{"id":652077,"date":"2026-05-05T23:26:12","date_gmt":"2026-05-05T23:26:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/652077\/"},"modified":"2026-05-05T23:26:12","modified_gmt":"2026-05-05T23:26:12","slug":"new-book-brings-australias-cycling-past-back-to-life-with-stories-from-the-greats","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/652077\/","title":{"rendered":"New book brings Australia\u2019s cycling past back to life with stories from the greats"},"content":{"rendered":"

Australian cycling\u2019s rich history has been given another chapter with the release of a new book by Ben Schofield, continuing a long-running series that captures the heroes of the sport\u2019s past.<\/p>\n

The latest instalment in Schofield\u2019s Wheel Life<\/a> series brings together a collection of light-hearted, conversational interviews with a number of well-known Australian cyclists, offering first-hand accounts of racing across a transformative period for the sport through the 90s and 2000s. <\/p>\n

\"\"Stuart O\u2019Grady. Image: Wheel Life<\/p>\n

Each chapter profiles an individual rider before expanding into their recollections of defining races, influential figures and the places that shaped their careers.<\/p>\n

Many of the icons of the era are featured, including Robbie McEwan, Anna Meares, Kathy Watt, Michelle Ferris, Stuart O\u2019Grady, Damian McDonald and more.<\/p>\n

\"\"Anna Meares wins the womens sprint Gold medal. Image: Wheel Life<\/p>\n

Rather than presenting a single narrative, the book leans on multiple perspectives, allowing stories to overlap and diverge. The result is a layered portrait of Australian cycling, where shared moments are revisited through different lenses, adding depth and context to the era.<\/p>\n

Schofield\u2019s approach mirrors that of his earlier titles, Wheel Life \u2013 Cycling Recollections of the 1950s and 60s and Wheel Life 2 \u2013 Cycling Recollections of the 1970s and 80s<\/a>, which documented the post-war decades and the evolution of the sport through to the late 20th century. <\/p>\n

Together, the three volumes span six decades of Australian cycle racing, building an oral history drawn directly from those who lived it.<\/p>\n

\"\"Image: Wheel Life 3<\/p>\n

Across the series, the emphasis remains on storytelling rather than statistics. Anecdotes, rivalries and behind-the-scenes insights sit alongside reflections on how the sport has changed, offering a sense of how much our love affair with cycling has changed over the decades. <\/p>\n

At the same time, the new book provides a vivid snapshot of the culture and character of the sport across generations.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The book can be ordered on Amazon<\/a>, Booktopia<\/a> and Dymocks<\/a>. It retails for around $60.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

Mike O\u2019Connor \u2013 A keen cyclist, runner and photographer, Mike O\u2019Connor is the Editor of Bicycling Australia. He manages the BA website and social media, and loves promoting the achievements of Australian cyclists.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Australian cycling\u2019s rich history has been given another chapter with the release of a new book by Ben…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":652078,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[569],"tags":[64,63,784,85],"class_list":["post-652077","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-cycling","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-cycling","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/652077","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=652077"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/652077\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/652078"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=652077"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=652077"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=652077"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}