Time for Olympic Track and Field

Posted on July 30, 2021 by vanbraman

Finally the Track and Field events are starting at the Olympics in Tokyo.

Tokyo 2020, Olympic Stadium, Construction, TokyoThey are being held in the Olympic Stadium and a couple years ago I stood outside the stadium wondering about what we would see. Would we see some new records? Of course I did not expect that it would take so long to see the events.

Letter Jacket - Block A - Ashland - Track and Field - Cross Country - BandTrack is one of my favorite parts of the Olympics since I ran Track in High School and lettered all four years. I also lettered in Cross Country my Freshman year before they dropped the program.

I was a distance runner and would run the half, mile and two mile. Of course these were really the 800, 1600 and 3200 but in the US we like to hold on to our old designations. I also ran in the 2 mile relay.

2-mile relay team, track and field, league champions Relay Baton, State Track Meet, Kansas State Track, Track and Field, Relays

 

 

 

 

 

In my Freshman year we won the 2 mile relay at the league meet which helped win the meet for our school.

Kansas state track, 3200 meter relay, 2 mile relay, track and field

My Senior year finished off with a trip to the Kansas State Track meet to compete in the 2 mile relay.

I am looking forward to watching the relays at the Olympics. Unfortunately, they only have a few relays at the Olympics.

I would really like to see a 4×800 relay at the Olympics for both men and women.

Also, why not add the 4×200, the sprint medley and the distance medley. This would give more track athletes a chance to win medals.

Just imagine a sprint medley of a 200, 200, 400 and 800 with the best runners in the world.

I will be watching the running events including the Marathon which is traditionally one of the last events of the Olympics.

What do you think? Does the Olympics need more relays?

They added a new relay to the Swimming competition this year, so why not new relays in Track.

Steven

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Fuji-san from Tokyo

Posted on July 29, 2021 by vanbraman

Tonight I will share some pictures from a trip to Tokyo in 2014. I arrived after dark on the first day of the trip and was bemoaning the view of the parking lot. I was staying in a very nice hotel and knew that I should have some good views. However the next day I found that I was perfectly positioned to take pictures of Fuji-san with the clear air after a rainy day.

Sunset - Tokyo - Shinjuku - Fuji-san - Mount FujiIn this picture you can barely see Fuji-san or Mount Fuji in the distance. To the right in the picture you can see the skyline of the Shinjuku area.

Mount Fuji - Sunset - Fuji-san Sunset - Tokyo, JapanI zoomed in for a better picture, but couldn’t focus well with the light conditions. I thought that this would be my best look at Fuji-san.

I knew that seeing Fuji-san from Tokyo was a rarity and that it could only be seen on very clear days. Similar to being able to see the Sierra Mountains on my way home from work. I am lucky if I can see them one time a year. It takes just the right atmospheric conditions.

Fuji-san, Mount Fuji, Fuji from Tokyo, Fuji under cloudsThe next morning I could barely see Fuji-san when I first got up, but could definitely see that it was covered with snow.

Mount Fuji - Snow Covered Volcano - Fuji-san - Tokyo, JapanAfter getting ready to go to the convention center I took one more look out the window. The clouds had lifted but the sky was not quite as clear as it was earlier. I was able to get a nice picture of the snow covered volcano.

Mount Fuji Sunset - Fuji-san - Fuji from Tokyo - VolcanoThat evening Fuji-san was nicely silhouetted against the sunset. You could really see the shape of the volcano.

Fuji-san is the tallest peak in Japan and has a rich cultural significance.

Fuji-san last erupted in the early 1700’s but is still considered an active volcano. There were fears that activity would increase after the 2011 tsunami, but no noticeable changes have been seen so far.

Sunset - Tokyo - Shinjuku - Mt. Fuji - Fuji-sanI shared this picture before in my post: One Last Sunset

The picture was taken on my last night in Tokyo during the trip.

I am glad that I was on the right side of the hotel to see Fuji-san. This is also the direction of the Olympic Stadium so another reason why I am thinking about the view tonight.

This also reminds me of Mount Diablo. Some days the peaks appear much closer than other days. It all depends on the atmospheric conditions.

Steven

 

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