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FitnessProsBooks.com - 26 Miles to Boston: The Boston Marathon Experience from Hopkinton to Copley Square
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List Price: $14.95
Our Price: $4.87
Your Save: $ 10.08 ( 67% )
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: The Lyons Press
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Average Customer Rating:  
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Binding: Paperback
Dewey Decimal Number: 796.42520974461
EAN: 9781585748280
ISBN: 1585748285
Label: The Lyons Press
Manufacturer: The Lyons Press
Number Of Items: 1
Number Of Pages: 304
Publication Date: 2003-03-01
Publisher: The Lyons Press
Studio: The Lyons Press
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Spotlight customer reviews:
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Customer Rating:
Summary: 26 Miles To Boston - The Boston Marathon Experienced From Hopkinton to Copley Square
Comment: When I qualified to run my first Boston Marathon I was given a copy of this book. I had never been to Boston prior to the race.
I used this book to write my plan on how I should run the race. Each mile the author describes the rich history or the area, runners and insight on how to run the race.
This is a must read for first time Boston Marathon runners!
Customer Rating:
Summary: To The Finish Line
Comment: This book humanized one of the most famous road races in the world. It was a delight to read and thoroughly entertaining.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Contemplating running a marathon as a lifetime achievement?
Comment: I bought this book for me and my sister-in-law in 2003 when she and I decided to run the Boston Marathon for the first time. Yes, we were bandits as were around 5000 others who wanted to experience running a marathon in the premier marathon of them all. Because most bandits are not hardcore runners, it's a lifetime achievement that brings a level of pride and emotion that most people rarely experience in their lifetime.
I'm so glad I read this book. I was a lot like the author at the time I read it. I was a treadmill runner of around 3 miles every other day. After seeing the affect the NY Marathon had on a co-worker, I decided to run Boston. Through this book, the shared experience of running a marathon as a sub-amateur runner, and the struggle to put ones body in the shape necessary to run such a long distance with no prior experience was terrific. An added benefit, which made the process of running the race more rewarding, was the connection to the history of the race and events that occur along the way.
The overwhelming majority of running books are written to an audience of experienced runners. Thank you, Mr. Connelly, for writing this book for people like me and the 5000 or so other Boston Marathon bandits.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Warning: False Advertising, Insulting -- You'll Feel Cheated
Comment: The author ran the race as a "bandit", a fact that you don't discover until you buy the book (it is not stated anywhere on the book cover, reviews, etc.) In fact, Amazon states: "About the Author ...MICHAEL CONNELLY competed in the 1996 Boston marathon." This is simply a false statement. Legitimately qualifying for Boston is an integral part of competing, and the author did not do that. He did not "compete" in the Boston marathon any more than I "competed" in the U.S. Open by playing golf as a tourist at Pebble Beach (a frequent U.S. Open site). This taints the entire book and made me (as someone who has legitimately qualified for Boston) feel cheated (I am going to request a refund from Amazon on the basis of false advertising).
Now, I recognize that the BAA has more or less allowed bandits to run the course over the years. As such, it might not have been that bad if the author had simply stated something along the following lines: he respects the talent and effort it takes to qualify and he recognizes that, since he has not done so, his participation is not the same as a legitimate qualifier, but he is nevertheless giving his experiences as a first time marathoner, not as someone who has properly trained and qualified for Boston. But, the author makes no such statement.
In fact, the author berates Marty Liquori for suggesting that bandits should not be allowed to run. Here's an excerpt from the book (p. 43):
"Listen Marty, you're our guest. So mind your manners, pick up your check, and watch the race. When I cross that finish line some twenty-six miles down the road, not with a number but with the storied history of the Boston Marathon in my blood, then I will consider myself qualified! (By the way, Marty, a little fun fact for you: You and I are tied with the same number of Boston Marathon championships.)"
