Jordan Wolle, 89, Las Cruces, New Mexico

No one loves water more than Jordan Wolle. That could be the setup for a joke, given that he has lived most of his life in arid New Mexico. However, he is quick to state his opinion that there are more good swimmers per capita there than most other states. He is also proud to have represented The Land of Enchantment in every National Senior Games since the first in 1987.

Jordan is a keen observer who is never afraid to share his opinion. During our interview, he kept recalling all the little things he could have done better, or about aspects of his meets that could have been improved. His analytical character is likely responsible for his competitiveness and   attention to detail in training. Certainly, he’s always found far more positives than negatives to keep showing up to enjoy all the rewards of being part of the Senior Games Movement.

As a teen, Jordan found he had an aptitude for swimming in high school and city meets around his hometown of San Francisco, California. When he signed up for military service, and then accepted a demanding work contract maintaining computers at the White Sands Missile Range near Las Cruces for several years, it seemed like he had raced his last lap. But as the old saying goes, “Children give you a second chance at life,” and as his three children were growing, Jordan started joining them in the pool for fun. At age 46, he was again racing with 10- to 12-year-old kids in USA Swimming meets, which brought back his own passion from youth.

Jordan has been a fixture in masters meets and in Senior Games since that time, and has traveled the world competing in international meets. His second wife was also a competitive swimmer for many years, but has now been sidelined by Alzheimer’s. Last year, he was also challenged with his first major medical issue, a congenital heart condition that required stents to be installed. True to his nature, the thing that irritated him most about this was that his swimming times have been affected. These challenges have not affected his desire to keep swimming and joining his friends in competition, which is proof that he will always strive for his Personal Best.

As he reveals in the following conversation, once Jordan Wolle finds something he likes, he keeps doing it. And he loves going to the National Senior Games.

 

Jordan, as you know, 2017 is the 30^th Anniversary of National Senior Games, and you’ve managed to splash your way through all of them.

Yes, I’m afraid it will be. Then again, I don’t look any different now than I did 30 years ago. [Pause] No, that’s not true. [Laugh]

 

Are you a lifelong competitive swimmer?

I swam one year in high school and city meets. I was doing the breast stroke, and then the coach put me in the freestyle and I took fifth in the city meet in my first try. So, I decided I was more of a freestyle guy than anything else.

I was 46 when I started swimming again with my kids in 1976. I swam with the 10- to 12-year-old age groups in USA Swimming events. It gave me something to do after work to have fun. A lot of them were good swimmers, and I’ve had some come back to see me. One said, “Mr. Wolle, my biggest thrill was the first time I beat you in the 50 free.” I think, “Gee, did that really make that much of a difference for them?” But it did. So, I got going as a master swimmer at 48, and one thing led to another.

 

Have you just competed only as a freestyle swimmer in senior events?

I used to do butterfly and backstroke, but I like the freestyle. Of course, swimmers can change styles over time. I got to the point that if I don’t like doing something, I’m not going to do it. So, I’ve been just doing free for about ten years. I still like the open water swims.

One thing I like about swimming is that it’s one of the few sports where you can really take your frustrations out. You can just beat the hell out of the water and nobody knows about it. [Laugh]

 

Let’s go back to fill the gap. Please recall for us what you did before swimming came back into your life.

You know, you’re asking embarrassing questions of old people. If it wasn’t yesterday, I’m not sure. [Smile]

I was born and raised in the south side of the San Francisco area of California. In those days, you could go right out the door and steal peaches and apricots. Now, all you can steal is hubcaps because there’s nothing but cars there now.

When I finished school, I entered the Marine Corps after World War II.  Truthfully, I went into the Corps in 1946 to get the veterans benefits. Also, it was because a buddy of mine suggested we both go in. Guess who got accepted, and who didn’t? [Laugh] I went to Guam, Saipan and China on the first tour, and got called back for the Korean War. I lucked out and didn’t have to go there. I was sent to a special radar operation at Keesler Air Force Base in Mississippi.

I went to work for IBM in 1952 and was with them for 35 years, servicing the old accounting machines and then into computers. The first three computers I worked on were at the White Sands Missile Range near Las Cruces, and they filled a whole big room. I lived on the base because I was on call 24 hours a day to service them. It was fun to live there, because you could go drive out looking for arrowheads on the weekends. You aren’t allowed to do that anymore.

 

So that’s how you came to live in Las Cruces, and you’re still there, right?

I enjoy living in Las Cruces. I also bought some property up in the Gila area where I built a cabin. The closest town is 35 miles away. I’m not a hermit, but I do like the wide-open spaces. To each his own, you know.

 

You raised a family, so that proves you’re no hermit.

