Again to Carthage by John L. Parker, Jr,

Two excerpts from Again to Carthage by John L. Parker, Jr., a novel where the protagonist is a distance runner -

What you miss is the dizzy crazy lactic-acid storm of training, racing. The ten-milers laughing the whole way with guys who are your brothers in ways beyond genetics. The thousand quarter-mile intervals in the hot sun, grabbing your knees for balance afterward and rasping for air. Consuming huge mounds of fried anything-at-all and laughing at each other because you know not a molecule of it can stick to your slippery bones. And knowing nothing in your life will ever be that wild and alive again. No quest ever again as honorable or as noble . . .

You don’t even get to play unless you have already won the genetic lottery. Then you have to win the nurture lottery, then the happenstance lottery, and then just in general be incredibly lucky in every conceivable way, and then you will have earned the right to work your ass off like most civilians could never possibly imagine.


Distance runners talk about running as if it was a religion, and the fervor and dedication required makes it nearly true. I’ve heard there is nothing as obnoxious as an ex-smoker or an atheist who has recently discovered religion. I think you could add runners to that list of the overly enthusiastic.

I absolutely loved this book, just like I loved Parker’s book Once a Runner. I generally try to subdue my enthusiasm for my chosen sport, but these books force me out of the closet and expose the running zealot that I am. Through the course of his books Parker puts into words the thoughts and feelings that distance runners struggle to express. Over my 44 years of running I’ve heard countless training partners attempt to express the inexpressible feeling of a phenomenal race effort, a blazing finishing kick, a hard track workout, or a mind-numbing long run; special experiences that defy description. Parker ably describes the otherworldly states of existence that distance runners know first-hand.

It’s good to know that there are others out there just like me.
(Only faster.)

Does that scare you? (Chuckle)