Iron War: Two Incredible Athletes, One Epic Rivalry and the Greatest Race of All Time

by Matt Fitzgerald

The 1989 Ironman(R) World Championship was the greatest race ever in endurance sports. In a spectacular duel that became known as the Iron War, the world's two strongest athletes raced side by side at world-record pace for a grueling 139 miles.

Driven by one of the fiercest rivalries in triathlon, Dave Scott and Mark Allen raced shoulder to shoulder through the Ironman(R) 2.4-mile swim, 112-mile bike race, and 26.2-mile marathon. After 8 punishing hours, both men would demolish the previous record--and cross the finish line a mere 58 seconds apart.

In his book "Iron War," sports journalist Matt Fitzgerald writes a riveting epic about how Allen and Scott drove themselves and each other through the most awe-inspiring race in sports history. "Iron War" goes beyond the pulse-pounding race story to offer a fascinating exploration of the lives of the world's two toughest men and their unquenchable desire to succeed.

Weaving an examination of mental resolve into a gripping tale of athletic adventure, "Iron War" is a soaring narrative of two champions and the paths that led to their stunning final showdown.

Genres: Sports, Nonfiction, Biography, History, Fitness, Audiobook, Health

422 pages, Paperback

First published September 28, 2011

About the author

Matt Fitzgerald is the author of numerous books on sports history and endurance sports. He has enjoyed unprecedented access to professional endurance athletes over the course of his career. His best-sellers include Racing Weight and Brain Training for Runners. He has also written extensively for Triathlete, Men's Fitness, Men's Health, Outside, Runner's World, Bicycling, Competitor, and countless other sports and fitness publications.

Reviews

[Leslie Doll · Rating 3 out of 5]

I started reading this book without being aware of the letter Dave Scott and Mark Allen wrote, protesting the book. I read it anyway; I generally don't allow peer pressure to sway my decision as to whether or not to read a book. Isn't reading a study in critical thinking? Anyway, I digress. I enjoyed some parts of the book more than others; especially for its insights on mental toughness and training. But I had mixed feelings, especially regarding the author and his comments about the Hoyt racing team (father/son, son has cerebral palsy) that colored my overall view of the book.

I've read many of Matt Fitzgerald's other books, including Racing Weight, as well as his articles in Triathlete magazine and other venues. I think he generally writes very well, so I wasn't prepared for the disjointedness of this book. There are so many threads, large and small. One about the race itself; one on the analysis of Dave and Mark; one on mental toughness training; and a bunch of smaller ones. At times it was hard to follow Matt's train of thought. And then there's the letter from Dave Scott and Mark Allen regarding their feelings about the book. I've read the letter, and my impressions were that a) they do have a legitimate complaint, however b) they were cut out of the financial picture and c) they were being a little thin-skinned (unless there's something going on between the two of them and Matt that no one knows about. If one Googles the so-called lawsuit they filed against Matt - nothing comes up). In any case, the book didn't take away from my admiration for these two incredible athletes. If anything, it made me respect them all the more.

The description of the race, even knowing the outcome, is absolutely fascinating. It shows true grit, competition, fierceness, determination and creates the sensation of hot lava creating heat waves around you. This is where Matt's writing and hard work pays off and is the most exciting part of the book. You really feel like you were there along with them.

Matt does a decent job of describing where Mark and Dave came from and the factors that made them the great athletes they are. The more Matt delved into their characters, however, the more I could see why they were bothered by the book and why they didn't collaborate with him. He made many sweeping judgments based on his own flaws and interpretation. The amateur psychoanalysis got on my nerves. First, Matt implies - based on 4 (count them, 4) great male athletes - that if one has a lousy father, he'll be a great athlete because he has something to prove. 4 out of how many dozens of excellent male athletes? Seriously? This smacked of reaching for drama. The fact is, Mark's father came to Kona and watched him win. They appear to have formed a close relationship. Reading some of the reference material shows that the analysis is totally subjective.
Implying that one has to be born with a work ethic and a gene for suffering to be a good triathlete is not only a disservice to Dave's environment and lifetime influences, and various factors in Mark's life, but also to many other triathletes who have learned to work for what they want, and teach themselves mental toughness. Implying Dave and Mark are excellent triathletes are because they are "psychologically imbalanced" is an absolute discredit. Triathletes are crazy - sure - but to state they're psychologically imbalanced is crossing a line. Thin- or thick-skinned, I see how this can be seen as a slam. Matt contradicts himself on this front in so many places that it became difficult to consider him credible. He also contradicts himself by idealizing triathlon as a means to live a life less mediocre. So be psychologically imbalanced, or be mediocre. Take your pick! Matt references many interviews and conversations; in fact, there are 27 pages of references. It comes off as a tad defensive.

