FIVEYEARSAGO,
I foundmyself inone
of the flattest,hottestplaces inNew
Mexico— thehighplains in theeastof
thestate—watchinggrownmenchase
afterantelopeunder theblazing
noondaysun.Not justanyantelope,but
the incrediblepronghorn,whichcan
run60milesperhour.Themen,who
worecoloredbibsandrunningshoes,
were top-tiermarathoners; a fewcould
runa2:13.But theycouldn’tcomeclose
to theantelope’s joggingspeed.That
wasOK, though, according to the theory
theywere testing. “Persistence
hunting,”according toHarvard
human-evolutionarybiologyprofessor
DanielLieberman,posits thatrunning
was the firsthumanweaponandkey to
oursurvival.Ourancestorschased
down theirpreyhundredsof thousands
ofyearsago— longbeforeweapons like
thebowandarrowwere invented—
usingourmillionsofcoolingsweat
glandsandmassivegluteusmaximus
muscle toeventuallyrundownmuch
fasteranimals lacking thosespecific
physiologicaladvantages.This theory
explainswhywerunmarathons. Iwas
inNewMexicoworkingona
documentaryabout thisage-old
pursuit,which justdebutedonline.
FairChase
follows10modern-day
persistencehunters from theirmodest
homesand inspiring lives to therural
ranchlandwhere theyattempt todo
what fewofuswill try: rundowndinner.
At thevery least, thefilmwillmakeyou
reconsider theevolutionary importance
ofyournext jog.
—CHARLESBETHEA
POV
TheFastestFood
How thisauthor’sstoryaboutchasingantelopesbecameamovie
GetBackto
TheOffice
Adecadeafter theshow’spremiere, thecast iskeepingus laughing
TheBassoonKing:MyLife
inArt,Faith, and Idiocy
ByRainnWilson
(Dutton,November2015)
Anearly love forchess,
D&Dmarathonsanda
dork-confirmingsagawith
thatnamesake instrument
apparentlymade forenough
pain to fulfill the idea that
sufferingreally iskey to
comedy.Wilson’shilarious
book isabrisk,delightful
read forhisdevoted fans.
WhyNotMe?
ByMindy
Kaling (Crown
Archetype,
September2015)
Followingthesuccessofher
2011memoir
IsEveryone
HangingOutWithoutMe?(And
OtherConcerns)
,Kalingisback
atitwiththiscollectionof
relatableessaysaboutevery-
thingfromwhyshehatesbeing
abridesmaidtoherrelation-
shipwithex-boyfriendB.J.
Novak.Speakingofwhich…
OneMoreThing:
StoriesandOtherStories
ByB.J.Novak
(Vintage,February2015)
Thankus later for the
reminder tosnagacopyof
thenewpaperbackeditionof
Novak’s literarydebut.This
wittyandsensitivecollection
ofWoodyAllen-like fictional
storiespositedNovakasone
of thebestcomedywriters
around.
—TODDAARONJENSEN
ANDABBYKINSINGER
26
OCTOBER2015
AMERICANWAY
FairChase
, the
documentary inspired
by thebest-selling
book
Born toRun
,
is availablenowon
Netflix and iTunes.
PHOTO
RYAN HEFFERNAN
