Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas!
Did you get what you wanted for Christmas? I was about to tell you a cute story about getting older and not being the receiver but the giver now. But something struck me as I was typing, I did not ask the Man for anything. I was too focused on the material world.
Yes I received my Christmas gifts. Here they are;
My family is alive and healthy.
My mom survived a bout with cancer with a smile on her face and her spirit as high as any Olympic medalist.
My son is happy. He is smart. He is able to be a kid and learn and grow.
My oldest is a grown man, not involved in foolishness.
My girl is a senior in high school and loving life. Cheerleader captain, already accepted to a university, and maintains a 4.2 GPA.
My wife, Tasha Danvers won the bronze in Beijing. As a result her star is rising and she is riding it for all it is worth. She has a book, 'Keep Ya Peckah Up!' Stay tuned, her site will be up for you all to purchase this self help book. It is a great read, seriously.
I was able to go to Beijing and do my job. She stuck with me through everything and believed in me, and we walked away from the Games as Olympic medalists.
I survived my year. That is God's greatest gift to me. I thought I was built to coach, I thought the events in my life were preparing me to create champions on the track, I found out this year, I have been built to do the one thing we are all built for, live our own lives with all its circumstances.
Merry Christmas folks. Make sure you realize not one of those gifts in paper is the true gift you were given this morning when you opened your eyes.

The year in a sentence. Tasha won the bronze medal.
Now I need the rest of my crew to come on board and get theirs. That's my New Years resolution

Did he say that?!

No DJ this week at least not in the title. This entry should be fun

Brooks has decided to blog and expose the liars and the lies. www.spikesandflats.com. If you are in track please read what he has written and study it. It is very relevant to the development of USA track.
Stephanie Hightower won the Presidency of USATF despite a concerted effort to bring her down and discredit her. It was not a campaign about who was better but rather a do not let her win campaign. It was pathetic to watch the effort due to the fact that she stood accused but very little by way of evidence was actually given. The irony is the most detailed information came from Brooks blog, where he put to rest the rumors and innuendo that was floated about. Thanks Brooks.
Track and field has too many PC people in important places, but that took a change this week.
Congratulations to Jon Drummond the new AAC chair. The next time he says he is done with track I am going to simply call him, "Lifer". I have friends in high places!
Listen my fellow USATF members, the elections could not have gone better, but there is a very important thing we have to pay attention to, the restructuring. Doug Logan was successful in passing his plan, mainly on the back of reducing the size of the board. However, that is not as dramatic as a few other changes people voted in without paying attention. The board members are not directly chosen by the respective committees, instead they submit three names and a selection committee will PICK who they deem best. And then there is the chairman of the board. The President has been the de facto chair up until now. Now the board will chose its own chairman in a separate vote, the bone thrown out there is that if the president were to lose they would be the automatic vice chair. This is misdirection at its best.
The mantra was streamlining and simplifying to remove the infighting and build bridges. This little piece does nothing more than provide contention. A president not winning the chair is an immediate vote of no confidence. The power struggle is immediate.
Then there is the FACT that the restructuring directs ALL business through the CEO and the national office. Nothing gets approved without the CEOs say so. As Brooks pointed out this is bad. This is as bad a structure as you can possibly lay out. Micromanagement is a bad idea in our complex and diverse organization.
Did I mention we will now have three USOC seats on our board? That is 3 voices on our board that have nothing to do with our everyday business but everything to do with money.
Brooks lays it out better than me, I will comment more later. Unless I get gagged, which has happened before LOL.
See you in Vegas next week. I will be there to steal the secrets from Brooks and see how he made D.O. the best hurdler in the US.

Free DJ

This one will be long, so if you are a skimmer feel free.
I am bitter sweet. A long time mentor and coach finally started blogging and he is killing them with information! It is fair to say the coach is a better blogger than the athlete, lol!

I am so frustrated with the USATF process. I have been trying to go for over five years now to the convention and can never get there, it cost too damn much. Athletes do not know this because they get their trips paid for. I cannot find that vehicle for myself. Sucks! I want to be involved but will be on the outside looking in once again.
For some this is a good thing, but for me I like information and I like being informed when I do hold an opinion, which I always have. Just ask my wife.
If you are reading this I am telling you to vote for Stephanie Hightower for President. If you are a sprinter/hurdler you have no choice. I hate the faction war, but I know it is time for us to have a voice in power and not a backroom voice. We have plenty of behind the scenes power, that is always backed up by the collection of medals we bring home every year.
Read this http://blog.spikesandflats.com/. These blogs speak directly to the criticisms and allegations floating out there.

Obama won, just in case anyone forgot. :)

The country, sorry the world is in an economic downturn, period. If you are foolish enough to think it is a US problem you are not paying attention. The exchange rate has dropped almost 60 cents to the pound.

Practice has started. Love it. Back to my reality, or is it my fantasy??? I no longer think there is a difference. The girls are doing well and learning. The guys are doing the same. And everyone is fit. Now to load them up and make them quit. LOL

This is the time of year I HATE college football, yet it remains my favorite team sport. The BCS is a joke and not having a playoff is inexcusable.

How bout dem Lakers!!! Just give us our rings already.

DJ Slippin

My blog game has been weak lately. Not sure it will pick up but I will be around. lol

Barack. Just wanted to remind you all.

No track meets. Just the marathons and road races (where the real money is)

Went to TMobile to see when the Bold was coming out. Never! TMobile will not have a new Blackberry for at least 6 months, and that is a maybe. Need to get the wife on BBM quick, she travels too much to keep texting and emailing and skype-ing

Next week is the USATF conference. Can a coach get a free trip too? I have been tryingt o get to the convention for five years now, and it always boils down to economics. Actually quite frustrating because I actually WANT to be involved, unlike most I know.

Lots of movement this offseason, wow! some surprising some pleasant and some just plain baffling. Look folks, if you run the marathon do not go to a long jump coach, thats all I am trying to say.

Dayron Robles won performance of the year. Now we all know I LOVE the hurdles. But this is a joke. 12.87 bested the wr by .01. Bolt posted a 9.69 complete with celebration and a stunning 19.30.
Isinbayeva won athlete of the year. Negative! Jelimo was hands down the best woman on the year. The times she posted this season have not been seen in 25 years!!!!!! Are you kidding me? The girl is a junior, just turned 18!

DSports

Yawn.
Its that time of year. Reestablishing the routines that breed success in the summer. It starts today.
I am more than happy with the make up of the group. The new faces have brought the right attitude, demeanor, and talent. It is gong to be fun watching them all develop. We are international again.
I want to send my man K Ferg off with my blessings and well wishes. He is embarking on his next evolution and that is cool with me, I just want my man to reach his potential. If you need me Ferg just hit me up.
The wife is returning from London as an entire institution LOL. Many of you here in the States do not know it, but she went home and got on the grind, she accomplished a lot of goals over the last 4 or 5 weeks and I am proud of her. Look for her book coming out soon.
Obama won. I really have a plethora of thoughts on it, but there is no need to elaborate. He won and that has said enough. I look forward to watching him perform.
Lakers are 7-0.
Al Davis is killing my mood.
Jerry Jones is confused of what his job actually is.
When is AI going to get a haircut?
The new event in track and field is "Where is your favorite athlete training now?" LOL

DJ BDay Shout outs!

It is my birthday tomorrow, November 3rd, and I decided to give on this blog on my day. A few folks and what they mean to me on my day.

Mom and Dad! without you there is no me. The obvious. But it has been the other stuff that I thankful, the stuff that makes them who they are and enabled them to stay together their whole lives without any major hiccups. My mom was 16 when she had me, got married 2 years later and they have never blinked! 36 years and the rock of the family.

My brothers. Daimar and Dion. Just because those are my bro's. We are years apart so we never had the brotherly connection that most have but I will kill you over them, do not get confused. LOL

Martin Beck. I miss you man. He is not dead, just been living in Houston for about ten years now. Married with child, who would have thunk it lol!

Tasha D. My chick. My athlete. My medalists. She holds a special place that would take too many words to explain. And yes, I will kill you over her too. I have her back through thick and thin for better or worse, I got her in all her ways not just the good stuff. And I am not afraid to let her know it. She needs something I am there.

Jaden, Ricky, Aysia. This is what love is about. No bells and whistles. As long as I am alive they love me. As long as I live I will love them. Hurt them in anyway and I will hunt you for the rest of your days. Seriously.


Ryan, Kenny, Jonathan, Tasha (second shout). Thank you for trusting me to help make your dreams a reality. Thank you for believing in me when you had very little reason to.

