to wear the fabled yellow jersey of the Tour de France. He died a tragic early death on the barren moonscape of the Mont Ventoux during the 1967 Tour. Almost 35 years on, hundreds of fans still make the pilgrimage to the windswept memorial which marks the spot where he died. A
27

We Were Young and Carefree

Laurent Fignon, William Fotheringham

4.3
The international bestselling autobiography of twice-Tour-de-France-winner Laurent Fignon, one of the greatest and most charismatic cyclists of all time.

'One of the most charismatic and flamboyant cyclists in recent history' Daily Telegraph

Laurent Fignon is one of the giants of modern cycling. Twice-winner of the Tour de France in the early eighties, Fignon became the star for a new generation. I
28

Domestique: The Real-life Ups and Downs of a Tour Pro

Charly Wegelius

4.3
For 11 years I was a professional cyclist, competing in the hardest and greatest races on Earth. I was in demand from the world's best teams, a well-paid elite athlete. But I never won a race. I was the hired help.

When my mum dropped me off in a small French town aged 17, I was full of determination to be a professional cyclist, but I was completely green. I went from mowing the team manager's law
Wheelmen: Lance Armstrong, the Tour de France, and the Greatest Sports Conspiracy Ever book cover29

Wheelmen: Lance Armstrong, the Tour de France, and the Greatest Sports Conspiracy Ever

Reed Albergotti and Vanessa O'Connell

4.3
The sensational New York Times bestselling in-depth look at Lance Armstrong’s doping scandal, the phenomenal business success built on the back of fraud, and the greatest conspiracy in the history of sports. Now with a new afterword.

Lance Armstrong won a record-smashing seven Tours de France after staring down cancer, and in the process became an international symbol of resilience and courage. In
30

The Racer: Life on the Road as a Pro Cyclist

David Millar

4.3
What is it really like to be a racer?

What is it like to be swept along at 60kmh in the middle of the pack? What happens to the body during a high-speed chute? What tactics must teams employ to win the day, the jersey, the grand tour? What sacrifices must a cyclist make to reach the highest levels? What is it like on the bus? In the hotels? What camaraderie is built in the confines of a team? What
Road to Valor: A True Story of WWII Italy, the Nazis, and the Cyclist Who Inspired a Nation book cover31

Road to Valor: A True Story of WWII Italy, the Nazis, and the Cyclist Who Inspired a Nation

Aili McConnon and Andres McConnon

4.3
The inspiring, against-the-odds story of Gino Bartali, the cyclist who made the greatest comeback in Tour de France history and secretly aided the Italian resistance during World War II

Gino Bartali is best known as an Italian cycling legend who not only won the Tour de France twice but also holds the record for the longest time span between victories. In Road to Valor, Aili and Andres McConnon ch
32

A Dog in a Hat: An American Bike Racer's Story of Mud, Drugs, Blood, Betrayal, and Beauty in Belgium

Joe Parkin

4.3
In 1987, Joe Parkin was an amateur bike racer in California when he ran into Bob Roll, a pro on the powerhouse Team 7-Eleven. “Lobotomy Bob” told Parkin that, to become a pro, he must go to Belgium.

Riding along a canal in Belgium years later, Roll encountered Parkin, who he saw as “a wraith, an avenging angel of misery, a twelve-toothed assassin”. Roll barely recognized him. Belgium had forged Par
33

Gironimo!: Riding the Very Terrible 1914 Tour of Italy

Tim Moore

4.3
Twelve years after Tim Moore toiled around the route of the Tour de France, he senses his achievement being undermined by the truth about 'Horrid Lance'. His rash response is to take on a fearsome challenge from an age of untarnished heroes: the notorious 1914 Giro d'Italia. History's most appalling bike race was an ordeal of 400-kilometer stages, filled with cataclysmic storms, roads strewn with
Cycle of Lies: The Fall of Lance Armstrong book cover34

Cycle of Lies: The Fall of Lance Armstrong

Juliet Macur

4.3
The definitive account of Lance Armstrong's spectacular rise and fall.

In June 2013, when Lance Armstrong fled his palatial home in Texas, downsizing in the face of multimillion-dollar lawsuits, Juliet Macur was there—talking to his girlfriend and children and listening to Armstrong's version of the truth. She was one of the few media members aside from Oprah Winfrey to be granted extended one-on-o
35

The Rules: The Way of the Cycling Disciple

The Velominati

4.3
The Velominati embrace cycling as a way of life, as obsessed with style, heritage, authenticity, and wisdom as with performance. This is their bible.

