Shadows on the Road is book-ended by Barry agreeing to testify to his previous use of drugs. I'm pleased that he is candid about this, and I am also pleased that it's not the most interesting part of the book. Barry is illuminating on how the social and business relationships of the peleton shape behaviours and attitudes within it. The pro career is short and can be ended at any time by a crash; teams win races by working together; trust is an essential part of riding with 200 others in tight groups at speeds of 45kph and more. From the outside, they look like a band of brothers. Yet contracts are short and any rider is only one or two bad results from being dropped from the team. This is one of the most illuminating accounts of life as a domestique in the professional peloton that I have read.

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