{"id":416273,"date":"2026-02-09T14:24:17","date_gmt":"2026-02-09T14:24:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/416273\/"},"modified":"2026-02-09T14:24:17","modified_gmt":"2026-02-09T14:24:17","slug":"pez-bookshelf-the-dysfunctional-cycling-club","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/416273\/","title":{"rendered":"PEZ Bookshelf: The Dysfunctional Cycling Club"},"content":{"rendered":"

For North Americans getting into road cycling in the decades past it was quickly apparent that this was one very much niche subculture.\u00a0 The sport was so Euro-focused there were only breadcrumbs of information to be found across the Atlantic. In 1974 I did a European bike tour with a friend, riding from London to Munich.\u00a0 This was the same year that the Tour came to England for the first time and we had no idea what was going on even being in the country where it was happening. That Merckx fellow won for the fifth time and we weren\u2019t so sure about him either.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Cycling was pretty local for us but things did improve.\u00a0 Magazines began to appear about our favourite pastime\u2013\u201cBicycling\u201d took its present form in 1968 and was joined by \u201cVelonews\u201d in 1972 and \u201cWinning\u2013Bicycle Racing Illustrated\u201d in 1983.\u00a0 Early on, there appeared in \u201cWinning\u201d a regular back page column entitled \u201cTales from the Bike Shop,\u201d authored by Maynard Hershon.\u00a0 His folksy stories about cycling, racing, the people he met, and life\u2019s big and little moments, resonated with us.\u00a0 He was visible in the \u201980s and \u201990s as a near-cult figure in the cycling community in North America.\u00a0 Two books of his collected stories, \u201cTales from the Bike Shop,\u201d and \u201cHalf-Wheel Hell\u201d came out in 1989 and 1996 respectively.<\/p>\n

As an aside, \u201cWinning\u2013Bicycle Racing Illustrated\u201d ceased publication in 1998. \u201cVelonews\u201d disappeared in 2023, part of Outside Inc.\u2019s purchase and euthanasian of US cycling publications also including \u201cCycling Tips\u201d and \u201cPeloton.\u201d\u00a0 Of course, this is a trend in the magazine world overall.<\/p>\n

Now, after three decades, Maynard is back with another collection of stories.\u00a0 \u201cThe Dysfunctional Cycling Club,\u201d with some tales old and some new, came about after his friend Earle Young persuaded him to assemble a new book, taking advantage of modern technology.\u00a0 The result is what one sees as Classic Maynard: short stories thoughtfully written and with the human touch.\u00a0 Something every person who loves cycling can relate to.<\/p>\n

The book opens with several chapters about cycling etiquette.\u00a0 With the popularity of cycling growing rapidly he offers suggestions on the value (or not) of group rides, overtaking other cyclists, managing a paceline and helping new riders to get more out of their cycling.\u00a0 As someone who was riding when it was unusual to see another cyclist, I understand his dismay that now riders are not likely to acknowledge others with a \u201chi!\u201d or a wave or nod.\u00a0 There is perhaps too much seriousness around cycling now\u2013expensive carbon bikes, elaborate training plans, electronics\u2013and Maynard clearly is the kind of person who rides for fun, an estimable goal.<\/p>\n

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

In the stories you will learn of his attempts at racing, what it was like on \u201cEasy Day\u201d when riding at the Team 7-Eleven training camp, and his experiences piloting a press or neutral support motorcycle during now barely-recalled races like the brutally hard HP Women\u2019s Challenge race in Idaho or (yes) the Tour de Trump (1989-1991).<\/p>\n

Maynard\u2019s fondness for two wheels extends beyond bicycles and along with the stories about human power, he also writes about his life with motorcycles.\u00a0 At the same time he began writing for Winning\u00a0he also began a long relationship writing for a British motorcycling magazine.\u00a0 His experience with motorcycles causes him to reflect on the vagaries of British machines: \u201cNo need to drain old oil to make room for new.\u00a0 There was always room.\u201d<\/p>\n

His enthusiasm for machinery with personality extends to ownership of an Italian Moto Guzzi and this is his segue into some stories about going to the Isle of Man to watch the remarkably dangerous Tourist Trophy races.\u00a0 These races, begun in 1907, cover a 37 mile course with 219 corners on regular two-lane roads and are a \u201cmust-see\u201d event for motorsports fans.\u00a0 Maynard and wife had the chance to travel the course on a borrowed Moto Guzzi and it makes good reading.<\/p>\n

A series of stories concern his rebuilding of a classic 1984 Gios Torino bicycle, made up from period parts from hither-and-yon.\u00a0 He then realizes that it would be ideal for attending a vintage cycling event.\u00a0 In 2014 he and his wife made the long trip from Denver to Munich to Pisa to Florence to participate in l\u2019Eroica that year.<\/p>\n

As a person who seems to make the best of what he can and to be a genuine enthusiast, Maynard\u2019s account of his l\u2019Eroica experience is a bit of a downer.\u00a0 For those of us who have gone to Chianti for this event it has been a highlight of our cycling lives.\u00a0 While much that is written about it is glowing in terms of the organization, the landscape, and the ambiance, riding the white gravel roads is, even in the shorter variants, pretty demanding.\u00a0 Part of the feeling of accomplishment is overcoming the struggle, hence the name \u201cHeroic.\u201d After his experience he considered doing the California version of l\u2019Eroica but there is nothing further on this.\u00a0 Ride that Gios, man!<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Dysfunctional Cycling Club\u201d is an entertaining read.\u00a0 Maynard Hershon is open to new experiences but also writes in a reflective style.\u00a0 He is happy to meet strangers and hear their stories, adding to his own treasury of well-told tales.\u00a0 Let\u2019s hope we don\u2019t have to wait another 30 years for the next book!<\/p>\n

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

\"The<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Dysfunctional Cycling Club and Other Stories\u201d<\/p>\n

by Maynard Hershon, edited by Earle Young<\/p>\n

147 pages, softbound, 2025<\/p>\n

ISBN 237-0-023-66721-3<\/p>\n

The book may be ordered directly from Earle Young at [email\u00a0protected]<\/a> or Venmo at @earle-young-3 with last 4 digits of phone number 0348.\u00a0 The book is US$20, with $6 shipping in the US ($12 by priority mail).\u00a0 For foreign orders, Earle will work with buyers.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n


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