The Rules is an essential part of every cyclist’s kit—whether you’re riding to work or training to be the next Bradley Wiggins or Victoria Pendleton. Winning awards and gaining millions of viewers, Velominati.com has become an online cycling mecca. In
36

Flying Scotsman: Cycling to Triumph Through My Darkest Hours

Graeme Obree

4.3
Little-known Graeme Obree became international cycling's most unlikely star, capturing the public's imagination with his innovative engineering and design skills and unique training regiments. When he broke world records and won championships, the cycling authorities outlawed both his bike and his tucked riding position. He invented the ""Superman"" riding style and triumphed again. But while batt
37

Shut Up, Legs!: My Wild Ride On and Off the Bike

Jens Voigt, James Startt

4.3
Beloved German cyclist Jens Voigt isn’t a superstar in the traditional sense of the word. Although he won three stages of the Tour De France—and wore the yellow jersey twice—Voigt never claimed an overall victory. He became a star because he embodies qualities that go beyond winning and losing: sacrifice, selflessness, reliability, and devotion. European and American crowds were drawn to his aggre
38

Lance Armstrong's War: One Man's Battle Against Fate, Fame, Love, Death, Scandal, and a Few Other Rivals on the Road to the Tour de France

Daniel Coyle

4.3
“A velvety mix of vivid, sophisticated prose, Raymond Carver’s unerring eye for nuance, and John Irving’s irreverent, unflinching humor….An intimate look inside the maelstrom of professional cycling.”
—Boston Globe



Daniel Coyne’s New York Times bestseller Lance Armstrong’s War takes a fascinating, in-depth look at a staggeringly talented yet flawed sports hero as he faced his greatest test: a record
Training and Racing with a Power Meter book cover39

Training and Racing with a Power Meter

Allen Hunter

4.2
Hunter Allen and Andy Coggan, PhD have completely revised the book that made power meters understandable for amateur and professional cyclists and triathletes.

Power meters have become essential tools for competitive cyclists and triathletes. No training tool can unlock as much speed and endurance as a power meter--for those who understand how to interpret their data. A power meter displays and rec
Miles From Nowhere: A Round-the-World bicycle Adventure book cover40

Miles From Nowhere: A Round-the-World bicycle Adventure

Barbara Savage

4.2
A well-loved, classic tale of adventure, a book you'll find yourself recommending again and again

This is the story of Barbara and Larry Savage's sometimes dangerous, often zany, but ultimately rewarding 23,000 miles global bicycle odyssey, which took them through 25 countries in two years. Miles From Nowhere is an adventure not to be missed!

Along the way, these near-neophyte cyclists encountered w
41

Merckx: Half Man, Half Bike

William Fotheringham

4.2
The first ever English-language biography of Eddy Merckx, the greatest cyclist of all time, by William Fotheringham, Britain's top cycling writer.

Eddy Merckx is to cycling what Muhammad Ali is to boxing or Pelé to football; quite simply, the best there has ever been. Throughout his professional career Merckx amassed an astonishing 445 victories. Lance Armstrong, by comparison, has managed fewer th
42

Faster: The Obsession, Science and Luck Behind the World's Fastest Cyclists

Michael Hutchinson

4.2
For professional cyclists, going faster and winning are, of course, closely related. Yet surprisingly, for many, a desire to go faster is much more important than a desire to win. Someone who wants to go faster will work at the details and take small steps rather than focusing on winning. Winning just happens when you do everything right-it's the doing everything right that's hard. And that's what
Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Male Body book cover43

