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The Racer
- Author
- David Millar
- Narrator
- John Sackville
- Publisher
- Random House
- Publish Date
- 22 October 2015
- Run Time
- 8 hours 46 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
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? How does it feel to be reeled in from a solo breakaway metres from the line? What happens to the body during a high-speed chute? What tactics must teams employ to win the day, the jersey, the grand tour? How does a domestique keep going to the end of a stage once his job is done and his body exhausted? How does a time-trialist maintain his form when every muscle and sinew is screaming at him to stop? 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 rivalries? How does it feel to be constantly on the road, away from loved ones, tasting one more calorie-counted hotel breakfast?
David Millar offers us a unique insight into the mind of a professional cyclist during his last year before retirement. Over the course of a season on the World Tour, Millar puts us in touch with the sights, smells and sounds of the sport – the barked instructions of a road captain in a sprint chain, the silence of a solo training ride. This is a book about youth and age, fresh-faced excitement and hard-earned experience. It is a love letter to cycling.
Critics Review
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David Millar's book takes you inside the sport of cycling while also emphasising the absurdity of it. It's quite rare for a sportsman to be so immersed and yet able to detach themselves from it all ... The parts on crashing are amazing. I felt frightened and sore reading it
Richard Moore, author of Slaying the Badger
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Cycling has always been about a great deal more than its winners, and The Racer is quite a ride
Spectator
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What’s it really like to be a professional bike racer? David Millar gives you an unparalleled insight
Road Cycling UK
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A love letter to the simple pleasure of riding a bike, and a very well-written one at that
Bike Radar
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Millar's love for what he did, and the curious world he inhabited for 18 years, shines through his prose
Scotsman
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Poignant, articulate and at times very funny
Independent
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This exceptional title is a must for anyone (which includes me) who doesn’t quite understand the psychology of a professional cyclist.
Cycle Sport
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A fascinating insight into the life of a seasoned pro cyclist… I doubt that many riders could make such a story as readable and informative as Millar.
Road.cc
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- David Millar
- Narrator
- John Sackville
- Duration
- 8 hours 46 minutes
- Release Date
- 22 October 2015
- ISBN
- 9781473524972
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Random House
- Genre
- Autobiography: sport, Cycle racing, Sporting events and management, Cycling: general and touring
Synopsis
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? How does it feel to be reeled in from a solo breakaway metres from the line? What happens to the body during a high-speed chute? What tactics must teams employ to win the day, the jersey, the grand tour? How does a domestique keep going to the end of a stage once his job is done and his body exhausted? How does a time-trialist maintain his form when every muscle and sinew is screaming at him to stop? 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 rivalries? How does it feel to be constantly on the road, away from loved ones, tasting one more calorie-counted hotel breakfast? David Millar offers us a unique insight into the mind of a professional cyclist during his last year before retirement. Over the course of a season on the World Tour, Millar puts us in touch with the sights, smells and sounds of the sport – the barked instructions of a road captain in a sprint chain, the silence of a solo training ride. This is a book about youth and age, fresh-faced excitement and hard-earned experience. It is a love letter to cycling.
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