Relays

Annual bidders every spring for the best of the U. S. college track crop are Philadelphia and Des Moines. Many runners prefer the spectacle of the Penn Relays staged at Franklin Field. Others yield to the extravagant ballyhoo of the Drake Relays, held in that tiny University's huge horseshoe stadium. Last week Philadelphia's 42nd enticed 3,000 entries from schools and colleges; Des Moines' 27th, 2,000. Both groups gave spectators few records, many thrills.

Biggest attraction of the Drake Relays, as usual, was Queen of the Relays. This year she was 20-year-old, blue-eyed Jane Mareton Phelps, daughter of Vice President Zack Phelps of Krebs Pigment Co., an E. I. du Pont de Nemours subsidiary. Queen Phelps is a junior at Northwestern, where she studies music, collects old bottles, broods over her two greatest ambitions : a big wedding, a big family.

No.1 track thrill for the 18,000 spectators was furnished by Kansan Glenn Cunningham. Apparently rejuvenated, after a disappointing indoor season, Miler Cunningham in a special race cagily let two capable competitors set the pace, unleashed a terrific spurt at the finish to set a new U. S. outdoor record for the 1,000-yd. run (2:11.2).

At Philadelphia the spotlight centered on four rangy, good-natured University of Texas runners who advertised their State's Centennial celebration by staging their first practice session in ten-gallon hats, high-heeled boots, leather jackets. First day of the meet they changed to shorts and silk jerseys, trotted out to show spectators how they had smashed the world's record for the 880-yd. relay a fortnight before in Austin.

Their lead-off man (H. V. Reeves) jumped into the lead at the start of the 440-yd. race. Passing the baton with precision, No. 2 (Beverly Rockhold) and No. 3 (Charles Gruneisen) held the lead. At the final touch-off Texas' anchor-man (Harvey Wallender) had a five-yard start over Temple's Eulace Peacock. Fifteen yards from the finish Negro Peacock suddenly leaped into the air, broke his stride, hopscotched over the line in agony with a pulled muscle. But the Texans deserved their victory. Time was 0:41.1, a half-second better than the meet record. Next day the same foursome, together since freshman year, smashed the 880-yd. record with the time of 1:26.6. "It's mighty fine country up this way," drawled Sprinter Wallender. Outstanding individual performance of the meet went to Ohio State's Charles Beetham, anchor-man in the two-mile relay, who ran his half-mile in an amazing 1:52.5, came from third place 20 yards behind the pacesetter to finish 20 yards in the lead. Negro Jesse Owens won the sprint medley for Ohio State by dodging through 13 other runners, passing six, giving his anchor-man the opportunity to beat Pennsylvania's smooth-striding Gene Venzke. Next day Sprinter Owens won the 100-metre dash, the broad jump.

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