GerryLINDGREN calling out HSers! Race, NOT pace

source?

Gerry needs to come on Letsrun and eleborate more.

AXC wrote:

source?

Obama calling out Jerry, step up and raise your kids.

Gerry left you okay... waaa... now move on.

"Just picture yourself facing a family and adult responsibilities. The fear will make you run faster than you ever thought possible."

-Gerry Lindgren

Gerry is a horrible human being, a liar, and the only thing that pisses me off more than an US record being outsourced to an African runner is that Gerry owned it before then.

From his 'about me': "I RUN! I HAVE ALWAYS RAN! I started running on the streets when it wasn't done. People used to call the police when I ran on the streets. I have been arrested 17 times for running on the streets. People used to drop their groceries and scream when I ran past them on the streets. Every pedestrian I ran past screamed in the olden days. There was a distance running revolution that developed around my running. Now everyone runs on the streets. There is not a city in all the world where people do NOT run. People live longer now. The average lifespan in America when I started running was 57 years. Today's lifespan for an American is 87 years. That is a 30 year improvement! Half a lifespan has been added because of the running revolution. I plan on increasing that lifespan into the hundreds of years. The only reason we all die before 100 years is because we believe we should die so soon. I believe I can survive 360 years. If I can survive 360 years somewhere, someone will do better. 10,000 years of life is within our grasp and I will light the way for all to follow."

WTF. Distance running definitely breeds a certain type of maniac.

An excerpt from a SI article:

"It was an amazing, rather unnerving experience," Clarke recalled as he prepared for an encore. "He was so little he couldn't have looked more than 13 years old. He was such a hero to the crowd that a tall bloke like me, dressed in a dark outfit, automatically became a villain. When I tried to pass him he wouldn't let me. Once I brushed him accidentally. The crowd booed so hard I thought they were going to come after me with clubs."

Clarke was impressed more by Lindgren's attitude than by either his performance or his popularity. "He didn't seem particularly excited about what he had done," says Clarke. "He had lost, and he was simply determined to train harder and to do better next time. I sensed that he was a very special breed of runner."

To me - what Mary Cain is doing now is closer to what Ryun/Lindgren/Pre/etc.. were doing way back then - that is competing against pros and giving them a run for their money. This is something our Kenyan HS hero didn't do on Saturday.

Greg Phelps wrote:

Gerry is a horrible human being, a liar, and the only thing that pisses me off more than an US record being outsourced to an African runner is that Gerry owned it before then.

Why do so many people on this site get so upset about Gerry? Obviously, he's far from perfect, and he may even be crazy, but he's relentlessly upbeat, funny, inspirational, determined, and friendly. He doesn't take himself too seriously, and he doesn't seem to harbor malice toward anyone. He's also a fascinating guy who overcame a lot.

Of course, he talks about some things that are pretty far out there, like 26-mile runs in under two hours, four-mile cross-country runs in sixteen minutes, and plans to live for several hundred more years. Maybe these are his own little jokes, and maybe they're signs that he's not totally anchored in reality. But I don't see much about him that warrants such vitriol.

Dude, how many times have you crapped on your own family, or anybody here, in some small way. It happens, it's tragic, and it's life. Gerry did it bigger than some, but it happens.How about you all find some corner in which to cry and go have a popsicle or something.

red glare wrote:

He shat on his family without remorse. We can (and should) find far better people to esteem, even among fast former runners. Lindgren put himself on an island, pun intended, so just leave him there. Again, we can do better.

[quote]Avocado's Number wrote:

but he's relentlessly upbeat, funny, inspirational, determined, and friendly. He doesn't take himself too seriously, and he doesn't seem to harbor malice toward anyone. He's also a fascinating guy who overcame a lot.

. Maybe these are his own little jokes, quote]

What's sad is the people bashing him are far less intelligent than they think they are.

Why do so many people on this site get so upset about Gerry? Obviously, he's far from perfect, and he may even be crazy, but he's relentlessly upbeat, funny, inspirational, determined, and friendly. He doesn't take himself too seriously, and he doesn't seem to harbor malice toward anyone. He's also a fascinating guy who overcame a lot.

Of course, he talks about some things that are pretty far out there, like 26-mile runs in under two hours, four-mile cross-country runs in sixteen minutes, and plans to live for several hundred more years. Maybe these are his own little jokes, and maybe they're signs that he's not totally anchored in reality. But I don't see much about him that warrants such vitriol.[/quote]

I completely agree with this poster. I have long been inspired by his running and consider him the greatest high school distance runner America has ever produced (Pre is over-rated in that regard). He is a bit of an oddball, yes, and abandoned his family, about which I don't know the details. I don't consider him "bad" because of that and recognize that most people have character flaws that can be amplified in certain situations. I don't think anyone is advocating for him as a great person or someone with a strong grasp of facts. I have always wondered why so many people "hero worship" athletes. Why not just admired them for their performances?

BFD. JL never medalled. another coulda shoulda woulda.

Gerry, this kid ran it on a much faster track and probalby at an older age.....

How do you know he doesn't have remorse? Maybe it eats him up inside every day. You don't know that. We all make mistakes. Gerry is and always has been a great ambassador for our sport.

So its allowed to praise a guy who drinks and drives and then of course gets himself killed, but not Gerry?

He is corect thoguh. Athletes need to race more.

Not pace themselves, not pick their races, not selectively chose their opposition. Not pick their noses.

They need to go out and race. There is too much set up stuff going on, and its no surprise when they fail internationally.

Collective high school kids --"Gary who?"