When 39,195 competitors thunder over the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge to begin the thirty-eighth running of the famed New York City Marathon, they experience one of the most exhilarating moments in sports. But as they cross five towering bridges and five distinct boroughs, carried 26.2 miles by the cheers of two million fans and by their own indomitable wills, grueling challenges await them.
New York Times sportswriter Liz Robbins brings race day to life in this gripping saga of the 2007 Marathon, weaving the unforgettable stories of runners into a vibrant mile-by-mile portrait of the world's largest marathon.
The professionals pound out the suspense in two thrilling races. Paula Radcliffe, the women's world record holder from Great Britain, returns with new resolve after having given birth nine months earlier; Gete Wami, her longtime rival from Ethiopia, tries to win her second marathon in just five weeks; and Latvia's Jelena Prokopcuka desperately hopes for her third straight New York title.
If the women's race plays out like a mesmerizing chess game, then the men's race quickly turns into a high-speed car chase. South Africa's Hendrick Ramaala, eager to recapture glory at age 35, surges to lead the pack as Kenya's Martin Lel and Morocco's Abderrahim Goumri stay within striking range.
While the professionals offer insight into the intense, often painful experience of being an elite athlete, the amateurs provide timeless stories of courage and obsession that typify today's marathoner: Harrie Bakst, a cancer survivor at 22, who is a first-timer; Pam Rickard, a 45-year-old mother of three from Virginia, who is a recovering alcoholic; and 65-year-old Tucker Andersen, who has run the race every year since 1976.
Enlivening the history of the New York City Marathon with stories of such legends as the late Fred Lebow, the race's charismatic founder, and nine-time champion Grete Waitz, A Race Like No Other provides a curbside seat to the drama of the first Sunday in November. Feel the anxiety at the start in Staten Island. Listen to gospel choirs in Brooklyn and the accordion in Queens. Bask in the delirious sound tunnel of Manhattan's Upper East Side. Hit The Wall in the Bronx. And overcome agony in the last hilly miles before arriving in Central Park—exhausted yet exhilarated—at the finish line.
Customer Reviews:
History, story telling and marathon guidebook all in one!November 13, 2008 I just returned home from running the NY Marathon. I am so glad that I read this book just before running. It is outstanding. I saw several of the various characters in the book, especially the accordian player in Queens, and felt like I knew him.
I would recommend this book to anyone, runner and non-runner alike. Hugely readable and very informative.
This is a wasteOctober 17, 2008 1 out of 13 found this review helpful
I made the mistake of picking up this book while in New York. It's long, it's dull, the writer thinks she's poetic when it's just plain chaotic, it's a cure for insomniacs who don't respond to strong drugs. Do yourself a favor and look elsewhere; there are lots of better books about the NY marathon.
EVERYONE'S A WINNEROctober 11, 2008 11 out of 13 found this review helpful
I loved this book! Liz Robbins' narrative chronicles the 2007 NYC Marathon with fact and anecdote filled chapters for each mile as the runners travel through all five boroughs of NYC and over the finish line; she does indeed manages to transport you inside the race and capture the sprit of the event that makes it A RACE LIKE NO OTHER. Perhaps it will even inspire some of the many readers that this book deserves who believe that the challenge of completing a marathon is too daunting to change minds and undertake the training required to attempt running one. It certainly will delight those who have participated and inform the millions who as spectators have cheered on the runners along the course or watched it on television in their living rooms.
Before I proceed further with my enthusiastic review, I do need to offer a disclaimer. At the suggestion of the race organizers, I was one of the myriad of individuals who the author interviewed during her extensive research for this book. I am an individual who had no exhibited no previous athletic aptitude before starting to exercise after passing my thirtieth birthday during the 1970's. But my current reputation as a 65 year old streaker intrigued her, and she chronicles part of my journey as I complete this event for the 32nd consecutive year. Thus, my story is one of the many of those of us who revel in our chance to become athletes for a day. In fact, as you will learn if you read the book, she somehow managed to locate me as I was running up First Avenue in the middle of the pack long after she had observed the winners crossing the finish line in Central Park and, after being introduced to a friend who I made during the race, the three of us ran together for approximately a mile as she joined the race again to discover more stories among the anonymous throng which would still be on the course for hours. I believe that my knowledge of the race enables me to appreciate even more the excellent job that the author has done, but I felt it appropriate to inform the readers of this review of what some might view as a source of potential favorable bias.
