I had the pleasure of sitting down and reading a few books cover to cover on holiday recently. A varied bunch - from the chequered history of the Tour de France to the fascinating 'Freakonomics'. The best of a good bunch though was 'The Last Amateurs' by Mark de Rond - an ethnographer from Darwin College, Cambridge who followed the Cambridge University Boat Club in preparation for the Men's Boat Race in 2007. It can be read as an ethnography, sports diary or insight for business into what it takes to build an elite team. I took pieces from all three angles, but also the chance to revisit a lot of sporting memories from my own time at Cambridge. Tennis is by no means rowing in terms of profile at Cambridge, but the highs and lows we all went through as a team trying to end our Varsity losing streak were the same.
Cambridge Boat Club enter de Rond's account in September 2006 on the back of multiple defeats, with a team (both coaches, coxswain and crew) perceived to have blown it when it counted in previous years. I won't share the outcome from the race, but if you do get a chance, I found it a tremendous read...
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Last-Amateurs-Hell-Back-Cambridge/dp/1848310153/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1255288848&sr=8-2
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Hi Matt, funnily enough I read this earlier this year after a client recommended it to me. I found it really insightful by showing what it is like to perform under pressure in an elite enviroment. I took a lot from it in terms of developing an enviroment to perform in. Also found some of te humour quite good as well!!!
ReplyDeleteCheers
David