Review of Chris Pavey's Running Against Time

Why do runners always look like they are suffering so much pain? According to Chris Pavey’s book, Running Against Time, it is probably because they are injured, full of self-doubt, or in desperate need of a toilet break. Why do they put themselves through so much pain and self-doubt? Are they slightly mad and more than slightly masochistic? After reading Running Against Time you will understand why a truly committed runner runs.   

            Running against Time is no ordinary book about running. It is one man’s journey from being a she’ll be right, unhealthy McDonald’s addict, to becoming a driven, fund-raising marathon runner. Apart from its fitness and health benefits, Chris comes to love running for its adventure and because it allows him to be alone with his thoughts and nature.   

            The book begins in Japan where Chris had a job teaching English to the Japanese. Each day ended with junk food and too much sake. That was until he wound up at a hospital desperate to discover why his gut was behaving so strangely. He then vowed to get fit and took up running. Ten years, and many injuries later, he was running marathons.

            Many marathons are run with particular charities benefitting from the participant’s entry and their fund-raising activities. Chris enthusiastically threw himself into raising funds for those charities. And when tragedy struck, he decided to turn the death of a loved one into a positive by running up Mount Fuji and raising money in her memory.

            The book is written in a conversational style, as if Chris is holding court at a BBQ and enthusiastically telling stories about his latest running adventure, in between sips of a light beer. His enthusiasm for running and life will inspire many readers to finally undertake their own personal challenges.  

            Each chapter of the book ends with tips: on running, on overcoming injuries, on stretching, on fund-raising, even tips on how to design a website to promote fund-raising activities.

             Running Against Time has many riveting descriptions of Chris’ races that let a reader get into the head of a runner. They will find a runner who is full of fears of coming last or not finishing because of injuries. But they will also see the almost meditative quality of running and moments of ecstasy as the finish line is crossed. 
             You don’t have to be a runner to enjoy this book. Anyone who wants to know what drives the driven will be inspired by Chris’ determination to overcome injury and other personal setbacks, and live a well-run life. Running Against Time is an very enjoyable and inspirational book. I am proud to have helped edit the book.  

Marathon Stories.

 

Marathon Stories.

Three Encounters with the Physical by Graeme Simsion came second in the recent Age Short Story Awards. The story is about a disastrous attempt at a first marathon and had a bit more resonance with me because last year I helped edit Chris Pavey’s Running Against Time, a book about Chris’ conversion from slob to marathon runner. He went on to raise a fair bit of money for charity and run up Mount Fuji. It is a great book, very inspirational, and told in a knock-about way.

Three Encounters with the Physical is a true story. The events in the story happened to Graeme Simsion during the 2010 Canberra marathon. As such, the story really engaged my interest as I wondered how damaged he would become.

The story also has an unusual narrative style that used all three points of view: first, third and second, all in the space of a few thousand words.

The story starts in second person (if you haven’t read it yet, go and read it now, it will be fifteen minutes well spent). This second person narrative reads like someone watching himself, detached from himself, watching himself make near fatal errors. It covers the lead up to the marathon and the marathon itself.  

Simsion then changes to third person, as if the marathon runner is no longer himself, but some other ill and injured person. The story finishes in first person. He has merged back with his body and is living with the marathon’s consequences.

Now if he had read Chris Pavey’s book, Running Against Time, perhaps he would not have overloaded on carbs before the marathon. But Chris’ book was not out then.

One thought that struck me is whether the judges realised who the writer was. I assume, like in most short story competitions, that the judges didn’t know who wrote any of the stories while they were judging them. If this was the case, then any judge who keeps up with the Australian literary scene would probably have known about Graeme Simsion. After all, his 2012 novel The Rose Project earned about $1.8 million in publishing deals, and they could have heard about his muscle meltdown in a marathon. Did the judges know they were reading his story? If they did, what effect did it have on their judgement of the story?

I think it is a compelling well-written story with excellent use of point of view.

I have nearly finished reading the recently published version of Chris’ novel. Much to my surprise, I have only had to cringe at the editing a few times. I plan to post a totally unbiased review of it next week.