tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post4017688503136422608..comments2024-02-11T00:54:20.373-08:00Comments on A Trail Runner's Blog: Charlie Engle's "Fraud-Funded" Sahara Run - Will He Get 111 Days in the Slammer?Scott Dunlaphttp://www.blogger.com/profile/16096284778835123584noreply@blogger.comBlogger67125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-8909792427241422662013-10-28T23:57:51.131-07:002013-10-28T23:57:51.131-07:00Just saw this documentary at a friend's house....Just saw this documentary at a friend's house. The one thing that bothered me the most was the fact that if someone else other than Charlie got sick or injured, talk quickly surfaced (always from Charlie) of the expedition continuing without them. But when Charlie couldn't run at the end, no such talk surfaced. I wonder what Charlie's reaction would have been if the other two runners had simply blown past him and left his ass behind after he pulled his little "you guys stay behind and I'll walk for a while" trick. You get the feeling Charlie would have been a little upset?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-66662600738297622112013-08-08T15:08:59.465-07:002013-08-08T15:08:59.465-07:00I'm sure Charlie would agree with that viewpoi...I'm sure Charlie would agree with that viewpoint -- given his level of egocentricity. In fact, I wouldn't be stunned if it were Charlie who posted that last bit of nonsense.<br />Yeah ... the ITS investigation wasn't about Charlie's dishonesty ... it was all about jealousy. <br />Pardon me, while I puke.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-69321949605466916702013-07-18T18:58:29.937-07:002013-07-18T18:58:29.937-07:00That Charlie dude just finished 5th at Badwater, s...That Charlie dude just finished 5th at Badwater, set a record for 50+ age group, apparently he didn't forget how to run in prison. <br /><br />Surely another ITS investigation is warranted, as his running success was the genesis for the first investigation. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-85249716019236667762013-07-09T17:18:17.548-07:002013-07-09T17:18:17.548-07:00I found the documentary fascinating, but I found C...I found the documentary fascinating, but I found Charlie to be a self-centered egotist and grew sick of listening to him. ... I didn't blame the crew for leaving for Cairo .... They were being treated like crap by Charlie, and were clearly sick of it. <br />I did get a chuckle out of Charlie's repeated use of the word "expedition" ... It just makes it sound so much more important than calling it a "run" doesn't it?.... LOL ... Let's call it an expedition, and maybe they'll put us on a par with Lewis and Clark. ... Not quite, Charlie. ... And if this "expedition" was filmed to shed light on the clean water issues in that region, then they did a HORRIBLE job of emphasizing that fact. ...They spent more time talking about the RUN helping them find a "new level of self discovery" than anything else. ..... huh? ... That's agnostic mumbo jumbo, meaning: "I don't believe in God and since I don't take drugs anymore, I have to run to fill the void." ......To me, the RUN was really more about a bullying drug addict, and two of his "yes" men, running a long way across the desert. ... Weird, but fascinating, Charlie. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-3237175452978741992013-06-12T13:32:46.129-07:002013-06-12T13:32:46.129-07:00Charlie's saga is getting more attention now t...Charlie's saga is getting more attention now that IRS investigative tactics have become public. He was mentioned on the Daily Show, Jay Thomas interviewed him yesterday, etc. <br />Bottom line is if any IRS agent wants your hide, they will get it on way or another. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-10237496840530573722012-11-12T18:12:18.438-08:002012-11-12T18:12:18.438-08:00Brain Williams 30 Rock show this Thursday night wi...Brain Williams 30 Rock show this Thursday night will have a segment on Charlie. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-55647791736820010722012-08-04T15:23:23.384-07:002012-08-04T15:23:23.384-07:00I just watched the Sahara documentary and was inte...I just watched the Sahara documentary and was interested to know more about the three runners.<br />I have to admit that as a personality, I was unimpressed by Mr. Engels and found him to be overbearing and a bit of a bully.<br />However, I knew nothing of his IRS woes until I read several articles.<br />I was appalled that he was convicted in Federal Court whilst so many Bankers are walking away with huge bonuses.<br />It's even more galling that he is being asked to pay Bank of America almost $250,000.