By John “Butch” Dale
Guest Columnist

Butch at the pole vault.

Springtime … grass growing, flowers blooming, bees buzzing, birds singing … and yes, the beginning of high school track season. Our school only had three sports … baseball, basketball, and track. I loved the first two … the last one not so much. But our basketball coach required his players to participate in track to stay in shape, so I had no choice.

To start us out, all of us had to jog from the school, all the way through town, then around SR 47, down CR 500N past Greenlawn cemetery, and back to the school … a total of approximately 3 1/2 miles … not fun! A few boys soon discovered that a shortcut through Doc Otten’s cow pasture could save considerable time. I was tempted to try that new route, but I had a hunch that I would be the first one to get nabbed by the coach.

On the second week of this grueling daily jog, the weather turned very cold, and I developed a severe cold. No matter … we still had to run that 3 1/2 miles come hell or high water. One afternoon there was a strong westernly wind. As I was running into the wind, I coughed up a large amount of mucus, turned my head to spit it out … and unfortunately the wind blew the gob of green stuff right into Johnny Hudson’s face … Sorry about that, Johnny Ray!

To determine which event each boy could compete, the coach timed us in the 100-yard dash on Adams street in front of the school. The fastest runners were placed in the short dashes. The slowest were stuck running the mile. Harold Abbott was always the fastest, earning the nickname “Rabbit Abbott.”

I ran fast enough that I did not have to run the mile … thank the Lord. When I was a freshman, Emerson Mutterspaugh was our coach. He made all freshmen run the mile, even at the county track meet held at Wabash College. I just knew I would come in last, so I came up with a great idea. I purposely left my track shoes in the coach’s car, and then just a few minutes before the mile was to begin, I told him about my shoes. Coach Mutterspaugh told me to hurry and retrieve the track shoes, but I took my dear time … and just as I arrived back at his car, the gun went off to start the event … Success!

All of us tried out for various field events … hurdles, shot put, high jump, long jump, and pole vault. I kept hitting my knees on the hurdles and knocking the crossbar off on the high jump. The shot put was mostly for big, strong guys … so I chose the long jump and pole vault.

As a small fry, I had run and jumped from our front porch many times with my red cape (a towel) strapped to my neck. I had also practiced pole vaulting at the age of 13 … using straw as a landing pit, a long iron rod as a crossbar, and an 8-foot section of a TV antenna for a vaulting pole! I am still amazed I did not break any bones during those times!

John ‘Butch’ Dale

Our school had an aluminum pole when I was a sophomore, but purchased a fiberglass pole during my junior year. The pole was for someone who weighed 150 pounds or less. I weighed 170 pounds … Hmmm? I had no form, but I could really bend that pole and flip myself over the crossbar anywhere from 10 1/2 to 11 feet to win against most other schools.

I was able to win at the county meet, too … thanks to a misty rain which caused New Market’s Dale Conrad to lose his grip on all three of his attempts. In the long jump, I was also able to win many times, although on a few occasions, my size 13 feet crossed the line, which disqualified the jump. That happened on each of my four long jump attempts at the county meet, and I didn’t even place!

After my events were over, I enjoyed watching my teammates compete in their chosen events. I was always amazed at how high Dan Hampton could go in the high jump … clearing a height as tall as himself! And Steve Emmert was a great runner in the mile. Harold Abbott won every 100 and 220-yard dash, and Dick Clouser could heave the shot put like a pro. However there was one boy who ran the mile who I will always remember.

When the coach timed him in the 100-yard dash, he appeared to be running in slow motion. Harold could run the 100 in 10 seconds. Most of us were between 12 and 15 seconds, but this particular boy was timed in 25 seconds, so he was stuck running the mile. He had a good attitude and tried his best, but always finished last. The next year, two teammates told him he could run faster if he ate some candy a few minutes before the mile began … to give him more energy. He decided that would be a good idea. Well, his buddies gave him some chocolate, which he excitedly gobbled down.

However, on the last lap of the mile, this boy was still in last place. As he rounded the last corner on the oval, he had a little accident … not a good one either. You see, his buddies had given him chocolate EX-LAX. Yes, that will always be one of the classic pranks in Darlington school track history … “Maximum Strength” will do it every time!