'This is Dan Martin's long-awaited autobiography, full of 'the warmth,
sharp insights and vivid colour of his 14-year career' Guardian
Known, thanks to his racing style and attitude, for being one of road
cycling's last romantics, Dan has always shied away from revealing too
much about himself and his story. Now, having retired at the end of the
2021 season aged 35 and no longer bound by the constraints of the racing
circuit, Dan feels the time is right to tell his story in the same
forthright and honest manner that he rode his bike.
This book reflects Dan's generous and outspoken spirit, his resilience
to pain, crashes, bad luck and, finally, his acceptance of destiny. Each
chapter's title has a sub-title based on a typical cyclist's fear: the
fear of losing a race, the fear of retiring from the sport, the fear of
mountains or downhills, the fear of doping and, ultimately, the fear of
death. Dan also discusses every aspect of the professional cyclist's
life - food, discipline, money, dreams, friendship and betrayal. Dan is
unashamed when it comes to exposing these dark feelings, his weaknesses
and how he tried to deal with them, his attitude exemplifying Mark
Twain's quote: "Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not
absence of fear".
Written with his long-time friend and best-selling author Pierre Carrey,
this is the story of a rider who never sought to conform to modern
cycling's norms and someone who, in many ways, embodies an age in
cycling which has long since disappeared.
This is the celebration of a true cyclist's career, which will appeal to
anyone who's embraced the weekend ride whilst dreaming of the mountains.
'[Chased by Pandas] is not a conventional study of wins, losses and
conquering mountains but overcoming the mental challenges of a sport
into which he was seemingly born' The Times
'Records the brave and tough journey of 'one of road cycling's last
romantics' Irish Independent
'Chronicles the former Irish road champion's journey through the ranks
of professional cycling' Cycling Weekly