Amazon.com Review
There's probably no more democratic image in sports than the sight of thousands of athletes and dreamers lined up in places like New York or Boston or Los Angeles or wherever they're about to test themselves against, in the end, themselves over 26 miles of running hell. The only thing the marathon discriminates against is the unprepared: age, sex, nationality, race, even physical disability all peel away when the mix of athletes, from the elite Olympian to the neighbor next door, responds to the report of the starter's pistol. This smart, agreeable compilation of oral histories recalls the first encounters of 37 marathoners, and the stories they tell are marvelous, inspiring, despairing, filled with hope, and wracked with aches and pain. The great Bill Rogers remembers not finishing his first attack of the Boston, and the equally great Greta Weitz recounts what it was like to smash the record in New York her first time out. But it is the voice of the common runner--some nationally famous, like writer
Erich Segal, others only known to their loved ones--that consistently gives
First Marathons its second wind as it details the drives and dreams that link all dedicated runners. Kislevitz, a marathoner herself, displays endurance by completing the book with a final section offering useful advice from top coaches, a comprehensive glossary of terms, and, to help maintain a steady rhythm, the favorite songs marathoners sing to themselves. Some of the more fitting: "Born to Run," "Groovin'" and, particularly appropriate for getting through the wall, "Running on Empty." --
Jeff Silverman
Contrary to the subtitle, the marathon experiences shared in these pages represent anything but a monster. Rather, this life-changing journey becomes a path toward self-discovery for 37 men and women of all ages, sizes, and backgrounds. Famous runners, such as Bill Rogers and Kenyan elite racer Paul Mbugua, share their experiences, but it's the coverage of such everyday, average, and back-of-the-pack runners as the painter, the Episcopal minister, and the teacher (who was fired because she wanted the day off to run the 100th Boston Marathon!) that makes this book so memorable. Thomas King, who at one time weighed more than 300 pounds, run-walked the second half of his first marathon with tears streaming down his face. Funny stories include a runner so hungry that at mile 20 he cut to the front of a Dairy Queen line to beg a lady to buy him a cone. The book concludes with sage advise from noted coaches, such as Jeff Galloway and Don Kardong.
Brenda Barrera
by Kathrine Switzer
by Amby Burfoot
by Dave Kuehls
DVD ~ Dick Beardsley
