"Sustainability!"

I was profoundly moved this morning attending Roy Clark's memorial service. Having my old friend and Qb Wayne , Roy's son, read the the description of the Roy Clark Power Player award we have created in his memory brought me to tears.
Upon my return home I settled in to work out, read Sports Illustrated and watch the Olympic trials from Eugene Oregon.....Dallas and Punk were born there and Jess was flying down Stansby Way on her three- wheeler. A quote from my favorite magazine read"Today is a new day, a new beginning. It has been given to me as a gift. I can either use it or throw it away."
The combination of these occurrences carried a huge message to my subconscious, if you will. I need , must, and will bring "sustainability" to the GCSG! In the wake of tough times, I will find a way to lead us down the path to "sustainability". I'm confident my efforts will be sufficient. I'm on a mission!

Wid

"Bell to Bell!"

I'm the only person on the planet that has the opportunity to see everything and every event we do during the course of our 365 day format.....over 100 of them! I told the staff today that I see this as an honor and a privilege but also an obligation. How else can I effectively lead without first hand knowledge of seeing ,feeling,smelling, tasting and hearing the unique dynamics of each one of them! I love it!
I also take pride in being at the first event of the Summer Games, golf, on Friday am and shutting down the last basketball gym Sunday evening. "Bell to Bell baby!" It's not quite time to pass the torch.
I can hang!

Wid

"Safety first!"

The weekend went great! The normal issues were there of course but our preparation paid off! 33 sports at over 60 locations and we might break 7,000 athletes. A special thank you from all of us to all of you for making it happen. An extravaganza of this magnitude takes the concentrated effort of thousands of people! I'm overwhelmed at times as how it all comes together. After 13 times you would think I would be used to it.....never. The feeling I always had as an athlete, as a coach, as an administrator and a leader is still there------you know what I'm talking about. It's that fire in your belly that makes some of us tick. The before can be very anxious, the during can be very exhilarating, and the end hopefully is gratifying. I like the range of emotion that life gives us. It's 10% of what happens to you and 90% how you handle it!
The icing on the cake was nobody got hurt....."Safety first!"

Wid

"I'm always extremely impressed!"

Time waits for no man! Ready or not , here we come. The Summer Games will kick off Friday morning with my traditional golf cart ride with Commissioner Tom---it's tradition. From that point on it's solid 6am to 10pm until we wrap up on Sunday. 28 sports,65 locations,6,000 plus athletes, and thousands of spectators all cheering on there favorite competitors.
Times like these always produce special moments and adjustments on the run but if we work our plan we will be fine. The formula is simple: a loyal staff,committed sponsors, a supportive board, tireless volunteers, and knowledgeable commissioners. We need to start fast and finish strong.
The plan will work. The preparation has been impeccable.
And as in the past I'm always extremely impressed by the talent,effort, and sportsmanship exhibited by our athletes regardless of age or ability.
It's SHOW TIME!

Wid

"It's just a lawn mower!"

Long night for some reason...up early went to the office, came home, worked out and then the highlight of the day----mow my lawn. The anticipation was building since I told my son I think I had an extra mower to give him when they move into there new house. I pulled it out of the corner of the garage,dusted it off, filled it with gas, tightened up the handles, wheeled it to the back yard, and pumped the primer 10 times. Now the moment of truth...will it start. I geared up for the first pull to be strong and clean. Wham--put... put put...put boom boom----Wow!Started on the first pull. I took off mowing. The yard looked great....now back to the mower. I washed the bag, cleaned the machine top ,bottom, and underneath, let it dry in the sun then tucked it back in the garage ready for its new home.
What's the big deal? "It's just a lawn mower!" -------It was my Dads.
HAPPY FATHERS DAY!

Wid

" You have to play hurt!"

There is a difference between being hurt and being injured!
I just watched one of the truly remarkable performances in sports history!
Tiger Woods in the third round of the US Open!
Unless you've been there you have no concept of what it's like to perform at an incredible high level of efficiency when your body is walking the fine line between being hurt and being injured!
Tiger Woods is beyond description. I wish him well in his quest for victory tomorrow!
" You have to play hurt !"

Wid

"It's in the air!"

I love the weekend before the "BIG ONE!" Can you feel it? Our Summer Games is where it all started. We will have 33 sports at over 75 venues in a three day span next weekend. We hope to reach 7,000 athletes. The on-line registration is hummin', the phone is ringin', the mail is steady. Our athletes are preparing to extend themselves, the commissioners are covering the last set of details,the volunteers are anxious about their assignments, the staff wonders if there is a enough time, and I'm a little bit cranky as I keep on pushin'!
It's game time! I want the ball when the game is on the line....I like the feeling. It's show time ....the sponsors expectations are high, the press is making there inquiries. I'm checking the numbers constantly, I'm not sleeping much, and calling myself with reminders. We have a PLAN----I like the plan. In essence everything we do will in the final analysis benefit someone in a positive way through sports! Let's roll!
"It's in the air!"

Wid

"We've lost one of our own!"

Sometimes in life our path crosses individuals who leave lasting inspirational impressions!
Roy Clark was one such individual in my life and I'm sure many more! His determination to excel in our athletic competitions well into his eighties will always be remembered. I will never forget at one of our track meets in Tucson we were preparing to start the "race walk" for Seniors when I heard this distinct voice saying" wait just a gosh darn minute!"Sure enough here came Roy out from under a shade tree ready to compete! "You aren't runnin' this one without me!"
His numerous medals are to many to count, but that's not how I'll think off him....more important he always used to tell me,"Wid , if I'm going to go, it might as well be on the track!"
A side light to the story , one of his children, Wayne, was my college quarterback...a fairly prolific combo in all modesty.
Our hearts and prayers go out to his lovely wife Marie and their entire family.
"We,ve lost one of our own!"

Wid

"We need to celebrate!"

Life goes by so quickly sometimes. We can spend a lot of time searching for that elusive perfection. Being fulfilled is not something you can delegate. You must take charge of your own happiness and emotional well-being.
Just recently I was reminded how important it is to not to let important things pass you by....like birthdays, holidays, and in my case anniversaries! I FORGOT my 33rd wedding anniversary--Luckily Cinda did too! We both felt bad. That was a first!
We vowed "we need to celebrate!"

Wid

"It works!"

On Thursday Earl's office called and said that a wrestling team from Mexico wanted to come for our wrestling tournament on Saturday...would it be OK? We scurried around and got a hold of our wrestling commissioners and they said" sure". Made a quick call to our official hotel The Doubletree Phx Airport and they said they had rooms. Done deal!
Saturday morning they were the first ones to show up....14 plus 3 coaches. In fact the one female coach also wrestled against the men and helped Ref!! For her efforts she received the Power Player Award!
There was also a Native American team present....Girls wrestling guys,Natives wrestling Hispanics....You name it, we had it!
"It works!" Sports truly bridges all gaps...we see it all the time.
In this "Olympic year" the whole world will be witness to it!

Wid