Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

[Ilinoisrunning]

I heard a rumor that in Deion's prime, his trainer could hold a tennis ball at waist's height, and when he dropped it Deion would start running to it. Now from what I recall Deion could reach it to catch it before it bounced a second time
His coach was at the 50m mark and Deion started from the start line!
Is this possible?

[Asterix]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

>Is this possible?

Did you take high school physics?

Take the basic equation d = v1 + (1/2) a t^2.
v1 = 0 (since it is being dropped).
a = 10 m/s^2 (close approximation for gravity).
d = 1 m approximate waist height.

Solve for t = (0.2)^0.5 = 0.45 seconds.

Take a conservative view that "before the second bounce" means the ball drops to the ground, does not lose any energy, bounces up to its original height, and then returns all the way to the ground, an instant before the second bounce.

That is 3 circuits or 3*(0.45) = 1.35 seconds.

Now, apply this to your anecdote of starting 50m away. Lets make a further conservative assumption that there is no reaction time (IAAF minimum 0.100 seconds) and acceleration is instantaneous (or why not just assume a flying start) so that 50m is covered at constant velocity.

1.35 seconds for 50m = 2.70 seconds for 100m.

Ask yourself your question again about possibility.

[Ilinoisrunning]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

Ok i see
and i took advanced palcement physics this year
school is out and i dont give a sh** about it

[Ilinoisrunning]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

damn that was an easy question tho, there are tons of physics in track isnt there?

[The Fern]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

If you want to get into the physics of Track and Field you can go quite crazy. In the high jump we are quite into physics yet we speak in layman's terms. Run fast...put your foot down.

[Jon]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

>damn that was an easy question tho, there are tons of physics in track isnt
>there?


Sure is! If you're really into it, then you might enjoy read Jonas Mureika's research (using mathematical and phsyics based models), which can be read here:

http://desert.jsd.claremont.edu/~newt/track/index.html

[Kurt Francis]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

Deion was fast, but not that fast. I saw "Neon" Deion win the 200m Metro Conference title in 1988 over teammates Sammie Smith and Arthur Blake, all Florida State teammates. I think the winning time was something like 20.69-20.71, with Smith and Blake less than .15 behind. This all happened on their home track at the '88 Metro meet. Like I said, he was fast, but certainly wasn't running any 2-3 seconds for 50m!

[Asterix]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

<school is out and i dont give a sh** about it>

That's still not a good excuse to turn your brain off when venturing on the internet. Like you said, it was an easy question.

[Sprintstatman]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

>Deion was fast, but not that fast. I saw "Neon" Deion win the 200m Metro Conference title in 1988

Kurt, was that the same meet he ran his 100m best of 10.26 (Tallahassee, April 23rd 1988)? Thanks.

[Brian]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

Are we counting mouth speed here?

[Track fan]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

Deon Sanders myths are just that. It's no different then Bo Jackson. Yes they are very fast, but compared to pure sprinters they are average at best. All I remember was the "Rocket" running at the NCAA level and he was an average sprinter with a vicious start. On the college and pro field he was unstable........

[Mel]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

"Did you take high school physics?"

Good answer Asterix, though somehow I suspect most of us have dropped a tennis ball often enough to have a very solid idea of the lunacy of the notion that anyone could run 50m b4 it bounced twice And if u didn't have any physics background, can anyone suggest a simple experiment to determine the likelihood of such an event? (Hint: all you need is a ball)

[Kurt Francis]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

Excuse me, so-called "TrackFan", but just what myths are you alluding to with regard to Deion? He DID run 20.7 and 10.2 AUTO-TIMED in college. I was there...hundreds of others have seen him do it, too. No one in their right mind would believe the tennis ball story; however, he was a pretty fast guy and quite another couple notches up from your typical 4.2 guy on the football field. There was nothing "mythical" about Deion's speed...it was real.

Kurt

[Track fan]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

The myth that he is faster than even a mediocre world class sprinter ie a guy who makes the 100 metre semi-finals. Same with Bo Jackson. They are very fast but not world class, there is a big difference.

[Track fan]

Re: Deion Sanders-fastest man alive?

4.2 football players are hand timed 4.2 that makes them electronic 4.4 If you know alot about football 40 times are like fishing stories or bedroom conquest stories they can be embelished.....