V 15 N. 8 The Track and Watergate Connection Recurrence

This piece is for trivia buffs of the 52nd degree.   You have been warned!    

 Last week while working on gathering information about the Al Birtles story which involved a lot of looking at old results, newspapers, telegrams, and smoke signals we found a reference to an old story about  Egil 'Bud' Krogh who was one of the Watergate Conspirators and who also ran track with our colleague Roy Mason at Principia College.  Roy wrote a beautiful piece about small college life and track while he was a student at that Christian Scientist institution on the banks of the Mississippi River.  I refer you to that article in this link.    Principia College Life with Roy Mason

There is no relation to the  Birtles story.  It  is only that while looking for NCAA track results for Birtles, I had to start with the 1920's and scroll upward.  I accidently hit the enter key and the 1923 NCAA Outdoor results opened and I noted that one Egil Krogh placed fifth in the mile for the University of Chicago.   Because of the almost  forty years difference in dates (1923 - 1960) I figured this must be a father-son relationship.  If you say the name, it sounds like he is a native American (Eagle Crow) but in reality it is a Norwegian name.

                                 Here is the original Egil Krogh from the U. of Chicago archives: 

                               Two other Krogh brothers competed for U. of Chicago in the 1920's  

  

                                                 Papa Egil Krogh  U. of Chicago, the father

                                                        1923 NCAA Mile Run Results

One-mile run

[edit]

1. Schuyler Enck, Penn State – 4:27.4
2. Robbins, Wabash
3. Brandes, Hamlin College
4. Schneider, Wisconsin
5. Krogh, Chicago    (another source indicated that gentleman's first name was indeed 'Egil'.

                                                                  Egil 'Bud' Krogh

Born	August 3, 1939 Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Died	January 18, 2020 (aged 80) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political party	Republican
Education	Principia College (BA) University of Washington (JD)

When I mentioned this new 'find' on Mr. Krogh,  here is an anecdote that Roy sent me about the man.

Looking up old Bud on Wikipedia gives credence to the idea that he was the son of the E.K. you referenced in that he was born in Chicago in 1939.  That would make dad late 30s-early 40s.  I'd bet the pot that they are father - son.  Good research, George. 

Continuing on Egil Krogh.  He was the guy who gave the okay for the Watergate break in, yet he was a paragon of virtue when I knew him.  He operated on a different level.  He encouraged me when I was learning.  He fit Principia. I did not.  The only chink in his armor was the time a half dozen of us went to an all comers meet.  Our gear was stored in the trunk of Rich Overby's (49+ school record holder and also a nice guy.) car.  When we packed for the trip back to Prin, here was a bottle of whiskey in the corner of the trunk.  I was shocked.  I'd never seen a bottle of alcohol, even beer.  I thought we should tell "somebody".  (Talk about sheltered.  I am so grateful for my evolution.   A hit and three shots of bourbon are coming right up as I prepare for bed.)  Bud counseled me with something like it would be better to not say anything because there was probably an explanation.  

Mr. Krogh senior also had two brothers attending the University of Chicago and participating in track, swimming, water polo,  and wrestling in the 1920's.

                     

Uncle  Are Krogh,  Swimming and Water Polo 1927-28

No, he is not one legged.

Uncle Haare on the Frosh Track Team

Uncle Haare again

Football, Wrestling, Track 1926-28, captain of Wrestling team

Here is what Wikipedia has to say about Egil the Younger

Egil "Bud" Krogh Jr. (/ɛɡɪl kroʊɡ/; August 3, 1939 – January 18, 2020) was an American lawyer who became infamous as an official of the Nixon administration and who was imprisoned for his part in the Watergate scandal. He was a Senior Fellow on Ethics and Leadership at the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress and Counselor to the Director at the School for Ethics and Global Leadership.

Krogh co-authored the book Integrity: Good People, Bad Choices, and Life Lessons from the White House with his son Matthew.^[1] The book is the basis for the HBO series White House Plumbers.^[2]

Early life

[edit]

Krogh was born in Chicago, Illinois, the son of Josephine (Woolling) and Egil Einar Krogh, a Norwegian immigrant and a businessman.^[3] His mother was a homemaker while his father was an executive with the Marshall Field's chain of department stores. His father's frequent relocation had the family living in Chicago, Portland, Oregon, St. Louis, and eventually Seattle.^[4]

Education

[edit]

Krogh graduated with the highest honors from Principia College in Elsah, Illinois in 1961. After service in the U.S. Navy as a communications officer aboard USS Yorktown (1962–1965), he received his Juris Doctor degree from the University of Washington School of Law in 1968.^[3]

Career

[edit]

Krogh was employed by Hullin, Ehrlichman, Roberts, and Hodge, the Seattle law firm of family friend John Ehrlichman, and joined Ehrlichman in the counsel's office of Richard Nixon's 1968 presidential campaign. After Nixon was elected, Krogh helped with the arrangements for the inauguration. He joined the Nixon White House as an advisor on the District of Columbia and later served as liaison to the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs. It was there that he met G. Gordon Liddy.

