On May 7, 1945, the German High Command, in the person of General Alfred Jodl, signs the unconditional surrender of all German forces, East and West, at Reims, in northeastern France. General Walter Bedell Smith, chief of staff to Eisenhower, Russian General Ivan Susloparov and French General Francois Sevez sign as witnesses. Fighting would still go on in the East for almost another day. But the war in the West is over. On May 7, 1998, the German automobile company Daimler-Benz–maker of the world-famous luxury car brand Mercedes-Benz–announces a $36 billion merger with the United States-based Chrysler Corporation, America’s third-largest car company. It is the largest acquisition of a U.S. Company by a foreign buyer in history. On May 7, 1915, the British liner RMS Lusitania, en route from New York to Liverpool, is torpedoed by a German U-boat torpedoed and sinks. More than 1,200 civilians go down with her, including 128 Americans. World War I had been underway less than a year, and the Germans would justify the sinking in that the Lusitania was flying an enemy flag, and also claimed she was carrying munitions. The U.S. is officially neutral in the war, but the sinking leads to the first serious calls for America to enter the war on the side of the Allies. In the early morning hours of May 7, 1965, a bleary-eyed Keith Richards awakens in a Clearwater, Florida hotel room, and vaguely remembers waking up in the middle of the night to record a guitar riff on the portable tape recorder sitting on the night stand. He listens to the tape and hears 30 seconds of a sloppy riff, followed by the CLANG of the guitar being dropped, then 45 minutes of snoring. He plays the tape for Rolling Stones lead singer and bandmate Mick Jagger, who pens a couple of verses. Richards had already come up with a tag line for the riff - "I can't get no satisfaction." You know the rest.
You run a 48.9 440 and get back to me. The point is my best 220 was 22.1. If I had run a 440 and ran both furlongs at that speed I would have run 44.1 which is world class. Maybe somebody like Usain Bolt could maintain full speed for that far not not an average fast high school runner.
I am not a coach but I did stay in a Holiday Inn Express. Track and field is probably the easiest sport to coach. "You. Run as fast as you can. And you. Jump real high."
On May 8, 1945, celebrations break out throughout Europe and North America, as German soldiers lay down their arms in accordance with the surrender signed yesterday. Sporadic fighting between German and Russian soldiers continue for another day, but the war in Europe is over. On May 8, 1541, south of present-day Memphis, Tennessee, Spanish conquistador Hernando de Soto reaches the Mississippi River, one of the first European explorers to ever do so. After building flatboats, de Soto and his 400 ragged troops crossed the great river under the cover of night, in order to avoid the armed Native Americans who patrolled the river daily in war canoes. From there the conquistadors headed into present-day Arkansas, continuing their fruitless two-year-old search for gold and silver in the American wilderness. On May 8, 1886, Dr. John Pemberton begins selling a new product he has developed in his Atlanta pharmacy. Pemberton developed a syrup from coca leaf extract, caffeine from the kola nut, and other ingredients. Combined with carbonated water, it makes what he calls a "delicious and refreshing drink." Basing the name on the ingredients, Pemberton intends to call the drink "Coca Kola", but his bookkeeper, Frank Robinson, suggests "Coca Cola" will look more striking in advertising. The rest is beverage history. On May 8, 1984, the Soviet Union announces it will not compete in the upcoming Summer Olympic games in Los Angeles. The Soviets claim that its athletes will not be safe from protests and possible physical attacks, but it is obvious that the boycott is a response to the U.S. boycott the 1980 games in Moscow over the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. On May 8, 1962, Dr. No, the first movie based on one of Ian Fleming's series of fiction novels about a British superspy, is released in North America. Among those who were considered for the role of main character James Bond (codename 007) were Cary Grant, James Mason and David Niven. But producers Harold Saltzman and Albert Broccoli award the part to a relatively unknown Scotsman, Sean Connery. Connery would quickly become synonymous with the character, appearing as Bond in 6 more films before passing the Walther PPK to Roger Moore. Dr. No would quickly establish a number of trademark Bond elements: distinctive music, fast-paced action sequences, sexy “Bond girls”–both good and bad, Bond’s fondness for vodka martinis “shaken, not stirred” and his introduction of himself as “Bond. James Bond.”
