Running for Their Lives: The Extraordinary Story of Britains Greatest Ever Distance Runners
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | 4.53 (782 Votes) |
| Asin | : | 0224082582 |
| Format Type | : | paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 368 Pages |
| Publish Date | : | 2013-05-27 |
| Language | : | English |
DESCRIPTION:
Rob Hardy said Forgotten Transcontinental Runners. Chances are you have never heard of Arthur Newton and Peter Gavuzzi, even if you are fond of sports and even if you specialize in an interest in running sports. They were two of the most amazing runners ever, and because they did long distance running, and not ordinary marathons or track and field (to say nothing of footb
Mark Whitaker is a broadcaster and historian. After a first career as an academic, during which he taught in both London and Tunis, he joined the BBC in 1990. He was a reporter for BBC2's sports documentary series On the Line, and from 1994 to 2002 was a regular presenter of File on 4 on Radio 4. To his great regret he recently had to give up playing cricket. . He then became a founding partner of the independent production company Square Dog Radio, which is named after a beloved Bernese Mounta
Whitaker's real achievement is to resurrect for recognition the careers of two genuine, if peripatetic, British sporting heroes" -- Michael Beloff Times Literary Supplement "The author has done an excellent job in bringing Newton and Gavuzzi triumphantly alive from dusty archives with a narrative pace his subjects would surely have admired" -- Simon Redfern Independent on Sunday . I shall find it hard to forget the two runners in vests and shorts who stand side by side on the dustjacket of this book" -- Bryon Rogers Spectator "Whitaker paints a compelling picture of a world in which the virtues of old-fashioned professionalism and decency overcome class and race barriers Engaging, surprising andaffecting" -- Alexander Larman Observer "A timely reminder of the best that the sport can achieve" The Sunday Ti
But as professional runners they were eschewed by the amateur running elite. They raced in 500-mile relays, in 24-hour events, in snowshoes and against horses; and they became the stars of a craze for endurance events that swept across depression-era North America. Though separated by class, education and age, they became close friends and formed a successful business partnership as endurance athletes. They were to become the most famous long-distance runners in the world: yet history has forgotten them. More importantly it is a homage to two inspirational and eccentric men who only now receive the recognition they so richly deserve.. In 1928 two extraordinary Englishmen competed in an unprecedented and fearsome event - a transcontinental road race across America that required them to run an average of 40 miles for 80 consecutive days. Peter Gavuzzi was a young working-class ship's steward, while Arthur Newton was a middle-aged intellectual who had taken up running to make a political point. Set against a turbulent backdrop of 1920s South Africa, 1