Failure Is an Option
On the Trail of the World’s Toughest Mountain Race
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Buy for $19.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Matt Whyman
-
By:
-
Matt Whyman
About this listen
"We’re not at parkrun any more," I mutter to myself, quietly longing for the presence of nice marshals in high-visibility vests.
Failure Is an Option is the story of an average runner who sets out to discover just how far he can go. With the support (and misgivings) of his family, and aware that his quickest years are behind him, Matt Whyman leaves the Saturday morning 5K to push towards 100-mile ultramarathons and beyond. By slowing things down to run a very long way, he joins a growing number of men and women from all walks of life striving to do something extraordinary.
A newcomer to a world that can often seem off-limits, Matt finds his feet as an ultrarunner by learning the hard way. He battles monster hallucinations on endurance races spanning day and night, loses himself on tantalising trails across landscapes far from home, and forges bonds with fellow competitors in which small, kind gestures mean more than any medal. Determined to touch the boundaries of his running world before it starts to shrink, ultimately Matt sets his sights on a six-day mountain ultra that even hardened veterans consider to be the most formidable on earth: the Dragon’s Back Race.
Brimming with good humour, honesty, and joy, Failure Is an Option pits ambition against ability to uncover human truths that resonate with us all. A mid-pack competitor who could win prizes for enthusiasm–if nothing else–Matt takes us on a journey far beyond his comfort zone and with no guaranteed outcome of success. The results are entertaining from start to finish, often very funny and at times deeply moving.
©2022 Matt Whyman (P)2022 Vertebrate PublishingListeners also enjoyed...
-
Training Essentials for Ultrarunning: Second Edition
- By: Jason Koop, Jim Rutberg, Corrine Malcolm
- Narrated by: Jason Koop
- Length: 17 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When elite and everyday ultrarunners alike want to improve their ultramarathon performance, they turn to Coach Jason Koop for guidance and council. Training Essentials for Ultrarunning takes Coach Koop's time-proven and evidenced-based methodologies that have been honed over 20 years of professional coaching and delivers it to the masses. Regardless of whether you are first-time ultrarunner, a seasoned veteran, or an ultrarunning coach, this resource is a must-have for all ultrarunners.
-
-
Great Foundation
- By Josh Conviser on 12-28-21
By: Jason Koop, and others
-
Endure
- How to Work Hard, Outlast, and Keep Hammering
- By: Cameron Hanes
- Narrated by: Cameron Hanes, David Goggins, Joe Rogan
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cameron Hanes discovered his true passion for bowhunting when he was twenty. Inspired by the physical challenges of stalking elk in the Oregon wilderness—traversing mountainous terrain, braving erratic weather, and evading his quarry’s even more dangerous predators—he began an ever-evolving journey of self-improvement. To become the best bowhunter of wild elk, to the caliber he believed he could be, Cam realized he would need more than archery skills.
-
-
Garbage
- By JP Flouret on 05-22-22
By: Cameron Hanes
-
Born to Run
- A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
- By: Christopher McDougall
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Isolated by Mexico's deadly Copper Canyons, the blissful Tarahumara Indians have honed the ability to run hundreds of miles without rest or injury. In a riveting narrative, award-winning journalist and often-injured runner Christopher McDougall sets out to discover their secrets. In the process, he takes his readers from science labs at Harvard to the sun-baked valleys and freezing peaks across North America, where ever-growing numbers of ultra-runners are pushing their bodies to the limit.
-
-
Amazing read - even for non-runners
- By Corey on 05-31-09
-
Never Finished
- Unshackle Your Mind and Win the War Within
- By: David Goggins
- Narrated by: David Goggins, Adam Skolnick, Jacqueline Gardner
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Can’t Hurt Me, David Goggins’ smash hit memoir, demonstrated how much untapped ability we all have but was merely an introduction to the power of the mind. In Never Finished, Goggins takes you inside his Mental Lab, where he developed the philosophy, psychology, and strategies that enabled him to learn that what he thought was his limit was only his beginning and that the quest for greatness is unending.
-
-
He did it again!
