As a runner in the Pacific Northwest, you have probably heard of, if not participated in, the Hood To Coast Relay, running around 200 miles from Timberline Lodge to Seaside. The relay is an experience like no other, and whether you love it or not, the memories stick with you for a long time. Application date for 2019 has passed and acceptance (or not) letters were sent out in October, now you have several months…
Ever since I started running many years ago, I have best intentions to stick to training plans and to keep up a base fitness so that I don’t ever have to “start over” in my training. But then life happens and I get busy, lazy, or injured, and I have had to start over many times. Dividing my time between family, school, and work responsibilities, I attempt to reserve the time to stay in shape,…
Note: If you haven’t yet read Running Out by Dave Essinger yet, you’ll probably want to do that before you read this Q & A … it gives too much away! I recently posted my review of the book Running Out, which I thoroughly enjoyed and highly recommend. In this book, a former college athlete attempts to run through the Canadian wilderness – in winter – from a plane crash to find help that can…
Run Oregon readers, I’ve found your next book. I really enjoyed “Running Out,” the first novel by Dave Essinger. His writing is engaging and peppered with phrases that illustrate scenes perfectly. Seemingly unimportant moments are described in a way instantly put the reader in the character’s position – small elements like the way the window on a small plane vibrates against your elbow in flight, or a description of surveying a trail to select the…
I’d like to first let you know that this is not another book about zombies, so we can save the discussion for “fast zombies” versus “slow zombies” for another post. But this is a great book for these long winter nights when even logging a 5-miler seems like an accomplishment unto itself. The End of the World Running Club by Adrian J. Walker starts out about someone who definitely isn’t a runner. The main character, Ed(gar)…
No, this book is not about running, but it’s about a trail, and hiking and running go hand in hand for many of us. (Besides, nearly any trail you can hike, you can run.) Grandma Gatewood’s Walk is about the person known to nearly all Appalachian Trail hikers as someone who make it “a thing,” seen almost as the grandmother of the trail itself. I was drawn to the book because of the cover image. “Grandma…
Every now and then you read a book and then spend the next few weeks suggesting it to everyone you know. “What Made Maddy Run” is one of those books. You may have heard of it; it was covered by various ESPN properties including this article on ESPNW, and author Kate Fagan was interviewed about the subject on NPR’s Fresh Air. It’s the story of a young Ivy League runner named Madison Holleran and her…
Run Oregon invited Marc Larson to share his thoughts on the book Training Essentials for Ultrarunning by Jason Koop. Larson has run a few 50ks and is training for his first 50-miler (ORRC’s Autumn Leaves 50 Miler), and is at a place in his running where he can appreciate how slight changes in his training, nutrition, and mental preparedness can make an ultra more enjoyable. This book, available in paperback from VeloPress, covers these topics such…
A running streak isn’t anything new, but Every. Single. Day: Unstoppable Wisdom From a Year of Running is the first book I’ve read journaling the 365 day experience. The author, Julie van Amerongen, is someone many of us could relate with, a parent trying to juggle work, kids’ schedules and activities and maintain a mile a day. I could relate in so many ways with van Amerongen, but it was especially fun that she lives in the…
Books about running are refreshing. They offer a perspective on the sport and all the struggles and emotions that go with it completely distinct from your own personal experiences, but can inspire on a variety of levels. Occasionally, as editor of the ORRC club magazine, I receive advance copies of books about running. These books are usually either about training and nutrition, sports psychology, biographies, or novel-format books. A book I recently received, A Race Through…
