The cycling community was stunned on Wednesday by the news that Richard Moore had passed away on Monday, at the age of 49. Perhaps best known as a podcaster, fronting The Cycling Podcast for the past decade, Richard was a respected and much-loved cycling journalist and award-winning author. But before he took up the pen, he was a professional cyclist himself, competing in the 1998 Commonwealth Games. Euan reflects on what Richard has meant to him.
The news of Richard’s sudden death rocked me. I felt a deep sadness normally reserved for the death of people close to me. Although I had never met him, I felt like I knew him, so strongly did his personality shine through his work. Every season, he had been informing me, shining a light on issues I knew nothing about and regularly making me smile.
That’s quite an impact to make with your work. It wasn’t until now that I realised how big a part he played in my cycling life.
He leaves a fantastic legacy and a big gap behind. Through The Cycling Podcast, Richard spoke to us every week – every day, in fact, during the grand tours. He would be there on my bike ride, in the car, as I walked the dog. Richard’s voice was as much a part of the bike race experience for me as the noise of the chopper or the sound of freewheeling gears.
Richard’s books have been rich, varied and vivid – from his first book, In Search of Robert Millar to The Grand Tour Diaries 2018/19. His magazine articles displayed his passion for all aspects of the sport. Whenever Richard’s social media pointed to something he’d written, I was clicking there and then. I always came away better informed, regardless of which subject he was writing on.
Not a bad feat when journalism was Richard’s second career.
We often joke that the sport of cycling is madness. Richard was there to guide us through it, pointing out what was going on below the surface with his calm and measured words. However serious it got, with Richard, you knew you weren’t too far away from his next laugh.
I’ve read many tributes from people who knew and loved him personally. They paint a picture of a welcoming and inclusive man. Time spent with Richard appears to have been time well spent. I’m only sorry that those tributes had to be written.
I’ll miss his voice throughout this cycling season, gently poking fun at riders and colleagues. I’ll miss him drawing a rider to my attention in a way I’d never thought about before. I’ll miss the way he would robustly stand up for what he thought was right and fair when the occasion called for it.
That is how I’ll remember Richard and I know the others at VeloVoices and cycling fans in general will feel the same. If he can make such an impression on those who loved the same sport as he did, I can’t imagine how much he will be missed by his family, his friends and his colleagues.
The cycling world has lost one of its best. Thank you for all you gave me. Rest in peace, Buffalo, and heartfelt condolences to those who had the privilege of knowing you.
Nicely written and echoing probably the thoughts of everyone who never knew him personally but for whom he played such a major role in their enjoyment of cycling.
Thank you John.