Like many of you, I would know the name Hal Higdon as the person behind various training plans for running and triathlon. Hal is also the longest running contributor to Runners World for over 40 years.This book was written in 1980, a time when long distance and recreational running was phenomonally big, comparable to the current interest in triathlon. While the book gives a quick history of marathon running before 1970, its focus is on the 1972-1980 period. During this time the marathon became a serious Olympic Sport, but more than that, it became an everyman event.
Higdon gives great details about the legends of the time, Frank Shorter and Bill Rodgers. The beauty of this book is that the author places you the reader right into the race - you can literally feel your heart beat faster as the pace increases, you can almost hear the crowds, taste the tension and feel the pain as each major race is described.
The book also gives a great insight into the development of the Boston and New York marathons, plus ground-breaking events in the 1970s like the inclusion of women in the sport for the first time, and how the sport grew from events that attracted 200 nutcases in 1970 to thousands of ordinary people by 1980.
Note:I read this on my Kindle, so I don't have a paper version - yet. I am trying to locate one, and will offer it around when I get it.