Special Investigation Unit

[edit]

Ehrlichman made Krogh head of the "Special Investigation Unit" in the White House, charged with investigating information given covertly to the press by administration staffers. Krogh and his associates were known familiarly as the "Plumbers" — a secret team of operatives charged with fixing "leaks." It was an unlikely choice: Krogh had a reputation as someone who obeyed the law so scrupulously that his friends gave him the ironic nickname "Evil Krogh." Journalist Theodore White would write, "to put Egil Krogh in charge of a secret police operation was equivalent to making Frank Merriwell chief executive of a KGB squad." Krogh brought Liddy into his new office.

When the administration decided to pursue the Pentagon Papers leakers, it was Krogh who approved the September 1971 burglary of the office of Lewis Fielding, the psychiatrist seeing Daniel Ellsberg. Liddy and E. Howard Hunt would commit the actual break-in. Ironically, Ehrlichman, who himself went to prison for Watergate-related crimes, would later write in his memoirs that this was an example of "such doubtful personal judgment ... that it has to be said [Krogh] materially contributed to the demise of the Nixon administration."

Krogh's employment with the SIU was terminated when he subsequently refused to authorize a wiretap. That reticence presaged his acceptance of responsibility for the part he played in the lawlessness of the Nixon White House. When the Watergate scandal broke, and Krogh was implicated, he approached the prosecutors without any request for leniency.^[5] On November 30, 1973, Krogh pleaded guilty to federal charges of conspiring to violate Fielding's civil rights and agreed to cooperate with prosecutors. He was sentenced to six years in prison, though he served only four-and-a-half months.^[6] After his release from prison he wrote,

"In a country like America, where the rule of law is supposed to be paramount, we have to be able to believe in the integrity of our public officials, civil servants...without a commitment to living and acting with integrity, we can only expect more of the same problems, with good people placed in circumstances where bad decisions become all but unavoidable."

Krogh was disbarred by the Washington State Supreme Court in 1975.^[7]

In 1977, he petitioned to be readmitted to the practice of law, based on his recognition and acceptance of his wrongdoing. This petition was rejected. Finally, in 1980, his petition was granted and he was reinstated to the practice of law.

Elvis Presley

[edit]

During his time in the White House, Krogh was in charge of the impromptu visit of Elvis Presley on December 21, 1970. Presley had arrived at the gate with a letter for President Nixon requesting a personal meeting to discuss how he could help the government fight the drug trade. Because of Krogh's work regarding illegal drugs, he managed the visit. The meeting took place and Nixon gave Presley an actual narcotics agent badge. Krogh wrote a book about these events: The Day Elvis Met Nixon.^[8] Presley's visit was also the subject of the 2016 film Elvis & Nixon, in which Krogh was portrayed by Colin Hanks.

Private sector

[edit]

In 1980, after being readmitted to the practice of law,^[9] Krogh became a partner at Krogh & Leonard ^[10] in Seattle and provided legal, consulting, and mediation services to energy and other clients.^[11]

In 2007, Krogh and his son Matthew wrote the book Integrity: Good People, Bad Choices, and Life Lessons from the White House.^[12] The HBO limited series White House Plumbers, starring Woody Harrelson and Justin Theroux, is partly based on Integrity.^[2] He was a frequent lecturer on the topic of legal ethics,^[13] having visited many schools, bar associations and other gatherings of lawyers and judges. As of 2014, he was a speaker at events where he talked about his experiences.^[14]

Personal

[edit]

Krogh's marriages to Suzanne Lowell, Laura Lee Carkener, and Ann Horton all ended in divorce. Survivors include his partner, Nancy Glenn Hansen of Washington; two sons from his first marriage, Peter, of Nevada City, California, and Matthew, of Bellingham, Washington; a stepdaughter from his second, Laura Dail, of Manhattan, New York; a son from his third, James, of Shelton, Washington; two sisters; and five grandchildren.^[3]

Death

[edit]

Krogh died from heart failure in Washington, D.C., on January 18, 2020, at age 80.

Egil Bud Krogh speaking about his pardon   link

This was on the Dick Cavett Show.   He seems very contrite.

"Seems that the Repubs, could use a man like Egil Bud Krogh today."  ed.

V 15 N. 8 Jan Johnson US Olympian Bronze Medalist 1972 Pole Vault R.I.P.

 

We heard the news of the passing of Jan Johnson this past week.  The news came from several teammates, friends, and internet sources.   Jan was the bronze medalist in 1972 in the equipment controversy brought on by who knows in the I.A.A.F.  when they disallowed the poles Jan and Bob Seagren had been using for the most part of a year.  It was something about the lack of availability on the open market or the like.  Have to remember the there wasn't much open market in the Eastern Europe bloc and there was  lot of behind closed doors shenanigans involved in this episode of the Cold War.   The '68 and '72 Olympics were just one controversy after another from a pre games massacre in Mexico City to the Israeli hostage killings in Munich.  Events in the Middle East today can be traced back to that terrible time.  

