This Will Be Fun To Watch

"Check out these flip-flops."

-Billy. 

As a paid subscriber to Flo Track (so I could watch the Penn Relays!), it is great to know that their newest hire is Billy Francis Cvecko, our very own Undersecretary of Fun!

I hope they realize what a gift that they gave themselves by hiring him.  I really look forward to what is to come.  Maybe he will even get them to do a feature on our group someday???   (Hint, hint!)

"Billy, Billy, Billy..."

And there are plenty of latecomers letting me know they are coming to the Reunion.  Some of them are golfing too.  Come Join Us!!! 

Billy's Intro Video!!! 

At 42 Cents For Each, It Still May Be Too High A Cost

 "Aw, rat farts!"

-Bishop Fred Pickering.

I finally checked to see if my golf clubs were still in the garage (they are!).  And whether or not it was infested by stink bugs (it isn't!).  And that it isn't being used as a varmint nest (it isn't!).  Sofar, so good.

But it still is behind a bunch of other stuff and I will probably barely remember to get them into my car for the ride to State College for the Reunion and Coach Groves Golf Tourney.

Since I routinely lose more than a half dozen balls on the course, I would rather not use the same balls as real golfers do at about $3 or $4 each.  I usually buy "refurbished" golf balls for the event, but this year I went all out and bought 2 dozen NEW ones at Walmart!  $10 for 2 dozen is still stinging to my wallet, as I might as well open the bag and dump half of them into a Mountain View CC lake and then just drive around in a golf cart making fun of everyone else instead of actually trying to hit that damn little white ball with a crooked stick!

Wilson "Extra-Distance" - The White Castle of Golf Balls.

And did I mention that we could use a few more golfers for the tourney?  

With the weather looking dicey for Saturday, all you golfers need to act like a boy scout and BE PREPARED.  And if the weather closes the course, the Idiot Officers Group will be convening for the first time ever to find an alternative activity.  Post season Womens Lacrosse?  A conquering of Mount Nittany by all of us?  A decathlon in the Indoor Complex?  Who knows what the mind of Clark Haley can come up with?

Three Individual Big Ten Champions

The Penn State Men added 3 more Big Ten individual champions to the roster at the Championships in Lincoln, NE yesterday. 

Brian Leap made good on his top ranking in the Triple Jump with a fine leap of 53' 5.5"!

Brian Leap, center.

Brannon Kidder won his 9th individual Big Ten title with his 3:44.67 in the 1500M to go with last year's title in the 800M.  Colin Apert and Robby Creese were 4th and 5th in the event.

 

And Isaiah Harris made it 6 of the last 7 800M titles for PSU at the Championships with his splendid 1:46.21, just 0.10 seconds away from Casimir Loxsom's Big Ten Championship record!

 

The Store Is Open!

Our first store sale of Penn State Track and Field Alumni Jackets and Back Packs is now live!  Orders will be taken until the firm cut-off date of June 2.  At that point all of the items will be embroidered and readied for shipping by the end of the month (6/30).  So your orders should be in-hand by the first week of July.  Brochures and samples of the items will be available for those attending the Reunion!

Order From The Store Here Now Until June 2 Closing Date!

Password is PSUTFA 

We will start with just the two items and gradually add other for bi-annual or quarterly sales.  Only the highest quality items will be selected from a wide range of choices. Let me know what other kinds of items you would like to see.

Amazing Photo (And Man!)

Jayson Jackson just shared a great photo of Horace Ashenfelter III that will be part of an upcoming Penn Stater spread on the Olympian. Thanks Jayson!

That's him lacing up for his every other day run of 2 to 3 miles (at least as of 2014).  And that's his Olympic singlet he's wearing!  

It's Big Ten Time!

The team arrived early to Nebraska for this weekend's Big Ten Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

And the Idiot Officer Corps will be convening via digital means tomorrow to finalize all the details of next week's Reunion and Golf Tourney.  There's still time to arrange your attendance!

More Alums Bolster Large's Chances On The Trail

With the giddiness of the night on an actual mattress in Harpers Ferry well behind him, Rob Whiteside (trail name "Large") trudges on through the shale shards of Pennsylvania toward his goal of Katahdin Mountain in Maine. So two more PSU Track Alums met him as he was about to cross the Susquehanna River at Duncannon.  Another "Town" meal for him and Phoebe (trail name "White Rabbit")  should bolster them for the hike toward the Delaware Water Gap and his home state of New Jersey.