Bigger Leaner Stronger: The Simple Science of Building the Ultimate Male Body

Michael Matthews

4.2
MICHAEL MATTHEWS' #1 BESTSELLING NATURAL BODYBUILDING BOOK WITH OVER 400,000 COPIES SOLD. If you want to build muscle, lose fat, and look great as quickly as possible without steroids, good genetics, or wasting ridiculous amounts of time in the gym and money on supplements ... regardless of your age ... then you want to read this book.
44

Sky's the Limit: British Cycling's Quest to Conquer the Tour de France

Richard Moore

4.2

Brailsford is the mastermind behind the phenomenal success of the British track cycling team which dominated the Beijing Olympics in 2008, winning seven gold medals. But road cycling is a very different ball game. It has the lion's share of the sport's history and legends; it has the bulk of the fans, television, and media interest; and it has, far and away, the biggest pot of money. It is a sport

45

On the Road Bike: The Search For a Nation’s Cycling Soul

Ned Boultin

4.2
Ned Boulting has noticed something. It's to do with bikes. They're everywhere. And so are their riders. Some of these riders seem to be sporting sideburns and a few of them are winning things. Big things. Now Ned wants to know how on earth it came to this. And what, exactly is 'this'.

In On the Road Bike, Ned Boulting asks how Britain became so obsessed with cycling. Ned's search puts him in contac
46

Eddy Merckx: The Cannibal

Daniel Friebe

4.2
'The whole point of a race is to find a winner... I chose to race, so I chose to win.'

For 14 years between 1965 and 1978, cyclist Edouard Louis Joseph Merckx simply devoured his rivals, their hopes and their careers. His legacy resides as much in the careers he ruined as the 445 victories - including five Tour de France wins and all the monument races - he amassed in his own right. So dominant ha
47

Cav: At Speed

Mark Cavendish

4.2
Mark Cavendish is quite simply the biggest thing in cycling and the biggest thing in British sport. With his self-belief and smouldering competitive fire, Cav has turned the animalistic hunger to win into an art form. As L'Equipe call him -- the Mozart of the 12-wheel cog.

Since Cav's first book, Boy Racer, was published in 2009 his career has advanced at a lightning pace. Boy Racer covered his ea
48

Pedaling Revolution: How Cyclists Are Changing American Cities

Jeff Mapes

4.2
In a world of growing traffic congestion, expensive oil, and threats of cataclysmic climate change, a grassroots movement is carving out a niche for bicycles on the streets of urban cityscapes. In Pedaling Revolution, Jeff Mapes explores the growing urban bike culture that is changing the look and feel of cities across the U.S. He rides with bike advocates who are taming the streets of New York Ci
49

The Escape Artist: Life from the Saddle

Matt Seaton

4.2
Matt Seaton’s critically acclaimed memoir about his obsession for cycling and how that obsession was tamed.


For a time there were four bikes in Matt Seaton’s life. His evenings were spent 'doing the miles' on the roads out of south London and into the hills of the North Downs and Kent Weald. Weekends were taken up with track meets, time trials and road races – rides that took him from cold village
50

Tomorrow, We Ride

Jean Bobet, Adam Berry

4.2
An account of the lives of the Bobet brothers - Louison, triple Tour de France winner and Jean who gave up an academic career to ride in the service of his brother. This story brings alive the romance of the great races and star riders of those post war days whose exploits lifted the public spirit after years of conflict and economic hardship.
51

The Man Who Cycled the World

Mark Beaumont

4.2
On 15 February 2008, Mark Beaumont pedalled through the Arc de Triomphe in Paris. 194 days and 17 hours previously, he had set off from Paris in an attempt to circumnavigate the world in record time. Mark smashed the Guinness World Record by an astonishing 81 days. He had travelled more than 18,000 miles on his own through some of the harshest conditions one man and his bicycle can endure, camping
52

The Comeback: Greg Lemond, the True King of American Cycling, and a Legendary Tour de France

