Many of us have never run a marathon and never will. Wrapping my head around the concept of finishing a marathon, let alone doing it
in two hours, is almost unfathomable. Ed Caesar tackles this concept in Two Hours: The
Quest to Run the Impossible Marathon. The two-hour marathon is something now obtainable according to scientists and is a goal for the elite marathoners of
the world, who Caesar chronicles as they go through training for several races
around the world each year.
Caesar talks about the world of marathon running and how
preparation has changed over time as record times have slowly
come down and the two hour barrier, once thought to be unobtainable, has
approached like a runner approaching the finish line after a long race. The
book talks about those advances from both the scientific perspective as well as
ground truth, capturing the stories of runners and the advances in everything
from clothing the runners wear to the training they participate in as
part of the ritual.
The book reads well and provides those who are into running
a nice background into the advances of the sport. It likely will not get you
inspired to go out and run in New York, Philadelphia, or any other marathon any
time soon. However, Caesar smartly advocates how running is one of the few
sports where rich and poor can come together and run the same race and how
those from dire economic circumstances can rise to the top of their sport. Even
if you have no desire to lace up your sneakers and run, if you're interested in
how the human body can adapt and how we can continue to break records in a
sport, it's worth your time and effort to read Two Hours.
MY RATING - 3
