State track meets are coming up in a couple weeks and every year I wonder if The Record will be broken.

Two of the longest running boys’ state track records and all-time bests are held by Cedar Rapids products – Doug Lane of Jefferson in the shot put and David Korir of Washington in the half mile. It is Lane’s mark that may stand forever.

Lane was a big, scrappy athlete and one of many the J-Hawks had in the 1960s. Lane lettered in football, basketball and track, but it was in the shot put ring that he made his mark.

In a meet in 1968, Lane tossed the shot 70 feet 11 inches, becoming only the third American high school athlete at the time to exceed 70 feet. It put him, and his coach John Ask, on the cover of the AAU Magazine. Earlier, Lane had broken the state record at the Drake Relays with a heave of 67-2 ½. He capped his career with his third state title in 1968 with a still-state meet record 65-11 ½.

For four decades, no one has really come close to Long’s 70-foot effort. The closest has been Marion’s Drew Clark, who set the Class 3A record in 2009 with a throw of 64-7 ¾.

Long went on to become a two-time All-America at the University of Southern California and a NCAA National Indoor champion in 1972. He became a successful businessman in southern California.

And still holder of The Record.

TENNIS NUGGETS – A couple jaw-droppers were seen or heard this past week in the Metro tennis ranks.

On Friday, Linn-Mar’s boys outlasted Washington, 5-4. What made it noteworthy and unusual was that four of the six singles matches and two of the three doubles matches went to a tiebreaker. Linn-Mar was 4-2 in those six.

The two teams could meet again this week in the district tournament Thursday at Kennedy. The field includes Jefferson, Kennedy, Washington, Linn-Mar, Xavier and a very young and powerful Iowa City West squad.

The other piece of news came from Joe Benedict, girls’ coach at Kennedy. During his appearance on Scott Unash’s “Coaches Corner’’ show on 1600 KGYM, Benedict revealed he has 101 girls in the program (grades 9-12). Try running those practices!

BAT PROCEDURES – As you may know, most composite bats will be illegal in high school baseball this season. The state association has a list of approved bats on its website.

The Iowa High School Athletic Association also has issued a letter to athletic directors and coaches about enforcement procedures. In addition to making out a lineup card, coaches now must also download the IHSAA’s approved composite bat list, highlight the bats being used by eligible players and carry the list to each game.

If an illegal bat is found, the player using it will be called out and the coach will be ejected.

The Iowa Girls’ High School Athletic Union also has an approved bat list for softball on its website.

(Mark Dukes is former sports editor of the Cedar Rapid Gazette. He is co-host of The Gym Class radio show weekdays from 2-3 p.m. on KGYM-AM 1600.)