Jym Clendenin's Home Page
See Jym's professional home page at the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory as it was on his retirement date (4/1/2008)--except entries not directly related to his professional career have been removed to My Main Site (this site). There is also a Google sites version of his professional home page. Only the Google sites version has the correct links to Jym's professional publications.
In 2016, the first km of the SLAC linac was removed in preparation for installation of a new superconducting linac for LCLS II. There is an interesting video of the removal. The video can also be seen on YouTube.
Browse oral histories of physicists here.
CONTENTS
Retirement
Running
Biking
Cooking and Drinking Society (CADS)
Backpacking
Swimming
Health
Norview High School Class of 1957
Talisker Literary Society (TLS)
Sidewalks on Santa Cruz Avenue
Jym's Decaversaries
Wine Imbibing and Noshing on Thursdays (WINOT or why not?)
Volunteer Reporter
RETIREMENT
Jym Clendenin retired from SLAC National Accelerator Labortory on April 1, 2008, just shy of the age of 69. Yes, on April Fool's Day! Jym first came to SLAC as a Research Associate ("post-doc") under Professor Vernon Hughes, Yale Physics Department, to work on a major high energy physics experiment. He subsequently joined the SLAC staff in June, 1979. Those were good years. Now he is exploring retired life.
RUNNING
Some of my racing highlights are presented in MY RESULTS TABLE.
Angell Field Ancients is an informal running group that meets (since the early 1960s) rain or shine M, Tu, Th, F at Angell Field (corner of Galvez and Campus Drive) at 12:15 and then runs more or less together 4-6 miles through campus or to the Dish. Any one regardless of speed or endurance is welcomed. Intervals on W at 12:20 at the Stadium track. Two sub-groups run in the Santa Cruz Mountains on Sunday mornings for 1 to 1.5 hours. Times and schedule of trails are announced weekly through the Ancients' email list. To find out more about the Ancients or to subscribe to the elist, go to https://mailman.stanford.edu/mailman/listinfo/angells . Detailed information about AFA activities present and past can be found on the AFA home page.
THE LAST PICTURE SHOW (Wednesday, Nov. 23, 2005). A couple days after the photo above was taken, deconstructed of the old Stanford Stadium began. It was rebuilt sans track in time for the 2006 football season. The Angell Field Ancients used this track for 30-40 years for intervals on Wednesdays at noon. I stopped doing intervals several years ago to save my knees, but I decided to go for the LAST INTERVALS on the Stadium track . I'm standing in front row, a little to right of center, wearing a red hat (black was the called-for color of the day, but I didn't have anything black)
The SLAC Run has been held annually in the late fall at SLAC since 1972. The course is perfectly flat and straight: out and back along the Klystron Gallery road, starting at the Sector 30 Gate, for a total of 3.81 miles. As of the 2011 Run, I have participated in 18 of these races, beginning in 1983. For SLAC Run results and photos (all years), go to the SLAC Run results.
The 41st Annual SLAC Run, Nov. 15, 2012. Shown above at the finish: Bobby McGee (age 63), Jym (73), Al Lisin (~82), Karl Bane (62), Franz-Joseph Decker (~55).
The 40th SLAC Annual Run, Nov. 17, 2011. Jym (age 72) nearing the finish with average 8:09.77 mile/min pace to finish 40th out of total of 80 runners. (Photo by Bob Traller)
The 38th SLAC Annual Run, Nov. 19, 2009. The winners in each category are shown. The oldest age category was 60 and over. Jym (age 70) was 3rd in that category (the winner was 60-year old Bobby (Tarzan) McKee, standing in back, no shirt, long hair). Jym, standing 5th from left, white hat, the winner of "Oldest Runner," was 37th out of 68 runners with a time of 30:37.3 (8:01.2 min/mi), beating his 2007 time (see below).
