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Running Ransom Road: Confronting the Past, One Marathon at a Time
by
Caleb Daniloff (Goodreads Author)
The monikers drunk, addict, abuser, and boozehound were Caleb Daniloff’s for fifteen years. Now, the introduction that fits him best is My name is Caleb and I am a runner.
In Running Ransom Road, Daniloff, many years sober, confronts his past by setting out, over the course of eighteen months, to run marathons in the cities where he once lived and wreaked havoc. Competing...more
In Running Ransom Road, Daniloff, many years sober, confronts his past by setting out, over the course of eighteen months, to run marathons in the cities where he once lived and wreaked havoc. Competing...more
Hardcover, 256 pages
Published
October 9th 2012
by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
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Since I'm both runner and a writer, I'm picky about running books. Most of what I've read, while informative, interesting and even well-written, lacked a certain gritty, truthful depth.
Then I discovered Caleb Daniloff's "Running Ransom Road."
Daniloff, a recovering alcoholic, uses running as his own personal 12-step program. As a means of cleansing his soul, he returns to painful places from his past and runs marathons (or, in a few cases, half-marathons and shorter distances).
As a marathoner my...more
Then I discovered Caleb Daniloff's "Running Ransom Road."
Daniloff, a recovering alcoholic, uses running as his own personal 12-step program. As a means of cleansing his soul, he returns to painful places from his past and runs marathons (or, in a few cases, half-marathons and shorter distances).
As a marathoner my...more
Caleb Daniloff is a former alcoholic and addict who is facing his demons by running marathons in locations where his life fell apart. I thought that was an interesting way to make amends and find closure.
Caleb's parents are both journalists. His father was transferred to Moscow when Caleb was in 6th grade. The family spent the next 5 years there until his father was arrested by the KGB and charged with espionage. His father was released within the same month and the family headed home to the Un...more
Caleb's parents are both journalists. His father was transferred to Moscow when Caleb was in 6th grade. The family spent the next 5 years there until his father was arrested by the KGB and charged with espionage. His father was released within the same month and the family headed home to the Un...more
Like a weekend long run, Caleb Daniloff's "Running Ransom Road" starts off sluggish and without enthusiasm. From the start it is clear that Daniloff has a rare and astounding ability to craft original, artful sentences. However, as a fellow marathon runner, I wondered why I should care about a thirtysomething man training as a non-qualifying participant for The Boston Marathon. Daniloff needed to pull in the reader earlier by describing rock bottom, by detailing the low points in his addiction-f...more
‘Running Ransom Road, Confronting The Past, One Marathon At A Time,’ by Caleb Daniloff, is an incredible book where the author’s attempt to come to terms with the self-destruction of his past is experienced during the visceral, spiritual, and emotional maelstrom of running a marathon.
The result is perhaps my favorite book on marathoning. It is certainly the one with the most dog-ears on my paperback copy, and definitely the one which spoke most personally to my experience as a marathoner and rec...more
The result is perhaps my favorite book on marathoning. It is certainly the one with the most dog-ears on my paperback copy, and definitely the one which spoke most personally to my experience as a marathoner and rec...more
A stark, meditative, very compelling memoir of a recovering alcoholic's obsession with running - he runs marathons in all of his "bad" places. The book is structured along these marathons, where we journey with him both along the route (so, some nice writing about the grueling march), as well as experience flashbacks to various points in his life.
The flashbacks don't necessarily progress chronologically, and it's generally impressionistic. But that's fine; the Tale of Alcoholism, after all, is...more
The flashbacks don't necessarily progress chronologically, and it's generally impressionistic. But that's fine; the Tale of Alcoholism, after all, is...more
I always enjoy learning about why others have chosen to start the journey of running a marathon. I am not that brave (yet) and only run half marathons but it is an equally challenging and rewarding adventure for me.
Caleb's book is broken up into seven chapters, one for each race that he runs. Intermingled between the story of his training and the race is his backstory into his alcoholic past. I found this book fascinating because of his descriptions and honesty of his past and his insight into w...more
Caleb's book is broken up into seven chapters, one for each race that he runs. Intermingled between the story of his training and the race is his backstory into his alcoholic past. I found this book fascinating because of his descriptions and honesty of his past and his insight into w...more
I like to calibrate how "good" a book is by how late into the night I am left reading. It manages to be "great" if it can inspire a real shift in consciousness during those late nights. Running Ransom Road is such a book. To say that it is mere confessional, or only a narrative on running through some real and metaphorical difficulties, is to sell it short. The content is as interesting as the way the various narratives are sewn together and this, to me, makes it a unique, fantastic read. Easily...more
I was very pleased to win Running Ransom Road through GoodReads. I am not a runner and have had a pretty tame life compared to Mr. Daniloff, but his story is about much more than running and marathons and what a "bad boy" he was.
It was quite intriguing to go though his life with him as he both looked back and ran forward. I enjoyed reading about his thoughts as he ran- I do not "get" why people do marathons and run this way, but it was definitely part of his healing process.
Daniloff writes wit...more
It was quite intriguing to go though his life with him as he both looked back and ran forward. I enjoyed reading about his thoughts as he ran- I do not "get" why people do marathons and run this way, but it was definitely part of his healing process.
