Overview
Among endurance runners, there are thoseĀ who have run very long distances, and thenĀ there are those who have run very long distancesĀ for a very long time. Ed Ayres exemplifies the latter; having run in over 600 races acrossĀ fifty-five years, he is arguably the most experiencedĀ American distance runner still competingĀ today. A book no one else could have written, The Longest Race is his urgent exploration of theĀ connection between individual endurance andĀ a sustainable society.
The Longest Race begins at the starting lineĀ of the 2001 JFK 50 Mileāthe nationās oldestĀ and largest ultramarathon and, like other suchĀ races, an epic test of human limits and aspiration.Ā At age sixty, his sights set on breaking theĀ age-division record, Ayres embarks on a courseĀ over the rocky ridge of the Appalachian Trail,Ā along the headwind-buffeted towpath of theĀ Potomac River, and past momentous Civil WarĀ sites such as Harpers Ferry and Antietam.
But even as Ayres focuses on concerns familiarĀ to every endurance runnerāstarting strongĀ and setting the right pace, the art of breathing,Ā overcoming fatigue, mindfulness for the courseĀ aheadāhe finds himself as preoccupied withĀ the future of our planet as with the finish line ofĀ this 50-mile race.
A veteran journalist and environmentalĀ editor who harbors deep anxiety about our longtermĀ prospects, Ayres helps us to understandĀ how the skills and mindset necessary to completeĀ an ultramarathon are also essential for grapplingĀ anew with the imperative to endureānot only asĀ individuals, but as a societyāand not just for 50Ā miles, but in the longest race we are all calledĀ upon to run.
This book title, The Longest Race (A Lifelong Runner, an Iconic Ultramarathon, and the Case for Human Endurance), ISBN: 9781615190881, by Ed Ayres, published by The Experiment (August 20, 2013) is available in paperback. Our minimum order quantity is 25 copies. All standard bulk book orders ship FREE in the continental USA and delivered in 4-10 business days.
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