Monday, June 9, 2014

The Newly Anointed Alumni Golfer

For those of you who may not have met me yet, I am the new guy. My name is Nick Scarpello, and I am honored to join the ranks of this highly esteemed group of track & field alumni golfers. Of course, to get to this point, I had to first go through a very important vetting process. And so fellow alumni golfer David Baskwill invited me to meet him on the White Course’s ninth green at 9 o’clock for my first test. I actually have some footage from the meeting.



After the necessary newbie pranking was over with, David got into the hard interview questions. First, I had to tell David that I've never won a free game in mini-golf. No extra benefits: still eligible.  Next, I had with me a titanium driver and demonstrated for him that I do in fact have a slice worse than Charles Barkley.

Bad golfer:  check.

Next I reached into the back pocket of my golf slacks and pulled out printed race results from last week's Henderson Distance Carnival.

This may confirm the rumors you have heard. In my first post-collegiate race, I was indeed defeated by not one, but two, high school runners. Therefore I officially enter into that generation of athletes complaining about new generations getting faster each and every year. Take note also of fellow alumnus Owen Dawson in eighth.


From left:  Kyle Dawson, Me, Owen Dawson,
and PSUT&F rising senior Glen Burkhardt.
May 31, 2014. Henderson Distance Carnival.
Overly-enthusiastic runner:  check.

I had David convinced. But just to be safe, we did Rusty Boots and the bond was sealed.

So that sequence of events is basically what brought me here today. That, along with a passion for running, a sincere desire to help in connecting the Penn State T&F family worldwide, and a firm belief that there is something special about our community. Just the fact that a Penn State T&F Alumnus whom I have NEVER met, David, (the story told above is completely fabricated) has invited me to contribute to this blog, and to do it with the help of a teammate and friend (Matt Groves) I think speaks volumes about what it means to be a Penn Stater. So thank you, David.

My goal here will be to help all present and future alumni golfers to recognize and appreciate the closeness of the Penn State Track & Field family, and to take pride in knowing that you…yes, YOU… are a valued part of this tradition. Whether you were a mid-pack fighter or an All-American, you are, and always will be, Penn State. And we are proud of you.

On another note, the team’s NCAA travel group should be touching down in Portland right about now. The championship action for Penn State starts this Wednesday, June 11, with Melissa Kurzdorfer in the Hammer at 4:30 p.m. EST. Mahagony Jones will be the first Nittany Lion on the track: she runs in the 100-meter semifinals on Wednesday at 8:45 p.m. EST.

Here is TV/broadcast info for the weekend:

Wednesday:  6:55 p.m. EST on ESPN3
Thursday:  6:55 p.m. EST on ESPN3
Friday:  7:30 p.m. EST on ESPNU
Saturday:  5:00 p.m. EST on ESPNU 

3 comments:

  1. Wow! Welcome to the blog. Nice post. And you brought the mirth in really fine fashion. I'll have more to say about this later, but it is good to have you aboard.

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  2. [***I apologize for the lateness of my comment (no home inter-web still thanks to home repairs).
    ***]
    Welcome Nick.
    But umm, have you golfed in the Memorial yet or is Dave just pre-labeling his stalkees?
    If you have, how the hell did I miss you?
    Also, I assume you would only agree to meet Dave at 9 A.M. not 9 P.M. on the golf course...and only if he brings coffee and donuts.
    Finally, your woe over being beaten by a couple good high school runners reminds me of our late-70s crowd pushing our easy Saturday or Sunday runs to fend off a pesky girl. Granted she held the world 5000 meter record, but Kathy Mills (Parker to-be) caused a few of us to drag during an occasional Monday speed session.
    KKOB80

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  3. Usually Golfer status entails thrashing the greenery with us at least once. Until then usually I designate those who haven't with a (Golfer) status. This is waived for those who enter the inner workings of the blog hierarchy by becoming a Group Idiot Officer. Nick has demonstrated all of the qualities sufficient to warrant full status without ever hitting a backward shot or maiming another of us on the course. I'll be putting a post up soon about all of this. I'm just lazy or too busy at work! Anyway, Nick makes a fine addition to our huddled masses!

    ReplyDelete

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