There was an interesting thread on mental toughness and the science behind it. While it was a fascinating read - the discussion about motivational intensity and tolerance for suffering was well-done - Timothy Noakes' work was more or less left out of the conversation. He was a pioneer and his work should have been included; given how much Matt has drawn on Noakes' research in his other books, I'm surprised it wasn't. Noakes (of Lore of Running fame) put forth the theory many years ago that the brain is the limiter of performance, not the muscles and body. It is good to see that studies are continuing with new insights all the time. There are many sound bites that imply that to succeed in triathlon, you just have to be mentally tough. Or have a lousy father. No, that is not all of it. A person who wants to succeed in triathlon must put in the physical training, and a lot of it. Mark and Dave spent decades of physical AND mental training for Kona. It isn't just about being mentally tough; it's about knowing where your limits are and how to move them, figuring out how badly you want it, and how willing you are to suffer. And it's also about support from family, friends, and teammates.

I went along towards the end of the book thinking, besides the faux psychoanalysis and a few other things, it wasn't so bad as a complete package. Then I see a comment that has me seeing red. Absolutely red. In a paragraph glossing over the Dick and Rick Hoyt's triathlon achievements, he notes that Rick's (who has Cerebral Palsy) athletic efforts as "piteous." More than Matt's self-pitying descriptions of himself in the last chapter (where he says he'll never achieve anything on the scale of Mark or Dave), this incensed me and made me want to call him up and give him the what-for. There's nothing piteous about Rick's competing in triathlons with his father. Absolutely NOTHING. (Did I mention I'm seeing red?) What would Matt rather Rick do? Sit in a wheelchair in his room by himself for the rest of his life? It was RICK who told his dad he wanted to race with him. I am so happy that the Hoyt team went out to show the world what they CAN do (versus what they cannot), and so happy they have inspired so many people. I have such pure disdain for Matt based on that comment; he is of the same ilk as those who told my parents there was nothing they could do for me, but put me in an institution and go on with their lives. I thought we were talking about a triathlon community here - where people are a little crazy, go out on a limb, and go do things they'd never dream of doing (like Chrissie Wellington, hello?!)

If you are crazy about triathlon, and are looking for lore to pass on to future generations, Iron War fits the bill with the description of the race. If you are looking for more research on mental toughness and the science behind it, it's there. Use these parts as inspiration to surpass your own pre-conceived limits. Whether you agree with Matt's perspective - just look past the faux psychoanalysis and his crappy attitude towards those with disabilities (I call them different abilities), this book does belong to the sport.

[Otis Chandler · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspiring book about one of the greatest ironman races, by two of its greatest champions. I found this very helpful to better understand the sport, and the mindsets of some of its champions.

And to get it out of the way, yes I knew that Dave Scott and Mark Allen had jointly posted a letter objecting that the book was inaccurate, and shouldn't be published. While this is not uncommon in publishing, it did make me read some of the characterizations of them with an open mind. For instance, he strongly painted Dave as being manic depressive. However their objections don't seem based on the book getting anything major wrong, so I think it's still a good telling of an amazing story, and recommended.

One of my biggest takeaways is that Ironman is a crazy hard distance. Well duh! But massive respect to those who can train enough to finish let alone race such distances. Dave and Mark and top athletes had to make this their job, working out 30-40 hours per week - which is an insane time commitment.

But it was interesting to read about some of the approaches to training and endurance racing that the book describes. For instance, Allen using Phil Maffetone's go slower to go faster low heartrate focus on aerobic workouts, was very interesting, and I have more to learn about that. There were also some good tidbits like this, that I've read bits about before but were interesting to see:

"Only accelerations in the anterior-posterior (AP) plane are strongly associated with running economy. The runners with the smallest accelerations in this plane are the most efficient, regardless of their degree of bounciness or whatever else is going on with their stride. This makes sense when you consider that a runner who exhibits large accelerations in the AP plane is a runner who slows down and speeds up quite a bit from stride to stride, even while trying to hold a steady pace. The greatest source of energy waste in running is the braking that occurs when a foot makes contact with the ground. Those runners who brake the least when a foot lands spend the least energy trying to get back up to speed when pushing off the ground."

