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Rating: 
Summary: Not that good.
Review: Do NOT buy this book. If you buy it, please buy my used one listed in Amazon Used Books. Pardon me for my english in my writing. It is second language for me.This book is not such a good one. Bob Babbit writes a better magazine called Competitor. I guess I expect too much of him and the book fall short on expectation. I buy book because he make an ad in his magazine I pick up in California. This book not so good.
Rating: 
Summary: The Go To Book
Review: Forget about the coffee table,t his book is one you should keep by your bed side and dream of the Ironman.
In one book, the author manages to capture the characters and color that define the Ironman Triathlon-this will become the quintessential history on the event and it earns the 25th anniversary title. From the historical race figures such as Dave Scott and Mark Allen to the Judy Molnars, this book reaches the common reader and fanatic. The pictures are great, I am going to take mine with me all season and have people autograph their pages...Enjoy it!
Rating:
Summary: Not that good.
Review: If you know who Bob Babbitt is, you don't need any other reason to purchase his book. In that case, I will assure you that it is everything you could possibly expect from the editor of Competitor Magazine and then some. As you read the captions and relive the moments in each year's race summary, you can't help but smile with gleeful anticipation of your next trip to the finish line. If you have difficulty explaining your compulsive addiction to your family and friends, this book will help bridge the gap. The pictures are stunning not only in their completeness but also in the quality with which they have been reproduced. You might remember the scene from a videotape or broadcast or maybe you were even lucky enough to see it live. But never have you seen the athletes leap from such glossy pages with the detail and ferocity that they do from Babbitt's creation. Still, perhaps you don't really know who Bob is. Honestly, I didn't realize he had been inducted into the Ironman Hall of Fame in 2001 until I saw the list in his book. I understood his mantra and I have always been happy to digest his publication whenever I stumble upon it. But, I never really assimilated what was so unique about Bob Babbitt until the night I spent with my nose glued to the pages of his book. I read every word, cover to cover. This was the night before a relatively important half Ironman race. I should have been sleeping, but I was transfixed. I had always wondered why so many have said that Bob Babbitt has given back more to the sport than anyone else. The answer to my confusion lies entirely in the perspective that this humble and humourous man so graciously shares with anyone and everyone. Yes, you can get all of the factual history from Tinley's voluminous musings. And you get get the buzz of Kona from reading Mike Plant's Iron Will. You can be an armchair pro by reading about Brad Kearns' adventures. You can obsess about every detail of each workout in your schedule with Joel Friel's guidance. But none of these experiences give you the cumulative clarity and insight you get from Babbitt. Babbitt's true gift to all of us is his understanding of how we view the giants and dwarfs of our sport, how we obsess about the great battles all the way from the front to the back. Babbitt can see exactly how we respect the grueling journey, the brutal conditions and obscene distances that make Kona so much more than just another race. Sure, Phil Liggett can bark through the leaderboard with his charming accent and amusing wit. Mike Riley can keep a crowd dancing for hours. Both of them are legends of our sport and without them it just wouldn't feel authentic. But neither of them can bring the experience home to your coffee table after the fact the way Babbitt has. While it may be impossible to dislike Babbitt and his clearly selfless ambitions, it is even more difficult to put on his glasses and not see Kona more clearly than you ever did before. You simply cannot read his words and not feel the excitement and drama he wants to share with you. There are only two pages of the book that really don't belong, 48 and 49. They exist as a sad testament to the reality that nothing about triathlon seems to make any financial sense. Those two pages, however, are overwhelmingly offset by 126 and 127. Relive those 80's haircuts, see Jurgen in his Zorro shot, and revel in the cheesy humor that Babbitt has gotten all too good at through the years. If you want one reason to convince you of Babbitt's greatness, flip to this pair of pages and stay a while. In a sense, it's a mild spatterring of his life's work. It's also an extremely abbreviated list of the major players in Kona. But look beyond the faces, hair, gear, and race attire and you'll see Bob Babbitt waving at you from the pages of his book. He is inviting you to share his vision for a moment, making you feel like the most honored guest he has ever known as he serves up heaping portions of grit, determination, courage, and desire. I put together the best multisport race of my life the day after reading this book. Thanks Bob!
