Latest / The Gill Athletics Track and Field Connections Podcast / BONUS: USTFCCCA 2023 LIVE: Tim Byers-KU Relays

Transcript

BONUS: USTFCCCA 2023 LIVE: Tim Byers-KU Relays · The Gill Athletics Track and Field Connections Podcast

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  Hey gang, you know we like our bonus material.
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  So from today all the way through USTF CCA, in celebration
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  of our live podcast recording at the convention, we're going to
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  play you last year's clips, each one individual from today all
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  the way up until Monday, December 16th when we go live on
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  YouTube at 6:00 Eastern Time. Join us if you're at the
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  convention, sit down. We're going to be talking about
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  your feelings, actions, thoughts about the way the NCAA is
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  changing, and we're going to make some predictions for next
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  year. And every guest that sits down
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  with us. Will you get a exclusive free
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  gift? So join us December. 16th, 6.
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  PM Eastern Time for the Gill Live Connections podcast on
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  YouTube and at the USTF CCA convention.
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  Here is bonus material. All right, let's keep moving.
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  We're having. A blast, another relay so.
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  Much fun. Hey, we hit the trifecta this
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  year. Last year we were two out of
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  three. Don't tell Mount Sag.
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  I know I didn't count them. I'm so sorry.
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  They they always have the opportunity to come on as well.
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  Let's go ahead and introduce yourself.
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  Tim Byers, the director to Kansas Relays.
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  Last year you were here with us. Thank you for that.
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  And it was really special. It was kind of the comeback of
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  Kansas Relays. 100 year. Anniversary.
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  How did it go? It went great.
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  I mean, it was something that, I mean, being 100 years is pretty
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  incredible. You know, there's three of us at
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  SES, Finn and Drake, you know, they had the 100 years, had a
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  lot of support from those guys, from Aaron and you know what,
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  Drake and stuff too. It was pretty neat, but it went
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  as great as it, I think it could go. 275 alumni came back.
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  Billy Mills was there. Jim Ryan was there.
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  And we're talking about historic program.
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  We're talking about. These.
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  These they're, we're talking about Olympians and all
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  Americans and national champions.
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  We had a guy that came from that was on the 1953 national cross
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  country. Team located.
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  That was there and stuff. So I mean, the history was just
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  a girl. Wow, that's really special.
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  Yeah, our mom and I are just incredible and stuff.
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  So some people might be listening and you know, we had
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  Blake Bolton to kick us off. We just had Aaron Robeson from
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  the pen relays and now we have Tim here with the KU relays.
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  What? And I already know the answer
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  because I saw y'all and I know y'all look very collegial.
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  You're very helping of each other.
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  There's no, at least you fake it.
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  Well, if there is, there's no animosity.
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  No, I don't, I don't want to say there's no competition 'cause I
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  know we're competing on our teams that come to our meets.
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  But how have you guys, and it's fair to say, not at all, right?
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  I believe that's the answer. How have you guys helped each
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  other for this sport? So, So what we're doing now,
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  actually, we're all three of us are meeting together here.
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  We got me. Blake and Aaron are going to be
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  together. I put out an e-mail and said,
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  hey, would you guys like to talk?
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  And you know, not a lot of people know what we go through.
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  You know, I plan on, I plan the next Kansas relays about 16
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  months out. So we're already doing one when
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  we have another one in in process and stuff.
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  So a lot of people don't, you know, understand that how many
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  officials we need, how many volunteers, meals, the housing,
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  you know, everything that goes. And that doesn't even include
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  the entries or anything, whether you know what's going to happen.
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  You know, we're in the Tornado Alley in Kansas and we had to
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  cancel the four by fours. Because.
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  Of I mean lightning hail came through and stuff that.
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  You just part of it. What's the you know, you have
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  many, many coaches that come every year, not only for the KE
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  Relays, but some of the other meats for some great cross
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  country which got one of, you know, nicer cross country
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  facilities in the country as well.
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  You know, it's easy for us as coaches to and rightfully so, be
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  zeroed in on their team, their entries.
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  You know, Matt, that you won't let me choose this heat over
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  this heat or what not. What is the hardest part for you
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  and your team when you click on the relays that the coaches just
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  don't see and they should, you probably insulate them.
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  They don't need to know that the hot dogs didn't get ordered.
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  And so there's no. Yeah, yeah.
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  Yeah. What's what's kind of one of the
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  hardest things that they kind of pull the curtain back.
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  For us here, you know, I think when the hardest thing is for
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  me, I want everyone to have a great experience.
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  So when a coach comes in, you know, why didn't my kid get into
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  the fast heat and stuff, you know, I have to say well, you
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  know, it cut off was 14 minutes and your kid ran 1425.
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  You know, I don't have anything personally against these coaches
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  and I was a coach too. I'm fighting for my kid also, so
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  I get it, you know, but it but just to doesn't know.
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  It's not personal. It it's just how the events line
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  up and we take all everything is certified entries.
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  So it's not like we're taking a hand tied everything.
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  They had to run it to get in or or throw it or what not and
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  stuff. So so but it's not personal.
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  You know, we just we're trying to put together a good
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  experience period for the athlete first.
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  And you know, in the coaches we want to, we should have a good
