People Who Sweat

From weekend warriors to the professional arena, we are a nation obsessed with sports. But what makes an ordinary person an athlete? Is it skill, or simply devotion? To find out, Robin Chotzinoff hit the road in search of people who sweat. Consider the triathalon runner known as "Little Fat Boy," he is world-famous because of his size and his consistency: he's always dead last. Or one political snowboarding champion who founded a snowboard camp for girls only. And many more inspiring "athletes": mall walkers and tree climbers and gym teachers, cancer patients and people who exercise to fill their "God-shaped void." And Robin Chotzinoff herself, after years of "terminal physical mediocrity," finds that it is possible to be athletic without being a good athlete. In the course of her travels she discovers what these people have known all along: that giving your body a chance to exult-whether by hanging ten with geriatric surfers or straining to finish an ultramarathon-is what sport is all about.