I mentioned my "track game" on this Board about 2 years ago, but here it is again.
Very simple, really, and it's quite enjoyable while driving alone; I do it almost all the time:
As you drive down the highway, look for any and all billboards, street signs, etc. that have a name that has a Track connection, such as " Lewis Car Rental", or Stones Real Estate", and on and on. Then yell out " Carl Lewis !" and " Dwight Stones ! ", etc. etc. It gets quite addictive but is indeed a lot of fun. And it is hard to go more than a minute without having a hit, considering all the hundreds, maybe thousands of Track names you know. Just don't get killed by forgetting to watch the traffic. I enjoy it the most of course when travelling in new territory.
P.S. Double credit for a full name, such as " Wes Santee Corporation" or the like.
P.S.S. Triple or even quadruple credit for seeing the very rare real thing, such as " Edwin C. Moses Boulevard" exit sign while driving on I-75 through Dayton, Ohio.
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Games track nuts play
It happened my soph year of high school. After track practice I went over to a friends to hang out. There on a desk in his room...."Track&Field News"....I thought.."wow!" Being a big fan of speed, I had to have this. Been a subscriber ever since. I can't remember who was on the cover but I do remember discovering Southern U and Texas Southern. Back then those SWAC schools had some athletes. The yearly lists (sprints) were full of SoU and TexSo sprinters. Once the SEC/SWC began to allow black athletes......well.
Anyway...
With the magazine I now could keep up with what was going on, and I did. I got some index cards and started keeping up with schools that could meet my criteria. Each school could field two athletes in the following events, if they met my standard.
110....13.9
long jump....25-0
100...9.4
200...20.9
400...46.9
4x1
4x4
I started out with just....
USC
UCLA
SJS
Kansas
New Mexico
Now I have 60 colleges. Sometimes having to go with just one athlete until somebody made my standard. New Mexico was at it's very best when I started this. Most of those on my initial card are still there. Bernie Rivers, Rene Matison, Adolph Plummer,Clarence Robinson, Steve Camidini are still there some 40 odd years later. When I have to replace somebody because someone better has come along it's like I'm saying good bye to a friend...haha!!
The fun was having track meets pitting these schools against each other. Yep 5 points for 1st 3 for 2nd 1 for 3rd. Relays 5 and 0 if a dual...ha!
The oldest athlete still with me would be Jesse Owens. He still long jumps for Ohio State and runs the 4x1 with Chris Sanders Chris Nelloms and Jerry Harris.
I'm still adding teams, with Texas Tech being my latest addition.
So who is the best team using the formate I have in place? That would be UCLA.
An athlete can only have one individual event but run both relays. Enter Larry Black,Steve Williams,Justin Gatlin etc.
Check um out.....
4x1
Mike Marsh
Ato Boldon
Millard Hampton
Warren Edmonson
110's
Greg Foster
Andre Phillips
long jump
Mike Powell
James McAlister
400
Steve Lewis
Danny Everett
100
Ato Boldon
Warren Edmonson
200
Mike Marsh
Millard Hampton
4x4
Everett
Wayne Collett
John Smith
Lewis
Yes USC is close. It's the relays that does them in.
Yep a labor of love.
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