The Hurt Artist

A gritty memoir chronicling one man’s transformation from a homeless, suicidal junkie inmate to a triathlete competing at the Ironman World Championship.

“[This] harrowing journey from suicidal to successful offers everyone hopethat change is possible and victory only comes when you refuse to give up or give in.” —Tony La Russa

With troubles beginning as early as childhood, the trajectory of Shane Niemeyer's life seemed to have only one direction: down. His struggles with heroin addiction led him to jail, and he eventually hit rock bottom. Soon, his two pack a day cigarette habit was the healthiest thing he did. One dark night in jail, his suicide attempt failed. What happened next transcends the term recovery.

The Hurt Artist is the searing yet luminous travelogue of Shane's powerful journey from suicidal addict to Ironman. He vividly depicts the landscape of pain in which he's lived his life—emotional and physical pain inflicted upon him and that he inflicts upon himself, pain that pulls him down, and, in detailing his training, the pain he harnesses to lift himself up. Ultimately, Shane's story is one of redemption and triumph, a lesson in the value of second chances and a clear reminder that nobody, regardless of how seemingly desperate their circumstances, is beyond the reach of salvation.

From inmate #71768 to Ironman Triathlon World Championship competitor #1419, Shane paints a stirring self-portrait in this hilarious, horrifying, and hopeful account that is sure to hook readers of edgy sports biographies.

“A riveting memoir . . . that takes us on a raw, unedited life journey that includes the struggles of an addict trying to find peace and the joy and journey to every triathletes promised land: Kona, Hawaii!” -Jason Peter, New York Times–bestselling author of Hero of the Underground