El Caballo Blanco/ Born To Run

   Along with my gift of a Learn-to-Run clinic, one of the things I received for Father's Day was a book called "Born To Run". Now you need to forget Springsteen, this was a whole different "Born To Run", it was written by Christopher McDougall and bears the subtitle "A Hidden Tribe, Super Athletes and the Greatest Race the World Has Never Seen".

El Caballo Blanco

   A simple question posed to his doctor a few years back started McDougall on the quest which resulted in him writing this book. The question was "Why does my foot hurt?" The answer sent him to Mexico in search of the Raramuri (also known as the Tarahumara) tribe, a race of super-runners who inhabit the almost impenetrable Copper Canyons. The one person who might be able to connect him with this tribe is the nearly mythical "El Caballo Blanco" (translated as "The White Horse"). McDougall eventually finds El Caballo (aka Micah True) (aka Michael Randall Hickman) and the adventure begins.

Christopher McDougall

   El Caballo hooks McDougall up with the Tarahumara and he is able to learn a little bit about their temperament, their lifestyle and their approach to running. Their approach is a joyful, uncomplicated and minimalist one. They run hundreds of miles in the highly dangerous Copper canyons in sandals, eschewing the high-tech running wear which is foisted upon us by way of modern advertising and expert opinion. The Tarahumara are also their own nutritionists, taking high energy from the land around them. One of the things that impresses McDougall the most, though, is the complete joy the Tarahumara get from running.
   Along the way, El Caballo gets the crazy idea of staging a race between the Tarahumara and the best ultra marathoners in North America. A large portion of the book is dedicated to his efforts in getting these runners together and competing against each other. It is a fascinating group of runners and it is hard to cheer for any one in particular. While reading the book, it occurred to me that it would make a wonderful movie, only to discover later on that a movie is already in the works.
   McDougall also goes to great lengths to take the physical act of running and give it its rightful place in the history of mankind. It is, after all, an activity that is ingrained in all of us, since birth. More than this, it is what has enabled us to both escape danger and hunt down food since the dawn of time. McDougal proposes that Neanderthal men were awesome physical specimens but eventually were replaced by a species of man that was far less strong and powerful. What this new type of man had that the Neanderthal lacked was the ability to run long distances. This, then, enabled them to hunt food simply by running it down! Assuredly, most prey was initially much quicker than the men chasing it but was not able to keep this up over long distances. As long as the hunters could keep the prey within sight, the prey would, in its fear, eventually drop dead of its own accord.
   Another focus of the book is how technology has done the human body more harm than good, when it comes to running. McDougall supplies medical statistics showing the increase in running-related injuries since the inception of the modern running shoe (read Nike). Once again, he points to the Tarahumara, who run miles in only sandals and are almost injury-free. The foot is described as the perfect running machine, giving you just the right amount of support as you walk and run. Modern technology, with all its arch support and cushioning has taken this away.
   All in all, it is a fascinating book to read and hard to put down. It serves well to re-acquaint one with the spirit of running and I found myself just wanting to get out there every night after I was done reading.

Micah True

   I do need to end this on somewhat of a sad note. After reading the book, I found myself Googling some of the main participants. In doing so, I discovered that El Caballo had actually passed away. Early in March of this year, he went out for a run in Mexico's Gila National Forest and never returned. The authorities and a whole collection of his friends went searching for him and eventually his body was discovered by a friend, lying near a creek bed. Apparently his heart simply gave out on him. He was legendary in a ghostly and reclusive sort of way and, at the same time, not keen on being in the spotlight. His was a fascinating character amongst a host of them.
   I have purposely tried to not tell you too much about the book. It seemed as though once or twice a night while I was reading it, I would go holy crap and would then need to grab Doralyn's attention so I could tell her about the most recent amazing thing I'd just found out about. I heartily recommend it, possibly even if you are not a runner but, most assuredly, if you are one!