A New Cross Country Season And An Old One Too

 The Dolan Duels were held on Friday. These celebrate Coach Dolan of Lock Haven, who coached PSU and recruited Greg Fredericks to Happy Valley.  Photos by Greg himself!

But just a few years ago, the State College High team with quite a few future (and former!) Nittany Lions had their photo taken.  Photo from future Track Alumni (Golfer) Bill Kvashay.  Included are former PSU Captain Jackson Horner, Carl Bechdel, Howard Triebold, and Bill Kvashay himself.  It is my hope we see Bill and a very special guest when he comes to the 2023 Reunion in August!

Diamonds Are A Guys Best Friend

 Via our West Coast Promoter Mike Fanelli, via Founder and Keeper of the Beer Clark Haley comes this picture from the 1980 Run for the Diamonds in Berwick, PA.  I think both Greg Fredericks and Larry Mangan won diamonds that year.   Not bad for a couple of milers...

Four Champions And A Boot

 

The turnout at this month's Penn State Track and Field Alumni (Golf) Reunion was very good.  It included 1980 Olympian Greg Fredericks, PSU High Jump Record Holder Paul Souza and 1976 Olympic 400M Hurdle Silver Medalist Mike Shine.  The Rusty Boot came back from its long hiatus in Coach Groves' possession.  And, oh yeah, Mike's rad Harley-Davidson photobombed the whole set-up!

Random Thoughts And Results Of The 19th Annual Reunion And Golf Tourney

1.  We had a very good turn-out considering the world we currently find ourselves in. There were 40 or so attendees for both the Reception and Dinner.  There were 6 foursomes on the golf course.  And there were many attendees for Vivian Riddick's Zoom Presentation and the Coach Schwartz Celebration for the Women's Team.  Coach Groves finally got his 2009 wish of more women attendees for our celebration of Penn State T&F/XC.
2. The Mountain View Country Club hosted the tourney and were excellent in their support of our efforts.
3. I sorta/kinda won for the 3rd time in a row.  Because Steve Brown's sons golfed with him, we had a team of "ringers" without a hacker like me.  According to the rules set up by Clark Haley decades ago, this team is forbidden.  All teams must be rigidly, strictly chosen randomly on Friday night, except when sufficiently bribing of the Officers of the Group has been undertaken!  The Browns managed 5-under par, with my foursome scaring them with a 4-under par back 9 after an even front nine.  (Please realize I am being mostly funny with this, but I won't know for sure until I see the engraving on The Cup next year.)  I hit few shots with my wonky wrist, but I suppose 4 of my shots actually counted.  For all you non-golfers out there, you would do much better than this without ever having golfed before.  Come golf with us next year.  It was a pleasure golfing with Harry Smith, his son Ian Smith and Coach John Gondak this year.  
4. There was a paucity of potential in the running for the "numb-nuts" award, with the absence of Kevin Kelly O'Brien.  Just joking Kelly, you were missed.
5. The Triathlon at the track, which has replaced the Alumni Run, was won by Steve Balkey, with individual events won by one of the Fullers (I never know which one; it's definitely a problem of mine!) and Greg Fredericks, Master of the Hula Hoop.
6. Speaking of the Fullers...  They all golfed together this year.  It was honestly only by chance, I swear to God.  Bob Gabel became an honorary Fuller to fill up their foursome.
7. Paul Mundy won the Longest Drive contest, which he does nearly every year Beth Shisler does not golf .
8. The dinner menu was excellent (flank steak, grilled chicken with Parmesan sauce, and a chocolate cake that brought a smile to Paul Mundy).  The selection of four different flavors of chicken wings on Friday night was also quite splendid.  Free draft beer and a full cash bar got the crowd in just the right spirits to meet new friends and regale old friends with white lies about the days of yore.
9. There are stories of great times had by many (after my bed-time) at The Phyrst on Friday night and Pickles on Saturday night.  I managed to host Rock and Roll Legend Paul Souza to nearly 11:00PM on both nights before tag-teaming and handing off to Night-Life loving Clark Haley.  I think we have a convert to our efforts in Paul, with maybe even a Rock and Roll Reception in our future!
10. Ken Brinker became only the third recipient of The Rusty Boot, the highest honor that can be bestowed on any PSU Track Alum.
11. Two hardy members of the group drove their Harleys fairly long distances to join us.  Both Mike Shine and Paul Mundy looking good BTW!
12. Coach Gondak won the closest to the pin contest on a hole which is normally his nemesis at his home course. A six-foot putt led to one of our birdies to close in on the Leading Brown group.
13. Kay Warfel made multiple homemade gifts for raffle and Coach Gondak supplied numerous items to add to the mix from the team's supplies.
14. A tour of the new locker room was given by Ryan Foster.  It's good to have him back.
15. The Ghost Award went to Paul Souza who finally joined us and says he will be back every year from now on.  Speaking of future years, we have decided to alternate between May and August in the future, just to see if we can entice a few more reluctant attendees.  More on that to come. 
16. Quite a few attendees climbed Mt. Nittany again this year, in addition to touring the Sports Museum and Berkey Creamery.  Remember, the golf is optional but highly recommended!
17. State College has taken Covid hard by what I have seen.  The entire block containing The Saloon, Hi-Way Pizza, The Deli and the Lions Den has been closed and empty.  Baby's is closed and for sale.  I would love to have enough mullah to buy it and bring back Pedro's! Anyone wishing to join me in investing in this opportunity, let me know.
18. My Nittany Lion Hawaiian Shirt was a big hit.  The Lion's Pride came through for me again this year.  Several others went on Saturday to find the stock already depleted.  Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man happy, healthy and Hawaiian Shirted.
19. The Longest Putt on Hole 18 went to Ian Smith of my foursome with a 9' 1" effort.
    

