From Peter Taylor, USATF National Masters Meet Announcer and Media Committee Member:

Masters track and field in the U.S. is now so strong that many of the competitors look and perform like collegians. At the 2007 USA Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships in Boston this Friday through Sunday at the Reggie Lewis Center, there will be many sprinters who would fill out many of today's collegiate teams very nicely. In the M30 (men 30-34) group, Antwon Dussett, who ran a shocking 46.98 in the 400 last year at the masters outdoors, heads a strong group of dash men. In M35, Sean Maye (37, out of Brigham Young University) is the 200m indoor record holder with a scorching 22.02 and will be tough to beat in that event. As for M40, Robert Thomas (Indiana) already has a record-breaking indoor time of 49.60 for the 400 this year and will endeavor to complete an unheard-of sweep in the 60 through 800.

Winning the 60 and 200 in M40 will be brutal, however, as Aaron Thigpen (Brentwood, Calif.) has become "the man" in the short sprints, turning in a brilliant time of 10.73 in the 100 last summer. Aaron, a member of 11 U.S. national teams, would look great on most of the collegiate squads in New England. In M35, Don Drummond (Texas) is a heavy favorite to win the 60 hurdles and is also in the 60 dash. Don has won the outdoor 110 hurdles every year since 2000 and ran 53.36 in the 400 hurdles last year in Guatemala. In M45, masters competition Michael Sullivan has already shown great promise. The former All-American at Arizona State knows what it's like to run in a big-time program and hopes to win the 400.

Among the women "collegians," Joy Upshaw-Margerum (California), the national outdoor champ in the 100, 200, and 80 hurdles (W45), and coach of her Olympic long jumper sister, Grace, will be the favorite in every event she enters and would immensely strengthen any collegiate team in Massachusetts (Joy ran 26.48 in the outdoor 200 last year). In W35, world champion Lisa Daley will be a heavy favorite in the 200 and 400 - she ran 25.17 and 56.03 at the worlds in 2005. Even the M55 favorite, Bill Collins of Houston, Texas, could help an NCAA Division III team. Bill's record in the M55 200 is 23.36 (Collins was an All-American at Texas Christian University and was a member of the U.S. squad that ran a world mark of 38.03 in the 4x100 in Dusseldorf, Germany).

On the women's side, hard-hitting Kathy Martin (Northport, N.Y.) has already obliterated the indoor mile mark for W55 (recently blazed a 5:19.87) and would suit many a college squad perfectly. Even in W60, Phil Raschker (known to some as "All World") would help out; Phil was a Sullivan Award finalist in 2004 and will tear up every sprint, hurdle and jump in sight. And can you believe it, Nadine O'Connor (W65), of California, is posting marks that many collegians would envy. Nadine pole vaulted an unheard of 10' 2 ¾" last year at age 64 and holds the American 60-64 mark outdoors in the 200 at an unthinkable 29.09. Also in W65, Marie-Louise Michelson (professor of mathematics, State University of New York - Stony Brook) is an absolute standout. Marie-Louise is a multiple world champion and as recently as 2002 ran an absurdly fast 5:32.82 in the 1500.

Need a pole vaulter? How about Indiana's Gary Hunter, who will try to better his record of 15' 3" - Gary is in the 50-54 group (M50). From Oregon, John Altendorf will be in Boston to try to break his mark in M60 of 12' 11 ¾" -- the small colleges would welcome John.

Want a high jumper to win some points for your college? What about Patricia "Trish" Porter (the former Trish King, from Albuquerque, NM); yes, she is the same Trish King who was a 1988 Olympian. Trish has the W40 world standard of 5' 9 1/4" and should prevail at Boston with no problem. Or try M50 favorite Jim Barrineau (Burke, Virginia) who competed in the high jump for the US at Montreal (1976 Olympics).

Want to go way up the ladder? Mel Larsen (M80) from Iowa, should run the competition ragged in his age group. In the 2005 world masters championships in Spain, Mel ran an ungodly 14.99 in the 100-meter dash; his time in the 80-m hurdles was 14.75 (both efforts won gold). Going even farther up, consider Bob Matteson, still a management consultant at 91, who will look to set records in M90 every time he steps on the track; Bob is from Bennington, Vermont, and has a pending indoor American mark of 44.62 in the 200. Bob may not even win the M90 60 dash, however, as Reverend Champion Goldy (Haddonfield, NJ) just turned 90 this winter and has speed to burn.

For more information in teh 2007 USA Masters Indoor Track & Field Championships, visit www.usatf.org