The 36th SLAC Annual Run, Nov. 15, 2007. The 2007 winners are shown above. Jym (standing on far right) was 1st (out of total 5) in Male 60+ Division. Jym's time was 31:18.84 min (8:11.84 min/mi), finishing 30th (out of total 62 runners) overall.
1. Larry Hyde/53/30:38/3/1
2. Karl Bane/60/37:20/6/10
3. James Clendenin/68/44:36/4/18
4. Ivan Gendzel/77/1:01:01/6/41
5. Don Carpenter/80/1:01:16/1/43 "A win is a win"
6. Charles Ammann/77/1:07:57/9/46
Recent Half-Marathons
Giant Half Marathon, San Francisco, September 7, 2014. The photo above was taken near Ft. Point, at about mile 7, with Golden Gate Bridge in background. Jym (age 75) finished in 2:15:42 or 10:21 min/mile, 1767th out of a total of 3728 runners or in top 53%, and among the 3 finishers 75 and older he was first! All Results.
U.S. Half Marathon, San Francisco, November 1, 2009. The photo above was taken in The Marina at about mile 12. The route included running from Aquatic Park over the Golden Gate Bridge and back. The weather was perfect, in the high 60s, initially foggy, then cleared up. The view from the bridge was breathtaking. Jym (age 70) came in 636th out of 2054 total runners (top 29.5%). He was also 1st in 70-79 males with a time of 1:56:40 and average pace of 8:55/mi. Actually he was the only runner M or F who was 70 or over. Isobel Fox finished 2nd in 50-59 age group with time of 1:46:41. Judy and Chuck met us at the finish. We walked over to nearby Fisherman's Wharf for a delightful lunch sitting outside in the sun. All Results.
10/6/2022 At the age of 100, Mike Fremont runs 5-10 miles three times a week. apple.news/Ad6kPzPGeRDmL1JCJH6iEPA
BIKING
Abundant Grace Coastside Worker 2022 Mini-Documentary
December 31, 2022. Bike mileage for 2022 = 5,132.6 mi.
December 21, 2021. Bike mileage for 2021 is over 5,000 miles! For 2020, 4,475 miles. Total of 9,475 miles. Combined with the Madone mileage (see below for March 7, 2020), that's 40,475 miles or about 1.6 times around the earth.
On my rented off-road bike in Grand Staircase-Esclante. Click on link below to read and see more about this adventure.
September 19-26, 2021. My Off-Road Biking Trip at Grand Staircase-Esclante, Utah. A shorter writeup describing this trip, "To Hell's Backbone& Back" has been published in the July 2022 issue of Cycle California. A shorter version of this writeup appears in the July 2022 issue of Cycle California.
March 7, 2020. Purchased a new bike (above)--a Trek Domane SL 5; and then the pandemic began! Retired the Madone at about 31,400 mi. Circumference of earth at equator is about 24,901 mi. So I rode the Madone around the earth about 1.26 times! How far will I get with the Domane?
I had to wait several days at Stanford Hospital for a surgical room to repair my hip and replace the joint. See link below.
On September 2, 2019 (Labor Day) At age 80, I had a major bike accident resulting in broken hip and hip joint. This accident precluded my participation in the Giant Half Marathon scheduled for a couple weeks later and for which I had trained.
I returned to biking in January, 2020, but the Trek Madone was having more and more problems, plus the issue of cracks in the carbon fibre frame was worrisome. So at the end of February I retired it, total mileage: 31,422 miles. See entry below for October 26, 2011. Note: Soon after purchasing the Madone, I set a goal of circling the globe at the equator (24,901 miles). I met that goal in early 2018.
Aug 12, 2019. At Amigos Grill following Jym's Birthday Ride
To Pee, or Not to Pee
Some of my biking friends have a tradition of doing a birthday ride: 1 mile and 100’ per year. I decided the elevation requirement was too much for an 80-year old, so yesterday (Monday, Aug 12th) my friend Bo and I did a flat 80-mile ride—actually it turned out to be 90 miles for me—south to Morgan Hill. The following is the story of how much liquid I drank during the trip, yet how I didn’t pee for over 15 hours.