    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    

The Toad Interviews The Hat

 

Although it has appeared on the Facebook Page before, I wanted to feature The Undersecretary of Fun's epic interview with Dave Wottle on the blog itself.  I wanted to interview him previously and even made him, teammate Sid Sink and Evgeni Arkhonov honorary members of 800U.  All of them accepted.  The difference between Billy Cvecko and I is that Billy always follows up on his ideas.  His dogged determination is another feature I admire.

 

Here are some links to previous posts featuring all of the key figures:

Sid Sink Also Wore A Hat

Yevgeni Arzhanov Joins 800U

Greg Fredericks Sorta Kinda Helped Dave Wottle Tune Up 

More From Yevgeni Arzhanov

Coach Groves Is Still Making Us Do Things

The latest iteration of a time trial to honor Coach Groves was held this weekend.  Not as many took part, but a few brave souls hunkered down and completed an 800M.  I was even in State College, but just about everywhere I wanted to visit was locked up tight.

• The Outdoor Track - sealed tight
• The Ashenfelter Complex - not a soul anywhere
• The Lion Shrine - secluded behind fencing
• The Sichuan Inn - closed
• Taco Bell - closed forever
• The Golden Wok - closed forever
• Herwig's Austrian Bistro - closed forever

I ended up jogging on the Hotel treadmill.  The other girl running was wearing a mask as she ran sub-6 minute miles two treadmills away.  Sigh.

Ken Cooper led the corps again with a splendid 2:09!  And Greg ran his 880 yards at the Boalsburg Military Museum.  Let's just say, the big guns were silent!

A Mile For Coach

The Alumni are back at it again, with many running a mile time trial to honor Coach Groves this time araound.  The best time I have heard is from Ken Cooper with 4:51.  That also keeps his streak of years running under 5:00 alive, well into the 30s...  Let us know.

Here's Greg Fredericks effort, filmed by Anne.



And here's the official Lego version of Greg running the 1980 Olympic Trials 10K, where he placed 2nd to Craig Virgin and ahead of Alberto Salazar.  (For the record, the 1980 one was the only one he didn't wear the PSU Singlet.  In 1972 he was running for PSU and in 1984 he ran his last competitive race in a PSU Singlet.  (Do I have those facts correct for Larry, Greg?)

A Summer Camp To Remember

In the waning days of summer 1969, there was a lot to negotiate for student-athletes.  There was a pandemic known as The Hong Kong Flu ravaging the country, just as Woodstock was held in rural New York state.  Over one million people died worldwide.

And there was a new coach at Penn State for Cross Country who brought in many new training techniques and had a fairly good stable of runners. 

They all ended up at a Summer Camp prior to the first trimester of the 1969/1970 season. From Dick Geiger, all the way from rural Tennessee, who is featured in this photo front-left. (That's Greg Fredericks and Coach Groves front-right!)

Fall XC camp in 1969 was near Woodward about 35 miles east of State College. Obviously, it would have been a little difficult to get free weights there even if we'd have been able to "borrow" them from the weight room in Rec Hall. So Coach Groves decided to use what he had--and we could lift. Probably the first and last time an entire team did their entire workout simulataneously and with a single weight. But Coach was always thinking out of the box.

