What Do Joe Dirt And Tommy Boy Have To Do With This Year's Reunion?

 

Some interesting changes have come to our Annual Track and Field/XC Reunion and Coach Groves Golf Tourney this year.  Clark and Harry have been hard at work to bring us a little twist on this year's festivities.

Although the golf will still be at the MountainView Country Club, the hootenanny itself will take place at Toftrees Resort.  That's the Friday night reception and the follow up Awards banquet. And get this... The first price reduction in room rates have been negotiated by the head duo!  With Hotel room rates skyrocketing lately with all the downtown skyscrapers and retiring alums, that was no small feat.  Huzzah for our intrepid leaders.

Now what about Tommy Boy and Joe Dirt, you may ask?  Well, Toftrees has a great history among our group.  Not only Gunny and Coach Groves decided to live there in the late 70s and early 80s, but several other members of our group have roots there.  My very own Significant other, along with Gary and Steve Black lived there at one point, which is where Gary and Steve picked up the game of golf!

Riding the bus to State College Junior and Senior High, they were joined by a nerd from a nearby apartment.  That nerd soon left State College and headed West for La La Land.  He picked up some Comedy chops and went on the become Head Writer for Saturday Night Live and even joined the cast for a half season before realizing that writing was his forte.

Fred Wolf eventually wrote screenplays for some movies starring his friends from the cast.  Yeah, Tommy Boy and Joe Dirt I and II came from the mind of a nerd from Toftrees!

Anyway, here are the details of this year's event.  Please come!

 

23rd Annual Penn State Track and Field & XC Alumni Gathering / Harry Groves Memorial Golf Outing

August 1 – 2, 2025

 

This year, the opening reception and dinner will take place at The Toftrees Golf Resort, 1 Country Club Lane, State College, PA 16803.  We have a block of rooms reserved there for $139 / night (held until July 1 – held under “Penn State Track and Field Alumni” - Katie is the contact (if any problems arise)) – phone number there is (814) 238-4404.  Other hotels near campus are The Penn Stater, The Nittany Lion Inn, The Graduate, The Hyatt Place, The Hampton Inn, The Hilton Garden Inn and The Ramada (Ramada being the only one comparable in price)…

FRIDAY’S EVENTS (August 1st):                                                                                                                                                                                                                      

7:00 pm – 10:00 pm   Meet and Greet cash bar (hors d ‘oeuvres will be provided) – Silver Banquet Room                                                                                                                                    

                       50-50, Putting contest, Raffles

SATURDAY EVENTS (August 2nd): 

10:30 am – 11:30 pm - Bike tour around the surrounding University Park/ Toftrees area (provided you bring your      own bike and there is enough interest), headed by some of our Alumni (Gary Gittings assisted by Tom Shiffer).  I think Gary is looking into bike rentals in the area for those flying in (hope he is anyhow!).

1:00 pm – 2:00 pm - Campus walk to the Berkey Creamery and the Nittany Lion Shrine where a group picture will be taken headed by our alum, Vivian Riddick

2:30 pm – 4:00 pm – Mt Nittany hike for all interested, with a pitstop at the Voodoo Brewery to help cover the pain upon completion - also led by Alum Vivian Riddick

We will decide Friday night if any changes need to be made concerning the Campus Walk and Mt Nittany hike, based on willing participants.

4:00 pm– 6:00 pm - “Painting with Caryl” - Wine and Paint (or whine and paint for many in this group) – Room provided at the hotel (name tbd).  Costs included in fee – available to the first 15 -20 confirming participation (as we pay for all of the materials up front).

1:00pm – 6:00pm   - Golf outing at the Mountain View Country Club (old Elks Club) with a 1:30pm start time - captain’s choice scramble (for those of you not familiar with this type of scramble, you play the best hit of your foursome throughout).  If you need clubs, there are always folks bringing extra sets, so you don’t have to worry about renting (be sure to let us know when you register, so we can plan to have them there).

6:30pm – 10:00pm   Dinner reception and awards ceremony for golf outing and painters.  It will take place at The Silver Banquet Room as well.

