Reviews
"The 1989 Ironman World Championship is widely considered the most epic race in Ironman history, if not all of endurance sport. In his new book Iron War , Fitzgerald recounts in gripping detail the showdown between Mark Allen and Dave Scott. Iron War delves into the vastly different personalities and psyches of these two iconic athletes and presents an anatomy of mental toughness that both men shared." - Triathlete magazine "Dave Scott and Mark Allen had one of the greatest battles in sport history during their epic 1989 Ironman Hawaii matchup. Matt Fitzgerald captures the spirit of that duel in Iron War: Dave Scott, Mark Allen and the Greatest Race Ever Run . Iron War really a book that should be on your bookshelf if you have even the slightest interest in the sport of triathlon, but it also is a great read for anyone looking for inspiration in general." - Slowtwitch.com , "There couldn't be two more divergent individuals in a single sport than Dave Scott and Mark Allen. One is an old-school jock (Scott) for whom victory comes with hard work, constant training, and a hard-edge attitude. The other (Allen) takes a more spiritual approach, letting his body tell him what it needs and freeing his mind of all negativity. Their different approaches served both men well as triathletes. Scott became the man to beat in the biggest event of the sport, the Ironman® World Championship, and Allen became the most famous runner-up to that main event, though in all other races, he was unbeatable. Still, he played second fiddle to Scott, who was called the Man. In the Ironman match of 1989, the two raced nose-to-nose to a thrilling conclusion. Fitzgerald opens [ Iron War ] in the final leg of the race, but before revealing the outcome, he takes readers through the lives of these two amazing endurance athletes, their training, their mind-sets, their rivalry, their mutual respect. A true page-turner about a too-little-known great moment in sports." - Booklist (American Library Association, September 1, 2011) "Captivating, animated, uniquely readable and downright thrilling. [ Iron War ] is a truly great read-and an ode to our sport with all its quirky characters and epic venues…It is absolutely comparable to Krakauer, Bowden ( Blackhawk Down ), or Sebastian Junger ( The Perfect Storm )… Iron War is what we buy books for: Excitement, entertainment, information and inspiration. Iron War provides those things in volumes. It is great writing, great storytelling and a good historical record…It belongs on every triathlete's reading list." - TriSports.com (October, 2011) "Iron War is the very first time our sport has engaged in Krakauer-style journalism, where full-featured personalities are presented to readers without excuse, or pause, or an author's self-censorship. Iron War is Fitzgerald's Krakauer moment…I've always been a fan of Dave Scott and Mark Allen. But they've always been two dimensional to me. Life-sized cardboard cut-outs. I must tell you I love them both more now, after having read [ Iron War ]. The book has added that third dimension…" - Dan Empfield, Slowtwitch.com (October, 2011) "The 1989 Ironman® World Championship is widely considered the most epic race in Ironman history, if not all of endurance sport. In his new book Iron War , Fitzgerald recounts in gripping detail the showdown between Mark Allen and Dave Scott. Iron War delves into the vastly different personalities and psyches of these two iconic athletes and presents an anatomy of mental toughness that both men shared." - Triathlete magazine (August, 2011) "Dave Scott and Mark Allen had one of the greatest battles in sport history during their epic 1989 Ironman® Hawaii matchup. Matt Fitzgerald captures the spirit of that duel in Iron War: Dave Scott, Mark Allen and the Greatest Race Ever Run . Iron War really is a book that should be on your bookshelf if you have even the slightest interest in the sport of triathlon, but it also is a great read for anyone looking for inspiration in general." - Slowtwitch.com (July, 2011), "Captivating, animated, uniquely readable and downright thrilling. [ Iron War ] is a truly great read--and an ode to our sport with all its quirky characters and epic venues...It is absolutely comparable to Krakauer, Bowden ( Blackhawk Down ), or Sebastian Junger ( The Perfect Storm )... Iron War is what we buy books for: Excitement, entertainment, information and inspiration." -- TriSports.com "A true page-turner about a too-little-known great moment in sports." -- Booklist (American Library Association) "For any triathlete or endurance athlete, or anyone who wonders what it takes to be the best in sport, Iron War is an excellent read...Readers will come away with a very strong understanding and appreciation for two of the true legends of our sport...as well as a very clear look at the greatest race