Re: t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane
>I think the IAAF is open to ideas to help countries such as the U.S. >promote the sport. The mile at the USATF meet (and thus the mile at >virtually "all" U.S. meets) would be a good start.< Except where their own revenue is involved, I'm not so sure that the IAAF is all that eager to help the US and especially the USATF. I know that Dick "The Dick" Pound is IOC, but there seems to be be a hefty streak of his brand of America bashing in the IAAF as well. Kurt Bray _ Chat with friends online, try MSN Messenger: http://messenger.msn.com
Re: t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane
In a message dated 2/6/02 8:25:10 PM, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: >The mile at the USATF meet (and thus the mile at virtually "all" U.S. meets) >would be a good start. And while we're at it, at all HS meets in the country too (instead of the bastard 1600). Jim Gerweck Running Times
Re: t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane
I think the IAAF would bend over backwards to make it easier to get 3:43 milers into the worlds:-). Regards, Martin - Original Message - From: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2002 8:20 PM Subject: Re: t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane > In a message dated Wed, 6 Feb 2002 3:54:57 PM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > > > In a message dated Wed, 6 Feb 2002 12:39:18 PM Eastern Standard Time, James Dunaway <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > > > > > Don't we, perhaps, respect the four-minute mile a little too much? >> > > > > All depends who "we" is. I think the sport's hard-core statisticians (yeah, that includes me) did the sport a great disservice by trying to pound home the "irrelevance" of the 4:00 mile lo those many decades ago. > > > > But for the most important people--the athletes and the fans--it still has its luster, just as does a 1000y rusher in the NFL (even though the season has gone from 12 games to 16), a 20-goal scorer in hockey, 50 homers, etc., etc. > > > > If it's a nice round number that has magic simply becuase of its roundness, forget trying to demythify it. Use its strength to help build the sport, not tear it down. > > > > gh > >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>> > > Agreed. I still don't understand why the NCAA outdoor meet doesn't run a mile. C'mon!!! I think USATF should also lobby the IAAF harder about a mile qualifying time for the Worlds and Olympics. It's not like the U.S. is the only country that holds mile races. Why not let a 3:43 mile (and anything faster than the 1500 qualifier equivalent) qualify for the Worlds? I think the IAAF is open to ideas to help countries such as the U.S. promote the sport. The mile at the USATF meet (and thus the mile at virtually "all" U.S. meets) would be a good start. > sideshow
Re: t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane
In a message dated Wed, 6 Feb 2002 3:54:57 PM Eastern Standard Time, [EMAIL PROTECTED] writes: > In a message dated Wed, 6 Feb 2002 12:39:18 PM Eastern Standard Time, James Dunaway ><[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > > > Don't we, perhaps, respect the four-minute mile a little too much? >> > > All depends who "we" is. I think the sport's hard-core statisticians (yeah, that >includes me) did the sport a great disservice by trying to pound home the >"irrelevance" of the 4:00 mile lo those many decades ago. > > But for the most important people--the athletes and the fans--it still has its >luster, just as does a 1000y rusher in the NFL (even though the season has gone from >12 games to 16), a 20-goal scorer in hockey, 50 homers, etc., etc. > > If it's a nice round number that has magic simply becuase of its roundness, forget >trying to demythify it. Use its strength to help build the sport, not tear it down. > > gh Agreed. I still don't understand why the NCAA outdoor meet doesn't run a mile. C'mon!!! I think USATF should also lobby the IAAF harder about a mile qualifying time for the Worlds and Olympics. It's not like the U.S. is the only country that holds mile races. Why not let a 3:43 mile (and anything faster than the 1500 qualifier equivalent) qualify for the Worlds? I think the IAAF is open to ideas to help countries such as the U.S. promote the sport. The mile at the USATF meet (and thus the mile at virtually "all" U.S. meets) would be a good start. sideshow
Re: t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane
> > Don't we, perhaps, respect the four-minute mile a little too much? >> > > All depends who "we" is. I think the sport's hard-core statisticians (yeah, that includes me) did the sport a great disservice by trying to pound home the "irrelevance" of the 4:00 mile lo those many decades ago. > > But for the most important people--the athletes and the fans--it still has its luster, just as does a 1000y rusher in the NFL (even though the season has gone from 12 games to 16), a 20-goal scorer in hockey, 50 homers, etc., etc. > > If it's a nice round number that has magic simply becuase of its roundness, forget trying to demythify it. Use its strength to help build the sport, not tear it down. > > gh > Absolutely. Even now, with the marathon craze, etc, when a non-runner finds out that I'm a runner, by far the number one question is "what is your time for the mile?" When I tell them, the fact that it begins with "4:" never fails to elicit a positive recognition. My wife has a PR of 5:01, and I keep telling her she needs to knock it down by 2 seconds and people will be exponentially more impressed. Of course, she then points out how close her marathon PR is to mine, and that usually shuts me up :) - Ed Parrot
RE: t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane
Perhaps a somewhat different angle - so a 3:29/3:47 guy Rotich does three or four 3:57 or equivalent races (by the way, he was racing 1000m in Boston - not mile, and lost to Krummenacker) in 2 weeks. If, say, Jason Pyrah did 3 or 4 4:05 mile races in 2 weeks we'd be saying that he is a 3:55 guy wasting his talent - a textbook example of overracing. My feeling is that appearance and prize money have something to do with Rotich's frequency of racing. Oleg. > -Original Message- > From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > [mailto:[EMAIL PROTECTED]]On Behalf Of [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Sent: Wednesday, February 06, 2002 3:52 PM > To: [EMAIL PROTECTED] > Subject: t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane > > > In a message dated Wed, 6 Feb 2002 12:39:18 PM Eastern Standard > Time, James Dunaway <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > > > Don't we, perhaps, respect the four-minute mile a little too much? >> > > All depends who "we" is. I think the sport's hard-core > statisticians (yeah, that includes me) did the sport a great > disservice by trying to pound home the "irrelevance" of the 4:00 > mile lo those many decades ago. > > But for the most important people--the athletes and the fans--it > still has its luster, just as does a 1000y rusher in the NFL > (even though the season has gone from 12 games to 16), a 20-goal > scorer in hockey, 50 homers, etc., etc. > > If it's a nice round number that has magic simply becuase of its > roundness, forget trying to demythify it. Use its strength to > help build the sport, not tear it down. > > gh
t-and-f: the value of numbers (was: Human Hydroplane
In a message dated Wed, 6 Feb 2002 12:39:18 PM Eastern Standard Time, James Dunaway <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> writes: > Don't we, perhaps, respect the four-minute mile a little too much? >> All depends who "we" is. I think the sport's hard-core statisticians (yeah, that includes me) did the sport a great disservice by trying to pound home the "irrelevance" of the 4:00 mile lo those many decades ago. But for the most important people--the athletes and the fans--it still has its luster, just as does a 1000y rusher in the NFL (even though the season has gone from 12 games to 16), a 20-goal scorer in hockey, 50 homers, etc., etc. If it's a nice round number that has magic simply becuase of its roundness, forget trying to demythify it. Use its strength to help build the sport, not tear it down. gh
