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The Rider Paperback – June 12, 2003

by Tim Krabbé (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,389 ratings
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The instant cult classic about biking, road racing, and the bicyclists who love their sport.

Originally published in Holland in 1978, The Rider went on to sell more than 100,000 copies. Brilliantly conceived and written at a break-neck pace, it is a loving, imaginative, and, above all, passionate tribute to the art of bicycle road racing.

Tim Krabbé begins this story at the very start of the Tour de Mont Aigoual, ready to race his rivals through the mountains of Central France. Over the course of the 150 pages that follows, Krabbé takes his bike 150 kilometers, and pulls his readers into the life of the sport he loves.

The Rider is beloved as a bicycle odyssey, a literary masterpiece, and the ultimate book for bike lovers as well as the arm-chair sports enthusiast.

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Previous page
  1. Print length
    160 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Bloomsbury USA
  4. Publication date
    June 12, 2003
  5. Dimensions
    5.6 x 0.53 x 7.7 inches
  6. ISBN-10
    1582342903
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1582342900
  8. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From The New Yorker

At the start of this chronicle of a single bike race, the author glances up from his gear to assess the crowd of spectators. "Non-racers," he writes. "The emptiness of those lives shocks me." In immediate, living prose, Krabbé, a novelist as well as a cyclist, takes us with him, inch by inch, as he rides the hundred-and-thirty-seven-kilometre Tour de Mont Aigoual, a course through the mountains that is better known as one of the cruellest stages of the Tour de France. He imagines an official collecting his clothes "after I've died in the race" recalls a champion cyclist who suffocated to death while climbing one particularly nasty hill; and insists that "being a good loser is a despicable evasion." Along the way, he lays bare the athlete's peculiar mixture of arrogance and terror, viciousness and camaraderie, and the result is one of the more convincing love stories of recent memory.
Copyright © 2005 The New Yorker

Review

'...there's something about Krabbe's spare writing style that lulls even uninitiated readers into a sort of trance--presumably not unlike that of the long-distance racer moving ever closer to the finishing line.'

'The Rider is a great read and a great ride. Krabbe's half-day race, delivered kilometer by kilometer onto the page, shows the sport for what it is: painful, exhilarating, tactical, relational, fast, slow, dangerous, consuming, prone to mechanical failure, heroic, futile...'

'A complex meditation on the nature of extreme physical and mental exertion, wrapped in the guise of a simple account of one bicycle race. It will leave you wrung out, exhilarated, and relieved that you didn't break any bones while experiencing it.'

'Compelling...irradiated by an intense love of cycling and a fascination with the nature of the racing experience...[Krabbe] captures the rhythm of the race.'

'The Rider is a great read and a great ride.'

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bloomsbury USA; Reprint edition (June 12, 2003)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Paperback ‏ : ‎ 160 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1582342903
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1582342900
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 5.3 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.6 x 0.53 x 7.7 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,389 ratings

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Tim Krabbe

Tim Krabbe

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Customer reviews

4.5 out of 5 stars
4.5 out of 5
1,389 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

Leslie Reissner
5.0 out of 5 stars Go, Timmy, Go!
Reviewed in the United States on February 21, 2004
Verified Purchase
An utterly engrossing book, "The Rider" by Tim Krabbé is a first-person account of a competitor in a French amateur cycling race. Kilometer by kilometer, the author describes, economically, but with plausible feeling, the range of emotions he goes through. It is clear that he rides for the love of cycling, but his writing reveals the mental calculations, often not very flattering, that go through the mind of a rider. A chess player, he is out on the road playing a form of chess with his opponents, considering their weaknesses, weighing their histories, examining his own position on the board, so to speak.
In this short book about a 150 km long race, Tim Krabbé also travels back in his mind, recalling legends of bike racing as well as his own dreams of sporting success in Holland. These include some wonderful absurdist episodes, including a brief "Little ABC of Road Racing" where he fantasizes about riding with Merckx and Anquetil and the other greats in a series of bizarre circumstances. And all through this one is conscious of the race going on, the change of scenery and weather and how the cyclist must constantly monitor his situation-now trying to make up for his downhill lack of skills, now attacking as the others weaken, now preparing for a sprint. One is struck by the fundamental cruelty of the sport, how one must endure pain and inflict it as well.
Anyone who has ridden fairly seriously will love this book, as will those who admire strong, clean writing. The author has brilliantly portrayed a concentrated moment. This is a world of intense focus and narrow but exhilarating boundaries.
48 people found this helpful
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Albany Dad
5.0 out of 5 stars Brilliant. Captures the essence of cycling!
Reviewed in the United States on June 11, 2019
Verified Purchase
If cyclists had a Bible/Koran/Gita...this would be THE book. I find myself reading it at the start of every cycling season, and gifting it to other friends who I believe to be "riders", not mere cyclists. The writing is concise and beautiful, capturing the true essence of our sport. Full of subtle put-downs and wisps of thoughts that flit through one's mind as you're on the bike, from the very first sentence. Perhaps my favorite, in describing one of his cycling rivals:

"Pulling the pace line wasn't his favorite pastime, and he couldn't climb...his specialty was the sprint for sixth place; in that he was truly invincible."

