C.C. Pyle's Amazing Foot Race: The True Story of the 1928 Coast-to-Coast Run Across America (Hardcover)
From Publishers Weekly
Pyle, a sports agent and promoter, came up with the idea of a footrace (mockingly known as the Bunion Derby) from Los Angeles to New York that promised $48,500 in cash, including $25,000 to the first-place winner. For a $125 entry fee, male participants got the chance for a nice payday while subjecting themselves to harsh weather, primitive housing and Pyle's ego and shady business practices. They also had to run 3,500 miles over 84 days (the equivalent of 40 miles a day) long before comfortable running shoes and sophisticated sports nutrition. Williams, a contributor to Entrepreneur magazine, has evocatively recreated a long-forgotten sports event, mixing colorful anecdotes from the race with vivid portraits of the runners. There's Brother John, a bearded zealot who raced in a sackcloth, and 20-year-old Andy Payne, a part-Cherokee Oklahoman who competed to pay off his family's farm and to win the attention of the girl he loved. What could have been one long injury report or a sappy piece of nostalgic nuttiness is a breezy, entertaining read that properly balances the runners' integrity with the comedy of errors that was Pyle's grand experiment and his life. Photos. (July)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Friday, December 28, 2007
Best Running Book in 2007
Posted by Albert Caruana at 12/28/2007 05:14:00 PM
Labels: Running Books
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Popular Posts
-
You can now view all the entrants plus their performance mark from the section qualifier for this weekend's CA State Track and Field ...
-
One more bump. Please list below athletes that you feel belong on the lists below. One more trivia question. Who is the runner ...
-
Below is the schedule for the 2013 Cross Country season. If you see any errors, additions or can confirm any dates, please email me at alb...
-
Just added: Info for Ghebray Invitational on September 22nd. With one extra Saturday in September next year, I started to hunt down the d...
-
Bold meets are confirmed for 2014 season. Non bolded dates are from 2013 season. August 2014 8/22 Ryan Bousquet Memorial Run at Yorba Reg...
-
Central Coast Section Results: http://www.rtspt.com/events/cif/2017Meets/ccsxc17/ Sac-Joaquin Section Section Finals: http://timerhub....
-
I will start with one: “Somewhere in the world someone is training when you are not. When you race him, he will win.” — Tom Fleming What...
-
I will continue to update this list throughout the year. Please feel free to add others in the comment section below. I know I do not hav...
-
I am very sad to report that Bob Shor passed away this morning after battling illness for the past few year...
-
Los Gatos' Chris Foster is Mercury News boys cross country runner of the year Mercury News boys cross country first team, honorable me...
No comments:
Post a Comment