Matt Fitzgerald's "Dying to Run" Launch Party

Date: September 9th, 2026
Time: 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Location: Bright Side Bookshop, 18 N. San Francisco St.

Join us for a pub day celebration for Matt Fitzgerald's book, Dying to Run. The event will begin at 6:00 PM with a reading, followed by a Q&A and book signing at 7:00 PM.

About the Book: In a battle for survival and self-acceptance, Matt Fitzgerald is willing to risk it all to outrun chronic illness.

When sports journalist and bestselling author Matt Fitzgerald is struck by long COVID, his lifelong passion—running—becomes a distant memory, leaving him trapped in a failing body that simply won't cooperate. After authoring dozens of books and articles on athletes pushing the limits of human endurance, Fitzgerald is now forced to confront his own limits in ways he never imagined. Doctors have no answers and every day feels like an endless loop of misery and mental fog, but Fitzgerald is determined to reclaim his life and his passion.

Despite serious health risks, lack of training, and a body that has become utterly unreliable, he makes the reckless decision to run a 100-km ultramarathon in a record-breaking desert heatwave. It's an audacious gamble that could cost him dearly, but Fitzgerald won't surrender to chronic illness without a fight.

Drawing inspiration from ancient philosophy, modern psychology, and epic tales from Greek mythology, Fitzgerald embarks on a grueling physical and spiritual journey to discover what it truly means to live when your body betrays you. He has no idea if he'll find redemption or ruin in the scorching heat of the Sonoran Desert, but one thing is certain: This is a race he can't afford to lose.

About the Author:

Matt Fitzgerald is an acclaimed endurance sports author, coach, and nutritionist. His many books include How Bad Do You Want It, 80/20 Running, and Chasing Mastery. Matt has also written for a number of leading sports and fitness publications, including Runner’s World and Triathlete, and for popular websites such as outsideonline.com and nbcnews.com. Matt is cofounder of 80/20 Endurance, the world's premier endurance sports training brand, and creator of Dream Run Camp, a pro-style residential training camp for runners of all abilities based in Flagstaff, Arizona. He also codirects the Coaches of Color Initiative, a nonprofit program that seeks to improve diversity in endurance coaching. A lifelong endurance athlete, Matt speaks frequently at events throughout the United States and internationally.

Books will be available for purchase at the event.

This event is free and open to the public! No RSVP required unless otherwise noted.