Pedestrianism in the 19th Century...

... is the name of the show I'm watching on American History TV. The show is a lecture by Matthew Algeo talking about his book "Pedestrianism: When Watching People Walk Was America's Favorite Spectator Sport." He's a funny guy and the lecture was much more interesting than I would have predicted. I also wasn't expecting the parallels with other modern sports (betting scandals, performance enhancing drugs, corporate sponsors, trading cards).

Having said that, I still can't imagine sitting in a stadium watching anyone walk around a track. Especially not one of the six-day races.

Happy Mother's Day!

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