Well folks, this is the final post I will place for the class I am taking at UIUC, so I wanted it to be a good one. In this post I am going to talk a little about Dr. Matthew Sakiestewa Gilbert’s Hopi Footraces article. Dr. Gilbert is the professor for the class with which this blog is associated. I will attach a link to his page for those that would like to learn more about this topic, and of many others he has written. In his paper about the Hopi Footracers, he tells us the story of some of the best known Hopi Marathon Runners in history. So as not to spoil the entire article for you, I am only going to introduce the first of it. In the LA Times first Pre-Olympic Marathon, two unexpected runners took to the lines: Guy Maktima and Phillip Zeyouma, who were referred to as “The Little Hopis” because they were much smaller than the traditional marathon runners that LA was used to. One of the journalists even noted that Zeyouma wore moccasins that were made for him by the women on the reservation. From the beginning they were simply laughed at, but when they began to come up towards the lead, the situation in the crowd changed. Zeyouma took the lead and finished the race the race over 200 feet in front of the second place runner. As he waited for the rest he had a grin on his face and took the attitude of someone who was used to winning races, though this was the first western marathon he had ever competed in. Zeyouma, a Hopi from the Sherman Institute, had secured his invitation to the Olympics to run along side another very well-known Hopi runner, Louis Tewanima from Carlisle School, for the showdown between the two Hopis. The Olympic showdown did not occur as everyone was waiting for, but instead, the two runners got their shot at each other on the reservation. But that’s another story. To read more go to Professor Gilbert’s Blog: http://beyondthemesas.com *The Hopi Runner article is on the right hand side of the blog.*
Thanks to all that have enjoyed my blogs, and have a wonderful holiday season.
theonitus 