Jan Johnson, an Illinois boy started off at the U. of Kansas and transferred to Alabama and was a three time NCAA champion for The Tide.  Here is what Wikipedia says about him.

Jan Johnson (born November 11, 1950) was an American former athlete who competed mainly in the pole vault. He graduated in 1972 from the University of Alabama, where he holds the school record in the pole vault at 18 feet, 1/2 inch. Johnson was born in Hammond, Indiana.

He competed for the United States in the 1972 Summer Olympics held in Munich, Germany, where he won the bronze medal.

Johnson held a world indoor record at 17 feet, 7 inches while competing for the University of Kansas. He transferred to Alabama, where he became a three-time NCAA champion. He won the 1971 USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships for the Alabama Crimson Tide.^[1] He was also an accomplished long jumper and sprinter in both high school and college.

Johnson won the 1968 Illinois state high school championship while competing at Bloom High School in Chicago Heights, Illinois. In 1972, the gymnasium of Rickover Junior High School in Sauk Village, Illinois was dedicated and named in his honor. His younger brother Tim Johnson, set the National HS indoor record of 16'7 in 1974. His daughter, Chelsea, became a two-time NCAA outdoor champion in the pole vault for UCLA. Chelsea was silver medalist for the US in the women's pole vault at the 2009 World Championships in Athletics in Berlin.^[2][3]

Jan Johnson ran "Sky Jumpers," a pole vault camp based on the central coast of California.^[4] Johnson also hosts auxiliary "Sky Jumpers" camps annually in Illinois, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin. Johnson has been an outspoken innovator and advocate for pole vault safety. He co-authored The Illustrated History of the Pole Vault, published in 2007. His second book: "The High Flyer and the Cultural Revolution" has recently been published to high reviews.

Thanks to Mike Solomon and Walt Murphy for bringing this news to our attention.

V 15 N. 7 Remembering Al Birtles a Canadian Miler at U. of Hawaii and Two-Sport Athlete, R.I.P.

 

Walter 'Al' Birtles

1937-2024

University of Hawaii

Walter 'Al' Birtles  passed away September 14, 2024 in Vancouver, British Columbia at age 87.   When this was brought to my attention recently, Al's name did not ring a bell until more information was provided.  He was a miler at the University of Hawaii in the early 1960's and ran a 4:06 mile, a time of considerable importance in those days.

Writing this blog for fifteen years I've learned that sources for stories can be very,  very unpredictable and they sometimes lead to other stories totally unrelated to the first story.  Patience can be a virtue.  "If you wait a bit, the story will come through the front door.   And sometimes it will go out the back door before you notice".    I noticed this one.

A week or so ago an email came from Mike Tymn in Hawaii about the recent passing of a U. of Hawaii runner named  Al Birtles.  Al was a Canadian and had come to Hawaii on a basketball scholarship and had been on two Canadian Olympic teams (1960 and 1964)  in that sport.  

Al Birtles on left with track mates at U of Hawaii

                                                   Al  #12 on Canadian Olympic Team  Year??   1960 or 1964

But while in Honolulu, he took up the noble sport of track and field an became and outstanding miler at 6' 6" and over 180 pounds managed to run a 4:06 mile in his career.  He was affectionately called "Turkey" for his unusual running style.    Al passed away recently in Vancouver, British Columbia where for most of his life he had worked as a longshoreman.   The name did not ring any bells initially, but then Mike mentioned that Al  had finished second to 

                             Al at Work as a Longshoreman in Vancouver, His Profession for 30 Years

Tom O'Hara in the 1963 NCAA Small College Division mile held at the University of Chicago.  'Small College Division' was what is now known as D III.   That mention of finishing second to O' Hara at the U. of Chicago, started the rusty hamster wheels to begin turning in the recesses of my brain .   The reason they turned is that  I had witnessed that race between Birtles and O' Hara, and I distinctly remembered the stature of the Hawaiian who dogged the great Tom O'Hara up until the late stages of that race.  O' Hara ran 4:02 that day and Birtles ran 4:06.  I also recalled Al wore a dark green singlet and shorts.  Don't ask me why, I have no answer. I would soon learn the error in my thinking about that uniform.    I had never seen anyone that tall run that well , and I bet most of our readers haven't either. 

I was curious to know if Al had ever run in Canada.  All our info so far had been about races in the US.  So who better to ask than Bruce Kidd, the great Canadian distance runner of the early to mid 1960's.  Here is Bruce's reply along with one he got from the other great 60's Canadian middle distance man Bill Crothers.

