Marathon Mania In American History : NPR History Dept. : NPR
by thenewgreen
Odd that Americans, long known for their short-attention spans and — oh, look, a sparkly thing ... are at the same time manic for marathonic undertakings.
Running, for example. A century ago, scores of marathoners competed before huge wintertime crowds in the 1909 Brooklyn Marathon. Flash forward and this past November, more than 50,000 participants finished the 2014 New York City Marathon.