Give me a break. This statement is not only completely obnoxious, it also embarrasingly demonstrates a complete ignorance of running, as Marty Liquori was a middle distance runner (and an outstanding one at that), not a marathoner. Here's fun fact for Michael: your claimed time of 4:30 (p. 237) was more than an hour slower that the qualifying standard for your age. (I guess, by Michael's logic, when I completed the 18th hole at Pebble Beach, I qualified for the U.S. Open.) If there was any doubt before, that should be enough for anyone to reject the book.
But wait, it gets even worse. After completing the course, the author states the following (p. 261):
"I had arrived home safe and sound. Twenty-four hours before, I had walked out of that door a different man. Now I was the proud owner of a Boston Marathon medal and all the physical and mental benefits that come with it."
That is a flat out lie (or the author is delusional), as everyone knows that only legitimate qualifiers (who finish) are given medals, and again is highly insulting to all legitimate qualifiers/finishers.
If anyone is still considering buying the book, there is one other thing that you should be aware of. A good part of the author's description of his "experience" in running the course involves describing how he faced excruciating pain and/or a nearly overwhelming urge to quit at numerous points in the race, but someone he managed to overcome those and keep going to the finish, and how he was suffering after the finish (e.g., "As I walked down the street, with two mylar blankers taped around me like capes, a well meaning girl offered me a PowerBar. I fel like saying 'I don't need a PowerBar. I need to be read my last rites!'")
First of all, after a while, this stuff just becomes constant whining. More importantly, all of this "pain and suffering" was likely due to insufficient training on the part of the author. Apparently, up to six months before the race, he had done essentially no running and not a whole lot of exercise of any type (p. 7). Then, in late October 1995, he had heart surgery and apparently nearly died (p. 11). He then starting limited training in about mid-November (p. 12). Plus, the winter in New England was particular severe that year (p. 43). How could he have possibly done the proper amount of training to run Boston in April 1996? It appears that the author simply had no business running the course and, thereby, "suffered" more than a properly trained runner. Yet, he never admits to his lack of proper training. (Note: he claims to have run 4:30, but he provides no evidence to support that claim.)
Again, this ties back to his being a bandit. As a bandit who had not properly trained, his "experience" is simply not representative of the experience of a properly trained, legitimate qualifier.
You wouldn't buy a book about running by Rosie Ruiz. Don't buy this one either.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Runners Rejoice!
Comment: Never has a book captured the essence of not only running Boston, but mararthoning as 26 Miles to Boston has. The author's account of his run humanizes the event - and puts a face on the Boston Marathon like never before. In my mind any concerns with the runner's running status (non-qualified) are put to rest by the fact that the three greatest runners ever to run the Boston Marathon support the book with personal endorsements in the form of forewords. Also the Boston Athletic Association lends their own quote to the cover of the book further endorsing the author's account of the Boston Marathon. In my mind the Boston Marathon is the greatest race in the world. People come from all over the world to run in this event - some are qualified some are not. What makes it special is the fact that all are provided the opportunity to compete in the "Open" event. The Boston Marathon is not just for "elite" runners, but runners of all levels, nationalities and backgrounds. I love the way 26 Miles to Boston captured the special qualities of the race and intertwined the author's account and the champions' accounts of the race. I would recommend this book to all runners, marathoners and fans of the Boston Marathon, the elite and non-elite alike.
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Editorial Reviews:
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26 MILES TO BOSTON slips squarely into the running shoes and minds of the athletes as they traverse the 26-mile, 385-yard course of America's most venerated long-distance race.
From suburban Hopkinton, Massachusetts, to the center of metropolitan Boston, here are the mile-by-mile sights and sounds experienced by the runners. Interwoven throughout is the colorful history of the men and women of manifold skills who have competed in this preeminent event over the span of more than a century.
Profusely illustrated with photographs and maps, 26 MILES TO BOSTON is a book for anyone who's ever wondered what it might be like to run the Boston Marathon.
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