Betty and I got married in 1961. She was a PE and music teacher. We had three kids, Brooks, Bruce and Bodwin. We named her Bodwin because Betty had a student by that name who was killed along with her mother in an automobile accident on a Christmas Eve. We liked the name and gave it to our daughter.

We stayed together 25 years and then parted. She wanted to do her things, and I wanted to do mine. Since then, we’ve been friends. Last week, we went up to the mountains with Bodwin, and we go out to dinner all the time.

I got married again in 1989. You’ll love this: Marion and I met at the first Games in St. Louis. She was a swimmer, and wanted to know who that good-looking guy in the red Zoot Suit was. We saw each other again at the Huntsman Games in St. George, Utah and it went from there.

The only problem in our marriage, ironically, was the swimming. She did 200 flys and 400 IMs, and I swam all the freestyle stuff. So, at every meet we had to be there from the first thing in the morning until the last event. But we swam in Senior Games and did masters and some world events together. The first we did was in Rio de Janiero. I can look back on it now of the countries I’ve seen – New Zealand, Fiji, Samoa, Australia, Canada, Italy, Morocco, all over the place.

 

Does Marion still compete in Senior Games?

No, she has Alzheimer’s now. She’s hanging on, doing alright. I’ve been getting help with her since early 2016 because I had some heart problems to deal with and couldn’t take care of her anymore, like lifting her to get out of bed.

 

How did you hear about the 1987 Games?

I probably got a letter sent out to masters swimmers, and I thought I might as well go try it out. And I enjoyed it. I believe there were 85 athletes that went to St. Louis from New Mexico.

There were a lot of things wrong with it those first couple of games, but that’s neither here nor there. The wheels figured out that they didn’t have to reinvent it every two years, which is what it seemed like to me. They also got ahold of people that dealt in specific sports to help officiate events, which brought a lot of good change. I think it’s run much better now.

 

Any favorite stops at Nationals along the way?

You know, I remember things, but can’t always recall when they happened unless I get my memory jogged and it brings up something. One thing that always seems the same is that the registration line for the “S” through “Z” names is always the longest. [Smile] It seems that sometimes all you can remember is the things that went wrong. But I guess that’s human nature. I’ve always been pretty good about pointing out problems.

I’d say the first two games in St. Louis were good because almost all of the events were right on the university campus. A lot of people liked Tucson [1997] because everything was close the same way. I really liked the games at Palo Alto [2009]. The facilities at Stanford were good, and I grew up in that area so that made it memorable too.

Whatever the event, whether local, national or world, there’s a lot of camaraderie, going to see your friends again. I’m not real vocal at meets, but sometimes you make a fool of yourself cheering people on.

 

We watched you qualify at the New Mexico Senior Olympics. A lot of people know you.

We have a lot of good swimmers in New Mexico percentage-wise to the size of the state. There’s a guy from Las Cruces, Phil Djang, who is only 62 but he has just about every record in his swims.

 

You’ve met a lot of swimmers through all of the masters and world meets you’ve gone to as well.  

You have an overall better grade of swimmers in those international events, of course. But I think the National Senior Games was never set up to be just for the best swimmers. It’s a nice mix, and that’s what makes it fun. If you had a swim meet and only the “gods” as I call them show up, you wouldn’t have much of a meet. It’s the same with track and field and the others. I have talked a lot of the fancy swimmers to come to Nationals.

 

You’ve had your moments as well, Jordan. Do you have a favorite among those “gods” who have also been to National Senior Games?

Well, there’s the old reliable Graham Johnston. We’ve done some idiotic things together. [Laugh] We’ve done open water swims at the world meets, but I haven’t swam the Straits of Gibraltar in my seventies like he has done.

 

Graham was a 1956 Olympian and holds a lot of records. You often had to compete with him in the same age group. That must have been daunting.

Well, you get going and get used to it. Graham’s is a fast rut, and mine is a slow one, so… [Laugh] As I said, people like him are not the ones who really make the National Senior Games what it is-it’s the athletes in the trenches who keep coming whether they come in first, second or last. There’s all levels of competitiveness in these games.

The only thing I’ve ever done like that was to swim from Alcatraz to San Francisco. But that wasn’t much different or harder from the 5K and 8K swims in other places. Doing that was a glory kind of thing because of where it was.

 

So, what is it that has driven you to come to every National Senior Games? Only seven other people have accomplished that.

I guess I’m a creature of habit. If I start something, I tend to keep doing it. For example, I also started going to the Huntsman World Senior Games in Utah every year, and I’ve been to all of them too except the first, because they didn’t offer swimming their first year.

The National Senior Games also appeal because they’ve been held in different parts of the United States. They’re fun to go to. And my health has been good enough over the years.

