Personal Record: A Love Affair with Running

by Rachel Toor

Rachel Toor was a bookish egghead who ran only to catch a bus. How such an unlikely athlete became a runner of ultramarathons is the story of Personal Record, an exhilarating meditation on the making, and the minutiae, of a runner’s life. The food, the clothes, the races, the injuries, and the watch are all essential to the runner, as readers discover here, and discover why. A chronicle of Toor’s relationship with the sport of running, from her early incarnation as an Oreo-eating couch potato to her emergence as a hard-bodied marathoner, this book explores the sport of running, the community it brings into being, and the personal satisfaction of pursuing it to its limit. An homage to running, a literary take on how an activity can turn into a passion and how a passion can become a way of life, Toor’s book runs all the way from individual achievement—a personal record—to the world of friendship and community. 

Genres: Nonfiction, Memoir, Biography, Sports, Biography Memoir, Health, Fitness

184 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 1, 2008

Reviews

[Valerie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a back of the pack runner, who runs to lose weight, and over the years has learned to love the act of running as well. So it was difficult to relate to this collection of essays about running in many ways: her horrendous diet of junk food that didn't preclude her from wearing bikinis, her embarrassment at her first marathon time being too slow- except it was good enough to qualify for Boston, so not slow to the vast majority of people. And the structure of the book was uneven- sometimes about running, sometimes about her relationships. Her most compelling essay, about the NYC marathon after the events of Sept 11, was a race she bandited, which further decreased my respect for her as a person.

But with all these things to dislike, there were moments where I felt that she had cracked open my soul and spilled my feelings about running onto the page. The moments of community with other runners, the encouragement and support for people of all speeds in what is essentially a solitary pursuit, the way the soul takes flight during a really good run- all of these were beautifully captured.

2.5 stars, rounded up.

[Edy · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author was strangely snide (and periodically patronizing) to women runners who weren't her. Other than that complaint (which irked me quite a bit), it was ok.

[astried · Rating 3 out of 5]

Second time reading, one year after the first and I'm still not a runner though I still wanted to. There were times when it just clicked but then I went downhill again. I'm not giving up though. For now I'm living my running life through this book but I will run my marathon someday. Afterall I'm living in Singapore now with so many marathons throughout the year.

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I'm suck at running. I do all the classic mistakes:running too fast,not breathing correctly,give up too easily... But lately I want to run better, i want to be able to run the distance without walking most of the way. So i bought a shoe since i haven't got any sport shoes for a long time. First time was hell,second a bit better,couldn't say i love running but i don't hate it either.

Then i read this book n it was so full w/ love for running. I wished it talked more about how she started running,it looked si easy for her.. One chapter especially dear to my heart since it dealt w/ running as a way to give her time to cope w/ sadness,the way i've walked to chase away the sadness. Must get back to my running shoes..

[Kate]

Personal Record reads more like an essay collection than a unified book and, as such, it's uneven. Some of the pieces felt like inconsequential filler, and others made me cringe a bit (the spectre of a forty-something woman writing about flirtations/relationships with a teenage sensibility). But some were deep, intense, and very moving. Two particular standouts for me were "Becoming a Marathoner" (about running the New York Marathon two months after 9-11) and "Western State" (about accompanying a friend for the final forty miles of a 100 mile race--the beginning of Toor's passion for ultramarathons). The good bits are good enough to raise the rest up, and if running is a passion for you, I'm confident that you'll find lots to like in this book.

[Jen (The Jenerator) · Rating 1 out of 5]

My advice would be to RUN away from this book, but only if you can run fast, otherwise don't bother!

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really liked the references to running - there are some things that are ubiquitous to anyone who identifies as part of the community that the author expressed extremely well.

However, I absolutely hated how patronizing she was to other women runners. I also didn’t enjoy her personal accounts of her running journey which included banditing and infidelity.

There is also more to running than just a PR.

I’m sorry - unless you are someone I know personally, or an Olympian, or hold a world record, or made any sort of useful contribution to the sport of running, I do not care about your personal story - especially if it involves sweeping generalizations of women and their bodies, immoral behaviors, etc.

Author could use some soul searching. Although I loved the relatable parts, the tone and some chapters were not it for me.

[Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Weird things happen when you become a runner, and you really like to read. You start reading books about other people's experiences with running. This book felt like a series of shorter articles, and come to find out, the author did write most of the chapters as magazine articles. This didn't matter too much because the author is a good writer and knows how to write about the sport well. I enjoyed it, and it makes me want to go run more.

[Maureen · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very short reflection on running. Well-written and motivating. However, it's somewhat hard to identify with someone who says they never worked out *ever* and then went out and ran 3 miles on her first try...

[Amy]

http://www.hellasound.com/site/read/r...

