Graham's got no place to go...

[Jon]

http://www.newsobserver.com/sports/stor ... 0055c.html

<<Two campus police officers ordered Graham off the track after State officials said his training interferes with physical education classes. They also cited his failure to sign insurance waivers for his nine runners, including 2004 Olympic gold medalists Justin Gatlin and Shawn Crawford.>>





What I find weird is that Graham states he can't afford the $250/day fee for using the track, yet towards the end of the article he speaks about building his own facility...!?

[cladthin]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

Virtually every time he opens his mouth, he contradicts himself. I enjoy moments like this when he is exposed for being such an egomaniac though this is probably news to no one. Some of the old T&FN interviews with him illustrate how self-centered this guy is.

[jrun]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

>Virtually every time he opens his mouth, he contradicts himself. I enjoy
>moments like this when he is exposed for being such an egomaniac though this is
>probably news to no one. Some of the old T&FN interviews with him illustrate
>how self-centered this guy is.


All he does is win, baby.

[mojo]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

To be fair I think by buiding is own facility he is probably thinking of corporate fundraising etc. not building it with his own money.

Winning isn't everything it's how you play the game that counts.

[Daisy]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

>Graham states he can't afford the $250/day fee for using the track,

It shouldn't be about whether he can afford it or not. that is a complete rip off. How many atheletes does he train? ten at most? Lets say 25 with all the hanger ons. That $10 each per session. What is the normal going rate to use a track for training. Also, bear in mind it is more likely $20 a head for one session!

[gm]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

>>Graham states he can't afford the $250/day fee for using the track,

It
>shouldn't be about whether he can afford it or not. that is a complete rip
>off. How many atheletes does he train? ten at most? Lets say 25 with all the
>hanger ons. That $10 each per session. What is the normal going rate to use a
>track for training. Also, bear in mind it is more likely $20 a head for one
>session!

Let's see... I'm Justin Gatlin and I make a million bucks a year on the back of my training at the NCSU track. Ten bucks a day to train there adds up to about 50 bucks a week on average, given my travel schedule.

So, say I have to fork out a couple thousand bucks a year to train for the stuff that makes me a million a year. That's a pretty good return, I think.

I'll stand by my belief that until and unless track people quit being so damn cheap and start living like the professionals they want to be, we'll continue to have these problems.

[Daisy]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

>So, say I have to fork out a couple thousand bucks a year to train
>for the stuff that makes me a million a year. That's a pretty good return, I
>think.


Do you think the local shops should be allowed to price gouge him too? How about the local car dealer, may be Gatlin could afford to pay 4 times more than the locals. Personally, I think he should take the bus rather than drive, will the bus driver be demanding he sticks in $5 instead of the $1.5 buck everyone else is paying?

[Jon]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

>I'm Justin Gatlin and I make a million bucks a year...
>so damn cheap




What about the athletes in Sprint Capitol who make nowhere near as much as Gatlin and who have jobs on the side just to pay their way (Miki Barber, LaTasha Jenkins, Nadine Faustin, etc...)...?

[Powell]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

The price doesn't really look that high to me, but if it's really so much above the market rate, why doesn't he go somewhere else?

[MJD]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

FWIW:

http://www.letsrun.com/forum/flat_read. ... ead=730169

[doug0914]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

why does it cost $250 to use a track? when i have used tracks, all i pay is the parking, usually 1-5 dollars for the day, or just park 2 miles away to get a warmup/cooldown before the workout, and then i dont pay anything. i never heard of having to pay to workout on a track.

[det]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

Is this really about money, or is it about drug use? (No specific allegation here...don't move me.....only his "past" athletes are having problems).

If I were a college prez would I want to rent rehersal space to a band who's songs promotes drugs, and violence against policemen; even if the kids and music department loved their melodies. Would I want Canseco giving batting clinics?

[Jon]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

>I never heard of having to pay to workout on a track.




Standard procedure here in Britain (for all the main tracks anyway).

[guru]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

When we are chased from the University of Cincinnati's track I am often informed that we "intimidate and scare" the other users. That's right, 4 high school girls doing 4x100 handoffs in lane 7 or 8 are scaring the 20 or 30 others that are generally on the track at any one time. Of course, we could RENT the track and have it all to ourselves for $250/day.

Make no mistake about it, when UC comes calling to recruit we don't forget this, nor will we forget when our new facility is finished next year and when UC may need a place while their track is being rehabbed, updated, etc.

What goes around comes around, so to speak.

[gm]

Re: Graham's got no place to go...

Do you think the local shops should be allowed to price gouge
>him too? How about the local car dealer, may be Gatlin could afford to pay 4
>times more than the locals. Personally, I think he should take the bus rather
>than drive, will the bus driver be demanding he sticks in $5 instead of the
>$1.5 buck everyone else is paying?

Apples and oranges. Not even a valid comparison. Right now, the group is getting away for free and making money off it. If it is important for them to use that facility to help themselves make money, then it is also important for them to pay something for that usage.

Having elite athletes with NO connection to the university train at your track is not really a big help to recruiting or anything else. How many of Trevor's group have any connection to NCSU? Any?