Costs / Fees:

$450 / FAMILY (all under one roof) – All / Any Events                                                                                                                  

$350 / FAMILY – Saturday only – All / Any Events                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           $300 / FAMILY – Both Nights – No Golf or Painting                                                                                                                                 

$200 / FAMILY – Friday Night Only                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

$250 / SENIOR PERSON (over 67) – All Events (add Spouse / Significant Other $100)                                                                                                                                      

$200 / SENIOR PERSON – All Saturday Events (add Spouse / Significant Other $50)                                                                                                                    

 $150 / SENIOR PERSON – All Events – No Golf or Painting (add Spouse / Significant Other $50)                                                                                                                    

 $100 / SENIOR PERSON – Golf Only (add Spouse / Significant Other $50)  or Friday Night Only                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

$300 / PERSON – All Events  (add Spouse / Significant Other add $100)                                                                                                                                                   $200 / PERSON – All Saturday Events (add Spouse / Significant Other add $100)                                                                                                                                    

 $150 / PERSON – All Events – No Golf or Painting (add Spouse / Significant Other add $75)                                                                                                                               

 $100 / PERSON – Golf only (add Spouse / Significant Other $75) or Friday Night Only                                                                                                                                                            

RECENT GRAD (past two years) – DROP 25% off your fees                                                                                             

OLYMPIAN – COMPLEMENTARY – and thanks for attending!                                                                                                                                                                                                  

QUESTIONING THE METHODOLOGY BEHIND THE COSTS – DOUBLE YOUR CHARGE!                                                      

NON- REFUNDABLE FEES – IF YOU CANCEL, OR IF THERE IS A WEATHER-RELATED CANCELATION – ALL MONIES WILL THEN BE CONTRIBUTED DIRECTLY TO THE PENN STATE TRACK & XC PROGRAMS.                                                               

This event is open to all friends and families of the current or past PSU T&F or XC programs.  This is all about the laughs, brother/sisterhood and continued support for the current men’s and women’s track and field and/or cross-country programs.  Remember, when it comes to considering golf, you will have three other hackers on your team to laugh at, and with, so don’t worry about how bad your game is! 

Donations / Gifts are happily accepted if you would like to help us defer some of our costs, as we contribute all proceeds to the current programs.

Please send checks or money orders to:

Harry Smith                                                                                                                                                                                          2040 CentralGrove                                                                                                                

 Toledo, OH  43614 or Venmo him:   @Harry-Smith2262

PayPal option available again this year on the Blog or Facebook page (Dave Baskwill is coordinating) – if utilizing PayPal include another $10 to your total as mentioned above to defer the charge.

If you should have any other questions or comments, please let me know – Hope to see you this year!    

Clark Haley ’85   (484) 716-8517

Clarkehaley@yahoo.com

Happy Birthday, Pre.

Yes Tom, This Is Certainly Blog Worthy!

 If you met both Coach Groves and Tom Rapp, you may at first figure there can't be two people further apart in personality and presentation on Earth.  But that would be missing the alarming similarities they had.  No, Tom didn't annoy anyone in management or administration daily.  No, Tom never uttered expletives willy-nilly. No, Tom had no apparent aversion to Coach Paterno.  But both Coach Groves and Tom Rapp both had a knack for guiding young men (and women) toward becoming better people. Neither Tom or I knew Coach was guided by the thought that "College Athletics is for education and recreation, nothing more. Winning is important only because you learn more."  Not until far after our college years were over.

Tom just retired from coaching cross country at Mason High School in Ohio near Cincinnati.  He went out with a somewhat unexpected State Title in the large school division, the school's 5th title. That is with 4 runner up titles.  He has also coached 3 individual champions in his career.  Those stats don't even come close to eclipsing his greatest contributions to the physical, mental and spiritual growth of hundreds of his athletes.  Congratulations Tom.  I treasure every moment we had together during those years at PSU.

The Mountain Runs Are Long Gone

Someone brought up the mountain runs Coach Groves adored to me recently. We lamented that they are almost never done anymore. What they are missing... 

THE PRIMAL SEVEN RUN

The Best Running Advice I Ever Received

 I really never had any running talent at all.  Didn't even make it to Districts in my Junior year.  But something clicked that season that gave me enough of something to eventually walk on at Penn State and letter my first year of Cross Country.  And continue on for 3 more years on a team in the "Final Four".

I joined the York Road Runners Club and hung around some older runners just out of college.  The encouragement and knowledge gave me a bit of a surge.

But the real improvement came from one simple "trick" which was given to me by a member of the club.

Run twice a day! 

So I started running at 6:00am nearly every day, 3 miles on M/W/F and 5 miles on T/Th.  That made all the difference in the world.

 

Coach Groves Was Strict About Morning Runs

Maybe science has created a way around that!

The rule for distance runners was "out the door by 9:00am". 4 to 6 miles was encouraged. I once had Coach for a phys ed class in Fitness and Games. If I knocked on his window at Rec Hall, I could skip class that day. If it was before 9:00am.

Morning Run In A Pill 

There Has Been Four Generations of Restaurant Changes Since I was In State College

Extinct Eating Establishments in State College

It has been more than 30 years since college, and the average lifespan of restaurants is around 4 or 5 years.  So many have come and gone since the good ole days.

