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.

PSU Is 800U: World Record Edition!

We have highlighted PSU's half-mile and 800M prowess many times, from the turn of the previous Century to this year's NCAA Championship.  But here's one I didn't know about.  And the greatest Track and Field Museum Curator Mike Fanelli, just dug up another one!

Following the 1952 Olympics where Horace Ashenfelter set the world record in the 3000M Steeplechase, the team headed to Jolly Ole for a battle of Revolutionary importance.  The US team bested the Brits in a head-to-head matchup for all the marbles.

In that crew was Horace's brother Bill on the 4 x 880y team.  And they won against the home team in a world record time of 7:29.2! 

Indoor Memories

The more recent Nittany Lions have reveled in the glory that is the ultra-modern indoor track at the Horace Ashenfelter III Indoor Complex.  But things weren't always so easy or beautiful like they are now!  Some of us toiled in what would now be called primitive conditions.  Somehow, we still had fun, learned things and excelled anyway.

The world's greatest Track and Field Museum curator, Mike Fanelli, recently posted an old photo of a high school indoor meet in the 1960s.  It did not fail to get a rise out of many people, including our very own Chief Morale and Laundry Officer, Larry Mangan.  I just wish Larry would write these things down for the blog instead of making me steal them from the other intertubes!

At Penn State my freshman year, we worked out on the "track" in the rafters (asbestos anyone?) of Rec Hall. That rectangular torture device basically had one and a quarter lanes. You did your recovery hugging the inside railing (yes, railing) while all types of sprinters and middle distance runners blazed by on your right as they completed their workouts. As your fatigue increased, your chances of weaving to the right increased, as did your chance of getting run over by Paul Lankford or Gary Schwartz (why was the throws coach running on that "track"?). We actually held an intrasquad meet on that damn medieval surface. Fortunately, Penn State's athletic administration, in all its glorious wisdom, moved us to the Greenberg Indoor Sport Complex, lovingly referred to as the Ice Palace. The surface of this unheated (yes, unheated in Central PA - wisdom) facility, which also had leaking skylights (yes, skylights in an unheated facility), was a hard, green, pebbled finish. Oh, and it was a flat, 13 lap to the mile circuit. The 20 meter straightaways provided a brief respite to everyone's screaming Achilles's tendons. My favorite part of the warm up was using our racing spikes to chip away the ice that formed on the track when the aforementioned skylights failed to hold their water. I would have much preferred to run outside on a creaky old board track.

My favorite memory of the Rec Hall Intrasquad Meet was the 400M.  Each heat had two athletes who hated each other.  One or the other ended up "over the rails" or "into the wall" in every dual.  Highly entertaining for a skinny Freshman looking to survive the spike injuries and sore throat to come in his 2-mile race!

Larry Mangan leads the Mile!

Rec Hall Track

Round and Round A Square Track

And let's not leave out the Greenberg Complex, which we have dealt with before...

Smelling The Chickens

PSU Is 880U: The Roaring 20s Addition **

This is a cross-post with our wonderful friend and spouse of a Nittany Lion, Mike Fanelli.  Mike owns the finest Track and Field Museum in the world.  It is meticulously kept in the garage of his Northern California home.  Recently, the wildfires (some of them purposely set!) threatened the garage and his whole neighborhood.  He was able to stuff most of the more recent stuff into his trunk, and with little else, drive off with no knowledge of what he would find when he returned.  And this happened more than once.

Somehow, his home was spared and Mike has returned to systematically documenting the history of our sport in his very own dynamic style.  As I have said before, the Fanelli family is one of the most interesting I could imagine and I would love to create a television series about them once I am finished with being a Movie Producer (a sequel to my first film is under discussion!)

He offered me his latest find with the caveat that I hold off on posting until he was done.  Of course, I accepted. And what a doozy it is!  It includes:

• The only loss in Paavo Nurmi's triumphant American tour in 1925 was his loss to Nittany Lion 2-lapper Alan Hellfrich in the 880Y. (That made him 54/55 for the 5-month duration tour.)
• Pics from the 1923 World Record 4 x 880Y Relay from the Nittany Lions

From Mike Fanelli:

 

NURMI KILLER...in 1925, the greatest ever Flying Finn, Paavo Nurmi, embarked on a North American tour in which he ran 55 races in a 5 month period. He had been undefeated in 5 full years and held the longest ever win streak in track and field history at 121 straight (a certain American intermediate hurdler has since surpassed said streak with his 122 victories)
On the very final competition of his marathon racing tour, the bionic Finn, who by then had already collected 8 Olympic gold medals, would contest 880 yards before 20,000 spectators on the three cornered "track" within Yankee Stadium.*

