Endurance Sport and the American Philosophical Tradition, edited by Douglas R. Hochstetler, analyzes the relationship between endurance sports-such as running, cycling, and swimming-and themes from the American philosophical tradition. The contributors enter into dialogue with writers such as Ralph Waldo Emerson, William James, Henry David Thoreau, and John Dewey, as well as more recent scholars such as John McDermott and bell hooks. Examining American philosophical themes informs issues in endurance sport, and the experiential nature of endurance sport helps address philosophical issues and explain philosophical themes in American philosophy. The chapters bear witness to the fact that philosophy is not limited to abstract notions such as justice, truth, happiness, and so forth, but intersects with and has a bearing on our human endeavors of work and play. Furthermore, the themes centrally related to the American philosophical tradition align closely with the challenges and experiences present and faced by runners, cyclists, swimmers, and endurance athletes in general.
Douglas Hochstetler is professor of kinesiology and director of academic affairs at Penn State Lehigh Valley.
Contents Foreword: Amby Burfoot Introduction: The nature of American philosophy and endurance sport Douglas Hochstetler Running and musing: Living philosophically Douglas Anderson When continentalism meets pragmatism - Enduring life in the strenuous mood Ron Welters Floyd Landis, endurance sport and the aesthetics of tension Tim Elcombe 6. Sunrise, Sunset: Reflections on what makes an aging biker's life significant Scott Kretchmar 7. Representative endurance athlete Peter Hopsicker 8. Cooking up a plan: Pragmatism and training Pam R. Sailors and Cody D. Cash 9. Dewey goes the distance: Situated habit and ultraendurance sports Jesus Ilundain-Agurruza, Shaun Gallagher, Daniel D. Hutto, Kaarina Beam 10. "The will to believe," the will to win, and the problem of self-transcendence Jeffrey Fry 11. On meaning and motive in endurance sport: An experiential romp through the grand whys Scott Tinley 12. Circles of life: Evaluating goals and preparing for the future Douglas Hochstetler Bibliography Contributor Biographies
Readers may wonder whether this book, as edited by Hochstetler (Pennsylvania State Univ. Lehigh Valley), represents the response of its various authors to the modern growth of endurance sport or to life in a world that rarely allows for time to be with oneself. Perhaps it is both, with contributing authors examining in the process the foundations of the American philosophical tradition. Hochstetler asks "to what extent, and in what ways, does endurance sport play at least a small part in our quest to live a meaningful and gathered life in a world that is so harried?" This question is examined through the lens of American philosophical thinking in the nine essays gathered here. These are densely written pieces, demanding that readers take time to contemplate and reflect. Only athletes thoroughly devoted to their craft would attempt to run a fifty-mile race. So too should the reader of this text be schooled in philosophical reasoning. The demand on readers ensures that this book is not for novices, but the reward for those willing to engage with the text is a highly stimulating, even life-changing examination of the aspiration and training required for performance in endurance sport. Summing Up: Highly recommended. Upper-division undergraduates through faculty; professionals. * Choice * "In this book, American philosophy merges creatively and innovatively with endurance sport, and the other way around. What emerges is, borrowing from George Santayana, an outstanding 'work of imagination' that invites us to conceive ourselves through engagement with endurance sport as well as through critical reflection of that engagement. This excellent book highlights that crafting a life of significance is possible for those who take chances in endurance sport and for those who take chances ruminating about it." -- Cesar R. Torres, State University of New York "Endurance Sport and the American Philosophical Tradition provides thoughtful perspectives on just why endurance sport and philosophy are intertwined. Enduring one's physicality provides the opportunity for existential clarity, and one's ability to describe this state of being is enhanced by the perspectives of these scholars. As Scott Tinley notes, 'As endurance athletes, by definition we must go to our borders to find our center.' These essays will help both the thoughtful endurance athlete and the enduring, physical intellectual do just this." -- Steven Estes, Middle Tennessee State University "Endurance Sport and the American Philosophical Tradition makes evident that endurance athletes and American philosophers are fellow travelers in the search for the makings of a meaningful life. The key themes of American philosophy will resonate with endurance athletes. The experiences of endurance athletes will provide a source for philosophical musings. The essays in this collection insightfully intertwine endurance sport and American philosophy, leaving the reader with a deeper appreciation of both." -- Douglas W. McLaughlin, California State University "This book will resonate with anyone who 'endures' and commits to any meaningful, life-fulfilling project - physical, sporting or otherwise, and who also thinks in a philosophical way, be that idiosyncratically, intermittently, and imprecisely. In that regard it captures a likely truth about human life - that if to endure is a crucial necessity of life, then one must consider how such striving can best be embraced." -- Alun Hardman, Cardiff Metropolitan University