Daniloff writes wit...more
Without question, "Running Ransom Road" is one of the most amazing book I have ever had the pleasure to read. The author Caleb Daniloff, journalist and contributor to Public Radio, puts it all out there for the world to see. His addiction to alcohol, his bed wetting as a child, his dysfunctional and anti-social behavior, and so much more craziness through his life as an adult is documented. Daniloff did not follow the A.A. path to sobriety, although he implemented some of their precepts in his r...more
"There are countless souls in sneakers running away from something, or better, running through and past whatever it is that haunts them." Caleb Daniloff
This is the story about one mans journey of sobriety and the part that running holds for him in maintaining that recovery, both from that addiction and to learning to care for and forgive himself.
I found that although I don't have an alcohol or drug addiction, I was able to identify with a lot of his self image issues that he talks about. I used...more
This is the story about one mans journey of sobriety and the part that running holds for him in maintaining that recovery, both from that addiction and to learning to care for and forgive himself.
I found that although I don't have an alcohol or drug addiction, I was able to identify with a lot of his self image issues that he talks about. I used...more
Well written book about the demons Caleb Daniloff was running from (aren't we all?). He highlights several marathons over the course of a year, one of which was the Marine Corps Marathon (which I ran in 1986). Caleb Daniloff is not an elite runner, so I could relate to his experiences. And, even though I was not addicted to alcohol, I've been addicted to plenty else in my life, so I could also relate to his pre-running experiences. If you are a runner, elite or otherwise, you will love this book...more
I thought the premise was good, but I was a little put off by his attitude towards people who walk when they run. It was such a minute thing in the book and I'm not sure why I was so offended by it, except for that he kept bringing it up. The writing was okay. It kept jumping back and forth between the race he was running and the past and I had a hard time keeping up. Overall, a decent enough read, though not as riveting as I would have liked.
The author describes, in detail, seven races he has run. Alternating thoughts about past problems with alcohol add a new dimension. The runner runs instead of drinking.
The book is an unusual combination of two addictions. The runner-self is the victor.
I received this book free through the goodreads FIRST READS program.
The book is an unusual combination of two addictions. The runner-self is the victor.
I received this book free through the goodreads FIRST READS program.
Caleb Daniloff is a skilled writer. His sentences and paragraphs are quite lovely and evocative. This story though is disorganized, sometimes confusing in its chronology and geography. If one is going to tell a story through flashbacks, one needs to be very clear when things happened, relative to each other, and where.
Kind of hard to read a running memoir right now as I've been taking some time (a year!) off from running due to a mysterious and elusive injury. This book made me really really miss running which must be a testament to Caleb's ability to convey what a magical, transformative act running can be.
An enjoyable self-exposing book about how running saved this writer's life. The articulation of what it feels like to run long distances and about understanding yourself is well worded, and very touching.
Caleb Daniloff opens up about his life as an alcoholic as he travels to the cities he used to live in to run marathons. The book mixes the past and the present to weave a compelling and emotionally captivating story. I really got caught up in his story and enjoyed every page of it. And as a running, I certainly identified with the descriptions of the races.
My full review at Epinions.
My full review at Epinions.
Read the first half, was repetitive, skimmed the rest and put it in my "bring back to the library" pile. Kind of meh unless you're super into memoirs.
If you run at all this is a really good book to read. This man has obviously been through a lot more than most of us will ever have to deal with in our lives but his insights on the runs would hit home with any runner. But it's not a book on running as much as a story of a runner. I found it very interesting.
Daniloff's musings on running, its effects, and runner's relationships with the sport ring true
to runner's NOT facing demons and addictions.
to runner's NOT facing demons and addictions.
Enjoyed the running bits more than I enjoyed the addiction memoir bits interspersed throughout.
I always like memoirs and how a person overcomes their problem.
Another running-saved-my-alcoholic/drug-addicted-ass memoir.
enjoying this book; good writing style and holds my interest; I care about this guy already and I'm only on page 50
loved this book. will read anything else by this author. candid, real, easy read. nice!
loved this book. will read anything else by this author. candid, real, easy read. nice!
Man confronts his past through running.
Good stuff!
Daniloff is a master of the metaphor. Compelling, thoughtful, practical and personal. I devoured this book.
What an honest and courageous story. I love how each running event corresponds to something from his past life and how he tries to put them in the past, even letting go trying to control outcomes with pace-setting, diets etc. The ending of the woman trying to start up running was special. Those critics who complain that Daniloff is all over the place are missing the point.
Could this be the Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance for runners?
I received a free copy from the Goodreads First Reads Program.
I enjoy running and it was nice to read a book on this topic.
I enjoy running and it was nice to read a book on this topic.
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Caleb Daniloff was born in 1969 in Washington, D.C. In 1981, the shy and nervous sixth‑grader moved with his parents to the former Soviet Union, where his father, Nicholas, was stationed as bureau chief for U.S. News & World Report. Caleb was enrolled in Soviet Pioneer camp, Soviet school, and a rigorous Soviet gymnastics program, soon dreaming in Russian and passing for a Muscovite. Not surpr...more
More about Caleb Daniloff...
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Jan 12, 2013 02:23am