None of this surprises anyone familiar with Sotheby’s leadership. A number of the firm’s senior executives—including the Dubai-based Redmayne—are serious cyclists themselves. “I’ve met people through cycling who later became jewelry or watch clients,” Redmayne told me, “It happens all the time. Cycling is the new golf… it’s incredibly sociable.”

The crowd he rides with tells the story: “Lawyers, finance people, heads of family offices, and C.F.O.s of very large companies here in the Middle East,” said Redmayne. The U.A.E.’s flat terrain and supersmooth roads have made it a cycling haven. Abu Dhabi–based Chimera Investments LLC, an affiliate of the Royal Group conglomerate chaired by U.A.E. national security advisor Sheikh Tahnoun bin Zayed Al Nahyan, acquired the iconic Italian bicycle manufacturer Colnago in 2020.

Oliver Barker, chairman of Sotheby’s Europe, is hooked on cycling as well. He told me that the best way to secure face time with the crown prince—also a devoted cyclist—is to join him on an early morning ride. The sheikh is the driving force behind Abu Dhabi’s Saadiyat Island cultural district, and the mega-museums there have a voracious appetite for blue-chip art. “We’re often either trying to sell something or asking for something—a consignment, for example,” he said. “Cycling creates a benign space where you can simply get to know someone on a better basis.”

Barker has also ridden in Abu Dhabi with collector Idan Ofer, son of shipping magnate Sammy Ofer and husband of Batia Ofer, chair of London’s Royal Academy Trust. Idan recently purchased a major stake in Spain’s Movistar cycling team. “There are very interesting families who have one foot firmly in the art world and another in cycling,” Barker said. Why are collectors buying bicycles? “Buying a high-end road bike became a bit like buying a Porsche,” he said. Then he added, with a laugh, “There’s definitely a midlife-crisis component attached to it.”

Barker also pointed to people like architect and art collector Norman Foster, and the famous D.J. Pete Tong, both of whom organize exclusive cycling holidays. Cycling, Barker explained, now intersects with art, architecture, travel, fashion, wellness, and luxury hospitality. “It’s one of the ways I keep fit,” he added. “But it’s also a fantastic way to invite clients along.”

Another of those families is the Waltons. Steuart and Tom Walton, the nephews of billionaire collector and philanthropist Alice Walton, bought the upmarket cycling clothes brand Rapha in 2017. “Steuart has developed cycling culture around Bentonville and Crystal Bridges Museum,” Barker said.

Guillaume Cerutti, Christie’s ex-C.E.O., is arguably the keenest cyclist in the art world, at least on paper. He writes about the sport for French newspapers, and told me that wherever his work took him with Christie’s, whether New York, Hong Kong, Paris, or Jeddah, he “would always try to rent a good road bike.” Cerutti, though, prefers to keep business and pleasure (or pain) separate when riding. “I’ve had the opportunity to ride with the likes of Glenn Lowry [MoMA’s ex-director] and the collector Kemal Cingillioglu… but I don’t believe one can really conduct business in the saddle,” he said. “Unlike golf, a ride of 80 or 100 kilometers requires a level of focus that’s not conducive to business conversations.”