From the Library: The World's Fastest Man, The Extraordinary Life of Cyclist Major Taylor

 I have to admit to being well behind when it comes to reading a book about Marshall 'Major' Taylor, and to being happy to have finally remedied that.

Though known (by name at least) within the bicycle racing world for quite some time, his more general importance as a sportsman has been gravely overlooked for many decades. Even within cycling how many could say more than that "he was a pioneer during racing's first boom," was "very fast," or was "extraordinarily accomplished?" Before Althea Gibson, before Jesse Owens, before Jackie Robinson, before even Jack Johnson there was Marshall 'Major' Taylor. Taylor was a barrier-breaking athlete in every sense of the word. Not only does this book recount the bicycling exploits of the world's fastest man, but puts them in context of the considerable obstacles he had to overcome in order to attain that honor. Those obstacles included the social constraints faced by all black Americans during the Jim Crow era, and other more directly related to the sport, such as the seemingly never-ending struggle to simply gain entry to races, and the outright hostility from many of his primary competitors. 

I have often wondered why Taylor never raced in Los Angeles considering the renown of the Downtown Saucer Track which was in operation during some of Taylors' peak years, as well as the Seal Gardens and Fiesta Park tracks, both of which existed during Taylors' later racing years. All three tracks attracted many of the nations' top racers, including some of Taylors' fiercest (and most hostile) competitors. While the World's Fastest Man does not answer that question, it does provide some insight into possible reasons.

Kranish, Michael The World's Fastest Man: The Extraordinary Life of Cyclist Major Taylor, America's First Black Sports Hero  New York: Scribner, 2019