A Cold Clear Day: The Athletic Biography of Buddy Edelen

Reading this book was a delight. What got was that Buddy was nobody special at first - just another guy in the American collegiate system. Nonetheless, he took a risk, went to England to train with and compete against the best, and it paid off with a marathon world record. The glimpses into Buddy's mind are great, especially the narrative portion about the Olympic trials at Yonkers. You can't read this book and not love Buddy Edelen.

As a runner in Alamosa, where Buddy lived for many years, I was shocked to learn one day that a friend of mine was the son of this former world record holder. Having of course never read the book, much less heard of the man himself, I found myself buying this biography of Buddy Edelen. What I discovered was awe-inspiring: a man who worked himself past the brink only to run into oblivion. Even had I not known some of the particulars of Buddy's life, "A Cold, Clear Day" impressed me with a great sense of respect for Buddy as an athlete. Beyond tough, he deserves to be remembered in the annals of running lore.

When I picked up this book I did not know who Buddy Edelen was. This is right up there with the best running biographies I have read. If you love a good sports biography, whether you are a runner or not, pick this up. GREAT READ!

What I found so amazing in Frank Murphy's work is his lyrical skill that makes this non-fiction book read like a wonderful tale.Historical accuracy and insightful exploration of personal determination give a clear psychological landscape of the kind of athlete that put long distance running on the map of today's sports.A must read not only for long distance runners, but for poets as well.

This is about One of the premier runners in American history yet he is relatively unkown. He prefered the relative solitude and training methods that are now employed by the great Kenyan runners before anyone knew of Kenyan runners. This book is a highly motivational book for anyone training to run a serious marathon yet it would be good for a beginning runner also. Buddy Edelen was a class runner who didn't need drugs or "aids" to set a world record in 1963. I have personally read this book at least 10 times and will no doubt continue to read it.