I left home at 8 AM, after my morning coffee, and rode to Bo’s house 6 miles to the south. It was a clear, cool morning. We set off down the Central Expy. I suffer from BPH, so soon after a coffee I have to pee; I found some bushes that needed watering. Near the San Jose airport we got on the Guadalupe River bike trail, which took us through central San Jose. When we got to Curtner Ave, I used the bathroom inside the Oak Hill Cemetery Office (clean, very quiet), afterwhich we had a mid-morning coffee at a nearby Starbucks. It was still a comfortable temperature. We next got on Monterey Rd (the old 101) heading south—straight and boring. Eventually we could switch to the Coyote Creek Tr that parallels Monterey Rd. It was rapidly warming up. I found another bush on the trail at the small (abandoned?) airport that locals use for model airplane flying. Lunch at about mile 50 was at a new, large Starbucks on Cochrane Rd in Morgan Hill. I had a 12-oz orange juice (no more coffee) as well as a turkey sandwich and refilled my water bottle. About 1:30 PM we started north through the Coyote Valley on Hale Ave then Santa Teresa Blvd. Now it was getting really hot, eventually reaching about 95 F. There’s almost nothing on Santa Teresa Blvd except a few horse farms and no shade, so lots of heat radiating from the pavement. We got ice cream sandwiches at a vegetable market (Spina Farms) at the corner of Bailey Ave, then a fountain Pepsi (lots of ice) a little later at the Santa Teresa Golf Course, where we again refilled our water bottles. We then proceeded through Almaden on residential streets known only to Bo, eventually to Cox Ave in Saratoga. Another filling of water bottles at the Starbucks at Quito Center, then across the Mary Ave bike bridge and onto Foothills Expy. Arriving at the Town & Country shopping center about 4:30 PM, we decided to call our wives to meet us at the just reopened Alpine Inn (Zotts), the popular beer garden in the Portola Valley countryside established about 1850. That involved a couple extra hills on Arastradero Rd that doubled our total elevation gain to 2,800 ft. We made it by 5:30 only to discover that Zotts is closed on Mondays. So we loaded the bikes into or onto the cars and drove 2 miles north on Alpine Rd to Amigos Grill in Ladera. Now here’s the amazing thing. I had had no urge to pee since before lunch. At Amigos over the course of 2 hours I had 3 pints of beer (Sierra Nevada of course) along with a couple tacos and the usual beans and salad. Back home, I noted I was 2 lbs lighter that when I got up that morning. I drank at least 2 more pints of water before going to bed. Despite all this liquid, I did not have to pee again until about 3 AM, and this morning I’m still 2 lbs lighter. My Garmin claims that during the almost 7 hours of biking, I expended just over 4,000 calories (equivalent to a pound of fat).
Did I mention that my rear-end is sore?
My friend Bo Crane wrote an article about this bike trip, "80 at 80," that was published in the May 2020, issue of Cycle California.
August 20, 2016. Tour de Menlo. Anne and I did the 46 mi route. Check out this InMenlo.com article:
May 27, 2016. Dark Side of the Moon ride out of Holy City on the Old Santa Cruz Rd: we stop by The Mystery Spot.
Sept 18, 2015. Examining the hieroglyphics on Old La Honda Rd (west of Skyline Blvd).
October 26, 2011. Biked to Lick Observatory on top of Mt. Hamilton (4360') with Chuck . View beyond mirror is looking southwest past San Jose with Santa Cruz Mountains in distance (the San Francisco Bay is not visible to right). Now I'm riding my new Trek Madone 4.5 bike.
September 27, 2011. Jym above with his new TREK Madone 4.5, purchased at Chain Reaction in RWC.
