As a runner, you know: running is not just a sport of body but also of mind and spirit.
You might not always know how to express these feelings, though. In these pages, you’ll meet three runners—Adam, Connor, and Jim—who are expert at expressing their thoughts about the sport, from keen insights to laugh-out-loud truths.
Even better, they invite you to join them on a year-long (or longer; the pages are not dated) expedition. Not only will you get to read the authors’ personal essays, poems, and observations about running, racing, and life in general, but you’ll also find space for recording your own experiences in whatever form you like.
Your new traveling companions expect you’ll have a lot to share, because they recognize that every run brings something new, whether you’ve only just begun running around the block or you’ve completed your twentieth ultramarathon. Some runs may seem to offer only new pain, but more often you’ll encounter a new sight, think a new thought, or shift into a new perspective. The journal spaces in this book invite you to reflect on runs and running so you can capture the lessons you learn along the way.
Whether you’re a runner who is content with a neighborhood jog or one who isn’t satisfied until you’ve explored every trail, you will find in these pages a home base you can return to again and again, a home filled with friends who love life as much as they enjoy going as fast as they can.
Adam Kimble is a professional ultrarunner, motivational speaker, running coach, race director, and amateur survivalist. Adam played Division I baseball at Bradley University prior to developing his passion for ultrarunning. After graduation, he ran his first ever 5K race near his hometown of Minooka, Illinois, in 2009, completed his first half-marathon in 2011, and completed his first ultramarathon (50K) in 2014. He has gone on to run the fastest known time (FKT) on the 171-mile Tahoe Rim Trail (37 hours, 12 minutes, and 15 seconds), completed a 60-day transcontinental crossing of the USA (2,500 miles), spent 60 days alone in the wilderness to become the winner of Discovery Channel's The Wheel, and completed a 31-day self-supported FKT across Great Britain. He lives in Tahoe City, California, with his wife Karen and his dogter (dog-daughter) Sofi.
Connor Crouch is a forest scientist who is currently pursuing his PhD at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff. Connor obtained an undergraduate degree in journalism, but not before realizing his passion for forestry rivaled his joy for writing. He researches how forest management can help restore forest ecosystems and enable them to adapt to a changing climate. When not looking for insects and mushrooms or camping for field work, Connor enjoys running the trails of Flagstaff, reading science fiction and fantasy, and spending time with his nonrunner wife Lyndsey and soon-to-be-runner dog Willow.
Jim O'Brien has worked in senior roles for a variety of asset management organizations, including London-based Henderson Global Investors, where he was a member of the executive committee and oversaw its US business for nine years. Jim served as a trustee of the Henderson Global Funds board and as president of Henderson Global Funds, and he was a board member of THRE, a $20 billion joint venture between TIAA-CREF and Henderson. Jim also served as a board member of the Olson Company, a California-based homebuilder, and is currently the president of Aaron Equipment Company. Jim enjoys reading, gardening, and ultramarathons as well as spending time with his wife Michelle and their children.
