Wegelius book

iainf72

I'm about halfway through - Its pretty good overall

When he talks about some of his Italian team mates it's quite funny.

Just got past a bit about Pantani in his final Giro which was quite sad.

Worth a read

andyp

Read it on holiday last week, thought it was excellent. It made a welcome change from the usual "then I won this race" tale and gives you a new appreciation of the value of a proper domestique.

I loved the ending too, absolutely perfect.

TheCoo'sTail

Yip, halfway through too and it's excellent so far.

nweststeyn

Read this a few weeks ago. Very good and as above, recommended!

LeicesterLad

Any Gossip? Doping chat?

rebs

He cover riding the worlds for GB in the book?:P

inkyfingers

Have this in my To Read pile, hoping for a slightly different view on pro-cycling. Reviews i've read have all been positive.

TheCoo'sTail

LeicesterLad wrote:

Any Gossip? Doping chat?

Not quite finished it yet and don't want to spoil it for others but he does say the whole 'omerta' thing is a load of tosh!

andyp

rebs wrote:

He cover riding the worlds for GB in the book?:P

At length.

iainf72

andyp wrote:

rebs wrote:

He cover riding the worlds for GB in the book?:P

At length.

Just read this chapter. Fascinating stuff, and it's remarkable the difference between BC then and now.

Greggyr

I read it on holiday, highly recommended.

shinyhelmut

I'd say it is among the best cycling autobiographies I've read, and I've read most of them.

iainf72

andyp wrote:

I loved the ending too, absolutely perfect.

^
This

Finished it today, went straight back and read the last 2 pages again

TheCoo'sTail

Finished the book last night. Summing up, brilliant from start to finish. Like others I've read countless books on cycling by cyclists etc etc and this is certainly up there as one of the best I've read. It's a must read IMO.

dortmunder

Yes, a very good book. Paints a picture of pro cycling that us dreamers and wannabees could never imagine

ddraver

David Millar being very complimentary about it....

Gary Marshall

It is an excellent book, I had it pre-ordered and it arrived on a busy Saturday morning, but despite kids and all, I had managed to read it by the end of the day. The opening tale about the Mapei contract had me hooked.

It resonated with me being another York based cyclist 'a bit' older than Charly (never having the talent to even think about a 1st cat licence never mind dreaming of a pro-contract) but nonetheless devouring every meagre scrap of cycling news that was available in the pre C4 TDF early 80's, and remembering clearly the Kellogg's and the York city centre races, with Malcom Elliott as usual, stealing the show in his white 911, Vuelta points jersey and top bird, though on that night he crashed in the sprint and was beaten by Mark Walsham iirc!

During my short spell as a part time publican, Charly was unfortunate enough to find me as the owner of his local, and it was fascinating to have shared a few pints with him and his brother Eddy who was working for another pro-tour team at the time, where I learned a lot about the realities of the circuit, mainly about the tiredness a GT induces and just seeing physically what someone looks like after a grand tour - I remember my wife coming to see me and say 'Charly's in the bar, he's got no arse!' (I think he was just back from the Giro). We also gave him a great send off to a winter training camp comprising in the end many pints of John Smith, Sambuca , a lock-in and him teaching the local drinkers Italian chat up lines! I thought he had a good story to tell and was that rare beast, an articulate professional sportsman.

So I'm really pleased to see the story out there, and it is a cracking read, if you're geeky enough to hang out here, then it's a must have, I wonder though what the pre-lawyer approved version would have read like, I noticed for someone who rode so closely with Ivan Basso in his prime, it is shall we say, very Basso lite.

andyp

He left Liquigas the year Basso joined them, so I doubt they raced that much together.

In fact, Basso was banned until the middle of October, so only rode one race, the Japan Cup, for Liquigas in 2008.

Gary Marshall

They were certainly training partners and 'neighbours' in Varese, along with Freire. Must have been quite a chain gang.

I thought they were on the same squad for some time to be fair, certainly for Basso's come back Giro win but I take your word for it, I've not cross referenced the dates. I just remember his name cropping up in conversation quite regularly. Nothing salacious, he seemed protective of Basso, but it seemed to me an absence in the book, made me wonder which bits had been pulled.

inkyfingers

I read the first couple of chapters last night and am really enjoying it so far.

The issue of how to tackle doping is tough for a cycling writer, if you tackle it head on like Hamilton did then it inevitably becomes the focus of the book, so I can understand why somebody would want to avoid it to a certain extent, notwithstanding the legal issues of covering it.

Le Commentateur

*bought*

Thanks for all the comments, persuaded me to take a punt on it.

dolan_driver

I have just finished reading this book. Every true cycling fan should read this to get a real picture of life in the peloton. The book is written with breath-taking honesty and so some sections make for difficult reading. Charly doesn't dish much dirt on his colleagues but he gives a fair assessment of some of the riders he rode with and for. His comments on Danillo Di Luca might surprise some. A must-read.

DD.

patchy

I read it. Thought it was OK. Wegelius comes across as a bit of a prima donna and a whinger, to be honest.

takethehighroad

I've just read the section about his "most famous" ride in the 2004 Giro, but realised I've never seen it.

Does anyone have a link to a video so I can see it?

Anonymous

Just finished the book, written in supreme honesty. I think it is a must read for any cycling fan. I wish he talked more about the racing and his role, rather than just how much he hated cycling. Agree with Patchy.

Interesting bits about Cadel being a douche bag.

frenchfighter

What does he say about Evan's in this book? just bought it but read recently that it doesnt put him in a good light.

iainf72

frenchfighter wrote:

What does he say about Evan's in this book? just bought it but read recently that it doesnt put him in a good light.

Says he's difficult to get on with and not that rewarding to ride for.

But he sings Di Luca's praises, so make of that what you will.

slim_boy_fat

Half way through it and enjoying it so far. An interesting insight into life in the peleton and rubbishes some things that are often bandied around about the pro peleton.

rick_chasey

iainf72 wrote:

Says he's difficult to get on with and not that rewarding to ride for.

But he sings Di Luca's praises.

I can imagine that.

Macaloon

Excellent interview with Wegelius in the pre-Giro Cycling podcast: http://audioboo.fm/boos/2144978-the-giro-in-belfast. Wegelius around 20 mins. Whole thing is worth a listen.

frenchfighter

Thanks chaps.