June 13, 2009. Jym with new Trek "Path" bike (see above) at about mile 40, approaching Skyline Blvd from west on Tunitas Ck Rd (the western extension of Kings Mtn Rd) after riding from Stanford up Old La Honda Rd over Skyline down to the Pacific at San Gregario, then back east on Tunitas Ck Rd, total milage at end, 53 mi with 3800' elevation gain. Total time almost exactly 5 hrs.
COOKING AND DRINKING SOCIETY
A small group of men (4-6) in the Palo Alto area who enjoy cooking and drinking organized themselves in the spring of 2009 as CADS. We meet about once a month in the home of one of the members. The host plans and cooks the meal.
BACKPACKING
I have been backpacking in the Sierra Nevadas and other California locations since the 1980s. On my Backpacking page you will find planning information for future trips as well as stories of past trips and technical information including recipes.
SWIMMING
Avery Aquatic Center schedules. A Stanford ID is required. Bring your own suit and towel. Leave valuables at home.
HEALTH
Links relevant to health:
Can HDL Cholestrol Levels Be Too High? Updated 3/29/19
How To Save Your Knees Without Giving Up Your Workout, by Alex Hutchinson, NY Times (Nov. 19, 2021; updated Aug. 10, 2022)
How Much Water Do You Actually Need? by Cristie Aschwanden, NY Times (Sep 17, 2021, updated Sep 18, 2021, republished Jun 8, 2022)
How Exercise May Affect Our Alcohol Consumption, by Grechen Reynolds, NY Times (Dec 22, 2021, updated Dec 23, 2021)
The Health Benefits of Coffee, by Jane E. Brody, N.Y. Times (Jun 14, 2022)
Are You a Carboholic? Why Cutting Carbs is So Tough, by Gary Taubes, N.Y. Times (Jun 19, 2021)
A Birthday Milestone: Turning 80!, by Jane E. Brody, NY Times (May 17, 2021)
Do you really need to drink 8 glasses of water a day? An exercise scientist explains why your kidneys say 'no', Tamara Hew-Butler in The Conversation (4/21/2021)
COVID-19 Reveals How Obesity Harms the Body in Real Time, Not Just Over a Lifetime, by Cathrine Varney, U.VA Today (Nov. 9, 2020)
Think You Have 'Normal' Blood Pressure? Think Again, by Jane E. Brody, NY Times (Oct 19, 2020)
Where You Carry Body Fat May Affect How Long You Live, by Nicholas Bakalar, NY Times (Oct. 1, 2020/updated Oct. 6)
Boosting Brain Health, Mia Primeau (Stanford Health Improvement Program) interviews Sharon J. Sha, MD, medical director of the Stanford Neuroscience Clinic Trials Group, clinical core co-leader of the Stanford Alzheimer's Disease ResearchCenter, and clinical associate professor of Neurology andNeurological Sciences at Stanford University (February 2020).
Whitelaw Read, "Everything We Think We Know About Drinking Water May Be Wrong," UVA Today Daily Report (Jan 28, 2020), interview with Dr. Mitchell Rosner, chair of UVA's Department of Medicine
Upgrading Our Brains from Evolving Ourselves (2015) by Juan Enriquez and Steve Gullans
When the Benefits of Statins Outweigh the Risks by Jane E. Brody, NY Times (March 18, 2019)
How Exercise May Help Keep Our Memory Sharp by Gretchen Reynolds, NY Times (January 16, 2019)
Is Sunscreen the New Margarine? by Rowan Jacobsen, Outside (January 10, 2019)
Vitamin D Supplements Don't Lead to Stronger Bones by Nicholas Bakalar, NY Times (October 11, 2018)
Low-Dose Aspirin Late in Life? Healthy People May Not Need It by Denise Grady, NY Times (September 16, 2018)
Preventing Muscle Loss Among the Elderly by Jane E. Brody, NY Times (September 3, 2018)
The Dangers of Body Fat by Jane E. Brody, NY Times (June 11, 2018)
How Exercise Can Keep Aging Muscles and Immune Systems 'Young" by Gretchen Reynolds, NY Times (March 14, 2018)
How to Become a 'Superager' by Lisa Feldman Barrett, NY Times (Dec 31, 2016)
How Exercise May Help the Brain Grow Stronger by Gretchen Reynolds, NY Times (June 15, 2016)
Why Older Runners are Ultrarunners, NY Times (May 13, 2015)
How Exercise Keeps Us Young by Gretchen Reynolds, NY Times (Jan 7, 2015)
The Science of Sport, a blog by Ross Tucker and Jonathan Dugas.
