Of geeks and athletes

Gina Arnold opens her "Fast water" article [GeezerJock, August/September 2006] with "Palo Alto, Calif., the home of Stanford University, is not known as a haven of the highly athletic." I encourage Gina to exercise some better research skills. In June, the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics awarded Stanford its 12th consecutive U.S. Sports Academy Directors' Cup, presented annually to the best overall collegiate athletics program in the country. For the 2005-2006 school year Stanford finished first nationally in both women's cross-country and women's tennis. Other teams finishing in the top 10 nationally included women's indoor track and field (second), men's water polo (second), women's water polo (third), men's gymnastics (third), men's swimming (third), women's basketball (fifth), women's swimming (fifth), men's tennis (fifth), men's cross country (sixth), men's fencing (seventh), men's baseball (ninth), women's lacrosse (ninth) and women's softball (ninth). Being home to the best overall collegiate athletics program in the country for the past 12 consecutive years prompts those who follow sports to indeed think of Palo Alto as a "haven of the highly athletic."

Frank Fish

Penn Valley, Calif.

"Great magazine"

Thanks for a great magazine. I've been getting it for five months now, love it and glad you support racquetball.

Valentina Hernandez

Miami

Age's impact on performance

Vonda White is to be commended for the research she did with Senior Olympics athletes to determine the percentage decline in performance as we age ["Old age is a disease of inactivity," GeezerJock, August/September 2006]. However, a complete study of more than 30,000 track and field performances was performed 12 years ago by World Masters Athletics. One key finding confirmed that after a certain age (which varies by event from approximately 35 to 40), performances always get weaker and weaker in an ever increasing manner. For example, the loss in performance from age 49 to 50 is greater (percentage-wise) than the loss from age 48 to 49. Expressed another way, the percentage loss from age 49 to 50 in the 100-meter dash is 0.6% The percentage loss from age 80 to 81 in the same event is 1.3%. The same general percentage losses likely apply to most other sports. The findings were published in a book: Age-Graded Tables. The book contains single-age factors and standards from ages 8 to 100 for men and women for every common track and field, long distance running, and race walking events. It shows how to conduct an age-graded meet. It tells how to keep track of your progress over the years. It compares performances of different ages/sexes to different events. At 60 pages, it includes samples and charts, and is available for $9.00 from National Masters News, P.O. Box 50098, Eugene, OR 97405.

Al Sheahen

Former Publisher and Editor National Masters News

Sherman Oaks, Calif.