George,

I’m very sorry to hear that Al has passed. I congratulate and thank you for digging up so much about him.

Although we’d lost touch, I knew him pretty well in the early 1960s, when he came to Toronto and trained for several summers with the East York Track Club under Fred Foot. I also spent a memorable day with him in the fall of 1962 when the Canadian team for the 1962 British Empire and Commonwealth Games stopped over in Honolulu en route to Perth, Australia, and then we were teammates at the  1964 Olympics in Tokyo when he was on the basketball team. He was a wonderful training partner, fierce competitor and fun to be with. Your photos brought back a lot of memories. I’m copying Bill Crothers and Brad Hill who may also have some memories.

I briefly looked at the Globe and Mail this morning to refresh my failing memory. Al ran a number of races here, and might have made the Canadian team for the BE and Commonwealth Games in 1962 in the mile if he had not been jostled off the track. My favourite memory of him is in a distance medley relay at the US championships in Buffalo, where Al ran the ¾. He overcame a huge lead by the NY Athletic Club, and we (Dave Bailey ran the 880, Jim Snider the 440 and I ran the mile) set a meet record. Sadly, neither Dave nor Jim are still with us either.

 With all best wishes,

Bruce Kidd

And from Bill Crothers:

George
You asked if any of us knew Al Birtles.   Yes, he trained with us for a while, and I ran with and against him on a couple of occasions.  What I remember most about him was his size.  He was very tall for a runner - didn’t look  smooth, but he could run
Bill Crothers

I noticed this morning that one of our regular readers and contributors, Darryl Taylor, ran for Long Beach State and got 3rd in the 880 that same day.  Here is Darryl's response to my request for a comment.

George-that brings back memories of Ralph Lee and I, placing 1st and 3rd in the 880 while sweating buckets in nearly 100% humidity after a mostly sleepless night lying in bed with sweat coming out of every pore until at      3-4:00 am we  soaked our sheets in the shower and found some relief followed by   3-4 hours of restless sleep. BTW-Ralph took the victory, passing me in the final 50 yards as I wilted like never before! I swore that I would NEVER race in Chicago again!

Darryl also referred to travelling up to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan (Canada) in the middle of winter to run some relays.   After that Midwest storm last week, I'm sure a few of you can relate.

George/Roy-Just a couple more comments here:  While in Saskatoon I experienced for the first time:

Stepping outside our hotel and feeling "instantly" freezing cold regardless of how bundled up I was.

First time watching locals immediately "plugging in" their cars after parking at the store for a bit of shopping to keep the engine from freezing at 30 below ZERO!!

First time being asked what Huntington Beach was like and answering that the surf line was full of surfers as we made our way to LAX and pretty much being told that I truly must be telling a lie! (Very much good heartedly)

First time, if memory serves running on a 12 laps to a mile indoor track, spinning round and round and round.

First time running faster than a current World Record holder, as Bob Seagran, ran the opening leg for USC, hitting 2:01.0. 

Here is what I wrote in my training log, you'll recognize all the names mentioned:

There were flight delays out of LAX, arriving in Edmanton at 1:30 and bed at 2:30AM.  Up at 7:00AM, UGH, for flight to Saskatoon,

arriving at  11:00 local time. I slept 4 hours until 6:00 then up to the arena to run at 10:30PM in 2Mile Relay.  Leon Webster led off 

in 1:57.6 and a 10 yard lead over Canada, USC (Bob Seagren running 2:01.0) for the Trojans, with UTEP in 4th. George Scott 

carried 2nd and gained another 10 yards yards with USC moving up.  Dave Perry next ran 1:59.0  and Canada ripped a 40 yard

lead off Ray Haswell's 1:54.0 as USC's Neil Duggan and I took the baton side by side. Since I wasn't feeling all that great, I took 

off cautiously in 2nd place for 1-1/2 laps before Duggan passed me.   I tucked in right behind Duggan, where I stayed for 4 laps.

I never felt bad so as soon as he slowed on the last lap I passed him easily, hitting 1:55.7 for 2nd place behind Canada's winning

7:45.5, our time at 7:48.2. Leon won the 880  in 1:54.1 and brought home an Omega stopwatch.  Up all night sick-sick-sick; flew 

to Vancouver at midnight then to Portland and LA. Travel was a nightmare but still a good experience into COLD country.

Our team won the 2M Relay the year before in 7:40.2 and we all  came home with a beautiful OMEGA stopwatch. 

    Darnell Mitchell-1:56.3  Ray Haswell-1:55.1  Taylor-1:55.6  Preston Davis-1:53.2

In the Open 880:  Crothers-1:53,7  Trentadue-1:54.7  Taylor-1:54.7  Criunican-1:54.9   Cook-1:54.9 for a mass scramble behind

Crothers.

Enjoyed three trips to Saskatoon, all late December between Christmas and New Years. Did Not enjoy the travel getting there and back home.  