To my other athletes. Same as above, but had to shout out the OG's above.

john Smith. Uncle John or just John to me. Saw the potential in me when I was out of track and thinking about corporate life. Probably the dumbest decision I ever made but you know what, I have been to every major continent on this earth and have yet to buy my own ticket!!! Thank you John for making my dreams come true.

Maurice Greene. That was a fun ride.

Mike Powell. My boy for life. Hated him for beating Carl in 1991 when I was still a Carl fan, but a little knowledge will change your thinking. MP is my man for whatever I need.

Allen Johnson. Wished I had coached you, but man it was fun watching you do your thing

Marie jose Perec. La Gazelle.

Lloyd Cowan. Mr. Hustle.

Terrence Trammell. Thanks for being real and honest.

God. If I have to explain you are living in denial.

Dave Collins. Flew me everywhere for every meet the last three years. lol Believed in what I had to say to pick Tasha for the Olympics this year.

John Trower. See Dave Collins.

Tomorrow I will be 38. Nice. See growing up it was all about 2000, and the end of days. We are all supposed to be dead. LOL I used to wonder what it would be like to be an adult, look old, be called mister, I am still wondering LOL. I cannot believe I am 38. Let me tell you, life doe snot miraculously change. You have to change it otherwise you will look up and still be that same 20 something fool.
I will wake up tomorrow, dress myself and Jaden, drop him at school, and go to practice for the first day of training. And without an ounce of embarrassment I will miss my wife all day long. Be sure to tune into ChoiceFM (www.choicefm.com) at 10PM PST.

DJ - House music

I am reading all these blogs, and talking to folks, and all the medalists are running around the world glad handing and whatnot. It is great to read. My friends call and ask what I am doing, and how I feel, etc. Well wishers of course, and then I have to educate them, I am the coach. I get all the blame and little credit. LOL It is the mantra of all coaches, and we revel in it.
See, as much as, I would like to be with Tasha smiling and interviewing I realize that is the husband in me not the coach. The coach is the guy that stood there smiling as she jogged her victory lap. The coach is the guy that kept it light while we waited for final call. The coach is the guy that has already written all the training sessions from now through New Years. More importantly, coach is the guy that is always here when you need him. And that makes this coach smile.

So to all you athletes, mine and others, day one is quickly approaching. Clean up your eating, get some sleep, and by all means, ANSWER THE PHONE WHEN YOU SEE MY NAME ON THE CALLER ID!

Vacation???

I am on facebook. had the page for a while but never did anything with it, just had it. Well now I am on there reading about holiday trips and off time, and all kinds of non track stuff. Makes me laugh a lot because I realize as a coach there is no such thing as off time.
I am not a college coach which is even worse, but as a pro coach I have to write new sessions, evaluate this summer. Talk to new group member, get new members started training, etc. And the always stressful task of handling business issue, code word for money lol. And none of this includes real life, which is whole nother kettle of fish to handle.
This year is more special the added responsibility and demands of success. I am reading my man D.O. adventures and relating. Tasha has been gone for 2 weeks and has not stopped yet. She has 3 weeks to go and it is a non stop tour. Not to mention, she is not here and not relaxing.
Now this sounds like whining but it is not, just the facts. I love it all. lol well not all

SWITCH!!!!

Palin - the republican answer to Barack. I think they have jeopardized her promising future in a desperate ploy.
McCain - the republicans decided to give him his due instead of grooming a young gun to run against Clinton who became Obama. Bad move.
Barack - superstar on the rise. woefully in experienced but so good in front of the camera. Cannot tell a lie, I hate his economic philosophy, stressing me out really
Biden - beautiful VP choice for Barack who folks on both sides of the aisle were worried about in terms of foreign affairs and experience.

Barack will win this by about 6 points. I originally thought 3 and that still my come to pass, but it looks like 6 unless something dramatic happens.

It is college football season. Argh! No playoff, more upsets, more parody, and more irritation. what other sport do you watch the regular season and then stop caring?
UCLA will be in the final four AGAIN! yessir
Lakers have Bynum back. Trouble for you haters
And I have not figured out the NFL yet this season.

DJ Thinks

Some thoughts about recent events off the top of my head.

USATF has a power struggle. It is multi leveled, the USOC wants to dismantle USATF and take it over. LDR wants more power and feels slighted by the sprints who dominate the landscape.
The Presidency is up for grabs this year, I am telling all of you out there to get to Reno and vote! Do not whine about the sport if you are not doing a damn thing to be involved.
USATF has to restructure, the board IS going from 19 to 9 and 4 of those spots will be non track spots. This is a good thing.
Youth track people, you have enough power and numbers to not need to be apart of the board decisions.
Masters you are loved for your passion but you are not mainstream or bringing anything to the table. Love you guys, I thought I would be a masters runner, and I always knew it would be for my enjoyment. Same for you.
USATF should be about the business of promoting the brand name, which means elite level participation.
This year and next year are very important years in the evolution.
Stephanie has taken serious personal attacks during this run for the top spot. It is ridiculous folks, I am not opining, I am telling you. This is for the USATF top spot not the POTUS, and some of you have gone after Steph as if her appointment will end your life. Get over yourselves.
Bob Bowman walks in the door with tremendous experience and insight. He is tough to ignore.
Dee I am not clear about so I will not pass an opinion to be fair.

Rest in Peace Louise Tricard. If you do not know who this lady is please google her. I met her on this thing we call the internet. I had no idea who she was when she started posting with us on the Spdkls board some ten years ago.

Barack is killing McCain. Wait, the truth is McCain is killing himself. Obama is such a sophomore this is a no brainer. When looked at seriously Obama is woefully inexperienced, yet he can talk, he brings a freshness to the politics, and McCain is weak personality wise. And the Palin move was stupid, period.

Time to get back on the grind.

College football is headed towards another mess. USC loses, Texas beats Oklahoma, the SEC is falling apart. The MW may be the strongest conference in the land but has no chance of getting that respect. DO not be surprised if we see another 2 loss SEC team vying for the title. Pathetic.

Bynum and Gasol are my front court. LOL We are coming to a town near you and we will be the show. Last year was a fluke.Once again the West is the strongest conference in the world.

I wanna work for Diddy. hahahahahahaha

get on facebook and find the wife, she has a new creative endeavor going this fall. Last year it was painting, this year it is well go check it out on facebook and on youtube.

DJ on life

I thought coaching multiple athletes was hard, but trying to get a 3 year old, high on SpeedRacer to go to bed is impossible. He is smart. so he knows how to turn on his TV, and he knows how to bargain and hustle for what he wants. LOL Looks like I am going to have to pull the hard face daddy move on him. He will whimper for ten minutes then pass out like someone flipped a switch.

my vacation is in transition. The rookies are in training. So the few days I spent thinking about last year are over. Last year, I had zero days off, I had started training before the Asian circuit if you can believe that.

it is hot here in the city of angels! and I love it. always rather be hot than cold.

DJ is off

The off season is a weird time for me. I want to sit and enjoy what happened, but my attention immediately shifts to what is coming. The preseason has started for me already. Writing workouts, and getting the rookies and not ready for prime players started. The cool part is I do not have to be so serious. Miss a day, postpone a session, no problem.

Now that is me. Behind the greatness of DJ is the little engine that could and she is always on in some form. I've done well in getting her to calm down for once. Check out the attached clip to see what goes down in the off season. A little insight into the lives of some of your favorite athletes when they are not running. Enjoy...




For more find her on facebook...

DJ is just saying

One more day in Korea and we close the shop and head home. The real world.

the Korean Air Force have been running sorties all day, if you have ever been near a fighter jet you know how loud they are. and they are fast too. an amazing sight to see them take off.

we went to the shops today, and as is the tradition here, the evisu store got the most attention. I thought about buying a couple of pair and selling them back home, but losing my check card solved that issue.
For all of you back home, evisu cost $100 on the high end here. So next time you see someone in the States sporting some evisu's they bought for $300 just chuckle.

The irony of closing this season is I have a full crew here. About 5 athletes.

whatever you do, VOTE!

Just DJ

when im alone in my room sometimes i stare at the walls/and in the back of my mind i hear my conscious call/.... lol For all you youngsters out there that is some classic LL Cool J.

