Bill Collins clocks a windy 11.40 in outdoor season opener
Bill Collins was world-class in the 1970s, and at age 57 continues to record phenomenal times. Yesterday in his first outdoor race of the year — in Houston at a Texas Southern University quadrangular meet — Bill ran the 100 meters in a windy 11.40 seconds. That’s a tenth under his own M55 world age-group record of 11.50 set at the 2006 Penn Relays. The wind reading of 2.5 (which I take to mean meters per second) renders the time wind-assisted and ineligible for record consideration.
More intriguing was the race’s runner-up: one Charles Green in 11.80. Could this be Nebraska’s Charlie Greene, who won Olympic bronze (in the 100) and gold in the 4×1 at the 1968 Olympics? Or is it former Texas Tech sprinter Charles Green, who ran a hand-timed 9.6 for 100 yards in 1978?
Actually, it’s M40 Chuck Green from Rosharon, Texas, who ran 11.70 at the 2004 masters nationals in Illinois. The name brought back fond memories, though.
Here are the masters results from yesterday’s TSU quad meet:
Mixed 100 Meter Dash
=====================================================================
Name Year School Finals Wind
=====================================================================
1 Collins, Bill Unattached 11.40 2.5
2 Green, Charles Unattached 11.80 2.5
3 Thomas, William Unattached 11.93 2.5
BTW, on the Age-Graded Tables, an 11.40 is rated equivalent to an Open (age 20-30) time of 9.72!
4 Responses
Jearl Miles-Clark, meanwhile, didn’t finish her 800:
Event 27 Women 800 Meter Run
===============================================================
Name Year School Finals
===============================================================
Section 1
1 Bennett-Martin, Kamiesha Knoxville Elite 2:07.48
2 Horn, Becky W. Michigan 2:08.31
3 Castle, Jennie Unattached 2:09.55
4 Robinson, Carlene Unattached 2:10.13
5 Beckwith, Molly Indiana 2:10.21
6 Lauer, Caitlin Indiana 2:10.61
7 Murdoch, Katie Cornell Univ 2:10.78
8 Hubbard, Ashley Georgetown Univ 2:11.74
9 Mcbride, Chantee Unattached 2:11.79
10 Upuu, Mandy San Diego St. 2:13.74
11 Mcdonald, Kimarra Tennessee 2:14.91
— Miles-Clark, Jearl Knoxville Elite DNF
Wow, Bill…that was awesome! It’s a bummer that the wind-reading prevented an official record. I wouldn’t run that fast unless I was airborne in the middle of a cyclone. Congratulations. And, Ken, thanks for all you do to keep us all updated on the latest doings in Masters track. I enjoy checking in.
In the 200 finals last month in Boston, only nine men broke 24 seconds. Seven were under age 40, one was in 45-49 (Everad Samuels), and one was in 55-59. That last competitor would be Bill Collins, who uncorked an unconscious 23.63 at age 57. And there was no wind in the arena. Wow!
If I’m 57 and I can beat all but one of the male competitors aged 40+ I would say I was pretty good.
Another, albeit unscientific, measure of how great Bill Collins is: When he competes at the Penn Relays (starts next week) in Philadelphia, the announcers at this predominantly college and high school meet don’t say: “Who’s Bill Collins?” They know he’s a big star, which is not normally the case for people 40+ when they run outside of masters events.
Way to go Chucky!! Looks like your off to great start.
Bill, what can I say?
Hope all is well and look forward to seeing you guys next week at Franklin Field…Hopefully some favorable Friday weather this time around!
Leave a Reply