How much money could you raise for charity?
Have you bought my book yet? Tell me what you think!
It’s been release week for This is Running, and I had a couple of really lovely launch events in LA and San Francisco.
On Wednesday, almost 60 people (!) came down to Vroman’s in Pasadena to watch the show with my friends Ezra and Jinghuan. We did some readings, they asked me some questions, I signed some books. And I did it all over again in SF on Friday evening at Running Wylder, with some incredible questions from the audience.
Get your copy of This is Running
USA - Amazon US | Bookshop US | Barnes & Noble
UK - Amazon UK | Bookshop UK | Waterstones
Signed copies can be found in Vroman’s, Running Wylder, and Skylight. Here are a couple of photos. More can be found on my Instagram.
If you have bought my book, thank you, thank you, thank you SO much. When there are so many other things to spend your money on, it means a lot.
Reviews are really tough to come by, so if you would be so kind as to go to Amazon or Goodreads and give my book a rating, that would be awesome.
IT’S BOSTON WEEK
I’ll be in Boston this weekend. My book will be available at The Rec Room, which is a running fashion pop-up at 334 Newbury Street that’s curated by Cole Townsend, Lee Glandorf, and Katherine Douglas. I will be there signing copies, and generally hanging out, so come and say hi!
I’ll also be making an appearance at the Tracksmith Clubhouse on Friday evening, and there will be a couple of (hopefully signed) copies available at the mighty Trident Bookshop, but if you simply want to meet up to enjoy the Boston breeze or invite me to a hott party, please drop me a line.
IT’S ALMOST LONDON WEEK
From Boston, I’ll be flying straight to London for three very special events. I can’t wait.
Thu 23rd April - 6.30pm at Artwords Bookshop, Clarence Rd E5
I’ll be in conversation with Sophie Heawood, my lovely friend who recently wrote the marvelous Harry Styles / Haruki Murakami feature for Runner’s World - RESERVE YOUR SPOT
Fri 24th April - 3pm at Knees Up, Hackney Rd E2
I’m hosting a panel with Tracksmith titled Reimagining the Future of Running Media, featuring Simon Freeman from Like the Wind, Ashley Mateo of Runher, Ben Hobson of Runner’s World, Grace Cook of Salty, and Carmichael Caldwell - RESERVE YOUR SPOT
Sat 25th April - 11am at Progress Club House - The Dray Walk Gallery, Brick Lane E1
As part of Progress Running Club’s London Marathon pop-up, Simon Freeman (again) will be interviewing me and Howie Goldklang, author of Salt & Flickers and founder of Silver Lake Track Club. I love hanging out with LA friends on home soil.
C is for Charity
A few weeks ago, the London Marathon was rumored to have two editions over one weekend. Some of you might already know that’s something I predicted in my book, but as the biggest single day of raising money for charity, my immediate thought was that it’s going to raise a whole lot more money.
About a month ago there was some dullard on Threads complaining about people getting to run Boston Marathon because they were raising money for charity. Here’s my hot take, that I first blurted out on Mario Fraioli’s Morning Shakeout podcast:
EVERYONE RUNNING A MARATHON – ANY MARATHON – SHOULD BE RAISING MONEY FOR CHARITY.
Anyone not actively competing in the elite field anyway. You’re only running for a participation medal, so you might as well do something good for the world.
How about 2% of your annual income? Seems fair, doesn’t it? And if you get tired of asking people to sponsor you for a different marathon every other month, maybe you’re running too many. Give someone else a turn. There. I solved the major marathon ballot crisis as well…
I was interviewed by Josh Rosenthal of Borderlands and he asked me about my favorite artifact. The photo of me in my school athletics singlet is from the first 5k that I ran as an adult, where I raised $1,000. For a 5k. It wasn’t about the race itself as much as it was about doing something good for the community.
If you have a corporate job, here’s a tip to make the most of it: ask your colleagues. The CEO of the company I was working for put in half of that. That’s how to redistribute the wealth in my opinion.
My friend Alex just ran the Brighton Marathon. Very windy, apparently, but he raised £1000 for Alzheimer’s charity in aid of his mother-in-law. How cool is that? He outlines that he funded the race entirely by himself so 100% of all donations go to charity. That’s the way to do it.
Decentering yourself from the process, giving yourself an external ‘why’ can even help you dig deeper in the difficult moments during a race. Consider that bit of potential benefit to your race, if helping others isn’t enough.
Paris is for tree huggers
Talking of thinking about someone other than yourself, the Paris Marathon banned single-use materials. Another friend, Chris ran the race and told me about how every runner was given a reusable plastic cup and there were huge efforts to ensure there were water stations every 2.5 km (1.5 miles). He told me how it was such a non-event; that the Paris Marathon had normalized this kind of behavior.
Brighton Marathon had an army of ploggers literally sweeping the back of the route, picking up an estimated 22,000 gel wrappers. Slowly but surely, sustainability initiatives are making their way into larger races. These are things for all other races to try and emulate. And maybe something for the fueling companies to consider as well.
Beyond Running by Aire Libre with Mau Diaz
“It’s a conversation about obsession, craft, and the strange beauty of a thing millions of people do every day without ever quite being able to explain why.”
Culture Study Q&A
Anne Helen Petersen, who was kind enough to write a blurb for my book, featured me in a Culture Study Q&A last week. As ever, Anne’s questions were top dollar, and the comments didn’t disappoint either.
Go and read it here on Patreon.
What on earth is Nike doing?
Putting this billboard, with that messaging at a free and incredibly inclusive community wellness initiative??
