Rave Reviews: "A masterful job of breaking down the impossible, and making it seem very much within reach if you have dedication, focus, and desire" -- 'Hurricane' Bob Mina, 6-time Ironman Finisher // Ironman Kona, Hawaii. Inspiring. Daunting. Stunning. Humbling. Exhilarating. The greatest triathlon in the world. The Ironman Triathlon World Championship. It all starts in Kona. Ask any triathlete why they took up the sport, and they will reply with one word: Kona. Ask if they want to compete there someday, and the answer will be: yes. Each year, more than 50,000 triathletes race for the chance of qualifying to compete in Kona. Competition is fierce and getting tougher each year, but if you want it bad enough, you can achieve the dream: you can earn the right to Race Kona. If you aspire to go to Kona, here's what you want to know: where can I qualify? What does it take to qualify? How can I do it with a full-time job and family? What kind of training plans are effective? what is it like to race and qualify? What is it like to race in Kona? Again and again and again? This book has it all, and more. Detail about racing, qualifying times. Thorough exploration of three racing seasons where the author qualified for Kona, including training plan strategies, details and results. Beyond theory: this book is defined by real data, real performance, time-tested training and racing perspective. Do you dream of qualifying for Kona? This book shows how the dream comes true.

All proceeds from sales of The 27th Mile go to support the victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. The 27th Mile is dedicated to everyone who loves running or runners-first and foremost to those who were killed or injured at the marathon, but also to the people who, even as they eat dinner with their family, put in another eight hours at work, or sit and read this book, have already planned when they'll go out for their next run. Within this book, you'll find stories that extol the spirit that first got us out on the roads to run, that brought us to Boston on a sunny spring day, and that will bring us back to Hopkinton next year, and in the years that follow. It's the spirit we celebrate every time we go for a run, whatever the distance. The 27th Mile includes a mix of fiction and non-fiction contributed by a wide range of talented writers who run. They're marathon champions and weekend warriors, ultramarathon racers and fitness joggers, running magazine pros and bloggers, best-selling novelists and indie publishing standouts - well, take a look for yourself: Amby Burfoot, Ben Tanzer, Caryl Haddock, Chris Cooper, Chris Russell, Cristina Negron, Grace Butcher, Hal Higdon, Jason Fisk, Jeff Galloway, Jesse Parent, Joe Henderson, Julie Greicius, Kathrine Switzer, Lawrence Block, Lorraine Moller, Mark Remy, Perry Romanowski, Ray Charbonneau, Ray Sespaniak, RJ Walker, Vanessa Runs, Willy Palomo

The unique story of a US Marine athletic team competing for a national championship at the height of the Vietnam War. In the summer of American riots, at the height of the Vietnam War, two junior officers and three enlisted men gather at Virginia's Marine Base Quantico to train - not for combat, but for cross country running. The Quantico Marines tells the unlikely story of the team-combat veterans and new recruits, misfits and heroes - whose job is to represent the Corps on the college campuses and backcountry trails of the East Coast. The runners have a lot working against them, from battlefield scars to unsupportive base officers to challenging romances. But while their wounded comrades are filling the hospital just up the hill with life-threatening injuries, their lives are safe. Or are they? There are surprises lingering just below the surface, and the real danger may come not from the Viet Cong or the angry anti-war protestors, but from the sweet, pretty wife of the team's head coach. This is a novel full of unexpected turns and unforgettable characters, set in a year that was unlike any other.

How To Run Faster will reveal proven techniques to give you the winning advantage.

Boost your running speed for all running distances. Sprint or 5k, 10k, half marathon or full marathon distances.

Effective and powerful methods will quickly deliver amazing results.

Topics covered include: -
- How fast is fast?
- Improve results using gradients & speed training
- Quickly improve speed and endurance
- Follow the get faster in a month program
- Should you be out of breath?
- Discover how to maintain pin sharp focus to stay on track with your training
- What you should do on rest days to boost performance
- How can rest days make you run faster?
- When to eat for maximum performance
- What to eat to improve your results and recovery
- Do you need to buy expensive footwear?
- And MANY MORE SUBJECTS

All this can be yours.

In short, this book will help you achieve winning performances.

In Run Smart, XTERRA trail run champion and running coach, Adam Hodges, passes along decades of knowledge he has gleaned from competing and coaching in the sport. Topics cover various dimensions of running, including goal setting, mental skills, training principles, warmup protocols, running drills, functional strength, running form, running shoes, nutrition, hydration, recovery, and sleep. Each chapter consists of a concise, self-contained article that addresses a different aspect of a topic, making this book a valuable reference guide for new and experienced runners alike. Whether you run competitively or for fitness, you will find valuable information to help you run smart and take your running to the next level.

