Letters
Pat Summitt sounds more like Bobby Knight than John Wooden.
--Dave Bell, Coral Gables, Fla.
THE COACH
Gary Smith's article on Tennessee coach Pat Summitt (Eyes of the
Storm, March 2) brought tears to my eyes and sent chills of
emotion down my spine. And I'm not even a women's basketball fan.
Roy J. Cobb, Maplewood, N.J.
As a former teacher and coach, it is so refreshing to know that
the Pats are still out there. Society needs more people like
her--people who have the courage to stand up for their beliefs.
Yes, I would vote for her for president.
Sam Mills, Las Vegas
I wish athletes everywhere could have such a coach, such a
person to enable them to push their limits ever outward.
Keith A. Borders, Carrboro, N.C.
This is the best piece of sportswriting I have ever read.
Michel Di Capua, Hollywood, Fla.
I was shocked to read about the risks taken with the life of a
baby simply to get a recruiting edge and about driving down
roads at 90 mph as if this was something to be admired and
laughed over. I hope no one coaching young players sees
Summitt's methods as something to emulate.
Jon Walker, Fairfield, Conn.
Pat Summitt bullies her team manager because she thinks that her
practices are more important than his health. She abuses her
players physically. (There's no other characterization for an
all-night, 8 1/2-hour no-stops drive, 2 a.m. practices and
running her players with the intention of making them vomit.)
And you ask whether she's the best college basketball coach
since John Wooden?
Jim Skrydlak, Marietta, Ga.
SWIMSUIT ISSUE
Thank you for another sizzling Swimsuit Issue (Winter 1998). The
equator settings, El Nino talk and especially the weathergirls
article (It's Raining Weathergirls) gave this meteorology
student a much needed break from the snow and cold.
Cory Wolff, Grand Forks, N.Dak.
Topping the 1997 issue was not easy, but somehow you did it.
Gorgeous cover. Heidi Klum is quite a discovery.
Stephen Lee Roldan, Aiea, Hawaii
As a 54-year-old female confirmed heterosexual, and at the risk
of offending my feminist friends, I am a devoted fan of the
Swimsuit Issue. Why? To see those beautiful bodies inspires me
to keep running an average of seven miles a day and to lift
weights three times a week, all in the hope of offsetting gravity.
Henley F. Gabeau, Alexandria, Va.
I know that times change, but what has happened to the Swimsuit
Issue that I've always looked forward to? Why can't you see the
models' faces? Where are their radiant, healthy smiles? This
issue reminds me more of Cosmopolitan, right down to the ads and
that weathergirls fluff.
Frank P. Samora, Taos, N.Mex.
Bring back the girl next door who looks as though she has eaten
in the last day. The best-looking women were the athletes' wives.
John Svehla, Jarrettsville, Md.
The models are so scrawny they look as though their legs would
snap like twigs if they kicked a soccer ball. It would take two
of them to lift a basketball. If it wasn't for silicone, there
wouldn't be a hint of robustness about them.
Tony Mastrogiorgio, San Francisco
The models appeared anemic, the poses reminded me of cheap skin
magazines, and the landscape looked like there was a famine.
J.R. Pond, San Antonio
B/W PHOTO: LYNN JOHNSON/AURORA [Tyler Summitt, Richard Summitt and Pat Summitt]
THE SUMMITT SMILE
Much of the discussion on radio call-in shows here has concerned
your choice of cover shot and other pictures of Pat Summitt
(above, with son Tyler and father Richard). The unflattering
photos were intended, no doubt, to illustrate the intensity that
pushed Tennessee to a 30-0 regular-season record. Let me assure
you that Coach Summitt does have a warm smile. Too bad you
didn't show it.
Greg Grass, Knoxville, Tenn.