Running Up the Mountain: Northern Arizona Altitude, Lumberjack Attitude, and the Building of a Distance Dynasty Hardcover

Technical details

At 6 x 1 x 9 inches, this hardcover book explores the culture behind Northern Arizona’s distance-running dynasty. Matt Baxter and Ron Mann examine how a university team built a record of success and what shaped its identity. How much can altitude, a running community, and a shared goal contribute? The book considers those influences alongside the determination to compete as a team.

• Format: Hardcover
• Authors: Matt Baxter and Ron Mann
• Publisher: Soulstice Publishing
• Publication date: November 7, 2023
• Dimensions: 6 x 1 x 9 inches
• Weight: 1.4 pounds

Everyday use

This is a sports story centered on the people and culture behind distance-running success, rather than a step-by-step training manual. Its focus makes it relevant to readers interested in college athletics, running, team dynamics, and the way a local sports environment can shape a university program. The publisher frames the book around a clear question: how did a team at a remote university in northern Arizona build a culture capable of winning six NCAA Division 1 championships?

The account considers several parts of that question, including training at an altitude of 7,000 feet, a thriving community running program, and the area’s history of success in international competition. It also examines the role of grit and commitment to team goals. For a runner or coach, those themes offer a broader perspective on the environment around competition, for a sports reader, they provide a way into the story of a program and its distinctive regional setting. Compared with a general running guide focused on workouts, this book’s appeal is its emphasis on the history and culture behind a team’s achievements.

Getting the most from it

Readers can approach the book as a sports-history title, a look at distance-running culture, or an exploration of how athletes build a shared identity. It may also fit naturally into a reading list for people interested in college teams and the forces that support sustained success. Rather than looking for individual training prescriptions, readers will find the publisher’s central interest in how altitude, community, and team-minded determination intersect around Northern Arizona’s Lumberjacks.

That context gives the book a practical place beyond the running shelf: coaches, athletes, and sports fans can use its subject as a starting point for thinking about the role of place and group culture in competition. Its specific focus on Northern Arizona distinguishes it from broader books about running that treat the sport mainly as an individual pursuit.

Before you decide

Which team is the book about? It focuses on the Lumberjacks, the running team at a university in northern Arizona, and the culture behind the program’s success.

What factors does it explore? The publisher highlights training at 7,000 feet, the local community running program, the region’s history of international competition, and athletes’ grit and commitment to the team.

What achievement anchors the story? The book asks how the program built a culture strong enough to win six NCAA Division 1 championships, making team success a central thread of its subject.

Should you buy it?

Choose this hardcover if you want a focused account of Northern Arizona distance running that looks beyond race results to the culture around the team. Its combination of altitude, community, and shared ambition makes it especially relevant to runners, coaches, and readers of college sports history who want to understand how a distinctive program developed its identity.