OT: 120 Minutes on MTV

Before I was a transit geek I was a runner.  After my freshman year in high school, I became a real runner and actually trained for it, logging around 45 miles a week then and working my way up to a few 90-100 mile weeks in college.  During that time in the summer when you were on your own to train, I would run late at night.  During the day I was a lifeguard at the local pool but at night it was my job to run.  But at times it could get lonely on the streets under the lights at about 10-11pm at night and a few times I was followed home by police officers who thought I would break midnight curfew.

Via

Because it was such a solemn undertaking, I often brought along my walkman sports.  Because running was bouncy, I made mix tapes using my stereo from CDs at home and had a few favorites at the time.  It varied based on my tastes but this was officially the time when I started to make music a part of my life.  Many of the songs that I have in my itunes now were from that era, and I can often remember the part of the run when Depeche Mode came on or Gravity Kills.

But when I would get home from my run at midnight or so it would be about 80 degrees out still and I needed some time to cool down.  So after I had hosed off (yes I said hosed, one of the reasons why I can't stand humidity and live in San Francisco) I would come in the house, get a glass of water, and turn on the TV.  More often than not, every day but Saturday was MTV which would play videos late at night or show Beavis and Butthead/Daria.  Saturday nights was time for SNL if I could catch it.  Those were the glory days with Chris Farley, Adam Sandler and Phil Hartman.

But Sunday nights were 120 minutes, which basically got me introduced to alternative music that I ended up liking much more than what everyone else seemed to be listening to at the time.  Top 40 or country was prevalent and while I did like some Top 40, alternative was more my style.  So when I heard 120 minutes was coming back I was elated.

When looking up the old 120 minutes show archive, I was amazed at how much the show did actually shape my tastes.  Going through the videos played during each of those shows was like going back in time.  I don't have all of them on my ipod but I do know that I liked most of them.  Just going through 1995 made me smile. Bands like Catherine Wheel, the Toadies, Jeff Buckley, Blur, and the Rentals just to name a few were on the list.  If you're a lover of alternative music from the early to late 90s, check out the archive just for the names alone.  Instant memory flashback.

I don't have cable these days but I am going to watch the show online and hopefully Matt Pinfield will bring back its former glory and introduce me to the music like I remember, with back stories, associations, and random information.  That's something you can't get from Pandora or other music sharing systems and it's one thing I think that has made finding new music much less enjoyable over time.

So even though MTV doesn't play videos and got lame, if you love music, check out the first episode.

OT Running: Interview With Me Not About Transit

For those who have followed this blog a while, you know that before I liked talking about transit I ran a lot. A friend of mine from college recently interviewed me about my days as a runner and allowed me to give some tips for beginners. So if you're interested, head on over to her site to check it out. (There's a part 2 as well)

OT: There's More to College Than Football

I like football. I watch a lot of games during the season but as a former athlete in an Olympic sport I got really annoyed at the Football coaches at Texas fairly often. They have always been shortsighted in terms of other sports and academics. Take for example Jamaal Charles who is now the big play maker for Kansas City. The kid was super fast and ran track at Texas in the offseason. The short story of it all was that track in college gave Charles something to do in the offseason to keep his focus on something other than the street.

Back in Port Arthur, track had kept Charles focused. It had given him something to do during football offseason, when cousins found trouble .

Now I often defend athletics because I was an athlete who benefited from competing for a division one school. But there were times when I had to fight my guidance councilor to take harder classes. At times she would try to give me easy classes because of catering to the lowest common denominator in the program. People who just needed classes to stay eligible to play.

Speaking for myself, I chafed at the idea of not being able to take classes like Military History to 1900 because others said they would be hard. (One of the most fascinating courses I took in Undergrad outside of my major classes) But this also speaks to the fact that colleges don't see football players as part of the student body. In fact it is evidenced every time we get a good athlete who wants to run track and play football. Usually football wins out:

Charles says he was told that if he wanted to maintain his place as the Longhorns' starting running back, he'd have to abandon track and make football a year-round commitment.

There were many guys who liked to run who were told they couldn't. I don't doubt that studying more tape helps. But Football isn't the center of the universe. If they are enrolled in school, let them take the classes they want. And if they want to play another sport that helps their football playing in the offseason why not let them?

Running: Determined to Be a Better Man

Sometimes I'll post something on running which many of you know happened to be a big part of my life before transit. Today I'd like to point folks to a post in Jogger's World about a friend of mine named Darren Brown. It's a good story about how DB dealt with his father's (who was a famous and decorated runner) suicide and came into running on his own. Recently DB broke 4 minutes in the mile and with his deceased father became the first father-son duo to break 4 in the United States. My tie to Darren is that I failed to get him to come to Texas when I recruited him out of high school. He eventually came to school at UT but we were glad he came late instead of not coming at all.

