The Unforgiving Hours

How far can you go? What is your limit? Are competing in an ultramarathon at age 70, sailing from Washington State to Alaska without a motor, swimming the English Channel at age 15, and running the Boston Marathon in reverse and then turning around to race it conventionally really crazy ideas? Shannon Hogan dives into the world of endurance sports by taking us on the journeys of unheralded athletes tackling extraordinary quests. Here are just a few: Lynne Cox broke the record English Channel swim at age 15. Jeanne Goussev and Kelly Danielson, led the first all-woman sailing team to win the Race to Alaska. Yuichiro Hidaka dreamt of eating potato chips while running the Boston Double for the fourth time. Gunhild Swanson ran the Western States 100 Endurance Run just five days shy of her 71st birthday. Gordon Wadsworth opted for just one gear to race in the the hardest mountain bike race in the world. Melissa Kegler trained for two years to break the American Ice Mile Distance record in 39.2F water. And Seana Hogan, the current cycling transcontinental female record holder (set at age 35) fighting the race clock and Father Time to finish Race Across America at age 60. Here''s proof that with stout planning and a fighting spirit, remarkable things can happen.