It is 6AM in Shanghai and out side is the thickest humidity I have ever seen. if we were in LA of Beijing most would mistakenly call it smog, but I know it is the atmosphere. looks like fog too.

i have to say, there is nothing better than being in a hotel that is the track. Zurich is around the corner, but this hotel is the track. Go down to the lobby walk through a door and there is the track. too bad this meet is so far away and at the end of the year.

so it is at an end. as a friend said so eloquently, it is the paper chase folks. very few are serious, even less have done a training session in weeks lol

so the election is coming, day after my birthday, yessir. Obama will win. and then we will see what the country is really about. economic crisis, bad politics, and a lack of foresight dominate the US right now. as in everything in life it is reaching its high water mark and we as a people have to do something.

in track folks are starting to realize we have to raise our game professionally. the politics in our sport are dirtier than the presidential race. cries of corruption, open attacks on high performance from the new CEO, and old stars doing NOTHING to bolster the profile of the sport, of the athletes.

athletes, get to Reno our continue to suffer the consequences of indifference and non participation in the business end of what you do.

on a lighter note, it is amazing to watch Tasha go through her new stardom. we talk about it and dream about it, but to actual achieve the medal and become a national icon is a different animal altogether. the reality hit like a ton of bricks. her old teachers, her classmates, her everybody want to acknowledge their connection to her. just makes me smile and laugh. this is forever, she will forever be an Olympic bronze medalist. yessir

this room is off the chain. the Chinese have a great mind for sexiness in designs. the showers and bath tubs all have windows, you can choose to cover them or leave them open and see your room and outside the huge windows to the city. it is like taking a shower out side, not in a corner like it feels at home.

DJ giving props

DO you did your thing! Good job.

Christine O. Commonwealth, World and Olympic champion. The trifecta and they still do not get it.

Tasha D. way to pull it together baby. The heart and soul of my group, thanks for letting me spin the records for your party.

Ryan Wilson way to do the grunt work this summer. Nothing went how we wanted but you pulled out an entire season.

JKwayke wow! what a year for you. Silver indoors and an Olympic final.

Tyrone E GB, man way to go. first you crawl then you walk then you run! 10.06 and the semis. Last Brit standing. And he ran some of the best second legs I have seen in a while

Wallace my man was going through some things this summer, and he still came through for third whenver he needed it! Get right, the talent is there for sure

Lashawn just crashed the party. A couple of 43s and a gold medal. not a bad nights work.

Dayron is the man. amazing year. And we are coming for ya!

Dawn Harper! What can I say? From knee surgery to start the SPRING to the top of the podium. Niceness

Lolo that run to win trials is historic. that was fast, period.

Tyson Gay is an alien

Usain Bolt is from Mars. I want his dna checked, he is not human. I have seen things in the last 6 weeks to fill a lifetime from him. And he is 22!

Gotta go play some music.... be back

DJ back in the Booth

What a summer!
Bolt destroys all notions concerning sprinting.
Asafa remains the same, albeit, a little faster. He is the most prolific sprinter in history. Too bad Bolt will surpass him soon, barring injury.
Veronica Campbell has one of the fastest seasons ever and does not even step foot on the track in Beijing for the 100. Jamaica still swept the event.
What in the world is going on with US sprinting? This is the question on people's lips. The answer is really simple. Nothing. All the pieces are there, injuries got in the way. Simple as that. Matter of fact US sprinting was better this year than last year overall, but since Tyson went down and the women were swept in the 100 and the relays dropped the stick, something must be wrong. Naw, nothing is wrong.
Barack Obama is on the verge of winning the White House. But first, he has become the first black presidential candidate to win a nomination. First Obama then 19.30. 2 things folks said we would not see in our lifetime.
On to 2012. And all of the UK is in a panic. LOL You would think they won the "get bombed" lottery the way they are acting. 2012 is an opportunity for the UK to shine, so far they have just proven the British stereotype of cynicism. The stadiums are over budget, there is not enough housing, they have no sprinters, there are no track athletes capable of medaling in 2012. LOL Full panic mode over there.
I read on a message board where someone said Tasha should run for 2 more years then step aside for the younger athletes to have a chance in 2012. And they are serious. She should LET them have a chance. This is about competing. Those youngsters need to step up.
Track is like the wilderness, you want to rule the pack you have to step up and challenge the leader and beat the leader. Period. You want someone out of your way you have to beat them.
Jaden started school this week, Pre - K. He is three and doing addition. Amazing.
Football season has started, what could be better.
I went to see Babylon AD. Terrible movie. It is edited with the assumption that the watcher knows the story already. I have no idea what I watched in the end or what it was supposed to mean.
In case you missed it, Tasha won a bronze medal. I am still happy.
Now on to the newbies, time to get them started. And I cannot wait. 2 weeks

On the road

So I have a bronze medal now. I am an Olympic medal coach, thank you very much. It feels great, and the better part is the medalist is my wife too. Could not have come at a better time.

So I am sitting in the lobby in Zurich. For track junkies this is the place to be, anyone you want to see will walk through this lobby.

My girl Dawn just smacked in my ear with a chicken kebab. LOL She vows to never change, and she is sticking to it.
Bolt is a 21 year old kid. Unlike some other stars that never leave their rooms he is a constant sight moving through the lobby. The kid just enjoys himself, it is nice to watch.

The beauty of track is seemingly benign conversations are business meetings. All the big meet promoters are here. All the agents are here. I love this sport.

Tonight is the beginning of the second half. I have David Neville and a secret athlete lol, but for the most part I get to just be a fan tonight. Have some fun and then hit the road early in the morning. Gateshead is Sunday, Lausanne is Tuesday (finally making to the Alps), and Brussels on Friday. I really love this stuff.

On the 8th Jaden starts preschool!!!!! Now that's real.
My oldest son Ricky is a fireman officially. Just started with a station this week. I am so proud of him.

Beijing was a success

Any of you reading that knows me knows Tasha walked away with a bronze medal! Let me talk about that for a few ticks. Uhm, where am I with this? Absolutely, chuffed as my wife says. It is very good feeling when a plan comes together.
We had a long summer and only through the power of the mind and God's grace did this thing turn out successful. From an achilles issue in May to a hamstring strains throughout the summer, we did not have the smoothest of journeys. The beauty was her fitness base was superb and surprisingly sustained her through the whole summer. She never lost her fitness or strength, which meant all we had to do was get to the line healthy and hope her body was back in balance.
The results speak for themselves. It was a pleasure to watch her run around the track in full control and at the level we have always believed she could run at. It was tiring through the years watching women run times and win that were not more talented than Tasha. She has all the talent in her to do the things she dreams about. This medal was one of them. She is a part of history now, an Olympic medalist. As I always say, medals are forever. No one can change the result of that race. And she ran 53 seconds.

The funny part was she ran after Bolt's historic 19.30 and by the time I got to the mixed zone I had forgotten all about his run. Someone came up to me asking me what I thought about the race, and I really thought they were asking me about Tasha. LOL
In short, Bolt's run was mind blowing. Unlike MJ, who was a product of a moment, Mr. Bolt set out to run that fast. Can you imagine getting in the blocks thinking, "I am trying to run faster than 19.32!" Wow, that must be a helluva a feeling to have.

His display in the 100 was jaw dropping, and that's all I can say about that. Wait until Zurich, we may see a 9.5x.

I will blog on the relays later, lots to say there but I promise you it is not what most of you think. Back to cloud nine, I am happy as a clam. :)

DJ from the Booth

The Games started in spectacular fashion. The Opening ceremony was great. This is the first time I have come to the Games and not gone to the ceremony. I encouraged all the first timers to go, but a lot of them took this experience for granted, and that is too bad. A huge part of this time is doing the ceremonies and the like. The Olympic experience is special and if you do not experience the little stuff, it is just a big track meet, and that is a tragedy.
In 2000 it was weird for me, I was with the Saudi team. So it was like Halloween for me in certain respects as I dressed in traditional Saudi gear. Then we walked in the Stadium and it was special. I was looking up at 100,000 fans and dignitaries, and then there was the realization that millions of people were watching, including my family. Find the TV cameras so they can see you! And then I had a marvelous thought, I was an Olympian. For my whole life I had associated being an Olympian with US trials and making the top three. not once had I ever thought about the coaches and officials that were a part of the team. Well it hit me the minute I walked out of the tunnel and onto the track. It is something I will always remember.

So fast forward to now. Phelps has already shattered a wr. China has already won a gold. Looks like everything is in order.
The IOC should be ashamed of itself for changing the swim schedule so the US audience could watch the finals live. I am not a fan of the amateur ideal that permeates the Games, but I am a fan of sanctity. We cannot afford to have TV circumventing the athletes. Phelps did well, but it is important to realize their semi final was last night and their final this morning. That is a dangerous precedent.

