Showing titles in Sports Writing

Raven Kraft has changed the lives of thousands who have run with him - many of them hundreds of times. From all 50 states and dozens of countries, across all age groups and backgrounds, they come to run with Raven, and in the process find friendship, inspiration - and a nickname. Among them is author Laura Lee "White Lightning" Huttenbach, who has logged over 1,000 miles of Raven Runs. Here she explores the stories of dozens of others about why they started running with Raven - and why they keep coming back.

The Sixers won 65 games and an NBA championship in 1982-83, still one of the finest seasons in NBA history. It was Moses Malone who, in the days before the playoffs, gave the team its battle cry. Asked by coach Billy Cunningham how he thought things would go in the playoffs, Moses said, "Fo’, fo’, fo’,” - meaning, in Moses' shorthand, that he expected the Sixers to sweep each of the three series they would need to play in order to win a championship.

From junior high football games to the Sugar Bowl with a national championship up for grabs, Mike Liner has seen it all in football. President and CEO of a bank by day, Liner has been a Texas football official on Fridays and Saturdays for the past 35 years. It’s Not All Black and White offers a view of college football seen through a different set of eyes, the eyes of an official. Liner takes listeners through the story of his ascension up the officiating hierarchy and describes the bumps in the road he encountered along the way.

For those who dare, things often go wrong on the sea. Deep Blue offers some of literature's greatest stories about the ocean and the people who risk its wrath. Castaways, pirates, and victims of shipwreck all fight to survive in far-flung places and under harrowing circumstances. Together, these works offer a convincing reminder of the sea's dangers and mysteries.

The best stories about one of baseball's most colorful teams - updated to include their recent glory years. Since 1883, the Philadelphia Phillies have been up, down, and all around. Most recently, thanks to Charlie Manuel, the Phillies have become a National League powerhouse, with four NL East titles, two pennants and the 2008 World Series championship to show for it. In Tales from the Philadelphia Phillies Dugout Rich Westcott takes listeners behind the scenes into the glorious, quirky, and victorious stories that make this team the legend it is.

The Secrets of Sports Psychology Revealed by Rick Wolff, one of the pioneers in the field of sports psychology, is based upon his many years of clinical, hands-on work with top professional and amateur athletes in a variety of sports. He provides real insight into what does - and doesn’t - work.

Stepping into the ring against light-heavyweight champion Archie Moore, George Plimpton pauses to wonder what ever induced him to become a participatory journalist. Bloodied but unbowed, he holds his own in the bout—and lives to tell in this timeless book on boxing and its devotees, among them Ali, Joe Frazier, Ernest Hemingway, and Norman Mailer.

Ohio coaching legend Paul Brown said he wanted to create "the New York Yankees of pro football" when he assembled the Cleveland Browns from scratch in 1946. Despite his ambition, not even the future Hall of Fame coach could have foreseen ten league championship appearances and seven titles in the team's first ten years.

Each week, when Sports Illustrated's 21 million readers open up their magazine, many turn right to the last page - because that's where to find SI's most popular feature: the Life of Reilly column, written by best-selling author Rick Reilly. This new collection includes 100 of Reilly's favorite columns from the last six years, along with an introduction by Lance Armstrong.

Since the creation of the Minnesota Vikings in 1960, this football team has been more than just another franchise. To the fans who love them, and the haters who can’t help but admire them, the Minnesota Vikings are an unstoppable force in the NFL. In this heartwarming and inspirational book, Jim Bruton takes a look beyond the game and examines what the Minnesota Vikings have meant to fans and communities across the country.

Famous games and players have been the hallmark of the New York Rangers from their NHL debut in 1926 to the present day. From Frank Boucher and the original Blueshirts to Jaromir Jagr, the Rangers have thrilled their fans with some of the most memorable performances in hockey history. In Game of My Life: New York Rangers, John Halligan and John Kreiser share the recollections of 24 of the most famous names in Rangers history as they discuss the most memorable games in their careers.

On the face of it, women's sport is on the rise, garnering more attention and grassroots involvement than ever before. However, the truth is that in many respects progress is stalling, or even falling back. Sharron Davies is no stranger to battling the routine sexism the sporting world. She missed out on Olympic Gold because of blatant doping among East German athletes in the 1980s, and has never received justice. Now, biological males are being allowed to compete directly against women under the guise of trans 'self-ID', a development that could destroy the integrity of female sport.

With self-deprecation and surprising wit, Marla reveals what it's like to see the world through her eyes, how it feels to grow up "disabled" in a society where expectations are often based on perceived abilities, and what it means to compete at the world-class level despite the fact that - quite literally, for her - there is no finish line.

What does it take to win a major championship and reach the absolute pinnacle of golf? Through a season of the four tournaments - the Masters, the U.S. Open, the British Open, and the PGA Championship - known collectively as the majors, John Feinstein takes us where the television cameras never go, both off the links and "inside the ropes", as he reveals the special challenges and rituals, the frustrations and exhilaration, that mark the lives and careers of the world's greatest golfers.

On January 1, 1966, New York came to a standstill as the city's transit workers went on strike. This was the first day on the job for Mayor John Lindsay - a handsome, young former congressman with presidential aspirations - and he would approach the issue with an unconventional outlook that would be his hallmark. Against this backdrop, too, the sporting scene saw tremendous upheaval.

In this debut, Carton invites the listener to join him as he recounts tales from his suburban youth, defends his long-held love affair with the New York Jets, reminisces about the shenanigans of some of the highest paid and most celebrated athletes playing today, and reflects on his work as one of radio's craftiest, most hilarious personalities ever to get behind the microphone.

On June 10, 2006, four college friends stepped into a 29-foot rowboat as the only American competitors in the first North Atlantic Rowing Race. From the initial idea and chaotic race planning to heaving through cold ocean swells, author and lead rower Jordan Hansen takes us along as the crew heads out from New York Harbor, racing against three other teams; catches the elusive Gulf Stream current; and makes the final dramatic push for the finish line off the coast of England.

Since the fighting Irish first took to the field in 1887, Notre Dame has developed an incomparable level of tradition and achievement - both on the gridiron and in the classroom. With a record 96 All-American players and seven Heisman Trophy winners, it's no wonder several of Notre Dame's stars have gone on not only to star in the NFL, but also to successful careers and accolades in all walks of life. Notre Dame: Where Have You Gone? catches up with Fighting Irish players.

From Mike Pesca, host of the popular Slate podcast The Gist, comes the greatest sports minds imagining how the world would change if a play, trade, injury, or referee's call had just gone the other way. Upon Further Review takes classic arguments conducted over pints in a pub and places them in the hands of writers, athletes, and historians. From turning points that every sports fan rues or celebrates to the forgotten would-be inflection points that defined sports, it answers age-old questions, and settles the score, even if the score bounced off the crossbar.

50 runners, from the world's elite to passionate amateurs, share the races they'll never forget. Every runner that enters a race has a unique reason for competing: racing for the challenge, for the achievement, for the health benefits, or for more personal reasons. But whether they are twenty-mile-a-day elite marathoners or twenty-mile-a-week recreational runners, each of them can invariably point to a singular performance as "the best race I ever ran."