A special "Cookbook" of workouts designed to help middle school, high school, college and track club coaches, with becoming a better track and field coach. You have found your personal mentor in Track & Field Training. Gain or expand your knowledge utilizing Coach Steve Silvey's many years of track and field coaching experience. Coach Silvey has produced numerous Olympians and World Championship performers and medalists. This is his finest and largest book ever produced with over 209 pages of important coaching information and sample workouts. Let Coach Steve Silvey share his coaching secrets that have produced many national championship teams and athletes. Coach Silvey has coached for the University of Arkansas, University of Oregon, Blinn College, Texas A&M University and Texas Tech University. This "Cookbook" consists of a detailed 20 week training program for the sprints, hurdles, 400 meters, 800 meters and relays events, plus numerous articles on track, nutrition & much more.

The most comprehensive, step-by-step guide for organizing a high school cross country meet ever published. Written by a coach with 40 years of experience in directing cross country meets at the high school, college, and national levels. Starts with choosing your date, selecting the format and schedule of events, confirming certified officials, and creating a meet budget. Continues with the meet management volunteers and event officials you will need, their job descriptions, and how to recruit and train them and your meet announcers and concludes with preparing your venue for competition and spectator viewing, being ready to deal with a medical or weather emergency, and promoting your meet to the local media. Includes an extensive Appendix with a sample schedule of events, meet budget and financial summary, crew instructions, venue set-up checklist, operations assignments sheet, pre-meet correspondence with officials and volunteers, event materials checklist, and pre-meet 'Things to Do' lists 90, 60, 30, and 7 days before your meet, and the day prior to it. Also includes a lengthy Resource Guide for high school cross country meet directors with lists of regional and national on-line entry services, automatic timing services, and equipment suppliers.

As a nationally ranked high school runner, nobody seemed to notice that Amber Sayer's weight was dropping just as fast as her finish times. "PR" is a sports chronicle, a coming of age story, and a cautionary report of one runner's simultaneous decent into anorexia and rise in the high school track and cross-country rankings. Her honest account of a distressingly common problem among high school and collegiate athletes takes readers through the disease's progression and its unsettling parallels with her burgeoning running career. After losing more than she ever anticipated, and incurring permanent physical and emotional damage, Sayer struggles to overcome her severe case of anorexia and the sport's culture in which eating disorders and their increasing prevalence remain dangerously taboo.

No matter the sport, everyone has to start somewhere. The simple sport of running is no different. Running came natural to us as kids but for various reasons, many of us gave it up at some point. In Starting Off on the Right Foot, best-selling author CJ Hitz (Smoothies For Runners) shares some of the valuable information he's learned along the way since picking up running again in 2008. After running in the 1989 State Cross Country meet in Eugene, Oregon as a high school sophomore, CJ gave up running for nearly 20 years before being drawn back into the sport. In this book geared toward those new to running and those coming back after years away, readers will learn about... *Why nutrition is important *Pre-run nutrition tips *Post-run nutrition tips *Running to lose weight *The importance of fruit & veggies *The importance of the long run *Incorporating hills and speed into training *Dehydration *Running shoes and racing flats *Valuable things learned by several elite runners *Some of CJ's lessons learned (the hard way) *And more As you begin this adventure of running, this little book will serve as a guide to help you enjoy this wonderful sport for years to come. Let's start things off on the right foot

William Harrison Dillard was born July 8, 1923, in Cleveland, Ohio, and was given the nickname Bones for his slender build while in grade school. He would later go on to become one of the nation s most notable track-and-field athletes. Now, in this biography, he shares his life story. The eventual winner of four Olympic medals, he attended the same high school as his friend and hometown hero, Jesse Owens. He was a successful athlete in college and served in the Ninety-Second Infantry (the Buffalo Soldiers) during World War II, where he distinguished himself in the service of his country. After the war, Bones continued his athletic career, winning eighty-two consecutive races over a span of eleven months, during 1947 and 1948. He then qualified to represent his country at the 1948 Olympics in London and again in 1952 in Helsinki, matching and setting records at both. Following his historic Olympic career, he met and married Joy Clemetson, a prominent member of the Jamaican National Softball Team; together, they built a family. Bones went on to careers in public relations, sportscasting, and education. Considered to be one of the greatest male sprinters and hurdlers in history, he was inducted into the USA Track and Field Hall of Fame in 1974 and received numerous other honors. Even so, he was and still is a gracious, courteous, humble, generous, and courageous athlete a genuine American hero. Harrison Dillard is an amazing man. He is admirable not only for his athletic accomplishments, but also for his character, showing a unique awareness of how the choices we make define ourselves. He has faced crucial and challenging decisions and issues throughout this life and never turned away, not one time. Bill Cosby