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  experience too. But it's for the athletes.
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  We want them to come back or say, you know, I remember I ran
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  in the Kansas as you know. So you had a an amazing
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  experience bringing it back and celebrating your 100th
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  anniversary. What can we expect new or
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  enhanced or doubling down on this year?
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  Right. So our big thing last year was
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  bringing the high schools back, getting the trust back in
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  Kansas, right, and everything. So that went excellent.
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  I mean, we maxed out everyone, all events were maxed out, and
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  now I'm really wanting to start to bring the collegiates back.
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  OK, the bigger, Yeah. Rockchock Park is a Class A
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  facility, right? It's World Athletic certified.
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  It's got everything you need and stuff so.
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  We're there's a couple changes I would make.
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  Yeah, more stands. I want to.
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  Yeah, I know what you're saying. I know you don't make those
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  decisions, so. It's OK, ask them where all our
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  blocks are coming from. Oh yeah.
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  Oh, very blessed. But you know, that's my big
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  focus right here. You know, the pros are I think
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  we're going to work their way back and stuff like that.
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  But you know, but first I need to look at the colleges 1st and
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  then after that we'll start bringing.
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  In because. You, you, you know as well as I
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  do. Once you get rid of something,
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  it's really hard to bring. Stuff.
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  And getting the trust within the community, we did an economic
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  impact study which someone hadn't done for years and years
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  and years, and the economic impact is $3.3 million.
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  Hey, that is like reinforcing because you know, it's very easy
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  and try to say track and field is not a money.
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  Baker Not true. Not.
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  True. Not that is.
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  Exactly right. I think that collectively we are
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  thinking about the money making process for our sport, talk to
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  economic impact, et cetera. Oh, I was just recently on a
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  podcast called the AD Podcast podcast focused for high school
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  athletic directors and the two hosts, they were amazing asking
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  to be on to talk about the importance of a healthy track
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  program for a healthy athletic program.
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  And I talked about hosting meets as well.
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  And I was like, you know, you can make money hosting meets.
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  And so we talked about, you know, gate receipt, which we
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  don't talk about enough in track either parked in a gate,
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  parking, concessions, etcetera. But I reminded him I was like,
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  hey, here's another thing, even if you host a triangle meet at
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  your place, you may not see an income statement, but you're not
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  spending the money for the bus to go to.
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  The meeting. Exactly.
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  And etcetera, you are making money, you are.
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  And I think as track coaches we need to be more cognizant of
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  that and making sure our athletic directors understand
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  the value that we're bringing not only in the positive impact
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  we're making on young people, which is immeasurable, but that
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  hey, we're not this money drain you think we are, that we
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  actually can billion dollars. I'm glad you said that, not
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  surprised by what you guys do to impact.
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  What other sport can bring 5000 potential students?
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  To campus. At 1:00.
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  Time. That's a good point.
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  Right, really good point. Competing everything and stuff,
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  I mean. Having a good experience on
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  campus. Yeah, 22 to play.
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  You know what, Whatever it is on the foot, we got 5000 kids going
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  at one time. Well, I don't have 5000
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  questions. Remember this from last I.
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  Do I? Because I was I had both a iPod
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  and a Android in my pocket. All the.
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  Time that's right. So if we, if we get that don't
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  pick #12 OK, don't have OK, but what 300?
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  You get to pick the number 21. You flipped it around there.
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  All right, get off my lawn. What did your?
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  What's your old man pet peeve? My old man pet peeve.
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  My dad was a cop. So Oh yeah, I think his his big
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  thing is he he was old school. He liked Bobby Knight.
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  He liked those guys. He.
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  He. Wasn't much for talking about,
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  you know, and that's kind of way I was raised, you know, and
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  everything and stuff. So his probably biggest pet
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  peeve is people using powerful language for his job and stuff.
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  So buddy, he retired as a cop. He's doing great now and
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  everything is. Done.
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  Thank. You for getting it.
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  Yeah, that's a that's a job I wouldn't want.
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  I couldn't do. The world would be worse off if
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  I was. Tim, thank you for being here.
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  Every guest that sits down with us is getting an exclusive Guild
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  connection. It's only for people that sit
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  down and see. We're not handing this out of
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  the convention. It's only for you sitting down
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  in. The I appreciate you brother.
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  Thank you brother, does a great job.
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  We've got can't wait till we get our new that's right blocks in
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  and stuff. So thanks brother.
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  Appreciate you man. Thank you.
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  It really is. You know, these meats, I'm, I'm
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  a short meat fan. I think meats should be in the
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  two to three hour range for us to have success in our sport.
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  But there is a place for us to have the pen relays, Drake
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  relays and the KU relays and yes, Mount SAC.
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  I know someone's listening right now.
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  Mount SAC as well. So it's always great to have
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  those directors of those great meats being here to kind of
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  again, pull that curtain back and show what they have to do to
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  put on these massive, massive meats.
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  It's quite an endeavour.