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Mon Sep 11, 2006 6:27 pm

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Master Masters Athlete
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Location: San Diego

Here's a question I'm sure has a thousand answers: How did it dawn on you that track didn't end at college graduation?

In my case, I had a "heads up" around 1975, when I wrote an article for Kansas Alumni magazine about two KU alums who still competed in sprints, hurdles and middle distances. The middle-D guy was Wichita oilman Jim Hersberger, who paid for KU's first all-weather track. The other was legend-to-be Jack Greenwood, part of the second class of the USATF Masters Hall of Fame. (In his 40s, he ran the 400 hurdles faster than I did in my late teens.)

But I didn't really know about a circuit of "masters" events until my late 30s. I had seen advertisements in Track & Field News for National Masters News (which used names like Oerter and Boit in its dated ads). But it wasn't until I read Jess Brewer's post on the T-and-F Mailing List that I really paid attention.

I saved it here:
http://www.masterstrack.com/news2000/news2000feb16i.html

The rest is my history. What's yours?

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Ken Stone
http://www.masterstrack.com



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Wed Sep 13, 2006 11:50 am

 
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Junior Masters Athlete
Joined: Thu Sep 07, 2006 6:52 pm
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Location: Beardstown,Illinois

I was 30 years old and living in NE Missouri. I went out to run at the high school and asked if I could watch the kids jump. The coach recruited me to help. I started jumping with the kids and the coach told me about the Show Me State Games. I went, competed and got beat but I was hooked again. I've been jumping ever since and will until I can't go anymore. I'm about to turn 48 and jump weekly year round. Two of my boys vault and my step-daughter also vaults so it's a family affair. Lots of fun.

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JR



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Fri Sep 15, 2006 9:56 am

 

The way I found out about Masters Track and Field was, back in 2004 I was visiting my old coach and as always I knew he'd be training athlete's so I brought my old running gear and new aquired belly (Something I wasn't proud of) to the track. While everyone else was busy with there workout I snuck some hurdlers to the side and started doing hurdle drills. After thirteen years of not running or hurdling (I played ball with the young guys and they sucked so it got boring) it felt GREAT! I was 21 again. It brought back a flood of memories I had buried a long time ago, some I had even forgotten. After a while my coach came towards me and asked me how long had it been since I hurdled, when I told him how long it had been he was surprised and told me I looked good and I should compete in Master's Track and field. I asked him what Master's T&F was and he explained it to me. When I got home I spoke to a friend of mine that was coaching and found out he competed as well. I was hooked and started to train, ten months later, and a hell of a lot of pain & soreness, I was competing in San Sebastian Spain. The only difference this time was my wife, kids and Coach were there with me and I felt free.



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Sat Sep 16, 2006 9:58 am

 
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Journeyman Masters Athlete
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Joined: Sat Sep 16, 2006 9:56 am
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Location: Puerto Rico / NYC

CHANGED MY NAME!
The way I found out about Masters Track and Field was, back in 2004 I was visiting my old coach and as always I knew he'd be training athlete's so I brought my old running gear and new aquired belly (Something I wasn't proud of) to the track. While everyone else was busy with there workout I snuck some hurdlers to the side and started doing hurdle drills. After thirteen years of not running or hurdling (I played ball with the young guys and they sucked so it got boring) it felt GREAT! I was 21 again. It brought back a flood of memories I had buried a long time ago, some I had even forgotten. After a while my coach came towards me and asked me how long had it been since I hurdled, when I told him how long it had been he was surprised and told me I looked good and I should compete in Master's Track and field. I asked him what Master's T&F was and he explained it to me. When I got home I spoke to a friend of mine that was coaching and found out he competed as well. I was hooked and started to train, ten months later, and a hell of a lot of pain & soreness, I was competing in San Sebastian Spain. The only difference this time was my wife, kids and Coach were there with me and I felt free.

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400H/400M
"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough."
- Mario Andretti



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Sat Sep 16, 2006 12:57 pm

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Master Masters Athlete
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Joined: Thu Sep 07, 2006 1:36 pm
Posts: 102
Location: Folsom, CA

In June of 2005 I had been running road races for a couple of years, and decided to join a running club in order to improve my performances. Trouble is, I'm just not a strong distance person and I was afraid that I would be the albatross around the neck of a good running team. I ran track in high school and college and really missed it. I was on a local running website that had a schedule of upcoming events and I noticed an all-comers track meet in my area....for adult runners! Wow! I emailed the director and signed up for the 100 meter dash. When the meet arrived one week later I drove down to the high school and promptly met the members of the host team (Brooks Fleet Feet Sacramento) and the coach. They were so welcoming to me that I knew I had found my team to join.

I was still pretty fast, but being out of shape caught me. I hung with the field until about the 80 meter mark and then my hamstring went "twang!"
But in the face of this, I was still encouraged...I still had some of the speed from my teenage years, and I found a club that could help me develop it. When the team returned from the August national meet in
Hawaii I began to work out with them. I started my hurdle and sprint training around October of last year, and experienced my first national meets in Boston and Charlotte of this year. It was the most fun I've had in years! I'm looking forward to many more years of participation.

