The Secret Cyclist: Real Life as a Rider in the Professional Peloton

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We ride whatever we're paid to, and part of the gig is singing praises ... It's part of cycling, but it's very rarely honest' – and that's always going to be the case when sponsorship is virtually the only thing that keeps the professional sport alive. The Secret Cyclist has some views on cycling's economic model, reflecting that 'I don't think there's another sport in the world that has a more blasé approach to long-term economic stability', because 'we still haven't figured out how to monetise it properly, how to share the revenues, how to promote growth.' There are more personal reflections too- about the day to day life, and the need to balance family and relationships alongside training and competition. The SC discusses the decision he and his wife made as to where to actually live, and how work-life balance was key to that. One chapter is actually written by his wife, to give another interesting perspective but one thing that underpins the whole book is the high level of self-awareness exhibited by the author. He is very aware of the bubble in which he lives, and discusses his attempts to have a sustainable life that keeps him in the right place mentally, as well as his preparations for retirement (the Phil Ochs fan in me struggled to avoid using "Rehearsals for Retirement" there...).

But we weren’t seeking the identity of a Grand-Tour-winning doper as much as musing over which rider in the peloton was the inspiration behind TSP. If a rider is innocent until proven guilty, the the results of an A sample should never be made public until the B (sample) is tested and everyone cleared or found guilty." Real life as a rider in the professional peloton, revealing the side of the sport that only an anonymous cyclist can tell. And for those who think they have him figured out – well we’ve thrown in enough red herrings that make it impossible to guess by deduction.Oxfordshire County Council said in a statement: "We’re interested in hearing the views of cyclists, pedestrians and motorists alike on their experience of using Oxfordshire’s roads. Suggestions on change are always welcome though must always be viewed through the prism of the financial realities that face all councils. I suspect that this book would play a valuable role in the education of any aspiring pro, because (if it didn't put you off such a career) you would certainly be better prepared – but I doubt that is the target market. Fortunately, that same information gives the rest of us the best understanding yet about aspects of life as a professional cyclist that are not normally discussed. Verdict So of course the obvious question- who is the secret cyclist? Did I work it out? Well we will come to that- at the end... Our Local Transport Plan and Oxford Transport Strategy include ambitious proposals on cycling. We are working closely with the city council as it prepares its new Local Plan to find opportunities for the city’s future development to help support more cycling, and safer cycling."

If you want to just read about doping and all the dirt that goes on behind the scenes in pro cycling, don't bother. Yes, there is plenty of that, but this book is much more than that. It's a glimpse not only at what happens in the peloton, but what happens in the mind of a rider at the top of his game. You get the sense that whoever authored this book is torn between many aspects of the sport but is also deeply in love with racing his bike. And for anyone who has ever raced their bike, it's a fantastic insight into the levels that very few achieve. Of course, such trifles with spelling and syntax are more of an issue with whoemver is ghost-writing and editing the thing – presumably after an explosive reveal-all phone chat or Skype session with TSP (at least, that’s what we’re meant to think). Which leads Saddles to the conclusion that perhaps we’re all being led on by TSP. Perhaps he’s not a pro at all – but merely a figment of one journo’s imagination. And what better way of getting people to listen than firing off some fabricated doping torpedoes safely behind a veil of anonymity (and reader, before you pull out hair in exasperation, I do realise the irony of that previous statement).

I think that Phil Gaimon's book, Draft Animals, might be the nearest equivalent to The Secret Cyclist, and it is mentioned when our unknown rider takes the opportunity to be pretty dismissive of both that book, and the allegations made in it about Fabian Cancellara and motors. He's ridden for World Tour teams for ten years. He's achieved top ten finishes in Grand Tours. He likes coffee. These are just a few details about the professional rider who wants you to know what the view looks like from the centre of the peloton. He's ridden for World Tour teams for 10 years. He's achieved top 10 finishes in Grand Tours. He likes coffee. These are just a few details about the professional rider who wants you to know what the view looks like from the centre of the peloton. So much of the book will be already familiar, even to the casual cyclist like myself. In particular, the Sky debacle and niggles about Sky's financial clout have been done to death in the cycling and everyday press over the last two years.