Running Book Review: Running with the Buffaloes

Last fall during marathon training, my running buddy Chris lent me Running with the Buffaloes after I mentioned that I wanted to read it but my library didn't have it. Of course, he lent me a copy that was signed by both Chris Lear AND Adam Goucher. He's clearly not a librarian; you do NOT lend out signed book copies! Because of that I only read it at home, keeping it next to my bed so it wouldn't get damaged. Thus it took me FOREVER to read it. It was really great to pick it up when I needed extra running motivation.

I finally finished it during my coaching certification weekend, and it 100% lived up to all the hype. It also desperately makes me wish I had ran cross country in college, and also makes my mind spin as to how a coach would coach that many runners and be able to get them all the peak during the national championship while also managing all of the injuries along the way. I would love to be in Wetmore's brain for a season, that's for sure.

My rating: 5 stars

Summary from Amazon:

In RUNNING WITH THE BUFFALOES, writer Chris Lear follows the University of Colorado cross-country team through an unforgettable NCAA season. Allowed unparalleled access to team practices, private moments, and the mind of Mark Wetmore--one of the country's most renowned and controversial coaches--Lear provides a riveting look inside the triumphs and heartaches of a perennial national contender and the men who will stop at nothing to achieve excellence. The Buffaloes' 1998 season held great promise, with Olympic hopeful Adam Goucher poised for his first-ever NCAA cross-country title, and the University of Colorado shooting for its first-ever national team title. But in the rigorous world of top-level collegiate sports, blind misfortune can sabotage the dreams of individuals and teams alike. In a season plagued by injury and the tragic loss of a teammate, the Buffaloes were tested as never before. What these men managed to achieve in the face of such adversity is the stuff of legend and glory.
With passion and suspense, Lear captures the lives of these young men and offers a glimpse of what drives a gifted runner like Adam Goucher and a great coach like Mark Wetmore. Like Lance Armstrong's It's Not About the Bike, RUNNING WITH THE BUFFALOES is at once a glowing celebration of a sport and an inspiration to anyone who has ever had the courage to beat the odds and follow a dream.