2008 in Review

Greetings from Rhode Island! 

    As usual, I travelled frequently with stops in Washington DC/Montgomery County (MD; 2x), Massachusetts (many times), San Diego, Orlando, Scotland (Edinburgh, the Highlands, and Loch Ness), London (yes, the one in England!), Connecticut, New Hampshire, Princeton (NJ), Missouri (2x), Boulder (CO), Des Mones (IA), Portland & Eugene (OR), Spokane (WA; 2x), Long Island (NY), Indianapolis, Hanover & Terre Haute (IN), Lexington & Louisville (KY), and Reno (NV).

     I have finished my 11th year at Univ. of Rhode Island, where I work as an academic advisor for student-athletes primarily with football and women's track & field.  This past year, I also coordinated tutoring and study halls while one of my colleagues is on maternity leave.

     I'm still very involved with USA Track & Field and this past December, I was re-elected as chair of USATF's Cross Country Running Council.

     In 2009, I'm currently scheduled to be in New England, Washington DC/Montgomery County (MD), Florida, Amman (Jordan), Missouri (2-3 times), Arkansas, Eugene & Portland (OR), Indiana (2x), and Lexington (KY).

     The picture above shows me on Loch Ness in Scotland at the end of March; the weather was "atrocious" that day...hence my bundling up!

     Speaking of atrocious, the picture at right shows a banner flapping in single-digit windchill in Spokane in December, where I wrapped up my cross country responsibilities for the year.

USA Cross Country Championships

Feb. 16

Misson Bay Park

San Diego, CA

Masters women lead pack (left); Jordan Hasey and Alex Gits duel in the junior women (right); Masters men's pack midrace (below).

Shalane Flanagan runs away with the Open women's race (left); German Fernandez kicks off an amazing year with a win over Ryan Sheridan (below left); Dathan Ritzenhein leads Ryan Hall and Jorge Torres in the Open men's race/Race Director Thom Hunt hold the tape on the left wearing the white cap (below right).

NACAC Championships

March 1

Orlando, FL

Tom Morgan (83), Josh Simpson (65), Ben Bruce (60), and Travis Laird (62) lead Team USA to gold in the senior men's race (above and right); Katy Trotter wins bronze in the senior women (below); Team USA (below right).

Team USA senior women's squad (above right); Canada's Thelma Wright demonstrates her national pride with a useful cap (left); Emily Reese runs to the junior women's silver (right); Ryan Sheridan (64) and Greg Brendan (59) win silver & bronze in the junior men's race (below left); Team USA senior men celebrating their gold with me (far below right). 

IAAF World Championships

March 30

Edinburgh, Scotland

Team USA (above); Katie McGregor, Kathy Newberry, Molly Huddle, and Emily Brown lead team USA to fourth in the senior women's race (right); Paul Merca and Greg Metcalf share a story as they preview the course.

Alex Gits enroute to 13th (left); Emily Reece makes her way down Haggis Knowe (right); Me waiting for the races to start (below); Junior women clowning around (below left); Junior Men's start (far below); Jorge Torres was the top American in the senior men's race (left).

Touring Scotland and London

I've been fortunate to have the opportunity to travel and see the world.  I was especially excited this year to visit the land of my ancestors: Scotland and England!  When I purchased my ticket, I was sure to schedule some time before and after the World Championships to see some of the "mother country."

Me posing in the Scotish Highlands (above); Sir Walter Scott Momument (above left); Edinburgh Castle dominates the city skyline (right); one of many statues of the Duke of Wellington in England and Scotland (below).

Edinburgh skyline (above L & R); Statue of Prince Albert , one of many in England and Scotland (left); Holyrood Palace, Queen Elizabeth's home in Edinburgh (right); Edinburgh Castle (below left); George Square, city center in Glasgow (below right)

The controversial "new" Scotish Parliament building, much maligned for it's modern architecture in such a historic city (left & right); Images of the Royal Mile in Edinburgh, which stretches from Edinburgh Castle at the top to Holyrood Palace and the new Parliament Building at the bottom.

