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How did you get into wrestling....


AJ

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Darwinism, Bellmont style!

 

In Decatur, the Bellmont High School coaches would come around to the elementary schools and take the kindergarteners and line then up side to side. Then take a basketball and throw it at our heads. Then the kids that weren't able to catch the ball and got hit in the head wrestled and the ones that caught it played basketball.  I guess I was one that got nailed in the head.

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I thank cable TV for my wrestling career.  Without superstations WTBS or WOR, I would have never had a chance to see Tommy Rich bloody Buzz Sawyer or Jimmy Snuka get piledriven onto concrete by Ray Stevens.  There is no way I would have taken the flyer in 7th grade to try the sport if top-rope shenanigans weren't firmly in place.  I was roundly ridiculed when I asked to see where the ring was at my first practice.

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i was down at the beach one day on the jersey shore when a guy said he was tanner than me. so i asked for some moves from a local coach so i could go back and kick that dudes butt.

 

haha jk. its a family thing for the dukes. not the most sucessful family thing but still a family thing!!

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I was a "D/F" student at Tech High School, just waiting to turn 16 so I could quit school (as was the family tradition), when I got into some trouble at school and John Hurrle was the Dean of Boys in addition to being the Head Wrestling Coach. My punishment was a week of after school detention in the wrestling room. I fell in love with the sport! Because of grades I was not allowed to practice or compete, so, I became the student manager/trainer and began taking health professions/sports medicine classes in the IPS magnet program. I spent my Junior and Senior years on the honor roll. I now possess 4 Associate Degrees, 2 Bachelor Degrees, and a Master Degree and have completed one year of doctorate work (I stopped there). Not bad for a kid waiting to turn 16 so he could quit school. Thank god for wrestling and the great people within the Indiana wrestling community who have become such a huge part of my successes in life!!!

 

Best story on here. Here's mine, I had a crush on a wrestler when I was in high school(I grew up in upstate N.Y. not so much emphasis on basket ball there.) anyway I went to all home meets I could. Fast forward many years when the fliers started coming home with the oldest in elementary school I tried to get him to join,he wouldn't have it.Then in 7th grade while playing football some of the football players told him they also wrestled and he decided he would try it . The 2 young ones started in first grade and now the oldest wished he had too.[ /color].

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I was a "D/F" student at Tech High School, just waiting to turn 16 so I could quit school (as was the family tradition), when I got into some trouble at school and John Hurrle was the Dean of Boys in addition to being the Head Wrestling Coach. My punishment was a week of after school detention in the wrestling room. I fell in love with the sport! Because of grades I was not allowed to practice or compete, so, I became the student manager/trainer and began taking health professions/sports medicine classes in the IPS magnet program. I spent my Junior and Senior years on the honor roll. I now possess 4 Associate Degrees, 2 Bachelor Degrees, and a Master Degree and have completed one year of doctorate work (I stopped there). Not bad for a kid waiting to turn 16 so he could quit school. Thank god for wrestling and the great people within the Indiana wrestling community who have become such a huge part of my successes in life!!!

WOW!

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Same teacher/coach there now? lol

 

 

No way, I'm talking 30 plus years ago. The guy I'm talking about was Don Farrer. He never wrestled a day in his life, but could talk you into being something that you might not have been. We had a team ranked in the top 25 in 1977 with two SQ's, then the next year he quit to become the AD. The next two years we didn't win one dual meet... that was fun.

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considering everyone on this board is currently wrestling, currently coaching, has was wrestled, has coached, or is a parent of a wrestler, and we are all lovers of wrestling,  I was wondering what are some of your stories about how you got into the sport of wrestling.

Let's see, I've never wrestled a match in my life.  Ac started wrestling 2 years after I graduated.  My only coaching has been with the club when my sons were trying it, but neither stayed with it past fourth grade, so i guess I fall in the lovers of the sport category.  My cousin wrestled and I started going to watch him.  My freshman basketball coach was AD by that time, saw me there, and asked me to help with a tournament AC was hosting.  That was 1975.  My cousin lives in Chicago now, the AD retired, but I'm still there.

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I bet Farrer, Hoover, and Nicholson had some good coaching battles for awhile.