Darryl

Darryl

from John Perry,  Darryl's teammate on that relay in Saskatoon

George,

The track was tiny..it was 13 laps to the mile. Jere Van Dyke was a Freshnan at Oregon and this was his “break thru” race. I was second and Bill Crothers was third. Fun time, we went out with the Canadians after the meet and had our first taste of Canadian whiskey. Great experience. 

John Perry

Clipping below from Saskatoon

And from Bill Schnier:

   I had not heard of Al Birtles but I'm glad you informed us.  Other items along the way are worth mentioning.  With the demise of College and University divisions in 1973 to form Divisions I, II, and III, I would say that the College Division teams were more like Division II since many had scholarships.  The 1973 rule mandated that the new Division III would not offer scholarships so those schools went in two directions, some now being II and some now being III.

   I recognized several names:  Bill Heller (Ohio), Darnell Mitchell (Ohio), Morgan Groth (OSU, coached by Sam Bell), and two runners from San Jose State (Speed City) where I did not realize they had distance runners.

   I loved the pictures of the Chicago race, probably run at UC and the large stands left over from Big 10 days, underneath housing the Manhattan Project.

  With poly tracks, advanced shoes, and more good runners, I wonder what his "converted" time would be today.  I estimate 3:57.

 Bill:  To me the fact that he could go from basketball to running a 4:06 on cinders is truly a one of a kind athletic performance and also with his size and weight.   George

A week later  Birtles went to Albuquerque, NM to compete in the NCAA University Division (D I) championships and finished 7th.  No time given.  O' Hara won that race as well, but in a highly unusual case was DQ'd for a lane violation.  

                                              The 1963 NCAA University Mile Results

Among the many contacts I've made through this blog the last fifteen years, I thought of a gentleman in the Boston area, Ned Price might have some more info on that Chicago race.  Ned is an ardent photographer,  resided at the University of Chicago in 1963, and has an incredible memory and loves sharing stories.  So I contacted Ned to see what he might have in the archives.  Here is what Ned provided.   

                       That Mile Race in Chicago June, 1963  NCAA Small College Div.  (DIII)

O'Hara leading,  ( 2nd Unk) and Al Birtles

I'm guessing backstretch, second lap. GB

O'Hara and Birtles  again I'm guessing  2nd turn, third lap GB

ed. note.   Tom O'Hara was frequently referred to as a 'skinny little runner'.  Anyone looking at this picture can clearly see that he may have been short, but he was definitely well constructed.

                              O'Hara Approaching The Finish Line Although the Line in Picture 

                                                                   Is Not Attached.  

  I was sitting in those stands when this picture was taken,  but don't ask me if I'm in the picture.   GB

Did you notice the error in my memory?   I mention above that I thought Birtles was wearing a dark green uniform.  Not so.    Call our next witness. 

I actually have no other witnesses, but I do have other sources regarding the University or Division I race the next week in Albuquerque where both runners again competed.   Rich Ceronie a member of the coaching staff at U. of New Mexico has just finished a three volume history of  U. of New Mexico track and field and cross country. (see note at end of this article)  Where else to find the answer to O'Hara's disqualification after winning the NCAA big school mile?  Here is what I received from Rich.  

George

"I am attaching four documents. I found newspaper/documents in my files that spoke about the DQ and your memory was good. But there were too many lines on the track and that caused the problems. Even before the meet began there had been a protest about the 20 college division athletes who were entered. They tried to get them all thrown out. Birtles finished fifth in the heat of the mile and I can't find any result that showed him finishing 7^th in the final. The meet program didn't list the qualification system being used so it would have been strange for someone who finished fifth in the trial to advance. Not that he didn't but for some reason the results just don't have him listed in the final."

Rich

Hmm?  Was he or wasn't he in the race?

Here are the clippings from Rich.

                                             

                                       Entries in the Mile  NCAA University Div. 1963

                    Note that Birtles is only credited with a 4:10.5 mile, not his 4:06 the week prior.

Walt Mizell wrote in and noted that Jerome McFadden from Missouri was entered with a 4:05.5 time but didn't make it to the finals.   I asked Jerome if he went to the meet.  He responded that he had not, because he was accepted to join the Peace Corps and training for that started at the same time as the NCAA meet.  He just couldn't give up the chance to be a track coach in Morocco.  And he would also meet his future wife while there.    In those days there was no mention of qualifying times.  Your coach decided if he had anything left in the budget to take you to nationals.  George

                                                            Friday  June 14, 1963 Results NCAA

                                                           Saturday June 15, 1963 Results

                                                                  TF&N ?  Results

More thoughts on Al Birtles came in to me from Mike Southwood in Virginia, a former teammate at U. of Hawaii.    Here are his notes on Al Birtles from 1961-1964.

