AS KIDS AND TEENAGERS, LARRY RAYL, MY BROTHERS AND I AND OUR FRIENDS PLAYED A LOT OF SANDLOT SPORTS. We played baseball, football, basketball, “HORSE”- basketball, bike riding, etc. during the summer non-stop. We played from sun-up to sun down. We also played some little league stuff. Larry was always bigger, more athletic and more knowledgeable of the rules than we were, but we all had fun and lots of it.
Because of Larry’s sports zeal, we were also very much aware of the real sports heroes of our day. We were very fortunate to grow up where we actually saw some very famous future professional athletes in person in actual competition. Just to name a few; Larry and I saw Wilt “The stilt” Chamberlain- future pro basketball player in action. When he began playing, the rules were changed because of him. He was equally skilled as a track and field giant of our day when he was in college. Larry and I were listening to the game on radio when Chamberlain broke the all time NBA record with 100 points in one game. Playing fourteen years in the NBA, he never fouled out of a game. Those two “Wilt” records may be of those that will never be broken.
In football, we were fortunate enough to see Gayle Sayers, a future Chicago Bears “running back”, run a return for almost 100 yards. We also saw Johnny Hadl, future pro NFL football quarter back throw three touchdown passes in a row, when he was playing in college. He later went on to play for professional San Diego, LA, and Green bay teams.
We also saw the only USA Olympian athlete to win gold medals four times in a row, discus thrower, Al Oerter. We saw in person the amazing Lakota Indian runner, and future USA Olympic gold medal winner in the 10K competition, Billy Mills, who had attended the Indian University where Larry’s dad, who was Indian himself and directly related to frontiersman, Kit Carson, had worked for many years.