[Felicia · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, it's an incredible story about finding friendship and love through running. On the other, the writing ranges from pretentious at best to downright mean and trying to be funny but landing more on an obvious hatred of other females despite constantly talking about how she's a feminist.

More often than not, I found myself actually rolling my eyes are her writing and the way she words things. I think at one point I almost dropped the book (about 17% in) because the pretentiousness was overbearing. However, I learned to just barely skim over the most pretentious pieces and afterwards it was alright.

I think it's worth a read if you're getting into racing or are interested in running in general. But it's best to go in knowing it's definitely a collection of essays and feel free to skip chapters (which is basically an essay) when you read the first paragraph and go, yikes this probably isn't for me. Because more than likely, you're right.

[Katie O. · Rating 4 out of 5]

26.2 chapters of concise, insightful, well-paced moments and milestones in a runner's life. Yes, it's a memoir about one runner, but it's also about anyone who laces up (maybe esp. those who strive for distance). Equally important: the writing is just so good; it sometimes even outpaces the content. So nice to read how she integrated running into writing, cross-training, teaching, giving-back-to-the-sport, and personal life so thoroughly & with fundamental joy (once you get past all that whining).

I finished it faster than I can run a marathon (I'm an elite-level reader, pace-wise. Plus, the chapters are very short...shorter than 'metric miles,' even). Yet it will stay with me a long, long time.

[Isaac Denton · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read. But at times felt pretty unrelatable as she talked about feeing slow but winning reaches and qualifying for Boston and New York. And being sponsored and running the race in the Himalayas. So for a fun, average runner like me it felt a little like, “wow, must be nice to not worry about what you eat or anything and then just go out and run fast.”
So I would recommend it but just know that she is fast and makes it sound like no big deal.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book may not have aged well. It’s a bit patronizing to other female runners. And her stories about banditing races are supposed to be kind of endearing, I guess? But they are not.
Still, some of the essays really ring true. As someone originally from NC, it was so fun to read about her running adventures in some of the same places I’ve been (Umstead, Duke golf course trail, etc).

[Katherine Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

The pick-me girl of running. She’s not like other girls, she gets along better with the boys. She’s goofy and disappointed with her first marathon time, but qualifies for Boston.
I’ve never read a book where it felt the author wanted you to be honored to hear their reflections in the way this book read.

[Craig Hayward · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well written. The author's stories of how they got into runner and the adventures of where it has taken them, I enjoyed. As a newer runner I can relate to things.

[Phillip Daniel · Rating 3 out of 5]

⭐️⭐️⭐️/5: An entertaining and honest look into how running can become an integral part of your life throughout the life cycle.

[Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great fun read! It was easy to relate to Toor's descriptions of races, placing in races, and going out to run. The whole time I read this, I think I wished I could have similar life style--run in the morning and then write (and/or coach)--but then I don't have a driving desire to run distances longer than a marathon.

Toor's description of Boston was one of the better descriptions I've read. There were still a few minor flaws, and it is now dated because the organizers of Boston have made more changes--Starting for the 2013 Boston Marathon all qualifying times will become 5 minutes faster, so for women 36 and under the qualifying time will be 3:35 and not 3:40. Unfortunately, the BAA is also removing the 59 second grace period, which Toor mentioned.

I'm not sure when Toor ran Boston, but her description that there is no one along the course for the first few miles is not true. Depending on the weather on the day of the race, the entire route my be lined from start to finish. There have been a few years in which there were almost as many people at the start--multiple people deep--as there are at the finish. In 2011 there were tons of people in the first few miles. That being said, in 2006 when the BAA introduced the wave start, if you were in the second wave, the first half of the course had fewer spectators.

I was envious of Toor's trip to Everest and wanted a bit more information about what the event was all about.

All-in-all a fun, fast read. I'd recommend it to any one who enjoys running.

[Terzah · Rating 2 out of 5]

An uneven collection of essays about my favorite sport by a Running Times columnist. My opinion of both the book and its author swung wildly depending on which piece I was reading. I really liked her account of the obscure sport of "ride and tie,"; her essays about pacing others formally and informally; her story of her relationship with her first coach; her own experience coaching cross-country. The ones that left me neutral included all the "list" pieces (list of her body parts; list of her running clothes; list of food in her pantry; list of reasons she loves her watch...yawn, even from the semi-obsessed runner that I am). The ones I hated: all the essays about men--the married ones she still thinks about (blech--I just felt sorry for their wives); the younger ones she lusts after (someone needs to get her some cougar-print tights); the one she left behind because he wasn't thin or fast enough ("Was it possible that his body--whose muscles did not announce themselves with the flamboyance of those with less padding--could ever be attractive to me?"). When she gets out of her own head and stops the navel-gazing, Toor is a good writer and observer. And maybe all the unpleasantness is just honesty. Honesty sounds great in theory, but when you see it like this (narcissistic descriptions of her body, her complaining, her Fraternal Order of Ex-Boyfriends), you might agree with me that some honesty is overrated.

