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University Daily Kansan
Friday, April 22, 1955
REFREE OF RELAYS—J. H "Cap" Shellon will be the referee of the KU Relays. As track coach at Howard Payne college, he has been in attendance at every running of the KU Relays for the last 30 years.
KU's Les Bitner Sets Sights On Relays' Javelin Mark
By BOB GREENE
The Kansas Relays javelin record will be in jeopardy this Saturday as KU's Les Bitner seems certain to beat teammate D Sneegas, defending Relays javelin champion, and come close to the record set in 1937.
Alton, Terry, iron-armed thrower from Hardin-Simmons, set the record when he whipped the iron-tipped wand 229 feet 21 inches. Terry's feat not only set a new Relays record but an American mark also. The American standard has since been raised to 237 feet 10 inches.
Bliner, a medicine junior, is a service retinue. The Kansas City native reached 212 feet in his favorite event during his tenure in the Air Force, and two weeks age, he threw the javelin 236 feet, three-quarters of an inch, less than two feet off the national collegiate record held by William Miller of Arizona. His throw wiped out the old Kansas record of 214 feet, 74 inches held by Emporia State's John Kuek.
Weighing 180 and standing 6-1. Bitner transferred to KU from Kansas City Junior college. He owes an arm and proved his worth at Arkansas.
Bitner wiped out all doubts of a
Relays Teams Aim At World Marks
The jeopardy of 12 meet records will be almost obscured by the imprisonment of two world marks here Saturday when the finest baton field in history comes out of the 30th Kansas Relays paddock.
Houston, Texas, and Oklahoma A&M have global figures in the 440 and Spind Medley relays dead in their sights. The Cougars and Longhorns are bracketed together for a co-assault on the Quartermile clocking of 40.5 now held by UCSC 1638 fourteenth and last year's Texas flyers. The Aggies, unless they are spent from too many previous efforts won't have any competition save from the watch in the Medley. They are aiming at Kansas' 3:20.2, established last year at Texas.
Fact is, Houston's quartet of Doyle Jones, Jerry Beek, Danny Boone, and Larry McBride already has tied that 40.5. And the Cougars notched it around two turns in a March 5 triangular against Texas and Texas A&M.
fluke when he tossed the spear $223-6^{3/4}$ against Oklahoma A&M last Saturday. If he can reach 230 feet again, he will shatter the fourth-oldest record in the KU books. Gilliam Graham's heave of 212-5 in the 1983 Relays is the next-longest winning heave on record.
Two of Bitner's stablemates, John Parker and Don Sneegas, have also tossed the slender rod over 200 feet in each of their last two starts. Parker was over 209 in each meet while Sneegas raised his personal mark to 200-11⁵ at Stillwater. He threw 196-97⁸ to win the 1954 Relaxs crown.
Leigh Cortes (Louisiana Tech) and Charles Renfroce (Texas) will provide competition for the Jay-hawkers. Cortes won at Texas with 194-11 and Renfroce was second at 194-8.
Howard Payne's 'Cap' Shelton Will Be Referee
By HOWARD STURDEVANT
J. H. "Cap" Shelton, who hasn't missed the Kansas Relays since they started in 1923, attending every year in a competitive status as coach of the Howard Payne Yellow-jackets, is the referee of the 1955 Kansas Relays.
This, the 30th running of the Kansas Relays, will commemorate the 30th time he has brought his teams up from Brownwood, Tex. the home of Howard Payne college.
Shelton, now in his 35th year as track coach at Howard Payne, surprisingly enough maintains that teaching track is his hobby. He is actually the business manager of the college, coaching track only for the love of the sport.
The Howard Payne Yellowjackets have become well known for their consistent strength, and have amassed an excellent record.
Last June he was named to the Helms Foundation Hall of Fame in the NAIA track section.
Two of Shelton's hurdlers, Pete Owens, in 1941, and Charlie White, in 1952, won Kansas Relays titles in the 120 yard high hurdles. The 1952 season, which marked the peak of Shelton's career, also saw the Yellowjackets win the distance medley and two-mile run in the college class at the Kansas Relays.
In eight major meets the Howard Payne team has won five college division championships. In these meets they scored 35 first places and 23 second places, while setting up new standards in four events.