Jeff Sanden, Large and Mark Haywood.

Now everyone must go the the poll on the left sidebar on the full website to vote for whom Rob now looks the most like.

Ernest Hemingway.

Jeremiah Johnson.

Santa Claus.

David Letterman.

Ben Bernanke.

A Middle Distance Star Before 800U

We previously heard from Gerald Karver in the discussions of the best PSU XC runners of all-time.  But our new Blog Laureate unearthed this little gem today and I thought I should pass it on.

Bring Back The Mile
(and Here)
 

Gerald "Jerry" Karver.

Will this M-Theory Beast Demolish The Standard Model?

With the new superpowers of the CERN Super Colllider back at full strength following the weasel mishap, hints of a new particle 6 times bigger than the Higgs Boson have been detected.  This has all the right scientists in a tizzy.  And well it should.  This could be the thing that makes the Standard Model cry "Uncle" once and for all.

Succinct Summary from Ace of Spades

 Professor John Nerdelbaum Frink, Jr.

Much More About Michael Slagowski

He has already had a historic season.  He is only the second third high school runner in history to run a sub-4 minute mile in an all high school race. And the first was Jim Ryun himself. And he has always been running less than 60 miles a week!  His up-side is rather impressive.

 Here's his 1:48 800M earlier this season:



And here's his sub-4 effort filmed by his father:

I'll Bet The Deadline Isn't Real

There is less than 2 weeks until the Penn State Track and Field (and XC!) Alumni Reunion and the Coach Groves Golf Tournament in State College.  And while there was a deadline for receipt of your entry form on Friday, you can still come and enjoy every bit of the fun! No one will be turned away and we are always looking for additional golfers (and duffers!).

There is something for everyone:

• Friday night reception at Inferno on College Avenue 6:30P to 8:30P.  And of special note for long-time attendees, THERE IS OPEN BAR. Imagine that! Come meet some of the best people on Earth and be there for Clark Haley's "The picking of the foursomes!"  What form will this take this year?
• Probable Bar Crawl following the reception.  I have only heard stories about the shenanigans.  My bedtime precludes this!
• The Alumni "Run" at the track  Saturday 9:00AM.  You could run a campus loop with an Olympian or just stand around eating donuts with Coach Groves or anything in between.  Coffee and stickies will also be available to fortify yourself for the rest of the day.  The first official flight of Airship 800U has been approved to bring everyone first hand pics and videos of the event.
• There will be Tours of the Sports Museum and the 8th Annual Climb and Conquest of Mt. Nittany on Saturday for those not golfing. (you know it's a requirement on the bucket list for Nittany Lions, don't you?)  Join my dog Pooky for her 5th in-a-row climb and check out the unique wildflowers before she either eats them or pees on them!  12:00P or thereabouts on Saturday.
• The Coach Groves Golf Tourney  11:00A at Mountain View CC, formerly the Elks Club, starting with the putting contest.  This is the premier event of all.  Duffers and pros alike are welcome. Spectators are welcome too.  Come and watch all the action from the 10th tee and 18th green with Coach Groves and the Video Archive Goddesses.
• The Awards Dinner at the Ashenfelter Track  6:30P  A buffet dinner with available wine and beers.  Clark Haley will do his impression of Shecky Greene and I will introduce "The Rusty Boot Award", the highest honor of all for a PSU Track/XC Alumnus.

I Didn't Forget The Jumpers

The Jumpers also had a wonderful Penn Relays Carnival last week, with Brian Leap attaining B1G Athlete of the Week with his Tri-Phase Leap of 53' 0" to win the Championship Mens Triple Jump!

Other highlights include:

• Chisum Ifedi  2nd place in the Men's  High Jump with 6' 11.5"
• Four Nittany Lions placing high in the Women's Pole Vault.  Hannah Mulhern (12' 9.5"), Kasey Kemp (12' 5.5"), Erin Knabe (12' 5.5") and Megan Fry (11' 11.75")
• Danielle Gibson  4th in the Women's Long Jump with 18' 10"