"You see, I want to become a better runner than my father," Darren Brown says, "but I'm determined to become a better man."

Before Transit

In my previous life I was a runner. Many people that didn't know me before I moved to California ask what I was like before transit took over as my thing, since I spend so much time blogging about it and thinking about it. Well, there are a few descriptions I could use to explain, but to the non-runner its hard to understand or perhaps even believe. I often get confused looks.

The word "Monk" comes to mind, with a secluded life and permanently focused mental state. The best way that I could explain to people what it was like was to send them to read Once a Runner. It's a fictional tale of how one runner lived and is used as the basic template for telling the story of one's running life. Though I tried to write down what it was like to run and live the life of a runner, it never quite filled everything in the way this book does. According to Slate, it's getting a reprint. Good. Because like so many other runners, I lent my copy to a girl (or friend) at one point to explain my lifestyle.

...but a part of me wishes the novel had stayed out-of-print. Not everyone is up for the running life, and not everyone should be able to get their hands on this book. It should take effort, whether that means borrowing (or stealing) it from someone or saving up $77.98. Once a Runner's portrait of running may smack of elitism, but it is a democratic elitism: Not everyone can be a runner, but a runner can come from anywhere.

Though I will warn you as the article explains:

It aggrandizes the insular world of running in a way that, with due respect to its new publisher, no nonrunner could possibly relate to. It is written for runners—and to keep nonrunners out. But it also nails the running life like no other novel ever has.

Perhaps that is the point of the book, it allowed running to be kind of a fight club. You were a member or you weren't. You showed up to class Monday with spike marks in your shin or calf and mud washed away from the race last weekend that tore up a University Golf Course in such a manner that you weren't allowed back again in the near future.

I don't miss waking up at 6am to run 10 miles for an easy day. I don't really miss being 25 pounds under weight, or having to watch exactly what i eat. And I certainly don't miss having to go to bed when everyone else is out having a beer. But I do miss Sundays. 18 mile runs through the woods with no destination and no sound but the pitter patter of feet and your own breath for an hour and 45 minutes. If we could stay at the fitness level we achieved forever, that's where I would be. But at some point running 90 miles a week wears on your body and mind. But like life there is no secret to running. Some might think they have the answer, but the answer like the article states, is just patience and a lot of hard work.

Like many cults, distance running has its mysteries, and The Secret—how you become a real runner—is Once a Runner's chief concern. ("As Denton's reputation grew," Parker writes, "a number of undergraduate runners decided they would train with him, thinking to pick up on The Secret.") But it turns out that The Secret is that there is no secret. The runner must pound the mileage, as we say. It's a grueling, tedious, insane lifestyle. So why do we keep doing it?

To understand the answer, you have to understand a bit about distance running. For one thing, it helps to know that only nonrunners talk about a "runner's high." It's not that it doesn't exist, that weird feeling of euphoria you sometimes get briefly after a tough day at the track or a superlong run. But no one could possibly be a runner just for the highs, whether brought on by natural chemicals or by winning a race. The running life is mostly just lots and lots and lots of miles. Only a few competitions punctuate the grind of thankless workouts on anonymous tracks, and you literally need a very loud gun to snap you out of the training existence and tell you it's time to save nothing for later. There simply isn't enough in the way of traditional rewards as compared with hard labor to make it worthwhile—that is, if you're only after the traditional rewards.

I'm tied deeply to my past as a runner. It taught so many lessons that no school or teacher could ever go through. Patience, Integrity, Hard Work. As a poster that once hung in my room says:

There are clubs you can’t belong to, neighborhoods you can’t live in, schools you can’t get into, but the roads are always open.

So when someone asks me if I'm going to join the gym. I kind of laugh. The roads are free, at least for now.

Running: NCAA XC Championships on Monday

It's that time of year. The Monday before Thanksgiving is always XC day. My buddy Jake runs for Texas and is going to be in the hunt, below he talks about his chances. He just missed the Olympics in the Steeple by one place and is looking for some redemption. Below, Jake talks about nationals coming up Monday: "It's always nuts, Terra Haute is crazy. It's like a war. Running through this field is like Braveheart."

Visit Flotrack For More Videos

If anyone is into the running thing, the places to be are Flotrack and Letsrun.

