'Run! – 26.2 Stories of Blisters and Bliss' by Dean Karnazes
Another book given to me, this time by Lindsey Woodrow, Mancroft’s Operation Manager.
If you have an interest in competitive marathon running, enjoy running for fun and keeping fit, or simply enjoy reading books written by people doing extraordinary things that inspire you, this one is for you.
Dean Karnazes has already written a book called 'Ultramarathon Man', which I have not read and there have been some reviews that say ‘Run’ is not as good and some others say this is better because it does not take the time to introduce readers to ultramarathon running, an activity about which they are largely ignorant.
Untramarathons involve running the equivalent of several marathons in one race; in fact he ran 350 miles for charity in Australia in six days, climbing, in total, the equivalent of 30,000 feet, but for the author, an ‘average’ run or race is around 150-odd miles.
Karnazes has run on all seven continents twice over and as well as the Australian Outback, he has run in such places as the Atacama Desert, Patagonia, Mount Fiji, the Sahara, the Gobi Desert, Mont Blanc, Antarctica, as well as far as many other inhospitable locations – at least as long-distance running is concerned.
When reading the book, there are times, similar to when I read Joe Simpson’s ‘Touching the Void’ when I wondered how he could keep going and it does tend to take away the excuses we sometimes use about being too tired to do whatever it is we don’t feel like doing.
The author, whilst proud of his achievements, is quite diffident about them and he writes with humility, the style being down to earth and frequently humorous. There are many inspirational quotes – my favourite being: ‘not everyone who chased the zebra caught it, but he who caught it, chased it’ - and sections where his family and friends write about Karnazes together with correspondence from people he has never met, who thank him for the way he has inspired them.
Karnazes is very honest about his values and how he fits his family into his passion for running and it’s quite refreshing to sense someone not feeling the need to do the ‘justification dance’, perhaps more of us could follow his example.
The book is a great example of the triumph of the human spirit over adversity and I can thoroughly recommend that you read it - you will never feel the same way about that three-mile run, ever again.
Richard Jackson, Co-Founder of Mancroft