Liz Palmer
W45



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Mon Sep 18, 2006 1:02 pm

 
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Senior Masters Athlete
Joined: Thu Sep 07, 2006 7:42 am
Posts: 22
Location: San Marcos, CA

For me, it has been a 13 year hiatus from the sport of Track & Field before I dove "head first" back into it. I was coaching youth T&F in Los Angeles for 6 years, before moving down to San Diego at age 28. I actually got back into playing football (semi-pro, national flag and a cup of coffee with the SD Chargers) when I arrived, bulking up to a hefty 228lbs. A few years ago, I began subscribing to Masters Track & Field News, and saw a few familiar names from my HS and College running days still out there huffing along on the track. When I moved to San Marcos, CA, I started to train at the college on occasion. While chugging my fat carcass around the track, I met up with an off-shoot of the SC Striders track club, led by legend Jim Selby, his daughter Debbie, Gerry Davidson and Derrick - a former '64 Olympian (TJ).

After getting to know these dedicated individuals, I decided to hang up the football cleats for a pair of track spikes. I've been training with these wonderful people for about 18 months and am having the time of my life. Track speed is starting to come back and have shed some unwanted poundage so I can at least better resemble a runner. Mainly a 200M/400M guy but will be working on the 400M Hurdles this winter (primarily because I've grown tired of getting my "ass" handed to me by the likes of K. Berry, M. Sullivan, J. Chinn and C. Mohammed!).

All kidding aside, those runners have been a true inspiration to me and I greatly respect their talents and dedication to the sport. Masters T&F is such a great fraternity of sportsmen/women. I'm proud to be a part of it.

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"MY Attitude....YOUR Problem!"



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Mon Sep 18, 2006 3:11 pm

 
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Journeyman Masters Athlete
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Joined: Sat Sep 16, 2006 9:56 am
Posts: 30
Location: Puerto Rico / NYC

Welcome Back Qtrmiler,
I'm stuck on a project and Bored out of my mind. Good to know I'm not the only knuckle head that has taken off that much time and come back. Good Luck.
Tony

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400H/400M
"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough."
- Mario Andretti



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Tue Sep 19, 2006 9:09 am

 
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Senior Masters Athlete
Joined: Thu Sep 07, 2006 7:42 am
Posts: 22
Location: San Marcos, CA

Thanks Tony,
Just to let you know, I'm the one who has been e-mailing you as to your tips and advice for the 400M Hurdles (fnkyphantom@hotmail.com). Much appreciate all of your insight and assistance.

As if the 400M sprint wasn't difficult enough....now I'm going to throw 10 hurdles in front of me while I run it. What am I thinking?

T.C.

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Tue Sep 19, 2006 9:16 am

 
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Joined: Sat Sep 16, 2006 9:56 am
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Location: Puerto Rico / NYC

I had a feeling it was you no problem.

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"If everything seems under control, you're just not going fast enough."
- Mario Andretti



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Sat Sep 23, 2006 9:01 am

 
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Master Masters Athlete
Joined: Sat Sep 23, 2006 8:24 am
Posts: 202
Location: Utrecht (Netherlands)

20 years after stopping t&f I watched a major championship on television -- as I have no television that was an accident. I wasn't feeling good at the time, close to a depression even, and seeing the tall and slender high jumping women I thought: why not start again, my bony body maybe is seen as normal overthere.
I phoned the biggest track club of my town (there were four clubs) and went to a training. The first time I skipped half of the exercises and did the rest low-key, but nevertheless couldn't walk for a week without aching muscles. I came from zero! The second training I did a simple sprint but far before 'top' speed a muscle said twang. Then a month later I did it all more carefully and so after a winter of two training sessions a week I could try to do a competition. At age 46 I ran 200m, far behind all others, and also tried the high jump, having done only one training.
I subscribed the national atletics magazine and by accident there were masters rankings of the previous season in it. So I learned there was a serious masters movement, I absolutely didn't know! I also learned that my 200m was meager but my high jump wasn't. At the end of the season I equalled the national W45 record with 1.50, that being the first of many record jumps (19 times I equalled or broke a record and 32 times tried a record height).
The members of my training group were all much younger and did not know of masters t&f, they didn't warn me before that first meet and so I got hooked...

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regards, Weia



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Mon Oct 30, 2006 2:01 pm

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Junior Masters Athlete
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Joined: Mon Oct 30, 2006 10:21 am
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Location: Southern California

I was always the fastest sprinter around when a kid. I ran sprints and hurdles in Junior High as well as High School, but my primary sport was football since I was big. Although I was a college running back, spring training kept me away from the track. :?

My kids would here football stories and roll their eyeballs. "Did you really do that?" Or, "Is that really your picture in a football uniform in the hallway or somebody else?". Finally, my 12 year old daugther convinced me to compete in the Senior Olympics in Pasadena last year, after a 38 year layoff. I went out to the local park to have her time me in the 50 meters to see if I could compete ... stepped in a hole and sprained my back. Ran with a back brace for the next two months and had the opportunity to compete in my first 100 meter against Ray Yeck (aka "Bullet"). Thought I would die at 70 meters but hung on for second place. Been injured one way or another ever since ... comes with the territory. 8)

Most sprinters are 5'8" to 5'10" and 160-175 lbs. I started out at 6'2" and 235lbs, and look like a fullback blasting down the track. It's great to run with others for the fun of it and getting those competitive juices flowing again. And nobody does anything but cheer at the finish no matter what place you take since they know how much pain you went through to get there in the first place. :shock:

Patrick Lyons
Apple Valley, CA

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