ESPN The Magazine has been experimenting with themes for about six months now, and for the current issue, they teamed up with the editors of McSweeney’s for a collection of sports-related fiction. Only a small portion of the magazine is dedicated to it, but there are a few short stories worth checking out for those of you who weren’t allergic to gym.
Dave Eggers writes as the beard that Brian Wilson (the Giant – not the Beach Boy) wore during San Francisco’s 2010 World Series run:
“My dad was a handlebar, strictly barbershop quartets and all that, and my mom was a lady ‘stache, mostly working circuses.” Read “My life in baseball, by the Beard”Wells Tower (recently interviewed by Full Stop editor/second baseman Alex Shephard) tells about a boy’s disenchanting encounter with a dirt bike:
“Sleek with chrome shocks and lustrous green fairings, it was a thing of lethal, insectile beauty — a cross between a dragonfly and a chain saw.” Read “Moto”Kitty Snacks editor Michael Bible mixes fan interference and divine intervention at a Carolina Panthers game:
“My jaw was sideways, my bow tie was destroyed.” Read “The Bowtie Miracle”
This is the first time I’ve read ESPN The Magazine since I was twelve – though I did flip through their recent Body Issue – but apparently it’s the number one magazine among men ages 18-34. Maybe Maxim will follow suit and finally publish their list of hottest authors.
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