Daniel de Vise

4.1
A true American hero, Greg LeMond's career was punctuated by dramatic fame, devastation, and ultimately redemption. In July 1986, LeMond stunned the sporting world by becoming the first American to win the Tour de France, the world's pre-eminent bicycle race, defeating French cycling legend Bernard Hinault. Nine months later, LeMond lay in a hospital bed, his life in peril after a hunting accident
53

The Cyclist Who Went Out in the Cold: Adventures Along the Iron Curtain Trail

Tim Moor

4.1
Not content with tackling the Italian Alps or the route of the Tour de France, Tim Moore sets out to scale a new peak of rash over-ambition: 6,000 mile route of the old Iron Curtain on a tiny-wheeled, two-geared East German shopping bike.
Asking for trouble and getting it, Moore sets off from the northernmost Norwegian-Russian border at the Arctic winter’s brutal height, bullying his plucky MIFA 90
54

The Enlightened Cyclist: Commuter Angst, Dangerous Drivers, and Other Obstacles on the Path to Two-Wheeled Trancendence

BikeSnobNYC

4.1
The joys of commuting by bike attract scores of new converts every year. But as fresh-faced cyclists fill the roads, they also encounter their share of frustrations—careless drivers, wide-flung car doors, zoned-out pedestrians, and aggressive fellow cyclists, to name a few. In this follow-up to the best-selling Bike Snob, BikeSnobNYC takes on the trials and triumphs of bike commuting with snark, h
55

The Hour: Sporting immortality the hard way

Michael Hutchinson

4.1
The Hour. It's the only cycling record that matters: one man and his bike against the clock in a quest for pure speed. No teammates, no rivals, no tactics, no gears, no brakes. Just one simple question - in sixty minutes, how far can you go?

Michael Hutchinson had a plan. He was going to add his name to the list of record-holders, cycling's supermen. But how does a man who became a professional ath
56

My World

Peter Sagan

4.1
From 2015 to 2017, Peter Sagan achieved the seemingly impossible: he won three road race World Championships in a row, ensuring his entry into the history books as one of the greatest riders of all time.

But to look at Peter’s record in isolation is to tell only a fraction of his story, because Peter doesn’t just win: he entertains. Every moment in the saddle is an opportunity to express his person
57

Lanterne Rouge: The Last Man in the Tour de France

Max Leonard

4.1
If you complete a bike race of over 3,000 miles in last place, overcoming mountain ranges and merciless weather, all while enduring physical and psychological agony, should you be branded the loser? What if your loss helped a teammate win? What if others lacked the determination to finish? What if you were trying to come in last?

Froome, Wiggins, Mercks—we know the winners of the Tour de France, bu
58

Need for the Bike

Paul Fournel, Allan Stoekl

4.1
A book like no other, Frenchman Paul Fournel’s Need for the Bike conducts readers into a very personal world of communication and connection whose center is the bicycle, and where all people and things pass by way of the bike. In compact and suggestive prose, Fournel conveys the experience of cycling—from the initial charm of early outings to the dramas of the devoted cyclist. An extended meditati
59

Full Tilt: Ireland to India with a Bicycle

Dervla Murphy

4.1
Based on her daily diary, this is Dervla Murphy’s account of her ride, in 1963, across frozen Europe and through Persia and Afghanistan, over the Himalayas to Pakistan and into India, during one of the worst winters in memory. She has written other travel books, including In Ethiopia with a Mule.
60

Heft on Wheels: A Field Guide to Doing a 180

Mike Magnuson

4.1
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 smokin
61

Etape: The untold stories of the Tour de France's defining stages

Richard Moore

4.1
In ETAPE, critically acclaimed author Richard Moore will take readers on a virtual Tour de France, with each chapter focusing on a single rider in a single stage that came to define the Tour’s history

In Étape, critically acclaimed author Richard Moore tells the stories behind some of the defining stages in the Tour de France’s history through the eyes of the protagonists: the heroes and villains,
62

The Tour According to G: My Journey to the Yellow Jersey

Geraint Thoma

4.1

For years Geraint Thomas appeared blessed with extraordinary talent but jinxed at the greatest bike race in the world: twice an Olympic gold medallist on the track, Commonwealth champion, yet at the Tour de France a victim of crashes, bad luck and his willingness to sacrifice himself for his team-mates.