- By Christian C. on 12-06-22
By: David Goggins
-
The Incomplete Book of Running
- By: Peter Sagal
- Narrated by: Peter Sagal
- Length: 5 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the verge of turning 40, Peter Sagal - brainiac Harvard grad, short, bald Jew with a disposition toward heft, and a sedentary star of public radio - started running seriously. And much to his own surprise, he kept going, faster and further, running 14 marathons and logging tens of thousands of miles on roads, sidewalks, paths, and trails all over the US and the world, including the 2013 Boston Marathon, where he crossed the finish line moments before the bombings.
-
-
Absolutely excellent.
- By Ricky on 02-22-19
By: Peter Sagal
-
Do Hard Things
- Why We Get Resilience Wrong and the Surprising Science of Real Toughness
- By: Steve Magness
- Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From beloved performance expert, executive coach, and coauthor of Peak Performance Steve Magness comes a radical rethinking of how we perceive toughness and what it means to achieve our high ambitions in the face of hard things.
-
-
Starts alright, but ends up going nowhere
- By Joseph G. Chernowski on 08-11-22
By: Steve Magness
-
Training Essentials for Ultrarunning: Second Edition
- By: Jason Koop, Jim Rutberg, Corrine Malcolm
- Narrated by: Jason Koop
- Length: 17 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When elite and everyday ultrarunners alike want to improve their ultramarathon performance, they turn to Coach Jason Koop for guidance and council. Training Essentials for Ultrarunning takes Coach Koop's time-proven and evidenced-based methodologies that have been honed over 20 years of professional coaching and delivers it to the masses. Regardless of whether you are first-time ultrarunner, a seasoned veteran, or an ultrarunning coach, this resource is a must-have for all ultrarunners.
-
-
Great Foundation
- By Josh Conviser on 12-28-21
By: Jason Koop, and others
-
Endure
- How to Work Hard, Outlast, and Keep Hammering
- By: Cameron Hanes
- Narrated by: Cameron Hanes, David Goggins, Joe Rogan
- Length: 7 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cameron Hanes discovered his true passion for bowhunting when he was twenty. Inspired by the physical challenges of stalking elk in the Oregon wilderness—traversing mountainous terrain, braving erratic weather, and evading his quarry’s even more dangerous predators—he began an ever-evolving journey of self-improvement. To become the best bowhunter of wild elk, to the caliber he believed he could be, Cam realized he would need more than archery skills.
-
-
Garbage
- By JP Flouret on 05-22-22
By: Cameron Hanes
-
Born to Run
- A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen
- By: Christopher McDougall
- Narrated by: Fred Sanders
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Isolated by Mexico's deadly Copper Canyons, the blissful Tarahumara Indians have honed the ability to run hundreds of miles without rest or injury. In a riveting narrative, award-winning journalist and often-injured runner Christopher McDougall sets out to discover their secrets. In the process, he takes his readers from science labs at Harvard to the sun-baked valleys and freezing peaks across North America, where ever-growing numbers of ultra-runners are pushing their bodies to the limit.
-
-
Amazing read - even for non-runners
- By Corey on 05-31-09
-
Never Finished
- Unshackle Your Mind and Win the War Within
- By: David Goggins
- Narrated by: David Goggins, Adam Skolnick, Jacqueline Gardner
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Can’t Hurt Me, David Goggins’ smash hit memoir, demonstrated how much untapped ability we all have but was merely an introduction to the power of the mind. In Never Finished, Goggins takes you inside his Mental Lab, where he developed the philosophy, psychology, and strategies that enabled him to learn that what he thought was his limit was only his beginning and that the quest for greatness is unending.
-
-
He did it again!
- By Christian C. on 12-06-22
By: David Goggins
-
The Incomplete Book of Running
- By: Peter Sagal
- Narrated by: Peter Sagal
- Length: 5 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the verge of turning 40, Peter Sagal - brainiac Harvard grad, short, bald Jew with a disposition toward heft, and a sedentary star of public radio - started running seriously. And much to his own surprise, he kept going, faster and further, running 14 marathons and logging tens of thousands of miles on roads, sidewalks, paths, and trails all over the US and the world, including the 2013 Boston Marathon, where he crossed the finish line moments before the bombings.