Actually, this posed photo was after the team lifted/dragged/pulled Ralph Kissel's classic Porche roadster back onto the dirt road that lead to the cabin. Ralph had pinned it against a tree; said something about a calf cramp, as I recall! I guess that clutch was really a stiff one. Coach Groves is 2nd from the right next to Greg Fredericks.

40 Years Ago Seems Like Just Yesterday!

40 years ago, Friday May 16, 1980 Penn State Track and Field finally broke though a long standing barrier and one Larry Mangan wrote his name into the record books.  Yes, the first Penn Stater to run a sub 4 mile and he did it right in Happy Valley (who said it is always too windy here?)  Larry will join us Saturday May 16th at 10AM eastern time and hang around a bit for the west coast to wake up!  Maybe each of you have your Larry or 1985 4X800 moment you can share.  Lets have some fun and recognize one of our greats.

Thanks.

greg

And let's not forget that it wasn't too long after that but 2 years since Greg joined the Bannister list!  Go Larry!

Gregory Fredericks is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

A Trip To States, A Birthday Card, And I Break One of Coach Groves' Favorite Rules

I made it to the PIAA Championships for the first time in many years.  I saw a few friends and missed many others.

Group Friend Henry Klugh and Franklin.

Coach Artie Gilkes and Hannah Humphreys

And PSU Great Curt Stone's 97th birthday is next week.  Greg Fredericks has a plan to send him a big birthday card from us.  I figured everyone should send a greeting to Curt on our Facebook Page and we will include them with a nice greeting from the entire group.

Finally, I purchased a new pair of running shoes from The Inside Track vendor (Henry Klugh's store between Hershey and Harrisburg).  They happened to be a pair of the most talked-about shoe in the world, the Vapor Zoom Fly.

After my first 2 runs in them, I can assure everyone that they do indeed have springs in them (a series of carbon plates in the midsole).   This reduced my heart rate by more than 5% during my treadmill runs at the same miserable speed I have been running all along.  This, of course, violates a rule that Coach Groves holds above nearly all others.

The Marquess of Queensberry rules were adopted long ago for the sport of boxing.  Coach Groves somehow has adopted them for use in running and general life and discussed them many times with me.  Officers of the Group even adopted them for use by our Annual Golf Tourney.  (For those unfamiliar with mirth, this is all tongue-in-cheek!)

One of the rules is that springs are not allowed in boxing shoes!  It remains to the brainiacs of the sport to decide whether they are in running shoes.

An Olympian In Many Ways

In addition to making the Olympic 10,000M team in 1980, with all-time greats Craig Virgin and Alberto Salazar, Greg Fredericks has been an Olympian in many other ways.  Each day he helps out Coach Groves at his living facility and takes him for a walk.  And he also keeps me fully loaded with post ideas and content.  Combined with his eternally optimistic attitude and family values, I know I picked the best of idols in my early running career in 1975.  Hats off for Greg!

First up is a video of the Olympian Recognition at the recent PSU White-Out game.  Greg actually tips his hat to us in this one!



Next is an interview with "the Moses" of PSU Cross-Country, Curt Stone.  (He led us through the desert to the promised land of the NCAA Championship by recruiting and assembling a storied group, including all 3 Ashenfelter brothers.)  Horace told me that if it wasn't for Curt, none of this would have ever happened.

WNEP Interview with Curt Stone

Greg was also the first to alert me to the upcoming end to Mark Parker's tenure as CEO of Nike.

Mark Parker stepping down

Olympians In Beaver Stadium

Penn State Track and Field Olympians were honored on the field during the White-Out Game with Michigan.  Included were two of my heroes, Greg Fredericks and Curt Stone.  Curt was actually the brains and muscle behind Penn State's emergence as a Cross Country powerhouse in the late 1940s and early 1950s.  He recruited nearly all the athletes who made up a couple of NCAA Championship teams.  He will soon be 97 years old!

Greg Fredericks on the Jumbotron.

Curt Stone, center.

There are Track Alumni Golfer platinum points in store for anyone who can fill in all the names in the second photo!

That was quick!    Greg Fredericks, Steve Hayden, Curt Stone, Connie Moore and Shana Cox with AD Sandy Barbour.

Now Let's Rank The Penn State Mens Alumni Road Records *Updated*

There aren't as many events for the road records, so I will attempt to get them done without the Interns.  Again, we will use the IAAF Ranking Tables from the latest addition in 2017.