Also on the topic of running strides, which are a key measurement many pro's use:

"However, scientific testing of these techniques has consistently shown that making conscious changes to one’s natural stride actually reduces efficiency. It makes no difference what the specific change is. Steve’s work with control entropy explains why. When you make a conscious change to your stride, your brain becomes more actively focused on your running. Your body wants to do what’s natural, but your brain forces it to do otherwise. And forcing it always reduces control entropy."

Reading about how they both pushed themselves hard and through the pain that endurance training and racing brings was very interesting, especially how much of it is mental. This makes sense when I think about it, because I feel just as tired at the end of a 3 mile run as at the end of a 7 mile run, and the difference is likely just my brain wanting to be done. And if you are The Man (Dave Scott) - you push through that mental pain:

"One of Dave’s favorite swim workouts was a set of seven 500-yard intervals with a short rest period after each. As he worked his way through the set, Dave swam faster and faster. But he also made the rest periods shorter and shorter. Plenty of other swimmers would do one or the other—either increase the tempo of the intervals or reduce the rest periods between them. Dave did both. He thought it was a good idea to practically cripple himself with fatigue before attempting his fastest efforts."

That seems to be the lesson - you can do more than you think if you push through the pain - just don't "burn all your matches" and flame out!

[Maxwell Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

very enjoyable

[Boy Blue · Rating 3 out of 5]

It seems like ultramarathon runners are a dime a dozen these days. But before there was ultramarathon, and daily sufferance classes in the form of Crossfit, there was Iron Man. A competition in Hawaii where people who had forged their iron bodies, minds, and souls out of ridiculous training regimes, did battle over a full day. The winner was almost always the person who could suffer the most for the longest. Trying to escape the malaise of the comfortable modern life, Iron Man has drawn hundreds of thousands of participants from around the globe. People looking to break through the numbness of a normal life are attracted like moths to the flame, many are completely consumed by the fire and love it for that very reason. It's in pain that they finally feel alive. 


The book itself is a good read, the description of the race is excellent even though I started feeling the same fatigue the Iron Man athletes feel late in the book. They'd been slogging it out for 8 hours under the hot Hawaiian sun, and I'd been ploughing through the book for 8 hours under an array of artificial lights on various buses and trains. Was my fatigue commensurate to theirs. No. Did my hyperactive imagination and Fitzgerald's evocative writing allow me to feel it was. Yes.


Obviously much of the debate about this book centres on Dave Scott's and Mark Allen's letter saying it's all bullshit. I've read that letter and didn't think much of it. They were annoyed that Fitzgerald attributed things to them they didn't believe were true but then they had refused him access to the very inner thoughts he had to instead invent. I'm stunned by the level of detail Fitzgerald managed to acquire about the two Iron Men's routines and lives considering he didn't have any of this access. If anything this is a lesson that it's not always the victor that writes history, sometimes history is instead written by the best storyteller.  


The biggest criticism I would level at the book is not so much any inaccuracies but rather its structure and length. I agree that starting in medias res, AKA the searing Hawaiian sun, as these two titans of the sport duel it out one last time was the right place to start. What I didn't like was the haphazard use of dilation and the way the race ends about 2/3's in and then we've got to meander through their by contrast more faded lives before we finally hit the finish where the writer basically addresses his own inadequacies.


I also would have loved more on the science of it all but perhaps like Dave Scott I just need to snarl that desire off because it seems the big lesson from his and Mark Allen's accomplishments is mind over matter. You can do all the research and study in the world but all of that can be beaten by an unbreakable Iron will.

[Amar Pai · Rating 4 out of 5]

This WAS a pretty epic race! Well told. Interesting digressions on how you can scientifically measure who can run through suffering the most. Average person quits when their mind says "you're exhausted." Iron-persons run way past that till their muscles are literally incapable of continuing. You can tell the difference by measuring "control entropy" which is how spastic their gait is. If truly spent w muscles giving out, gait becomes counter intuitively MORE regular (think when you get a cramp and have to limp-- you have less degrees of freedom, are forced to run in a particular way to compensate) Anyway, these guys are masters of suffering and after a 2.4 mile open water swim and 113 mile bike ride are able to run a marathon at a 6 min/mile pace. Just. Nuts.

