According to this week-old press release, USATF will be getting some marketing and online help from a PR agency with offices in Los Angeles, New York, London, Washington D.C., Carlsbad and Charlotte. Even though Wasserman Media Group, the agency, is only a couple years old, it boasts of being “a worldwide leader in sports management, marketing and content. . . . More information about WMG and its businesses is available at www.wmgllc.com.” Okey dokey. This might be good news for masters track — or just another snore. I’ve written to some of the principals to learn if masters are part of the equation. My guess: This deal will focus on the elites alone. Stay tuned.

Thomas Zacharias doesn’t rest. For the third time this season, he’s raised the M60 world record in the high jump — the latest mark being 1.79 (5-10 1/2) at a meet near his home in Spain. Annette’s Seite in Germany reports the mark — and quotes Thomas as saying he tried for 1.81 (5-11 1/4). And the uber-straddler took just four steps in his approach run, if I read the posting correctly. On the WMA Age-Graded Tables, Thomas’ 1.79 is equivalent to an open clearance of 2.45 meters — just over 8 feet! Here’s a rough translation of the news:

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Nadine O’Connor has idolized fellow Californian Irene Obera for years. Yesterday, Nadine paid her respects on the track — lowering Irene’s 1999 world record in the W65 100 by nearly two-tenths of a second in her first outdoor race of the season. Running in temps in the low 60s, Nadine took third in the masters women’s exhibition at the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, cenforce California. But her legal time of 14.11 shattered Irene’s record of 14.29. It was her sixth world record since turning 65 in March! Later, M40 Aaron Thigpen ran a legal 10.60 in an open heat — bettering his own listed ambien American record of 10.73 from Charlotte 2006 (and inching closer to Troy Douglas’ listed WR of 10.42 but not actual best of 10.29).

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Tom Hoffarth of the Los Angeles Daily News queried me last week about the geezerjock phenomenon — both the prospects for the magazine and the athletes it covers. I replied expeditiously, and the result was published Sunday. I hope I did y’all justice with my pseudo-sophisticated remarks. Tom also mentions M45 record-holder Willie Gault and W80 champion Johnnye Valien. In an associated blog entry, Tom talks about how GeezerJock magazine came to be named that way. Both good reads.

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Ethel Yagoda was born Ethel Schugar on April 15, 1907, in Rovna, Russia. By age 10, she had taught herself English by reading a translated Tolstoy side-by-side with the Russian. Her family moved to Detroit amid the major migration of the times. She married and had two daughters. Despite losing her father and husband on the same day in the late 1950s, she kept looking forward. She wasn’t into sports, but she kept in shape. At her Denver nursing home, she does chair-aerobics. Her attention span is poor, but she can recall songs from her childhood. She doesn’t go online, or play with a mouse. But I just had to note her milestone — and what it means for my potential longevity. Happy birthday, Grandma! Keep going strong!

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Jim Sorenson’s 3:52 1500 at Mt. SAC is on video. And wow — the guy has a kick! Go to the Flocast coverage of the meet and click on the second heat of Friday’s men’s 1500. Jim, wearing gray top and dark shorts, passes about 10 kidlets in the last 250 meters to take fourth on a windy day. Yeah, he’s in shape for a low-4s mile when he turns 40 next month. The race is best viewed in Firefox browser. Internet Explorer may not support the Flash movie very well.

Remember Jean-Louis Ravelomanantsoa? Short world-class sprinter of the late ’60s, early ’70s? Excelled indoors? Well, he’s not making a comeback (that I know of). But he has an American doppelganger. Meet Kaestner McDonnough of Virginia. He’s an M50 sprinter — 5-4 tall — who’s been active in masters for a decade. But he’s finally gotten some ink in his hometown paper — and crossed my radar. Nice story below focuses on his Boston foray.

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Jim Sorensen, who turns 40 next month, showed great fitness in the men’s 1500 at today’s Mt. SAC Relays, clocking 3:52.46 in taking fourth. That’s equivalent to a 4:11 mile. Jim finished less than two seconds behind race winner Edwin Sang of Texas Tech. So Jim was in high school when Edwin was a toddler. Jim ran 3:44.17 last May, so he apparently has some gas left in the tank. Last year’s best M40 outdoor mile was John Hinton’s 4:23.85.

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Dave Clingan sends word that slots are still open in his Fountain of Youth Masters Invitational Mile on May 12 in Canby, Oregon. Yes, you can be in a four-lap race with record-chasers Tony Young, Pete Magill, Henry Rono and Nolan Shaheed. Dave writes: “The race will feature many of America’s top milers aged 30 and up who will showcase their seemingly ageless talents before an enthusiastic crowd of youth athletes and their families. The event is part of a fundraiser that provides travel grants for young athletes from Oregon who compete in the 2007 National Junior Olympics Championships in Walnut, CA, this summer.”

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The Oceanside-based North County Times profiled W65 star Nadine O’Connor today. It errs on her event Sunday at Mt. SAC (saying she’ll run the 200; it’s the 100). But the rest is nice — once you get past the cliche headline. She did her masters-promotion part, saying: “I wish more people knew about (masters track). I think if they saw it, they’d be inspired because there are all kinds out there. There are some fabulous athletes and there are people out there to just have fun.”

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