1.   10 Miles                  Greg Fredericks                 46:10*              1981     1139
      10 Miles                  George Malley                     47:02                1981      1091
2.   Half Marathon        George Malley                  1:01:43               1982     1122
3.   Marathon                 James Carney                   2:12:23              2012     1119 
3.   Marathon                 George Malley                   2:12:23              1985      1119
7.   20K                         George Malley                      58:35              1982      1112
9.   10K                         Tyler McCandless                29:27               2013      1006
       10K                         James Carney                     28:19                2009      1112
8.   15K                         James Carney                       43:31               2009      1101

5.   25K                         Tyler Mc Candless            1:15:24              2018     1088
6.   30K                         John Ziegler                      1:32:17              1980     1085 


10. 30K Race Walk       Steve Hayden                    1:32:06             1970       972
11. 50K Race Walk       Steve Hayden                    4:23:22              1972        943

*  Short Course Trevira Twosome

Additional:
        8K                          James Carney                   22:52                  2008       N/A
       12K                        Alan Scharsu                    34:54                  1985        N/A

Penn State Track Alumni Road Records

Here is the final listing from Matt Groves' research.  As with the Indoor and Outdoor Records, we are looking for any updates that are available!

                                                      *  Marathon         2:12:23         George Malley(77)      1981?

I Ran In The Same Spikes As Greg Fredericks!

I am just angry that mine were 2 minutes slower (or more) than the version he got.  It's just not fair... They sure were beauties, though.  And the more you wore them, the better they fit.

Cross Country Starts Soon

From Greg Fredericks:

August is here and XC camps open soon... where did the summer go?

Attached is a photo of an "old" xc shoe.  How many remember the original version was real leather and had green stripes.  Oh to be young again and run or glide over the golf course!

He Hasn't Aged A Bit!

On this day in track nerd history Greg Fredericks nailed a nifty 28:08.0 while slicing 9.6 seconds off Billy Mills' American 10,000 meters record (June 15, 1972 @ AAUs ins Seattle)

Two months later, Frank (Shorter) would take the record during the semis in Munich and then again in the finals...two years after that Pre broke Frank's record...(Craig) Virgin broke that (twice) and held it until Al Sal(azar) grabbed his share of the AR pie..who broke Salazar's mark? correct, Mark Nenow...good knowledge     -Mike Fanelli.

Thanks to Mike Fanelli, Larry Mangan and Anne Fredericks for these three pics from 1971, 1972, and 2018.

Putting On The Alumni Reunion And Golf Tourney Is Hard Work

Some of you may not know how much work that Clark Haley and Harry Smith put in nearly all year in preparation for our annual get-togethers.  For nineteen years, Clark has handled chores beyond what you would expect, and Harry came on board maybe 15 years ago to take some strain off the Group's Founder.  Many people contribute, and all contributions are very much appreciated.

I do very little work on these things, as my job is to "herd the cats" toward the event with my ramblings on this blog, which has met with some success in its 11 years.  My hope is that this trend continues.  Any help you offer is quite welcome.

Todd Leggett, Greg Fredericks and John Ziegler watch Harry Smith labor to inflate a cactus for the Alumni Triathlon. Photo by Ken Brinker.

The First Annual Alumni Triathlon consisted of:

• The Cactus Throw
• The Frisbee Discus Throw
• and The Golf Ball Roll

Clark Haley won both the Frisbee Throw and the Golf Ball Roll to take the Crown. John "Ziggy" Ziegler won the Cactus Throw.

The Triathlon Trophy prior to Friday night surgery.

Restored trophy.

Odie the Shih Tzu on his first trip to Penn State.

Another Mile Post Along Memory Lane

Penn State Cross Country 1970!  Coach Groves had already had his film projector "borrowed" by Coach Paterno from the office next door, and never returned!  He related this story to me more than once, and I think it was one of the earliest occurances that cemented his non-love for the gridiron coach.

• Some of the athletes still look older than Coach Groves.
• Friend Steve Miller at his dorky best! (That's a compliment BTW).
• Murderers Row of Bruce McLanahan, Gary Gittings, Greg Fredericks and Bob Hillman in the second row.
• Youthful looking Jim Allahand and Charlie Maguire.
• Dick Geiger somehow looking smaller than usual!

Two Notable Birthdays

Happy Birthday Mike Fanelli!   Mike owns the world's greatest track and field museum in his immaculate garage.  And he married up!  (He married a Nittany Lion...)

And Happy 49th Birthday to Greg Fredericks, without whom this blog would suffer mightily. Thanks to his better half Anne (he married up as well, as have all men!) for the pic of Greg at the beach with a smartphone.