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Sociology of Sport: Born to Run

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Sociology of Sport: Born to Run
4/12/2013 | Sociology of Sport | |

Christopher McDougall | Born to Run: A Hidden Tribe, Superathletes, and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen |

Chapter 1
This story begins as the author explains his love for running although his body and begun rejecting running by initiating an excruciating pain in his foot. The author went searching for answers to why his foot hurt and what to do about it. He went to one of the best doctors in sports medicine only to be told the human body was not designed for the abuse running puts on the body. The doctor recommended he quit running or consider using cortisone to alleviate his foot pain; neither of which he wanted to do. During an assignment in Mexico he stumbled upon a magazine article where he saw a man running down a mountain in sandals, which inspired him to read and learn more about this article. This article was about the Tarahumara runners that would run for days on rough terrain without tiring. From there he informed his boss of the Tarahumara and was sent on an assignment to track them down and research this group. The author sent out in search of the Tarahumara without knowing where to go so he hired a man Salvador who knew Arnulfo, a great Tarahumara runner. The author found himself in a hotel looking for a man known as Caballo Blanco who lived with the Tarahumara. From there the author and Salvador left in search of the Tarahumara village. After a few days of driving, through the woods to a canyon, Salvador announced they had arrived at their destination, with no sight of anything until Arnulfo stepped out from behind the rocks to greet him. He began to introduce the author to others including a schoolteacher Angel, who gave the author a geography lesson. The author was informed about Mesa de la Yerbabuena, a village known for its great runners, which is no longer good for running as paved roads have brought about havoc. Before leaving the teacher’s home, the author had a chance to see the students
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