Sidebar comment: I've raced with Scott Guthrie bunches of times -- and I've never seen him, at the end of a run, NOT take out earplugs. That is -- he ALWAYS wears them. I don't know if that's a career-long choice, but - well, he has held a few records in his time
, so maybe there's something to the ability to think and react and concentrate when the noise level is under control.