June 2011

New books and ‘steak gate’

The first week of this month saw the publication of three new versions of my book about the Tour de France, A Race for Madmen. The first was a paperback version, next up a version for Kindle, and finally a translation in Dutch called De Buitengewone Geschiedenis van de Tour de France, which means the Extraordinary History of the Tour de France.

My books have been translated into 24 languages, but I’m always pleased when they are in Dutch because Dutch speakers, especially those who live in the Flemish part of Belgium, love cycling so much.

With the paperback replacing the first edition hardbacks of A Race for Madmen, I have a limited number of first edition hardbacks for sale. They would make a nice present for any cyclists you know, and I’ll write a dedication in the flyleaf to whoever the book is for, sign it, and post them to any address in the UK for £15.00 including post and packaging. Contact me through the contact button on this site if you are interested in buying a copy.

The new English versions of Race for Madmen have an extra chapter called Steakgate, which is my take on the Alberto Contador positive test for the drug clenbuterol in the 2010 Tour de France. That still hasn’t been resolved, but a lot has been written about it. What I’ve tried to do is present both sides of the case, which I don’t think has been presented fully.

I don’t know how the Contador case will end up, and we won’t finally know until August, but one outcome could be a different way in which doping cases are prosecuted. I think everyone involved with policing the use of performance enhancing drugs in sport must up their game, and act professionally to reach timely but fair decisions that will be open to scrutiny. If confidence in the authorities increases we might also be able to avoid some of the one-sided reporting that ends up with eventual case decisions leaving a bad taste.

Catch Chris at work