My first Term at PSU was arguably my best one. At least for running. (Academics was a different story!) I was reminded of this because of a photo submission from Tim Backenstose by way of Campbell Lovett. He titled the pic "Cuttin' a mug", a reference to Robert Snyder's unique ability to make a face everyone would remember forever.
Campbell kindly sent Tim this photo as a way of motivating him for further excellence in the coming years. He probably had no idea it would motivate me as well. Both Campbell and Tim were upper-classmen I both admired and marvelled at. (sic) Maybe, I will some day expound on more of their exploits (like the "Mud Men") which made me both fear and delight in them. I will probably need their help in accurately conveying these stories.
But first, the pic...
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| Robert "Snid" Snyder taking first in the 800M on the State College Junior High track. |
A hideously inferior version of this pic has been featured on this blog before. This improved version allows the visualization of some additional features.
- Mike Wyatt in second place, wearing Nike spikes he later gave to me for my Junior and Senior seasons.
- Bill Sheskey taking 5th.
- Paul Stemmer lurking in bland grey sweats just off the left shoulder of Mike Wyatt.
- Possibly, Larry Mangan, who ran the pitless steeplechase earlier, cheering on the glory of the 1-2 finish in the actual scored dual meet.
I was in the best shape of my life, following my June 1977 talk with Coach and his admonition that 80 miles/week just wasn't enough to cut it. I ran nearly 100 miles a week leading up to matriculation and prayed for the ability to keep up with the team.
When I arrived at Rec Hall and met with Coach that day, I was dressed to run, just as I almost always was anyway. It turned out that it wasn't a dream, as Coach welcomed me and told me to go take a run with "those guys".
Everyone who knows me, knows I am prone to some exaggeration or embellishment (or even "misremembering" facts). But this is exactly how I remmber that run. I'm hoping Tim has at least a snippet of confirmation of this!
"Those guys" happened to include three giants, or at least giants compared to the 5' 10" (now 5' 9") 117 pound (now not quite twice that number...) runner I was in those days. Each of them were at least 6 inches taller than I, and at least 50 pounds heavier than I. I remember them as Tim Backenstose, Campbell Lovett and Mark Parker, the current President of Nike, who had just graduated and was heading off to Exeter NH to work for the fledgling Nike brand. The only one I am 100% sure about is Mark, as Coach addressed him to say that I was joining the group for a "10-Miler". I never said a word to any of them, and they barely acknowledged me at all. The only hazing I ever remember occuring as part of the team.
We took off for a run that eventually led to the Pine Barrens west of State College. In those days, none of us had a running watch, let alone a GPS one. But the run seemed to be getting longer and longer. Although it was faster than my usual entirely solo runs, I was delighted to be running well with no difficulty at all keeping up with the "real" Penn State runners. My fears of fitting in were relieved on that first run and I actually did go on to be our 7th man in three of the season's early XC races. Enough to even earn a letter! (Robert Snyder was injured that first season until the very end, when I was no longer in the top 7.)
It turned out that the "10-Miler" I was on went nearly 2 hours at 6:00/mile pace. A foreshadowing of the 18 mile "15-Mile" Mountain runs early in the season. Forty-one years later, I swear I remmber that run like it was last week.
And if you want to "misremember" some past exploits like me, there is nowhere better than at our Reunion and Coach Groves Golf Tourney on May 18/19th!
For additional family members, add up permutations in post and use snail mail to:
Harry Smith
508 Washington Avenue
Elyria, OH 44035
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