Some of my favorites are long gone:

• Wuv's - Where a Taco Bell now resides on College Avenue.  They had the first ever unpeeled fries and pretty good milkshakes. (Lets not talk about their Wuv Juice!)
• The Hot Dog Hut (or Weiner World?) Actually Weiner King- Located where Baby's is now.  They once had a 25 cent special which included a hot dog and knit cap (various styles) on a pre-meet Thursday.  We traveled back and forth from the locker room at Rec Hall with quarters to buy as many as possible.  Everybody had a selection of caps that year, which delighted everyone.  Friend of the Group Martha White (Collins) actually worked there, and did not eat hot dogs at all.  Must have been a miserable job!  Maybe she can fill us in? Martha has chimed in that it was indeed a tough job for her!  Which will stimulate another blog post on bad jobs I have had, with a few good ones thrown in...
• Pedro's - Also located at the current location of Baby's when the Hot Dog Hut closed down (They ran out of hats or something?)  This was also a prominent Thursday meal, sometimes both lunch and dinner.  Thirsty Thursday gave any size drink with a $1 purchase. Taco, chili and chips x2 with a large Mountain Dew was a great meal.  
• Roy Rogers - Where a Chipotle's (or something like that) is on College Avenue.  A holster of fries at 1:00AM was a staple.
• The Cattle Car - Where a Jimmy John's (formerly CC Peppers) is now on College Avenue. (This post was stimulated by Darryl Jones' memory of the best sandwich shop of all.)  Introduced me to "The Cosmo", a heated sandwich like in Europe, "cosmopolitan style".  Usually I got the Club with turkey, roast beef and ham with Swiss.
• The HUB Cafeteria Training Table The Terrace Room - The team at one time could eat here if they were late for the dorms, which happened often when we had our locker room at the Stadium.  They gave free glasses with the Nittany Lion performing various sports during one term.  I'm sure there are a few of you that still have some of them.  The privilege was rescinded for non-scholarship peons and walk-ons once Coach Groves caught heck for our actions.  From then on we hustled to the dorms which were kept open for us and they invariably served us fried perch because the good stuff was gone! (From an anonymous source - Track athletes were allowed $8 less per meal than the football team and $6.50 less than the soccer team.)
• Arbys - At the corner of Atherton and College. Nothing special but the scene of an everyday dinner by my brother when he lived across the street.
• Hardees - On Atherton where a dry cleaners is now located.  They had a $2 special of 2 roast beef sandwiches, fries and a drink.  When 2 of them were combined, it was a glorious feast.
• Hooters - At the current Irish Tavern on College Avenue near University Drive. Formerly Greek Pizza.  This was the scene of an impromptu Awards Dinner in the early years of the Coach Groves Golf Tourney!  We actually had one of the waitresses drive Coach in the Drink Cart at one of the Tournaments also.  I'll hunt for the photo again...
• The Olde Original Diner - Still there but a mere shell of its former self.  Long lines and late night dinners of Road Kill (omelet with everything) and a pound of fries...
• The Eutaw House - Just off 322 near Seven Mountains (Potters Mill). My HS Coach treated me to a steak dinner there after the State XC Meet in 1977.  I was still burping that steak early in the Harrisburg Marathon the next day! Edgar Allan Poe actually ate and stayed there one time. Or maybe not. (Check the link.)
  
• Train Station Restaurant - The Herlocher keystone restaurant above the Cattle Car.  Introduced the world to Herlochers Dipping Mustard. I don't think I ever ate there. The Herlochers actually closed down all of their restaurants suddenly and moved to Florida.  It was a major shock to the State College community.
  
  

Posted by skwilli at 7:00 AM

 

A Hill To Die On

Does anyone else remember Jim Hill's recruiting visit to PSU in the late 70s?  He was chaperoned by Ziggy, I think, during a weekend of a classic Ziggy Party! Maybe even the one that the Women's Gymnastic Team attended?

Results Of The 2024 Coach Groves Golf Tourney

Joe Bastardi, noted PSU meteorologist and Nittany Lion Wrestler, has been designated the sole winner of this year's Tourney.

His out-of-the-box forecast of 6 hours of rain beginning on the first tee and ending with the first course of the awards dinner ruled the day.

Coach Harry Groves Memorial Golf Tournament Update

https://youtube.com/shorts/QZwL-KR0Mss?si=UdP2LV0-A4hd80SV

Alumni Reunion Early Morning

A few of us got together for a photo at the Shrine. Lower number of us this year, but don't be confused. 2 Olympians and 3 current PSU record holders are among them.

The Interns are offering cash rewards for the first to identify them all correctly. 

Is This The Year?

Joe Kovacs recently bench pressed 770 pounds twice. He said he could do more, but he has other things to do soon. Others said if he didn't have to dabble in shot putting, he could be the world's strongest man.

Could this be his year?