<br />I just had a friend be foreclosed by them and they are disgusting in their tactics.<br />There is no justice in this.<br />Several years ago (around 2002)I was encouraged to take out a loan to buy a house by a broker.<br />I had previously owned homes with my ex husband in Scotland, USA and France.<br />They kept calling me telling me that they could get a loan despite the fact I had no money to put down and my income was at that time modest.<br />Luckily, I refused because I knew that in my previous home ownership, I might run in to problems.<br />These people are sharks and it is a disgrace that they selected Mr. Engels as a scapegoat and easy target.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-12710663812756940002012-08-01T06:48:09.205-07:002012-08-01T06:48:09.205-07:00wonder why no one ever brought to light that his e...wonder why no one ever brought to light that his ex wife and his ex girlfriend lost their homes too during all of this? Both had cash out refinances in '06 as well. These two mortgage defaults were only two of several.... there's so much more to this sad sad story.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-76868262872344618902012-06-03T07:11:11.801-07:002012-06-03T07:11:11.801-07:00Another NY Times piece of Charlie and his situatio...Another NY Times piece of Charlie and his situation <br /><br />http://www.nytimes.com/2012/06/02/opinion/nocera-the-mortgage-fraud-fraud.htmlAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-76827379371103320732012-04-20T20:36:55.085-07:002012-04-20T20:36:55.085-07:00As an average Joe who watched the movie.. my hat i...As an average Joe who watched the movie.. my hat is off to those who tolerate Charlie. He is not repectful at all to those around him and appears self centered.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-66459236841938873192012-01-22T11:01:08.979-08:002012-01-22T11:01:08.979-08:00I have a few points, 1st the docu was pretty kool...I have a few points, 1st the docu was pretty kool. 2nd Charlie is ego driven 3rd he did fund his run with the money, think about it ( yes he got 30k from doing it 4th The IRS guy is a tool, imagine a off duty cop sitting on the porch and seeing a person not signal at the stop sign, so what he's gonna now chase that guy down and ticket him, ha... I agree instead of being inspired the IRS tool did what many humans do, went to the negative side of the docu to try and better himself at the cost of someone that was trying to promote some good, typical. And to all the people here saying he was a thief law breaker etc.. EVERY single ONE of you break at least ONE law I day, I can guarantee that! Remember speeding down the highway is Illegal, yes even 1mph over is wrong. The bottom line is that he did WAY more Right with this docu!Renehttp://600milliondogs.orgnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-79932858033648360972011-10-18T07:29:36.064-07:002011-10-18T07:29:36.064-07:00Gotta love the back tax list! Keep it up.Gotta love the back tax list! Keep it up.Filing Back Taxeshttp://www.backtaxreturns.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-25009730507428185612011-09-30T05:51:40.062-07:002011-09-30T05:51:40.062-07:00http://www.adamhigginbotham.com/Archive/Writing_fi...http://www.adamhigginbotham.com/Archive/Writing_files/Charlie%20Engle.pdfChip Hunternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-3293661559396776252011-08-28T13:23:09.895-07:002011-08-28T13:23:09.895-07:00Read the article re: Engle in May 2011 issue of TR...Read the article re: Engle in May 2011 issue of TR. He's gone from one extreme to another. Reading between the lines, my perception of him is a spoiled man-child who fails and/or refuses to face reality; i.e., put his nose to the grindstone and become a productive member of society.<br /><br />That said, no doubt he'll leverage his 'hard time' into a publicity deal that devotees will shell out $20 to hear all about. The title of his inevitable Book should be "Shortcut-city".<br /><br />Jealous of Engle? Maybe a little, but at least I can say I pay my own way. <br /><br />-Attorney (in *private* practice)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-32814138401607415512011-08-25T18:41:43.882-07:002011-08-25T18:41:43.882-07:00Check out the September issue of Men's Journal...Check out the September issue of Men's Journal. Pretty in depth story on Engle and his caseAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-71973169904193395952011-08-20T05:42:17.464-07:002011-08-20T05:42:17.464-07:00Read the article in the September Issue of Men'...Read the article in the September Issue of Men's Journal, teaser below. Interesting stuff...