  These are the Notes (1961-64) about the Track and Field Career of Allan Birtles (1937-2024) based primarily on my Hawaii T&F/Running clippings file that runs from the 1909/1910 period to the late 1970s.  As I recall, the Territory of Hawaii was granted membership in the Amateur Athletic Union (1888) of the United States around November 1910 and the first Hawaiian AAU meet was held a few months later in 1911.  Based on my research, the first University of Hawaii (UH) Rainbow Relays were held in 1925- Otto Klum (best known as the UH football coach) and some of the Honolulu sportswriters envisioned the Rainbow Relays as the Penn Relays of the Pacific.  If I'm not mistaken, the first Relay meet in the Territory was Punahou School's Cornell Relays (before WWI).  

----Introduction/1961----

   In an article about "Super Stars of the 60's" sportswriter Monte Ito told his readers that Al Birtles, a Canadian athlete from Vancouver, was "Hawaii's outstanding track and field performer for the 1960s" (Honolulu Advertiser, February 18, 1970, p. E5).  At the University of Hawaii (UH), Birtles played basketball and ran track for coach Moses Ome, who ranked Birtles as "one of the most outstanding track athletes we've had at the University."  Ito noted that Birtles' two Hawaiian Amateur Athletic Union (HAAU) records, 1:51.8 for the half-mile (1963) and 4:09.7 for the mile (1964) remained unbroken through early 1970.  In 1962, Birtles tried out for the British Empire Games and clocked an impressive 4:03.9 in the Canadian trials.  The following year, Birtles represented UH in the NCAA Small College meet at the University of Chicago, finishing second (4:06) in the mile to Tom O'Hara (4:02).  Both runners bettered the Stagg Stadium mile record set by Glenn Cunningham.  In 1964, Birtles did not make the Canadian Olympic team in track, but he earned a spot on the basketball roster.

   In the Hawaiian AAU Olympic Benefit Meet on April 15, 1961, at Alexander Field, Punahou School, the Sunday Advertiser (April 16, 1961, C1) reported that Al Birtles (AB) ran for UH in two events.  In the mile, Ernie Cunliffe of Stanford broke the tape in 4:09.8, followed by AB in second (4:36.8).  In the 880, Cunliffe finished first (1:51.8), followed by UH's Sai Lit Ching (1:59.4) and AB, third (no time reported).

   Birtles ran on two teams in the 1961 UH Rainbow Relays at Alexander Field on May 20th (Honolulu Advertiser, May 21, 1961, pp. C1, C4; and Sunday Star-Bulletin, May 21, 1961, Sports, p. 4).  In the 2-Mile Relay, the UH quartet (Artemio Paz, Sai Lit Ching, Robert Funes, AB) came in first (8:04.8).  Birtles also anchored UH's victorious 4-Mile Relay team (19:05.2), comprised of John Lee, Ricky Dodge, Rodney Anzai, and AB.  For his role in anchoring two first-place relays, the 24-year-old Birtles, who was also on the UH basketball team, was selected as the meet's Outstanding Athlete.

   For the HAAU T&F Championships of 1961 (May 27) at Alexander Field, Monte Ito's article was titled, "Birtles Shatters Isle Mile Record" (Sunday Advertiser, May 28, 1961, C2; Sunday Star-Bulletin, May 28, 1961, Sports, p. 2).  AB captured the mile in 4:24.8, setting a new HAAU record, breaking the old one (4:26.5) set in 1957.  AB also prevailed in the half-mile (1:58.2).  The Results also show that AB finished fourth in the Discus (distance not listed).  Lyle Nelson of the Star-Bulletin added that AB threw the Javelin (did not score) and "ran a fine, but frustrating, anchor for the [second place] UH Mile Relay team.  The Advertiser coverage of the meet included a photo, "Birtles scores close 880 victory."

----1962----

  Two special races (half-mile and 2-mile), featuring New Zealand Olympic Games Medalists were held at Alexander Field in mid-May 1962 during the Hawaii State high school track and field championships (Lyle Nelson, "Snell Runs 1:47.8 in Half-Mile," Honolulu Star-Bulletin, May 13, 1962, Sports, pp 1,3).   In the exhibition 880-yd event, Peter Snell, defending 800m Olympic champion, sped to a Hawaiian AAU Guest record time (1:47.8) and was followed by UH's Sai Lit Ching (1:56.1).  Birtles edged former UH runner Harold "Ky" Cole of the Spikesters for third.  Looking back on his Guest record effort, Snell remembered he was "anxious for a good time [and] hurtled in a good first lap of 52 seconds and hung on to finish in 1:47.8, 8.2 seconds ahead of the next runner [Sai Lit Ching] and breaking [the] Hawaiian [Guest] record of 1:50" (Peter Snell and Garth Gilmour, "No Bugles, No Drums" (Auckland: Minerva, 1965), p. 115).  Birtles also ran in the special two-mile, finishing second (9:49) to Barry Magee (9:10.5), who also set an HAAU Guest record, bettering the old one (9:39.4) set by Lowell Zeller of Indiana University in 1956.  Magee earned Bronze in the 1960 (Rome) Olympic Marathon (David Maraniss, "Rome 1960: The Olympics that Changed the World" (New York:  Simon and Schuster, 2008), pp. 378-79).  In the Hawaii state high school meet, future UH middle distance runner (later transferred to Oregon University to run under Bill Bowerman) Brian Clarke set a new record in the mile (4:28.3) (Brian Clarke, "Running by Feeling: A Year on the Comeback Trail" (Honolulu: Competitive Running Press, 1999), pp. 26-30, 79, 92-96, 108-9, 149-50, 185-88, 190-92, 261-62, 285-86).

