What is everybody's wrestling experience?

[YoungGun07]

Went out for wrestling as a sophmore to get better at football. It worked, our football team was 13-0 my senior year, and nationally ranked. I had the strength and the gas tank to be good, but never put the work in to learn enough technique. Wrestled varsity 285 (weighing 240) as a Jr and Sr, was 18-17 as a Jr and 27-10 as a senior. I never made state, but beat several place winners.

After high school I became a much bigger fan of the sport, in part because I regret not starting sooner, and maximizing my potential.

I firmly believe that every high school lineman should go out for the wrestling team!

 

[WatWest00]

I was more interested in basketball in grade school -- played on a top AAU team in 6th and 7th grade. I was actually the Iowa State Basketball Camp MVP the summer before 7th grade. Didn't come from a wrestling family, but my dad made me go out for wrestling in 7th grade because I was short, had a really bad temper, and was athletic. I actually did pretty well in wrestling for not knowing anything ... was like 14-1 in 7th and 8th combined wrestling for the junior high.

I was sick of the politics of basketball, so I quit basketball altogether in 8th grade and decided to wrestle in high school. Did pretty well despite some behavioral issues, winning the MVC and qualifying for State a couple of times. I'd tape all of the IPTV wrestling meets (still have most of them on VHS) and just study technique over and over. That's where my love for the Hawks started.

Before I had kids I volunteered at a kids' club for a few years. Now, I just sit back and let others coach my 2 boys, ages 6 and 7. They had their first tournament this year (despite my reservations), and they loved it. Just gonna let them keep practicing and having f*** and see if it sticks. If not, no big deal ... but they better root for the Hawks.

 

[93hawkeye]

Attended HS wrestling starting in the late 70s with my dad. Watched Iowa Wrestling on IPTV whenever I could (mostly 80s).
Started my career as a 7th grader in 1982. First match=pinned in the 1st period. First H.S. tournament=didn't make weight. First HS Varsity match=lost something like 12-0 to a State Qualifier. Wrestled through 11th grade. Was a .500 wrestler.
Saw Dan Knight wrestle up close several times (never against me). That was my frame of reference of what great looked like. And a few years later, saw Terry Brands beat Dan convincingly. That somewhat opened my eyes to how good some of these cats are.

 

[JBJRFL]

I had a few girlfriends I wrestled with . . . it just took off from there.

And losing isn't so bad.

 

[Coach Mac B]

Started wrestling in 5th grade and stop after high school. Beat Jason Kelber at districts and state 1 year. Been following since then.

You forgot on the way to a state championship. I remember the state match.....was a late takedown to win by 1 if i recall. Ah the days of the 98 lb weight class.

 

[MSU158]

I remember my brother talking me into going down to Stillwater for a Folkstyle Nationals tournament his Senior year of High School. I was over 4 years removed from wrestling competitively. The meet was only a couple of months away. Still, I thought I had kept myself in great shape and could easily get down to 165 from 180(I was much leaner than I thought). So I make sure to insert myself in every go possible at the High School practices and then any of the extra curricular ones after that. Come a week before and I am walking around at 172.

Sadly, we drive down there and I am still 172 two days before and after we practice down there. Now, I have to revert back full cut mode. Luckily, my brother's head coach wrestled for OkState so he got us into their practice facilities. So, I finally get myself to sleep the night before weigh-ins at 167.5. Now, I haven't eaten since I was down there, but I still figure I will at least drift 1.5 lbs off while I sleep.

Of course, through all this, we have no scale with us at the hotel. So I get up to be safe and run a couple of miles. Now, I figure I am close. So, we finally get to weigh-ins. I get on the scale with just my skivvies and I am at 165.2. My face drops. To my unbelievable surprise, the ref says you are good. I look at him in exasperation. He says with a dead pan face, your bracket is the toughest here by far. You are going to need every advantage possible.

Now I won't go into who was in that bracket, but there were several multiple AA's and a Finalist or 2. I went 2-2 losing 8-1, winning 4-2 and 6-3 and then lost 6-0. After I lost 6-0 and was out, I was complete worn down and glad to be done. They accidentally called me up to wrestle again and I screamed no chance in hell and got into an argument with the Coach's wife. LOL. In my defense, I was not up.......