Sadly, 2 tragic things happened yesterday. Bernie Mac died and some psycho killed an innocent man in Beijing who came to watch volleyball. He was the father in law of one of the coaches. One was tragic because reports were Bernie Mac was stable. The other was tragic because it is senseless and maddening. A definite knock on the Games and China.

I promise you only in swimming is the 4x100 relay on the second day of competition.

Now I am off to laugh about the fact that I have yet to go to a Games as an American. LOL

DJ on the Mic

So much off the track stuff happening I feel the need to speak on a couple of points.

In Jamaica they have an internal battle that has been raging for years. I am not an insider, so my take is based purely on what I have read and heard. In summary, Stephen Francis, franno, MVP coach, does not like (and that is stating it mildly) the JAAA, Jamaican federation. He has been feuding with them for years. It all came to the forefront this week when he refused a pass from them and did not want his athletes, 10 in all, to attend the Jamaican camp. He protested saying it would cost his athletes, ten percent in their performance.
Well, what a mess. I hold the position that the federation is the entity responsible for resolving this matter. Not saying they have to fold, I am saying they have to be the side that puts this thing to bed. franno is a personal coach and no matter what one thinks, he is only responsible for his charges, not the national team. The JAAA taking a hard stance against franno looks personal. We will see how this plays out. Oh yeah, I forgot to mention that when the MVP athletes arrived, they came with a letter forbidding them to participate in relay practice. The letter was written by franno and signed by the relevant athletes. As I said what a mess.

Meanwhile, back at the house, we have a new CEO, Doug Logan. He has decided that one way to connect to the public is to blog. Kudos for the effort, however the execution is terrible. He also wrote a letter to the president in opposition to Marion Jones being granted a presidential pardon for her perjury case. In his blog he has defended his by stating it is a way to show the world we, USATF, and the sport is taking a tough stance on drugs. This is completely wrong.
The request for a pardon is a personal one for Marion and has ZERO to do with our stance on drugs. Logan's continued defense that he is being tough and speaking tough is troubling.
It intimates that we have not been tough up until now, and that the attitude of those of us in the sport is one of acceptance. None of which is true.
What he needs to do is start to CHANGE the perspective of what he is perpetuating. Track is the most ardent defender of clean sport as any in the WORLD. We have been testing for decades, let me repeat, decades! We have never had less than a 2 year ban for first offenders, whereas most sports require multiple offenses for ONE year. We are catching designer drugs, doing blood test, collecting samples, have athletes volunteering for test, busting athletes regardless of their stature, and this has been going on for 20+ years. None of this is talked about by those in power. All we get is how bad the drug culture is and that track has a drug problem, Logan's first moves in office have done little to address these lies. And that I have a problem with.
Enough of the harping on the past druggies, the bust, and the talk of sponsors are afraid. Sponsors are about perception, and we will not get the big dollars until we start managing our news better. The NFL is busting folks left and right, but that is never their headline. This is the part where we drop the ball. We whine, and play victim, and then have folks like Logan coming around with tough talk. We have enough in place to prove our toughness, what we need now is clarity on who we are, productivity on our image, control of information. Many see this as secrecy, but that is cynicism. I am talking how to manage to flow of information as it FLOWS. Right now, we make a drug bust and it is a negative, where it should be a positive.

Ok, I am in Macau with the UK team. Tropical storm Kammuri passed by yesterday, so much for practice, it was a mandatory rest day. As you can imagine the hotel gym stayed busy. Now it is dragon flies and back to work. If you do not like humidity this is not the place for you. I love it. Any excuse to not where sleeves and pants is great to me.

DJ from Macau

Macau is a little island known as the Las Vegas of Asia. And I mean it is the Las Vegas of Asia, the casinos are exactly the same here as on the strip, Wynn's, the Venetian, MGM, etc. It is kind of weird seeing these hotels here knowing I am far from the States.
Today is the first day, so I am battling jetlag. Tried to stay up all night last night. made it to 5am and then slept until 10, went to the track, and now I am trying to not sleep. If I can make it, I will sleep all night and come out of the other side acclimatized. If I am lucky.
Meanwhile, in track I cannot believe the news from another little island, Jamaica. The internal battle that has become public is ridiculous. Grown men, some of who once competed at the highest level are now playing a game of roulette with athletes that were born long after their successes. Get out of these kids lives and allow them to fulfill their legacies. Whatever differences franno and JAAA have is between them. This is the Olympic Games, all pettiness should be tabled and dealt with afterwards. I feel bad for the athletes, as they are the bearers of the ultimate burden. Unbelievable is the word I think of.
Here in Macau everything is going according to plan. Nothing special in the works. All the athletes look happy and healthy. I have heard nothing special out of Dalian. Training reports are good, and folks are just looking forward to competing.

I do have one pet peeve. The federations have forgotten this is a once in a life time experience. This is the Olympics. People train their whole lives for this opportunity. That means experiencing the village, the opening ceremony and everything in between. The experience has been broken down to many as a track meet. Having been through this twice, and walking the opening twice, I am telling you there is nothing like this. As a track man walking into that stadium was magical, even as a coach. 100,000 people happy and cheering is something to experience and feel.
Weight room time.

DJ on Love Affair

I was reading Brianna's blog on her complicated love affair with the sport. Admittedly I did not make it through her whole blog but I got the gist and completely understand the nature of it. All of us in track have this conversation with ourselves whether you coach or are an athlete. The love it takes to do this is great, the rewards are personal and for many are taken for granted.
I will say this, never stop loving this sport, and never base your feelings on your success. And for heavens sake never quit because you are not the best. You quit because you want to, because it has run its course in your life. The sport needs us all and the more people that dedicate their time and lives to this endeavor the better the evolution will be.
I quit against my heart and soul. I quit because life asked me to, not that it demanded it but that it asked. I quit too soon. From that fateful decision came my coaching career, I got lucky. I would have been in this sport forever either way, but luck saved me. I am sending a message to all of you reading this, as you use this sport and it uses you give back to it when you are done running and jumping and throwing. Coach, be an agent, get involved in the politics, but stay in it. The greatest plague of our sport is the sickness of burnout. People leave our sport and never look back. We end up woefully lacking in fresh blood, new ideas, and bodies to fill voids. If you ever wonder why we are so slow to grow as a business just look around and ask yourself where are the friends you traveled with on the road? Are they in the sport or elsewhere claiming they rarely watch the sport anymore.
My answer? I have one teammate that is now a sports psychologist with the USOC. Many of you know him and talk to him, Dr. Ross Flowers. Another friend of mine is a cop. He was the street guy growing up and now he is the law, counseling the youth in the detention centers. Another teammate, is the recreation director at UCLA, running the Wooden Center. There are three oops four of the pro athletes I coached now coaching in some capacity, Jon Drummond, Larry Wade, Kim Carson and Ato Boldon, oops five, Dennis Mitchell, dang six, Gentry Bradley.

Don't walk away from it. grow and evolve with it. It is a guarantee you can only participate on the track for a finite amount of time, but you can give and be a part of this thing far longer. Look at me, I am now in year 31 of my track career, my running ended 17 years ago.

Yeah Brianna called it right, this is some crazy love affair.

DJ Shout outs

Dayron Robles wow.
Usain Bolt the big man all the sprint junkies in life have been wishing for.
D.O. I am coming for you, don't get comfortable up there. ;) Good work this year man.
Terrence T. three teams in a row. Nuff respect
Torri. I would cry for you but you would not appreciate it lol. Been a long road lady, you have set a high standard for others. Thanks for being loyal.
K Ferg. It can only get better for you from here, this will be the hardest year you will ever face, we will be back.
Jonathan Williams. Man thanks for being disciplined and loyal and calm. Your time is coming in Beijing. Shock and awe.
Marshevette Hooker good work youngster. Made your coach proud, believe me.
JD welcome to the coaching ranks officially. Share the wealth brother. ;)
Tyson Gay keep wowing them out there.
Tyrone Edgar the master of turnover. Your time is coming, keep grinding and the doors will open.
Miki Barber move!
Kai K. welcome to DSports.

DJ live from Finland

You have to love what you do to maintain yourself in it effectively. I love what I do. I am sitting here in Finland working but found out I am not working. LOL Short story with a lot of details.

