Queens of Pain: Legends and Rebels of Cycling

by Isabel Best

Queens of Pain is the remarkable and largely unknown tale of women’s cycle racing from the 1890’s to the 1990’s. From the fin-de-siècle velodromes of North America to the glamour and chaos of the first women’s Tour de France, Queens of Pain offers a sweeping panorama of female racing history. Told through the lives of the great champions, its heroines include stunt women and speed skaters, young mothers and teenage tearaways, shop assistants and coal-delivery girls. When prejudice and officialdom denied them one stage they found another: from six-day track racing to epic place to place records, from 12-hour time trials to unofficial road races. The greatly expanded women’s racing scene of today is the direct legacy of these pioneering riders whose stories form an unbroken thread since the invention of the bicycle.

Genres: Cycling

236 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 2018

Reviews

[Martha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hugely inspiring tales of great women cyclists of the 20th century. Also a little depressing that in cycle racing terms, we’ve gone backwards since the stage races of the 80s and 90s - come on, UCI!
As a cyclist, with interest in the big races, and a keen advocate of seeing more women in sport, this book was right up my street.

[Sally · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a perfect book for dipping in and out as each chapter covers a great racing cyclist. The women’s stories are astonishing and inspiring. I knew Beryl Burton and her tremendous guts and competitiveness but the other women were a revelation. The pictures are great, especially the front cover!

[Felicity · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this book as a gift, it was a perfect introduction to the history of women's cycle racing. Easy to dip in and out of and I learnt a lot about it! Very inspiring (but also bit depressing that the world knows so little about the history).

[Sarah Mack · Rating 3 out of 5]

An important book looking into the stories of female cyclists throughout the 20th century.

[Louise Watson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved reading about incredible woman ❤