The Genz

Years from now, the memorable performances at the 2011 South Dakota track and field meet will have faded away with time, only recaptured in the performer's own recollection (or that of family members and friends), photo albums, record books, social media and through search engines like Google, Bing and others. Each new year brings new athletes and fresh accomplishment. So, it is easy for time to create distance and mind block about what we remember from a particular event. Therefore, it is important that we take time to reflect on this past weekend's state track meet, an event that is always exhilarating, exciting, pleasing and heartbreaking, seemingly all at the same time. It has been that way since boys state track competition officially began in 1906 and girls' state track started in 1969. I give you 10 reflections of the 2011 meet, plus some postscripts about the meet. #1 Dazzling recovery ... Carly Carper was challenging ...

Your body starts to tense up. Knees buckle. The stomach turns and twists and you feel like you just took a punch in the midsection. Your nerves are frazzled. As your eyes flutter about, shifting from one place to another, all you hear is a buzzing sound. It becomes so tense that you feel like you might pass out. Then, someone taps you on the shoulder, and as you make a sudden, jerking movement toward that person, his/her smile helps release your exasperation. "Settle down, everything is ok." That was the way, it was the first time I stepped onto the football field. I was a seventh grade student. While it wasn't the state track meet, the first time you compete in athletic competition, the body seems to do weird things and the mind seemingly plays tricks on you. With the South Dakota High School Track and Field Championships starting Friday in Sioux Falls, Brandon and Madison, the nerves and restive behavior is just beginning for student-athletes, parents, coaches and...

In the past week, both The University of South Dakota and South Dakota State University have added Big 12 teams to their football schedules for the coming seasons. The University of South Dakota announced Wednesday (May 25) that the school has scheduled a game with Kansas on Sept. 7, 2013 at Lawrence, Kan. This game builds on a resume of DI schools that Coyotes have added to their upcoming schedules, including Wisconsin (Sept. 24 at Camp Randall Stadium in Madison, Wisc.) and Air Force (Sept. 3 at Colorado Springs) in 2011, Northwestern in 2012 and Kansas State in 2015. Last year the Coyotes pulled off an upset of Minnesota, 41-38, at TPC Bank Stadium in Minneapolis. USD also lost a 38-7 decision to bowl participant Central Florida. http://www.usdcoyotes.com/sports/football/release.asp?release_id=6437 South Dakota State University has announced that it will face Big 12 power Missouri to open a 2014 season with the Tigers at Memorial Stadium/Faurot Field in Columbia, Mo., on August...

Cleveland has a self-esteem problem and one wasn't wholly produced by the city itself. Yet, the beating and sarcasm of the rock and roll city rolls on. This Northern Ohio city on Lake Erie, has taken its brunt of dark and cantankerous sarcasm from shows about the city, like the Drew Carey Show , Hot in Cleveland , and of course, the 1989 movie Major League . Many of us love Betty White and have found a place in our hearts for Drew Carey and especially Tom Berenger, still, it must feel a more than a little dismaying of the constant bantering about Cleveland's failings. Imagine you are their lead PR person, or that of its professional organizations, the jokes and image come from across the nation and includes politicians and especially late night showmen. It is a city that is continually the butt of fun and seemingly harmless quips - "Cleveland is the city with a river so polluted it once caught in fire (not really)." Or this - "What is the di...

Since Radio host and fringe Christian leader Harold Camping's "Rapture" and "End of the World" proclamations have been circulating and making the rounds throughout the media, including the Internet, millions have watched with a somewhat critical eye about this being "Judgement Day." For me, it has left a lot of questions. I am a God-fearing Christian man, but my reading of the Bible doesn't jibe with that of Camping. He had another prediction of the World's end in 1994 that was wrong. Is he right this time? I guess we will find out at 6 p.m. international time when Camping predicts a massive earthquake, like which we have never seen in our lifetime. He believes today is the right time because this is the 7,000 birthday of Noah's Ark. Mainly as I contemplate these next few hours, I wonder what kind of earthquake will strike down Earth? Will it be one that splits the planet in half? If that happens, do those living in the center of earth,...

Some of us dig useless information. In fact, I own a book, "The Ultimate Book of Useless Information" by Noel Botham (2007) and The Useless Information Society. Information about everything you might not want to know is in the book, compiled by Botham, the chairman and founding member of The Useless Information Society (London). For example, the book includes one bit -- "The difference between a nook and a cranny is that the nook is a corner and the cranny is a crack." Or another one -- "The coiffe is the metal wire basket that holds a champagne cork in place." So there you go, an introduction to a blog about seemingly useless facts (this one is focused on baseball). When I was working at The University of South Dakota, I had an assistant who once told me: "You have more useless information stored in your head than a normal person has relevant knowledge." Maybe that wasn't her words, but close. I get it, she was saying, I wasn't norma...