Let me tell you something, Olympic trials in any country is taxing. And this is where DJ's story begins. I left home in June 24th, and I have been home for all of one night since. US trials was tragic. Here is a brief recap of my 2 weeks in Eugene.
Up first was Torri, the queen. She did her job in grand fashion. A stunning 10.78 in the semi finals is still my lasting memory from the week. It was nice to see her come together right on time because it was looking shaky a few weeks earlier. In the final she got in hurry producing a less than perfect performance. Taking second she qualified and the smile on her face could not have been broader. It has been a long 4 years for her, and making THIS team was part of a final vindicating act.
In the background we had a breakthrough of Alexis Weatherspoon. She managed an 11.08 in the quarter final to make it back to the semi. Pleasantly surprised. All DJ could do was smile, laugh and try to keep the train rolling, hell one more breakthrough and she was looking at a possible trip to Beijing. All good things come to an end, she did not make the final.
Next Leroy Dixon was up. The man in the boot. A talented young man that has yet to realize his own potential, but when he does we all will know. Despite his hurdles and obstacles he made the final, gave a windy 9.99 performance to boot. He had the classic question following the final, as we walked he looked at me and asked, "How does 9.99 get you 6th place?" Welcome to the US trials, the hardest track meet in the world. He still earned his spot and will be making his second straight appearance on a US national team.
Then came David. Mr Neville was always the favorite for the third spot once Angelo opted for the hurdles but no one paid attention, and the TV talking heads were not on their job. In the final he had his favorite lane, 8. lol Coming off of 300 there he was in the lead, and at the line he was an US Olympian. In a pr of 44.63. gratifying is the word here, little known fact, this is John's pride and joy, the 400, nothing makes him prouder.
A word on my boy K Ferg. The young man had the hardest year of anyone. His dad suffered and died from cancer. He got hurt indoors. All in all it took its toll on him, we did not have enough training time, and his fathers illness was too much of a distraction for him to overcome. He will be back next year.
So the second weekend was another emotional moment. My man Ryan Wilson had a great year training, and on June 8th he strained his adductor and psoas, we thought it would be a week, it just got better yesterday. The first round was the first all out hurdle session we had run since his injury. We were just trying to squeeze are way into the final and then see what happened. In the end he could not talk his way around the injury and pain. Again, he will be back. Soon.
Torri looked like a million going in to the 200 but the fatigue and turns were too much. She drew lane one for the final and we pulled her out. Her health was more important out there.

So Monday it was home, wash, sleep, errands, plane to London. UK trials coming up.
Tyrone Edgar,was number 2 going in and the 1st rd was easy. The semi the next day looked great until I found him laying on a table in the back with a lost puppy dog look. Something was wrong with his hamy. Trainers said he was fine, we got up and went to work. He just could not open up, the leg was restricted. He took fourth by a nose. He is still dealing with it right now, disappointed to say the least.
Then it was my queens turn. She had been battling herself since she got to London and all looked to be on the upswing, then the gun went off. Three hurdles were vintage, and after that the race went flat.

So I am in Finland now with the Saudis. Got her last night and found out today none of my boys are qualified because their relay time was not certified. The one guy I do coach that is qualified does not want to go. Now I appreciate the opportunity, but I no longer have a reason to be here. I have Tyrone and Tasha in London needing specific attention, and the facilities there perfect. A good dilemma to have but I have to resolve this issue tomorrow.

So we are all caught up. I am preparing folks for Beijing, not sure DJ will be in Beijing yet though. LOL Irony.

DJ Super Mix

Here is three weeks in five minutes...

Torri runs 10.78 shutting down. It was simply stunning and I see the woman train everyday. We knew she would handle the field but 10.78 jogging it in was something different. So glad she made the team. I her long and storied career this is the second time she has made the team outright but the first time she will get to fulfill her individual duty. And do not expect to see a three peat of her finals performances.

Tyson Gay is astounding. 9.77 and 9.68w. And it looked like it. He is off the charts and hopefully recovers in time to show up in Beijing.

David Neville. Congrats PK!!!!

Side note. It should have been reported on TV that David was the odds on favorite to win the third and final spot on that team The facts defined it and the TV analyst were knowledgeable to recognize what was coming. He came into the race with a 45.03. He was the fourth fastest from the semis, with Witherspoon being the third but he had pr'd to do that in the semi. Daivd's coach has done this before on numerous occasions. In the semi final he was an easy third. Too bad a bit of unprofessional personal disposition prevented a proper and thorough analysis. And by the way, David's coach is John Smith, as is Torri's. A name missing from the broadcast peculiarly.

Merrit won. no shock. Wariner throws a hissy fit, Shocking.

David Oliver, good work. 2 sub 13s, never seen that before.

Kellie Wells. Poor baby, tragic. Keep your head up, you did a great job this year.

Dawn Harper, the forgotten member of the Kersee hurdle camp.

Denby. Cannot get any closer. damn

I had a terrible week. One hurdler never got the season going. One hurdler got hurt at the wrong time and is yet to fully recovery.

I enjoyed everyday of the meet though.

Now I am in London. It is cold, and wet. I will enjoy it though. Time to get dressed. O, jet lag is a monster when you hit the ground working, whew!!!! Walking sleep.

The Red Carpet

Before every show there is the red carpet, well here is the red carpet report from DJ...

The flight was booked months ago, JS and my itineraries said flight time 1315. Everyone else in the group was 1420. Cool. Well I get to the airport, my customary 2 hours early, I hate to rush, having checked in online all I had to do was drop my bags. Gravy. Well I look at me ticket and it says boarding time 1350. Huh? Flight time 1420. Wow! I looked at the lady and said how come my itinerary said 1315, she shrugged. So much for customer service. So in true european fashion I found JS and we chilled at the terminal for 2.5 hours. LOL

The flight was uneventful, small plane, you know the one. Left side has one seat, right side has 2. Yes they fly those in the states.

Any one that has been to Eugene, ORE knows the airport is tiny. So they manage to not send out Torri's bag, well one of them. There were three passengers missing luggage, 2 of them were found in 2 minutes. Thankfully Torri was one of them. They have a policy here, a bag makes three trips around and they take them off. Well, Torri's bag never made one rotation, and neither did the other man's.

So here we are, in the hotel, waiting for the lights to dim and the opening act to start...

DJ Battle time!

The week is here. It is now or never. Talk about pressure. I have been waiting for this for three weeks now. Nothing is right, nothing is perfect, but that is what makes it so special. That question about your ability to get er dun! I ask this question of myself everyday, and it is the very question that drives me, thrills me, and pushes me.

This weekend I saw my wife return to action and it was less than anticipated. Now we could mope about it but for what? She has been on the mend, and this was a test run, a run to get her back in the swing of things and let us know where we are. We now know. Just as we did last summer we go to work, getting ready for her nationals and the Games. Mentally she is good and that is all I need.
Tyrone Edgar has announced himself as the new kid on the British sprint scene. I knew he would run this fast when I first talked to him and watched him run, but of course, thinking it and doing it is 2 different things. 10.20 into a 1.8 is a serious run. He then was the star of his relay team, staking a claim to second leg. We do not know where he will be used in Beijing but we will be on the track. The kid is good, and he will be a name to talk about by the time August comes. Makes me feel good because he has risen up through the ranks and not been the child star, just a hard worker that has all the tools.
Asafa Powell returned to action, 9.96. Welcome back.
Darrel Brown ran into Richard Thompson and fell down. WHAT?! Inexcusable in a 100.
D.O. dropped me another 13.10. I see you D.O. I see you. Keep running, I like you and your coach. D.O. has laid down the gauntlet.
Side note, how come Asafa and Usain are selling us that their national champs is not a showdown? Let us have 2 9.7x sprinters, Eugene would be the OK Corral. We create warriors, who are never afraid to battle.
Hey Tyson, what are you going to run this weekend? I will ask your coach. I need a 9.7x so these jock riders can recognize why you possess the gold.
Oh and just in case folks out there think I am selling out my own, never. I expect certain folks to step up and realize their true potential, and I will tell them as much. ;)
Welcome back Torri! 10.94 is right on time, literally. She chose a different approach this year and it is paying off. Talk about someone that earned their keep, you guys have no idea.
Doc Patton holding it down for the elders!
Which one of the young guns will step up?
More soon, I will post a couple of blogs this week.

Congrats to the UK team for finishing first and third at European Cup this weekend. Now UK women take up a collection for breaking my woman's camera and phone in the celebration. That stuff was beyond our budget!!!!! Grr...
It is hot as hell in LA this weekend, 100+, I love it!

DJ says

Wow!