Arthur's Seat is the other dominant feature of the Edinburgh skyline (above); Entrance to Edinburgh Castle from the top of the Royal Mile (left & right); Edinburgh Castle dominates the surrounding city, as evidenced by this view of the Scott Memorial through a gun port (below left)

The Royal Palace in Edinburgh Castle, home to the Scotish Royal Honours, aka the Crown Jewels (right); The Great Hall dates back to 1511 and features an exquisite hammerbeam roof (below).

St. Margaret's Chapel, built in 1130, is the oldest building in Edinburgh. The chapel is built on one of the highest points in the city with outstanding views of Edinburgh.

Mons Meg, one of the world's oldest seige guns (built in Mons Belguim in 1457), is very popular with tourists who like to climb inside to get their pictures taken when the guards are distracted (left & right); here's the castle dungeons as they looked when prisoners from the American Revolution were housed here (below right).

Scotish Highlands & Loch Ness

I took a tour from "Heart of Scotland" tours called "Loch Ness and Legends" while in Scotland that visited the Scotish Highlands and Loch Ness.  Hamish, a Highland cow that greats many visitors to the Highlands, is pictured at left while the main street in Pitlochry is pictured below.

The above images are from my boat tour on Loch Ness from Fort Augustus.  The weather was atrocious...at times...but I did get a nice image of a rainbow!  We also stopped in Galloway Forest Park to view some scenary.

London

     After an overnight train from Edinburgh, I had two whole days to explore London!

     Me posing in front of the Houses of Parliament (above); The White Tower at the Tower of London (far left); a Yoeman Warder giving my tour at the Tower (left); the Traitors' Gate, the water entrance through which traitors were brought into the tower (below).

One of the famous Ravens that reside at the Tower (left); Tower Green (as seen from the White Tower), where the "privileged" were executed (right); a privy on the upper floors of the White Tower (below left); a block and axe (below center left); Henry VIII's armour with his oversized codpiece for his enormous...vanity (below center right); life mask of Elizabeth I (below right).

Queen's House at the Tower (upper left); Waterloo Barracks - home of the Crown Jewels (upper right); the distinctive Tower Bridge, often mistakenly called "London Bridge" (right); the real London Bridge (left).

St. Paul's Cathedral (left & right); some of the 520 stairs one must climb to reach the top of the cathedral dome (below left & right); view down through an observation port to the cathedral floor almost 280 feet below (far below left); the view of London from St. Paul's Golden Gallery is outstanding (far below center); looking down on the cathedral (far below right).

Recreation of Shakespear's Globe theatre (left); the Temple Bar, the historic boundary of the City of London (right).

Admiralty Arch (above); Trafalgar Square featuring a quite the quite phallic Nelson's Column (left); statue of Winston Churcill (right); view down the Mall towards Buckingham Palace (below); Piccadilly Circus at dusk (far below left), some nice Georgian acrhitecture near Regent's Park (far below right.

Buckingham Palace

Views of Buckingham Palace and the Changing of the Guard ceremonies. Above is Buckingham Palace seen from St. James Park.

View down St. James Park Lake (left); my hotel, the Hyde Park Towers, an affordable converted townhouse hotel in the Queensway area, just one block from Hyde Park (right); Number 10 Downing Street, the home of the Prime Minister (below); Banqueting House, the only remaining portion of the Palaces of Whitehall, the seat of the British monarchy under Henry VIII, Mary, Elizabeth (far below right).

Member of the Household Cavalry posted at the Horse Guards (above left); BAF flyover at Hourse Guards during the 1:00pm gun (above right); Imperial War Museum, which is housed at Bedlam, the famous hospital which housed lunatics and was open to the public for their amusement (left); Field Marshall Bernard "Monty" Montgomery's tank from his campaign in Africa (right).

British Museum (right), which features priceless relics pilfered from all over the world during Britain's imperial age, including the famous Rosetta Stone (right), the Elgin Marbles (below) are actually the facade of the Greek Parthenon who carried on the great British tradition of looting whatever wasn't nailed down...and much of what was....! Statues, mummies, and pottery.