<br /><br /><br /><br />http://www.mensjournal.com/in-the-september-issue-perfect-thingsAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-21452253085135212672011-08-08T18:11:23.103-07:002011-08-08T18:11:23.103-07:00It's absurd that people are turning Charlie En...It's absurd that people are turning Charlie Engle into a martyr. I would argue that Matt Damon's view of Engle is clouded by his relationship with him. His water "project" was clearly an afterthought to his own ambition. If it was not, than the documentary did a poor job of conveying the true purpose of the expedition. Yes, most of those that orchestrated the financial crisis walked no worse for the wear. Ignoring bank, mail, and wire fraud, doesn't fix that. Tighter regulatory controls are needed.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-52803287774326767052011-05-04T11:27:08.283-07:002011-05-04T11:27:08.283-07:00PBS story on Charlie - http://video.pbs.org/video/...PBS story on Charlie - http://video.pbs.org/video/1903259629<br /><br />Charlie is rotting away for 21 months, not 111 days. The people who masterminded and executed this massive housing bubble bust are all living large with massive bonus money extracted fraudulently when THEY are the ones who should be in jail for this epic fraud.Matt Damonhttp://www.mattdamon.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-23425733307031320792011-04-27T06:57:02.104-07:002011-04-27T06:57:02.104-07:00Runners World story
http://www.runnersworld.com/a...Runners World story<br /><br />http://www.runnersworld.com/article/1,7120,s6-238-511-0-13905-0,00.htmlAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-52649881203351216862011-04-15T08:10:23.066-07:002011-04-15T08:10:23.066-07:00Interesting reading
http://corporatejusticeblog.b...Interesting reading<br /><br />http://corporatejusticeblog.blogspot.com/2011/04/mozilo-freed-engle-imprisoned-story-of.html?spref=tw<br /><br />http://www.businessinsider.com/charlie-engle-2011-3Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-815978985842147282011-04-10T08:59:46.238-07:002011-04-10T08:59:46.238-07:00Dear Scott,
Thank you for taking the time to rea...Dear Scott, <br /><br />Thank you for taking the time to read my book "Running on Empty" (Penguin/Avery) and for your review. After racing along side of Charlie (how better to get to know someone)in exotic locations I came to know his many faces. As you already know, my book ROE may shed some light on the subject at hand...it's worth reading just to get the "scoop" on Charlie (think shoot out at the not so okay corral). And be advised everything in the book was in print before Charlie was indited, so that couldn't infulence what I wrote in the book.<br /><br />I know that I run the risk of being accused of shamelessly self promoting my book here, but my intent is to provide more information on the interesting subject of a dynamic personality, that being Charlie Engle.<br /><br />Scott, I appreciate your honesty and obvious integrity, I tend to call 'em as I see 'em too. And thanks for producing a terrific blog that allows for everyones input.<br /><br />sincerely,<br /><br />Marshall UlrichMarshall Ulrichhttp://www.marshallulrich.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-30535599150173664882011-04-04T12:12:21.927-07:002011-04-04T12:12:21.927-07:00You're wrong, I couldn't care less where y...You're wrong, I couldn't care less where your blog appears in a Google search. <br /><br />If you read my original post, I had agreed with "anonymous" in that it would seem "fair to do a new blog posting, in light of more information coming out." <br /><br />Fairness is the only issue.Chip Hunternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-2027520295371881842011-04-04T11:11:37.954-07:002011-04-04T11:11:37.954-07:00Chip -
I found your comments in my "spam&quo...Chip -<br /><br />I found your comments in my "spam" folder. I guess you can call that censorship if you want, but it wasn't intentional. Instead what is happening is that I'm getting so many new (and mostly anonymous) comments on this thread, my computer is just assuming it's all spam. <br /><br />It sounds like what is frustrating to you is that this blog post continues to appear in the top of Google searches about Charlie. I feel like I should point out a few things here in hopes that it is helpful:<br /><br />1) <b>I am not a journalist</b>. I'm a blogger, and as Charlie himself stated above, I primarily comment on other stories and ask a lot of open questions (whether in good taste or not). I don't fact check...Lord, I don't even spell check. You can hold me to the high standard of journalistic integrity and response time, but quite frankly, you're just shouting at the rain.