Get gaunt and go faster

Sonja Friend - I am lucky to have taught, coached and written about a host of student athletes over the years and have maintained long-term if not distant friendships with most of them. The fact that Sonja Friend-Uhl is “beasting it up” as a master track athlete doesn’t surprise me; in fact, I expected it. Back in the spring of her senior year at Cape, 1989, Sonja came into my classroom, threw her books down and made some disparaging remarks about the shape of coach George Pepper’s head. I asked her, ”Why are you beating up on Coach Pep? That doesn’t sound like you.” “I asked him what I had to do to drop 10 seconds off my mile time and he said drop 10 pounds,” Sonja said. “Speaking scientifically, he is right,” I told her. “Skinny people run faster. Go gaunt and you’ll really take off, but by anyone’s objective evaluation you are a stunningly beautiful woman, the homecoming queen, all-state band and chorus, honor society, all-state and scholarship track athlete, but every once in awhile the Cecil comes out of you. Her dad is a former marine and one tough cookie." Irony turned to destiny as Sonja is now the executive director for a residential weight-loss clinic in Brentwood, Tenn., called FitRX.and a world-class masters runner in the 800 and 1,500 meters.

Get smart - Smart is sometimes revealed to me in interviews; it’s a way of thinking and reflecting, actually listening to a question and formulating an honest and original answer. I run into more smart people than national media types who are willing to sit back and listen to the same cliché answers from the same 100 athletes they all pass around during interviews. On July 13, I sat on a picnic table and interviewed a three-sport athlete, 12-year-old David Hentrick, a Lewes summer kid from Springfield, Pa. David arrived by bike with his mom, Rosemary, who knew what was up but never told her son. And David did the interview and Mom stayed completely away. Trust me, backing out of the interview and letting the kid handle it rarely happens. I liked David right away; he was cool and Catholic like me, admitted to making the sign of the cross and shooting two fingers up to heaven before diving from the starting block into the pool, but what struck me was when I asked the straight-A honors student what he liked to do beside sports, instead of spouting some rehearsed resume to make himself look good he said, "Pizza and ping pong. I like to get pizza with my friends and play ping pong.” That’s the quote of the summer for me. David wins.

Pop Pop - Some years ago a ninth-grade girl yelled out in class, “Fredman, I think you coached my Pop Pop!” I asked who that was, then informed the girl, “He’s not your Pop Pop, he’s your uncle and you may call him Pop Pop because the dude does look old, but he’s your mother’s brother, therefore your uncle, not your grandfather.“ It didn’t matter to her or anyone else in the class; they all called me Pop Pop for the next four years because in Sussex County that’s how nicknames get started. Now of course couples are having children later in life, prompting the joke, “That’s no Pop Pop, that’s my dad.”

Snippets - Traveling teams from Australia are playing hardball at Sports at the Beach this weekend, so tie your kangaroo down and waltz your Matilda self on over there, grab a vegemite sandwich and watch some baseball, mate. I don’t have the official numbers because official people are hard to find when you asked for numbers that are official, but I’m guessing that the Cape school district will have at least 150 students this year that are school choice. How can a football player not show up for summer weight training? That completely baffles me. The game is based on strength. I have watched every minute of every game of the United States Women’s World Cup action interspersed with a few power naps. The women are a great story; they could have easily been gone against Brazil and France and now face Japan in the finals. So here comes the whole tsunami story and a victory would be energizing and inspiring to the island nation, but the United States is just a better team. Baseball's back in action and look for the Phillies to trade for a right-handed bat, like 28-year-old Hunter Pence of the Astros hitting .328 with 60 RBIs. Astros general manager is Ed Wade, formerly with the Phillies. Give them Brown, Mayberry, Worley, Bastardo and Blanton. Go on now, git!