In the summer of 2018, that curse was blown away in spectacular fashion - from the cobbles of t

63

From Lance to Landis: Inside the American Doping Controversy at the Tour de France

David Walsh

4.1
For eight years, the Tour de France, arguably the world’s most demanding athletic competition, was ruled by two men: Lance Armstrong and Floyd Landis. On the surface, they were feature players in one of the great sporting stories of the age–American riders overcoming tremendous odds to dominate a sport that held little previous interest for their countrymen. But is this a true story, or is there a
64

Sex, Lies and Handlebar Tape: The Remarkable Life of Jacques Anquetil, the First Five-Times Winner of the Tour de France

Paul Howard

4.1
Jacques Anquetil remains one of the most outstanding figures in the history of cycling. He was the first man to the win the Tour de France five times; the first to win all three grand tours (the Tour de France, Vuelta a España, and Giro d’Italia); and the first to win both the Tour and Vuelta in the same year. The fame Anquetil received for his cycling success was matched only by the infamy of his
65

Gold

Chris Cleave

4.1
Building on the tradition of Little Bee, Chris Cleave again writes with elegance, humor, and passion about friendship, marriage, parenthood, tragedy, and redemption.

Gold is the story of Zoe and Kate, world-class athletes who have been friends and rivals since their first day of Elite training. They've loved, fought, betrayed, forgiven, consoled, gloried, and grown up together. Now on the eve of Lo
66

How Cycling Can Save the World

Peter Walker

4.1
Peter Walker--reporter at the Guardian and curator of its popular bike blog--shows how the future of humanity depends on the bicycle.

Car culture has ensnared much of the world--and it's no wonder. Convenience and comfort (as well as some clever lobbying) have made the car the transportation method of choice for generations. But as the world evolves, the high cost of the automobile is made clearer
Racing Weight: How to Get Lean for Peak Performance book cover67

Racing Weight: How to Get Lean for Peak Performance

Matt Fitzgerald

4.1
In this title, sports nutritionist Matt Fitzgerald offers the first comprehensive and science-based approach to weight management for runners, cyclists, triathletes, swimmers, rowers, and cross-country skiers. For endurance athletes, the power-to-weight ratio is critical. After all, an extra 10 pounds demands more than 6 per cent more energy at a given pace. "Racing Weight" explores weight managem
68

Cycling Home From Siberia

Rob Lilwall

4.1
"It is late October, and the temperature is already –40 degrees . . . My thoughts are filled with frozen rivers that may or may not hold my weight; empty, forgotten valleys haunted by emaciated ghosts; and packs of ravenous, merciless wolves."

Having left his job as a high-school geography teacher, Rob Lilwall arrived in Siberia equipped only with a bike and a healthy dose of fear. Cycling Home fro
69

Hell on Two Wheels: An Astonishing Story of Suffering, Triumph, and the Most Extreme Endurance Race in the World

Amy Snyder

4.1
Three-time Ironman finisher Amy Snyder takes the wraps off the best kept secret in the sports world, the Race Across America (RAAM), a bicycle race like no other. Unlike its famous cousin the Tour de France, RAAM is much crazier, more gothic, and even savage: once the gun goes off the clock doesn't stop, and the first rider to complete the prescribed 3,000-mile route is the victor. In Hell on Two
70

The Loyal Lieutenant: Leading Out Lance and Pushing Through the Pain on the Rocky Road to Paris

George Hincapie, Hummer, and Lance Armstrong

4.1
Trading on the sterling reputation that enabled him to survive a widely publicized doping confession, American cyclist “Big George” Hincapie—a record seventeen-time Tour de France participant, Olympian, and key witness in the Lance Armstrong doping case—offers an insightful account of his esteemed career and a sports era defined by performance-enhancing drug use.

