Nick May Be Going To The Dogs!

I noted this article without delving into it deeply and flagged it for inclusion on the blog.  Everyone knows I have 5 dogs (and 6 cats now!), but none are as fast as this guy.  (My dog Pooky is quite a plugger though, and is put through 3 x 800M or 4 x 800M workouts behind Daughter the Elder's bike regularly.)

Brian Duff and Kaydom, 4:13!

But I didn't note that Nick Scarpello (3:58) was there and ran a sub-4 Mile too!  Congrats Nick.  That must have felt really cool.  Thanks to Mark Horton for alerting me to the Alumni connection.

Mark Horton is Ironman.

A whole different world of pain from a straight up foot race. The Ironman Miami 70.3 Triathlon featuring  Mark Horton took place this morning. The event known as the Half Ironman consist of a 1.2-mile swim, a 56-mile bike ride, and a 13.1-mile (half marathon) run. It begs the question would someone who has completed a full Ironman tell somone who has only completed the half, "you're only half the Ironman I am"? Mark is certainly more of an Ironman than most of us as he completed the course in 5 hours 39 minutes and 17 seconds and was the 948th finisher. Now someone get that man something to eat!

Rocking the Alumni Singlet!

PSU is 800 U: The Store is Stocked!

This list is from FloTrack reflecting the current top times in the Collegiate ranks for the 800 M.  Mark Horton brought this to my attention via the wonders of the internetty thingie.  There is a poll on FloTrack asking about who the Athlete of the Week is, so head on over and vote for Cas!

There are new items in the Group Store in honor of "PSU is 800 U".  This will be an Exclusive Limited Time Offer! You'll want to get yours prior to the Penn Relays for sure.  Help spread the word to all the aspiring high school 2-lappers out there.

1. Item One is the Performance Jacket.  This is a sharp looking jacket for any occasion.  Although it is a dry clean only item, I have put mine through the drier at home with a Woolite Home Dry Clean sheet with good results.  I would recommend making yours one size larger than normal if you are an out-of-shape old-timer like me.  For you in-shape people out there, I hate you! Only kidding.
2. Next is the Performance Dry T-Shirt, excellent for all your middle distance work-outs.  This one has the PSU is 800 U emblem designed by Olympian Greg Fredericks on the front and the Group Logo on the back featuring Coach Groves.  If you can no longer run sub-1:50 but want to look like you can, this is the item for you!
3. And if you can only muster a slow jog nowadays like me, maybe you can distract the observers on your route with a nice Jacket for your dog.  The secret to attracting members of the opposite sex is always a puppy, not how fast you run.
4. Maybe when you are parking for the Penn Relays your car should show just who you are.  A nice License Plate will do the trick to spread the word.
5. For the cheapskates among you, the Value T-shirt is still available and shows your fandom just the same as the more expensive items!
6. After your middle distance work-out (or in place of your middle distance work-out) have a beverage of your choice in your very own Drinking Glass. 

Fourth Place Still Impresses Coach Groves

4)     Mark Horton, Richard Gross, Omar Easy, Chris Johnson (+1)

Yeah, that's Omar Easy, former PSU star running back hobnobbing with the elite tracksters!  As a native Jamaican, I would bet Mr. Easy knows his way around a track as well as a football gridiron. The former Kansas City Chief  and Oakland Raiser can also hit a golf ball a long way!  When I say that our tournament is open to anyone, I mean it.  Welcome, Omar, I hope you return again next year.  I didn't get a chance to speak with you.

Mark Horton traveled from the friendly New Jersey suburbs of NYC and looks at home on the golf course.  I think we'll have him hooked to return every year now!

Richard Gross was a delight to speak to at the Reunion Evening on Friday night.  We talked about how much the pole vault has changed since he first used a wooden pole to jump into a sand pit back in the day.  He also heard my familiar story about not being able to carry Don Skerpon's 16-foot pole down the runway in the late 70's.  My decathlon career ended before it began.

Coach Chris Johnson is my daughter's favorite coach, ever since he taught her hurdling technique at a day camp last year.  Whenever I give her the camera to take pictures at a track meet she invariably finds him in the crowd and snaps away.  His golf game must be better than he let's on too!

And here's a Slide Show of the Event with photos from our Digital Archive goddesses Jeri Elder and Kay Warfel as well as John McGraw, my daughter and some others.

 

Surreal Timing

Mark Horton, our preeminent NYC coorespondent, helped organize the recent White Out held at the Marquee Night Club in Manhattan to benefit those affected by child abuse.  He is to be commended for seeing a horrible situation and doing something about it. I can't bestow enough praise on him for the things he has done.  I was not able to make it there on Saturday, but a good crowd did. Mark will be teeing up the little white ball with us this year, I think.

This happened at the very time that Joe Paterno's family released the news that he was in "serious" condition at Mt. Nittany Hospital in State College.  The rumors and "pranks" came to a crescendo when CBS News erroneously reported that he had passed away Saturday.  Mark was at the event and described it as surreal to be surrounded by Penn Staters and those who just admired Penn State's commitment to Success with Honor at the same time that its architect was on his deathbed.  Mark will be getting back to us when figures are in as to how the event did nationwide.  He can rest assured that the rest of us alums share his desire to make victims of abuse whole again.

PSU White Out Against Child Abuse for NYC

Mark Horton helped organize this event.  Another example of the benefit that we achieve being part of the PSU Track Alumni Family is the chance to show the world the true meaning of Success AND Honor.  Strive every day to reach the ideal that that phrase embodies and the world becomes a better and better place.  Good luck to Mark with his efforts!

I have teamed up with a group of alumni that collectively decided to take initiative to do something positive following the recent events involving Penn State. After much deliberation, we came to the conclusion to throw a benefit to raise awareness and funds to support all victims of abuse.

Through the efforts of the group, we have contacted every alumni chapter in the nation to pull together on this and make this a multi-city effort. The involved chapters will be throwing a similar benefit for the same cause on the same night in their city/region. So far the following alumni communities are on board with this effort and more are joining each week: Northern and Central NJ, Philadelphia, Boston, D.C., Nashville, Southern Louisiana, Kansas City, Charlotte NC, Sacramento, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Cincinnati and Cleveland. Details of each event can be found at www.psupride.com with links to purchase tickets and / or donate to the cause.

As for the NYC benefit, we will be supporting two organizations that we felt were the most effective: RAINN, the nation's largest anti-sexual violence organization that has partnered with other alumni for a "Proud to be a Penn Stater" campaign, and Hedge Funds Care: Preventing and Treating Child Abuse, an organization that provides grants and benefits multiple child advocacy centers in NYC, as well as ten other cities nation-wide.

The Benefit:

Date: Saturday, January 21, 2012

Time: 7:30pm - 11:30 pm

Place: Marquee, 289 10th Avenue (between 26th & 27th)

Website: http://www.psupride.com/

What to Expect: Music by DJ Robertoflay, great silent auction items, full open bar thanks to the generosity of our beer, wine and liquors, and much more!

Please visit the website to learn more about the cause and the event nearest to you.

I hope to see you all there!