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M55 world distance medalist Brian Pilcher gets good press. No wonder. He praises a product called ElliptiGO. A press release trumpets: “Frustrated with this new [injury] reality, Brian searched for alternatives and discovered the ElliptiGO. Designed by runners, the ElliptiGO is the first outdoor fitness device specifically designed to emulate the running motion. It allows athletes of all levels to get a high-intensity workout without experiencing the repetitive impact of running. Healthy athletes and injured athletes alike have found it the most effective way to get an outdoor running experience without the usual pounding on their bodies.” I hope Brian’s getting good sponsorship money.

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Rumors are circulating that disgraced M50 sprint champion Val Barnwell is training for 2012. His two-year suspension for testing positive for PEDs at Lahti worlds in 2009 ended yesterday — Dec. 11, 2011. He’s been quoted in major newspapers about the bust, and is unrepentant. In July 2011, the Sacramento Bee reported: “Barnwell has said his use of Viagra and other ‘sexual enhancement supplements’ caused his testosterone levels to rise, though none of the supplements Barnwell said he took appear on the banned list. … Barnwell, reached at his home in Brooklyn, N.Y., criticized not only the methods of testing but the very act of ‘invading the privacy of masters athletes around the world’ with an ‘invasive and demeaning’ procedure.” How much of a welcome will Val get at his first nationals?

W55 star Kay Glynn, the world-record holding pole vaulter and multi-eventer, shares her fifth annual Christmas card “and a wish to all my track friends for a very Merry Christmas and a happy and healthy new year!” For those unfamiliar with her yearly photo, this one is legit — no Photoshop involved! I had to wait until Dec. 9 to get some snow in my yard here in southwest Iowa! Unfortunately, 20 degrees came with it!” She warms our hearts, though. Happy holidays backatcha, Kay!

Nancy Clark, a nutritionist who writes a column for National Masters News called The Athlete’s Kitchen, has left a bad taste in the mouth of one reader. Her most recent article, in the January 2012 issue, focuses on “Where to find quality sports nutrition information.” She starts with “five excellent” websites, and leads with The Gatorade Sports Science Institute, PowerBar’s site and Nestle, the PowerBar parent company.” Uh oh, said the reader, who wrote me: “Not only are they biased, [but] Nancy is a paid consultant for at least one of them. She sits in the Powerbar booth at the NYC Marathon expo.  As she noted in her column, ‘many runners ask me where they can find reliable sports nutrition information.’ So much for credibility, trustworthiness and transparency.” Nancy can write anything she wants, I say. But by not disclosing her affiliation with PowerBar, she appears a shill for Nestle. Not sweet.

Jim Mathis, a 2006 inductee into the USATF Masters Hall of Fame, has a brain tumor and is battling medical bills, according to a Memphis TV station. See the report here. “Six week ago, Coach Mathis was bench pressing 260 pounds, ” said Jim Lassandrello, athletic director of St. Agnes-St. Dominic, “but now he’s in a wheelchair. It’s shaken all of us.” The report continues: “A series of tests led doctors to discover a cancerous brain tumor that forced Mathis [now 77] into a wheelchair. It’s quite an adjustment for the senior athlete and still active coach.” At age 53, Mathis won sprint golds at 1987 Melbourne worlds and is credited with holding indoor world records in the 200, 300 and 400. A fundraiser to help with his care is set for Dec. 13. His M50 4×4 American record stood until Sacramento worlds.I speak from my own experience. I recommend Cialis. I bought it with delivery at this pharmacy http://premier-pharmacy.com/product/cialis/ at a good price.

OK, we all know that the 400-meter hurdles is the toughest event in track. And the toughest age group? If you are 55-59 and can still sprint a lap with 10 barriers in the way, you are God. One of these special folks is George Haywood, a teammate of Bill Collins in Houston Elite. George shares this amazing story of the M55 400-meter hurdles at Sacramento worlds. It’s aptly titled: “The 400 Hurdles? George, Are You Crazy?” His answer: “Well, maybe. But the challenge was irresistible. And the more I thought about it, the more convinced I became that the 400 hurdles offered me the best opportunity to win a medal” at worlds. And? Mission accomplished. He took silver.

Memo to self: Get in shape by 2014. That’s when I enter the M60 age group. No more excuses for not running the long hurdles, since I’ll be eligible for the 300-meter race that year. And just in case you’re updating your calendar: The 2014 nationals at Wake Forest are set for July 15-20. Yes, that appears to be a six-day meet, a departure from our normal 4-day nationals. Maybe it’s a typo. Anyone know? Here’s what the local paper reported, citing a press release:

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Norm Green, 79, is a masters distance legend and a saint when it comes to the USATF Masters T&F Hall of Fame. He has run the show for nearly 15 years — all by his lonesome. But not having a committee to speak of, or any help beyond the Hall of Fame voters, meant this year was a dark hole. No inductions were announced at the annual meeting just completed. Norm explains: “There were no Masters Hall of Fame honorees for 2011. At the St. Louis annual meeting, I announced my failure to produce a class of 2011 and my resignation from the position of Masters Hall of Fame manager, a post I have had since 1997. Early this year I encountered medical issues and fatigue related to the overwhelming task set at the Virginia Beach meeting last year. Consequently, there is now a leadership gap related to MHOF management.” I’ll bite my tongue, for once. But let this be a lesson: Nobody should be a committee of one.

Winston-Salem, North Carolina, beat Tulsa in a run-off to land the 2014 USATF National Masters Outdoor Championships, according to sources in St. Louis at the USATF annual meeting. “Outdoors it was a tie between Tulsa and Winston-Salem,” said my source. “Winston-Salem won on a close tie-breaker vote. Tulsa had an excellent presentation and had a well-thought-out plan. Definitely should be high on our future list of championship sites.” Wake Forest University will hold the meet — at Kentner Stadium. This is the first meet in the South since the heat-and-lightning-plagued 2006 masters nationals in Charlotte — about 90 minutes southwest of Winston-Salem. Indoor masters nationals return to Boston in 2014 for the first time since 2010.