Robbins skillfully weaves into her manuscript the duel between Gete Wami and Paula Radcliffe which of course captivated even the casual observers of the race, while also managing to humanize them through the inclusion of a wealth of interesting information about aspects of their lives as diverse as their training routines, previous competitive encounters, early family experiences, and the fact that they are united by the bond that both women have returned to the sport at the highest competitive level after bearing a child. The stories of the leading competitors among the men are covered in an equally interesting manner, with many fascinating insights provided. Similarly, readers will appreciate the coverage of celebrities such as Lance Armstrong and Katie Holmes.
The many anecdotes about Fred Lebow which Liz Robbins inserts throughout the book together form a wonderful picture of the individual whose passion for the sport and ceaseless promotion of the marathon helped transform it from a race for elite runners who circled Central Park slightly more than four times to the spectacle which reinforced the running explosion which was just beginning in the mid-1970's. But for me, by far the most interesting aspect of the book was how she managed to meld the interesting stories of many individual runners into a mosaic that captured the essence of the experience. Included among these stories are many of the Achilles Club runners, whose members' disabilities cover a wide spectrum which range from the blind runners tethered loosely to their guides to amputees with artificial limbs and several cancer survivors, for whom completing the marathon is a way to celebrate their triumph over the disease. Many of them will spend several more hours on the course than the main field and thus start the race early, as a consequence as the race proceeds many of us runners have the opportunity to share in their inspirational achievements as we run by them and cheer them on in their pursuit of their dreams. Thus, I finally learned that it is 55 year old Bill Reilly whom I see every year along the course determinedly pushing his wheelchair backwards with his feet for 26.2 miles despite his severe cerebral palsy. And that Zoe Koplowitz who I also pass has completed her 20th NYC Marathon the next morning despite her diabetes and multiple sclerosis. Perhaps the most moving of all was the tale of Donald Arthur, a heart transplant victim who started walking to strengthen his new heart and three years later in 1999 completed the marathon together with the brother of his transplant donor (a victim of gunfire in the Bronx) and who then are both embraced by the victim's mother after they cross the finish line. In 2007 Arthur has recovered from a subsequent bout of cancer and is completing his tenth marathon that year. The joy in the streets, the agony and the ecstasy are all captured in this book.
Robbins also does justice to the other crucial elements of the race, the almost countless volunteers, the musicians whose performance adds to the celebratory atmosphere, the millions of supportive spectators (some of whom cheer the runners through the final three miles along Central park for as long as six hours), the unique and memorable landmarks along the race course, such as the towering Verranzano-Narrows Bridge, the Williamsburg Bank clock tower (a landmark visible for several miles along Brooklyn's Fourth Avenue), and the distinct neighborhoods which the runners traverse. We learn the background stories about the Bishop Laughlin High School Band and the Emmanuel Baptist Church choir, whose music only five blocks apart inspires the runners as they run down Lafayette Avenue with five miles still to go before leaving Brooklyn and reaching the halfway point as they cross the Pulaski Bridge and enter Queens.
In summary, if you like inspirational and feel good stories, read this book. If you want to learn more about the NYC marathon, read this book. If you want the unique experience of reading a book which fittingly ends with chapter 26.2, then read this book. We can't all hope to compete at an elite level or duplicate such feats of endurance as Dean Karnazes' running 50 marathons in 50 consecutive days and finishing with the NYC event , but this book captures how the NYC marathon undoubtedly deserves the credit for establishing the tradition of every runner being a winner over their own pain, and feeling deserving of the medal placed around his or her neck at its conclusion in the knowledge that on that day they had done their best as they were cheered on by the millions of spectators who line the route. When Liz Robbins explained the idea for her book while first interviewing me, I was both excited by the concept but fearful of the challenge which she had before her to accurately capture all the facets of the event. Now, I am delighted that she has succeeded, and hope that her book will achieve the readership which it deserves and in the process create even more appreciation for the unique nature of the event. Indeed every year its essence is the same, yet every year the details are different, new friends are made and different sights and sounds assault three runners' sense which are heightened by the inevitable surge of endorphins, which is why I will enjoy it as much this year as what I expected in 1976 would be not only my first but my only run through the streets of NYC, a Bicentennial celebration which not only linked the residents of the city's diverse neighborhoods but changed the face of marathoning. I highly recommend this book; as a reader you will share in the joy in the streets on that special day, and experience the palpable inspiration which results when everyone is a winner and the triumph of the human spirit is so clearly on display. .