The Queen Turned King

Between all of this mortgage meltdown/bank failure discussions is a discussion of city competitiveness. Recent blog posts have focused on Charlotte especially this one from the Urbanophile comparing Charlotte to cities in the rust belt. He comments that Charlotte is leading because of its attitude and that cities in the Midwest outside of Minneapolis and Chicago have just tossed in the towels.

As Ryan has said, Charlotte looks like it won't get hit too hard by sudden bank death syndrome but the Urbanophile's comments got me to thinking. While Charlotte is out there scaring the pants off of not only the Rust Belt, but titans of the South like Tampa and Atlanta, is it really because they "want it more"? When I ran back in college, I would like to say that if I ran against Haile Gebresellasie in the Marathon (He broke the world record this weekend) I could win if I wanted it more, but we know that's not even close to being true.

But what are Charlotte's advantages? I thought really hard and tried to think about it in terms outside of the creative class argument that people always try to make about cool places. I kept thinking about things like new beginnings and not really having glory days to look back on but when it got down to it the thing that stuck out to me was age group. Why are cities like Charlotte places where younger folks want to locate. I'll admit when I got out of grad school it was Denver, San Francisco, or Austin. But there has to be more than that right? I must not be thinking hard enough.

Everything I seem to come up with is without a backup in data, such as its a younger city in terms of infrastructure. But that doesn't explain cities like San Francisco or Chicago. Is it because banking was thriving and growing and folks moving down from the Northeast wanted to make it more familiar? Maybe that is it. All of these new exciting cities seem to have an influx of people from either California or the Northeast. It's certainly not Nascar thats pulling them towards Charlotte. I still can't bring myself to think that it's because cities don't want it bad enough. Thoughts?

Olympics Update! Track is Back! (Spoiler Warning)

After a dismal day on Saturday where my buddy Leo got DFL in his qualifying heat of the 1500 and the Jamaicans destroyed us in the sprints, we came back Sunday with a vengeance going 1-2-3 in the 400 hurdles. The Marathon is going to be a good one with super whiz kids Ryan Hall and Dathan Ritzenhein.

Olympics Update! Shalane Flanagan!!!

A bronze for the distance crew already! Shalane Flanagan gets an American Record in the 10K and a bronze medal. This is huuugee!!!! Even bigger when you consider she had food poisoning only a few nights before.

It's That Time: Olympics!

Oh man I've been waiting for a while for this. Friends of mine are competing so I'm going to be reporting on what they are doing. I should also note that the head track coach at the Olympics, Bubba Thornton, was one of my coaches in college. It was cool to see him on TV.

Exciting news tonight is that Lopez Lamong got to carry the American Flag. He, as I was, is a 1500 meter runner. I've met him before and he's a great guy. As one of the Lost Boys of Sudan, he was able to escape that country and come to America for a better life. Here's a video of Lopez talking about hardship. He does have a bit of a reputation for elbows, but we won't hold that against him.

The American Dream

:Warning, this is a track post:

Most of the time we talk about the American dream of owning a house in the suburbs. That is starting to change to a location efficient home close to good transit and amenities such as grocery stores. But when thinking about that, I think about guys like Jorge Torres who's parents came to the United States for a better life, and along the way their children become more American than many of those that talk more than act. I highly recommend watching this video. It's quite inspiring and a testament to what hard work can accomplish.

Oly Trials Update

Awesome! Longhorn and friend Leonel Manzano is going to the Olympics. Congrats Leo and all the folks who are going to represent the US in August. More on Leo from the Austin American Statesman.

Leo on Flotrack

Oly Trials Update

Man today was an awesome day for Texas fans at the Track and Field Olympic Trials in Eugene. Former longhorn Andre Manson was 2nd in the High Jump making it to the Olympics with former teammate Trey Hardee and my buddy Jake Morse was ever so close getting 4th in the 3000 meter steeplechase. Good job men. Tomorrow is Leo Manzano in the 1500 (Closest race to the mile in outdoor track) and its going to be a good one.

Update: Jake Morse Video



Also congrats to friend and former Colorado Buffalo Jorge Torres who was 3rd in the 10k making it to Beijing. Back in the day he hooked a few friends and I up with a place in Boulder for a summer to train. Congrats Jorge on all the hard work and your ticket to the big game. This is one of the nicest guys in distance running.

Oly Trials Coverage: Decathlon

Update: Trey is In! Going to Beijing. Way to go!

