A Visit to the Attic

A lot of junk has accumulated lately, so I stashed it all in the attic. It's about time we go up there and check it out.

I'm glad our money is in good hands in Washington DC!  I wouldn't want any of it wasted on things like bringing in a Hot Dog Chef who doesn't even bring his own ingredients, just sends a list for someone else to go to the Supermarket for him.

But at least eating hot dogs doesn't mean eating "lips and a$$holes" like Dan Akyroyd told us in The Great Outdoors.

Life in the Gaza Strip is terrible indeed, but these women find some normality by running a track meet amidst the violence and hardships.

Some say the way to a man's heart is through his stomach, but it may in fact be his nose!  Try driving by this without a hankering for animal flesh!  And wouldn't your home be improved by this! ( to sign up for the waiting list for the scented candle.)

And life isn't complete without a video to boost your day, so here's one wondering what the next Spill will be like!

Bridget Franek / NCAA Champion: Women Place 4th!

Bridget Franek went out with a bang in her final PSU performance, winning the 3000 M Steeplechase with a time of 9:38.86.  Karlee McQuillen placed third in the Javelin, garnering another All-American berth, and placing PSU into 5th place with several events remaining.

Addendum:  With the Women's 4 X 400 4th place finish, the Women's Team finish in 4th Place earning a trophy that  2010 Most Valuable Woman Golfer  Jess Riden apparently must haul back to State College! 
The Men place 23rd overall.

Two More All-Americans

Ryan Fritz and Fawn Dorr capped their PSU careers with 4th place finishes at the NCAA Championships. both earning All-American status.  Ryan cleared 7' 2.5"  in his final Nittany Lion effort.  Fawn blazed a 56.75 in the 400 Hurdles for her highest place ever at "The Big Meet".  Huzzahs for both!

Tyler McCandless / All-American

With his 12th place finish in the NCAA 10,000 M Thursday night, Tyler McCandless becomes the first PSU 10K All-American since Mark Wimmer.  Congrats to Tyler for his accomplishments this season.  His 29:22 time was just slightly off his PR despite the rain and wind of the Pacific Northwest.

Thank You Everyone for Our Record Contribution for the Future

Keeper of the Cup Harry Smith has officially sent the largest yet contribution from Penn State Track and Field Alumni Golfers to the Varsity "S" Club's Mike Milliron at the Bryce Jordan Center.  Coach Sullivan requested that the entire amount be designated to the Coach Harry Groves Endowed Scholarship this year.  With the funds raised and matching corporate funds, $4300 was applied to the Scholarship.  Everyone involved deserves thanks, but Harry Smith and Clark Haley deserve accolades far in excess of everyone else.  I too, will continue to pursue even bigger things in the future.

"PSU is 800 U" and More "Smartiness"

Prelims of some events start today at the NCAA Championships in Hayward Field in Oregon.  PSU's Casimir Loxsom and Ryan Foster lace them up in the 800 M, among others.  Good luck all!

When asked  ‘Describe how to determine the height of a skyscraper with a barometer.’ on a college Physics exam, one student answered "tie a long string to the barometer,then lower it to the ground.  The height of the building is the length of the rope plus the length of the barometer."

This answer garnered a failing grade, but the student appealed and was awarded 6 minutes to defend his answer in front of a panel of professors, seeing as the answer showed no particular grasp of any physics knowledge.  The student showed and sat for 5 minutes in front of the panel, saying nothing and looking at his watch.  After 5 minutes, he stood up and said:

‘OK, drop it from the roof and measure the time it takes to hit the ground. The height of the building can then be worked out from the formula H = 0.5g x t squared.

‘Or, if the sun is out, measure the height of the barometer and the length of its shadow, then work out the height of the building from the length of the skyscraper's shadow.

‘You could also tie a string to the barometer and swing it like a pendulum, first at ground level and then on the roof. The height is worked out by the difference in the gravitational restoring force T =2 pi sqr root (l /g).

‘However, if you lacked imagination, you could, of course, use the barometer to measure the air pressure on the roof and on the ground, and convert the difference in millibars into feet to give the height of the building.’

The student was Neils Bohr, Nobel Physicist.  Never underestimate the intelligence of those you encounter.

Everything "Old" is New Again!

There was plenty of new attendees at the Ninth Annual Golf Tournament and Reunion.  Dave Zeiters came all the way from Florida to match his ball-striking skills with the rest of us hackers, and related some interesting details concerning his life following his Nittany Lion days.  Dave is a System Engineer in Florida, where he coaches hurdles at Holy Trinity High School in Melbourne.  Sorry about the "old" thing, Dave.

