On Biking: summer's here, riding, and reading, is easy

By Jonathan Simmons, Guest Columnist

Now that the Bruins have won the Stanley Cup you’ve got no excuses for remaining glued to the TV screen. At least not until next month, when the Tour de France begins and there are good reasons for staying glued to the TV screen.

In the meantime, arise all ye couch spuds, and get on your bikes. Summer’s here and the riding is easy.

Okay, I know that even the most hardcore cyclist must take a break from riding, if only to recover to ride some more. You could return to that aforementioned TV screen, but if next winter is anything like last winter, there will be plenty of time for that come December. For now I offer the inaugural On Biking summer reading list. These are my favorites biking books, the must haves for the cyclephile who is also a bibliophile. In no particular order:

“It’s All About the Bike: The Pursuit of Happiness on Two Wheels,” by Robert Penn. Penn uses the story of how he purchased the perfect bicycle to tell the story of the history of the bicycle. His journey takes him from California to Germany to England and beyond. This is a book I wish I’d written, or at least lived.

“Rough Ride: Behind the Wheel With a Pro Cyclist,” by Paul Kimmage. Kimmage’s tale provides an important context for our current problems with performance enhancing drugs, i.e., doping. Kimmage broke the code of silence, and for this he was ostracized and ridiculed. This is a portrait of a man with integrity and courage who loves his sport so much that he was willing to risk his place in the peloton to tell the truth.

“A Dog in a Hat: An American Bike Racer’s Story” by Joe Parkin. A coming of age tale by one of the first American cyclists to make it across the pond and race professionally in the decidedly unglamorous, pre-Lance world of European riding.

“Bicycling Science, Third Edition” by David Gordon Wilson. This is the book for bike geeks of all stripes. Sure, you have to be comfortable with algebra and calculus to truly grasp the intricacies of the equations, but even English majors and math-phobes will enjoy the stories about bicycle lawnmowers and human powered snowblowers. Added bonus: Wilson is a professor emeritus at MIT and all-around good guy.

“The Rider,” by Tim Krabbe. A stream of consciousness tale in which Krabbe’s life both on and off of the bike is somehow captured during the course of one epic race. Think James Joyce’s Ulysses, only understandable.

“Need for the Bike,” by Paul Fournel. This collection of personal stories captures Fournel’s love affair with the bike. This was the first book I ever read about cycling and it’s also probably one of the best, another “I wish I’d written that book” kind of book. This is what the poet Billy Collins would write if he wrote about cycling.

“In Search of Robert Millar: Unraveling the Mystery Surrounding Britain’s Most Successful Tour de France Cyclist,” by Richard Moore. Millar was a tyro on two wheels. He was also what might be described as a difficult guy, somewhat eccentric and abrasive. Millar refused to participate in this project, yet Moore is still able to create a portrait of an artist on two wheels.

“Bike Snob: Systematically & Mercilessly Realigning the World of Cycling,” by Eben Weiss. Weiss’ humor, wit, and self-deprecation are entertaining. Until you squirm in embarrassment when you recognize that “the guy” he’s writing about happens to be you.

“Bicycle: The History,” by David Herlihy. Herlihy (a Boston resident) has written the definitive history of the most efficient machine ever invented. This story is paired with lovely photos that make you want to buy two copies of the book: one to keep, the other to take apart so you can frame each page and hang them on your wall.

“Paris-Roubaix: A Journey Through Hell,” by Philippe Bouvet. I’ll know I’ve lost my zest for life when I no longer want to eat bread pudding for dessert and have no interest in watching the hardest (and best) one day bike race of all, Paris-Roubaix. The photos and stories are hors catégorie (beyond classification). This is an epic book about an epic ride.

“Joyride,” by Mia Birk. Full disclosure: Mia’s publisher will be publishing my book next spring. But I had her story on my must read list long before I went from admirer to colleague. Mia has written an entertaining and inspiring story about how she helped transform Portland, Oregon, into America’s #1 cyclist city, one bike lane at a time.

“Heft on Wheels: A Field Guide to Doing a 180,” by Mike Magnuson. Mike’s autobiography documents his transformation from a hard-living, deeply unhappy guy who drank too much and was heading towards an early death into a hard-riding, happy guy who stopped drinking and embraced life. Truly inspiring, the kind of story that makes you think, “If he could do it, I can, too.”

Readers: what did I miss? Tell us about your favorite cycling books, the ones you keep by the side of your bed or next to your tools.

Jonathan Simmons is a Brookline psychologist and avid cyclist.