NAME: George Otto
E-MAIL ADDRESS: george-otto@psu.edu
BIRTH-DATE: 6/5/56
E-MAIL ADDRESS: george-otto@psu.edu
HOMETOWN (ORIGINALLY): Dallas, PA
WHERE I LIVE NOW: State College - since 1975
WHAT I DO IN LIFE AS WE KNOW IT: raise my kids, work at PSU (Manage
Visualization Group at CAC), try to enjoy life in general
NON-RUNNING HOBBIES OR INTERESTS: I enjoy several; am fanatical about
none: travel, skiing, golf, swimming, biking, gardening, fly-fishing, reading
A FAVORITE BOOK, MOVIE, TV OR RADIO SHOW: book: To Kill a Mockingbird
Movies that come to mind: English Patient, Blade Runner, Brazil, Fried
Green Tomatoes
TV: ? - maybe Cheers
Radio: NPR in the car
IF I COULD CHOOSE MY OWN NICKNAME OR EPITAPH:
Nickname: Sparky (Hey, you don't get to pick your own nickname anyway)
Epitaph: "On the other side of fear is freedom" (Actually, it's
just a saying that's been rattling around recently, but it is catchy).
Another possibility: "You need to know the difference between kneeling
down and bending over" (which I've seen attributed to Frank Zappa).
I STARTED RUNNING (WHEN, WHERE, HOW...): I started a couple of years
(and a few pounds) ago after a long layoff and too much idle time in front
of a workstation. How? - purple-faced and exhausted after 20 minutes of
slow jogging around the neighborhood.
AVERAGE MILES PER WEEK: 20-25
A TYPICAL TRAINING WEEK: hard/easy lunchtime runs during the week -
at least one speed or hill day - Saturday off - long run on Sunday (most
recent about 14 miles).
PREFERRED RACE OR RACING DISTANCE: 10K, 15K
NUMBER OF RACES PER YEAR: 6 - 8
A GOOD 10K TIME FOR ME WOULD BE: 43 minutes would be a very good time
for me ;-)
52 minutes would be realistic good time for me :-(
WHY I RUN: I run because I feel better when I run - head-clearing,
stress-busting, gut trimming, endorphin brimming, time outside with myself
- all of which carry over into other things that I do.
PEOPLE MIGHT BE SURPRISED TO LEARN THAT: The longest documented hair
belongs to Mata Jagdamba of Ujjain, India. Her hair measured 13 ft. 10
1/2 in. on February 21, 1994...Then again, maybe not.
submitted July 1999
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