12.87! Blame D.O. he titled his blog that and Robles took it literally. As well we all should. What an amazing couple of weeks in track.
Bolt shatters all preconceived notions of what it takes to be a good 100m sprinter.
Jelimo runs 1:54.99, the first sub 1:55 in over a decade.
And Robles drops us 12.87 form the sky.

Now we are cooking with Crisco. With trials a few weeks away the heat is rising. I am watching the NCAA meet and the semi final produces 13.25, 13.29, and 13.39. From 1998 to 2003 that 13.39 would have won. The final did not live up to the hype but it was nice. 13.40 by junior Jason Richardson was a nice victory. I am disappointed Craddock was unable to compete (hurt hip), he would have added an interesting element to that final. Good job JRich.

Is Walter Dix as talented as hyped?

Richard Thompson looked promising. Lots of tools and an upside.

I cannot wait for trials, I need to get on the road, it is a break form reality for me, fun is what most people call it. I need some fun. The smell of victory, the emotion of making the team, the thrill of success! If you cannot feel that you are dead.

I am coming to see you all in Oregon, good luck to everyone, even those in the events I coach. There are three spots, I just require one. ;-D

Showtime

It is June folks, welcome to the Terrordome!!!

This is what it is all about. This is where we all get to see if our words, thoughts, and actions earn us our dream. If you are not feeling it by now you will never feel it.

Props to my man Brooks, and to his protege D.O. for taking it back to the lab and getting ready for the show. I see you.

I am rarely happy about false starts and dq's but it was good to see Xiang get nailed for his rolling start, he does it habitually. I do not think he jumped out on purpose, as some have whispered.

In 3 weeks time we all will be back in Eugene to make dreams reality. Whew!

In the meantime there are a number of European meets where the competition will be gearing themselves up waiting for the Americans to finish playing with each other.

DJ's Opinion

Congratulations Usain Bolt!
Lightning Bolt strikes New York!
Bolt storms to Record!
Any of these titles would have been great to see Monday morning. Even Gay struck by Bolt. We watched one of the greatest sprint performances in history, and the moment was stolen by the drug scandals of the sport. The celebrations of the Jamaican fans were ignored in lieu of writers rehashing quotes and stories of the past 5 years.
There were a few reports about just the record run and the subsequent elation, but all of those stories were relegated to the smaller publications or Jamaican papers. One prominent US paper thought it news worthy to outright question the performance. Not even a day of praise was allowed before the questions started.
Now, a week later we are still bombarded by drug stories over the actual performance.

And all of this while numerous meets are happening.

We are in the final month, by the first week in July most the major Olympic teams will be chosen. For US athletes the next 2 weeks will conclude their competitive time, most will go home and make the final preparations for their dream push. Fun time folks.

In my next blog I might actually talk about my pet event, the hurdles. I avoid it most of the time because I am trying to keep my secret weapons secret. LOL

See ya soon

Historic

Barack Obama has clinched the nomination for POTUS of the democratic party. A black man will run for president and it should be noted in all our minds. Our parents and grandparents thought this day would never come. For my generation our grandparents and parents lived through the civil rights movement, I am sure in some cases marched in protest.
The most astounding thing for me is his power. Chris Rock once told a joke in his stand up, "he speaks so well..." yes he does. The man has a power in his voice that is unrivaled. He can move you to tears while simultaneously giving you strength and energy to do anything, all the while instilling confidence. We started this trek with Jesse Jackson back in 1984, and for 20 years figured it would be a reverend or some other black leader to step up and take the chance. Boy were we wrong. He is a career politician with a varied background, that we in the black community are used to.

In stark contrast to Barack's dignity, we have Hillary Clinton placing herself before the process, and the over the party. Instead of graciously admitting defeat, she has not conceded, and is making a play for the vice presidency. As has been the case throughout this campaign the Clinton's have defied the parties wishes and put their name before the party, the people and the country.
One day people will wake up and see the Clinton's for what they have always been, selfish, power mongers.

Congrats Barack Obama, you have officially made history. I am glad it did happen in my lifetime.

Hey DJ!

My ode to the islands, "Ring the alarm! Another sound is dying...."

Wow, Usain Bolt announced himself to the world last night. To us track heads this kid has been around since he dropped 19.93 at the age of 16 on us. I still say he would have won the 200 in 2003 if they would have entered him. Welp, now he is the odds on favorite for the gold in Beijing.
As a pure fan that was great to watch. I have only enjoyed races like that from those I am connected to, i.e. KYoung, Mo Greene, KFerg last year running Home Depot, Tasha in the semi finals last year, etc. The young man is a phenom, and it is always nice to see the human being go places we once believed mythical.

So I went to sleep with all of that to think over and woke up to watch LaShawn Merritt fulfill some people's dreams by beating Jeremy. Great race by both men. It was nice to see Merritt step it up and win it. It was better watching the two of them battle to 44.0x. People are so caught up in the victory they missed the fact that there has never been a race outside of a major this fast and this close.
Now I will tell you what I did not like, the celebration by the other runners, as if the evil king was vanquished. That was amateurish and did not look good on the broadcast. Merritt should have turned smiled, shook JW's hand, and took his victory lap. Any shit talking and high fiving is reserved for intimate settings. Instead you gave JW a bullet back in his gun. And why? Because he is the best and only LM has stepped up to challenge him in the last three years? Track is like any other game, beat em and you do not have to be jealous of their success.

It is an Olympic year. If you did not know it let me help you out real quick;
David Oliver (D.O.) kicked it off for us with a 12.95.
Bolt screamed in with a 9.76.
Damu Cherry laid down a 12.47.
Veronica Campbell 10.91.
Muna Lee gave us a windy 21, and now has run 10.97.
Saladino opened his season with 8.73m.
And now Bolt has run an unimaginable 9.72, followed by Tyson running 9.85 in his second 100 of the season.
LM and JW run to 44.03-44.07 thriller.

Yup it is that time people. What will come next? Will something happen at Pre or will we be on hold until Jamaican and US trials?

DJ Duties

This week is the week they have been waiting for, the whole thing comes down to this week. That's right, the Lakers and Spurs! LOL

So the trial has kicked off and there have actually been a few revelations. A few people I know are pissed, a few are shaking their heads, and a few could careless and just want the damn thing over.

I care. I am pissed. I am sad. And I want it over.

Since the BALCO case came around I have endured countless message board attacks and accusations. Specific and detailed were the shots and I remember almost all of them. It is fairly easy to remember because 99% of them are coming out in the trial and came out in the BALCO trial. So you see there is some irritation in it all for me.

I am sad for the sport. We are so mismanaged that we are allowing this to define us to the public with out any positive news whatsoever in the press. We have become the poster children for steroids when we should be the poster children for testing, and busting!

I care for those I coach, and those of you still out here grinding and training and doing it right. None of this has a damn thing to do with the current generation of track athletes.

I want it over so we can move on. We need to move on.

I am asking all of you to spin this thing and promote yourselves. Do not run from the spotlight regardless of the source. You will be asked stupid questions, think about how you wish to answer them with a positive spin that keeps you away from the negative and lets people know the sport is about being clean. You are clean and let people know.

It is an Olympic year. You will perform above and beyond yourselves, as will your competition, it is not drugs, it is the norm. We all work and train really hard for this moment, remember that. Revel in the joy and excitement of making the team and winning medals.

I will beat this drum until you get tired of hearing it from me. That I promise to you all.