 

[HawkeyeDenny]

Went to Dav schools and I didnt start wrasslin until 7th grade...went to FL Smart Junior High in 9th and took 2nd in the City out of 6 Jr Highs so I was probably just slightly above average...Went out Soph year at Dav West and went to 1 practice and quit and just concentrated on football and baseball since I was small to start with....my claim to fame is I took Royce Alger down in a kiddie tourney in Durant and then he got very angry and killed me and bloodied my nose...lol...funny that I am now a huge wrestling fan and barely even went to see my classmates wrestle in HS...

 

[Another_One_Bites_The_Dust]

Started wrestling in fifth grade. Varsity 8-12. Made it to state senior year a won a couple matches. Wrestled three years college and started every year. Made it to the blood round at nationals my sophomore year. NAIA school.

 

[bcdeputy]

Wrestled from 5th grade thru my Senior year in high school (Burlington...class of 1984). Won more matches on varsity than I lost, but hardly set the world on fire.
Enjoyed it tremendously and have loved watching the Hawkeyes since the late 1970's.

Moved to Arkansas in 1988 and became a deputy sheriff. Pleased to announce that I am currently undefeated in wrestling matches while on duty in uniform (it is amazing how much it really does help when dealing with certain types of people)

 

[grapplefann]

I was introduced to wrestling in the 3rd grade by my PE teacher at Harrison elementary in Cedar Rapids in the 1950s. I wrestled guys from other schools from 6th through 12th grade and some at the Ellis branch YMCA. I wrestled varsity enough to win letters in jr. and snr. high, but was never above average despite some great coaches (a few in the Hall of Fame in Stillwater somewhere), and some teammates who were great state champions and place-winners, and later were collegiate All-Americans in Div. 2. I divided my time between lots of other extracurriculars and never focused on wrestling outside of wrestling season.

I went to ISU just as Gable graduated ( he was one of my PE teachers there), saw lots of Big 12 meets, and then transferred back to the CR/Iowa City area, where I watched Iowa's rise to wrestling power in the 1970s. I saw lots of Iowa meets in the old Field House. Career, family, and geography kept me away from wrestling for many years until l rekindled an interest in it in the mid-2000's. When i get homesick, I think of wrestling.

 

[spm51567]

You forgot on the way to a state championship. I remember the state match.....was a late takedown to win by 1 if i recall. Ah the days of the 98 lb weight class.

That is all true. I'll never see 98 lb again and we will never see a 98 lb weight class again. Those were the good old days.

 

[McCulloughd]

I had "NO" wrestling experience at all. I was 6'4" 200# . Lived on a farm and after school I would head home and help Dad. Always wanted to be a Army Ranger and after I graduated I became a Army Ranger for 9 years.

 

[Aardvark86]

Counting the lights on the training room ceiling in my high school as the other guy at my weight was eventually a 2x all American in college.

 

[Old_wrestling_fan]

GREAT replies...super thread. Keep the stories coming.

My favorite line so far...Tigerguy_. After getting whipped in a match, his coach tells him, "Well, at least your escapes were working."

Omg, I laughed so hard and so long I had a coughing fit that still hasn't fully concluded. Lololol. Cough, cough...lololol

 

[CowboyUp61]

Since everyone is telling stories, probably my favorite wrestling story. Was a senior in high school, cutting hard to make 167. On our way for a three hour bus ride to a tourney on Saturday morning, got on the bus about 3/4 # over.

Our 98 could weigh in with his coat on, and holding a brick and still make weight. I ignore the first hostess cherry pie, but it pissed me and several others who were close off. Coach kept a big equipment bag on the bus-we dumped it out, and put little Wayne in, so we didn't have to watch him eat.

The good news is we all made weight, and can laugh about it now. He was pissed when I ate the 3rd pie that was still in his bag after weigh in, though

 

[Snake Pliskan]

DBQ Wahlert grad...Wrestling coaches Murphy and Rouse also coached football. They had a sign in their office that said its better to have wrestled and lost than to have played basketball. It always stuck with me that phrase. When I was a junior Matt Burbach pinned Andy Hamman for the title and Steve Stallsmith got second. I watched because I played football with them. Been a fan ever since. Never wrestled a day in my life. In college my friends were all former wrestlers and would always tune in when it was on IPTV.