In this highly anticipated cycling
71

In Pursuit of Glory

Bradley Wiggins

4.1
Few people know the controversial world of professional cycling like Bradley Wiggins. At the 2004 Olympics in Athens, he became the first British athlete in 40 years to win three medals in a single Olympic Games, which led to his being awarded the Order of the British Empire (OBE). The 2007 Tour de France ended in disappointment for him when his teammate failed a drug test—but he roared back in Be
Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair book cover72

Big Blue Book of Bicycle Repair

C. Calvin Jones

4.1
73

Inside Team Sky: The Inside Story of Team Sky and Their Challenge for the 2013 Tour de France

David Walsh

4.1
After the victory of Bradley Wiggins and Team Sky in the 2012 Tour de France, the pressure was on the team to repeat their success in 2013. When Wiggins had to pull out of the defence of his yellow jersey, attention moved to Chris Froome, who had finished as runner-up the year before. Could he bring about back-to-back victories for the UK and for Team Sky? With team principal Sir Dave Brailsford a
Mastering Mountain Bike Skills book cover74

Mastering Mountain Bike Skills

Brian Lopes and Lee McCormack

4.1
If you want to ride like a pro, you should learn from a pro! In Mastering Mountain Bike Skills, Third Edition, world-champion racer Brian Lopes and renowned riding coach Lee McCormack share their elite perspectives, real-life race stories, and their own successful techniques to help riders of all styles and levels build confidence and experience the full exhiliration of the sport.

Mastering Mounta
Zinn & the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance: The World's Best-Selling Guide to Mountain Bike Repair book cover75

Zinn & the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance: The World's Best-Selling Guide to Mountain Bike Repair

Lennard Zinn

4.1
Zinn & the Art of Mountain Bike Maintenance is the world's best-selling guide to mountain bike maintenance and repair. From basic repairs like how to fix a flat to advanced overhauls of drivetrains and brakes, Lennard Zinn's clearly illustrated guide makes every mountain bike repair and maintenance job easy for anyone.

Lennard Zinn is the world's leading expert on bike maintenance and repair. His f
76

The Power Meter Handbook: A User's Guide for Cyclists and Triathletes

Joe Friel

4.1
In The Power Meter Handbook, Joe Friel offers cyclists and triathletes a simple user’s guide to using a power meter for big performance gains. In simple language, the most trusted coach in endurance sports makes understanding a power meter easy, no advanced degrees or tech savvy required. Cyclists and triathletes will master the basics to reveal how powerful they are. Focusing on their most import
77

A Clean Break: My Story

Christophe Bassons, Benoît Hopquin, et al

4.1
Christophe Bassons is a former professional cyclist. His career was a successful one albeit never in the full glare of the media. That all changed when, in 1998, the Festina doping scandal broke and Bassons shot to fame as one of the handful of clean riders in the peloton - and as the only professional who dared to speak openly about the topic.

Having been seen as a possible champion, his instincti
78

Gritty Ninja: A Children’s Book About Dealing with Frustration and Developing Perseverance (Ninja Life Hacks)

Mary Nhin

4.1
79

One-Way Ticket: Nine Lives on Two Wheels

Jonathan Vaughters

4.1
The new memoir tracing story of cycling since the 1980s, through the eyes of Jonathan Vaughters, founder of team Education First and one of the sport's most towering figures.

Jonathan Vaughters' story is the story of modern cycling. From his early years as a keen cyclist in his hometown in Colorado to his unflinching rite of passage as a professional rider with US Postal to his elevation as one of
Finding Ultra: Rejecting Middle Age, Becoming One of the World's Fittest Men, and Discovering Myself book cover80

Finding Ultra: Rejecting Middle Age, Becoming One of the World's Fittest Men, and Discovering Myself

Rich Roll

4.0
Finding Ultra is Rich Roll’s incredible-but-true account of achieving one of the most awe-inspiring midlife physical transformations ever.

