Running with the Buffaloes: A Season Inside With Mark Wetmore, Adam Goucher, And The University Of Colorado Men's Cross Country Team
Top five Best Books About Running, Runner's World MagazineTop three Best Books About Running, readers of Runner's World Magazine
(December 2009)
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 inpiduals 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 THEBUFFALOES 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.
From Library Journal
Colorado-based cross-country runner Lear follows the University of Colorado cross-country team, the Buffaloes, through its 1998 season, one with many high points but also marked by the tragic death of one of its team members in a bike accident. The University of Colorado's cross-country program is one of the best in the country and, unlike most major cross-country powers, relies mainly on locally born athletes. The book minutely details the training and coaching techniques used to produce a team that is a constant contender for the NCAA championship. At times, the author provides almost too much detail, but the reader must marvel at the dedication and self-motivation of these young men as they run more than 100 miles a week for nearly seven months. In 1998, Colorado won the inpidual NCAA cross-country championship and finished third in the team competition. Apart from instructionals, few books cover cross-country; this one will appeal to high school athletes and is recommended for both school and public libraries. William Scheeren, Hempfield Area H.S. Lib., Greensburg, PA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Running with the Buffaloes Review
“Lear's tale of the 1998 Colorado cross country season is part tragedy, part biography and part training window to one of the country's best programs. It deserves its cult-classic status and is worthy of another read every few years.” --Running Times
From the Back Cover
Top five Best Books About Running, Runner's World MagazineTop three Best Books About Running, readers of Runner's World Magazine
(December 2009)
At the outset, the 1998 cross country season appeared to hold magnificent promise for the men of the University of Colorado. With 2000 Olympic hopeful Adam Goucher poised for his first-ever NCAA cross country title and the Buffaloes shooting for their first-ever national team title, it seemed that nothing could stand in the way of their victory. But in the rigorous world of top-level collegiate sports, blind misfortune can sabotage the dreams of inpiduals and teams alike. Plagued by the onset of numerous injuries and the tragic loss of a beloved teammate, the Buffaloes found themselves challenged in ways they could not have foreseen. What they managed to achieve in the face of such adversity is the stuff of legend and glory.
In Running with the Buffaloes, writer Chris Lear follows the University of Colorado cross country team during one unforgettable NCAA season. Through unparalleled access to team practices, private moments with the athletes, and the beliefs and teachings of Mark Wetmore - one of the country's most renowned and enigmatic coaches - Lear provides an unprecedented look a the triumphs and heartaches of a perennial national championship contender and the men who will stop at nothing in their quest for excellence. He captures the lives of these young men and offers a glimpse of what drives a gifted runner like Goucher and an iconoclastic coach like Wetmore.
Running with the Buffaloes, is, at once, a celebration of a sport and an inspiration to anyone who has ever had the courage to beat the odds and follow a dream.
About Running with the Buffaloes Author
CHRIS LEAR attended the Pingry School in Martinsville, New Jersey. A gifted runner, he capped his senior season with a 4:09 mile at the Golden West Invitational. The time made him New Jersey's fastest high-school miler of the 1990s. He graduated from Princeton University in 1996, where he earned All-Ivy, All-East, and All-America honors, and was a two-time cross-country captain. He lives in Boulder, Colorado.
