The following post is based on actual events although some of the details are a bit hazy because this occurred 27 years ago. I dedicate it to my buddy, my pal, THE CAVEMAN Pete Newell in honor of his birthday yesterday. It is also my submission to Throwback Thursday. Although I dont expect anyone to read this because this post is much too long to read. Although I sincerely hope that my boy Pete gets a chance to read it ( I probably shouldve inboxed it to him) because he is probably the only person that could truly appreciate this story- because he went through it with me. ON THE WAY TO THE ARMORY... It was a mid afternoon Autumn day in 1987. It was the last class of the day and I had a track meet at the 168th Street Armory after school. I remember feeling nervous and excited. Coach Piliero had chosen me to run with the Seniors in the 4x 200 relay. This was my shot to show the upper classmen what I could do. I wanted to make sure that I got there early to stretch and be mentally prepared. Thankfully Pete and I were in the same class so we would be able to leave together. The plan was to bolt out of there as soon as the bell rang and catch the Special to the Subway and head towards the Armory. Petes race was scheduled after mine but we figured we both had plenty of time to get there- I mean WHAT COULD GO WRONG?.... The bell sounded and I before I could turn around Pete was by my desk and ready to go. Before we could take one step out of the classroom Pete and I were called back by our teacher. If memory serves me correct it was some type of computer or typing class. Again in this was over 25, 26 years ago so my memory is a little hazy. For some reason she wanted Pete and I to go around the classroom to make sure all of the computers were turned off. The name of the teacher escapes me but I remember explaining to her that Pete and I had a track meet to go to. This didnt impress her too much because instead of being on the very first Special on our way to the track meet, Pete and I were still in the classroom playing the unwilling teachers pets making sure every last computer was turned off... Smh. After taking care of that unwanted chore, we started high-tailing it to the bus stop, we still had time to catch that first special... And we wouldve made it too if I hadnt left my uniform in my locker. Of course Pete was ready to go because he had already packed his uniform in his bookbag. He couldve gotten on that bus, but Pete was and is a loyal friend and a great teammate so he went with me back to my locker. Ok, so we may have missed the first special but there was always the next one. I was getting a little anxious, but Pete assured me that we still had plenty of time. As we made our way to the bus stop Pete and I saw how extremely long the line was. We thought that since we had a track meet to go to that there would be absolutely no problem cutting in front of everyone, I mean we were on offical school business. ;-) So just as Pete and I put this genius plan into work Ms. Gevlin happened to be monitoring the line and she saw what we were attempting to do. Its ok Ms. Gevlin, we have a track meet to go to I said. Great, why didnt you say so in the first place, good luck boys. she said. Before I could get the words Thank you out of my mouth, she pointed to the back of the line which seemed to go on for miles and told us to make our way to the back. Time was ticking, but my man Pete assured me that we still had time. As we made our way to back of the line, George Michaels Faith was playing. We both took it as a sign. Nothing else could go wrong, from here on on out it would be smooth sailing. Nothing couldve been further from the truth... The line to the second Special was moving at a snails pace. I remember mentioning to Pete that not only were we going to miss the first bus but there was a very good chance that we were going to miss the second one too. Relax Pete said, the line is moving fast, and there is plenty of room on that bus.... As we watched the second bus leave WITHOUT US, Pete says to me Look on the bright side, well be one of the first people on the THIRD BUS. And as anxious and upset as I was, he was right. Besides, WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG? Pete and I certainly were about to find out... That bus ride was the bus ride from hell. It seemed to stop at every obscure stop known to mankind. And I dont know how this is possible, or what kind of route the driver was taking, but the bus seemed to be slowly trudging uphill for the entire ride. While Pete was having a grand old time with his friends on the bus, I was pinned into a corner looking out the window watching the world pass this incredibly slow moving bus. Mothers with baby strollers and Old ladies with canes, walking uphill were moving faster than this bus. Once again I heard the strains of Faith in the background of the streets of the Bronx as the bus trudged slowly along. I glanced up at Pete and he heard it too. It was a sign that everything was going to be alright. It had to be, I mean WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG?... We FINALLY got off the bus and it felt great to breath fresh air after being confined to a stuffy bus. But there was no time to take it in we needed to hop on the train and get to the Armory. Pete and I both felt a sense of relief as we got on the 1 train because despite all of the obstacles it appeared as if we were going to make it to the track meet on time. Sure we may have missed cheering on some of our teammates we could still make it there to catch some of the races and of course make ours. Everything was going to be all right afterall. I looked at Pete and said After all that weve been through wouldnt it be funny if the train is delayed. Just then the train comes to a screeching halt. After ten minutes that seemed to go on for an eternity there was an announcement that that train was being delayed by a sick passenger and that the train would be moving shortly...IT WASNT FUNNY. Thirty minutes later the train was moving again. The subway FINALLY made it our stop. Pete and I were so close to the Armory. We still had to take an elevator to the street level and walk a few blocks but we were almost there. I mean, WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG? We were so close and yet so far... Of course we missed the first elevator, but we only had to wait a couple minutes for the next elevator. It filled up quickly, but we fought our way on. I let out a huge of relief, smiled and looked at Pete and said Wouldnt it be funny if we got stuck on the elevator after all of this ? As soon as the words were out of my mouth, the elevator stopped. But the door didnt open. Every one in the elevator turned around and shot the dirtiest glances at me... IT WASNT FUNNY. The elevator door finally opened after a minute or so. Pete and I ran to the Armory. That would pretty much be our warm up. I never thought that I would be so happy to see the dingy, dank old Armory. After having to turn off the computers in class, going back to my locker to get my track uniform, missing the first Special, then missing the second Special, enduring the perpetually uphill bus ride on the third Special, being delayed by a sick passenger on the subway, getting stuck in the elevator, Pete and I FINALLY REACHED OUR DESTINATION! NOTHING COULD STOP US NOW! I MEAN WHAT ELSE COULD GO WRONG? Just then Pete looks at me and says Do you have your Armory pass?... OH NO!!!! ....I LEFT THE ARMORY PASS IN MY LOCKER! Again Pete couldve gone in without me but being the great friend and teammate that he was (and still is) he stayed with me trying to convince the security guard to let me in. Just then Mr. Howell, the freshman Track Coach happened to walk by. He vouched for me and I was allowed in just in time for my race. Without anytime to stretch I ran a 25.3 on the second leg of the 4x200 and our team placed third earning a Bronze. And my boy Pete ran a 52.5 on the third leg of his 4x400 team earned a Gold placing first in their race... But in my opinion not only did Pete put in a Gold medal performance on the track that day, he proved to be a Gold medal friend. Pete travels all over the world now because of his job but it is safe to say that the relatively short trip from Cardinal Spellman high School to the 168th Street Armory that he took on that day was one of the more interesting trips that he has ever been on. Lol! ONCE AGAIN PETE I WISH YOU A VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY AND A WONDERFUL YEAR TO COME. I WISH YOU NOTHING BUT SAFE AND EASY TRAVELS FROM HERE ON IN! ;-)
Posted on: Thu, 17 Jul 2014 04:00:35 +0000