Inside the Postal Bus: My Ride with Lance Armstrong and the U.S. Postal Cycling Team

Forget about all the negative reviews about this book!!! They are completely wrong. I can't believe those people didn't get more out of this book. First, it's called "Inside the Postal Bus". Sure it has Lance in the SUB-title, but that doesn't mean this book is "all about Lance". If that's what they wanted, they obviously can't read a title let alone a sub-title, and they should stick to books that have a hugh pictures of Lance on the cover so they don't get so confussed. For TRUE cycling fans (and NOT the-Lance-bandwagon crew) this is one great cycling book. Michael Barry does give plenty (yes plenty) of accounts of what went on in the US Postal bus. He also gives accounts of stays in hotels, in European cities that are hubs for non-European born cyclist, and plenty of road racing. A real insider's view. O.k., Barry didn't race in the Tour de France alongside Lance, but the title doesn't say he did. A true fan would know that there is life outside of the Tour de France and the US Postal Team has more than one rider. And such a fan would also want to know about other races and riders. Barry gives plenty of stories about other riders (George Hincapie, Floyd Landis, Dave Zabriskie, and plenty more) and also US Postal Team staff. Great stories-and well told. This is an easy to read, enjoyable book about life in and out of the US Postal bus, the glory, the pain, and the triumphs of wins both big and small. I'm glad I happened to catch Michael Barry signing copies of his book at the final stage of the inagural Tour of California.

I just finished reading this while watching Lance win his 7th Tour de France. I now have a better understanding of how the team works and what it takes to be a professional cyclist. I was taught things about the sport and the team that only someone from the inside would know. I also had a lot of laughes over the descriptions of some of the characters that make the team up. An enjoyable read.

I really enjoyed this book. I found the stories funny and it was interesting to learn more about how professional cycling teams function.

Michael Barry's peek inside the world of the former US Postal Pro Cycling Team was a fun read for me. I'm new to cycling and don't know much of the inside scoop, so Barry's vignettes entertained and educated me about life on a pro team. Maybe an editor could have given the stories more "flow." However, I read the book in one sitting, laughing all the way through. Barry is a cyclist, not an author . . . and the stories show just how much he loves what he does. I recommend this book to other cycling newbies and will read more from Barry, should he choose to put pen to paper again. Enjoy!

This interesting title comes from the fact that the US Postal Service sponsored the professional cycling team that included Lance Armstrong and the author Michael Barry. There have been several (make that many) books on Lance Armstrong and the Tour de France last July. However, for an insiders viewpoint, how can you do better than have one of his team mates write the book. From this point of view you can get a story of the personalities of the members of the team as well as an understanding of what it takes to win, even to compete at this level of competition. You also get a much better insight in what it takes to staff a team. They travel with their own chef, and of course they have to have bike mechanics. Bikes at this level are not the simple fat tire Schwinn's that never required any maintenance. Now that the next racing season is beginning, and Lance Armstrong has already announced that this is his last Tour de France, this book provides an insight that will make the next season more enjoyable.