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A review by shaun11
The Secret Race by Tyler Hamilton
5.0
After watching Lance Armstrong confess to Oprah that he took performance enhancing drugs I felt frustrated - not because a sports hero cheated, but because Lance didn't seem to own up to everything. There was something about his answers that seemed to say the whole story had not been told.
Tyler Hamilton took performance enhancing drugs during his career as a professional cyclist. He admits it in a way that feels like he isn't trying to save face or cover up the worst of it. He was Lance's teammate. The detail and apparent honesty found in The Secret Race is fascinating as it is coming directly from the horse's mouth. Tyler says exactly what Tyler did and as a cycling fan I was riveted.
Where The Secret Race falters is the final act where Tyler seems to need Lance Armstrong to suffer in order for Tyler to have closure. This section of the book is less interesting and borderline 'high school' petty.
Where The Secret Race shines is when it allows you to be a fly on the wall observing how one of the most successful athletes in one of the most notably corrupt sports in the world went about the business of cheating. The methods are all here in detail. But along with the methods comes the psychology. Tyler Hamilton was the athlete doing the cheating, and The Secret Race offers a peak into the mindset he had as he crossed the line from athlete to cheat.
Tyler Hamilton took performance enhancing drugs during his career as a professional cyclist. He admits it in a way that feels like he isn't trying to save face or cover up the worst of it. He was Lance's teammate. The detail and apparent honesty found in The Secret Race is fascinating as it is coming directly from the horse's mouth. Tyler says exactly what Tyler did and as a cycling fan I was riveted.
Where The Secret Race falters is the final act where Tyler seems to need Lance Armstrong to suffer in order for Tyler to have closure. This section of the book is less interesting and borderline 'high school' petty.
Where The Secret Race shines is when it allows you to be a fly on the wall observing how one of the most successful athletes in one of the most notably corrupt sports in the world went about the business of cheating. The methods are all here in detail. But along with the methods comes the psychology. Tyler Hamilton was the athlete doing the cheating, and The Secret Race offers a peak into the mindset he had as he crossed the line from athlete to cheat.