Letters

Feud for Thought
My great-grandfather was Ellison Hatfield, copatriarch of the mighty and peace-loving Hatfield clan, so steeped in West Virginia feud lore as I am, I can rate the top American feuds (Blue Blood, March 8). Of course, the Hatfield-McCoy fracas is No. 1, but North Carolina-Duke is second. The Good Hatfields ultimately vanquished the Evil McCoys just as the Good Heels will eventually pound the Evil Devils into cinders. (The Yankees-Red Sox should be No. 3, but since the Sox never really win anything, I gotta go with Britney and Christina.)
JOHN A. JENKS, Wilmington, N.C.

As a kid I was able to attend basketball camps at both Carolina and Duke. By far the best UNC-Duke games were the pickup games in the summer. No coaches, no refs—no bull.
GEORGE ROYSTER, Lexington, N.C.

Will Blythe has inadvertently captured the essence of the UCLA-USC rivalry, right down to the less-than-15-mile separation of the two schools and their liberal ( UCLA) vs. conservative ( USC) orientations. The only difference is that our rivalry doesn't stop at basketball but extends to whichever sport is being played, whatever the venue or time of day.
TOM NEFF
West Linn, Ore.

Here in the mecca of college basketball, many ACC hoops enthusiasts root for all the ACC teams at NCAA tournament time. So whether one is an upstanding, intelligent, likable fan of the Tar Heels who gives out great treats on Halloween, or a scum-sucking, halitosis-afflicted, dork-who-got-picked-on-every-day-from-first-grade-on supporter of the Blue Devils, hey, we're all in this together.
DON FREEDMAN, Greensboro, N.C.

All Blythe accomplishes in his story is to prove that North Carolina and Duke fans believe the basketball universe revolves around them. Thanks for confirming what most of us already knew.
JIM BOWEN, Simpsonville, S.C.

Classy Cajun
Just when I thought it wasn't possible to like Carolina Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme more than I already did, I read John Ed Bradley's article (Ride of His Life, March 8). What a pleasure to learn of a star athlete with such admirable character traits and values. Here's wishing continued success to a genuine role model.
FRANK ALVAREZ, Norwalk, Conn.

Great piece about Delhomme, but next time you should put pronunciations of the Cajun names for the Yankees reading the magazine (Hebert=a Bear, Melan�on=melon Son, etc.). I wish I could be home in Breaux Bridge to eat some crawfish at the festival.
BRYAN GUIDRY, Burke, Va.

Upward Bound
Sebastian Telfair sounds like an exciting ballplayer (Ready for the Big Time, March 8). Too bad your pronouncement that he is NBA-ready will likely only firm up his decision to turn pro. Me? I'll stick with Dickie V. and enjoy the unrivaled passion and skill of the college game.
CHRIS MAZUREK
Lebanon, N.H.

Mush Mouth
While serving in the Jesuit Volunteer Corps in 1984, I covered the Iditarod for a bush radio station (A Dogged Race, March 8). Stationed at the final mandatory checkpoint, a summer fishing camp named Safety, I spent an icy week feeding, then interviewing these hardy Iditarod racers. Watching these stoic men and women care for their dogs—despite their own obvious fatigue—then push off on the final 22-mile stretch run to the finish in Nome, proved to me that this race is the ultimate iron-will event.
CHRIS GFROERER, Cincinnati

For the Record
While I am no longer a fan of Lance Armstrong due to his treatment of his wife, Kristin, I must set the record straight (LETTERS, March 8). According to his book It's Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life, Armstrong met Kristin after his diagnosis and after treatment of cancer. She did not "suffer with Lance for years as he confronted cancer" as Bill Everhart claims in his letter to SI.
STACY SLOAN, Fort Lewis, Wash.