<br /><br />2) <b>I did reach out to Charlie on Facebook</b> soon after he commented and offered some interview questions to get his side of the story (and thus have it posted on this blog and help with the Google search rankings), but he never replied. He posts every day on Facebook from jail, so I know he's seen the request. Given your comment about not getting a response from me, I'm sure you know how that feels on my end. That being said, however, if I were in Charlie's shoes I don't think I would reply - there are real journalists that dig into facts that can tell his story better (NYTimes). It's far more legitimate if you ask me, and quite frankly, the NYTimes has much better story than the one I originally linked to.<br /><br />3) The reason this story keeps coming up on top in Google searches for Charlie's name is because <b>EVERYONE KEEPS ADDING COMMENTS</b>. Each time a comment is added, Google indexes it again, and so the page stays "fresh". The NYTimes article goes directly to the Google news feed, so it's not treated the same way. In addition, there are lots of other bloggers linking to it, but much like the Trail Runner Magazine story, they link to it to cite the comment thread, not the blog content. Essentially, the comments are now the story and continue to keep it alive. <br /><br />4) <b>When the press contact me about the Charlie Engle story, they only want to talk about the threats</b> made to me and my family by "friends of Engle" so they can paint a more extreme picture. I continue to get threats, unfortunately, but as colorful as they are, that's not the Charlie Engle story. So I say "no comment" and do my best to overdo it when screening more comments being added. <br /><br />5) This may be surprising, but <b>the traffic to this blog post isn't that high</b>, and really took a dip after the NYTimes article was written. We're talking low hundreds per week now, which is a factor of 20x lower than I usually see for a popular article (like "compression socks" or "toenail necklace"). I share this only to point out that the greater public is likely not reading this. I think this is a good thing - the real journalists have taken this story now, and will likely keep it.<br /><br />I'm not trying to defend or justify any of my actions here, just putting my thoughts down, which is really all a blogger ever does. I will look for your follow up comment in my spam folder if you want to reply, but don't be surprised if this blog post continues to be in the top 3 of Google searches if you do.<br /><br />SDScott Dunlaphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16096284778835123584noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-28489921005143926712011-04-04T08:00:55.332-07:002011-04-04T08:00:55.332-07:00Curious as to why my "attempted post" th...Curious as to why my "attempted post" that did not see the light of day was censored by you. I followed rules, signed my name etc. You made the workers comp post after I submitted mine, so you were engaged in your blog. <br /><br />Is it because you can dish it out but not cannot take a little criticism? You published posts from people calling you some serious names, but not not mine saying that I wasn't surprised that you wouldn't dig back in, and questioned the motives behind your's and other mainstream media outlet's coverage of this story. No profanity, no threats yet my opinion is censored by you. <br /><br />As I stated before, journalistic integrity is tough, however apparently censorship is easy. <br /><br />Personally after reading your stuff I was surprised you chose that action. <br /><br />From what I can see on the web, this story may not go away soon. 15 plus sources (some of them big names) picked up on the NY Times piece. Still when anyone googles "Charlie Engle" your blog and the "fraud funded" headline is front and center. From the looks of things you may end up on the wrong side of the truth.Chip Hunternoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8860166.post-53775611626884840632011-04-02T13:07:49.779-07:002011-04-02T13:07:49.779-07:00Here's a lighter fraud story for y'all -
...Here's a lighter fraud story for y'all -<br /><br /><a href="http://running.competitor.com/2011/03/news/marathon-man-pleads-guilty-to-fraud_23899" rel="nofollow">http://running.competitor.com/2011/03/news/marathon-man-pleads-guilty-to-fraud_23899</a>.<br /><br />A corrections officer from MA pleaded guilty of workers compensation fraud after being caught running the Disney Marathon while receiving workers comp. He said "...he was so hurt, he required a tax-free paycheck for the rest of his life", but did squeeze in a marathon. Good stuff.Scott Dunlaphttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16096284778835123584noreply@blogger.com