I miss a lot of the old stadiums. Kenny Moore said running at the old Bislett track was magical. I was lucky enough to race at Empire Stadium in Vancouver before they tore it down. It was open at the north end to have a view of the North Shore mountains, and had the Bannister-Landy statue outside the stadium.
It's a slow news week at LRC so...
Start a thread that states, (University Program Here) is no longer (appealing, relevant, or competitive) because (coach, corporate sponsor, location, or personal beef)!
As an example. "Villanova is a terrible program because Vicki Huber wouldn't date me in the 1980s!".
Low grade trolling is the stock and trade of Let's Run.
Slow Week at LRC wrote:
It's a slow news week at LRC so...
Start a thread that states, (University Program Here) is no longer (appealing, relevant, or competitive) because (coach, corporate sponsor, location, or personal beef)!
As an example. "Villanova is a terrible program because Vicki Huber wouldn't date me in the 1980s!".
Low grade trolling is the stock and trade of Let's Run.
But U of Oregon is not appealing for high school Americans anymore. That’s fact
Then Jerry’s job just got easier. No more recruiting, campus visits, or dealing with entitled suburban white kids and their parents! Call Scholarbook and place an order for what you need to compete this season. No budget worries and as long as Uncle Phil is happy…
DR says NO Eugene wrote:
Oregon has basically told U.S. high-school distance kids, “Don’t bother.” The program that once sold development, patience, and belief now just shops the international aisle for ready-made points. Under Jerry Schumacher and Shalane Flanagan, Oregon Ducks feels less like a college program and more like a bargain-bin pro team chasing instant gratification. If you’re a 17-year-old American kid dreaming of being built into something special, Oregon isn’t dreaming back, it’s asking what you’ve already done overseas. The mystique is gone, the pipeline is cold, and the idea that U.S. kids grow up idolizing Oregon anymore is laughable. They didn’t lose the appeal by accident, they walked away from it.
And no top pro in their right mind wants to live in Eugene to train.
RIP University of Oregon / Eugene
Seems odd because (IMHO) they chose to put down a bouncy track for distance runners, rather than a "carpet" track for sprinters. Hayward Field used to attract masters runners from around the country to its two day masters Hayward Classic. Then they cut it to one day and started to drop events. Now, for 2026, no meet at all. Do the math.
High schoolers run for four years.
College/university for four to five years.
Elites for an additional 10-15 years.
Masters/ seniors for an additional 40 years.
One would think that shoe companies could do the math and put some money into masters track and field.
Outside of USATF championships, masters track pulls horrible entry numbers. I’d love to get serious about racing middle distances again but I’m not traveling only to find out that my competitors are a 35 year old ex sponsored athlete going for a 4:15, an 80 year old trying to crack the 10 minute barrier and two female race walkers in their 60s. Most masters meets are crap like this.
What about Evan Bishop
61 and Stuck on Roads wrote:
Outside of USATF championships, masters track pulls horrible entry numbers. I’d love to get serious about racing middle distances again but I’m not traveling only to find out that my competitors are a 35 year old ex sponsored athlete going for a 4:15, an 80 year old trying to crack the 10 minute barrier and two female race walkers in their 60s. Most masters meets are crap like this.
This. Yes - Master's athletes continue competing - but the pool of participants shrinks with each step from HS, to college, to elite/pro. The pool of Master's athletes is also tiny. From a marketing/business perspective - this would be the worst possible decision to target the most niche aspect of an already niche sport. Literally no one cares about Masters athletes other than the handful of people doing it.