Take one unfit 39-year-old Londoner and present him with the challenge of training for, and running, the New York City Marathon. This is Russell Taylor's humorous account of his journey from its unwise inception after too many beers, through the first teetering steps on the treadmill to the big show-down in NYC.
This account follows our intrepid runner as we discover what lurks within the breast of the endurance athlete: an unreasonable hatred of his fellow runners, a contempt for the idiocy of stadium announcers, and a strange fear of spectators inanely shouting 'keep going' by way of encouragement.
Written with panache and self-deprecating humour, this is ideal entertainment for anyone who has ever run any distance on their own two legs.