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Book Review: Life Lessons from Speed City

Posted: 24 Mar 2011 02:00 AM PDT

In almost 4 years of blogging, this site has numerous articles on the training and accomplishments of Bud Winter and Speed City. Athletes profiled include Lee Evans, Tommie Smith and John Carlos. And I know I am leaving out a lot.

Now it's time to take a closer look, and we're talking beyond Track and Field.

Let me ask you two questions:

What was it like to be an athlete at Speed City?

What were the late 1960's like with all the racial tensions going on? (sadly, this still exists today, and everywhere)

I am a visible minority and I can tell you my life was much different than the other kids in my class. I don't hold grudges against them (even though they are connected with me on Facebook) because I can tell you for a fact that racism is caused by two things:

Insecurity and Education

I've always said, "At the end of the day, your life will be about the friends you have, and the books you read". Basta!

Book Review: Life Lessons from Speed City

Jim Adkins is the author of the book Life Lessons from Speed City. He attended San Jose State University on an athletic scholarship at the same time as the other Speed City sprinters. He eventually earned his B.A. then did a M.A. in Education from Talbot Theological Seminary in La Mirada, CA. He is currently the President and co-founder of a non-profit organization called Let’s Talk USA! (NOTE: all profits of his book goes to this non-profit)

Just for the record, Jim is NOT African American. Below, he is pictured on the left next to Lee Evans and Bud Winter. (Photo by Dave Funderburk)

I had a chance to read the book and the first two-thirds of the book is Jim's story with the last third composing of rare hard-to-find full length interviews.

The book is a huge eye opener.

The book really goes behind the scenes of Speed City and Lee Evans.

And it explains what really went on at the 1968 200m medal ceremony.

There are several good memorable stories. One of which is the story of the picnic at Vasona Park, Los Gatos. That exact park was a place I used to go to when I worked in the Bay Area from 1999-2003. I never had a problem, 30 years after the fact. But that doesn't mean racism has ended. You can hear Jim's account of what happened in the bonus podcast interview below.

Another good story in the book was how a white teacher's expectations were different for Lee Evans as compared to Jim Adkins. When they both got the same grade, Lee's paper had an extra comment of "Good Job, Lee!!!" because the teacher didn't expect him to get that grade, and it was B minus!

You see, I believe this because I had the opposite effect growing up. When I got an 8 or 9 (out of 10), people expected me to get a 10 because I was Asian. Asians were supposed to be smart. Or know Kung Fu. Or both.

The book goes in detail about "nickname calling", which is common for young people to do, but a taboo in the different class systems. (I always refer social restriction or social stratification to the Indian Caste System). You'll have to read the book to find out Lee Evan's nickname.

After reading the book, you aren't meant to feel sorry for the guys at Speed City, although some of you might. Those guys didn't believe in supplements or carbs-to-protein ratios because they ate whatever they could find on limited funds. It was meant to be an eye opener. Some of the younger readers will say, "Gosh, did that really happen?"

The key message is:

WHAT PART WILL YOU PLAY IN ENDING RACISM?

The book at available at Amazon: Life Lessons from Speed City or directly at the Intermedia Publishing Group. I highly recommend it.

Bonus Podcast

Scott W. Craig's radio show is based out of Rapid City SD, and he had Jim Adkins on his show twice.

To get to know Jim Adkins better, and to hear some of the stories in the book, click on the podcast player below (Part 1 only) or download it to your mobile device. I'll post Part 2 of the radio show at a later date.

Presenter: Pastor Scott W. Craig with Jim Adkins
Broadcast Date: March 2011
Duration: 37:49
File Size: 25.4 Mb