Dave was ranked #6 in the US for Masters Track Athletes in 2009 for the 110 M High Hurdles and was the Florida Champion with a time of 16.63!  That's Dave in 1985 at The Penn Relays and practicing in March 2010.

I can't imagine making it over 1 hurdle at my age, let alone a series of them in a race.  With his all-time best of 14.26, Dave is still competing at 86% of his capacity, a remarkable feat indeed.  I'll stick to my 50%, thank you very much.

PSU Track Alumni Golfers to Help Kevin Dare Fund

The push is on to recruit 2 or 3 foursomes for the September 20, 2010 Fifth Annual Kevin Dare Memorial Golf Tournament.  Anyone interested in golfing or donating to the group's effort can help by filling out the Form and letting us know.

How to Enter the 2011 Wrist Band/Web Site Contest

This year's prize was the awesome Golden Golf Ball won by Jeff Sanden.  Next year's prize will be even more awesome!

You can enter the contest in a number of ways:

1. Send a photo from anywhere in the world showing something interesting with the wrist band visible (see the slideshow on the left sidebar for ideas.) We've had photos included from all around the world, and right next door too!
2. Make our site your Home Page on the web.
3. Become a Follower of the blog (on the right sidebar).
4. Send a photo of your dog for inclusion on our slideshow (on the right sidebar).

It's as easy as that!  But remember, you must be present to win.  So set aside next year's Reunion weekend now.  The celebration will be epic for our 10th year.

The Meaning of Life? And Other Mundane Things

With all the Track and Field and Golf getting in the way of Physics stuff lately, I have let quite a bit pile up.  Let's see if I can remedy that with an All-Physics Post just to catch back up.  The long delay has seen Physicists discover the fundamental mystery of matter, additional revelations on time travel and possibly The Meaning of Life.  Lowly neuro-anatomists may also have unlocked the secret to Einstein's brain, although none of this explains his mismatched socks.  ( The Meaning of Life may just boil down to one thin mint anyway.)

We'll start with the concept that  measurements performed in the future may influence the present.  It's way too much for me to comprehend but Discover Magazine tries to explain it to me anyway.

Next we jump to CERN where we discover neutrinos morphing into another type of neutrino, (Warning for some: This is a Fox News Link) explaining something or another about the very nature of matter.  Ho hum Hadron Collider, because next we have the Tevatron possibly explaining the very existence of matter in the first place!  (Thanks to Official Physicist Brian Boyer for the link.)

The possible explanation of matter leads invariably to The Meaning of Life in my mind.  But my mind is no where nearly as complex as Einstein's was. Though he had no more neurons than you and I, give or take a few, he did have way more glial cells than the rest of us.  Could this be the secret to "Genius"?  I can't help but think that the chemical communications between glial cells in the brain can't possibly be helped by my morning Mountain Dews.  What the heck did Einstein drink in the morning?

For those keeping score (and I know you're out there!) that's one Radical right wing link and three straight-down-the-middle, politically correct links. 

Here's an important update on the Hadron Collider in Switzerland.

Separation of Church and Track! Is the Supreme Court Needed?

Moses himself sprints out to a lead in the Bolder Boulder Race in Colorado this weekend, before succumbing to the inevitable domination from the African hordes, specifically Ethiopia, (where the Ark of the Covenant may yet reside!).  PSU alum James Carney placed 7th in the race. Is Moses a Minimalist in sandals?

Greg Fredericks 11" X 17" Photos

At the Friday Night Reunion prior to the Harry Groves Golf Tourney, Greg Fredericks was honored for his contributions to PSU Track (and his tireless efforts for our group!).  Those contributing $20 to our web site and future activities received a signed photo from Greg of either his 1968 IC4A XC victory as a FRESHMEN or at the start of the 1980 Olympic Trials 10000 M race in which he was second to Craig Virgin.  These are just low resolution portions of both photos (which are trademarked by Walt Chadwick at runmoremiles.com).

We hope to obtain more great vintage photos for next year, with mid-1980's Penn Relays as a possibility, as Walt extends his digitized world.  Anyone wishing a copy of the great 11" X 17" photos (which Greg may even sign for you when you come to our Reunion next year!) can obtain one from Walt's website for $12.95 with $3 for shipping.  There are many additional great photos of yesteryear's stars, like John Walker, Bill Rodgers, Joan Benoit and Steve Prefontaine.  Cards, notepads etc. are also available for you obsessed running buffs out there!