-
-
Absolutely excellent.
- By Ricky on 02-22-19
By: Peter Sagal
-
Do Hard Things
- Why We Get Resilience Wrong and the Surprising Science of Real Toughness
- By: Steve Magness
- Narrated by: Mike Chamberlain
- Length: 8 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From beloved performance expert, executive coach, and coauthor of Peak Performance Steve Magness comes a radical rethinking of how we perceive toughness and what it means to achieve our high ambitions in the face of hard things.
-
-
Starts alright, but ends up going nowhere
- By Joseph G. Chernowski on 08-11-22
By: Steve Magness
-
The Ultra Marathon Bible
- Your #1 Beginner’s Training Guide to Prepare, Run, and Survive Your First 50k to 100 Mile Race
- By: Samuel Nash
- Narrated by: Danny Fakih
- Length: 3 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
If you want to run your first ultra marathon, but are afraid of being unprepared for such an incredible adventure, then you need the secrets to success this book holds. Ultra marathons require a healthy body, a strengthened mind, and a solid resolve to see everything through from start to finish. However, you are not going to do anything you have not already done. You just need to use your previous experiences and the new techniques you will learn from this book to help you carve the best path forward.
-
-
Could be covered in a 10 minute youtube video
- By Anonymous User on 11-25-24
By: Samuel Nash
-
Waypoints
- My Scottish Journey
- By: Sam Heughan
- Narrated by: Sam Heughan
- Length: 7 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this intimate journey of self-discovery, Sam sets out along Scotland's rugged ninety-six-mile West Highland Way to map out the moments that shaped his views on dreams and ambition, family, friendship, love, and life. The result is a love letter to the wild landscape that means so much to him, full of charming, funny, wise, and searching insights into the world through his eyes. Waypoints is a deeply personal journey that reveals as much about Sam to himself as it does to his audiences.
-
-
Go on a Walkabout with Sam and the other Graeme!
- By R. Hall on 10-25-22
By: Sam Heughan
-
Let Your Mind Run
- A Memoir of Thinking My Way to Victory
- By: Deena Kastor, Michelle Hamilton
- Narrated by: Deena Kastor
- Length: 9 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Deena Kastor was a star youth runner with tremendous promise, yet her career almost ended after college, when her competitive method - run as hard as possible, for fear of losing - fostered a frustration and negativity and brought her to the brink of burnout. On the verge of quitting, she took a chance and moved to the high altitudes of Alamosa, Colorado, where legendary coach Joe Vigil had started the first professional distance-running team. There she encountered the idea that would transform her running career: the notion that changing her thinking - shaping her mind to be more encouraging, kind, and resilient - could make her faster than she’d ever imagined possible.
-
-
Great book
- By steve finkelstein on 05-19-18
By: Deena Kastor, and others
-
The Push
- A Climber's Journey of Endurance, Risk, and Going Beyond Limits
- By: Tommy Caldwell
- Narrated by: Johnathan McClain
- Length: 13 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On January 14, 2015, Tommy Caldwell, along with his partner, Kevin Jorgeson, summited what is widely regarded as the hardest climb in history - Yosemite’s nearly vertical 3,000-foot Dawn Wall, after 19 days on the route. This engrossing memoir chronicles the journey of a boy with a fanatical mountain-guide father who was determined to instill toughness in his son to a teen whose obsessive nature drove him to the top of the sport-climbing circuit.
-
-
Best adventure, and maybe best autobiography I have read.
- By Jordan B Chapell on 05-24-17
By: Tommy Caldwell
-
My Year of Running Dangerously
- By: Tom Foreman
- Narrated by: Tom Foreman
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a journalist whose career spans three decades, CNN correspondent Tom Foreman has reported from the heart of war zones, riots, and natural disasters. He has interviewed serial killers and been in the line of fire. But the most terrifying moment of his life didn't occur on the job - it occurred at home, when his 18-year-old daughter asked, "How would you feel about running a marathon with me?"