 

No way, I'm talking 30 plus years ago. The guy I'm talking about was Don Farrer. He never wrestled a day in his life, but could talk you into being something that you might not have been. We had a team ranked in the top 25 in 1977 with two SQ's, then the next year he quit to become the AD. The next two years we didn't win one dual meet... that was fun.

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My Dad was the wrestling coach and told me that if I wanted to play football then I had to wrestle.  One Sunday he decided that I needed to learn how to roll mats and keep score.  That was the weekend that the MD feeder system started.  A week later I was wrestling for St Joe Catholic School.  I also used my brothers as wrestling dummies.  Fun times!!

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I bet Farrer, Hoover, and Nicholson had some good coaching battles for awhile.

 

 

Some great guys. I would add Lou Bonacorsi, John Dechant, and Brian Arbogast in there too. Rollie Hoover was a motorcycle enthusiast and I met him while I was working at a local motorcycle shop, around the time I started wrestling. He would always tease me that he'd pay my room and board if I moved to Central! Then this year I found out that he helped Jimtown get their wrestling team started in the 60's. He would come to Jimtown after Elkhart's practice and teach wrestling. Awesome...

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Wow, awesome collection of coaches for sure.  Who did Arbogast coach for?

 

Some great guys. I would add Lou Bonacorsi, John Dechant, and Brian Arbogast in there too. Rollie Hoover was a motorcycle enthusiast and I met him while I was working at a local motorcycle shop, around the time I started wrestling. He would always tease me that he'd pay my room and board if I moved to Central! Then this year I found out that he helped Jimtown get their wrestling team started in the 60's. He would come to Jimtown after Elkhart's practice and teach wrestling. Awesome...

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Was coaching my sons 5-6th grade football team. The team we were playing was making some great open field tackles. After our game was talking to the opposing team coach. I asked him what kind of drill do you guys run to become so good in open field. He said well all my kids are wrestlers.  So I  just kinda past that piece of info to my team. Told my boys if you want to be better in football maybe we should look into wrestling.  Took them to one practice and  they fell in love with the sport. I did also.  My Chief had told me for a while to sign them up for wrestling.  I, for a long time was not really interested, just because I  did not know much about the sport.  Being a football, basketball, baseball person I was really not sure if the boys would enjoy it.  Now our family eats, sleep, s***, the sport. We even got my wife involved, which she was totally against it. She now loves the sport also. The sport has done so much for our family, in so many positive ways. I would of never thought that we  as a family would be watching Big Ten Championships ten years ago. I now promote the sport to any and all young children that have an interest in athletics.

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I played jr high football and basketball, but never really caught the coaches eye. they always watched the bigger guys and the faster guys, one day I came home and told my dad this one kid who was 6" taller and 50lbs heavier had his dad talk to the coach, and my dad aksed me if I wanted him to go talk to the coach? And I told him if he did I would quit.

My brother weighed 77lbs his freshman year in high school and became the captain of the wrestling team his senior year.

I came in as freshman that same year made the freshman team wrestled a couple of varsity matches then b-team my sophmore year and a few more varsity mathes, my junior and senior years was varsity.

Wrestled in college took a class in phys ed and they made us take a referee's test in the sport of our choice, I took the wrestling test in 1971-71 got into officiating , worked 11 state finals, 30 something semi states, 30 something regionals and 30 something sectionals. Got inducted into the Indiana High School Wrestling Hall of Fame in 2001, was given the outstanding officials award at the State finals in 1999 . This is may 38th year as an official and have heard people say they have given some much to the sport of wrestling, I can't help but think wresting has given me more than I can ever give to it. All of you have had to pay to get into events where I have been in the ***potty mouth***, with the best seat in the house, and even though it wasn't much got paid in the process.

Thats my story and I am sticking to it!!!!