Alas, his farewell footrace was foiled by Alan Helffrich, the Penn State speedster pictured here (while anchoring the Nittany Lions to a 7:48.8 world record two mile relay at Penn in 1923).
The Nittany Lion absolutely buried Nurmi in the final 75 yards and won going away. Known for his ferocious finishing speed, Helffich, the 'under the radar' spoiler, (and nearby Yonkers native) actually sported some fairly respectable credentials of his own.
By virtue of his fifth place finish in the 400 at the 1920 Trials, Helffrich became a USA Olympic relay alternate in the summer just after high school graduation...and then ran second leg on the world record setting 4 x 400 meter relay at the 1924 Games. He was a two time NCAA half mile champ (1922 and 1923) and the AAU first placer circa 1921, 1922, and 1925. As well, at one time Alan Helffrich held the world indoor records at 500 meters, 600 meters, 800 meters, plus the 880 yards.
So, I guess it's really no wonder that this 'unknown' Penn Stater proficiently pummeled Paavo circa 1925.
And that, my track nerd brethren, is your history lesson for the day ;)

Penn State 1923 World Record 4 x 880Y (7:48.8)

Alan Helffrich.

The Penn Relays WR Finish

*The newly built Yankee Stadium dates to April, 1923.

 ** I have taken some abuse for the use of the word "Addition" instead of "Edition" in the title.  But rather than the normal error of fact inherent in the blog with it all, it was a play on words!  The Interns will be accepting (not excepting!) apologies all week.

There's A Reason No One Runs 24-Hour Relays Anymore!

Our great friend and owner of the world's best Track and Field Museum (in his garage!), Mike Fanelli, posted a page of results from a 24-Hour Relay in 1971 or so.  There are some big names on the list, including Gerry Lindgren, Tom Fleming (RIP) and Mark Covert (of streaking fame!).

This, of course got a spirited response of comments from many.  The overwhelming thrust of which was "I'll never do that again!"

"It was awful. What started out to be a simple mile run every 44 minutes or so turned into a leg-killing fiasco after about 18 miles. I couldn't imagine running that slow."

-Gerry Lindgren. 

Some others chimed in with other remembrances of "the ordeal", including mine from a 1977 attempt for the Pennsylvania State Record.

A Day In Hell 

Here's results from a very good team from New Zealand...

A New Officer, A Look Back And Just A Peek Forward

We haven't had a new Officer installed in a little while and I came across this pic online...

This is Mercedes and Teddy Quinn's new dog, an adopted Jack Russell terrier (or as they will learn, terror!) named Bo (I think!).  Seeing as Teddy is our group's Director of Fun, Bo is now our Ambassador of Fun!  There is never a dull moment with a Jack.  I look forward to this year's head-to-head match-up of Bo and my Jack Spott in the basketball bracket fiasco!

The Fanelli family from Jenkintown, PA is as close as America comes to Track and Field royalty.  Mike brings us this great PSU tidbit from the last team championship for the Lions!

And coming soon will be more from the Fanellis AND one of our own Olympians when I reintroduce our 10 Questions feature (give or take a few!)

Penn State's Individual Cross Country Champion 1926, 1927

Even though Mike Fanelli is in Vietnam right now with his Nittany Lion wife, his garage can still be forthcoming.  Here's some news from days of yore involving our alma mater.

Penn State's Bill Cox won the ICAAAA (IC4A) Cross Country Championship in 1926 and 1927 at Van Cordtlandt Park.  That was the National Championship at the time.  He also won the Indoor and Outdoor one mile track championship in those years.

His star burned bright but didn't last long. And they weren't exactly understanding at the Pittsburgh Press.

My best guess, and it is just a guess, is that he met the future Mrs. Cox. He still is a hero of mine now.

An Appearance From My Sick Bed

I have been laid low by what must be pneumonia. I haven't been out of bed for 2 days,  and just had an on-call conversation with a patient thinking the whole time that it was Sunday.

I have many submissions for the blog I just haven't been able to get to, so this brief post with pictures of the new track will have to do. I also throw in another vintage Greg Fredericks /Donal Walsh duel at Van Cortlandt Park in 1970
from Mike Fanelli's garage!  I promise to be back tomorrow (cough,  cough)...

Curt Stone World Exclusive!

or should I say,

Curt Stone World Exclusive!

I don't think I have ever used the extra-large font size on the blog, as that is considered gauche among the blogging elite, of which I can only aspire.  But when Friend of the Group and Track Historian Extraordinaire Mike Fanelli* sent me these pics to post on the world wide internet for the very first time, I knew I needed to do something different. 

Mike has also been invited to post a guest post on the blog with it all.  We even had the splendid opportunity to speak for the very first time.  It is a pleasure to know that Track and Field (Athletics!) unites so many of us across miles, years and even differing disciplines.  We really do have the finest people and sport in the world.

In a conversation with Horace Ashenfelter at the Reunion 3 years ago, he explained how Curt was the keystone of all the pioneering NCAA Championship teams in the 40s and 50s for PSU.  He recruited all of the key runners.  Photos of him always show an unassuming young man, but under that facade was a Champion of the highest order. (And 3 time Olympian!)

This pic is the inside back cover of the 1953 Coronation British Games...it is Curt Stone leading Gordon Pirie in the 'two miles international' at the 1952 Whitsun British Games.

