Big-Time Sports

During my college days at Mankato State University (now Minnesota State at Mankato), the school was known more as the location of the Vikings training camp than our local student athletes.

So low was my interest in college sports then (and now), I think there were only two or three events I attended, including one football game (dragged there as a freshman), one hockey game (as part of an SID work study assignment) and, all lumped together as one complete match, a collection of women's tennis events (my beat for the sports section of The Reporter).

Even Tom Wolfe's college sports fiction "I Am Charlotte Simmons" could not hold my interest a few years back. And I usually love Tom Wolfe texts (check out "Hooking Up" if you have not yet read it).

But recently, thanks to publicists at Cambridge University Press, I gave it another shot by scanning a review copy of Charles T. Clotfelter's new book "Big-Time Sports In American Universities."

The verdict: Still not a college sports fan here, but the book was interesting (affirming many of my longstanding hangups with university athletics), and I think the die-hard college sports fans around me should read it, particularly those in sports marketing.

Clotfelter examines four key roles fulfilled by college sports, as a consumer packaged good, business enterprise (which tees up conflicts of interest for academic institutions),as an instrument to forge relationships, and as role in education. The author's research delves into the positive, neutral or negative outcomes of commercial sports at universities, and provides detail for discussion by those who are critics or fans of the college sports machine.

Not one page of the book delves into Olympic athletic endeavors -- mostly NCAA basketball, college football and other larger sports are explored through Clotfelter's research -- so the book was not as relevant for my interests. But I'll cheerfully loan my copy to those who are interested.

Photo via Amazon.com

Garrison Keillor and the Olympics, part one

Author, humorist, national radio/film personality and very cool gentleman/nice guy Garrison Keillor was in town last week showcasing his new book -- "Liberty: A Lake Wobegon Novel" -- to a packed house at the Atlanta History Center.

I'm three chapters into the text and it is quite good (a bit lighter than my favorite Keillor text, "Homegrown Democrat," which is outstanding!). "Liberty" is getting great reviews, too.

During the evening's audience Q&A, I seized the opportunity to ask Mr. Keillor about the extent to which his writing was ever inspired by Olympic feats.

Unfortunately, in front of the crowd he had not much to say about Olympians (see the video with this post). But after the Q&A session -- cornered while he signed four books -- he did open up and mention tuning in to the 1980 "Miracle On Ice" as an Olympic memory of note (check the second video, which I will display in a "part two" follow up post).

A native Minnesotan, Keillor did seem a bit surprised (also on video) to learn that Minneapolis/St. Paul was at one time a contendor for the 1996 Olympic bid, briefly competing against Atlanta to the the U.S. bid city (we all know how that turned out).

He did not mince words about the Land of 10,000 Lakes' chances -- guess we'll have to wait a few more decades before Olympic yachting can be raced on Lake Minnetonka!

Thanks go out to the Margaret Mitchell House & Museum for putting on a great evening event with Mr. Keillor.

Condolences

We heard later in the afternoon that there was an incident involving U.S. tourists at one of Beijing's landmark tourist sites. It was only late tonight it crossed the wire that the family injured in the attack was the Bachman family of Minneapolis.

During my days at the Minnesota State University at Mankato, I held many temp jobs, including several Christmas and Valentine's Day holiday shifts at the garden center and floral superstore known as the Bachman's headquarters, located just south of downtown Minneapolis and Uptown neighborhoods. The family has a long history in Minnesota and, as I recall, the company usually is called on to decorate the White House with poinsettias from the Twin Cities (one year while temping on December break, we loaded one of the trucks bound for D.C.).

Though there was never an occasion to meet the Bachman owners personally, I always appreciated this family-owned business for bringing me into their holiday projects and team, and send sincere condolences.