[Cian Aherne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great story well told, my kinda genre 😅

[Steve Van Slyke · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating story about two endurance athletes with very different backgrounds, personalities, habits, attitudes, and training methods, who nevertheless end up winning the Iron Man competition six times apiece and beating each other in the process.

It's a very human story. The warts and imperfections are neither glossed over nor omitted.

I agree with the author's conclusion: you cannot read a book, study the the training methods of the experts and replicate them and one day expect to find yourself winning or even being professionally competitive in something like the Ironman. In this case, there are just some people who have it, and the rest of us don't.

[Ryan Azzi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Immerse yourself in the minds of the greatest triathletes of all time

An amateur endurance athlete myself. After reading this exhilarating account, I have committed to participating in the Nice Ironman 2020. Maybe along this journey I will manage to garner enough qualifying points to find myself at the Kona starting line the year after. Now that is the kind of effect this book can have on you if you had dabbled or even had a remote interest in endurance sport. Read at your own expense. Don’t say I did not warn you about finding yourself training at 5 am in the morning, before work/school..., and later after work/school... in pursuit of Ironman.

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Given the subject matter, this could have been an excellent book. Unfortunately, the author's writing style includes so many awkward, cliched phrases and wacky sports metaphors that the story of this epic race is reduced to a confusing tale of two flawed characters. The author indicates that he is a fan of both Dave Scott and Mark Allen in the epilogue and acknowledgments, but here's what they had to say after reading the pre-pub copy:

An Open Letter From Dave Scott and Mark Allen

[Jeff · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent book on the historic Ironman race between Mark Allen & Dave Scott in Kona. Unlike most race stories, this one has a pattern of a few chapters about the athletes followed by a chapter on the science of racing and suffering. Both are interesting, but the race story was more compelling for me. Still, it was a unique way to tell the story. This book has generated some controversy but I personally think both Dave Scott & Mark Allen look very good throughout the story.

[Tony Arreola · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book with a lot of endurance insight.
The book details an amazing race with two of the greatest athletes in our generation. The book drags a bit, but the information is quite powerful.
A must read for any endurance athlete, and all triatheletes.

[Bea Elwood · Rating 3 out of 5]

By the end I felt like I had just done a feat of endurance myself, having to really push myself through the last 100 pages but then I realized I had read the whole book in three days. Interesting page in history and worth the read although I couldn't actually tell Mark Allen and Dave apart half the time and probably confused the other half-dozen racers with them too. I do remember watching Julie Moss cross the finish line practically on her hands and knees and have been moved to tears by her determination. It was inspiring to read but, unlike after reading Born to Run, I don't feel the need to take up triathlons after finishing this book. I found it a little jarring at first when the author would interject these chapters about the scientific studies on the brain and endurance sports but those turned into some of the most interesting chapters too.

[Peter Augustinak · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is excellent reading. As an amateur triathlete myself and long time fan of the sport, I was always curious how this entire madness started. This book has the answer. What is worse, I was not aware at all about the Iron War '89 and - and what is a real embarrasing - the great ones Dave Scott and Mark Allen.

But this had a positive side - as I had no idea, who won, I could follow the story of that greatest race ever run as it unfolded step by step. And as our modern age allows, right after that I could actually watch the enitre thing on YouTube visually too :)

The IRONMAN is extremely hard race to do. But I cannot even imagine, how hard could have been in the 80ies without all the modern technology running shoes, trisuits, nutrition, online training plans, but most especially bikes.

This book gave me even more motivation and respect for the sport of triathlon, I'm pretty happy I could read this one!

[Alex Hill · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great book with a few really boring chapters scattered throughout, Matt Fitzgerald really knows how to write a vivid story but can't help himself but to also write long and drawn out descriptions of scientific studies that come off as if he's trying to hit a word count. Those chapters take it down a few notches for me as a reader, if I were to just rank the parts of the book about Dave Scott and Mark Allen actually competing (especially the 3 chapters about the '89 Iron Man) it would be an easy 5 stars. Still glad I read it, probably even worth rereading. Did a good job making both protagonists relatable while still keeping their differences really well known.

