What’s Left of Don Hits Number One Best Seller on Amazon!

The caption is correct.  My little book has managed to hit the top of the charts for sales on Amazon!  Now I am going to let you know how these things really work.

The book has sold well and gotten some great reviews, many of which I wrote myself.  Amazon lets the author pick the categories where it will track sales and compare you with other authors in those categories.  For the most part, I picked ones where there is not a lot of competition at the moment.  I then ran a marketing plan that featured a deeply discounted price.  Net result…I went to number one best seller in at least four categories on Amazon and have stayed at the top for more than a week.  Sweet!

This reminds me of one of my great moments in track and field.  I was a legitimate sprinter/hurdler.  I was not a legitimate shot putter.  Our university had a track and field invitational…The Chapman Invitational.  I think I ran four events and did very well against good competition.  I then noticed a true hero walk into the meet…Randy Matson…the current world record holder and Olympic gold medalist.  I wanted to meet him, so I followed him over to sign in.  As he signed in I noticed that every other competitor had dropped out when he announced he would compete.  So…I signed up for the event.

When the competition started, Randy put a good effort into his first put…something like 66 feet.  He had won the silver medal in the Olympics in 1964 and this was in 1968…the year he would win the gold medal in Mexico City with a put of over 67 feet.  So…he was off to a good start in the meet.

My name was called.  I looked at Randy and he looked at me.  I weighed 165 pounds.  Randy weighted 265 pounds.  As I fiddled with the shot put (I don’t think I had ever picked up one in my life) he wandered over to me.  He said “Don…are you sure you are entered in the right event?  This is the open division of the men’s shot put.”  I looked straight up at him…he towered over me…and said “Step back big boy and I will show you how far a MAN can toss this thing.”  That confused the heck out of him and he walked away, shaking his head.

I stepped into the ring.  The crowd hushed…stunned because most everyone there knew me and could not possibly understand what in the heck I was doing in the event.  I made the required up and down pumping gestures to show I was really revving up for a tremendous effort. I then pushed across the concrete ring to the very edge of the legal putting area and heaved that 16 pound iron ball as hard as I could.  The crowd erupted.  Randy actually fell to the ground.  I didn’t stop at the 66 feet that he had recorded…I stopped at 28 feet four inches.

Randy went on to win the event.  I passed on all the future rounds, knowing full well that I was not going to get it much past 28 feet four inches…and my arm hurt.  But at the end of the competition, there I was…on the winners podium, just one small step down from the Olympian…a two time Olympic medalist and world record holder.  I came in second place and got a beautiful trophy for my efforts.

Coach ripped my ass off for my stunt…but guess what…I still have the trophy.

So, when you hear me introduced on a radio show as Don Hurzeler, best selling author…think about what I have told you and think about my shot putting story and just enjoy the moment.  A win is a win..

 

Aloha.