Enrico Maso, translated into English by Ruth Stephens
Chapter 3 – The right shoes…
“One more question: how much do you weigh?” asks the assistant.
He knows his subject and asks a lot of questions in order to find the most suitable type of shoes.
“70kg, more or less….” replies Piero, puzzled. The world of marathons is completely new to him.
“Are you thinking of training every day? Have you already worked out a specific programme?”
“Yes, er… well, really I’m still working on it,” says Piero.
“That’s fine. But my advice is that it’s important to have a programme and stick to it. Now I think this shoe is best for you. For one thing the sole….” and the assistant recites a long list of its features.
Every so often he asks Piero if he is being clear and Piero nods “Yes, of course….” as if he is already a seasoned athlete. In fact all the shoes seem the same to him but he doesn’t want to admit to being a novice.
After a whole afternoon in the shop, Piero emerges with his new shoes. He still doesn’t understand all their features but the assistant was very enthusiastic and even offered him a discount, so he couldn’t really refuse. And besides, they’re red. Piero likes red, it’s his favourite colour!
On the way home on the bus he reflects on the happy coincidence that the marathon world seems to consist of schedules, data, and numbers in sequence, just like the world of computers in which he has worked for years: everything has to be precise and programmed.
“I can’t wait to get started!” he thinks as the bus approaches his stop.