-
-
ESPECIALLY Good for Those of Us Who Don't Run!
- By Gillian on 04-12-16
By: Tom Foreman
-
North
- By: Scott Jurek, Jenny Jurek
- Narrated by: Scott Jurek, Jenny Jurek
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Scott Jurek is one of the world's best known and most beloved ultrarunners. Renowned for his remarkable endurance and speed, accomplished on a vegan diet, he's finished first in nearly all of ultrarunning's elite events over the course of his career. But after two decades of racing, training, speaking, and touring, Jurek felt an urgent need to discover something new about himself. He embarked on a wholly unique challenge, one that would force him to grow as a person and as an athlete: breaking the speed record for the Appalachian Trail.
-
-
Couldn’t take Jenny
- By M. Bissett on 08-27-18
By: Scott Jurek, and others
-
Running Up That Hill
- The Highs and Lows of Going That Bit Further
- By: Vassos Alexander
- Narrated by: Vassos Alexander
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vassos Alexander shares his insight from interviews with legends of the sport and his own gruelling but rewarding experiences of extraordinary endurance racing - including the legendary 152 mile Spartathlon, widely regarded as the world's most relentless race. Vassos dissects and explores the tenacity that propels many to keep on running and running and running....
-
-
Enjoyable
- By Paul on 05-28-23
By: Vassos Alexander
-
The Rise of the Ultra Runners
- By: Adharanand Finn
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 11 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Once the reserve of only the most hardcore enthusiasts, ultra running is now a thriving global industry, with hundreds of thousands of competitors each year. But is the rise of this most brutal and challenging sport - with races that extend into hundreds of miles, often in extreme environments - an antidote to modern life, or is it a symptom of a modern illness? In The Rise of the Ultra Runners, award-winning author Adharanand Finn travels to the heart of the sport to investigate the reasons behind its rise and discover what it takes to join the ranks of these ultra athletes.
-
-
Loved it!
- By Brandon S. Galvez on 07-27-19
By: Adharanand Finn
-
How Far Can You Go?
- My 25-Year Quest to Walk Again
- By: John Maclean, Mark Tabb
- Narrated by: Mark Englhardt
- Length: 6 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
An inspirational memoir by a man who became an elite wheelchair athlete after suffering a catastrophic spinal injury and who finally walked again 25 years after his accident. After two years of intense physical therapy following his crippling accident, John Maclean set a new course for himself when his father encouraged him to embrace his new reality and asked: "How far can you go"? Inspired, Maclean became the first paraplegic to complete the Ironman World Championship and swim the English Channel before going on to win a silver medal for rowing at the 2008 Paralympic Games.
By: John Maclean, and others
-
Into the Furnace
- How a 135 Mile Run Across Death Valley Set My Soul on Fire
- By: Cory Reese, Luke Thoreson
- Narrated by: Cory Reese
- Length: 7 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Into The Furnace explores the inner workings of bravery, hope, and passion. These themes are framed against the backdrop of the Badwater Ultramarathon - a 135-mile race across the hottest place on the planet, Death Valley. Cory Reese has walked into the furnace. He has faced adversity, both in running and in life. His book captures the essence of what it means to suffer, what it means to persevere, and ultimately, what it means to create a life of clarity and purpose.
-
-
Great writing, atrocious narration
- By Matthew Dunlap on 10-13-20
By: Cory Reese, and others
-
Running Outside the Comfort Zone
- An Explorer's Guide to the Edges of Running
- By: Susan Lacke
- Narrated by: Cris Dukehart
- Length: 5 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Running offers much more than road racing! After a decade of writing about running, sports columnist Susan Lacke found herself in a serious running rut. The runners around her seemed to be thriving, setting goals, and having fun, but her own interest in running was lackluster. Seeking to reengage with the sport she once loved, Lacke spent a year exploring running in its many shapes and forms, taking on running challenges that scared her, pushed her, and downright embarrassed her.
-
-
Real, funny, and encouraging
- By EB on 10-26-24
By: Susan Lacke
-
The Tao of Running
- Your Journey to Mindful and Passionate Running
- By: Gary Dudney
- Narrated by: Sean Pratt
- Length: 7 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Tao of Running brings a fresh and unique perspective to the topic of running. It offers listeners multiple ways to significantly deepen, enlighten, and enrich their running experiences.
