Christopher McDougall, Men’s Health contributing editor, zips across the US and across the border in Mexico to test his investigative muscle in his first book Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes and the Race the World Has Never Seen. McDougall cleverly paces his story well to win the race of gonzo journalism. The track made by the author is akin to the prized formula of Jon Ron’s The Men Who Stare at Goats, the true story of the US military’s psychic hippie army that was adapted into a feature film starring George Clooney last November. Both books involve a secret group, practices that are shocking to conventional wisdom, and a cast of quirky superhuman freaks. The best part is that all of these facts are verifiably Googable at the end of the day.
In the case of Born to Run, McDougall began his race with the quest to cure his hurting feet after running. The trail leads him to the peaceful and nearly invisible Tarahumara tribe in Mexico — known to run the blistering desert for days or weeks in their sandals. Their regimen astonishingly requires only a diet of nuts and corn beer instead of the vitamins and protein that western societies subscribe to for nourishment. Surprisingly, this way of life has led to no injuries. McDougall tracks them down to learn how to run like these indigenous people despite the possibility of facing drug runners along the way. In the course of his research, he finds other “ultrarunners” who defy the norms of training in their own ways within his own his backyard.
Wacky Racers
And this is where the plot of Born to Run’s plot begins to thicken. McDougall meets a cast of ultramarathon runners in all shape and sizes that carry the book along as a breezy, enjoyable read. There is petite science teacher Ann Trason who ran the uphill Leadville race in the Colorado mountains for 100 miles with its dangerous thin-air environment, managing to hold the women’s record at 18 hours. Then, there is the dharma bum runner Jenn Shelton, the youngest ultramarathon woman participant today who wins races based on beatnik writer Jack Kerouac’s teachings. So she stills parties and drinks hard before any race but manages to stay on her feet for the race because of her love for the road. A more controversial runner is millionaire Barefoot Ted McDonald who, as his nickname implies, is an advocate of barefoot running and has finished 50 miles races with only the natural padding of his two feet. Despite their different views on running, they lead the pack in every marathon with their supreme love for the chase and the accomplishment of finishing a race.
The front and center of this journey though belongs to the runner named Caballo Blanco or the White Horse. This mysterious stallion is an American ultramarathon contestant who has decided to run and live among the Tarahumara in the Copper Canyon desert. Under the name White Horse, he is known as a ragged dirty ghost who lives in his own wild hut and asks for food from the local school teachers like a modern-day Mowgli from Kipling’s Jungle Book.
Soon enough, with the help of McDougall, Blanco lives out his dream of organizing a race between the Tarahumara and American ultramarathon runners in the Mexican desert with its sharp rocks and death valleys. As fantastic as it sounds that a vagabond was able to organize a run with only low-cost Internet and a supportive sports journalist, it is all verifiably true (according to Google). Yet the big payoff in Born to Run is the elusive answer of who Caballo Blanco is and how a crazy white man chose to live off wheat and corn and only the clothes on his back.
Itchy Feet
Interspersed with colorful champions, Born to Run also offers tips and theories on how to become an ultramarathon racer. The author explains how homo sapiens was meant to run as a natural skill for hunting prey like deer. He lays out some evolutionary theories as to why we should eat nuts and salad like the Tarahumara people — a healthier and more natural diet for man. Also, he provides information on why we should try running barefoot more often and how our urban ways have made us unnaturally soft creatures.
McDougall’s arguments are convincing enough to have us believe that anyone can run 50 miles without a sweat, and the stories from Caballo or Barefoot Ted bring on an inner desire to feel the wind and be one with the earth. In fact, while reading the book, itchy feet might cajole sone to bolt out the door and put the book down for another day. Yet, as amorous as running up Sagada with its chilly air may sound, the promise of a good read in hand and a sundae in the other in a cozy bed is a tempting one as well. I guess my type was born to run with his imagination.
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Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes and the Race the World Has Never Seen by Chris McDougal is available at National Book Store.
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Learn more about the book at http://borntorun.org/ and http://www.caballoblanco.com.
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E-mail me at readnow@supreme.ph.