Team 7-Eleven: How an Unsung Band of American Cyclists Took on the World-and Won
By Geoff Drake and Jim Ochowicz
4/5
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About this ebook
In 1980, there were exactly four professional bike racers in America. Six years later, an American cycling team would wear the coveted yellow jersey of the Tour de France. And that same team would go on to win Italy's greatest race--the Giro d'Italia--only two years later. Team 7-Eleven is the extraordinary story of how two Olympic speed skaters, Jim Ochowicz and Eric Heiden, pulled together a small group of amateur cyclists and turned them into one of the greatest cycling teams the sport has known. From humble beginnings in a barn in Pennsylvania to soaring victories in the French Alps, Team 7-Eleven is the complete history that has never been fully told--until now.
The 7-Eleven Cycling Team--Team 7-Eleven for short--launched the careers of American cycling superstars Andy Hampsten, Davis Phinney, Bob Roll, Ron Kiefel, and many more. It also changed the cycling world, creating a new team structure based on multiple stars, unified goals, and personal sacrifice for the greater good. And yet at the time it was formed, the number of American cyclists with world-class experience could be counted--literally--on one hand. And the number of American teams that competed in Europe's biggest races was exactly zero.
Team 7-Eleven is the amazing story of how two cycling fans found one exceptional sponsor and created the greatest American cycling team of its era.
Written with the enthusiastic cooperation of the team members, Team 7-Eleven will impress cycling fans with behind-the-scenes stories of the team's founding, its growing pains, and its lasting success as the team that established America as a powerhouse in the world of professional cycling.
Geoff Drake
Geoff Drake is the former editor of Bicycling Magazine and VeloNews, and has covered cycling events worldwide including the Tour de France and Olympic Games. He also writes regularly for national motorcycle magazines and is the author of Smooth Riding, a motorcycling book. He is an avid cyclist, a Category II road racer, and an Ironman triathlete. He lives in Aptos, California.
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Reviews for Team 7-Eleven
7 ratings1 review
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5I enjoyed this book so much. It is the story of the building of the 7-Eleven cycling team in the 1980's by Jim Ochowitz. I liked the Mid-West connections of most of the early members of the team. Ochowitz, as most elite cyclists in those days, speed skated in the off season. Eric Heiden, of the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics fame was an early 7-Eleven team member. He was vitally important to American cycling because of his fame from his five speed skating gold medals. If you are a cycle racing fan you will want to read this book.