One cool evening in October 2006, the night before he was to turn forty, Rich experienced a chilling glimpse of his future. Nearly fifty pounds overweight at the time and unable to climb the stairs without stopping, he could see where his current sedentary life
81

Between the Lines: The Autobiography

Victoria Pendleton

4.0
The Golden Girl of British cycling opens up, for the first time, in searingly honest detail about what drives her to compete in a sport she no longer loves. Written with Donald McRae, 2 time winner of the William Hill Award, "Between the Lines" is THE Olympic autobiography.
82

This Road I Ride: Sometimes It Takes Losing Everything to Find Yourself

Juliana Buhring

4.0
Juliana Buhring had been mired in a dark hole of depression after the death of a man she loved, and when an acquaintance suggested they honor his memory by biking across Canada, she thought, “Canada? Why not the world?” And why not alone.


She had never seriously ridden a bicycle before. She had no athletic experience or corporate sponsorship, but with just eight months of preparation, Juliana Buhri
83

Team 7-Eleven: How an Unsung Band of American Cyclists Took on the World - and Won

Geoff Drake, Jim Ochowicz

4.0
7-Eleven: America’s Greatest Cycling Team is the first book to tell the full story of America’s first and greatest pro cycling team.

Founded in 1981 by Jim Ochowicz and Olympic medalist Eric Heiden and sponsored by the 7-Eleven chain of convenience stores, the team rounded up the best amateur cyclists in North America and formed them into a cohesive, European-style cycling team. As amateurs, they
84

The Monuments: The Grit and the Glory of Cycling’s Greatest One-day Races

Peter Cossins

4.0
The Tour de France may provide the most obvious fame and glory, but it is cycling's one-day tests that the professional riders really prize. Toughest, longest and dirtiest of all are the so-called "Monuments", the five legendary races that are the sport's equivalent of golf's majors or the grand slams in tennis. Milan–Sanremo, the Tour of Flanders, Paris–Roubaix, Liège–Bastogne–Liège and the Tour
85

Triumphs and Turbulence: My Autobiography

Chris Boardman MBE

4.0
Chris Boardman is the 2017 winner of the Cross Sports Cycling Book of the Year for his autobiography Triumphs and Turbulence.

You may know him as the much-loved co-presenter of ITV’s Tour de France coverage or enjoyed his BBC Olympic coverage, but beyond the easy charm Chris Boardman is one of our greatest, most inspiring cyclists.

Boardman’s lone achievements in the 80s and 90s – Olympic track gol
The Masked Rider: Cycling in West Africa book cover86

The Masked Rider: Cycling in West Africa

Neil Peart

4.0
87

Bikenomics: How Bicycling Can Save The Economy

Elly Blue

4.0
Making the case for adopting more sustainable modes of transportation, this engaging reference explores the economic benefits of bicycling. It starts with an analysis of the real costs incurred by individuals and families in existing transportation systems and goes on to examine the current civic expenses of these systems. With critiques of modern society’s deep-rooted attachment to car culture, t
88

Fast After 50: How to Race Strong for the Rest of Your Life

Joe Friel

4.0
"Fast After 50" is for every endurance athlete who wants to stay fast for years to come.

For runners, cyclists, triathletes, swimmers, and cross-country skiers, getting older doesn't have to mean getting slower. Drawing from the most current research on aging and sports performance, Joe Friel--America's leading endurance sports coach--shows how athletes can race strong and stay healthy well past ag
89

One Man and His Bike

Mike Carter

4.0
What would happen if you were cycling to the office and just kept on pedalling?

Mike Carter needed a change. Fed up with a Britain rife with crime and sliding into economic downturn, one day he decided to cycle straight past the office to find out for himself what was going on. He would follow the Thames to the sea and then ride around the entire coastline, a journey of 5,000 miles, the equivalent
90

Thunder Sunshine

Alastair Humphreys

4.0
Alistair Humphreys cycled around the world—a journey of 46,000 miles. This inspiring story traces the second leg of his travels—the length of South and North America, the breadth of Asia and back across Europe, crossing the mountains and salt-flats of South America, canoeing the Five-Finger Rapids of the Yukon River, and braving a Siberian Winter with only the flimsiest tent to protect him from th
91

In the City of Bikes: The Story of the Amsterdam Cyclist

Pete Jordan

4.0
Pete Jordan, author of Dishwasher, tells the story of his love affair with Amsterdam, the city of bikes, all the while unfolding an unknown history of the city's cycling, from the craze of the 1890s, through the Nazi occupation, to the bike-centric culture adored by the world today.