Who was the really tall HWT from Wahlert that graduated in '82 or '83? It isn't Burbach, is it? That name isn't ringing the bell for me.

 

[TNTwrestle]

Since everyone is telling stories, probably my favorite wrestling story. Was a senior in high school, cutting hard to make 167. On our way for a three hour bus ride to a tourney on Saturday morning, got on the bus about 3/4 # over.

Our 98 could weigh in with his coat on, and holding a brick and still make weight. I ignore the first hostess cherry pie, but it pissed me and several others who were close off. Coach kept a big equipment bag on the bus-we dumped it out, and put little Wayne in, so we didn't have to watch him eat.

The good news is we all made weight, and can laugh about it now. He was pissed when I ate the 3rd pie that was still in his bag after weigh in, though

That was me in 9th grade. I weighed 75-82 lbs, wrestling 96 most of the time. Would weigh in with my coat on and gym bag in my hand. On bus trips I would sit in the back with our heavyweight, eating the whole time. In 8th grade I only wrestled one match because we only found one guy within 15 pounds of me. 10th grade and on I learned all about cutting weight, in a lot of crazy ways.

 

[Dar.of.Emur]

High school scrub.

 

[LumbeeIndian]

Started wrestling in the 3rd grade. Placed several times in the Pa Junior Olympics state tournament as a kid and then won a couple Junior High conference championships. One of my fondest memories was Carlton Haselrig presenting me with my gold medal at the local Jr Olympic qualifier. As a kid we looked up to him as if he was a God. Lol

During that time, I also played basketball. Was actually a lot better basketball player than a wrestler. Quite a few times I’d finish up at a wrestling tournament to make a basketball game that same night or vice versa. Wresting was always my passion but heading into Highschool I had to make a choice since there was no way I could continue to do both. Being a better basketball prospect, and also a growth spurt putting me at nearly 6’5 inches tall made my choice easier although to this day one that I regret.

 

[Coach Mac B]

That was me in 9th grade. I weighed 75-82 lbs, wrestling 96 most of the time. Would weigh in with my coat on and gym bag in my hand. On bus trips I would sit in the back with our heavyweight, eating the whole time. In 8th grade I only wrestled one match because we only found one guy within 15 pounds of me. 10th grade and on I learned all about cutting weight, in a lot of crazy ways.

Im glad i wasnt the only one. 65 lbs in 7th, 80 lbs in 8th, 90 lbs in 9th and wrestled 98. I actually was forced to weigh in wearing everything to accept a forfeit at 112 once which meant I had to weigh more than 98. 9 pounds of stuff was 10 percent of my body weight. They wouldn't let me carry a bag so I had to load up on clothes coats and boots. I looked hilarious. Glad there weren't camera phones then.

 

[grapplefann]

One of my fondest memories was Carlton Haselrig presenting me with my gold medal at the local Jr Olympic qualifier. As a kid we looked up to him as if he was a God. Lol

You mean he wasn't a God??? Damn, don't spoil it for me.

 

[grapplefann]

My fondest wrestling memory was seeing the 1967 High School wrestling championships with my 9th-grade teammates at old McElroy Auditorium in Waterloo.

 

[T8KUDWN]

Don't think I would know what life is without being on or around a wrestling mat, whether its competing or coaching. Dad, uncles, brothers & myself all had pretty good success. Getting time for it to get a little more serious for my son, so hopefully he's ready to embrace the work it takes to be successful in the greatest sport in the world. Been a Hawkeye wrestling fan my whole life and that's never gonna change!

 

[LumbeeIndian]

My fondest memory was having Jefferson Morgan come in for a preseason scrimmage with my high school. Everything was word of mouth back then, there was no internet and wrestling related material was hard to come by. I’m a couple years older than Kolat but I vaguely remembered seeing him wrestle at a few Jr Olympic tournaments and knew he was good. Anyway, they bring him as a 7th grader to wrestle one of my schools best wrestlers. He was a senior and returning state placer. What I witnessed that day was a thing of beauty. Watching Kolat totally destroy our guy may have also helped in my decision to play basketball. I knew right then and there that I would never come close to being on that level not that many would. Lol

 

[Coach Mac B]

My fondest wrestling memory was seeing the 1967 High School wrestling championships with my 9th-grade teammates at old McElroy Auditorium in Waterloo.

