Summer 1972 → Today (53 years later)

This photo was taken the summer after my 10th-grade year.
I had just finished my first varsity season ever: 11–8–3.
Nothing special. Exactly what you’d expect from a first-year varsity wrestler with only two years total experience.

That summer, I attended a one-week overnight wrestling camp with about 200 wrestlers, alongside my Chardon teammate John Taylor.
Running the camp was Dan Gable, on his way to winning Olympic gold.

People ask me, “Out of 200 wrestlers, who did he pick to demonstrate technique on?”
Truth is—he didn’t have to pick. I stood up. Every time.

For that entire week, he demonstrated technique on me.
I was such a beginner I probably wasn’t reacting right—I even poked him in the eye once. He doesn’t remember it. I do.

No embarrassment.
No ego.
Just hunger.

One morning I saw him leave his cabin early for a run. I stayed hidden and waited until he came back—soaked in sweat. That image burned into my mind:
🖤 This is what greatness looks like when no one is watching. 🖤

A few weeks later, I watched him win Olympic gold on a black-and-white TV.

Fast-forward to November 1975—a little over three years later.
There’s another photo.
Me wrestling Dan Gable.
And I beat him.

He wasn’t old.
He was 26.
I was 18.

Years later, he told me:
“Lee, it never occurred to me that you would actually try to beat me.”

⚫️ Never concede—especially in your own mind. ⚫️

You never know when your moment is coming.
But when it does—you better be ready.
And document everything, because legacy is built long before anyone is watching.