-
-
Substance
- By Lisa Lani on 03-30-17
By: Gary Dudney
Related to this topic
-
Running Up That Hill
- The Highs and Lows of Going That Bit Further
- By: Vassos Alexander
- Narrated by: Vassos Alexander
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vassos Alexander shares his insight from interviews with legends of the sport and his own gruelling but rewarding experiences of extraordinary endurance racing - including the legendary 152 mile Spartathlon, widely regarded as the world's most relentless race. Vassos dissects and explores the tenacity that propels many to keep on running and running and running....
-
-
Enjoyable
- By Paul on 05-28-23
By: Vassos Alexander
-
Run!
- 26.2 Stories of Blisters and Bliss
- By: Dean Karnazes
- Narrated by: Daniel May
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his follow-up to the best-selling Ultra-Marathon Man, world-renowned ultra marathoner Dean Karnazes chronicles his unbelievable exploits and explorations in gripping detail; Karnazes runs for days on end without rest, across some of the most exotic and inhospitable places on earth, including the Australian Outback, Antarctica, and the back alleys of New Jersey.
-
-
Great stories. Horrible narrator.
- By Alberto Medellin on 08-20-15
By: Dean Karnazes
-
My Year of Running Dangerously
- By: Tom Foreman
- Narrated by: Tom Foreman
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a journalist whose career spans three decades, CNN correspondent Tom Foreman has reported from the heart of war zones, riots, and natural disasters. He has interviewed serial killers and been in the line of fire. But the most terrifying moment of his life didn't occur on the job - it occurred at home, when his 18-year-old daughter asked, "How would you feel about running a marathon with me?"
-
-
ESPECIALLY Good for Those of Us Who Don't Run!
- By Gillian on 04-12-16
By: Tom Foreman
-
To Be a Runner
- How Racing Up Mountains, Running with the Bulls, or Just Taking On a 5-K Makes You a Better Person (and the World a Better Place)
- By: Martin Dugard
- Narrated by: Bernard Setaro Clark
- Length: 5 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With an exuberant mix of passion, insight, instruction, and humor, best-selling author - and lifelong runner - Martin Dugard takes a journey through the world of running to illustrate how the sport helps us fulfill that universal desire to be the best possible version of ourselves each and every time we lace up our shoes. To Be a Runner represents a new way to write about running by bridging the chasm between the two categories of running books: how-to and personal narrative.
-
-
Feels like a great run does
- By Aleksandar on 05-11-15
By: Martin Dugard
-
A Life Without Limits
- A World Champion's Journey
- By: Chrissie Wellington, Lance Armstrong - foreward
- Narrated by: Polly Lee, Chrissie Wellington
- Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 2007, Chrissie Wellington shocked the triathlon world by winning the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii. As a newcomer to the sport and a complete unknown to the press, Chrissie's win shook up the sport. A LIFE WITHOUT LIMITS is the story of her rise to the top, a journey that has taken her around the world, from a childhood in England, to the mountains of Nepal, to the oceans of New Zealand, and the trails of Argentina, and first across the finish line.
-
-
Chrissie winning, on repeat
- By Mona on 03-13-13
By: Chrissie Wellington, and others
-
Iron War
- Dave Scott, Mark Allen, and the Greatest Race Ever Run
- By: Matt Fitzgerald
- Narrated by: Seth Michael Donsky
- Length: 13 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The 1989 Ironman World Championship was the greatest race ever in endurance sports. In a spectacular duel that became known as the Iron War, the world's two strongest athletes raced side by side at world-record pace for a grueling 139 miles. Driven by one of the fiercest rivalries in triathlon, Dave Scott and Mark Allen raced shoulder to shoulder through Ironman’s 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race, and 26.2-mile marathon. After 8 punishing hours, both men would demolish the previous record - and cross the finish line a mere 58 seconds apart.
-
-
Fine Story....But the Narration!!!!
