So, by the looks of it, Rick Reilly®'s new book promises to be a thoroughly dignified affair that won't in any way represent another sad step in a once-great sportswriter's descent into self-parody and studied wackiness. That much is evident.
Sports From Hell hits the country's remainder bins in May of next year. Here's what Random House has to say about the book:
What is the stupidest sport in the world? Not content to pontificate from the sidelines, Rick Reilly set out on a global journey-with stops in Australia, New Zealand, Finland, Denmark, England, and even a maximum security prison at Angola, Louisiana-to discover the answer to this enduring question.
From the physically and mentally taxing sport of chess boxing to the psychological battlefield that is the rock-paper-scissors championship, to the underground world of illegal jart throwing, to several competitions that involve nudity, Reilly, in his valiant quest, subjected himself to both bodily danger and abject humiliation (or, in the case of ferret legging, both).
These fringe sports offer their participants a chance to earn a few bucks and achieve the eternal glory that is winning-even when the victory in question might strike some as pointless, like the ability to sit in an oven-hot sauna for the longest time. It's debatable whether these sports push the body or just human idiocy to the outermost limits, but one thing is for sure: Sports in Hell is laugh-out-loud hilarious and will deliver plenty of unabashed fun.
LOLs and unabashed fun and crotch ferrets. Rick Reilly's journalism is now basically a nutpunch and a few cathode rays removed from an episode of America's Funniest Home Videos.
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Thanks for your continued support of Deadspin and stunt author chats. I hope you all enjoyed today's visit from shit-pissing prose stylist Buzz Bissinger. The man unwrapped himself from the mantle of W.C. Heinz long enough to yell at you in the comments. Be grateful. Petchesky's here later.
