I Was A Miserable Steeplechaser

Our newest member, Greg Reyner, has sent along another pic from the past.  There soon will be many more.  Here's a pic of a former away-meet roommate, Rick Garcia.  It's a small world.  I ran quite a few miles with Rick, but Greg and I missed by just one year and have not yet met.

Greg notes that he remembers that Rick and Coach Groves "often had words" with each other.  hee hee hee  I suppose he's quite correct in his analysis.

Some spontaneous thoughts about the photo:

• The uniform singlet is hideous!  The shorts are worse.  
• I also only ever got one foot wet during the steeplechase.  I was really and truly shown how to do the water jump by Arthur Lydiard himself.  It was at a summer meet in Millersville, PA. My hurdling technique was atrocious and my times pitiful, but I was really good at the water jump.
• Rick was a very good steepler and made the US Junior Team, if I remember correctly.
• Note the "wind break trees" in the background.  Coach Groves always talked about the wind break that will one day be provided by them.  More than 30 years later, they are almost helping.
• Is that Pete Bortolotti on the left-hand side of the pic?