Under Shelton, Howard Payne teams have won the Texas Athletic conference crown 14 times.
Shelton, who is from Rockwood, Tex., came to Howard Payne in 1912 as a student, and has been associated with the college since, except for time spent in military service in World War I.
Oldest record in the Relays is the 100-yard dash which was set in 1930 by Cy Leland of Texas Christian when he traversed the distance in 69.4. Three other records were set in the thirties. The broad jump mark of 25 feet 43 inches was established in 1931 by Ed Gordon of Iowa.
. . .
The shot put record at the Relays, set in 1948 by Robert Fonville of Michigan, was also good for a world's record.
Congratulations
to the
K. U. Athletic Dept. and Bill Easton for making the Kansas Relays A 30 Year Old Tradition
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Stadium History Spans 34 Years
By ALTON DAVIES
Memorial Stadium is the site this weekend of one of the Midwest's biggest sporting events—the KU Relays. For 34 years the football and track events of this University have been carried on in the mammoth stadium which spreads out like a horseshoe at the foot of Mount Oread.
The history of Memorial stadium and how it came to be is accurately reported by Dr. Forrest C. "Phog" Allen in his book of favorite sports stories.
Telling his boys that the governor, chancellor, and 10,000 Kansas rooters were out there praying for them to come through. Coach Allen sent his "miracle team" into the second half.
The 1920 Homecoming game with Coach Henry "Indian" Schuite's Nebraska Cornhuskers provided the needed spark. During the first half of the game, the Nebraska team "ran roughshod over the light but scrappy Kansas Jayhawkers." At half time Nebraska was leading 20-6.
It was the autumn of 1920, according to Dr. Allen, and a World War Memorial Stadium Drive had been "smoldering in prospect, awaiting only a propelling stimulus to set it in motion." This stadium was intended to immortalize the 129 Kansas men and women who had died in World War I. The Kansas football team, coached during that one season by Dr. Allen, provided the needed stimulus.
The team, composed of Andy McDonald, Ed Sandefur, Warren Woody, George Hale, Captain George Nettles, Tad Reid, Dutch Lonborg, Harley Little, Frank Mandeville, Johnnie Bunn, Kenny Welch, Severt Higgins, and Carl McAdams, fought hard in the second half to come from behind to tie the score 20-20. The underdog Kansas team held the Cornhuskers scoreless in the second half but missed the point after touchdown. But in the words of Dr. Allen, won a "great moral victory."
A school holiday was declared a few weeks later for the purpose of tearing down the old athletic plant on McCook field. Nearly 2,000 University men turned out for the project and razed the old wooden bleachers. Sandwiches and coffee were served to the men by University women who volunteered their services to the project.
Tennis Season Opens Saturday
Bv SAM JONES
Stiff competition is facing the KU varsity tennis team tomorrow as it opens the season in Big Seven tennis play against Nebraska netmen on the Stadium courts.
With the first matches scheduled at 2 p.m., the KU netmen will be faced with the overflow crowd at the Relays and the power stroking of the Cornhusker racket swingers.
After last year's successful season of 11 victories and one loss, KU Coach Dick Mechem has only one letterman returning for competition this year. He is Don Franklin, from Parsons.
Dave-Kane is currently rated second man on the team. He was beaten soundly last week by Riley, 6-0 6-0.
"I think we can do just as well this year as we did last year," Mechem said.
Riley played in this year's Orange bowl tournament but was eliminated before reaching the semifinals. Since practice started this year, no other KU player has been able to put him out of his first spot ranking.
Retaining third spot is Don Franklin who kept his spot by defeating erratic Phil Rein. Rein, a sophomore, was moving steadily up in the standings until he met Franklin.
Probably the most outstanding man on the team is sophomore Bob Riley. He is currently ranked as the number one man on the team.
Delmont Hadley, another sophomore, was holding the fifth spot last week after moving up from No. 8 ranking. Hadley has been following Rein in defeating top seeded members of the team.
WELCOME to the RELAYS
You're in for a busy weekend of sports, parades and parties; But take time out to enjoy a wonderful seafood, steak, or chicken dinner at Duck's Tavern. It will be a highspot of your vacation!
GOTO IT, KANSAS
We're Behind You
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