The 2011 Howard Wood Dakota Relays was a record-breaking affair and one that includes top performances nationally at the both the collegiate and high school levels. In total, 21 Howard Wood Dakota Relays record fell with five stadium marks also going by the wayside. The event featured 29 top-100 performances according to http://www.dyestat.com/ (keeper of high school marks) and another -- college DI or DII marks. Breaking down the records shows that there were seven collegiate records with nine high school boys marks and five high school girls marks. Here is a look at the records and top performances with notes included with each mark. Howard Wood Relays -- Collegiate Records -- Men's High Jump : Randall Carter, unattached, 7'04.25. Old mark: Randall Carter, unattached, 2010; Cameron Helder, SDSU, 2009; Ben Jasinski, SDSU, 2009, 7-0 1/2. Notes : Carter likely qualified for the Olympic Trials with the jump. He has not attended college since graduating from Papillon-L...

With baseball well into its season, it is time to offer  up some interesting numbers. Yes, most of them relate to my Detroit Tigers; but if you aren't a Detroit fan read on, you will find some fun facts at the bottom of the blog. I can hear my friends saying, "OK, Dan, your Tigers have won seven-straight and now you jump back on their wagon." OK, I get that. I know you will point to a whiny post (two weeks ago) that I made recently on Facebook about my Detroit Tigers. But as I have previously admitted, I am self-deprecating about my teams to a fault. Sorry, truth hurts. Yet, I will stay with the Tigs through my own definition of "thick and thin," even as I cast an occasional glass half-empty comment. Somehow, I have a feeling that my Twins friends must be voicing their own derogatory statements after losing their 14th game in the last 17 outings including eight straight (Tigers also have a seven-game losing spin this season). That is a tough streak for the t...

(Note: Harmon Killibrew passed away on May 17 in Phoenix, Ariz. This blog was written on May 13). It is likely we will soon be losing another hero to cancer. Harmon Killibrew, with his family at his side, announced on May 13 that he had lost a battle with esophageal cancer and was checking into a hospice to spend his final days. Killibrew, 74, a former major league baseball star, has battled cancer since diagnosis in December 2010. When Killibrew passes he will become one of the nearly 700,000 people to die of cancer in North America this year. There is approximately 7.6 million people who die of cancer every year http://www.ucan-behealthy.com/cancer/how-many-people-die-from-cancer-each-year/ .  While I am not a Minnesota Twins fan (yes a Tigers fan), I am a Harmon Killibrew fan. I have always had a soft spot in my heart for the soft-spoken slugger, who I will simply call "Mr. Twin." He is one of the classiest and most humane individuals i...

With dusk setting in, the Howard Wood Dakota Relays ended its 87th year Saturday after one of the most memorable meets in memory. During the two-day Midwest track and field extravaganza at Howard Wood Stadium in Sioux Falls, S.D., thousands of people watched 21 meet records and five stadium marks fall. It was truly remarkable to see athletes shine at such a high level on a couple of picture-perfect weather days. It created a buzz that will continue for days if not longer. In the pressbox, we watched with fascination as we anxiously looked for every bit of information to help build on the moments of these athletes. In that vein, the internet and Google filled an important role, as did a new Daktronics board and technology-smart staff. The announcers continued their smooth and informed delivery while a dedicated group of volunteers kept everything flowing in a personable and responsible manner. As I looked down at a few fans from Sioux City West, I could see the pride in their ...

Every time there is a sudden burst or gust of wind during the Howard Wood Dakota Relays, I can't help but wonder if the ghosts of meets past are circling above and reminding us what is happening in front of us is special. We may not know how special until later but it is history in the making - a very personal and joyful kind to those who compete, their supporters and everyone else taking it all. I sometimes look up, and stare deep into the skies and I think I can see them -- the Reinharts, Theelers, Gebharts, Callahans, Woods, Lukens, Heidenreichs, DeHavens, Flores, Pribyls, Brosts and thousands of others running, jumping and throwing. Give it a chance tomorrow before the Howard Wood Dakota Relays kick off on Friday afternoon at Howard Wood Stadium. Use a little imagination and those performances will appear like visions of a track meet. Maybe you will see yourself and the wonderful memories that the Howard Wood Dakota Relays provided, even as time has separated yo...