- By Gabriel on 01-15-14
By: Matt Fitzgerald
-
Running Up That Hill
- The Highs and Lows of Going That Bit Further
- By: Vassos Alexander
- Narrated by: Vassos Alexander
- Length: 8 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Vassos Alexander shares his insight from interviews with legends of the sport and his own gruelling but rewarding experiences of extraordinary endurance racing - including the legendary 152 mile Spartathlon, widely regarded as the world's most relentless race. Vassos dissects and explores the tenacity that propels many to keep on running and running and running....
-
-
Enjoyable
- By Paul on 05-28-23
By: Vassos Alexander
-
Run!
- 26.2 Stories of Blisters and Bliss
- By: Dean Karnazes
- Narrated by: Daniel May
- Length: 7 hrs and 16 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In his follow-up to the best-selling Ultra-Marathon Man, world-renowned ultra marathoner Dean Karnazes chronicles his unbelievable exploits and explorations in gripping detail; Karnazes runs for days on end without rest, across some of the most exotic and inhospitable places on earth, including the Australian Outback, Antarctica, and the back alleys of New Jersey.
-
-
Great stories. Horrible narrator.
- By Alberto Medellin on 08-20-15
By: Dean Karnazes
-
My Year of Running Dangerously
- By: Tom Foreman
- Narrated by: Tom Foreman
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As a journalist whose career spans three decades, CNN correspondent Tom Foreman has reported from the heart of war zones, riots, and natural disasters. He has interviewed serial killers and been in the line of fire. But the most terrifying moment of his life didn't occur on the job - it occurred at home, when his 18-year-old daughter asked, "How would you feel about running a marathon with me?"
-
-
ESPECIALLY Good for Those of Us Who Don't Run!
- By Gillian on 04-12-16
By: Tom Foreman
-
To Be a Runner
- How Racing Up Mountains, Running with the Bulls, or Just Taking On a 5-K Makes You a Better Person (and the World a Better Place)
- By: Martin Dugard
- Narrated by: Bernard Setaro Clark
- Length: 5 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
With an exuberant mix of passion, insight, instruction, and humor, best-selling author - and lifelong runner - Martin Dugard takes a journey through the world of running to illustrate how the sport helps us fulfill that universal desire to be the best possible version of ourselves each and every time we lace up our shoes. To Be a Runner represents a new way to write about running by bridging the chasm between the two categories of running books: how-to and personal narrative.
-
-
Feels like a great run does
- By Aleksandar on 05-11-15
By: Martin Dugard
-
A Life Without Limits
- A World Champion's Journey
- By: Chrissie Wellington, Lance Armstrong - foreward
- Narrated by: Polly Lee, Chrissie Wellington
- Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 2007, Chrissie Wellington shocked the triathlon world by winning the Ironman World Championships in Hawaii. As a newcomer to the sport and a complete unknown to the press, Chrissie's win shook up the sport. A LIFE WITHOUT LIMITS is the story of her rise to the top, a journey that has taken her around the world, from a childhood in England, to the mountains of Nepal, to the oceans of New Zealand, and the trails of Argentina, and first across the finish line.
-
-
Chrissie winning, on repeat
- By Mona on 03-13-13
By: Chrissie Wellington, and others
-
Iron War
- Dave Scott, Mark Allen, and the Greatest Race Ever Run
- By: Matt Fitzgerald
- Narrated by: Seth Michael Donsky
- Length: 13 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The 1989 Ironman World Championship was the greatest race ever in endurance sports. In a spectacular duel that became known as the Iron War, the world's two strongest athletes raced side by side at world-record pace for a grueling 139 miles. Driven by one of the fiercest rivalries in triathlon, Dave Scott and Mark Allen raced shoulder to shoulder through Ironman’s 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race, and 26.2-mile marathon. After 8 punishing hours, both men would demolish the previous record - and cross the finish line a mere 58 seconds apart.
-
-
Fine Story....But the Narration!!!!
