Recommend me some reading for research poiposes

[nikki]

So I find myself on a cycling-related art residency with a bit of a budget for research materials. Books! I can buy books!

Can you recommend me any good reads that relate to any of these themes via cycling:

* The fair city of Coventry
* Sense of place
* What's actually involved in building a bike
* Any good explorer/adventuring tales

I've just ordered "Wonder Wheels: The autobiography of Eileen Sheridan" and "Cyclogeography", what else do you think I should be looking at and why?

[hellymedic]

The Penguin Book of the Bicycle is a joyful 80s compendium written by English literature (I think they might have been in Scotland) academics and is a relaxing read to point you in several directions.

[Karla]

Bicycles up Kilimanjaro - Nicholas and Richard Crane <- A good adventure tale from the birth of mountain bikes
One more kilometre and we're in the showers: Memoirs of a Cyclist - Tim Hilton <- A whimsical scan of cycling history and its associated bits of culture, from which you might find all sorts of nuggets that might be useful for whatever you're doing, especially on the 'sense of place' front
The Escape Artist - Matt Seaton <- An autobiographical tale, using the author's beloved bike racing as a metaphor for growing up and becoming tied down by life's commitments and tragedies.  I don't know if it would be useful but you should read it anyway.

[Polar Bear]

There is a book entitled "Coventry's Bicycle Heritage" by some chap called Damien Kimberley iirc.   Only £15 I believe and one I keep meaning to buy.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

If you are wanting something connected to Coventry, you really need to talk to the Veteran-Cycle Club, given the manufacturing heritage of the Midlands. http://www.v-cc.org.uk/

It is very likely that you'll find interesting but little-known books buried within their library, which may lead to interesting stories. http://veterancycleclublibrary.org.uk/library/

[nikki]

Thanks for the suggestions.

The Penguin Book of the Bicycle

I think I may have picked that up at the last CTC jumble I went to - will have to have a proper sit down with it.

There is a book entitled "Coventry's Bicycle Heritage" by some chap called Damien Kimberley iirc. 

I'll be working with him later today 

Bicycles up Kilimanjaro - Nicholas and Richard Crane <- A good adventure tale from the birth of mountain bikes
One more kilometre and we're in the showers: Memoirs of a Cyclist - Tim Hilton <- A whimsical scan of cycling history and its associated bits of culture, from which you might find all sorts of nuggets that might be useful for whatever you're doing, especially on the 'sense of place' front
The Escape Artist - Matt Seaton <- An autobiographical tale, using the author's beloved bike racing as a metaphor for growing up and becoming tied down by life's commitments and tragedies.  I don't know if it would be useful but you should read it anyway.

All those are new to me - I'll have a bit of an investigate.

If you are wanting something connected to Coventry, you really need to talk to the Veteran-Cycle Club, given the manufacturing heritage of the Midlands. http://www.v-cc.org.uk/

It is very likely that you'll find interesting but little-known books buried within their library, which may lead to interesting stories. http://veterancycleclublibrary.org.uk/library/

Gosh! Just clicked on a reference on the library page and got a pdf of the book - wasn't expecting that! Excellent! That'll keep me busy for a while!

[Jakob W]

Seconding the Penguin Book of the Bicycle - witty, erudite, and humane. Also the Seaton. I enjoyed Bella Bathurst's _Bicycle Book_ a lot - it describes the joys of riding a bike well, and has a section on the building of her custom frame (the builder being Dave Yates OTP).

Some academic history:
*Paul Rosen's _Framing Production_ (MIT Press) is about the rise and fall of Raleigh, so Nottingham rather than Coventry. I remember it being quite dry, but probably worth a look.
*_The Social Construction of Technological Systems_ (eds Biker, Pinch, and Hughes) is a classic in the history and sociology of technology (MIT Press has a 20th anniversary edition paperback), and one of its case studies is on the bicycle's evolution from high-wheeler to safety, and how this affected the social groups that interacted with it.
*The first chapter(s?) of Hugh Driver's _The Birth of Military Aviation: Britain, 1903-1914_ are about the growth of Midlands manufacturing and the Bicycle Boom; early car and aircraft manufacturers were set up by the same socially elite types that had been at the forefront of the bicycle boom. It's been years since I read it, but I do remember it having a fair bit on Coventry. At fifty quid though (go go academic monograph pricing!), you may want to try and track down a library copy.

[LittleWheelsandBig]

There are a few YACF threads regarding cycling books. A few are below.
https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=93999
https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=315
https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=65396

[Tim Hall]

Whitt, Bicycling Science.

[Mr Larrington]

Whitt & Wilson, Bicycling Science.

FTFY.  I've never met DGW but we've had many an e-mail conversation, including (TCTF) the one where I successfully resisted his blandishments to become editor of the IHPVA's technical journal.

The Penguin Book Of The Bicycle was first published in 1978 (my edition dates from 1984).  The authors were indeed academics, both based at Stirling University at the time.

[nikki]

Many books have been ordered!
Thanks everyone 

[andrewc]

Josie Dew's first book "The Wind in my Wheels" is a good read,  as is Nick Cranes "Great Bicycle Adventure".  These are both collections  of short stories about trips to various places.

For building a bike Tony Oliver's "Touring Bikes" , though it's mostly design & component selection rather than frame building.

I have all of these & can pop them in the post for you.  Give them back to me at the next Long Itch ?

[nikki]

Thanks andrewc, but given that I'll have in excess of a dozen books arriving in the post over the next week or so, I think I've probably got enough to be going on with for now!

Thanks for the offer though.

[Si]

Sense of place

OK, you've got enough already and this is going totally left field as it doesn't even come close to mentioning cycling.........and should you actually read it you might end up cursing me until your dying day.....but I will recommend "A Phenomenology of Landscape" by Chris Tilley

Horrible horrible horrible writing style.....why use three words when you can use three pages....but it will give some interesting insights into movement through landscape and an individual's interpretation of their world via "living through" rather than "living in" reflexive landscapes...and yes, you do end up talking like him by the end.  But you will very much see why it applies to cyclists, and explains how different individuals (for instance a cyclist and a driver) can understand the same sequence of actions in a wholly different way....OK, yes, you know that already....but this gives you refs and 'dem talk for it.  Also explains why cyclists like riding up hills 

IF you wanna borrow a copy, shout.

[Vince]

Search your local second hand book shops for an original copy of Richard's Bicycle Book. Much more than just a book on cycle repairs.

[nikki]

The research budget has now been comprehensively spent, but I've downloaded a few Tilley-ish journal articles and, well, any excuse to hang about in secondhand book shops...