[Ethan W · Rating 5 out of 5]

I didn't know anything about these guys, or the Iron man, but after reading this book, I want to some day compete in one. The first part of the book is great biography-type writing about Dave and Mark and how they came to meet at the Ironman. The second half is about the race itself, written to make you feel like you're there, it was hard to put down

[Tom Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

80% was good, some random tangents, took ages to get through
Good to learn some of the Early day Ironman history

[Jake Wyman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book, absolutely fired me up to get training. Creatively written book that explores the greatest Ironman race ever and then delves into the history of Ironman and its two early legends. Very easy and fast paced read. 4.3/5

[Tim Marshall · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dave Scott and Mark Allen are the Ronaldo and Messi or Nadal and Federer of Iron Man triathlon, two supremely gifted athletes that in any other era would each be individually unrivalled in their field and yet happened to both overlap at their peak. Scott was in fact dominant in the annual Iron Man championships held in Hawaii from 1980 to 1988 winning six out of ten races and finishing second in one of the two 1982 editions, often finishing 20 minutes ahead of his nearest competitor. However from 1986 onwards the younger Allen began to push him closer and closer resulting in the phenomenal 1989 race in which not only was the world record smashed but the two men finished within a minute of one another, both having the performance of a lifetime simultaneously, running stride for stride during the final marathon section at an unbelievable average of six minute miles having already completed a 2.4 mile swim and 112 mile cycle. Fitzgerald delves deep into the back story of both athletes, their early lives and different training styles and somewhat controversially, their psychological profiles which were later the subject of a joint law suit as both men put aside their historic rivalry to put the record straight to what they alleged were exaggerations and overly intrusive speculation on family dynamics and personal events rather than biographical facts. With this caveat, I still found the book hugely enjoyable as the author does a good job of capturing moment by moment one of the greatest sporting events of all time and the detailed background of the herculean amount of training required just to complete an Iron Man let alone compete at the very highest level.

[Cat · Rating 1 out of 5]

Horrible. I loved Secret Race (about doping in the cycling world) and I hoped this book would be fascinating too. It was horrible. It was filled with fluffy, repetitive text. He really didn't need 336 pages. 10 would do. I couldn't finish it. To make things worse, I listened to this book on Audible. The narrator sounded like a really bad jr high actor --- forced, over-acted, and unnatural.

Avoid this book. Read Secret Race instead.

[Sameer Rane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Book Review: Iron War

Iron War is a fascinating deep dive into the endurance mindset of two of the greatest triathletes the sport has ever seen—Dave Scott and Mark Allen. As someone who has practiced the sport, I can only begin to appreciate the immense mental fortitude and physical resilience required to not only produce their legendary 1989 Iron War performance but also to secure six Ironman World Championship titles each.

The book does an incredible job of capturing the intensity of their rivalry, the psychological battles they endured, and the sheer willpower that defined their careers. It offers valuable insights into what it takes to push the limits of human endurance, making it an inspiring read for athletes and sports enthusiasts alike.

A particularly interesting connection for me is that Chrissie Wellington—another of my all-time favorite triathletes—was coached by Dave Scott, further cementing his legacy in the sport.

All in all, Iron War is a compelling and enjoyable read, one that I will cherish for a long time.

[Algirdas Purkenas · Rating 4 out of 5]

The greatest triathlon battle of all times - this book has a nice lead up to it and serves really well with the description of the actual race.

Also some nice scientific insights into endurance athlete research, touches upon perseverance, anatomy, studies and other interesting topics.

However, one should not forget that this is a book about the actual race that actually happened. I do not understand how the author thought it would be a good idea to simply come up with things like what Mark or Dave thought on this or that moment? Even they themselves probably can't remember what was going on as they were pushing it to extreme limits.

Also some side stories about Madam Pele, disabled kid and his dad and others seemed just randomly plugged in completely messing up with the consistency of the plot.

Overall, still a must read for any triathlete, yet I find it difficult to see how a non-triathlete would enjoy this book.

