The Modesto Relays, now known as the California Invitational Relays is an annual elite

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping eve ...

meet. It is held about the second weekend in May. For 67 years, the meet was held at Modesto Junior College in

Modesto, California Modesto () is the county seat and largest city of Stanislaus County, California, United States. With a population of 218,464 at the 2020 census, it is the 19th largest city in the state of California and forms part of the Sacramento-Stockton- ...

, a track notable for tight turns and long straightaways, ending in 2008. During its run in Modesto, it was the site of over 30

world records A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book '' Guinness World Records'' and other world records organizat ...

. After taking the 2009 season off, the meet moved to Hughes Stadium at

Sacramento City College Sacramento City College (SCC) is a public community college in Sacramento, California. SCC is part of the Los Rios Community College District and had an enrollment of 25,307 in 2009. It is accredited by the Accrediting Commission for Community ...

Sacramento, California ) , image_map = Sacramento County California Incorporated and Unincorporated areas Sacramento Highlighted.svg , mapsize = 250x200px , map_caption = Location within Sacramento C ...

. The meet director for most of that time was

National Track and Field Hall of Fame The National Track and Field Hall of Fame is a museum operated by The Armory Foundation in conjunction with USA Track & Field. It is located within the Armory Foundation (the former Fort Washington Avenue Armory) at 216 Fort Washington Avenue, ...

member Tom Moore, a former elite hurdler from the

University of California The University of California (UC) is a public land-grant research university system in the U.S. state of California. The system is composed of the campuses at Berkeley, Davis, University of California, Irvine, Irvine, University of Califor ...

. As an athlete, Moore had tied the world record in the 120 yard high hurdles in 1935. Moore's name would become synonymous with the Modesto Relays. Moore served as the starter for the first meet for all but one race . . . the high hurdles, which he won. He had his running shorts on under his uniform and hastily changed to run. But Moore did almost everything else to make the meet what it became, from adjusting the lights toward the track (rather than just the football field) to obtaining sponsorship from S&W Foods that brought notoriety to the otherwise sleepy Central Valley town. When S&W dropped its sponsorship, Moore found a new sponsor in

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance bar, temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pembe ...

. There are many quirky stories to the long history of the meet. "Dutch" Warmerdam set a world record in the

pole vault Pole vaulting, also known as pole jumping, is a track and field event in which an athlete uses a long and flexible pole, usually made from fiberglass or carbon fiber, as an aid to jump over a bar. Pole jumping competitions were known to the M ...

, but only after the standards were repaired at the college welding shop. After the record, an excited official knocked over the standard again. When the bar was remeasured, Warmerdam lost 1/4 of an inch and a brawl ensued. The world record stood for 15 years. 58 years later,

Stacy Dragila Stacy Renée Dragila (née Mikaelson; born March 25, 1971) is an American former pole vaulter. She is an Olympic gold medalist and a multiple world champion. Early life Dragila was born and raised in Auburn, California, northeast of Sacramen ...

also set a world record in the pole vault at the meet. Double Olympic Gold medalist,

Bob Richards Robert Eugene Richards (born February 20, 1926) is an American retired athlete, minister, and politician. He made three U.S. Olympic Teams in two events: the 1948, 1952, and 1956 Summer Olympics as a pole vaulter and as a decathlete in 1956. He ...

negotiated a $75 cash bonus if he broke the meet record. When he arrived, he discovered the meet record was the world record, which Richards never achieved in his career. In 1961, when reigning Olympic Champion

Herb Elliott Herbert James Elliott (born 25 February 1938) is a former Australian athlete and arguably the world's greatest middle distance runner of his era. In August 1958 he set the world record in the mile run, clocking 3:54.5, 2.7 seconds under the re ...

dropped out of a heavily promoted mile race with

Dyrol Burleson Dyrol Jay Burleson (born April 27, 1940) is a retired middle-distance runner from the United States. He attended the University of Oregon, where he ran track under the coach Bill Bowerman. Burleson lettered in track and field in 1960, 1961, and ...

(promoted as the cover story in''

Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with circulation over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellence tw ...

)'', the packed stadium was silenced in disappointment. They became ecstatic when a then unknown

Jim Beatty James Tully Beatty (born October 28, 1934 in New York, New York) is a former American track and field athlete and North Carolina politician. He is best remembered as the first person to break the four-minute mile barrier on an indoor track, when ...

improved his personal best by seven seconds to set the American record at 3:58.0. That same meet saw

Ralph Boston Ralph Harold Boston (born May 9, 1939) is a retired American track athlete who received three Olympic medals and became the first person to break the barrier in the long jump. Early years and education Boston was born in Laurel, Mississippi. ...

become the first man to jump 27 feet in the

long jump The long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a takeoff point. Along with the triple jump, the two events that measure jumping for distance as a ...

. And the strong winds at Modesto made the

discus throw The discus throw (), also known as disc throw, is a track and field event in which an athlete throws a heavy disc—called a discus—in an attempt to mark a farther distance than their competitors. It is an ancient sport, as demonstrated by th ...

a record setting event. Jay Silvester set the world record in 1968.

Ben Plucknett Walter Harrison ("Ben") Plucknett (April 13, 1954 in Beatrice, Nebraska – November 17, 2002 in Essex, Missouri) was an American track and field athlete, known primarily for the discus throw. Plucknett qualified for the 1980 U.S. Olympic team bu ...

did the same in 1981, but his record was removed after he tested positive for

steroids A steroid is a biologically active organic compound with four rings arranged in a specific molecular configuration. Steroids have two principal biological functions: as important components of cell membranes that alter membrane fluidity; and ...

. After his death, in 2004, the meet was renamed the "Tom Moore Modesto Relays."

References

{{US track and field competitions Track and field competitions in the United States Recurring sporting events established in 1942 Sports in Modesto, California Annual track and field meetings High school track and field competitions in the United States Track and field in California 1942 establishments in California