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.
    

    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    
    

We Are The Champions!

Yes, for the second year in a row, I helped win the Coach Groves Golf Tourney.  Currently, I am the hottest golfer in our group.  

But in all seriousness, I had the opportunity to golf with the best overall foursome ever.  Tom Brown, current PSU Sophomore and progeny of last year's winning foursome member Steve Brown, is an excellent golfer.  He is also smart enough to be studying Accounting. Tom also won the longest drive of the day.

Paul Mundy made it back into the fold for the first time in a few years.  Despite not golfing much in the interim, his frying pan of a driver still provided some excellent shots off the tee! And they changed hole #4 so he couldn't hit another tractor-trailer on 322.  Paul also won the Numb Nut award.  More on that in the next post.

But the MVP of the day was good friend and classmate Bob Gabel.  Despite being a group leader in the pharmaceutical business, he must have found some time to hit the links.  He hit shot after shot of precise, long shots off the tee, pinpoint shots from the fairways and was putting with the finesse of a Tiger.  Hats off to the man who arranged for my Independent Studies Classes back in the day.

Tom Brown, Paul Mundy and Bob Gabel, 2019 Tourney victors! Photo by Kay Warfel.

It Took Me Twelve Tries To Repeat!

Honestly, my foursome played well enough to come in 4th in our tourney of 6 foursomes.  I contributed little to the effort on a rather tough day to golf.  The foursomes picked at the Friday night reception were as evenly matched as any have ever been in our 17 year history.

But somehow, the gods shined down upon the struggling foursome of Steve Brown, Steve Brown Jr., Brian Laird and me,  making us the Champions of the 2018 Coach  Harry Groves Golf Tournament.  At (-1) for the tourney, it is one of the worst winning scores we have had.

Unfortunately, I had to leave early and didn't get to make it to the Awards Dinner and Clark Haley Comedy Show, but I will pass along the rest of the results when I can.

Steve Brown Jr., Steve Brown, Brian Laird and me.

Coach Groves Had A Good Arts Festival Week

Coach Groves had many visitors and activities during the week of the Arts Festival in State College.  I fondly remember the early days of the event even though the 10-Miler (Matt Grove says the 10-Miler is back!) and fiddle contest no longer exist.  sigh...

From KKOB, an intrepid intern with apparently more time on his hands than I!!!!

"The Arts Festival Races are the oldest races in Central Pennsylvania. First run in 1975 as a 10 mile race, the Arts Festival race was shortened to a 10K race in 1986. In 2005, race organizers added a 5K and created a new course that combines the best of Penn State’s East and West Campuses. The 10 mile race was reinstituted in 2013 giving participants the chance to experience “Arts Festival weather” for a full ten miles."

But the fiddle contest is no longer part of the festivities.  A double blind contest of fiddle skills always provided some neat entertainment.

Greg and Coach out for a walk.

Coach always gathers a crowd.

Steve Brown with Coach and Greg.

Coach dunked 2 aides at his residence.

2 Clowns.

We Are Getting Close To Funding Coach Groves' Scholarship! You Can Help

Steve Brown takes a walk with Coach Groves.

Steve Brown stopped by to visit Coach and took a walk with him and Greg.  Those wondering about the Princeton shirt should know that Coach's dad was a prof at Princeton when he grew up in Trenton, NJ. (Trenton Makes, The World Takes!)  (Steve is still on the lists of top 10 performances in the 5000M and 10000M at PSU:   4th 5000M 13:50.54 and 10th 10000M 29:36.39)

Coach Groves is never very far from our thoughts here at the Blog With It All. All of you know my reverence for him and that this whole blog thing is primarily a way of honoring him for what he has meant to me.

It is a pleasure to see that Coach Gondak has inherited the same spirit that Coach Groves possessed for his 38 years at the helm.  The recent successes of the entire program and the excitement over those to come have all of us eager for more.

The good news is that you can help without even being able to visit Happy Valley or attend one of our Alumni Reunions and Coach Groves Golf Tourneys. (Although, really, put it on your bucket list!)

We are very near fully funding the Scholarship in Coach Groves' name.  We need to reach $300,000 to have a position scholarship named for Coach!  Most of you know what a big deal that is. 

 Coach Groves Scholarship

$244,491.37

Coach Gondak has suggested that I put a widget on the blog updating this info.  That will be done, but you need to visit the full website, not the mobile phone site, to see all the links and info on the sidebars!!!  Do this every so often just to make sure you don't miss anything!

And here is how to donate to Penn State Track/XC or any of the named scholarship funds, with 100% of the funds going to where you want them to end up:

Donate Directly to PSU Track/XC 

 HOW TO DONATE TO PENN STATE CROSS COUNTRY/TRACK AND FIELD

Go to this website: http://www.gopsusports.com/sports/c-lionclub/varsity-s-club.html

Scroll down and click on the Track and Field link (or the cross country link) and then click on the “Make a gift” link

After clicking on the “Make a Gift” link it takes you to the page below.  When you get to the gift amount part you can see it already indicates “Track/Cross Country”, so any amount you put in here will go directly to our program – 100% of it.  If you prefer to donate to a specific scholarship like the Harry Groves Scholarship or the Greg Fredericks Scholarship you type that in the “specific athletic endowment or fund” box and it will be applied to that endowment.


If you prefer to write a check, send it to:
Kirk Diehl
Varsity S
147 Bryce Jordan Center
University Park, PA 16802

Please put Men or Women Track OUD in the Memo line to donate directly to the program, or put the name of the scholarship you would like to donate to in the memo line.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR SUPPORT OF PENN STATE XC/TRACK AND FIELD

More "Foursomes" From The Golf Tourney

There were 7 foursomes in the recent Coach Groves Golf Tournament vying for a spot on The Cup.