ever run." -- Triathlete.com " Iron War really is a book that should be on your bookshelf if you have even the slightest interest in the sport of triathlon, but it also is a great read for anyone looking for inspiration in general." -- Slowtwitch.com "Fitzgerald eases readers into the nuances of the sport, capturing imaginations with a satisfying study of two exceptional athletes and what makes them tick." -- ForeWord magazine " Iron War is the very first time our sport has engaged in Krakauer-style journalism, where full-featured personalities are presented to readers without excuse, or pause, or an author's self-censorship. Iron War is Fitzgerald's Krakauer moment." -- Slowtwitch.com " Iron War by Matt Fitzgerald recounts the fabled Ironman world championship battle between triathlete legends Dave Scott and Mark Allen. By the end of the story, [triathletes] will feel like [they] personally know the athletes, raced side-by-side with them, and understands the amazing contribution they made to the sport." -- Active.com "In his new book Iron War , Fitzgerald recounts in gripping detail the showdown between Mark Allen and Dave Scott. Iron War delves into the vastly different personalities and psyches of these two iconic athletes and presents an anatomy of mental toughness that both men shared." -- Triathlete magazine "In an exhaustively researched book, Fitzgerald recreates the famous race between Dave Scott and Mark Allen in the 1989 Ironman World Championship....[ Iron War ] captures the strength of character of both athletes better than any other publication to date." -- Xtri.com "The real gems of [ Iron War ]...are the robust descriptions of the race itself: the pain and suffering, the strategy, the story arc. The telling of this story gives insight into the race far beyond what we could see on the ABC special...or on YouTube today. It's an insight that casual fans (and perhaps even athletes themselves) don't often get. And for that reason alone, [ Iron War ] was one I could not put down." -- TriMadness, "Captivating, animated, uniquely readable and downright thrilling. [ Iron War ] is a truly great read-and an ode to our sport with all its quirky characters and epic venues…It is absolutely comparable to Krakauer, Bowden ( Blackhawk Down ), or Sebastian Junger ( The Perfect Storm )… Iron War is what we buy books for: Excitement, entertainment, information and inspiration." - TriSports.com "A true page-turner about a too-little-known great moment in sports." - Booklist (American Library Association) "For any triathlete or endurance athlete, or anyone who wonders what it takes to be the best in sport, Iron War is an excellent read…Readers will come away with a very strong understanding and appreciation for two of the true legends of our sport…as well as a very clear look at the greatest race ever run." - Triathlete.com " Iron War really is a book that should be on your bookshelf if you have even the slightest interest in the sport of triathlon, but it also is a great read for anyone looking for inspiration in general." - Slowtwitch.com "Fitzgerald eases readers into the nuances of the sport, capturing imaginations with a satisfying study of two exceptional athletes and what makes them tick." - ForeWord magazine " Iron War is the very first time our sport has engaged in Krakauer-style journalism, where full-featured personalities are presented to readers without excuse, or pause, or an author's self-censorship. Iron War is Fitzgerald's Krakauer moment." - Slowtwitch.com " Iron War by Matt Fitzgerald recounts the fabled Ironman world championship battle between triathlete legends Dave Scott and Mark Allen. By the end of the story, [triathletes] will feel like [they] personally know the athletes, raced side-by-side with them, and understands the amazing contribution they made to the sport." - Active.com "In his new book Iron War , Fitzgerald recounts in gripping detail the showdown between Mark Allen and Dave Scott. Iron War delves into the vastly different personalities and psyches of these two iconic athletes and presents an anatomy of mental toughness that both men shared." - Triathlete magazine "In an exhaustively researched book, Fitzgerald recreates the famous race between Dave Scott and Mark Allen in the 1989 Ironman World Championship….[ Iron War ] captures the strength of character of both athletes better than any other publication to date." - Xtri.com "The real gems of [ Iron War ]…are the robust descriptions of the race itself: the pain and suffering, the strategy, the story arc. The telling of this story gives insight into the race far beyond what we could see on the ABC special…or on YouTube today. It's an insight that casual fans (and perhaps even athletes themselves) don't often get. And for that reason alone, [ Iron War ] was one I could not put down." - TriMadness