Westminster Abbey, where British monarchs are crowned...and many are buried! (left); can't forget the clock tower of Westminister Palace, better known as "Big Ben" (right); a typical street in London would make most Americans feel at home with Subways, Pizza Huts, and Starbucks on every corner!

USA Women's Olympic Marathon Team Trials

April 20

Boston, Mass

I was fortunate with both the men's (NYC) and women's marathon trials located nearby in the past year.  URI alum Heidi Westerling (left) ran and set a new PR in the race won by Dena Kastor (below left).

URI Women's Track & Field

     I continued to help out with the Rhode Island women's track & field team during 2008, taking splits, driving vans, and pitching in wherever I was needed.  Oh yeah, I took a few pictures to chronicle the season too!

     Highlights of the season include the team tying for second at A-10 outdoors, Sarah Thorton sweeping Field Performer of the Meet at both indoor and outdoor A-10s, Jasmine Jennings winning the East Regional, and both Jasmine and Sarah qualifying for the NCAA Championships in Des Moines, Iowa.

URI Athletic Senior Awards Dinner

Me congratulating Football's Damien Gresko on being the men's Holmes Award winner (above); women's track being recognized (right); Gymnastics huddles for a photo (below right); Softball's Jill Anderson, in middle, won the women's Holmes Award (below left).

Lauren Anderson's Retirement

Senior Assoc. A.D. Lauren Anderson retired in June after 31 years at URI; Lauren hired me at URI and I worked with her on an almost daily basis for most of the 11 years I've been at URI.  I helped plan the retirement party along with Gina Sperry, Laurie Feit-Melnick, and Mick Westcott.  Included among the festivities was the naming of new rowing shell "Lauren Anderson."

Summer Travel

I crammed in a couple days here and there to visit family/friends and see new things while traveling in June.

A Vistors Sunday at Scotts Iconium Store

My dad and stepmother have operated Scotts Iconium Store for over 30 years.  The store is located less than a mile from one of the largest Boy Scout camps in the US, so the summer camping season is quite busy at the store.  When I was younger, I worked at the store during my summers.

Customers in the new Native American apparel and memorablia (above left); frantic activity by the snack bar workers (above right); employees ring up purchases at the front in the "old section" (left); pallets of Peach Nehi soda pop in the ice house behind the store (right).

Boulder and the Flatirons

     I had an afternoon to kill while in Boulder on a site visit, so I took a trip up into the Flatiron Mountains to visit the Magnolia Road made famous (at least in the running community) by Chris Lear's "Running with the Buffaloes."

NCAA D-1 Track & Field Championships

June 11-14

Drake University

Iowa State's Lisa Koll's (above) win in the 10,000 was quite popular with the hometown crowd; Florida State's Hannah England celebrates beating Texas Tech's Sally Kipyego at 1500 (below); Kipyego winning the 5000 (below right); Texas' Manzano leads the 1500 (below center right).

Shadrack Songok sprints away from Arkansas' Shawn Forest in the 10,000 to defend his title (above right); Jenny Barringer runs away to a new collegiate record in the steeple (above left); Bobby Curtis (right) takes the 5000; ASU's Kyle Acorn leads Bobby Nelson in the steeple (left).

US Olympic Track & Field Team Trials

June 27-July 6

Eugene, Ore

Shalane Flanagan duels with Kara Goucher and Amy Yoder in the 10,000 (far left); Shannon Rowbury winning the 15000 (left); Andrew Wheating claims 2nd in the 800 in front of a wild hometown crowd (below).

Tyson Gay wins the 100m (above left); the view of the photo area past the finish for the 100m (above right); entrance to the Track Town plaza (right); Paul Merca and Tom Surber converse (far right); Jen Stuczynski breaks her own American Record (below right); Jenny Barringer leads Anna Willard and Lindsey Andersen (below left).

Bernard Lagat leads the 1500m (far above left); me apparently squinting at the "TrackVision" electronic scoreboard (above left); Abdi leading enroute to a win at 10,000 (above right); images of my favorite running trails anywhere -- Pre's Trail!