- By Gabriel on 01-15-14
By: Matt Fitzgerald
-
Hell on Two Wheels
- By: Amy Snyder
- Narrated by: Sheila Stasack
- Length: 9 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Three-time Ironman finisher Amy Snyder takes the wraps off the best kept secret in the sports world, the Race Across America (RAAM), a bicycle race like no other. Unlike its famous cousin the Tour de France, RAAM is much crazier, more gothic, and even savage: Once the gun goes off the clock doesn't stop, and the first rider to complete the prescribed 3,000-mile route is the victor. In Hell on Two Wheels, Snyder follows a group of athletes before, during, and after the 2009 RAAM.
-
-
A documentary of the toughest bike race
- By James on 12-19-13
By: Amy Snyder
-
Mud, Sweat, and Tears
- The Autobiography
- By: Bear Grylls
- Narrated by: Tom Patrick Stephens
- Length: 9 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Already a number-one London Sunday Times best seller, Mud, Sweat, and Tears is the adrenaline-fueled autobiography of the mega-popular star of the hit survival series Man vs. Wild, adventurer Bear Grylls. A former British Special Forces commando, a man who has always sought the ultimate in dangerous challenges, Bear's true story reads like an outdoors action-and-adventure novel. But Bear's story is true - full of breathtaking escapes and remarkable exploits that would make any Jack London or H. Ryder Haggard hero proud.
-
-
Love this book
- By Aaron on 04-07-13
By: Bear Grylls
-
The Tour According to G
- My Journey to the Yellow Jersey
- By: Geraint Thomas
- Narrated by: Dafydd Pritchard
- Length: 6 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For years Geraint Thomas appeared blessed with extraordinary talent but jinxed at the greatest bike race in the world: twice an Olympic gold medallist on the track, Commonwealth champion, yet at the Tour de France a victim of crashes, bad luck and his willingness to sacrifice himself for his teammates. In the summer of 2018, that curse was blown away in spectacular fashion - from the cobbles of the north and the iconic mountain climbs of the Alps to the brutal slopes of the Pyrenees and, finally, the Champs-Elysees in Paris.
-
-
Not a fan of GT but really enjoyed the book
- By Richy on 01-27-19
By: Geraint Thomas
-
Running Like a Girl
- Notes on Learning to Run
- By: Alexandra Heminsley
- Narrated by: Elizabeth Sastre
- Length: 6 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Until five years ago, Alexandra Heminsley was decidedly not a runner. Nor was she athletic in any sense of the word. She was an ordinary, curvy woman who was convinced that sports of any kind, especially running, were beyond her. But she's made running part of her life, and gets to reap the rewards: not just the obvious things, like a touch of weight loss, health and glowing skin, but self-belief, and immeasurable daily pleasure.
-
-
Meh... not what I thought...
- By Maria on 12-03-14
-
The Electricity of Every Living Thing
- A Woman's Walk in the Wild to Find Her Way Home
- By: Katherine May
- Narrated by: Katherine May
- Length: 8 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In anticipation of her 38th birthday, Katherine May set out to walk the 630-mile South West Coast Path. She wanted time alone, in nature, to understand why she had stopped coping with everyday life; why motherhood had been so overwhelming and isolating; and why the world felt full of expectations she couldn't meet. She was also reeling from a chance encounter with a voice on the radio that sparked her realisation that she might be autistic.
-
-
Perfect!!!
- By Amazon Customer on 10-20-22
By: Katherine May
-
The Road to Sparta
- Reliving the Ancient Battle and Epic Run That Inspired the World's Greatest Footrace
- By: Dean Karnazes
- Narrated by: Robert Fass
- Length: 8 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 490 BCE Pheidippides ran for 36 hours straight from Athens to Sparta to seek help in defending Athens from a Persian invasion in the Battle of Marathon. In doing so he saved the development of Western civilization and inspired the birth of the marathon as we know it. Even now, some 2,500 years later, that run stands enduringly as one of greatest physical accomplishments in the history of mankind.
-
-
Repetitive, no depth
- By Miles on 06-12-17
By: Dean Karnazes
-
Beyond Possible
- One Man, Fourteen Peaks, and the Mountaineering Achievement of a Lifetime
- By: Nims Purja
- Narrated by: Shridhar Solanki
- Length: 9 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Nepali climber Nims Purja is the first man ever to summit all 14 of the world's 8,000-meter "Death Zone" peaks. He did so in less than seven months, breaking the previous record of seven years.
