I’ve just finished reading Christopher McDougall’s book, “Born to Run”, and can only say one thing: you have to read this book.
After flipping through it briefly at Exclusive Books while at JHB International last year, I remember saying to myself that I should buy it there and then. Problem was that I needed to draw extra cash from the ATM to do so, which seemed like a “las” at the time. So I bought a coke instead. I finally bought it over the Festive Season and finished it in two days – it was that good.
Described as a “bible to the barefoot running community,” it is actually much more than that. “Born to Run” is an adventure story and running encyclopedia combined introducing the reader to host of offbeat but fascinating characters.
I must admit that at times, I thought I was reading a novel. Could this story be true? Do these people actually exist? Intrigued, I searched for the book on the internet and came across the author’s personal website - http://www.chrismcdougall.com/ - and it turned out that, yes, all of the book’s characters exist in real life.
The central character is a man named Caballo Blanco - http://www.caballoblanco.com/ - , a former prize fighter who drops out of the real world to live among the Tarahumara tribe in Mexico’s Copper Canyons. Living in a hut and off the land, Blanco’s daily regimen includes running up to 30 miles a day wearing homemade sandals and existing on a diet of beans.
From a group of ultra-runners to a barefoot running pioneer, McDougall skillfully describes each of the supporting characters in detail without any “hero-worship”. Not since my reading of “Frontline” by David Loyn - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Loyn - have I experienced such a multitude of off-beat and contrasting individuals working towards a similar goal, in this case a grueling trail ultra-marathon against the Tarahumara, aka “Running People.”
The phenomenon of minimalistic footwear leads the author McDougall on a journey of athletic rediscovery and adventure after years of running injuries. Several chapters are dedicated to the subject of injuries and footwear evolution, which are intertwined with the story of McDougall’s travels and derring-do.
Available on http://www.kalahari.com at R152.95