DJ Spins

So here comes the day all the naysayers have been waiting for, May 19th, Trevor’s trial. It is being billed as the tell-all day; the day track takes an irreparable blow to its image. The day track officially dies in the American public sports landscape. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Nothing could be more negatively spun than this and track has faced a lot of negative spin. The rhetoric has over taken the facts, and the subsequent emotion is predictable.
Let’s set the record straight. This is about Trevor Graham being on trial for pedaling steroids to a wide sweeping group of athletes. Track is not on trial Trevor is on trial. In his defense he has tried to place track on trial and plans to implicate as many in the sport as he can. It is not complicated nor is it surprising; it is the coward’s way out, which is fitting because he took the easy way in. No one should be surprised at this defense, his ship has sunk, his game is up, and now he is trying to take as many down with him as he can. What you should be surprised at is how willing the sport is to go down without a fight.
Where is the deluge of stats about the drug testing track and field has had in place for over 30 years now? Baseball did not have a comprehensive testing policy before the BALCO scandal, yet I have not seen story after story about the demise of baseball. Golf developed a testing program last year, and garnered the praise of reporters as, “the best testing policy in all of sports!” Football has no unannounced testing and no one so much as blinks an eye. Yet here the sport of track stands with international out of competition testing, unannounced testing, multiple entities that conduct these test, and accredited labs all over the world, being lambasted by some of its own. Stop the madness.
Time to grow up and participate in the professionalism of sport. We are not an amateur venture any longer and those in charge need to recognize this immediately. Where is the marketing and public relations department on this story? It has been over five years and not one positive spin has been put on this thing and it should have been. This is an easy one for the sport, we have all the parts in place, all the numbers, and all the athletes to counter balance the negative side.
Project Believe has been launched and very few know what it is. It is a drug-testing program developed to profile athletes for present and future drug testing. It will create a blood profile that can be relied upon by the testers to determine any significant changes an athlete’s chemistry. No other sport has this type of program or dedication to drug testing.
There are many steps to righting this ship. It will take a diverse media blitz to turn this thing back in the right direction. There is a need for the veterans to come out and proclaim their anti doping stance, give testimonies on how they were tested and what they went trough when they competed. The likes of Edwin Moses, Seb Coe, Steve Ovett, Carl Lewis, Kevin Young, Jon Drummond, Gail Devers, Jackie Joyner Kersee, etc. should be contacted and in the public's face on a constant clip. There are about four meets on national television in the U.S., not including the national championships; the USATF should have a presence in each of these events promoting the testing and positive side of it all. The networks have proven they will highlight the most dramatic, which is normally the most negative, so the sport needs to rely on itself to counteract this.
Spin is not always a negative thing or something used to hide something, in this case it is desperately needed. May19th will come and go and Trevor will be sentenced on the merits of his case. Every effort should be made to make sure that is what this case remains about. Track is not on trial, a man who cheated and abused the system is.

DJ

So I am in the Caribbean, Fort de France, Martinique to be exact. I announced to my people this weekend would kick off the season. Bolt made sure we all were paying attention, but the rest had yet to let us know it was that time again. I could not wait until Friday. Doha would start it and Martinique and Modesto would end it.

David Oliver and Allyson Felix made it official, it is THE year. 12.95, 10.93, and 49.84. Thanks guys it was great, and got me going. Now this is easy to talk about because the times speak for themselves, ya know. However, there is something that got me real excited and you had to be there to get it.

Martinique has a secret, the long jump competition is always great. I remember 2 years ago when Walter Davis and Brian Johnson had the headband war, I thought that was great. This year topped that by years. It started from round one, Miguel Pate, Brian Johnson and Dwight Phillips came to party. All three started the competition by jumping over 8.20! It was all in succession and it was a throw back competition. It brought me back to the Myricks - Powell - Lewis days when 27 feet got you third and 28 feet was nothing to be comfortable about. They were not jumping that far but they were jumping farther as a collective and it was GREAT to feel. Every round was dramatic, all the way until Dwight's last jump, when he went 8.47, falling one centimeter shy of tying BJ. If you have ever seen BJ, Miguel and Dwight perform you can imagine how it was going down. The energy on the field was beautiful.

Then came my personal moment when Ryan won the highs. That was good stuff. He beat back the Old Guy aka Allen Johnson, which is no easy task.
But the women's race had me dancing on the infield. D. Cherry and D. Ennis-London locked up in a war. Every hurdle was step for step, EVERY HURDLE! Neither woman was giving up a thing. I was shocked by the final time margin, but that did nothing to minimize the excitement of watching the 2 athletes get after it. 12.47 was the winning time, fastest in the world.

And the festivities ended with a blistering display by Muna Lee in the 200. She came off the bend and it was all over. The end came at 21.91w and it looked that fast.

And so went the opening weekend of excitement and highlights to let us all know this is the Olympic year.

Meanwhile, life is like a box of chocolates. LOL

It is May. For all the athletes out there May is hell. Time to compete and come down off the training or in some cases get in the last bit of training which makes competing a mental exercise the equivalent to solving the world economic problems. For coaches it is a time to insert the mental cues that will win medals and make teams.

Welcome to the Olympic year. I will see you all when I need to see you. Not sure when that will be, but I was told it will be on time. ;-)

DJ Shout outs

David O big shout out, 12.95! Elite club and company there.

Allyson Felix has established herself as the premiere woman in sprints. A tremendous day at the office, 10.93 and 49.84. Wow!

Muna Lee put on a show in Martinique. Her 200 was a sight to see. 21.91 with a 2.8 was fast!

Brian Johnson and Co. brought the old school back to the long jump for one great night. 27 feet got you third!

And now we wait for Osaka.... I love it all!

DJ Hits

Some quick hits from the Caribbean.

Guadeloupe was a much better meet this year. Weather held up and saw some impressive runs out there. Ivory Williams was impressive. Told me he will run 9.9 tomorrow.

Martinique is windy. Hopefully at the stadium the weather is a little better since we are some 30km away.

9.76. From some eyewitness accounts it was windy. Long Jump was happening at the same time and the women had negative winds in excess of 2m. The long jump goes opposite of the 100, on the same side. FloJo esque. Makes more sense to me. I have no problem admitting this performance is hard for me to rationalize. It is either that good, or it was windy. I will refrain from the X-File conspiracies.

You ever have to control your temper against your will? I do. I know it sounds a little elementary, I mean when else would you have to control your temper except against your will. But I am sitting around a person I just want to curse and slap. Oh well, this is what grown ups do. Trust in the Lord and behave.

Back to reality... can you believe there are more players in the hurdles! LOL

Looks like rain, but it always looks like rain out here.

DJ at Penn

Penn Relays Ten Years later –

So the last time I was at Penn there was nothing close to USA v. the World. The meet was still fighting the inclusion of professional events and things were contentious. I stood on the infield unable to see any of the actual races, so I have no recollection of what was happening. So there I was ten years removed and standing in the middle of the field again, but this time it was different…
USA v. The World is a lie. It is USA v Jamaica, period. The crowd is pro Jamaican from high school races through the pro ranks. And those JAM fans know it all, and come ready to scream, chant, holla, cheer and boo! And it is great. There is not another meet in the country you will hear U-S-A, U-S-A for some relays, for some high schoolers, and for something non-national team related. The decibel level will give you chills out there and if you cannot rise to the occasion for that then you do not have a pulse. The best time in the stadium is when the JAM teams win or challenge. The flags wave, the screams reach high, and everybody stands up. The DMR probably brought out the biggest roar of all, it was fun.

The action got started Friday actually. David Oliver, Aries Merritt, Aubrey Herring, and Joel Brown set a World’s Best in the shuttle hurdles. I was unable to make it out to see it but any time you can set a world record it is special. I was a little miffed because they wanted 2 teams and were a man short but never called me to ask for Ryan to come, I will ask some questions about that, sounds like a c-o-n-spriacy to me. Lol There was an Olympic development women’s 4x100, but no one was pleased with the race or how the meet handled it. They tried to get the young ladies in the invitational on Saturday but after drawing lane one it was thought a waste of time. Good call JD!
If David Oliver’s shoulders get any bigger they will fall off!
Saturday proved to be fun!
David Neville ran on the DMR, split 45.5 with a 20 meter lead. His anchor leg cost him some money when he gave up the lead in 200 meters.
The 4x100 produced the strangest event ever. Leroy Dixon was on first leg and came around the bend, as soon as he hit the mark for Wallace, the Canadian second leg went to take off and slapped Leroy in the eye, stopping him cold, some how he managed to complete the pass but the race was over by that time for the team. They finished fourth but should have won. Kudos to the other USA team who almost pulled off the victory from lane 2, chasing JAM to the wire.
The women were the show. The teams were evenly matched and it came down to a dream scenario, Allyson Felix v. Sanya Richards on the anchor. The ladies received the baton at the same time and the race was on. Allyson smoothly pulled away to win by a meter.
The 4x400 were full of names and looked to find some drama as the 2 US anchors received the sticks less than a meter apart. However, Jeremy is an alien and made 43 look like a walk in the park putting 5 meters on Angelo without taking a deep breath. An alien I am telling you. He wears those glasses so you can’t see his eyes glowing when he taps into his alien powers! He has it mastered and it is nice to see.
The women’s 4x4 saw Allyson and Sanya on the same team and the result showed it.

