I can’t run at the moment, so am getting my fix through the medium of print, starting with Running Tracks by Rob Deering.
These twenty-six adventures in running are accompanied by the author’s perfect running tracks. He’s about a decade younger than me so his selection includes a lot of dance-type club music that’s not really my thing, but there’s some new (to me) stuff that has gone straight onto my running playlists; and I have added some of the "not me" music too, because it's clear it will be terrific to run to as well!
Rob is a comedian, musician and broadcaster that I confess I’d never heard of, but his attitude to running makes me long to be out there again. His honest and open approach offers real insights into why we do what we do – and how to get more pleasure from it. His quite brilliant descriptions of the music blend into depictions of the landscapes he runs through – from Scottish moors and far-flung islands, to canal sides and London streets – to create vivid images that put you right there with him, rolling through the miles.
He's someone who (like many of us) HATED cross country at school and because of the way that was “taught” grew to dislike what they thought running was. He started running again in his thirties when he was almost three decades younger me and he runs far, far further than I ever will, but his attitude is open and welcoming to runners of all ages and abilities.
This is a generous, warm-hearted and inspiring paean to running and runners.
Running abroad