The program from 1953 with the pic of Curt Stone winning the 1952 2-Mile.

 *I slandered Mike in my previous post.  He took it with humor, as intended, evidence that he "gets it" when considering the importance of mirth and the option of golf!  But his Museum of a garage looks nothing like the photo I included.  His actual garage is organized and visually pleasing.  Meanwhile, my miserable museum of memorabilia is being moved from my basement to my garage right now!  Here is mine...

Pitiful.

 

It's Never Too Early To Think About The Penn Relays!

Both the Men and Women got off to a good start at the B1G Ten Indoor Track and Field Championships on the first day.

But what struck my eye was Track Historian and Friend of the Group (and possible future star of Hoarding: Buried Alive!) Mike Fanelli's photo post on Facebook yesterday.  It shows PSU's winning 4 x Mile squad at the 1926 Penn Relays.  I have set my Interns off on a quest to learn more, but they seem to be packing for Spring Break already...

1926 4 x Mile victors.

Our Interns have come through!   Now they are asking for a ride to the Airport, in addition to 2 weeks off in Mexico...

1926 4 x Mile: 18 minutes 14 seconds and THREE-FIFTH...Fouracre, Reis, Barclay, Stewart!!!

One diligent Intern did find out that 1926 was the first year that the Shuttle Hurdles were contested at the Penn Relays, at the advice of the visiting teams from Oxford and Cambridge.  The event was won that first year by Moore of Penn State!  And the Interns dug this up too:  1926 480y Shuttle Hurdles...1:05.00...Eggers, Sharp, Lereh, Moore. Now they want lunch money before their flight...

Shuttle Hurdle Champions 1926.

There seems to be no end of the riches that are to be found in Mike Fanelli's garage.  And not a one of us is complaining.  Except maybe his lovely Nittany Lion wife...

Artist's Conception of Track and Field Museum, San Francisco.

My Readers Are The Best: And I'll Never Doubt Our New Blog Laureate Again

The 1974 AAU XC Championship listing from Mike Fanelli's vast archives was a big hit.  The only way to top it would be photographs from that meet.  And Dan Martinez, our best Oregon Duck connection, has come through for us again!  Both Mike and Dan have always been invited to our Reunion and Golf Outing.  It would be a pleasure to have a Duck and a native Philadelphian amongst our ranks.  Please chime in with who is who among the runners pictured. (Hint: There seems to be 2 Nittany Lions lurking in the photos somewhere?)

And it turns out that Larry Mangan was 100% correct and both the previous Blog Laureate and I were 100% wrong.  Larry will now be tasked with his newest Group title as Blog Laureate, a position that has been unfilled for far too long.

The Coach Groves Spiked Shoe Meet was known as the Coaches Conference Meet in its early manifestation.  I'm not sure who did the legwork on this but I am impressed.  The telltale article was found in the Reading Eagle of all places.

1979 Coaches Conference XC Meet

1. Larry Mangan   24:40   5.2 mile  (Course Record)
2. Alan Scharsu     24:56
3. John Zeigler
4. Tom Rapp
5. Jeff Adkins
6. Ricky Garcia
7. Jim Clelland

I cannot thank my readers enough for making this site almost factually accurate! hee hee hee All errors in fact are usually my responsibility.  But most times, my readers rescue me.

I'm Not Great at Reporting Results

The PSU Women capped off a fine 2012 Cross country Season with a 14th Place Team finish at the NCAA Division 1 Championships on Saturday in Louisville.  Congrats to all!

14 Penn State                  387   33   51   59  121  123  143  150          
      Total Time:  1:43:55.90                                                    
         Average:    20:47.18 

  47 #303 Perri, Tori          JR 20:21.4   33

  71 #306 Simko, Rebekka       JR 20:35.3   51

  80 #304 Ridder, Brooklyne    SR 20:38.9   59

  156 #300 Bower, Natalie      SR 21:09.7  121 

  159 #305 Rodden, Katie       SO 21:10.6  123

  180 #299 Anderson, Leigha    SO 21:21.8  143

  188 #302 Giannotti, Emily    JR 21:26.7  150

In other action, Group Friend Mike Fanelli ran his 100,000th mile at the halfway mark of the Philadelphia Marathon.  Matt Groves ran his very first marathon at the same race, wearing a PSU Track Alumni Singlet!  Not bad for a half-miler!

Stephanie Pezullo was third overall at  the Philadelphia Half Marathon and Doreen Startare McCoubrie won the Masters Division of the Philadelphia Half-Marathon.

Stephanie Pezzullo, 30, Charlotte, NC, 1:13:13
Doreen McCoubrie, 51, Malvern, PA, 1:23:22

What's Your Excuse (Part 2)

Thanks to Friend of The Group Mike Fanelli for the photo of Ed Whitlock in the middle of his world-record 3000 M race.  Ed ran 12:00.88 at the age of 80!

I honestly hope I can still walk at that age, if I can reach it at all.

Mike is on the verge of running his 100,000th mile soon, if I'm not mistaken.  Go, Mike, go.