My friend Trey is in second going into day two of the Decathlon. If he can stick it out, he'll be going to Beijing. Good luck T! Also, Tyson Gay ran the fastest 100 ever recorded. It won't count because there was too much wind at his back (has to be less than 2 meters per second to count) but its still fast, and this is a guy who takes voluntary drug tests more often than required to show he's clean.

Trey Hardee - Texas Ex

Running: Olympic Trials Track Coverage

I've got a few friends up in Eugene right now looking for spots on the Olympic team. If you get a chance check out the races. Good luck to Jacob, Leo, Trey, and Jake. Hook 'em. I'm going to do some coverage of the meet between transit posts so bear with me.

Complete video coverage at Flo's site.

Writeups over at Letsrun.com

USA!

10K 2008 Olympian Kara Goucher: She's a class act and a great person. She's also a story of falling down and getting back up again as she was the NCAA Champion in XC and Track but fell on hard times with her running after college. It's people like her that show perseverance and grit and are truly an inspiration. Watch for her in Beijing, she's going to do something great.

Obama at Hayward Field

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Originally uploaded by oregonianphoto

Man this is pretty cool for a track fan. Barack Obama at the Mecca of Track and Field in the United States. Hayward Field. Flotrack will have a video tomorrow I'll post up if I can get the code.

Most Prolific Coach in NCAA Retires

Every once in a while I have to toss in a track or cross country blog when the news is important enough to share with the world. Tonight I tip my hat to Arkansas' retiring coach John McDonnell.

Bigger than any Football or Basketball coach in the NCAA, John McDonnell at the University of Arkansas won 42! National titles in Cross Country, Indoor and Outdoor Track. When I was in school the Hogs were always in the running for a title and beating them in a relay or at a Cross Country meet was a badge of honor. We didn't like them much as rivals but you had to have respect for Coach Mac and his teams. Congrats Coach on the many years and your contributions to the sport.

In his 36 seasons at the helm of the Arkansas track and cross country program, McDonnell redesigned the face of collegiate track and field.

42 NCAA championships since 1984: 11 cross country, 19 indoor track and 12 outdoor track

More national championships (42) than any coach in any sport in the history of college athletics.

Five NCAA triple crowns(Cross Country, Track, Indoor Track), including three in a row (1991-94).

20 conference triple crowns since 1982, including eight straight between 1987 and 1995.

83 conference championships overall since 1974 including 38 in the SWC and 45 in the SEC.

12-consecutive NCAA indoor track championships (1984-1995), the longest string of national titles by any school in any sport in collegiate history.

Coached all but three of Arkansas’ 185 track All-Americans in school history. Those athletes have earned a combined 652 All-America honors.

Every school outdoor and indoor track record is held by a McDonnell recruit.

34-consecutive league and 17-consecutive SEC cross country championships (1974-2007).

Has produced 55 individual national champions.

Has coached 23 Olympians spanning three decades and six different Olympic Games, including a gold, silver and bronze medalist.

Coached former Razorback Daniel Lincoln to the American record in the 3,000-meter steeplechase is July, 2006.

That man could coach.

Texas DMR Sets World Record

Holy cow! My guys, 3 of whom I used to help coach at Texas, set a World and American record in the Distance Medley Relay tonight in Fayetteville Arkansas. Man I'm proud of these guys. Way to go Kyle, Leo, and Jacob. You all are my heroes.

Oil Money Buys Rail Transit

The Middle Eastern boomtown of Doha, Qatar which makes a lot of money off of oil exports is looking to build 140km (87 miles) of light rail for an Olympic Bid in 2016. The bid isn't really surprising to me given that in the past Qatar has been known to just buy athletes from other countries including Kenya. It's also proof that they will do whatever it takes to get the Olympics. The construction timeline is nothing short of amazing either given they plan to get 85km done in 6 years. Again showing us up like China in getting things done.

Team Player of the Year

File Under Running.

Reed Connor of the Woodlands High (My high school's arch-rival) in Texas won my respect this weekend. He was in 5th place going into the last 100 meters at the Texas State Cross Country Meet for big schools when he collapsed from dehydration. He got up and wobbled the final 25 meters and finished 5th on his team to beat Southlake Carroll by 6 points. This is one of the gutsiest moves I've ever seen. He was later taken to the hospital and given 4 liters of fluid by IV and is in good condition.

If you want to see the video of this amazing feat, check out FloTrack and watch the 5A boys finish.

What is also amazing is that since 1981, Kingwood (my high school) and the Woodlands have won the State XC meet 22 out of the last 25 years. That's a pretty good dynasty for both teams.

I also want to give a shout out to the Lady Mustangs at Kingwood High for winning their 7th State Championship.