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05-03-04, 11:52 AM
Last week in Dahlonega, GA at the Tour de Georgia I ran across an author (Dave Shields) signing copies of his new cycling novel, The Race. I have no profressional or personal connection with Mr Shields, the publisher, etc.
I took the book with me on a business trip last Wednesday and just finished it last night. The only other cycling fiction that has kept me this involved is The Yellow Jersey by Ralph Hurne. This is a great book!
The story is about a young boy in Utah who lives with his stern but loving Dad. He gets interested in bicycle riding and racing but his father disapproves. None the less, his talent takes him to the national and international level. Much of the action takes place on L'alp du Huez. I was impressed with how insightful and well crafted the writing was...and frankly, how Shields could write this many chapters about just one stage. You can tell the author is an athlete and is personally acquainted with some of the suffering that can take place on a bike. In reality, Dave told me he is more of a tri-athlete than just a cyclist. Maybe his next book will focus on The IronMan?
On a 1-10 scale I'd give this book a 9.9. However my criticisms would all be pretty subjective.
If you're looking for a great summer read, especially with the TDF coming up....I think you'll love this one. Nice job Mr. Shields!
PS: Here's a link to another review. http://www.bike.com/template.asp?da...sectionnumber=4
I took the book with me on a business trip last Wednesday and just finished it last night. The only other cycling fiction that has kept me this involved is The Yellow Jersey by Ralph Hurne. This is a great book!
The story is about a young boy in Utah who lives with his stern but loving Dad. He gets interested in bicycle riding and racing but his father disapproves. None the less, his talent takes him to the national and international level. Much of the action takes place on L'alp du Huez. I was impressed with how insightful and well crafted the writing was...and frankly, how Shields could write this many chapters about just one stage. You can tell the author is an athlete and is personally acquainted with some of the suffering that can take place on a bike. In reality, Dave told me he is more of a tri-athlete than just a cyclist. Maybe his next book will focus on The IronMan?
On a 1-10 scale I'd give this book a 9.9. However my criticisms would all be pretty subjective.
If you're looking for a great summer read, especially with the TDF coming up....I think you'll love this one. Nice job Mr. Shields!
PS: Here's a link to another review. http://www.bike.com/template.asp?da...sectionnumber=4