-
-
5 stars for the achievement 3 stars for the book.
- By fostesa on 01-11-22
By: Nims Purja
-
You Are an Ironman
- How Six Weekend Warriors Chased Their Dream of Finishing the World's Toughest Triathlon
- By: Jacques Steinberg
- Narrated by: Kirby Heyborne
- Length: 11 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
As he did so masterfully in his New York Times best seller The Gatekeepers, Jacques Steinberg creates a compelling portrait of people obsessed with reaching a life-defining goal. In this instance, the target is an Ironman triathlon---a 2.4-mile open-water swim followed by a 112-mile bike ride, then finally a 26-mile marathon run, all of which must be completed in no more than seventeen hours. Steinberg focuses not on the professional who live off the prize money and sponsorships, but on a handful of triathletes who regard the sport as a hobby.
-
-
Eh
- By PS on 02-08-13
-
The Pursuit of Endurance
- Harnessing the Record-Breaking Power of Strength and Resilience
- By: Jennifer Pharr Pharr Davis
- Narrated by: Jennifer Pharr Davis
- Length: 11 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Jennifer Pharr Davis, the former record holder of the FKT (or Fastest Known Time) on the Appalachian Trail, tells the story of her meteoric rise in the world of endurance hiking and, in doing so, unpacks key traits that make women uniquely suited to endurance. With a storyteller's ear for fascinating detail and description, she takes us with her as she sets the record on the Appalachian Trail and introduces us to the mentors who helped her to identify and unlock different facets of her endurance capabilities.
-
-
Not uplifting
- By M on 05-15-18
-
Short Fat Chick to Marathon Runner
- By: Kerre Woodham, Gareth Brown
- Narrated by: Kerre Woodham, Gareth Brown
- Length: 5 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When celebrated radio personality and columnist Kerre Woodham found herself 40, overweight, and depressed she faced two choices - do nothing and probably not make it to 50 or do something and get her life back. Fortunately for all of us, and especially those women who like to eat and dress well, she decided to fight back. Leaving kilos of herself and two bra sizes behind 'somewhere in the Waitakeres', she embarked on a fitness and training regime, with a goal to complete the Auckland marathon.
-
-
Inspiring, funny and informative
- By Michelle on 11-14-13
By: Kerre Woodham, and others
-
I'll Push You
- A Journey of 500 Miles, Two Best Friends, and One Wheelchair
- By: Patrick Gray, Justin Skeesuck
- Narrated by: Patrick Gray, Justin Skeesuck
- Length: 6 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Meet Justin and Patrick. Born in the same hospital two days apart, they grew up together, faced life shoulder to shoulder, and were best man in each other's weddings. It was the way things had always been. It was the way things were always going to be. But then the unexpected struck - Justin was diagnosed with a progressive neuromuscular disease that robbed him of the use of his arms and legs. As Justin transitioned to life lived in a wheelchair, Patrick stayed by his side, and together they refused to give in to despair or physical limitations.
-
-
Mixed Feelings!
- By Sharpie on 02-13-20
By: Patrick Gray, and others
-
On the Nose
- A Lifelong Obsession with Yosemite's Most Iconic Climb
- By: Hans Florine, Jayme Moye
- Narrated by: Hans Florine
- Length: 5 hrs and 27 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Hans Florine is a big-wall climbing legend in his own time. He holds the speed record on the Nose route of El Capitan, a 3,000-foot granite cliff in Yosemite Valley that's considered the Everest of the rock-climbing world. But Florine's story is not one of super-human athletic prowess; it's one of persistence and dogged determination. In 30 years of climbing, he's ascended the Nose a mind-blowing, death-defying 100 times, more than anyone else ever has, and most likely ever will. In On the Nose, Florine describes the most dangerous, pivotal, and inspirational of those climbs.
-
-
Techno music?
- By Reviewer Al on 11-01-18
By: Hans Florine, and others