   In 1962, the UH Rainbow Relays were held at Alexander Field on May 19.  Monte Ito covered the Relays for the Sunday Advertiser (May 20, 1962, C3; Sunday Star-Bulletin, May 20, 1962, Sports, p. 1).  Birtles anchored the UH 2-Mile relay squad to a first place finish (8:03.6).  Other runners were Leroy Wong, Karl Van Etten, and Sai Lit Ching.  The UH foursome (Gary Ho, Sai Lit Ching, Jack Wilkerson, AB) set a new record (4:36.7) in the Medley Relay (220, 660, 440,880).  The old record of 4:40 set in 1958 was held by the 25th Infantry Division.  The Star-Bulletin included a photo, "Sai Lit Ching hands off to Al Birtles in anchor lap as University two-mile relay beat Spikesters in thriller."  In its comment about the second place UH mile relay team, the Star-Bulletin writer observed "Ching and Birtles were shot by the time the last [running] event came around." The meet's Outstanding Civilian Performer award went to UH's Sai Lit Ching.

   The 1962 HAAU T&F Championships were conducted at Alexander Field in late May (Sunday Advertiser, May 27, 1961, p. C1).  New Zealand's Murray Halberg [Olympic Gold Medalist 5,000m, Rome 1960] and John Davies [Olympic Bronze Medalist, 1500m, Tokyo 1964] competed as Guests.  In the mile, Birtles ran an impressive second (4:13) to Davies (4:11.6).  Since Davies was a guest athlete, Birtles was awarded the HAAU gold medal and his time established a new Hawaiian record, bettering his own 4:23.7 earlier in the year on April 14.  In the 2-mile, Olympian Murray Halberg ran a 9:03 to take first and Birtles took second (9:49).  The Advertiser observed that "Halberg lapped the field except for [Harold] Cole [holder of the HAAU record] and Birtles," who edged Cole for the HAAU gold medal.  In the Sunday Star-Bulletin (May 27, 1962) writer Lyle Nelson headlined his story:  "Al Birtles Runs 4:13 Mile."  The meet's mile and two-mile races are discussed (p. 152) in "A Clean Pair of Heels: The Murray Halberg Story" as told to Garth Gilmour (Wellington and Auckland: A H and A W Reed, 1963:  "John [Davies] won a mile race in 4:11 from the giant six-foot-six Al Birtles, a one-time Canadian basketball star; and I lowered Barry Magee's brand-new Hawaiian record to 9:03" (p. 152). 

----Notes (1963)----

   On Monday, May 13, 1963, the Hawaiian AAU held a special meet at "drizzly" Alexander Field, an event that featured New Zealand's Peter Snell, who captured the 800m Gold Medal at the Rome Olympics in 1960 (Bill Kwon, "Snell Runs Half Mile Exhibition in 1:49.5," Honolulu Star-Bulletin, May 14, 1963, p.29).  In the 880, Snell was followed by UH's Al Birtles who finished in 1:51.8, a new Hawaiian AAU record, breaking the old mark (1:52.7) set in 1957.

   Although the Armed Forces captured the UH Rainbow Relays team title in 1963, Al Birtles anchored three UH squads to first-place finishes (Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, May 19, 1963, C-3).  In the 2-Mile relay, the UH team broke eight minutes (7:59.8) for the event with runners Dave Jackson, Gary Smith, Brian Clarke, AB).  In the Medley Relay (220, 660, 440, 880), the UH team (George Butterfield, Karl Van Etten, Jim Sanders, AB) stopped the clock with 4:37.4.  In the 4-Mile relay, the UH team of George Simao, Clarke, Jackson, and AB set a new meet record (18:17.8), retiring the old mark (18:49.4) set by the Marines in 1957.  For his key role in leading UH to three relay victories, Birtles received the meet's Outstanding Civilian Performer Trophy.

  After UH's fine showing at its Rainbow Relays, "Birtles, A Courageous Runner" was the lead story for Monte Ito's "Sports Notebook" column (Honolulu Advertiser, Monday May 20, 1963, B7).  Ito called AB "Courageous" for his anchoring three first-place UH teams at the Rainbow Relays and for finishing second to New Zealand's Peter Snell in the 880-yard race the previous Monday.  Ito informed his readers that AB's "best 880 came last Monday  (1:51.8) when he chased Peter Snell of New Zealand across the finish line in a special AAU meet."  

