Born to Run

In Born to Run, author Christopher McDougall takes readers on a journey to the deserts of Mexico to meet the Tarahumara people. Renowned for their running prowess, the Tarahumara are known to be elusive, so Born to Run serves to illuminate their lifestyle and especially their way of running to the world. Unfortunately, the book comes off far too preachy to be enjoyable.

McDougall spends significant time throughout the book bashing Rick Fisher, a running promoter who exploits the Tarahumara to get them to run races in the states so he can make a few bucks. McDougall somehow fails to draw the equivalence between his endeavors and that of Rick. Whereas Rick simply promoted the Tarahumara to the running world and the select media that came through, McDougall blasted their story worldwide and exploited their cause far more.

McDougall spends the majority of the book discussing his adventures with a motley crew of adventurers that venture into the wilderness in Mexico to run with the Tarahumara. The book repeatedly sways between the story and philosophy of running. Much of the story part seems overexaggerated, especially the jaunts of Jenn and her boyfriend Billy.

McDougall also takes an interesting tangent to present evidence that humans were never meant to wear shoes, and that modern running shoes (and Nike especially) are the devil reincarnated. While there is evidence to support this, some of the other tangents such as his assertion that stretching is useless, are more questionable.

As a result, McDougall's tangents and exuberance in his story fail to bring this reader's interest along his excursion in the desert.