Heft on Wheels: A Field Guide to Doing a 180 (Hardcover)

by Mike Magnuson (Author) "A truck will hit me..." (more)
Key Phrases: ball crunches, cycling clothes, group ride, Mount Mitchell, Carbondale Cycle, Beech Mountain (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
Lance Armstrong has shown the world what tremendous athleticism it takes to be a champion cyclist. Now Magnuson weighs in on the sport, from the point of view of a regular guy. The author of Lummox: The Evolution of a Man is a 255-pound, pack-a-day 40-year-old who's desperate to get his life back into shape. And he chooses the challenge of cycling to achieve that, largely because of its total lack of mercy. "I needed the crap beaten out of me," Magnuson explains. So he launches into his own journey, one where he succeeds in spades, drops pounds and quits smoking to become a true road warrior. It's a compelling premise, made all too real by the cover image of a mostly nude, overweight man on a bike. Magnuson approaches the book with that kind of humor, and a rapid pace that mirrors the sport he's fallen in love with. The downfall is that the colloquial fun often drifts into silly superficiality (on reading Samuel Beckett: "I'm like totally wow, blown aw?y, this stuff rocks!"). And although Magnuson, a university creative writing professor, occasionally tries to inject a bit of intellectual heft, dropping in Kafka and Camus references alongside his racing stories, it just never works as a thrilling narrative. This life makeover is an admirable achievement, but doesn't make for great reading.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Review
“Mike's one of the only writers in the world who makes reading about cycling so much fun you're nearly tempted to skip your next ride and keep turning the pages.” —Bill Strickland, executive editor, Bicycling magazine

“Forget Dr. Phil and the South Beach Diet. Forget Atkins and scary pills. Mike Magnuson found another, much more enjoyable way to shed pounds and get healthy: cycling.” —Chicago Sun-Times


From the Trade Paperback edition. --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: Harmony (June 15, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1400052408
• ISBN-13: 978-1400052400
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (36 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #661,273 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun and Motivating, July 19, 2004

By	Ron Atkins "Ron" (California) - See all my reviews

"Heft on Wheels" tells the story of how a man resolves to get his life in order, via a bicycle. Mike weighs in over 255 pounds, chain smokes, and spends 3-4 nights a week getting drunk. Mike admits he tends to become obsessive about whatever he does (smoking, drinking, eating), and decides to turn this tendency into something healthful-cycling. Mike begins to live off protein shakes and 300 miles per week on the bike. One year later he has lost about 80 pounds and finds he has transformed his life, although not necessarily for the better. In the process of becoming obsessive over his cycling, Mike feels he may have sacrificed some aspects of his teaching career, and pushed the limits with his marriage and family obligations. The Kafka, Camus, and Beckett references are minimal and fit the narrative, despite Publisher Weekly's negative comments. This book is a great read for cyclists over 40 and should not be approached as a guide to professional cycling, dieting, or training. It is however very motivating and has inspired me to crank up the intensity level of my cycling workouts.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars We Like Mike, January 28, 2005

By	Michael P Mccullough "moik" (Klamath Falls, Oregon, USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"We" being the many other middle-aged clydesdale riders.

Mike Magnuson decided to start taking his cycling seriously when he finally grew tired of being dropped on club rides. He had been cycling for some time but at one point he decided to quit drinking, smoking, and to lose weight - and he ultimately ends up completing some truly challenging rides like the "Bridge to Bridge Incredible Cycling Challenge" (100 miles of steep mountain ascents).

I read this book last summer and found it to be inspirational. Like Mike, I am a large middle-aged athlete, and I lost sixty pounds via cycling (and running, mostly) and various lifestyle changes. Right now I'm training for my eighth full (running) marathon in five years. Although I wasn't inspired by Mike to make the change, having done that five years ago, I found this book helpful as ongoing encouragement for me to continue my newfound habits. Unlike Mike, I still get dropped during hilly club rides, and I'm not as competitive as Mike, but I'm going to guess that he is a sort of hero to lots of people like me.

I am reviewing this book now because I just finished reading a novel, *The Memory of Running,* which has some similarities to this book. The narrator of that novel quit drinking, smoking, and overeating and rode his bike across the United States to ultimately find love, and to become an active member of the human race again. Mike Magnuson's story is much different. Unlike the passive, nearly "empty" character in *The Memory of Running,* Mike is aggressive and goal oriented. I like the way he made a plan and stuck to it instead of just letting success accidentally roll over him like Smithy did in *The Memory of Running*. Mike chose his change.

Some people have criticized Mike for still being a jerk, or for just replacing one group of obsessions with another. So what? Like Mike says on his website (lummox.org) - "(Do people expect) that everything in life is going to be perfect just because somebody quits smoking?" Of course not.

I enjoyed not only Mike's story but also his writing and I look forward to finding his other books and to future books as well.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Everyman on a Bike, January 11, 2005

By	J. Casimir (Washington, DC USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I was shopping for a bike maintenance book in my local bookstore and stumbled on this novel. The cover catches your eye; how could it not? I had to buy it.

I started reading that night and never stopped. It's a compelling story of a regular guy, maybe a little compulsive, getting his act together. I think most of us have, at one point or another, fantasized about making those huge changes in our life. Mike got fed up and did it.

While I read the story I couldn't help but think "damn, that sounds like me" over and over. Today I'm going for a ride. It could be step one.