The Hippodrome made Vets look charming.

 

[butchinmi]

Mark Reiland’s mom was a teacher at my school in Goldfield, Iowa. He was in high school while I was in second grade. He came in to our gym class and taught us some wrestling moves. He and I were partnered up for some drills and then we all got to wrestle three matches. I went 2-1.

I started following Mark’s career at Iowa and loved watching the teams he was on. Became a huge fan of the Brands brothers. I was very excited to see Mark win a title!

Over the years I would follow Iowa wrestling, but it became more difficult when I moved to New Mexico. I didn’t wrestle in school at all, I was more in to playing basketball. I did have some friends on the wrestling teams though.

I’ve always followed Iowa wrestling and high school wrestling when my cousins made state, but hadn’t been a die hard fan since about 2 years ago. I’ve been a touring traveling comedian for a few years and I had the pleasure of working with Greg Warren, and the following week I worked with a buddy of mine, Tim Gaither, both of them are huge fans of wrestling. Because of them I started getting more into it, watching some old matches, following recruiting and everything. I wanted to know everything I could, so I found a bunch of wrestling websites and did my homework. Now I consider myself a big fan of the sport. When I go to HR, the wrestling board is always the first one I look at in the morning. I still don’t know some of the lingo during the matches, but I’m learning. Go Hawks!

Fletcher, I know we did this “you’re from the area too” once before but Goldfield is SMALL and my wife is from there and I’m from Eagle Grove, live in Michigan now and sitting in Australia enjoying the sun for a long spring break with the family and some friends.

Anyway, wrestled since I was 5, the High School team that Mark Reiland was on was ridiculous as far as small school talent looking back on it (I was in elementary/middle school and idolized those guys). I could probably still give you the whole line up. Reiland went to Iowa, Coltvets went to Nebraska, Gazaway went to Naval Academy and we had a few other guys that were either fringe or just shy of DI talent on the team (Rosa, Messerly, Schmanke, Michelson (related somehow to Reiland I think and Kist who later won 3 titles at EG) which is crazy for all home grown guys. They won state and state duals a couple years in a row I believe in like 86-97.

I wrestled in HS, 3rd at districts Sophmore year, ACL reconstruction my Jr after football injury and LCL surgery half way through my senior year of wrestling. I wasn’t great, but loved the sport. Highest ranked was 4th my senior year, but never completed the season so rankings don’t mean anything. I played baseball in college but wrestling has always been my favorite sport. It’s about the only sport I follow besides some FB here and there. Have always been a wrestling nerd. I’ve run into guys in different states randomly that are from Iowa that were wrestlers and I recall some match they had at state and they just look at me like i’m a psychopath. Still love seeing rankings in Iowa and noticing last names of guys that i’ve followed from the past.

 

[ev_flores0331]

Two of my friends wrestled so they cajoled me into joining the team in ninth grade. Got demolished in my first match, it was a home meet and I was furious with myself for my poor showing, and with my friends for egging me on into such humiliation, lol

Stuck with it, originally just to avenge my defeat, but I'd come to love it by the end of the season. Thought I was pretty good but this was overseas at a DoD high school, so there only a few good wrestlers at each school and only a few good wrestlers in each weight. There weren't many schools, either, lol

 

[WEH8ST8HAWK]

Wrestled from 1st grade. Was always one of those kids that things came naturally for.
Beat the #2 ranked guy in the country from Oklahoma in Cedar Falls at Folkstyle Nationals my 8th grade year at 189. 4 year varsity starter in HS. 3 time State qualifier. 3rd as a Senior.
Full football scholarship in college.
Still roll around a few days a week but mostly defensive tactics and BJJ.

 

[slammin74]

Fletcher, I know we did this “you’re from the area too” once before but Goldfield is SMALL and my wife is from there and I’m from Eagle Grove, live in Michigan now and sitting in Australia enjoying the sun for a long spring break with the family and some friends.

