The Perfect Mile Audiobook By Neal Bascomb cover art

The Perfect Mile

Three Athletes. One Goal. And Less Than Four Minutes to Achieve It

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The Perfect Mile

By: Neal Bascomb
Narrated by: Nelson Runger
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In the tradition of Seabiscuit, critically acclaimed author Neal Bascomb reaches back to the golden age of sport and crafts an utterly captivating narrative of what may be the most remarkable athletic feat of all time.

They said it could never be done. No human could ever run a mile in less than four minutes. In 1952, three amazing athletes begged to differ; English medical student Roger Bannister, Australian privileged son John Landy, and American farm boy Wes Santee. At a time when war raged in Korea and Edmund Hillary dared to scale Mount Everest, these three marvelous runners raced into the spotlight and stole the attention of a breathless world.

Dramatic, exciting, and gloriously reminiscent, The Perfect Mile is an endlessly fascinating tale of heroic achievement and a testament to the determination of the human spirit.

©2004 Neal Bascomb (P)2004 Recorded Books, LLC Running & Jogging Sports History Track & Field Sports Inspiring Heartfelt

Editorial reviews

Why You Should Download This Audiobook: Part of what it means to be human and alive is to achieve. We relish stories like Apollo 11 and Captain Matthew Webb's swimming the English Channel because adversity was overcome by extraordinary skill and effort. Neal Bascomb's account of the men behind the four-minute mile is just such a story, filled with struggle and relentless optimism. We were really impressed by it.

Critic reviews

"Bascomb's excellent account captures all of the human drama and competitive excitement of this legendary racing event." (Publishers Weekly)
Inspiring Athletic Journey • Compelling Historical Account • Consistent Clear Narration • Excellent Biographical Storytelling
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This book is about how Roger Bannister broke the four minute mile. Although the story is only about 50 years old, the author does a great job of illustrating how different "running" was looked at back then. Of course, the story is really about the athletisism, politics, social conscious and global competitive environment in the post World War II era.

run with the wind

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Get ready for a terrific walk down athletic memory lane.
Makes me wish I was born twenty years earlier!!!

Great book Great race

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This is a compelling story about the men who pushed the limits of their time and bodies to achieve what was believed impossible. As a physiologists and coach, I enjoyed the historical training perspectives.

A worthy listen for running and non running fans

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Who knew track and field could be portrayed in such a way as to make me cry with joy.

Captivating

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This book reminded me what sports is truly all about. It’s the journey as in life that leads you to greatness. It’s the struggle on and off the track. Pro sports particularly in 2020 have lost that. I long for the days when sport was a sport.

The 4 min mile!

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If you enjoy reading about the personal achievements of people in their striving to reach goals - this is a good story that tells how several people chasing the 4 minute mile pursue the goal in their lives. Great stuff

Super book on real life

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I loved the way the stories of these three runners were woven together. The presentation was damaging and inspiring.

Inspirational!

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I really enjoyed this book, listened to it on many runs. Kept me going on a 20 mile training run in the snow and rain.

Inspirational!

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Learned many things about Bannister and Landy that I never knew. The author and narrator do a good job of keeping your interest. I would have to say one of the best books I have listened to this year. Right up there with Cinderella Man.

Compelling listen

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Neal Bascomb did some great research and he does a wonderful job putting this battle between John Landy, Wes Santee and Roger Bannister-all fantastic runners-to page. You really get to know the runners and what made them tick. As somebody who was a huge fan of distance runners as a kid in Minnesota, who idolized Dave Wottle, Frank Shorter and Steve Prefontaine, this was really an excellent book that was very well narrated.

High Drama Breaking the 4 minute mile barrier

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