URI Student-Athlete Advisory Committee

I served again as the advisor for URI's SAAC.  Our SAAC has been quite activite, planning many events and fundraisers as well as advocating student-athlete issues.

KDMF Presentation

     John and Meg DeCubellis, parents of Katie who was killed in 1999 by a drunk driver, presented a powerful educational program to URI's student-athletes about the dangers of drunk driving and substance abuse.

First Year Student-Athlete Orientation

URI welcomed its frosh student-athletes with a day long program coordinated by Deb Cohen, our new Life Skills Coordination, and the Life Skills Advisory Team.

Rhody Relays

Oct. 6

SAAC hosted Rhody Relays, an evening of URI Athletics community-building with a BBQ followed by team-building games.

Walk of Rememberance

Oct. 15

URI student-athletes participated in a walk of rememberance for former Faculty Athletics Representative Yngve Ramstad, who passed away from ALS on June 5, 2008.  Over 200 students, faculty, administrators, and community members circled the Quad four times in his honor.

URI Homecoming

Oct. 18

For URI's Homecoming, many of the teams had tents in Rhodyville to welcome back their Alumni.

URI/PC SAAC Food Drive

Dec. 6

URI's and PC's SAACs combined to collect more than ONE TON of food during a joint food drive that benefited Jonnycake Center of Peacedale and Rhode Island Food Bank.  Thanks to PC's Jessica Hegmann for these photos!

Date-A-Jock Charity Auction

Dec. 8 & 9

SAAC hosted its 2nd annual charity date auction; this year, they raised almost $2000 which will benefit a fund to defray medical expenses URI student-athlete Kimly May (who was critically injured in an auto accident in Nov.), as well as SAAC.

Photography

In Sept. a photographer friend, Alison Wade, gave me Nikon D2Xs & D70 DSLR camera bodies on permanent loan since she knew I was looking into purchasing a DSLR.  I purchased 70-200mm/f2.8 & 18-200mm/f3.5-5.6 Nikon lenses to go with the DSLRs and have since been getting as much practice as possible.

NCAA D-3 Cross Country

Nov 22

Hanover, Ind

Since the D-3 and D-1 championships were nearby, I was able to catch both meets this year.  My alma mater, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps (CMS) qualified both squads, so I had the chance to see them run and visit with my coach.

NCAA D-1 Cross Country

Nov. 24

Terre Haute, Ind.

Back to Indiana State for another D-1 harrier meet; Kipyego won her third consecutive, while Rupp finally won his crown in his final chance.  The Washington women and Oregon met ran away with their titles.

USATF Club Cross Country

Dec. 13

Spokane, WA

Rebecca Donahue and Scott Bauhs won their first USA titles over a snow covered course with temps in the low 20s (and wind chills in the single digits!).  Simon Guitierrez and Carmen Troncoso took the masters races.

Holidays with My Family

As usual, I spent time with my family in Missouri for the holiday season.  My brother Kevin , mom Michele, and I are pictured above in a rare family photo. My early rising niece Kendra and nephew Brett are to the right, while my dad Wayne and my stepmother Ginger are pictured far right.

Brett enjoys go-karting (far above left); my stepbrother Butch with his daughters Rosa and Cindy (far above right); my mom Michele (above); my paternal grandmother Eunice (far right); my brother Kevin shares a moment with his son Brett (right); Kevin with his daughter Kendra and son Brett (below).

My nieces Rosa (above far right) and Cindy (above center right); my father Wayne showing off his new slogan (above); my mom practicing with her "new" camera (left); my brother is a Captain with the Nevada, MO Fire Dept; he recently earned his 15yr pin! (left); my stepsister Melissa and nieces Rosa and Cindy play poker in the family store (below); my niece Kendra rocks out on Rock Band (far below).

My stepsister Melissa shows holiday spirit (far above left); my niece Kendra (above left) and nephew Brett (above middle); my stepmother Ginger in a contemplative moment (right).

Happy Holidays and Best Wishes for 2009!!

     Please keep in touch; as always, email is best: miscott at worldnet.att.net

--Mike