It is available in hardcover and Kindle eBook. Champion was an incredible man, as a bicycle racer he was winner of Paris-Roubaix and set more than a hundred world records. Also on this site is Mr. Nye's story of one of cycling's toughest-ever racers, Reggie McNamara. McNamara won over races and was one of the greatest-ever six-day racers. Oh, and there's more! Rapha Racing, Ltd. Book review by Peter Joffre Nye. Considering that women comprise 53 percent of our population and have been racing since the s, women have been overlooked.
Now Isabel Best, a United Kingdom journalist, has published compelling profiles of some thirty fearless and inspiring women from around Europe, Australia, Russia, and the United States.
The feat of one of these velo queens remains unmatched: Alfonsina Strada rode a grand tour with men. Born Alfonsina Morini in in a country village near Bologna, she was ten when her father brought home a bicycle acquired in trade with a neighbor for chickens.
She hopped on the bike, felt the wind ruffling her dark curly hair, and kept going. Villagers referred to her as the devil in a skirt. At thirteen she moved to Bologna and apprenticed as a seamstress.
In her free time, she mixed it up with men on rides and earned respect for keeping up. She scored headlines for finishing seventh in a road race with fifty men.
