Masters track has a documentary film ("Racing Against the Clock"), a newly published novel ("That Masterful Season") and a monthly newspaper -- soon to become a glossy magazine -- called National Masters News.
You ain't seen nuthin yet!
A Fresno high school teacher and filmmaker named Julia Dudley Najieb has begun taping a reality game show for TV that revolves around Masters track. Athletes can win $5,000 cash prizes for their high school alma maters. Fox Sports Net, a second-tier cable network, has a deal to air at least one season.
The show is called "T.R.A.C.K. Live!" and will feature several dozen track and field athletes from their early 30s to a pair of gentleman aged 70. (The Web site is http://www.tracklive.tv/)
The first taping took place May 17-18 at the University of Nevada Las Vegas, with temps topping 100 and a few athletes losing their cool. The event schedule was changed at the last minute, and at least one sprinter suffered a season-ending injury for lack of a warmup. My blog at masterstrack.com was buzzing with reaction and first-person accounts of the UNLV meet, taped by five cameras.
The downside was a meager turnout -- fewer than 60 athletes showed, and some of them came only for the meet. Maybe half them will proceed to meets in June, July and August in Fresno (with taped coaching sessions in the interim).
After the Las Vegas meet, Dudley Najieb wrote entrants: "Congratulations on making history for the first competitive track & field reality show to appear on Fox Sports Net! Everyone did a great job in Las Vegas; this is just the beginning.
"We appreciate your patience through all the show changes; that's entertainment for ya!"
Dudley Najieb also wrote me:
"There were some incredible backstories of people we filmed; there were very compelling accounts from athletes of their backgrounds, their stories, their perspective of the sport. So although there was a dismal turnout, what did turn out were diamonds in the rough who deserve recognition based on their talents and varied backgrounds. That's what will help uplift the image of this sport -- getting the personal stories of these incredible athletes.
"Although we had different expectations for the turnout, the great thing about the entertainment world is that there is always a Plan B, C, and D. We went with Plan D, which works even better. Some athletes who attended will be shocked of what they see in the first show. This is not boring stuff; there was much more than competition that happened that day.
"The athletes who were there do not know this because they were competing and focused. (Happenings will be revealed during the show and parts of the sizzle reel.)
"It is unfortunate that athletes signed up and did not show; this only makes it harder for them when Season 2 comes around because then we will have to charge the entry fee immediately upon sign-up to save officials the headaches and make sure the deadline is set with no exceptions. (They were quite disgusted with the extra work when athletes who had confirmed (but) still didn't show up at the last minute.)
"There were over 300 signups, but at least 110 people confirmed, even the week before! About 53 people showed up for the meet -- it's no wonder we complain about not having the spotlight for our sport when we can't show up to a TV show premiering our sport!
"Of course, we wish that athletes did not get hurt; however, meet schedules were changed due to the short heats and no-shows two days before the meet. Officials had to do what was best for the athlete; they told us that they did not want athletes waiting around too long in the Las Vegas heat, we agreed. That's another reason we wanted athletes to get in town early enough in case of schedule, event or heat changes -- we allowed a number of athletes to add and change events the day before.
"So now the 53 athletes will move on to training in Reedley (Calif,), as a TRACK Live! team, where the meets will be June 21, July 19 and August 2 in Fresno. The last meet may have only family members and the youth community from the challenges, due to contract disclosure issues.
"Athletes will not be eliminated but instead scored at the different meets based on the age-graded system, according to their events instead, because that is only part of the competition. They will also gain points based on their community tasks, team challenges and sportsmanship. By the final meet, there will be the top eight athletes who will win the challenge -- this is how producers and the CORE committee have changed it thus far.
"All in all, the meet was efficient and official; we posted the results on the website and the 2008 team members. We are very pleased with the athletes who attended and content with the footage we got, which will be interesting enough for an hour of reality show. The audience will not just be watching a track meet."
Dudley is sensitive to her critics. So she made an appeal:
"Please ask readers to have faith in what we are doing and know that we have filmed beyond the competition -- we are uplifting the image of the sport and premiering dedicated master athletes. (Remember we will also be highlighting track & field facts, our veteran coaches and judges and other aspects of the show to make it interesting.) The show is still a success, even with the low turnout. No need to worry! :-) "
Even so, several Masters athletes questioned the convoluted organization of the show, which mixed Oprah's "Big Give" charity work with coaching scenes and real competition.
But there's no question the athletes are the real deal.
Among them are former GeezerJock of the Year Bill Collins and two-time Olympic high jumper Reynaldo Brown. Rey Brown high-jumped 5-7 3/4 at age 57 at the Las Vegas meet, but Collins didn't make it to the starting line. Collins had to return home to Houston for a family emergency (but he'll be allowed to continue with the show).
And the celebrity coaches/judges are eye-openers as well. They include Olympic discus thrower John Powell, Olympic long jumper Ralph Boston and legendary sprinter Tommie Smith -- he of the Mexico City award-ceremony protest.
If nothing else, I'll be tuning in for Tommie!
Tags: TV Track Reality Show
