God this was hard work. I had to eventually skim read just to get through it, and if it hadn’t been an ARC I was given, I’d have DNFed it. It starts with a family history of the many people in Billy’s family - seemingly every parent, child, cousin and their wife, and where they lived. Then it starts finally on the running - and you almost wish it hadn’t, as it goes into minute, stats geek obsession level race reports. You find who came where, how many seconds behind, etc. Snooze... and it jumps around, or at least that’s how it felt. I lost track after a while, it was just hard work. And I can’t say I took to Billy as a character - you had occasional mentions of times he’d help people, but mainly he just seemed a cussardy old buzzard to me - never wanting to be told what to do, he’d “tell it like it is” (which is just a polite way of saying someone is a blunt and rude arse).

I received a free ARC copy of this via NetGalley and the publishers in return for an unbiased review. It slipped down my Kindle and as a result this review is very late - I almost wish I’d never requested it.

I thought this book was brilliant, really informative on Billy's success and his records. Gave you. a real insight into Billy Bland's life then and now. I'm a runner myself and this book just made me want to head out the door and run up the nearest fell

All or Nothing at All tells the amazing story of Billy Bland an athlete that you may not have heard about but is someone who you should definitely read about.

Billy Bland is fell running royalty and in this book Steve Chilton tells Bland’s story and how he one day started running and then went on to win all the major fell races some numerous times. Bland’s record breaking attempt of the Bob Graham Round is also covered in depth.

This is an excellent book and one that deserves a wide audience. Definitely recommended

A truly fascinating life story of the fell runner Billy Bland.
As a runner myself I was interested in the achievements talked about in this book but what I liked most was how the author showed examples of Billy's personality. It takes a certain character, mind set & discipline to do the amount of training Billy did daily after a days work & the freedom to do so which Billy was given by his supportive Wife. I also found it quite humorous how he wasn't one to run with other people or a club but if runners asked he let them but said " I won't be waiting for you" because I suppose every run for him was important and he wouldn't want to be performing at a slower pace.
A lot of the focus of the book is on Billy's extended family as many are/were runners who also competed at the same time as him and we learn a lot about Borrowdale the valley where he lives in the Lake District and the hills that moulded him growing up so he that he learnt them inside out.
It was a refreshing change to learn of the simplicity of his running in the 80's and 90's such as night training just following the white lines, normal diet, running snacks (Mars Bars) & drink (just water and tea) & trainers used what were given to him twice a year and plenty of sleep compared to now and the head torches/ luminous clothing, focus on nutrition ( carb/protein), energy drinks/foods and gels and expensive kit and trainers marketed to us runners all the time.
It just showed how raw running can be, strip it back to the basics and it is often about the ability, or like Billy believed the amount of training and preparation you have done to better yourself .
It was interesting to see him reflecting on times in competition when he knew he could of/should of done better but he was always humble if beaten, even when his Bob Graham Round record got beat, meeting the athlete for pictures. He came across as a very headstrong man who wouldn't be pushed in to doing things he didn't want to do ( well, apart from a road Marathon which was never repeated!ha!).
He was determined, analytical, focused, and punctual.
This book is the perfect testimony and it is of no surprise now that even in his 70's he is now cycling daily and still has that competitive edge.
Anyone that runs must read this!
My thanks go to the author, publisher and Netgalley in providing this arc in return for a honest review.