Pedal, urban bicycle culture book

“In Pedal, Sutherland documents bike messengers competing in the 2005 Cycle Messenger World Championships in New York City. Going straight to the center of this urban subculture, Sutherland serves up compelling portraits of the competitors from dozens of countries, in motion and at ease, checking out each other’s bags, lingering over modifications to bikes and bodies. Between events like sprints, distance racing, and skid contests, Sutherland shows us the riders’ elegant physicality, complex individuality, and unique community that crosses boundaries of race, gender, age, and class. (…) Sutherland delves deep into the world of the messengers—a world usually seen from the outside—and returns with a dynamic document that evokes the unbridled anarchy and energy of its inhabitants.”

– PEDAL

One Gear, fixed gear book

– One Gear: Converting and Maintaining Single Speed and Fixed Gear Bicycles

42 x 12, fixed gear book.

“42 x 12 The Cult of Fixed examines the global repercussions of fixed-gear and single-speed bicycle culture. Through contemporary observation and the collaboration of those on the inside from Taiwan to New York, London to Tokyo, 42 x12 gives a unique insight into what’s going on at ground level.

Features within 42 x 12 include: The Tweed Run, as distinguished gents bring style and sophistication to the streets of London; messenger and alley cat racing, requiring the need for more than just speed in an urban environment; indoor and keirin racing, eyeballs out at 150 Revolutions per minute.”

– 42 x 12 The Cult of Fixed

The Rider, bicycle book

“Originally published in Holland in 1978, The Rider became an instant cult classic, selling over 100,000 copies. Brilliantly conceived and written at a break-neck 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 odyssey, a literary masterpiece that describes in painstaking detail one 150-kilometer race in a mere 150 pages. The Rider is the ultimate book for bike lovers as well as the arm-chair sports enthusiast.”

– The Rider

The Flying Scotsman, fixed gear book.

“The Flying Scotsman: The Graeme Obree Story. On the way to breaking the World hour record, he created major controversy in the professional cycling world over his unique riding style and his pioneering construction techniques. He famously had to use washing machine parts to complete the building of his ‘Old Faithful’ machine. Graeme’s story starts with his tough upbringing in the Ayrshire valleys, where he found his escape by taking to the roads. From there he tells an inspiring story of what it takes to become a world record breaker, of his thrilling head-to-head duels with Chris Boardman and how he became a major international star on the European circuit. The story ends with Graeme’s searingly honest account of his battle against depression which drove him to attempt suicide. This will be one of the most talked about sporting books of the year.”

– The Flying Scotsman

FIXED, fixed gear book.

“Fixed: Global Fixed-Gear Bike Culture, is the first book to document fixed-gear cycling. The authors have traveled to cities around the world to examine at first hand the intersections between the fixed-gear bike’s design and its racing heritage, and the street style and customization that are at the heart of its current popularity.

Interviews with sports-people, frame-builders, and those at the nexus of design, art, and fixed-gear culture give an insight into fixed-wheel design, philosophy, and riding experience. The book will appeal to cyclists fixed-gear riders, urban riders, racers, and those interested in cycling heritage as well as to a wider design audience.”

– Fixed: Global Fixed-Gear Bike Culture

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