[Lindsay K. Boucher · Rating 3 out of 5]

It has been my goal this year to run a marathon - I am still quite far from that goal but I've been trying to surround myself with things that will motivate me to accomplish this goal. This book was given to be my parents for Christmas. I really like the way that Rachel Toor writes! She treats her reader like an old friend. Holding nothing back & being completely honest about everything is so refreshing. I did feel that at times the book related less to the actual idea of running & more about how running helped her cope with personal trials. While I appreciate that running provided her the time & space needed to handle difficult situations it did not always help me in my preparation for running a marathon. I hope someday to be like a runner like Rachel!

[Nicole Modugno · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved that her stories weren't JUST about running. They tied in with things much bigger than her and the whole tension of her "love affair" was so captivating and relatable. She is a beautiful writer, yet blunt. I can appreciate it. I think running has humbled her as a person. I say this because she IS so brilliant; taking on a completely new lifestyle that she's never even touched before, is brave yet so humbling. She definitely brought me on her runs with her; it made me feel like a hypocrite when I wouldn't go on my morning run, and I would justify reading such a wonderful book about running instead haha.

[Jenny · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a good book and I enjoyed it, but it also felt to me like it was Rachel Toor's Shrine to Herself. Like it wasn't a book that was meant to inspire or explain how to get into running but more like "Look at all the things I've done! I'm amazing! I can run a qualifying time for Boston AND pace in a 100-mile ultra!" This sense of bragging could result from the fact that the book is a collection of articles/stories and thus only focus on the high points of her running career.

It's short and interesting, but not really a book geared toward the general population.

[Liz · Rating 4 out of 5]

It wasn't a bad book but the book jacket summary made me expect something much different. I was expecting a story about a struggle and an average runner who learned she could be a runner even though people never thought she would. Instead we heard random musings (which were funny and interesting) from someone who qualified for Boston during her first marathon. I don't want to judge anyone's life or running career, just as I don't want anyone to judge mine, and I hope that's not what it sounds like I'm doing. I just am a little confused about how the book was packaged.

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this book more, but I just couldn't relate to someone who qualifies for Boston the first time she runs a marathon. That being said, I did love this quote:
"Running is the act of catching yourself before you fall. It is about keeping yourself upright as you move forward. The faster you go, the more there is at stake. You strike a balance between how hard you can push yourself and still remain in control. You straddle the line between fearless and reckless. At times, even if you are doing everything right, you fall."

[Katie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was my first foray into the vast array of running memoirs. I was not all that impressed. While a few tidbits of this books were great, overall I had a hard time relating to it. I'm more of a back-of-the-pack runner, with no aspirations to move up to the front. Elite runners will probably get more into this book.

I will say that I did like the author's writing style. I just couldn't relate to the content.

[Heidi Larson · Rating 4 out of 5]

so, if i could run really fast for a long distance, i would write like rachel toor. short, choppy chapters made this a super easy read because none of the topics she addresses need more than 10 pages. and, if you run, you either know about what she's talking about or you really like to think you have any idea what running an ultramarathon would be like. she lets you know what it's like.

[Kim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though I will never run 50 miles in a day or win a marathon, it's fun to read about the experiences of someone who has, especially when that someone is as easy to read as Rachel Toor. Her style is witty, honest, and quick paced. I really liked how the chapters went back and forth between running minutia and personal stories.

[Helen · Rating 4 out of 5]

this was an interesting book about running. author is an ultra-marathoner. certain parts, i definitely could relate to. i enjoyed reading about her experiences at certain events (especially her description of the western state). it kind of lagged towards the end. but all in all, an enjoyable book....at least for a runner reading it...;-)

[Michelle Lines · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's hard for me not to enjoy reading a book about one of my favorite pastimes. I will say that I found the structure of the book to be kind of strange....part memoir (related to running), part random ramblings on various running topics. Overall it didn't really feel like it came together, but given the theme, I can overlook that.

[Jennifer · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book felt like a roller coaster ride to me. There were parts I really liked such as her explanation of why the NYC Marathon is so great, and parts that I was not that interested in such as her running-horse riding event. I also struggled with the book because I run but am not an amazing runner, and she seems to take her skills for granted.

[Melinda · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this for a peek into the life of a marathoner. I wasn't as engaged by her stories of her personal life, but reading her chapter about the Boston Marathon made me pause to consider if I could ever do it. I also have the NYC Marathon on my "someday" list. This was perfect side reading as I train for a half marathon 12 years after my first and only marathon. I'm glad I read it.