Flashes of Panic

I’ve been reading Bowerman and the Men of Oregon since last week, which should come as absolutely no surprise to anyone. It’s probably also unsurprising that I love it; it’s a rock-solid book balanced between Moore’s own familiarity with the subject and his extensive research, and like the best running books, it’s not just about running.

I’m sure I’ll have more to say when I’m done (I haven’t even reached the Prefontaine era,) but one of the entertaining subplots so far has been the birth and rise of Nike. Maybe it’s not so entertaining to everyone: the book isn’t yet available on Amazon or on Rodale’s own site, and the rumor is that Phil Knight has something to do with this. Moore makes Knight-as-college-student look a bit silly, but in my opinion shows plenty of respect for the company he founded with Bowerman, and how he got it started. In fact, one of the regular jokes has been the impressive list of people who declined to put a few hundred bucks into early Nike stock—Moore included.

Now Playing: Our Retired Explorer (Dines With Michel Foucault In Paris, 1961) from Reconstruction Site by The Weakerthans