 

Being a longtime competitive swimmer has had to help keep you in shape to make it 30 years, too.

Well, I never had any problems with health until last year. I was getting winded when I walked, and it turned out to be a congenital heart problem. It wasn’t the heart itself, it was getting the blood to it. So, they put stents in. There’s one thing that all the doctors say as I leave the office that irritates me: “You’re doing fine for a man of your age.” [Chuckle] I say “Whattaya mean by that?” No two people in one age do the same.  But on the health thing, who knows? For all I know, if I hadn’t been swimming all this time I might be dead now.

 

What would you say to someone who is just turning 50 and new to The Games?

Any sport is good for you. I would tell them to look for a sport in their area they are interested in and join a group. If it’s swimming, join masters swimming. If it’s track, join a track team. Senior Games happen once a year in states. Between Arizona, Texas and New Mexico, for example, there’s probably 15 masters swim meets a year they can go to. It’s better to get involved in clubs. They have coaches that will work with you.

You know, you can always find an excuse not to do something, doesn’t matter what that is. In my case, there were always more reasons to go than not to. Might as well go make an ass of yourself in these games as any place! [Laugh]

 

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George Freeman, 86, Foley, Alabama

There are just some people in the world that catch you by surprise. When you first meet George Freeman, he doesn’t strike you as an outgoing, gregarious person. He possesses an unassuming and good-natured personality that puts people at ease, and he is a good listener. However, once he starts talking, joking, and telling stories, he has the ability to light up a room without really trying. He also possesses a quiet determination that matches with his love of distance running, and he has covered a lot of ground by competing in every National Senior Games with no end in sight.

As you will learn in the following conversation, the native of Buffalo, New York believes his competitiveness comes from being raised in a large family during the Depression. He loved athletics in school, and after college became a high school health and physical education teacher and coach. He and his wife also maintained a sizable cattle ranch and raised four children. As busy as his life was, George always found time to run for fitness. At age 41, after seeing Frank Shorter win the Olympic Marathon in 1972, he dreamed of doing the Boston Marathon. He attained that goal six times, and ran a total of 26 over the next two decades.

A friend told him about the first National Senior Games coming to St. Louis in 1987, and his marathon run as a senior athlete began. He’s enjoyed competing in numerous sports in New York and at well over a dozen other state games. He’s earned plenty of gold at the state level, but it would take him until 2009 to win his lone gold medal in national competition. He cherishes the memory of that 1500-meter run, and appreciates the opportunity to travel and make friends during his competitive ventures.

After the passing of his wife a few years ago, George decided to make a fresh start, sold his farm and bought a retirement home in south Alabama where he had been wintering and visiting in-laws. This afforded new friends, new experiences, and new games to play in the surrounding region. He is looking forward to representing his new home state at the 2017 National Senior Games presented by Humana in Birmingham.

George considers himself lucky to have made it to all of The Games, but also credits his dedication to fitness and healthy habits for his longevity and being able to ward off the maladies suffered by other family members. He’s particularly proud that he has inspired many of his former students, and his own family, to engage in active lifestyles. That’s what happens when you pursue your own Personal Best!

 

George, take us back to the beginning and tell us about where and how you grew up.

Interesting story: I came from a strict Roman Catholic family. The oldest boy would always go into the priesthood in the old days. Well, Walter Freeman went to Niagara University. First year, grades were great. Second year, they were OK, but the third year they weren’t good at all. Well, Walter didn’t have the guts to go home right away, so he went to work on a peanut farm in Virginia. He eventually told his parents he didn’t have the vocational skills to be a priest.

[Pause] Well, thank God for that, or I wouldn’t be here today!

 

Oh…so Walter Freeman was your father. O-K. [Laugh]

Yep! [Laugh] So, I was born in Buffalo, but grew up in South Byron, a little rural town between Buffalo and Rochester. It was during the Depression. I was one of seven children – five boys and two girls. You can see how I became so competitive with four brothers around. [Laugh] I was always trying to figure out how to stay one step ahead of the others.

I was always athletic. My school was small, so it wasn’t very difficult to make a team. I played baseball and basketball, and I’ve always been a runner. I went to the University of New York at Brockport where I got my degree in health and physical education. I was on the track team and I did play one game of basketball – I scored two points and they cut me! [Laugh]

 

What was your career?

I taught health and physical education and coached a lot of sports – football, wrestling, baseball, track and field, boys and girls basketball, you know, all of them. But of all the sports, cross country was my favorite because those kids were most like me – running all the time. I loved distance running.

I also had a 200-acre Angus farm in New York for 45 years. My wife Helen was a farmer’s daughter and was great working it, birthing cows and so on.

