TheFinalSprint.com - Track & Field, Marathons, Racing News, Training Advice, Elite Athlete Blogs, Interviews, Podcasts, Videos and More!

Lead Stories: Tuesday, October 14, 2008

A Textbook Marathon

Posted November 1st, 2007 at 5:00 PM by J. R. Markham

Section: News & Results, Marathons

To protest the high cost of college textbooks, Andre Ditto, a 47-year-old vegan personal trainer, plans to complete the ING New York City Marathon on November 4 carrying a backpack loaded with textbooks equivalent in weight to 16 bricks. In return, CaféScribe, a web site that promotes electronic textbooks, will pay for a year’s worth of textbooks for Ditto’s daughter, a biology major at Howard University.

Most people consider the marathon, at 26.2 miles, to be the ultimate test of endurance. Of the 38,000 runners who compete in the ING New York Marathon on Nov. 4, the majority will be happy just to finish.

But for NYC native Andre Ditto — a 47-year-old vegan personal trainer — 26.2 miles by itself just wasn’t hard enough. He plans to complete the race wearing a backpack loaded with 30 lbs. of books (The equivalent of a backpack loaded with nearly 16 bricks!). In return he has persuaded a web site that sells e-textbooks, CaféScribe to pay for a year’s worth of textbooks for his daughter, Blaize Buckley, a biology major at Howard University. A year of textbooks can cost students $1,000 or more, and textbook prices have risen at twice the rate of inflation.
Read the rest of this entry »

26 comments, add yours | Permalink

Podcast 21: Interview with Tommie Smith, Olympic sprinter & civil rights activist

Posted February 27th, 2007 at 2:03 PM by Adam Jacobs

Section: Special Features, Interviews, Podcasts

I had the honor of being joined by Olympic gold medalist Tommie Smith for Episode 21 of The Final Sprint Podcast.

Tommie is the only man in track and field history to simultaneously hold eleven world records and, among his many other accomplishments, won a gold medal in the 200m at the 1968 Olympic Games.

Standing on the victory podium at the ‘68 Olympics, with the Star Spangled Banner playing in the background, Tommie and fellow American John Carlos (who won the bronze) thrust their fists into the air in the name of human rights and as a symbolic protest against racial inequality. [pictured above]

In the interview, I speak with Tommie about his new autobiography, “Silent Gesture” from Temple University Press, and he reflects on, and dispels the myths surrounding, this iconic and controversial moment in history.

Download the podcast to hear Tommie discuss these topics, being an elite African American athlete during the civil rights movement, the current state of American running, equality in the 21st century, being an educator and coach, his advice for the younger generations of runners and much more!

Listen In
[MP3] Direct Download (Right click, select “save as”).
[RSS] Add The Final Sprint Podcast RSS feed to your RSS reader to have the show delivered to you

Host: Adam Jacobs
Guest: Dr. Tommie Smith
Producer: Greg Cherniet
Music: Ryan Ahlwardt & Darnell Perkins
File size: 19.8MB
Length: 00:28:54