Why You Should Step Up Your Workout, by Kevin Helliker, WSJ (Jan. 4, 2010).
The Hidden Benefits of Exercise, by Laura Landro, WSJ (Jan. 5, 2010).
Demensia Risk May Be Dropping, by Tara Parker-Pope on Health, N.Y. Times (Feb 21, 2008).
An Oldie View for Nutrient of the Decade by Jane E. Brody, N.Y. Times (Feb 19, 2008). Vitamin D at the level of 400 I.U. per day has long been considered important for bone strength. New research indicates that a level of 800 I.U. per day may be important in preventing cancer and other diseases.
Vigorous Exercise Keeps People Thin With Age by Paul Williams, Research News (May 3, 2007).
Dietary Fat: At the Heart of the Matter. Science 293 (3 Aug 2001) 801-804. Letters from readers and response by Taubes.
The Soft Science of Dietary Fat by Gary Taubes, Science 291 (30 Mar 2001) 2536-2545. "Mainstream nutritional science has demonized dietary fat, yet 50 years and hundreds of millions of dollars of research have failed to prove that eating a low-fat diet will help you live longer.
What If Americans Ate Less Saturated Fat? by Gary Taubes, Science 291 (30 Mar 2001) 2538.
The Epidemic That Wasn't? by Gary Taubes, Science 291 (30 Mar 2001) 2540.
NORVIEW HIGH SCHOOL CLASS OF 1957
TALISKER LITERARY SOCIETY
The TLS, a book club, first met in October 2004, I joined in December. There are presently 10 members, all men, all living in the Stanford area. We meet monthly in members' homes on a rotating basis and discuss the book chosen by individual members also on a rotating basis. The name originated with a well-known single-malt scotch.
SIDEWALKS ON SANTA CRUZ AVENUE
WINE NOSHING AND IMBIBING ON THURSDAYS (WINOT)
Started as a TGIF group consisting of backpacking friends and spouses, the idea was to meet at a different local restaurant every Friday at 6:00 pm to share a dinner. In choosing a restaurant, high priority is given to those that offer high-quality draught beer and ale. Increasingly local restaurants were found to be filling up by 6:00 pm, so in about 2008 the meeting night was changed to Wednesday, and the name to Wednesday Noshing and Imbibing Organization (WINO). More recently too many conflicts were being experienced with Wednesday nights, so the meeting night was again changed to Thursday. This led to the latest name: Wine Imbibing and Noshing on Thursday (WINOT, pronounced "why not?"). WINOT is actively supported by 5 couples, with another 2 couples who occasionally partake. Actually the ideal number for a restaurant meal is 6-8, which sometimes happens when members are away. Typically a WINOT Meeting has 8-10 participants.
In addition to the beer/ale, other desirable qualities for a WINOT restaurant are: background noise not too high (extremely rare in this area), modest price, good food, competent and friendly wait staff, and comfortable and pleasing decor.
Some regular favorites: The Fish Market (PA), Darbar (PA), Spalti (PA), La Fiesta del Mar (MV), Oregano's (MV).
Some recently discovered favorites: Donato (RWC), Martins West (RWC), Mataro (MP), Calafia (PA), Xanh (MV). Vaso Azzuro (MV)
Link: Another Jym and more