Foreward, by Adam GoucherI got to know Chris Lear in 1996 on an eighteen mile run through the Big Basin Redwood Forest. He had this crazy idea to follow a Division I cross country team through their season. He wanted to write a book about the trials and triumphs the team would encounter. As we ran through the towering redwoods, we talked about how much fun and interesting it would be to actually do it.A year and a half went by before I heard from Chris again. This time, though, he was in Boulder preparing to do exactly what he had discussed with me running through that redwood forest. He was in Boulder to document three months of our training, the University of Colorado Cross Country team. Little did he know that within those three months he would be documenting one of the most trying years in CU history. Chris was there through it all; every step of every run. He witnessed each moment of pain, distress, excitement and happiness with every workout. Almost instantly, his presence among the team became natural, he fit in, and he became one of us.Looking back, I can see how Chris helped me through my last collegiate season. At the time he was recovering from foot surgery, and wasn't able to run with us. Instead, he would bike alongside of us. Typically, at that point in my career at CU, I ran the majority of my workouts alone, and I looked at Chris as somewhat of a training partner. There were many times when he would ride along with me and help me maintain the pace I desired. He brought an element of competitiveness that kept me from settling, and gave me the perfect edge of the intended workout. Some people would say that I was racing, and there were times that this was somewhat true (mainly on a 22 miler in 2:03 out at the Boulder Reservoir). But, I was in the process of taking the next step, and Chris was there helping me. He became one of my closest friends, someone I could confide in, someone I respected tremendously, and someone I could hang out with!Through a season that commanded the courage of every CU runner, through the good times and definitely the bad, Chris was there every moment, living it with us, and he, too, was just as much a part of it as we were. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title. People generally read books about running because they truly love running itself. But only a few such books provide even a fraction of the enjoyment of a simple run. The classic, Once A Runner by John L. Parker, comes to mind, but there aren't many others.
You can add Running With the Buffaloes to the short list. Lear was shrewd, talented and lucky in writing this book: shrewd because his main subject is Olympian Adam Goucher, the strongest and boldest American distance runner since Bob Kennedy; talented because he has a clear, interesting, energized writing style; and lucky because his nonfiction, real life drama has a happy ending after an all-out struggle.
The core of the book is a daily description of cross country practice at the University of Colorado in the fall of 1998. For most people, reading about cross country practice would seem to fall somewhere between drudgery and torture, but Running With the Buffaloes is actually thrilling. Goucher's intensity, his coach's counsel and depth, his opponents' strengths and abilities and his teammates' successes and failures all weave together in a completely gripping tale. Lear keeps his chapters short, resulting in a pace that moves urgently. He assumes a level of awareness about running that is refreshing. For once, reading about running is like talking to someone who cares as much as you do, someone who is excited and knowledgeable.
When the Colorado team returned to campus for fall classes in 1998, they had two goals: win the NCAA championship and have Goucher win the inpidual title. Championships are built deliberately, with passion and anxiety. Goucher faces this with more than a little Prefontaine running through his veins. Describing him and his teammates, the Colorado coach observes:
"In football, you might get your bell rung, but you go in with the expectation that you might get hurt, and you hope to win and come out unscathed. As a distance runner, you know you're going to get your bell rung. Distance runners are experts at pain, discomfort, and fear. You're not coming away feeling good. It's a matter of how much pain you can deal with on those days. It's not a strategy. It's just a callusing of the mind and body to deal with discomfort. Any serious runner bounces back. That's the nature of their game. Taking pain."
In Running With the Buffaloes, Lear makes this wonderful, alive and memorable. Reading it, you are actually a part of every step, every run, every test and every triumph. I am an adult distance runner with a high school son (15) who runs cross country. I ordered this book for myself and he grabbed it the minute it arrived. He read it in a week, which is an amazing thing for my computer-oriented son who generally avoids reading for pleasure. I just finished the book and believe it is an outstanding account of the rewards and heartbreaks of top-level collegiate running. I could not put this down. I cried at the tragedy this team endured and rejoiced at the successes. I believe this book is a true gift to my son and any young runner who aspires to greatness. I now know why a poster of Adam Goucher is on my son's wall. Chris Lear conveys the patience that is required by runners who, after being high school stars, might have to train through long periods (even years) of no improvement, injuries and crushing disappointments. He also conveys the impact a coach such as Mark Wetmore can have on a young runner's growth as a person and an athlete. You probably have to have more than a casual interest in running to really appreciate this book, but I believe it will touch and motivate both competitive and recreational runners. If I were a high school or college coach, every one of my runners would read this book!
