Originally self-published in 1978 Once a Runner captures the essence of competitive running-and of athletic competition in general-and has become one of the most beloved sports novels ever published Inspired by the author's experience as a collegiate champion the story focuses on Quenton Cassidy a competitive runner at fictional Southeastern University whose lifelong dream is to run a four-minute mile He is less than a second away when the turmoil of the Vietnam War era intrudes into the staid recesses of his school's athletic department After he becomes involved in an athletes' protest Cassidy is suspended from his track team Under the tutelage of his friend & mentor Bruce Denton a graduate student & former Olympic gold medalist Cassidy gives up his scholarship his girlfriend & possibly his future to withdraw to a monastic retreat in the countryside & begin training for the race of his life against the greatest miler in history A rare insider's account of the incredibly intense lives of elite distance runners Once a Runneris an inspiring funny & spot-on tale of one man's quest to become a champion