Customer Reviews

Picabo: Nothing to Hide

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3 star:		(1)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

If you are ever in need of some motivation to make your dreams come true...if you ever doubt your abilities and wonder if "little ol you" can accomplish the impossible....Read Picabo's book.

Picabo is a wonderful example of what one person can accomplish, when they put their mind to it!

We'll definitely be cheering Picabo on in the 2002 Winter Olympics! GO Picabo and GO USA!

I loved this book right from the biggining.
I live in Chile and love skiing. Picabo comes sometimes on her summer to train on Chile and its just the greatest to see her training.
What I love about her is that she is a very authentic person and says just what she is thinking.
It seems to me that she has had a blast in her life, gone places, met people, won medals, campaign for Nike, etc.
Also, she is my same age , and so it is always interesting to see what others girls like me can do.

Though I am an intermediate-level skier, I did not know much about ski racing before reading this book. If you don't know much about racing--how the races differ, what each demands, how skiers approach each type--you will learn a few things, but not many.

Of course, Street is not your typical skiers, either in ability or attitude. Simply put, even through multiple crashes (and even through blowing out a knee) and trips to the hospital, she did not "know fear" until the massive crash that occured shortly after the 1998 Olympics.

The book details her sporting, social, and family life in rural Idaho as a child, her races, rise to media stardom, and her various stints at rehabilitation. Through it all, we see a brash person looking for the next rush of adreneline, and the next victory. She accounts not only races, but conflicts with family, team members, and (eventually) employees. Her exploration of the world of being a Nike celebrity (design your own shoe) was an unexpected bonus.

I wish that she had waited to write this book until after the 2002 Olympics. After shattering one leg and tearing out the knee of the other, and the subsequent grueling rehabilitation, merely making the team was quite a feat. I would have liked to know what she thought of it all, though.

One weakness of the book is repetition--the word "ass" must have been used, on average, every other page. I don't faint at the sight of vulgarity, but a good writer finds ways around using the same word, especially a semi-vulgar one, over and over. The style, as you would expect from a "jock book," isn't always smooth or deep, but it offers just enough insight to make for an interesting read during the off-season.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I felt I went thru Picabo's career with her, from her early days on the slopes til her recent wins and injuries. Her courage thru her trials and tribulations is very inspiring! I'm looking forward to watching her at the Olympics. Go Picabo, go America!!

I love stories of unique people and how they got where they are and this one doesnt disappoint in the least. It takes this gutsy young woman from childhood through accidents and challenges and while you may not like her you'll respect her for her guts and tenacity. She may not be an honor winning girl scout but she gets my vote for teaching us how to succeed. Worth your time.

Picabo not only makes a sublime skier but also a sublime author! This is really great book!Remember my name because one day I will race at the Olympics.

I'm sorry this book did nothing for me....A hero? An inspiration? I can not understand how people idolize her...a young man who lives down the street from me who served time in Iraq recently....he's a real hero and inspiration. Picabo Street is another one of those, cookie-cutter, self absorbed athletes who thinks the world revolves around them. Good luck to her...but she'll never have my respect.

Steve