The Break: Life as a Cycling Maverick

(Paperback, Main)

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*SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2023 SPORTS BOOK AWARDS CYCLING BOOK OF THE YEAR*


The gripping and revealing autobiography of one of Britain's most successful international cyclistsof the modern era


'Getting in a break was my one chance of winning. The hard part was working out, again and again,how to make that chance count'


Sharp, resourceful and a permanent outsider; for nearly 20 years Steve Cummings determinedly blazedhis own winning trail in international cycling. A maverick who defied the dominant teams, to recorda sequence of gloriously improbable victories, he has lived and raced with legends of the sport -Cavendish, Wiggins, Froome, Thomas and others - about whom he has strong views and untold stories.


This autobiography of one of Britain's most successful international riders of the modern era takesthe reader from Steve's earliest days as a junior, pounding across the flatlands of the Wirral,through his love-hate relationships with the British Cycling track cycling squad, to his series oftop-level breakaway victories in the Tour de France, Tour of Britain and Vuelta a Espana and -rather than standout physical talent - how developing his own strategies and training techniquesenabled him to succeed against the odds.


The Break will be the first full-length account of the life and times of, in the words ofProCyclingmagazine, a 'universally popular and respected rider in the cycling world'.

Reviews

'If you wanted me to pinpoint the main reason why Steve succeeded, it's the way he sees bikeracing, his willingness to try something new, to do something differently ... There are so manyguys out there who are strong, but Steve didn't just have the legs, he had the brains and the headfor it all as well and that was his big advantage.' - Geraint Thomas

Author Bio

Born on the Wirral, Steve Cummings was a track rider for Team GB from 2001-2007 before racing fortop pro teams including Team Sky, BMC and MTN-Qhubeka-Dimension Data. He completed two of the mostspectacular stage race victories in recent Tour de France history: at the mountain-top finish inMende in 2015 and through the Pyrenees in 2016, as well as a stage at the Tour of Spain. He wascrowned both British Time Trial and Road-Race National Champion in 2017, the first rider to 'do thedouble' since Tour de France star David Millar tenyears earlier. Recently retired, he is now development director at Ineos Grenadiers.