Rojo:
Pick up the phone and call me. If you lost the number then reach out to me through
. Let's talk and I'll give you something exclusive to run on LRC that might be a perfect sidebar story for your event coverage. I would love to help enlighten some of your readership about what really happened in Paris 1980 or Madrid 1981 or really any of my teams since so many of your online readers are much too young to have witnessed it firsthand.
I qualified for 10 US World X-C Teams and was invited for 2 other since I was the top American finisher in the NCAA X-C Champs in both 1975 and 1976... and that NCAA honor got an auto selection back then. I think many of your readers would be shocked to know that "back in the day" the American men's team got Silver 5X and Bronze 2X during our time period. We kept trying to win the damn thing.... but came just short several times. If that happened even once today... then we would be popping the champagne corks, for sure!
Despite coming "close but no cigar" for the men's World Champs team title so many times... it was really not bad performances for us, considering that cross country for Americans is a Sept-Nov sport... and the World Champs was way outside our normal season with the Trials in Feb and the World Champs in March.
Even more notable, I was able to recruit some of our best male and female American distance runners to prioritize this team and event every year. It was a major sacrifice for everyone because we had to give up 3 payday race weekends to chase their WC dreams. But, we did! We all not only competed in the Trials but no one ever thought about qualifying and then not actually going to the World Champs back then. Everybody was hugely disappointed if they did not make the team! Nobody would have imagined skipping the World Champs after qualifying for the team.... nobody!
I appreciate you guys whipping up some excitement for the World X-C Champs. Wish I could be there to see it. This wonderful event needs some big help nowadays to stay relevant and keep the respect it deserves....but I can see some palpable growth in enthusiasm this year and the folks in Denmark are to be commended for their efforts to rejuvenate it.... as well as LRC's online media spotlight this week. Thank you so much for your editorial commitment and support. My best wishes to Team USA this weekend!