   The 1963 Hawaiian AAU T&F Championships were held at Alexander Field on May 25th (Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, May 26, 1963, C3).  Birtles raced to a first-place mile finish in 4:20.3.  In the meet's final event, the mile relay, Birtles anchored the UH team to a 3:23.4 triumph.  Other members of the team were George Butterfield, Francis Souza, and Al Nash.

   In early June 1963, Birtles represented UH at the NCAA Small College meet at the University of Chicago (Chicago Tribune, June 8, 1963, Section 2, p. 2 and June 9, Section 2, p. 1; Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, June 9, 1963, C1).  In the Trials, Tom O'Hara of Loyola notched the top time (4:12.3) and AB was among the qualifiers for the mile final.  In the championship race, O'Hara placed first (4:02.5) and Birtles came in second (4:06).  Both runners clocked times faster than the Stagg Stadium record set by Glenn Cunningham.  In its coverage of the Small College event, the Honolulu press noted that AB planned to run in the NCAA T&F Championships to be held later in the month.

   In mid-June, Birtles traveled to Albuquerque, New Mexico, to compete for an NCAA mile title (Los Angeles Times, June 15, 1963, Part II, pp. 1,2; and Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, June 16, 1963, C4).  For the mile final, two heats were held, with the top six from each heat qualifying for the championship race.  Birtles qualified for the final, finishing fifth (4:14.2) in his heat.  In the final, Birtles did not place among the scorers.  The Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser (June 16) carried a post-race photo of Birtles at the University of New Mexico Student Union.

-----1964----

   In late March 1964, the Hawaii Marines staged their Invitational Track and Field Meet at Alexander Field.  The meet's featured guest was C K Yang [Silver Medalist in the Decathlon, Rome Olympics] (Sunday Star-Bulletin, March 29, 1964, p. C1).  The Star-Bulletin writer commented that running times and field marks were impacted by "a prevailing crosswind which reached a speed of 25 miles an hour during most of the afternoon" and the previous week's "heavy rains." For his victories in the mile (4:25.4), half-mile (1:59.6), and anchoring UH's first place (3:27.7) mile relay squad (Richard Sawyer, George Butterfield, Al Nash), Al Birtles was recognized as the meet's Outstanding Performer.

   The Hawaiian AAU All-Comers meet was held on May 9, 1964 at Alexander Field (Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, May 10, 1964, C2).  Al Birtles won the mile (4:17.2).  With Birtles running the anchor leg, UH won the Sprint Medley Relay (440, 220, 220, 880) in 3:35.7.  Other members of the team were Dick Sawyer, Al Nash, and George Butterfield.

   Although the Hawaii Marines won the 1964 Rainbow Relays team crown, Al Birtles and the UH Medley Relay (220, 660, 440, 880) team sparkled with a record-setting effort (Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, May 17, 1964, C2; Monte Ito, "Now Hear This!" column, Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, May 24, 1964).  In the Medley Relay, UH's William Affonso, Francis Souza, Robert Frye, and Birtles ran to a new record (4:34.8), bettering the time (4:36.7) put up by UH two years earlier.  This article includes a photo showing the UH Medley relay team, holders of the new Relays record.  Birtles again was selected as the meet's Outstanding Civilian Performer.

   On Wednesday, May 20, hurdles trials (for the Hawaiian AAU T&F championship meet) and the HAAU 6-Mile run final were held at Alexander Field (Honolulu Advertiser, May 21, 1964, B6).  Al Birtles was among the 11 entrants (10 finished) who toed the line for the 6-Mile.  Former UH thinclad and veteran road-runner Harold "Ky" Cole of the Spikesters set a new Hawaiian record (31:21.1) with Birtles coming in second (no time given).

   The 53d annual HAAU T&F Championships were held at Alexander Field in late May ("Birtles Wins Mile in Fast Time of 4:09.7," Sunday Star-Bulletin and Advertiser, May 31, 1964, C1.  In his final HAAU championship mile, Birtles blazed to a sub-4:10 clocking, winning in 4:09.7, breaking his old record (4:12.9) set in 1963.  In the half-mile, Brandon Black of the Marines won in 1:53.5 and AB earned a Bronze medal (no time reported).

Strangely almost no one in Canada seems to remember that Al Birtles was an outstanding runner in his time at the University of Hawaii.  I'm not sure if he ever ran a race in Canada  although he may have tried out for the Olympic team in 1964, he already had a place on the basketball team.  

George Brose with great  help from Mike Tymn, Mike Southwood, Ned Price, and Rich Ceronie, Bruce Kidd, Darryl Taylor, and Bill Crothers.