Product Description

First published in 1990, "Rough Ride" is one of the greatest books ever written about the life of a professional athlete. Almost twenty years later, Yellow Jersey is publishing an updated edition of this cycling classic, with a new foreword by the author which reflects on his life both inside and outside the sport. 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: he spent his teenage years cycling an average of 400 miles per week. The dedication began to pay off. As an amateur, he represented his country and finished sixth in the World Championships. In 1986, he turned professional. That's when reality hit. He soon discovered it wasn't about glory and courage, and it wasn't about how much training you put in or how much you wanted to win. It was about gruelling defeats, complete and utter exhaustion, and it was about drugs. Not drugs that would ensure victory, but drugs that would allow you to finish the race and start another day. Paul Kimmage left the sport to write this book. It is a powerful and frank account that breaks the law of silence surrounding the issue of drugs in sport. An eye-opening expose and a heartbreaking lament, it is a book that anyone interested in any sport should read.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #8945 in Books
• Published on: 2007-06-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 336 pages

The Times
'Paul Kimmage's Rough Ride pierces the essence of the race more
than other [book]'

About the Author
Since writing Rough Ride, Paul Kimmage has gone on to become one of the UK and Ireland's most respected sports journalists. Currently chief interviewer for the Sunday Times' sports section, he is also the author of Andy Townsend's autobiography, and of the highly acclaimed Full Time: The Secret Life of Tony Cascarino.

Customer Reviews

True account of life as a pro cyclist
I think Paul Kimmage's book is outstanding. The newer edition adds details of the events following the book's first publication (about 12 years ago) into context and how it affected not only the sport of cycling but Kimmage's relationships with one-time pro colleagues (such as Stephen Roche) and the pro cycling 'brotherhood' generally. It is especially sad that the book led to him being an outcast yet in 1998 when half the peloton in the Tour de France were found to be doping, it was treated as a huge shock - yet Kimmage and others had tried before to reveal the truth. This book is a superb contrast to books by authors such as Graeme Fife, whose dewey eyed reviews of glorious champions and direct criticism of Kimmage's book are really put in their place. Read this book if you really want to find out about cycling.

Outstanding
Many sports books are written to celebrate the glory of winning and achievement. Kimmages book is different because it is an honest account of an also-ran, a dreamer, a slogger. Paul never enjoyed the trappings of success, never earned anything more than a pithy wage and experienced in rare measure the dream of winning.

Against all this, Paul is forced to deal with the ever-present tumour of doping in cycling. As he struggles to accept his physical limitations as a human cyclist, he finds himself having also to compete against the drugs that fuel those around him to success. Eventually he leaves the sport, disillusioned, bitter but with his head held high.

The honesty, frankness and innocence of the book makes it compelling stuff, and I think it should appeal to anyone, not just those interested in cycling or sport. The 1998 drugs scandal, which happened several years after this book was published, sadly verifies much of what Kimmage describes.

Gripping from beginning to end.
Having just read Matt Rendell's Death of Marco Pantani and Willy Voet's Breaking the Chain, this is the book which puts everything into perspective.The gritty reality of the world of the domestique as portrayed through Paul's experiences offers the reader great insight into this lifestyle and is written in such a manner that you just can't put the book down.
Thoroughy recommended reading for anybody interested in cycling.