Rating:
Summary: The Ironman Triathlon World Championships Desk Reference
Review: If you know who Bob Babbitt is, you don't need any other reason to purchase his book. In that case, I will assure you that it is everything you could possibly expect from the editor of Competitor Magazine and then some. As you read the captions and relive the moments in each year's race summary, you can't help but smile with gleeful anticipation of your next trip to the finish line. If you have difficulty explaining your compulsive addiction to your family and friends, this book will help bridge the gap. The pictures are stunning not only in their completeness but also in the quality with which they have been reproduced. You might remember the scene from a videotape or broadcast or maybe you were even lucky enough to see it live. But never have you seen the athletes leap from such glossy pages with the detail and ferocity that they do from Babbitt's creation. Still, perhaps you don't really know who Bob is. Honestly, I didn't realize he had been inducted into the Ironman Hall of Fame in 2001 until I saw the list in his book. I understood his mantra and I have always been happy to digest his publication whenever I stumble upon it. But, I never really assimilated what was so unique about Bob Babbitt until the night I spent with my nose glued to the pages of his book. I read every word, cover to cover. This was the night before a relatively important half Ironman race. I should have been sleeping, but I was transfixed. I had always wondered why so many have said that Bob Babbitt has given back more to the sport than anyone else. The answer to my confusion lies entirely in the perspective that this humble and humourous man so graciously shares with anyone and everyone. Yes, you can get all of the factual history from Tinley's voluminous musings. And you get get the buzz of Kona from reading Mike Plant's Iron Will. You can be an armchair pro by reading about Brad Kearns' adventures. You can obsess about every detail of each workout in your schedule with Joel Friel's guidance. But none of these experiences give you the cumulative clarity and insight you get from Babbitt. Babbitt's true gift to all of us is his understanding of how we view the giants and dwarfs of our sport, how we obsess about the great battles all the way from the front to the back. Babbitt can see exactly how we respect the grueling journey, the brutal conditions and obscene distances that make Kona so much more than just another race. Sure, Phil Liggett can bark through the leaderboard with his charming accent and amusing wit. Mike Riley can keep a crowd dancing for hours. Both of them are legends of our sport and without them it just wouldn't feel authentic. But neither of them can bring the experience home to your coffee table after the fact the way Babbitt has. While it may be impossible to dislike Babbitt and his clearly selfless ambitions, it is even more difficult to put on his glasses and not see Kona more clearly than you ever did before. You simply cannot read his words and not feel the excitement and drama he wants to share with you. There are only two pages of the book that really don't belong, 48 and 49. They exist as a sad testament to the reality that nothing about triathlon seems to make any financial sense. Those two pages, however, are overwhelmingly offset by 126 and 127. Relive those 80's haircuts, see Jurgen in his Zorro shot, and revel in the cheesy humor that Babbitt has gotten all too good at through the years. If you want one reason to convince you of Babbitt's greatness, flip to this pair of pages and stay a while. In a sense, it's a mild spatterring of his life's work. It's also an extremely abbreviated list of the major players in Kona. But look beyond the faces, hair, gear, and race attire and you'll see Bob Babbitt waving at you from the pages of his book. He is inviting you to share his vision for a moment, making you feel like the most honored guest he has ever known as he serves up heaping portions of grit, determination, courage, and desire. I put together the best multisport race of my life the day after reading this book. Thanks Bob!
Rating:
Summary: Ironman Experience
Review: In short this book is superb , anyone that has had anything to do with the Ironman and especially those that have finished the Ironman will relish this book . The book provides a wonderful historical documentation of the Ironman through words and photos . The photos are wonderful and the stories contained within are written in Bob Babbitts unique quirky style . The book also lists the the placegetters of every race since the inaugral race of 1978 . Put it along side Tinleys historical photo book . Well worth getting this one !
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful and Amazing
Review: This is truly a coffee table book - the photographs are stunning and the stories are amazing. The Hawaiian Ironman is a special race and this book conveys all the beauty, drama, joy, and pain that make up the unique experience of the race.
Leave this book on your coffee table and you will be touched again and again by the memorable images and inspirational stories. The people who have finished this race are truly amazing individuals and they are colorfully profiled in this book. A must have for anyone who dreams of calling themselves an "Ironman."
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