Anyway, wrestled since I was 5, the High School team that Mark Reiland was on was ridiculous as far as small school talent looking back on it (I was in elementary/middle school and idolized those guys). I could probably still give you the whole line up. Reiland went to Iowa, Coltvets went to Nebraska, Gazaway went to Naval Academy and we had a few other guys that were either fringe or just shy of DI talent on the team (Rosa, Messerly, Schmanke, Michelson (related somehow to Reiland I think and Kist who later won 3 titles at EG) which is crazy for all home grown guys. They won state and state duals a couple years in a row I believe in like 86-97.

I wrestled in HS, 3rd at districts Sophmore year, ACL reconstruction my Jr after football injury and LCL surgery half way through my senior year of wrestling. I wasn’t great, but loved the sport. Highest ranked was 4th my senior year, but never completed the season so rankings don’t mean anything. I played baseball in college but wrestling has always been my favorite sport. It’s about the only sport I follow besides some FB here and there. Have always been a wrestling nerd. I’ve run into guys in different states randomly that are from Iowa that were wrestlers and I recall some match they had at state and they just look at me like i’m a psychopath. Still love seeing rankings in Iowa and noticing last names of guys that i’ve followed from the past.

Small world I’m from from the area and I know who Fletcher is

 

[Huck]

Started wrestling at 5, I think my mom wanted an outlet for a small kid with a ton of energy. Wrestled for a YMCA program in Keokuk for about five years. I was average at best back then but loved being around my buddies and had good coaches that I think made me feel important. Moved to MO in middle school and immediately got stuck in the HS room after the jr. high season was over. Got three state medals and a championship but damn I should have had two...lol Wrestled two years in college but a damn staph infection about killed me and I hung it up. Been coaching for a little over 20 years here in Missouri.

I've been a fan of the Hawkeyes since I can remember. Gable was/is my hero. One of my best memories is him giving a speech at my HS sports banquet one year and then giving us some "pointers" afterwards in the wrestling room. Also wrote him a letter after I failed to win a title my sophomore year and he actually wrote me one back...still amazed he took the time to do that.

I'm also the "Hawkeye Guy" at school. Every morning I wake up and am either a Warrior (HS mascot) or a Hawkeye...more days than not I'm a Hawkeye!!!

I named my son Gable Hawk but he's a baseball player, probably for best as I think coaching him would gut me...lol

 

[LumbeeIndian]

Want to personally thank each of you guys for sharing your experiences and stories here. To the OP... great thread!

 

[LumbeeIndian]

I’ll say this as well, parents of wrestlers definitely deserve some recognition. Wrestling is just “different” than most sports. It’s both physically and mentally tough on our children. You certainly sharpen your parental skills as a parent of a child that wrestles. Also, where you have parents of basketball, football and most other sports that go to a game and get to go home after after a few hours, wrestling parents are often times stuck at a gym from early morning till sometimes late at night for many tournaments. You’re on the road a lot, forced to stay in hotels and eat crappy concession stand food. You sacrifice a lot so your boys can wrestle.

So kudos to all you parents out there giving up a lot of time, money and even your health (nerves) so your boys can do what they love.

 

[tigerguy_]

GREAT replies...super thread. Keep the stories coming.

My favorite line so far...Tigerguy_. After getting whipped in a match, his coach tells him, "Well, at least your escapes were working."

Omg, I laughed so hard and so long I had a coughing fit that still hasn't fully concluded. Lololol. Cough, cough...lololol

It was like 20-6 and it wasn't even that close. I swear I wore him out with him taking me from my feet to my back. If only there was a 4th period I would have taken him I'm sure because he was exhausted from planting me.

 

[OpenHawkSurgery]

Was the AAU 5,6, and 8tb grade stud, 3,2, and 1st in the pup years... lol couldn't make varsity so cut 60 lbs to 160 freshman year. "Team was tough from 171-heavy" was never the same after it, made state at heavyweight Sr year and rolled around in college to stay in shape for ROTC. Wish I never cut the weight.. always hated the sport when participating but love it now! The dedication wrestling takes makes it special.

 

[SansSouci]

Never lost since the first day of practice at 8 y/o. Highlight, I was put in a wrong age and weight bracket by 20 pounds at 12 at the Dome with my granfather and uncle that loved wrestling. RIP. Won every match by pin with ease. As the touneys got bigger and I was still winning. I started to suffer from horrible anxiety and my mother let me quit. I still give her hell for that.