As others have noted, the story takes place over the course of one local club race, but Krabbe artfully weaves cycling history and stream of consciousness notes from the ride itself into the story. For those who love the sport, and love the grace and suffering on two wheels, this is a must-read classic.
2 people found this helpful
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Terence Kennedy
4.0 out of 5 stars Good Read For Old Racing Cyclists
Reviewed in the United States on April 10, 2014
Verified Purchase
Just finished this book. I started racing in the era described in the book. Toe clips, no indexed shifting, no power bars or energy drinks. Little sandwiches, pieces of fruit etc in your jersey pockets, and diluted de-carbonated Coke in your water bottle. Worrying about "hitting your shift" clean and sprinting in a 15. It certainly captured the feeling of racing very well in that era even if the translation was a little weird at times.

That said, I can't really visualize great champions like Roger De Vlaeminck, Sean Kelly, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Hinault, or Jacques Anquetil overthinking and waxing philosophical during or after a race. That seems more the realm of the more educated, financially comfortable, and intellectual bike nut like myself. Types that can become very good racing cyclists, but rarely dominate the sport like the real champions.

It was fun to read and brought back memories. Bicycle racing is extremely unpleasant. Body screaming for mercy and your brain trying to push harder. 30mph elbow to elbow with virtually nothing between yourself and the road. Finishing an event totally wasted, throwing up, having to be lifted off your bike, blacking out, and 10 minutes later thinking "I could have gone a little harder."

You definitely have to be crazy to do it.
6 people found this helpful
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slain
5.0 out of 5 stars Best cycling book I have read by far
Reviewed in the United States on August 14, 2011
Verified Purchase
I read a lot of cycling books, and most of the time I'm pretty disappointed by them. They are generally one or more of the following: poorly written, boring, egotistical, or in the doping era gossipy or overly speculative. However this book cuts through all the crap and give you one thing, the inner thoughts of a racing cyclist. If you race, or have even just spent a lot of time in the saddle, this book will ring true and resonate with you. I've heard it said that 'cycling is boring only if you are.' Kind of a harsh point, but I take it to mean that a thinking person who rides has all sorts of entertaining thoughts running through their head when they get out on the road. Whereas others might just be... bored. Well Krabbe's Rider is the type of cyclist who thinks. And if you do too, you'll likely get a kick out of his free flowing thoughts. Most are related to the race at hand, other though are just tidbits of cycling insight. Some thoughts are even a little strange, but hey, who hasn't had a weird thought from time to time while riding? I rode across America a few years ago and one day I got the song 'Ten Little Indians' stuck in my head for like half of Kansas. Damn near drove me nuts... but my point is when your riding all day, you think of all sorts of stuff. But don't be misled, the vast majority of this book is about a bike race, a real race at that. I've learned things from this book that I took away and still value today. An example of which is the line: "cycling is about licking your opponent's plate clean before you start your own meal." If you race, you no doubt will understand the brutal truth there.
3 people found this helpful
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Ben
5.0 out of 5 stars Blunt, insightful, and full of wonderful cycling anecdotes
Reviewed in the United States on July 9, 2023
Verified Purchase
This book launches the reader into the innermost workings of a bicycle race amid the muses of a bicycle racer. A wonderful reading experience.
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Top reviews from other countries

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Laz
5.0 out of 5 stars classic read
Reviewed in Canada on February 20, 2023
Verified Purchase
legendary book cited by pros
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Pär Broome
5.0 out of 5 stars Bike
Reviewed in Sweden on May 12, 2024
Verified Purchase
Great book about a race
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Nicole Shelley
5.0 out of 5 stars great book
Reviewed in Italy on March 28, 2022
Verified Purchase
great book, a must read even for a beginner cyclist like myself. Amazon shipping ACE
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jindysubhub
5.0 out of 5 stars Cyclist must read
Reviewed in Australia on May 9, 2021
Verified Purchase
All time classic, written in a fantastic style. It describes the emotions of the cyclists in perfect detail without using a word too many.
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Lonewolf
5.0 out of 5 stars parfait et génial
Reviewed in France on January 1, 2017
Verified Purchase
Super écriture, des vrais feelings du vélo de compétition.
Court, direct, génial, on en redemande à la fin.... Un bijou pour tous les cyclosportifs!
One person found this helpful
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