The Great Race of 1961
560/KSFO, San Francisco
Don Sherwood vs. Jim Lange
Sunday, February 12, 1961
A video presentation — distilled from the original black-and-white “newsreel”-style film — of the famous footrace between KSFO’s Don Sherwood and Jim Lange, from Stinson Beach in Marin County to the Ferry Building in San Francisco.
Narrated by KSFO newsman Aaron Edwards and produced by Norm Howard Lehfeldt (later known simply as Norm Howard, popular morning personality on KQED-FM), the film also includes cameos by Giants play-by-play men Russ Hodges and Lon Simmons, and begins with classic title art by Tom Nuzum.
KSFO: The Great Race of 1961
OPTION: Listen to the race audio track only:
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Special thanks to Norm Howard for providing this classic video.
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I remember the KSFO hosts very well. Sherwood was a really funny out-of-control guy at times, mostly on purpose. He had the six to nine show. It was common to hear at work, “Did you hear Sherwood this morning?” Everybody listened to KSFO it seemed. Owen Spahn is missing from this lineup. He had the nine-to-noon show following Sherwood. Spahn left the station to go back east for another job. I think things didn’t work out. Al Jazbo Collins always opened his show with a Sinatra song. It might have been his second record. Al started the Anti-Digit Dialing League. I have to go now but if anybody is interested I do remember other things about the hosts. Jack Carney opened a bar in the Jack Tarr hotel. I went there to see him just to see him.
My parents listened to KSFO every morning, even if Dad didn’t often agree with Don Sherwood. My uncle lived in the City and was a regular at local haunts like the BV (still there!). My mom liked Jim Lange a lot, along with Ronnie Schell and Carter B. Smith. What a team they had at KSFO. The picture below is from Ronnie’s FB site – per his memory: “This night was wild! We were celebrity judges for a striptease contest at Ann’s 440 Club in 1959.”