COMPETITION KEEPS US YOUNG!

While I was growing up my very favorite times were when I was involved in any kind of competition. I was a baby boomer in a neighborhood swarming with kids. My family contributed six to the crowd. Depending on the game we would include our neighbors, The Trompeters, Garveys, DePaupes, and more. A minimum number of contestants could be six or seven, but when the stars were aligned, we would get as many as twenty, sometimes more.

I remember the day we recruited kids from the nearby streets, Cambridge, Madison and Colfax and filled our backyards on Chatham Ave. with contestants. The first game was a wild affair, we played Red-Rover (A game in which one team locks their arms together and challenges their opponents by yelling, “Red Rover Red Rover let xxxxxxx come over.”) The challenged kid would run as fast as possible and try to break through the challenger’s line. If successful, that kid would capture one of the opponents whose grip had failed. If the challenged kid was unable to break through, he/she was captured, and the other team now made the same challenge.

Our summers were filled with a variety of games ranging from rainy day staples such as Checkers, Chess, Monopoly, Scrabble and more, to Electronic Football (Not the John Madden variety). Our version was a board game in which 11 offensive players were lined up against 11 defensive players. The “electrified” board would vibrate when it was turned on and the players moved as a result of the vibration- completely uncontrolled. The team whose vibrating ball carrier happened to go the correct direction won.

Obviously the sunny summer days were the most fun. We played 16″ softball in the street (A largely Chicago thing), Whiffle ball (plastic bats and balls) in the backyards and hardball at the park about a mile away. When we weren’t in the mood for baseball, we played war (re-enacting WWII battles). We could restrict our battlefield to two backyards or expand it to the whole block. The larger battlefield was challenging as some of the older neighbors with no kids might react badly to children in their bushes throwing “hand-grenades” and yelling “rat-a-tat-tat, rat-a-tat” with an occasional dramatic death included. We also played cowboys and Indians- same as war with different guns and hats.

Other summer games included: Four Square (Throwing inflated balls from one chalked square to another trying to eliminate the competition by hitting them hard enough, or at a spot where they couldn’t catch it- If they were able to catch it the person who threw the ball was eliminated), Kick the Can (The can is kicked and all the contestants but one run. The person who doesn’t run has been designated to be the goalkeeper. The goalkeeper must retrieve the can and return it to the base. With a hand on the can on the base, the goalkeeper must spot the other players and call out their names and locations. When a player is caught that way they have to go to “jail.” Any player can free the jailed players by kicking the can without the goalkeeper catching them.)

We played many other games and could make anything a competition.

We would challenge each other when we got bored. “Betcha can’t ride your bike down the hill, grab onto the lowest branch on Kuhn’s tree and hang on it without falling”.- That’s how my brother Paul broke his wrist the first time, but that’s a different story.

From the time I learned to walk until now I have loved to compete.

I won a few championship trophies in little league (That was when only the first, second and third place teams got trophies). I played on at least three all-star teams. I had dreams of playing major league baseball, but reality stole those dreams away from me. I’m not trying to mislead you. I couldn’t make my high school baseball team and, unlike Michael Jordon’s experience with basketball, I was not able to succeed and invite the coach who didn’t choose me to watch me play professionally.

As many of my friends did, I kept my competitive spirit alive after high school by joining men’s softball, football and bowling leagues. I boxed on The Southern Illinois University Boxing Club in college, and we fought at Menard State Penitentiary, Merlin’s Bar in Carbondale, IL (Where Gale Sayers told me he liked my speed and character after seeing me lose to an Air Force fighter) and a club in Columbia South Carolina against the University of South Carolina Club. I got some confidence from that experience and entered the Chicago Golden Gloves after I graduated. I lost to the eventual champion in my first match.

Shortly after I married my ex-wife told me it was time to grow up and be a “full-time” dad. With that advice/ultimatum I took 32 years off of competitive sports. I even stopped competing in games we played around the house. I didn’t “throw” the scrabble games I lost, I just stopped putting as much effort into winning as I once had. I didn’t think it looked good for “dad” to throw the draw four card on his 5-year-old.

After my marriage had dissolved, I prayed that I could get my “strut” back. I wanted to re-learn competition.

I joined my brother Paul’s bowling team on a league with several bowlers who averaged over 200. My average was not quite that high.

I hadn’t bowled seriously for over 30 years. My first year in the league, as a sub, I had an anemic average of around 118. It was a handicap league (Bowling against your average) so I had a chance to beat some of the good bowlers by bowling over my average. I was starting to get my competitive juices flowing again and, I was not at all happy with my poor performances.

My average slowly, very slowly, started to grow. I prayed for patience, and improved bowling skills. I stayed late on nights I was able to and practiced. My brother, a guy on my team with a 214 average, and a few guys from other teams saw me and offered useful tips.

I tried other tactics to improve, awaken, my competitive instincts. I play Scrabble with one of my daughters and one of my sons. I have won once out of about 15 tries, but the key word is TRIES. I am now trying!

I am jumping into the “BAGS” games at summer parties. I have won a few times, I am definitely behind my oldest son and my father-in-law, but I am competing!

I’ve hosted a few “Poker nights” and I haven’t lost the house yet!

I’ve taken up golf and I am showing definite signs of improvement over the last two years.

For me, it’s fun to be competing again. I am truly sorry I opted out and I strongly recommend that anyone who is not currently competing should come back to that grind. I have found it is great to have something to look forward to. I like the fear of failure, or as ABC Sports used to say, “The agony of defeat.” As strange as it may sound, I love releasing the ball when I’m bowling and knowing I messed up and have to concentrate more on the next ball. I really love releasing the ball and knowing I did well, then watching it roll into the pocket as the pins explode!

This year’s bowling has just ended but I have accomplished a few of the goals I had set. One goal was to raise my average- I did, but only by10 pins. After all, I’m a work in progress!

I also wanted to bowl at least one game over 200. I did not succeed during the season, but I had signed up for two post season tournaments. In the first I bowled games in the 160’s and 170’s which was good enough to win $135 in pools. My second goal was accomplished when I bowled a 224 in the last tournament.

I think that score was as good as 10 cholesterol pills for me.

I am enjoying the thrill of victory and even the agony of defeat, I encourage everyone to get their competitive juices flowing. I believe it’s as effective as the fountain of youth.

Thanks for reading. Please comment. I look forward to hearing from you!