A special book designed to help youth track club coaches with becoming a better track and field coach. You have found your personal mentor in Track and Field Training. Gain or expand your knowledge utilizing Coach Steve Silvey's many years of track and field coaching experience. Coach Silvey has produced numerous Olympians and World Championship performers and medalists. This is his finest and largest book ever produced with over 293 pages of important coaching information and 22 weeks of sample workouts. Let Coach Steve Silvey share his coaching secrets that have produced many national championship teams and athletes. This book comes with a detailed training for all events areas and numerous articles on track, nutrition & much more.

Whether running is your recreation or your religion, Adharanand Finn's incredible journey to the elite training camps of Kenya will captivate and inspire you, as he ventures to uncover the secrets of the fastest people on earth. Finn's mesmerizing quest combines a fresh look at barefoot running, practical advice on the sport, and the fulfillment of a lifelong dream: to run with his heroes. Uprooting his family of five, Finn traveled to a small, chaotic town in the Rift Valley province of Kenya-a mecca for long-distance runners, thanks to its high altitude, endless paths, and some of the top training schools in the world. There Finn would run side by side with Olympic champions, young hopefuls, and barefoot schoolchildren, and meet a cast of unforgettable characters. Amid the daily challenges of training and of raising a family abroad, Finn would learn invaluable lessons about running-and about life.

The Squirrel Wipe project is an unorthodox primer to the adventurous world of trail running and ultramarathons by ultrarunner and author of 'The Barefoot Running Book' Jason Robillard. The tips provided throughout the book range from practical to weird as Robillard sets out to teach others how to run ridiculously long distances through the wilderness based on his endless self-experimentation. This book goes where no other ultrarunning book dares by covering topics like testicle shaving and methods to get rid of annoying training partners. This book replicates a drunken conversation at a local pub versus the stuffy academic "how-to" tone of other similar titles.

Marathon Diary is just what it says: a diary to record your training data, memorable moments from your races, log mileage, keep your running buddies names and contact information, shopping list, and more. Total of 400 pages including 365 daily Diary pages, and bookmarks. Keep Your Running Memories Forever

The greatest athletes in the world today are not the Olympic champions or the stars of professional sports, but the "marathon monks" of Japan's sacred Mount Hiei. Over a seven-year training period, these "running buddhas" figuratively circle the globe on foot. During one incredible 100-day stretch, they cover 52.5 miles daily-twice the length of an Olympic marathon. And the prize they seek to capture is the greatest thing a human being can achieve: enlightenment in the here and now.

This book is about these amazing men, the magic mountain on which they train, and the philosophy of Tendai Buddhism, which inspires them in their quest for the supreme. The reader will learn about the monks' death-defying fasts, their vegetarian training diet, their handmade straw running shoes, and feats of endurance such as their ceremonial leap into a waterfall. Illustrated with superb photographs, the book also contains the first full-length study in English of Mount Hiei and Tendai Buddhism.

John Stevens lived in Japan for thirty-five years, where he was a professor of Buddhist studies at Tohoku Fukushi University in Sendai. Stevens is a widely respected translator, an ordained Buddhist priest, a curator of several major exhibitions of Zen art, and an aikido instructor. He has authored more than thirty books and is one of the foremost Western experts on aikido, holding a ranking of 7th dan Aikikai. Stevens has also studied calligraphy for decades, authoring the classic "Sacred Calligraphy of the East." Other John Stevens titles that are likely to be of interest include "Extraordinary Zen Masters" and "The Philosophy of Aikido."