"Few people are audacious enough to lead a memoir-worthy life. Even fewer people are talented enough to write said me
92

The Bicycling Guide to Complete Bicycle Maintenance and Repair: For Road and Mountain Bikes

Todd Downs

4.0
This revised, updated, expanded fifth edition is indispensable-with all the latest models, parts, and repair techniques, and terrific money-saving tips to keep any ride in tip-top shape
Since its first publication, Bicycling Magazine's Complete Guide to Bicycle Maintenance and Repair has sold over 400,000 copies. The fifth edition is guaranteed to remain the category killer. This long-overdue updat
93

Racing Hard

William Fotheringham

4.0
Few British schoolchildren of the seventies can have been as obsessed with the Tour de France as William Fotheringham, who smuggled copies of Miroir du Cyclisme into lessons to read inside his books. He saw the Tour for the first time in 1984, avidly following that year's race on television in the Normandy village where he lived.

Since joining the Guardian in 1989, William Fotheringham has been at
94

Mountain High

Daniel Friebe

4.0
This work features Europe's 50 greatest cycling climbs specially selected as scenes of sporting heroism, marvels of nature, spiritual places of pilgrimage that every bike rider or fan wishes to one day visit and conquer.
95

The Cycling Anthology Volume One

Ellis Bacon and Lionel Birnie

4.0
100 Bike Rides of a Lifetime: The World's Ultimate Cycling Experiences (100 of a Lifetime) book cover96

100 Bike Rides of a Lifetime: The World's Ultimate Cycling Experiences (100 of a Lifetime)

Roff Smith

4.0

This inspiring illustrated guide from National Geographic reveals the ultimate bucket list destinations for cyclists, from the vineyards of New Zealand to the peaks of Patagonia.Get your pedals turning with this ultimate guide to the 100 greatest bike routes around the world. Beautifully illustrated with National Geographic photography and divided by region, 100 Bike Rides of a Lifetime takes you

97

50 Shades of the USA: One Woman's 11,000 Mile Cycling Adventure Through Every State of America

Anna McNuff

4.0
Disillusioned with corporate London life and with no previous experience as a long-distance cyclist, Anna decides to clamber atop a beautiful pink bicycle (named Boudica) and set out on an 11,000-mile journey on her own, through each and every state of the USA.

Dodging floods, blizzards and electrical storms, she pedals side by side with mustangs of the Wild West, through towering redwood forests,
98

Ask a Pro: Deep Thoughts and Unreliable Advice from America’s Foremost Cycling Sage

Phil Gaimon

4.0
99

Moon USA National Parks: The Complete Guide to All 59 Parks

Becky Lomax

4.0
They've been dubbed America's best idea for a reason: get inspired, get outdoors, and discover the wild beauty of the United States with Moon USA National Parks. Inside you'll find:


Coverage of all 59 national parks, from the misty mountains of the east and the redwoods of the west, to the glaciers of Alaska and volcanoes of Hawaii, organized by region

Strategic lists and itineraries: Choose from li
100

ROAR: How to Match Your Food and Fitness to Your Unique Female Physiology for Optimum Performance, Great Health, and a Strong, Lean Body for Life

Stacy Sims

4.0
Women are not small men. Stop eating and training like one.

Because most nutrition products and training plans are designed for men, it’s no wonder that so many female athletes struggle to reach their full potential. ROAR is a comprehensive, physiology-based nutrition and training guide specifically designed for active women. This book teaches you everything you need to know to adapt your nutrition