Near the end of my junior year at Independence High School in 1984, our wrestling coach, Jesse Barajas, let the team know that a young stud, Marco Sanchez, an eighth grader from one of the feeder middle schools (Sheppard), would be coming to join the 76ers at IHS the following year. We didn’t know a …
If you were a kid in the ‘70s like I was, and you had a bike, you did what every kid on the block did — you made a ramp, and you jumped — just like Evel Knievel.Of course, not all bikes are built for jumping. A good motorcross bike was about $200 in the …
After his success as a San Jose State Spartan, Ricky Berry, was the 18th player selected in the first round of the 1988 NBA Draft. In 1989, he would be dead. Back to that in a moment. On March 26, 1979 all eyes were on the college basketball championship between Indiana State and Michigan State. …
On the eve of a fight in March, 1982, Bobby Chacon became a single dad to three children, ages 11, 8, and 6. Following two devastating losses, Chacon’s wife, Valorie, begged him to quit boxing. Her pleas were ignored. Subsequently, she killed herself with a rifle at the family’s home in the small town of …
Are you fitter than an eighth-grader?Since so many of you are back in the gym, I will reward each of you with a Presidential Physical Fitness patch. (Not really.)If you recognize this patch, you either earned one or wanted one. Today 14-year-old students must score at or above the 85th percentile of these activities: 56 …
If you’ve read the pre- and post-comments regarding the underwhelming “Fight of the Century,” it’s not difficult to conclude that Mayweather’s fans and foes haven’t left their respective cheering sections.Mayweather “supporters” aren’t surprised that he made an elite fighter look average. And Mayweather-haters continue to chime in with the same ol’: “Mayweather ran and hugged …
I’ll be the first to admit that I haven’t followed wrestling since Rocky Johnson, a.k.a., Sweet Ebony Diamond, was in the ring. And the only live event I ever witnessed was at the old San Jose Civic Auditorium, which held about 3,000 people.Yesterday, WrestleMania 31, broke Levi’s Stadium’s record with an announced attendance of 76,976! …
For years, my neighbor had a newspaper clipping of Olympian Bruce Jenner — waving an American flag — taped to the wall in his garage. He was all man: masculine, muscular, handsome. Out of all of the Olympic events in 1976, the decathlon was at the top of the food chain. Its winner was considered …
Yesterday I had breakfast at Wimbledon. There are fewer things better than championship tennis on a beautiful Sunday morning. Attendees indulge in a favorite at the All England Club: fresh strawberries, granulated sugar, and whipped cream! Delectable! Of course, my annual Breakfast at Wimbledon has never been anywhere near Center Court. In fact, I’ve always …
Years ago I made the mistake of saying that I wasn’t “good enough” to my father. I didn’t think much of it. In fact, I am certain that it wasn’t the first time that I uttered those words. But it was unquestionably the first time he heard me say them. Before I had a chance …