Kings of the Road

April 1, 2013
A focused survey of three unmatched American long-distance runners. Frank Shorter, Bill Rodgers and Alberto Salazar were trailblazers in popularizing the sport of distance racing in the late 1970s, and journalist and former competitive mile-runner Stracher (Dinner with Dad: How I Found My Way Back to the Family Table, 2007, etc.) expressively reveals the personal lives and professional development of the New England triplet from that pivotal decade. He describes Shorter as a Yale-educated medical-school dropout and self-taught racer who had to outrun thugs in his youth; the former chain-smoking Rodgers and determined Cuban prodigy Salazar, who trained together, also ran to escape their demons. Though the Munich massacre and memories of an abusive childhood marred Shorter's confidence in running the Summer Olympics marathon in 1972, he still won a gold medal, solidifying his status as the top racer in the world and successfully launching the American running craze. Rodgers overcame the "hyperfocus" of ADHD to claim his fame, while Salazar, the youngest of the three, battled and defeated chronic illnesses to emerge victorious. In addition to historical factoids on the sport of running, anecdotes about the interpersonal rivalries shared by all three and the then-strict rules governing a runner's compensation, Stracher weaves into the narrative Tommy Leonard and Fred Lebow, two Boston-area athletes instrumental in the formation of the Falmouth Road Race and the New York City Marathon, respectively. With the same passion used to describe its ascent, the author mourns the evaporating allure of the sport and notes the fates of his famed trio, who must now attend to the physical "damage done by racing," including hip, knee and heart problems. Essential reading for runners both competitive and casual.

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July 1, 2013

The popularity of distance running today can be traced back to 1972, when Frank Shorter won Olympic gold in the marathon. Stracher (Dinner with Dad) explores these golden years of American running by profiling three greats: Shorter, Bill Rodgers, and Alberto Salazar. These men dominated the sport, clocking in some of the fastest marathon times in the world. Each of Stracher's chapters focuses on a year and a race, with the now famous Falmouth, MA, Road Race highlighted several times as an example of a quirky event that attracted elites from all over. It was there that the three runners competed against one another a few times. Throughout his narrative, Stracher weaves details of the tensions among runners and discusses the arbitrary limitations imposed by the Amateur Athletic Union, which then prevented runners from obtaining appearance payments or licensing their images for advertising. Even top runners had to work low-paying menial jobs and then head to the track to train for their next race. VERDICT This readable work will appeal to runners interested in their sport's history and to those who enjoy social histories of the 1970s.--Maura Deedy, Weymouth P.L., MA

Copyright 2013 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

April 15, 2013
The lengthy subtitle states this book's thesis, though the words in America might have been added. The volume captures a bright decade in American road racing, from Shorter's marathon victory at the 1972 Olympics to Rodgers' dominance mid-decade, to Salazar's later ascendancy. It possesses a period charm. The author concentrates not on the major international marathons but on the shorter but highly popular Falmouth Road Race on Cape Cod. It fails, though, to make the larger case, the how of the subtitle. Lost in the thunder of running American feet is the looming domination of the sport by the Africans, and Stracher understates the influence of women runners such as Joan Benoit Samuelson and the role of the athletic-shoe companies in fostering running as a mass phenomenon. He argues unconvincingly that race organizer Fred Lebow's insistence upon inclusivity in the New York Marathon ultimately hurt the sport. What remains is an account that will largely interest runners and dedicated fans of the sport. Publication will coincide with this year's Boston Marathon, an event that no American man has won in 30 years.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)