These questions were asked of me by a friend who was in the process of writing a self-help book on winning.
What initially drew you to wrestling, and what keeps you passionate about it today?
First, it was the challenge. Then came the neighborhood bullies. After that, it became obvious how wrestling encourages self-reliance and helps you build the confidence to stand up to life’s tougher moments.
I was the youngest kid in my neighborhood. If I wanted playmates, I had to prove I was worthy of acceptance. No one was interested in the kid with a 16-inch bike when everyone else was cruising around on 20-inchers. And just when I finally upgraded? They’d moved on to 26-inch big-boy bikes. Sigh. Once again, I had to suck it up and pedal twice as hard just to keep up.
Eventually, when they couldn’t ditch the little guy, they tried bullying instead. When one of the bigger kids would tried to make me say “uncle,” I ended up on top, calmly asking him if he’d like to apologize. That didn’t just earn respect—it made me known as the little guy with moxie.
Those backyard battles jumpstarted my interest in wrestling. Who knew neighborhood survival and wrestling were so closely related?
Now, after more than 60 years in the sport, I’ve learned that wrestling doesn’t just prepare you to win matches—it prepares you for life. It instills the very qualities employers value most: persistence, physical toughness, and mental grit. That’s what keeps me passionate about it to this day.