Overthinking the Marathon is an intimate look at one man's preparation for his 21st marathon. Reading Overthinking the Marathon is like having Ray as your partner for a season of training, 17 weeks that culminate in the 2012 Cape Cod Marathon. Some days Ray talks about the nitty-gritty details, other days, it's about the things that make running interesting and fun, even - no, especially - when it hurts. Training for his marathon is important to Ray, but he leavens his obsessiveness with a dry humor that acknowledges that one mid-packer's race isn't going to change the world. "Ray Charbonneau insists he hasn't written a marathon guide, and he's right. Instead, he's loaning himself out as a thoughtful, veteran, and funny training partner. You couldn't find a better one as you get ready for your next 26.2-miler." -Amby Burfoot, 1968 Boston Marathon winner and Editor-At-Large, Runner's World "Marathon running is the easy part. It's the thinking that's the challenging part for the long-distance runner. Ray shares his internal dialogue with us as he readies himself for one more attempt at 26.2." -Dave Goodrich, the "Marathon Maine-iac" (Marathon Maniac #238) "Ray is the opposite of me: he's speedy, understands math, and cares about the weather. I have instructed his cat to keep him awake until he agrees to pace me." -Vanessa Rodriguez, author of The Summit Seeker: Memoirs of a Trail Running Nomad

Lake Placid, upstate New York: the place where dreams come true for elite athletes for nearly 75 years. Host of the Winter Olympics in 1936 and 1980, and the Ironman Triathlon since 1999, the proud city has witnessed the epic, the unexpected and the truly remarkable. The challenging terrain, the beautiful landscapes, the inviting communities and the continuing support for exceptional athletics made Lake Placid, and its surrounding Adirondack towns, the perfect location for a new Race. I've completed 29 Ironman triathlons overall, and my clear favorite is Lake Placid, where I've competed six times. Each race brought different conditions, unexpected challenges, surprise opportunities, different outcomes, and different lessons. During those years, I qualified for Kona twice, but also struggled to finish on occasion. The lessons learned paved the way to my best Ironman ever, and in this book, they will illustrate everything you need to know about racing in Lake Placid. The experiences are all presented here, from race details and essentials, race experience reports from my races in 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005 and 2007 to detailed training plan and strategy reviews, plus tips for finishing your best Ironman triathlon. Ready to experience Ironman USA Lake Placid? Buckle up, it's quite a ride.

You have found your personal mentor in track and field. The Blinn National Championship Track & Field Training Program is one of the finest and largest books ever produced by Coach Silvey. This book contains 230 pages of important coaching information and sample workouts used by one of the most dominate track and field programs in the United States at any level The Blinn National Championship Track & Field Training Program has detailed workouts for Cross Country, Track & Field General Conditioning phase and Event Specific Training for the following events: Sprints, Hurdles, Relays, 400 Meters, 800 Meters, 1,500 Meters, 5,000 Meters, 10,000 Meters and the 3,000 Meter Steeplechase. See what actual workouts made Blinn College one of the most dominate track & field programs ever at any level in the 1980's and 1990's Blinn defeated many of the top NCAA track and field programs such as The University of Texas in both 1993 & 1994 and the University of Arkansas in 1992. Blinn also beat the prestigious Santa Monica Track Club on several occasions. Let Coach Steve Silvey share his coaching secrets that have produced many National Championship teams and Olympic athletes. Blinn was also voted the "Most Outstanding Team" of both the 1993 & 1994 Texas Relays. Coach Silvey has also coached at the University of Arkansas, University of Oregon, Texas A&M University and Texas Tech University. This book contains numerous articles on training, nutrition & the rich history of Blinn Track & Field.

After running across France and Germany, Russell Secker takes on the toughest physical and mental challenge of his life - running across the whole of Europe in the 2009 edition of the Trans Europe Footrace. The race format is simple yet implausibly difficult - an average of 45 miles a day on foot for 64 consecutive days. Starting from Bari in the south of Italy, 67 ultrarunners from around the world set off to test themselves on a grueling 2-month journey of self-discovery. The race passes through Italy, Austria, Germany, Sweden and Finland before reaching the northernmost land in Europe - North Cape, Norway - 400 miles inside the Arctic Circle. Running Across Countries gives first-hand insight into the daunting challenge of becoming a transcontinental runner, one of the toughest and most unforgiving tests of the human body and spirit.

For readers of "Born to Run "by Christopher McDougall, "The Barefoot Running Book" lends practical advice on the minimalist running phenomenon
Ditch those cushiony running shoes--they're holding you back and hurting your feet
You've heard about barefoot running and how it can reduce injury and allow for better form. Maybe you've even tried it and learned how shedding those heavy, overly- manufactured shoes can make running more enjoyable. Regardless of your expertise level, Jason Robillard--a leading expert on barefoot running education and director of the Barefoot Running University--synthesizes the latest research to ease you from barefoot walking to slow running to competitive and trail running vis-a-vis simple drills, training plans, and useful hints from fellow barefoot runners.
Practical, easy-to-follow, and illustrated with black-and-white photographs throughout, "The Barefoot Running Book" shows how everyone can transition to barefoot and minimalist shoe running--safely and optimally.