[Marta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thrilling and inspiring, though at times repetitive, annoying and heavy with mundane trivia and details that take away from the story. The epilogue ends on a down note as well, though made me think. Although I disagree with the author’s conclusions, his “erroneous” take-aways made me ponder the lives and events recounted in his book. The author pits the two characters against each other as born vs made competitors. Although simplistic, it helps the narrative. The book feels desktop researched only, without contributions from the main characters. Also, around 100 pages of the book felt superfluous with repetitive data. It didn’t get 3 stars because the story itself, no matter how told, was worth the endurance and pain to read it to the end.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

The premise of this book is that the greatest race ever - not just triathlon race, but any kind of race - was an Ironman competition in the late 80s between Dave Scott and Mark Allen. I enjoy Fitzgerald's books as much as any author who writes about running, so despite my skepticism that any Ironman race could possibly be the greatest race ever, I gave the book a shot. In general, I am not particularly interested in Ironman competitions. However, I must say that Fitzgerald did an excellent job bringing Scott and Allen to life, and I lost some sleep staying up to see who won. While Fitzgerald absolutely did not convince me this was the greatest race ever, nor even in the top ten, this is a good read for anyone who is a fan of endurance racing of any variety.

[Lindsey Denison · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am not a runner/swimmer/biker, I am not good at it, nor do I care to be good at it. But getting inside the minds of two different elite Iron Men who went up against each other time and time again, as they competed for the Iron Man championship was fascinating. One was a man who had unbelievable grit, while the other dissected everything down to the nitty-gritty to accomplish what he wanted to accomplish. Both tactics were extremely effective, and both came with the personality to compliment their strategy. I loved it! I recommended it to my husband, and he loved it too! I have probably given this book out about 15 times to men who have all loved it! This is a great gift for a man who likes to read, especially if they are interested in triathlon.

[Jens · Rating 5 out of 5]

The story takes us back to the very first Ironman with 20 friends as competitors, €20 inscription fee and traffic still going about during the race. From ducttaping feet to the pedals to eating Twix's and baby food, everything was experimental back then. As some very interesting interludes, the author expands on why people search out such epic tests of endurance and how the brain limits the performance, not the body. The perspective on the two protagonist is really in-depth from their outlook on life to their yearly final workouts and meals in the week leading up to the world championships. Recommend it to any sportsenthusiast!

[Renata Wesley · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book was pretty good. As someone who enjoys triathlon I enjoyed most of the story. It did drag on a bit, and some of the science on it seems a bit dated at this point. However, I made the mistake of listening to the audio book. It has to be the worst narrator I've ever heard. The overpronunciation, and at times also pronouncing words wrong (such as putting a noticeable T where a D is actually in the word) was almost unbearable. The inflection made it worse. I only suffered through the narration because I wanted to hear the story. I guess it was fitting for a story about suffering. Seriously, if you're interested in the story, read it, don't get the audio book.

[Nodir Khalilov · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mark Allen and Dave Scott are widely regarded as the greatest Ironman champions in the history of triathlon. In this book, Matt Fitzgerald provides a detailed, passionate, and honest account of their journey to becoming the best in the world.

Both men had humble athletic beginnings and worked incredibly hard to earn their positions on the world's greatest triathlon stage. They battled their demons with discipline, mental imagery, and a strong desire to follow an organized plan. The book also offers lessons on breaking down ambitious goals into manageable pieces, making it an invaluable resource for anyone looking to achieve great things.

[Jeff Goodfellow · Rating 2 out of 5]

Very disappointing. Was expecting an epic story on the "world's greatest race" and it fell well short. Was hoping to read a great sports story and it got way off course. Chapter 7 brings the flow of the story to a complete halt. The race is over two thirds of the way through the book. I'm a runner and the author got a number of things wrong with regards to running, so I can only guess he got other things wrong for the other two disciplines.

Because I'm such a big sports fan, I gave the book 2 stars instead of 1 star because of the topic.

[Joey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Their will to win is undeniable, their feats are commendable, and yet, I just couldn't identify with either of them or get emotionally invested in what they were trying to accomplish. I think that, in order to compete in Ironman at their level, you have to be selfish, asking others to make your goals theirs and to give you all the credit and them none. This resounded throughout the book and I just couldn't get past it. They are amazing athletes, physically and even more so mentally, but this just isn't my thing.

[Peter Yock · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was pretty entertaining but after hearing some interviews with Dave Scott and Mark Allen it sounds like it's largely fictional and conjecture on behalf of the author. Still, kinda entertaining, with a little bit of truth splashed in.

I have to say though - this is single-handedly the WORST audio book reading I've ever heard. It's like the whole thing was read by the comic book guy out of the Simpsons. So over dramatised. I had to work hard to not just delete the book on the basis of bad reading.