Now I am in Guadeloupe. Time for the season to start…

DJ Hits

The down side to having a blog is deciding what to write about. You could be like myself and just start typing or you can pick a topic and write about it. I do both. Even when I have a topic I just start writing and see where we end up. It is more fun that way.
Life is fleeting, enjoy it. Life is sudden and for your own sake when you are faced with the inevitable face of death please understand the resolution is not detailed, it is simple and immediate. All that you have failed to say or wanted to say is to be said and understood. No remorse or regrets because it will kill you.
I have been in vicarious counseling the last few months. Some people around me have been going through things and I use their appointments and their tapes and whatnot's to counsel them as well as myself. I now know why I always saw myself as different, and I also understand a thousand times better why I have had 90% of the arguments and debates in my life. I used to think it was the usual right v. wrong or misunderstandings. Now I know it is because I am an introspective person. To some degree it is a fault but that is another conversation. I have always been fascinated by why people think the way they think and why people think what they think. I learned that is unique. At least to the level I take it. I function on this premise, and it has caused me more than one confrontation. People just like to think what they think without having to explain or even understand why. Of course that has never made sense to me, but now I know I have to be more tolerant of others ways not just their opinions or thoughts. It helps a lot.
Now that being said, some of you so called friends and associates need to think a lot more about yourselves as you are defined by your words, actions and the thoughts that are defined by your actions. There are a couple of people that would do well to steer clear of me for the rest of your life. You made some decisions that affected me and my house and I will never let you live that down. I tend to be quiet about my private affairs and I will remain so, I think. This situation may warrant action, but I will do what I can to avoid it. (For some of you I will tell you the situation I am talking about does not have a thing to do with press or drugs or anything like that). It is simple to a few people around my existence, cross the street when you see me. What you did is personal and you will suffer for your moves. Honestly, you should have been a better person and influence if you were a truly honest and caring person. But since you were not, suffer. Nothing you set out for will come to pass, watch what I say to you. Your labors are fruitless because your spirit is untrue and impure. Don't worry about my side, that will be what it will be and it is what it is. This too shall pass.

He who run fast in April, shall not see the podium in August!

Bianca Knight is for real.

The women's sprints is hotter than the men.

Tyson Gay is the man to beat in both sprints.

Robles is the man to beat, Allen Johnson called that right.

Allen must be retired, for those of you waiting for him to retire you are fooling yourself. Allen you keep serving these youngsters as long as they allow you to represent us old guys.

What happened to MT SAC? It used to be the place to be now it is just a meet. Sad.

I am going to Penn for the first time in ten years. Wow! I am looking forward to it.

Damn I need to wash! A LOT!

See y'all on the road

DJs Partylist

Ok so we had Mt SAC and as per usual it is the official opener for those I train. Well it was supposed to be at least. Here is a quick rundown.
Ryan I pulled on Thursday because he had a runny nose or something like that and we are taking zero chances this year. LOL No he had a hot spot in his hamstring, had to pull out of a hurdle session and I was not taking a chance. He has plenty of races coming this year, I am in no rush, we have to be ready at the end of June beginning of July and no earlier.
Kenny is coming along fine. Taking our time getting him in race shape.
Jonathan is having a nice early season.
Tasha is ready.
I do not have time to run through the WHOLE group so I will stick to my four musketeers.
Now for this weekend.
Tasha had a busy day doubling in both hurdles. I love having her run the short hurdles because it is pressureless and something she can be good at. Sometimes I wish we could dedicate more time to it but oh well. So her first 400h race went awry but it was a strong run. Post race evaluation says she was too relaxed about the race. Something she and I both took fault in. She smashed hurdle 2 with her trail leg and almost fell, and she almost stopped. That stumble cost her coming home. I was proud of the way she fought back over the last half of the race. She was smooth with it and not at all busted by the run. In the past she would have been laid out for 45 minutes after her first trip over ten, but this year she was on the phone to me the minute she got to her bag. After putting away a few old demons we got to the business of evaluating her performance and not breaking down the performance. I have learned this year that outsiders eyes can prove to be a valuable tool. Everyone had wonderful things to say about her run and that lifted us both up. See we set out to win everything this summer, and not to lose or run anything slower than 54s. So the result had our emotions for a minute, just for a minute. Now back to work.
Jonathan conquered some serious demons this year. I am so proud of this young man. As a coach you always have your personal favorites and you have your personal joys. Watching this man develop, grow and realize himself is a joy. He stepped out there and ran the race with some top level competition and learned he belongs right there with them. That is what I wanted him to get to this year. I have promised to make him a new athlete, to run with confidence, and I will be damned if I am not watching him grow right before my eyes. I sound like a father. Anyway he ran a strong race. There are some technical issues he needs to continue to work on but he is truly a work in progress. The beautiful thing is he is Belizean so we are booked to Beijing already. It does not get any better than that.
Ryan watched from the stands. After seeing the line up and the results he was glad I pulled him. As of Friday he was still campaigning to run because he wanted to compete, but he realized he did not need to run. LOL
Kenny almost did not get a chance to run. He sat around all day waiting to run the relay and we were a man short by the time it came to run. Luckily we found a fourth and he went out and did a good job. He smiled half way down the backstretch when he heard folks calling his name. And then again when he felt a challenger. I am happy his leg is acting right and he showed some of his old self out there. he was able to turn on the after burners and that was encouraging to see. Now we get him ready for his hurdle debut in three weeks.
I am off to Penn Relays for the first time in ten years and then to the Caribbean to island hop these little meets. It is showtime folks and I cannot wait. Going to be difficult being away from my athletes but they are in good hands and I have their workouts ready.

DJ Playlist

Is it Track Season yet?
- MC Restless

He who run fast in April, Get ass kicked in August!
- Confucius Sez

Who's next?
- The Olympic Rings

Finally
- The Jamaican Lion King

Always a bridesmaid you will never be a Bride
- The Bluegrass Man

I know I can Sprint
- MC Cornrows

Promise fulfilled?
- Professor X

A Dream Deferred
- The International Mass Choir

Fantastic Voyage
- The Medallist

Gold is What We Want
- Lightning the 6'5er

Unbelievable
- The General Populace

I got Nine on It!
- The Young Gunners

You don't know me
- The Mad Sprinter

Just a few selections from the crates for all y'all listening out there in the land.

Why is this thing so addictive? And how come it is so hard to make money at?

There will be a surprise, there is always a surprise.

I love it. Can't wait to see the familiar faces. Can't wait for the nerves and the thrill and the ecstasy.

DJ Cool down

So as I sit back trying to ignore the fact that I am at work I am writing you all about today. Now follow closely because this is what some of us do to love the sport.
I spent my entire day at Drake Stadium (UCLA) enjoying a track meet. Here is a quick synopsis of what went down...
Threw together some relays. My star hurdler misses the race because he thought the race was at 1:30PM and thought it wise to leave his house at 11:45AM. Problem is the race was at 12:25PM. This would be foretelling for his day. LOL
Relays went well, a bunch of hurdlers, and qmilers ran. Team A ran 38.88, not bad for having two qmilers on the team; Tyrone Edgar - David Neville - Kelly Willie - Leroy Dixon.
Tasha flinched and nailed herself to the blocks (NCAA rules had her worried) finished second in 13.27.
20 minutes later she lined up and ran 52.89 for a long overdue pr! Thank goodness. Nice work for 20 minutes.
Next up was Ryan for his big re debut at 400iH. He false starts! Amazing. All I could was laugh, he was hot. Had to go get on the massage table and remove himself for a minute. LMAO I think someone was looking out for him today, he was not meant to run those races, that's my story and I'm sticking to it. LOL
The 200 was an in group showdown. Turned out to be our second dramatic event of the year. Kelly went down with a hamstring injury. It always sucks when your athlete goes down. Experience teaches you to keep your chin up and things will be fine in a few weeks. The emotion remains however, you are disappointed.
Craig Everhart ran a pr 20.78. it was nice to see him show his wares again been a long time for him.
Tyrone Edgar ran a modest 20.98, he is a work in progress and everything bodes well for him summer.
So fast forward and we close the day with the 4x400. As a part of Ryan's penance he was thrust into the relay. This is where he was supposed to be. We did alright, nothing to write home about. I was happy to see the people we had running out there. Exorcised some demons and got to see the product under real life scenarios.
One thing was clear from this meet, Allyson Felix is untouchable. She has 2 gears, FAST and FASTER. Her split was 49.5! She was a comfortable 5 or so in the lead and put 40 on the girl within 250 meters! My new name for her is One Speed!
Overall it was a picture perfect day on campus. Damn near a hundred and no wind, it was a track day and I am happy.
I left tired, hot, sticky, dusty, mentally energized, physically tired and went straight to work. Where I sit here now writing all of you. This will end soon but for now I am trying to not move too much. All I want to do is talk about track...