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Back in '72-'73, my dad decided he was gonna try out for the basketball team at the "Dub" (East Chicago Washington).  It did not go exactly as planned so the wrestling coach at the time, which I believe was John Flores, suggested that he go out for this sport called Wrestling.  Being the competetior my dad was, he decided to give it a shot.  Turned out my Dad was pretty darn good at the sport.  So in turn, coming from a family of what would eventually include 7 brothers,he took a liking to the sport and turned out to be pretty successful.  Turned out his brothers took a liking to the sport as well.  Turned out the children of the brothers took a liking to the sport as well.  Turned out that the children of the brother's children took a liking to the sport as welll......and..... well I think as they say the rest is pretty much history.   ;D

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I was 10 or 11 and my best friend Kevin Elmore wrestled the first years of ISWA he was pretty good and he would come over everynight and work with me, by our 6th grade year I started Middle school varsity wrestled my JV match first ever pinned the kid. and or varsity kid broke his arm that day the coach liked what he saw told me I was going to be wrestling again put this siglet on, wow this is nicer I was thinking ran out wow the have girls cheering. The atmosphere was way maore exciting went out and pinned the kid in the first period I remember those mat maids pounding the mat as I was about to pin him it was the best feeling.

 

 My son started bcause I loved it and I forgot after moving back from Cali they had wrestling for little guy's. A very close family member committed suiside in Jan. the next day I was looking through the paper and I ran across an article it said Warren Wrestling club taking sign ups we needed something to get my kids mind off this tragity so that began our quest, every weekend we would consume our lives with wrestling going up north, south ohio, michigan just to get away and get some positive things happening in the house. And here it is ten years later.  THANKS to the ISWA for probably saving my life and making my son a better person. Also, giving us something to focus on beside the pain. Always greatfull!!  His first freestyle state he had the pleasure of wrestling Jackson Bratcher great kid and great family

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I was a "D/F" student at Tech High School, just waiting to turn 16 so I could quit school (as was the family tradition), when I got into some trouble at school and John Hurrle was the Dean of Boys in addition to being the Head Wrestling Coach. My punishment was a week of after school detention in the wrestling room. I fell in love with the sport! Because of grades I was not allowed to practice or compete, so, I became the student manager/trainer and began taking health professions/sports medicine classes in the IPS magnet program. I spent my Junior and Senior years on the honor roll. I now possess 4 Associate Degrees, 2 Bachelor Degrees, and a Master Degree and have completed one year of doctorate work (I stopped there). Not bad for a kid waiting to turn 16 so he could quit school. Thank god for wrestling and the great people within the Indiana wrestling community who have become such a huge part of my successes in life!!!

 

You need to tell this story to the people who say we should cut high school athletics to save money or that we should impose fees. 

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Growing up I had two cousins  that were close in age one that was 1 year older and the other was 1 year younger.  I was the onery boy of the family always getting into trouble for fighting etc. I used to visit them up in Wisconsin  and  us two older boys would always take turns beating on the younger cousin.  Well my mom let me go up and visit them for the summer  in between my 8-9 th grade year.  That summer might have been the longest of my life those two took turns putting me in the bannana splits , spladle cradles etc. etc.  I came home at the end of the summer got a job at the waffle house cleaning tables.  I saw the mean looking Wrestling coach sitting at a table so I walked up to him and told him I was going to be a wrestler for him and that I was going to be pretty good.

 

That coach was Randy Qualitza. 

 

 

Tim Spray

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Born and raised in Pennsylvania.....Wasn't an option if you were wrestling, it was when you were gonna start.....HAHAHA.....We never dared to mention Basketball in our house for the fear my old man would knock our heads off our shoulders.....It was simple, Football season ended and wrestling season went till AUgust 1st when as my dad put it " he would let us Play"..........

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Tried out for the 6th grade basketball team.... I was cut the first day when there wasn't supposed to be cuts. Yes i was that bad and still am. The wrestling coach told me I should come out and try wrestling. I did and never looked back. I am currently in Chiropractic school and I really don't think I would be were I am today with out wrestling and the people that I meet while wrestling.

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My dad wrestled in high school my mom thought it was a terrible idea that i start, but nineteen years later i am still involved.  I dont think she new the work ethic, drive, and overall never quit attitude that comes with the sport.  jokes on her

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moved to indiana from chicago didnt have alot of friends, brother joined, so i did my sophmore year to meet people and that when coach vlink turned me to a better person. wrestled just 3 years made it to state my senior year dont think i could have done it without the coach i had

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