The economic crisis of the 1970s led to a golden era of running in the United States. This book tells the story of three running greats who captivated the American public from 1972 to 1981. Frank Shorter took home the gold medal in 1972’s Olympic marathon, making Americans—longtime admirers of baseball and football—take notice of distance running. In the summer of 1978, a junior from the University of Oregon named Alberto Salazar faced Olympic champion Frank Shorter and Boston Marathon champion Bill Rodgers at the Falmouth Road Race. Salazar lost in the last mile to Rodgers’s record-setting time, nearly dying from exhaustion. Shorter, Salazar, and Rodgers developed a great rivalry, each pushing the others to succeed, and their success fueled a lazy nation to become more active. While the sport’s popularity has never been matched since, although the United States is currently experiencing a running boom, this stirring narrative of three men hurtling themselves toward greatness is sure to inspire today’s runners.