I went back out in 9th grade for 98, weighed about 90, and I was just a sparring and workout partner for a future 98lb state champ. And we never stopped working. My POS shit older friend that was a youth national champ at an upper weight got in my head and talked me into quitting with him. I was a cool kid that got sucked into partying with him and the seniors, dumb as hell. I'd still roll with friends that went on to Iowa and UNI and we would go back and forth. I went to Storm Lake for a thirty and over bracket at 36 maybe. I had two back and two shoulder surgeries before this and getting ready to go, I blew out my back again. Game over. Got to watch the OLD coach, like old as hell, from Emmetsburg handle dudes with just a Russian though.

My boys are all different. Oldest 5'11" 106 pounder, the technician. 1% BMI and struggles to put on on weight. Mom's fault.

Two junior high elite soccer goofs. One is a badass in wresting, had a state tourney where the official was scoring shit the wrong way, scoring table tried to agrue with no luck at all with this idiot. Another when we were in South Dakota where everthing was PD from leg rides to halfs, he quit for three years after that. Came back in jr high kicked ass and will be a badass in high school if he wants to be. The other one is strange and refuses to wrestle anything but greco, even in a folkstyle match. He's a brick shithouse for a little dude. He'll place at state someday though.

My youngest is one of the best in the country as a 9 y/o, but once he got a huge following and was on Team Iowa he suffered the same fate as me with anxiety. We don't let him wrestle tourneys now, he goes to a therapist once a week and just pounds kids 20lbs heavier than him at practice. No way in hell he doesn't win a state title if he can beat his OCD and decides to compete again. I did as I got older and the pressure faded. Not pressure from my parents or his, it's about not wanting to lose that can crush some kids.

He goes to clubs and after a half hour nobody will wrestle him. Two kids in the state can roll with him though.

 

[HawkeyeMass]

Started in the 5th grade in The Chicago area before moving back to NW Iowa. Did well in high school but could not seem to overcome the injuries which ended season after season. Spent every summer in Ames going to camps but between a shoulder that did not want to stay in joint and two inches of torn rib cartilage my senior year, I said I was done. I had always planned on going to ISU but after spending a weekend in Iowa city I knew I was going to be a Hawkeye.

First week of class, I got to know a guy named Ryan Sugia. He was fellow frosh and an Iowa recruit from HI. We were just chatting about wrestling when he asked me to meet him at Carver later in the afternoon. I obliged and the next thing I know he has me meeting with Gable. The only thing I remember is Gable saying to me “If you can commit to me that you are going to do this, and when I say commit , I mean you are committing to 5 yrs, if you commit to that, I will have a locker for you in 5 minutes.” Umm, I’m in.

That was the best but hardest 5 years of my life. Do I have regrets? Absolutely, but saying yes to Gable is not one of them. I wonder to this day even after hip surgery, shoulder surgery and more epidurals to my neck than I care to remember, what if? What if I had worked even harder? What if I had lifted more? If I had just ran one more stair in Carver, could I have earned the privilege to run out that tunnel in black just one time. I’m nearly 48 yrs old with a torn up body and I would not change it for the world.

 

[IA_Hawk81]

Started wrestling in 6th grade. Did pretty well in junior high. Never made varsity, but won over 80 matches on JV. Had 2 state champs (one at my weight and one below me) and a state placer one weight ahead, so I could never crack the lineup. I beat 5 eventual place winners my fresh/soph year, so that's pretty cool. Oh, and I wrestled Matt Lackey my 8th grade year at Cedar Rapids Prairie tourney...looked a little pudgy, so I thought I'd win my first match...Nope! Teched me 18-1 in the first period! Wrestled back for 5th though.

 

[CowboyUp61]

I’ll say this as well, parents of wrestlers definitely deserve some recognition. Wrestling is just “different” than most sports. It’s both physically and mentally tough on our children. You certainly sharpen your parental skills as a parent of a child that wrestles. Also, where you have parents of basketball, football and most other sports that go to a game and get to go home after after a few hours, wrestling parents are often times stuck at a gym from early morning till sometimes late at night for many tournaments. You’re on the road a lot, forced to stay in hotels and eat crappy concession stand food. You sacrifice a lot so your boys can wrestle.

