{"title":"P S Marshall","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"king-of-the-peds-book-p-s-marshall-9781434334671","title":"King of the Peds","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003e\u003cb\u003eDid you know that in the late 1800's athletes walked up to 100 miles per day for 6 days? \u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eFamous sporting personalities have been around for a long time. However, few will be aware that during the 1870's and 1880's, professional pedestrians or peds as they were fondly referred to, competed against each other in gruelling races for up to six days - and nights - on indoor sawdust tracks, getting just a few hours rest per day in makeshift huts beside the track, literally eating on the trot and undergoing tremendous hardships, all in the name of sport.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis book provides a fascinating insight into this hugely popular 19\u003csup\u003eth\u003c\/sup\u003e century sport where massive amounts of prize money, a share of the gate receipts, and dazzling ornamental gold belts, were offered to successful athletes by ruthless promoters who made lucrative livings from the thousands of people who flocked to see them perform.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eYou will journey into a world where men competed in appalling conditions, but exhibited unbelievable courage. This is a world which attracted the likes of to take each other on in front of thousands of screaming fans.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eThis is a world which could provide incredible riches, but at a terrible price for those willing to push themselves to the limits of physical endurance. This is a world influenced by money and suffering; a world which had to end because its limits had been reached.\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eAfter considering all the evidence, I invite you the reader to decide who deserves to be crowned.\u003cb\u003eKing of the Peds\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"US \/ VERY_GOOD \/ SBYB","offer_id":50099940720913,"sku":"CIN1434334678VG","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ VERY_GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":50964464206097,"sku":"GOR012784062","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":51025863344401,"sku":"NIN9781434334671","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false},{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52140197413137,"sku":"NLS9781434334671","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"GB \/ GOOD \/ INTERNAL","offer_id":53132378439953,"sku":"GOR008071019","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/1434334678.jpg?v=1751051933"},{"product_id":"weston-weston-rah-rah-rah-book-p-s-marshall-9781477215074","title":"Weston, Weston, Rah-Rah-Rah!","description":"Not Grant nor Sherman, nor any of our country's heroes, were ever made the subject of more ardent curiosity on the part of our citizens than the hero of a thousand-mile walk. The excitement at times reached almost to the point of frenzy and in their eagerness to gain a standing point right in front of the window at which the beaming countenance of the great man was seen, the crowd came in sharp collision with the police. - Chicago Tribune - November, 1867 He moved through a greater mass of people than was on the streets when William H. Taft, as President of the United States was here, or when Theodore Roosevelt came the day after. Crowds that blocked all traffic in the neighborhood greeted the veteran pedestrian. The side streets were choked and every roof had a fringe of humanity. - New York's The Sun - August, 1913 In a professional career spanning just over 60 years, one man would capture the imagination and the hearts of the people of the sporting world. Born in 1839, the enigmatic and eccentric American from Providence, Rhode Island, would become the walking sensation of both Britain and the USA, where he would wow the enormous crowds that filled the arenas and lined the roadsides with his performances on the tracks and highways. Handsome, immaculately dressed, well-spoken and intelligent, the Wily Wobbler would be watched by hoards of adoring fans throughout his career, which would see him compete against time and other athletes in the most amazing competitions. Everyone wanted to see him in action. Whenever he was pacing around a sawdust track, or scurrying along a dirt road, they clapped him, they cheered him, they loved him - and he loved them  Without them, he was a nobody, but with their support and his gutsy determination to succeed against all the odds, he became the...","brand":"WoB","offers":[{"title":"GB \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":52616466137361,"sku":"NLS9781477215074","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true},{"title":"US \/ NEW \/ INGRAM","offer_id":53403659927825,"sku":"NIN9781477215074","price":0.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0784\/4072\/6801\/files\/9781477215074.jpg?v=1761527343"}],"url":"https:\/\/www.worldofbooks.com\/collections\/author-books-by-p-s-marshall.oembed","provider":"World of Books ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}