Listen free for 30 days

Listen with offer

  • The Racer

  • Life on the Road as a Pro Cyclist
  • By: David Millar
  • Narrated by: John Sackville
  • Length: 8 hrs and 45 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (474 ratings)
Offer ends May 1st, 2024 11:59PM GMT. Terms and conditions apply.
£7.99/month after 3 months. Renews automatically.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
The Racer cover art

The Racer

By: David Millar
Narrated by: John Sackville
Get this deal Try for £0.00

Pay £99p/month. After 3 months pay £7.99/month. Renews automatically. See terms for eligibility.

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Death of Marco Pantani cover art
The Break cover art
The Secret Cyclist cover art
The Climb cover art
God Is Dead cover art
Jan Ullrich cover art
The Beast, the Emperor and the Milkman cover art
Bloody Minded cover art
The Art of Cycling cover art
Mountains According to G cover art
Magic Spanner cover art
Sticky Bottle cover art
1923 cover art
Triumphs and Turbulence cover art
The Midlife Cyclist cover art
Other Ways to Win cover art

Summary

What is it really like to be a racer?

What is it like to be swept along at 60kmh in the middle of the pack? How does it feel to be reeled in from a solo breakaway metres from the line? What happens to the body during a high-speed chute? What tactics must teams employ to win the day, the jersey, the grand tour? How does a domestique keep going to the end of a stage once his job is done and his body exhausted? How does a time trialist maintain his form when every muscle and sinew is screaming at him to stop? What sacrifices must a cyclist make to reach the highest levels? What is it like on the bus? In the hotels? What camaraderie is built in the confines of a team? What rivalries? How does it feel to be constantly on the road, away from loved ones, tasting one more calorie-counted hotel breakfast?

David Millar offers us a unique insight into the mind of a professional cyclist during his last year before retirement. Over the course of a season on the World Tour, Millar puts us in touch with the sights, smells and sounds of the sport - the barked instructions of a road captain in a sprint chain, the silence of a solo training ride.

This is a book about youth and age, fresh-faced excitement and hard-earned experience. It is a love letter to cycling.

©2015 David Millar (P)2015 Random House AudioBooks

More from the same

What listeners say about The Racer

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    336
  • 4 Stars
    110
  • 3 Stars
    23
  • 2 Stars
    1
  • 1 Stars
    4
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    279
  • 4 Stars
    121
  • 3 Stars
    23
  • 2 Stars
    7
  • 1 Stars
    4
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    304
  • 4 Stars
    98
  • 3 Stars
    24
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    3

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic

Liked David Millar's first book, this was also great. Interesting perspective on the sport and not the usual fairy tales associated with sports biographies.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

compelling, entertaining, personal, fascinating,.

the subject line says it all. I learnt so much that I could never glean by watching this sport....and I learnt the flavour of the man through the witty and touching content. Great reading....speech patterns and tone close enough to David Millar's voice that I forgot it wasn't him. I'll be listening again.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars
  • T
  • 20-04-17

Interesting insight once again

Didn't have a problem with the narration. Agreed Racing through the Dark is a better book but that isn't to say this was bad. I enjoyed it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

An extremely well written book.

If you could sum up The Racer in three words, what would they be?

Well written, a good match of narrator and story. One of the best audiobooks i have listened to - I will certainly play it a second time.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful, insightful and beautifully read.

The narrator was excellent, the stories exciting; perfect for any cycling fan. Comes highly recommended.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars
  • RG
  • 26-09-19

Moved to tears. A brilliant story.

Ok, I'm a cycling fan.. The Grand Tours of 2019 have kept me together during a period of intense retraining for a shift in career, and of course, David is a big part of the coverage. I wanted to know more about his life prior to entertaining us with Ned etc.

John Sackville makes a great job of narration - his voice and intonation is such that I thought it was David speaking at points.

I'd recommend this to anyone, not necessarily just cycling fans, but anyone who wants to hear more about human performance, limitations, self-belief and the general ups and downs of an athletes journey.

This afternoon, listening to the final few chapters, I had tears welling up, such was the power of the story. That wasn't ideal, because I was near Birmingham on a busy M42...

My favourite audiobook for a collection of 30+ mainly in sports, psychology and human behaviour.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The best cycling book I’ve ever read...

Don’t know what to say beyond...wow
I was in mourning when I couldn’t listen to this anymore.
I’ve learnt so much about a sport I thought I knew so much as it’s from a unique perspective.
Chapeau

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant!!

What made the experience of listening to The Racer the most enjoyable?

Being a racing cyclist, i can understand what David is trying to convey...

What does John Sackville bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

He actually sounds like David lol

Any additional comments?

A brilliant book hope he does more..

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Good book.

Good book -great story .don't expect much about training but expect amazing inside view .

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Honest and fun

Lovely this book. A true honest account told in a witty way, found myself bursting into random laughter.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!