So kudos to all you parents out there giving up a lot of time, money and even your health (nerves) so your boys can do what they love.

It is even worse when you are doubling as their coach, very difficult to keep the two things separate, and believe me, it is tough.

I can remember a night after a tough practice my youngest (then 8) told me to shut up, I wasn't his dad, I was his coach. Dang near died of shock, and had to rethink a lot off the way I was doing things. Worked out the well, but I was probably about 3 words away from losing him.

 

[slammin74]

Never lost since the first day of practice at 8 y/o. Highlight, I was put in a wrong age and weight bracket by 20 pounds at 12 at the Dome with my granfather and uncle that loved wrestling. RIP. Won every match by pin with ease. As the touneys got bigger and I was still winning. I started to suffer from horrible anxiety and my mother let me quit. I still give her hell for that.

I went back out in 9th grade for 98, weighed about 90, and I was just a sparring and workout partner for a future 98lb state champ. And we never stopped working. My POS shit older friend that was a youth national champ at an upper weight got in my head and talked me into quitting with him. I was a cool kid that got sucked into partying with him and the seniors, dumb as hell. I'd still roll with friends that went on to Iowa and UNI and we would go back and forth. I went to Storm Lake for a thirty and over bracket at 36 maybe. I had two back and two shoulder surgeries before this and getting ready to go, I blew out my back again. Game over. Got to watch the OLD coach, like old as hell, from Emmetsburg handle dudes with just a Russian though.

My boys are all different. Oldest 5'11" 106 pounder, the technician. 1% BMI and struggles to put on on weight. Mom's fault.

Two junior high elite soccer goofs. One is a badass in wresting, had a state tourney where the official was scoring shit the wrong way, scoring table tried to agrue with no luck at all with this idiot. Another when we were in South Dakota where everthing was PD from leg rides to halfs, he quit for three years after that. Came back in jr high kicked ass and will be a badass in high school if he wants to be. The other one is strange and refuses to wrestle anything but greco, even in a folkstyle match. He's a brick shithouse for a little dude. He'll place at state someday though.

My youngest is one of the best in the country as a 9 y/o, but once he got a huge following and was on Team Iowa he suffered the same fate as me with anxiety. We don't let him wrestle tourneys now, he goes to a therapist once a week and just pounds kids 20lbs heavier than him at practice. No way in hell he doesn't win a state title if he can beat his OCD and decides to compete again. I did as I got older and the pressure faded. Not pressure from my parents or his, it's about not wanting to lose that can crush some kids.

He goes to clubs and after a half hour nobody will wrestle him. Two kids in the state can roll with him though.

Sans not to get all personal but what year did your boy go to Indiana and wrestle, think my son was on the 8u team with him in 2016

 

[TarpHawk]

Started in the 5th grade in The Chicago area before moving back to NW Iowa. Did well in high school but could not seem to overcome the injuries which ended season after season. Spent every summer in Ames going to camps but between a shoulder that did not want to stay in joint and two inches of torn rib cartilage my senior year, I said I was done. I had always planned on going to ISU but after spending a weekend in Iowa city I knew I was going to be a Hawkeye.

First week of class, I got to know a guy named Ryan Sugia. He was fellow frosh and an Iowa recruit from HI. We were just chatting about wrestling when he asked me to meet him at Carver later in the afternoon. I obliged and the next thing I know he has me meeting with Gable. The only thing I remember is Gable saying to me “If you can commit to me that you are going to do this, and when I say commit , I mean you are committing to 5 yrs, if you commit to that, I will have a locker for you in 5 minutes.” Umm, I’m in.

That was the best but hardest 5 years of my life. Do I have regrets? Absolutely, but saying yes to Gable is not one of them. I wonder to this day even after hip surgery, shoulder surgery and more epidurals to my neck than I care to remember, what if? What if I had worked even harder? What if I had lifted more? If I had just ran one more stair in Carver, could I have earned the privilege to run out that tunnel in black just one time. I’m nearly 48 yrs old with a torn up body and I would not change it for the world.

Hey, wait a minute, who is this? You've been lurking in the shadows.