4th Place: Katie Barrett, Mark Fuller '13, Mark Althouse.'81

Katie Barrett was the winner of the Golden Putter with her 17 foot putt on the 18th green, just edging out my 12 foot effort!

2nd: Charlie Hull '69, Steve Brown '90, Steve Brown Jr., Tom Brown.

3rd: Mike McClelland '16, Harry Smith '84, Brian Leap '16.

7th: Mary Dell, Kevin Fuller '10, Todd Leggett '84, Tom Shiffer '87.

5th: Me, Steve Balkey '88, Mike McCahill '83, John Ziegler '80.

1st: Bill Malchano 85, Doug Kent '80, Ken Brinker '69.

 In addition to winning his second tourney, Doug Kent also won the Longest Drive and the Closest to the Pin on Hole #2 (4 foot, 1 inch)!

And how did we miss a photo of:  6th: Clark Haley '85, Brian Fuller '09, Emily Dubs and John McGraw '05???   Do any of you have a photo of this foursome?

This Still Isn't The Way To Determine The Rest Of PSU's Best Cross Country Runners Of All-Time

Here's the rest of the list of "The Top PSU Cross Country Runners of All-Time".  Remember, the criteria were set in the last post, which showed the top 11 of All-Time.

12.  Gerald Norman - 6th in 1960 for 15 points.
13.  Richard Englebrink - 7th in 1959 for 14 points.
14.  Howard Deardorff - 8th in 1960 for 13 points.
15.  Robert Snyder - 9th in 1978 for 12 points.
16.  Robert Freebairn - 11th in 1950 for 10 points.
17.  Brian Laird - 13th in 1988 for 8 points.
18.  Fred Kerr -  13th in 1957 for 8 points.
19.  Lamont Smith - 13th in 1953 for 8 points.
20.  Donald Ashenfelter - 13th in 1949 for 8 points.
21.  McClain Smith - 13th in 1942 for 8 points.
22.  Larry Mangan - 14th in 1980 for 7 points.
23.  Donald Freebairn - 14th in 1949 for 7 points.
24.  George Malley - 17th in 1975, 20th in 1976 for 5 points.
25.  Jack Saint Clair - 16th in 1950 for 5 points.
26.  Albert Porto - 16th in 1949 for 5 points.
27.  Herman Goffberg - 16th in 1941 for 5 points.
28.  Raymond Smith - 17th in 1967 for 4 points.
29.  Herman Weber - 17th in 1960 for 4 points.
30.  Donald Woodrow - 17th in 1956 for 4 points.
31.  William Gordon - 17th in 1950 for 4 points.
32.  Fred Lennox - 17th in 1947 for 4 points.
33.  Steve Brown - 20th in 1989 for 1 point.
34.  Doug Moorhead - 20th in 1954 for 1 point.

Director of Youth Development Artie Gilkes and Herm Goffberg.

   

Herm Goffberg.

Robert Snyder.

Ryan Foster, Larry Mangan, Al Porto, and Steve Balkey.

Brian Laird, 2nd from right.

Nittany Lions From the PIAA List of Past Cross Country Champions

I have tried to put together a list of current and former Nittany Lions who have joined the Cross Country team after winning a PIAA State Championship.  I probably don't have a complete list.  If anyone knows of those I missed, please chime in! (The list has been amended to include those I missed and submitted via the comments. Thanks to the anonymous supporter and RMH!)

1963 Boys’ AAA  Steve Gentry 11  State College. 10:36  (Pennsylvania State University)

1964 Boys’ AAA Steve Gentry  12 State College 10:25.2 (Pennsylvania State University)

1968 Boys’ AAA Jim Allahand 12 Bensalem  12:40 (Pennsylvania State University)

1975 Girls’ AA Mary Rawe  11 Camp Hill    12:28 (Pennsylvania State University)

            1976 Girls’ AAA Kathy Byrnes 12 North Allegheny 13:06.6.(Pennsylvania State University)

1977 Boys’ AAA  Gary Black  12  State College 15:09.4 (Pennsylvania State University)

1978  Boys’ AA  Mike Cook  12 Troy  15:26.8 (Pennsylvania State University)

1980  Boys’ AA Mark Overheim 12  General McLane 10  15:50.7 (Lehigh University)

1982 Boys’ AAA  Eric Carter 11 Penn Hills   15:38.2  (Lehigh University)

1984 Boys’ AAA Steve Brown 12  North Hills   15:44.9 (Lehigh University)

1985 Boys’ AAA  Doug Walter  12  Chambersburg   15:38.14 (Lehigh University)

1986 Boys’ AAA Ron Moore 12 Hempfield Area  15:33.2 (Pennsylvania State University)

1989 Boys’ AAA  Bob Hamer  12  Council Rock 15:37.98 (Lehigh University)

1995 Boys’ AAA  Chris McGinness 12  Abington 15:48.15 (Pennsylvania State University)

2001 Boys’ AAA Daniel Mazzocco 12 Baldwin 16:03.0 (Hersheypark Stadium White Field)

2011 Boys’ AAA Conner Quinn 11  Hatboro-Horsham 16:03 (Parkview XC Course, Hershey)

            2012 Boys’ AAA Tony Russell 11  W. C. Henderson  15:45 (Parkview XC Course, Hershey)

2013 .Girls’ AAA Tessa Barrett 12  Abington Heights 17:30 (Parkview XC Course, Hershey)

2013 Girls’ AA Elizabeth Chikotas 12 Saucon Valley  18:43 (Parkview XC Course, Hershey)

            2013  Boys’ AAA  Tony Russell 12  W. C. Henderson 15:49 (Parkview XC Course, Hershey)