 

When did you start running competitively after you became an adult?

It was the year after Frank Shorter won a gold medal in the Olympic Marathon in 1972. Plus, Dr. Ken Cooper had his step test and promoted the aerobics concept, and I fell right into it. My goal was to run the Boston Marathon. I’ve run 26 marathons, and six were the Boston Marathon. The last one was in 2002.

 

That’s one for each mile in a marathon. Was that your goal too?

No, it just turned out that way.  But I’ll tell you this for sure: I’ve run 26 marathons, and I was tired after every single one! [Laugh]

 

How did you learn about the first national games in St. Louis?

A friend of mine told me about them. He said, “You want to get into this now. It’s going to be big!” I went to St. Louis and I think they had 2,500 or so athletes. Back then you had to be 55 to compete, it’s 50 now.

I was really impressed with that St. Louis Arch and the Museum of Westward Expansion. I recall seeing Charles Lindbergh’s flying license. I try to take in stuff like this when I go to The Games. My wife always enjoyed going to new places with me.

 

Were any of The Games your favorites?

San Antonio [1995] was my favorite to go look around and see things. But I guess my favorite was Palo Alto [2009]. I have only one gold medal in the National Senior Games, and I got it there. I was 78 years old and ran the 1500 meters in 6:56. There were six runners in it, and I had a good idea I would win when I had quite a lead at the end of the first lap. I got to thinking about how many times I’d been to these national games and never won a gold medal. I ran my guts out on the last lap. I was happier than a bug in a rug when I won. [Laugh]

 

You have won many other medals along the way though, right?

Oh yeah, including all colors at the state games. I had ‘em all over the place in my house. My daughter teaches second grade, and when I moved down here to Alabama she kept a lot of them. What she does is give a kid a medal for character. She makes them write a thank you letter to me before they can get it. It’s a great way to get rid of those medals. I just think that’s great! She’s still got a lot of them, and she has three more years before retirement.

 

What sports have you competed in at National Senior Games?

I started with track, but I’ve bowled, golfed, and been in the triathlon, 5Ks, 10Ks, and cycling. The last time I just bowled – singles, doubles and mixed doubles. We came within four pins of a bronze in the mixed doubles. That’s the way it goes!

 

You didn’t run in 2015?

My left knee developed a touch of arthritis. It happened just before the games. I got some shots and a knee brace. I qualified for the 400, 800, and 1500 events, but I think I’m going to concentrate on bowling only again in Birmingham. Maybe I’ll feel competitive in 2019 to run and keep it going. I’d like nothing better than to be 90 and run the 100-meter dash.

 

What do you do for exercise and to keep active now?

I still do a lot of jogging and biking. I run on the golf course, early in the morning. I also bowl and golf quite a bit. In fact, last week I scored a hole-in-one in a local tournament – it’s actually the third one of my life. It was on a 125-yard hole. The average golfer would use a 6-iron or 7-iron, but I used a 3 wood. I guess that gives you an indication of my age! [Laugh] Our group has this rule that you have to treat everybody else to a beer afterwards. That’s pretty bad, they should be treating you, right? [Laugh] But I did get a cash prize for the hole-in-one, and still got $40 back after we celebrated. [Chuckle]

 

How do you keep motivated?

The key motivation for me every day comes right when I get up. I sit up, put both feet on the floor and ask myself, “Is there any reason why I can’t run or bike today?” And I always say, “No!” So, I get up and I’m gone. I go out for an hour, and I feel good about it when I come back in.

 

So you are your own coach?

Yes, I am my own coach.

 

Your fellow athletes certainly appreciate that you have managed to stay healthy and compete in every National Senior Games going back 30 years. How did you do it?

Well, I just hit it lucky, no doubt about it.  I came from a big family, and there have been a lot of weddings and funerals and such that might have conflicted with it. And keep in mind that you must get in shape for the state games. You have to be good enough to qualify to have the right to go to Nationals.

I was 55 when I started the whole thing, and I’ll be pushing 87 in Birmingham, which is right up the road from where I live now. My running and Senior Games has kept me healthy for a long time. It is great for your psyche. Maybe the world is going to hell, but you’re not ready to go with it. [Laugh]

 

Did “good family genes” help with your healthy endurance?

Of the seven children in my family, there are only three of us left. The youngest died early as an alcoholic. One sister died from emphysema, one died from heart problems, and another died from a melanoma. And my remaining brother and sister are all crippled up with arthritis and rheumatism. They are in very bad shape. I don’t have any of that. They all could have done better and lived longer. I was the only one who stayed athletic. I’ve taken one pill regularly, it’s a blood thinner.

 

Other than your knee problem in 2015, you’ve avoided serious injury?

Pretty much. I had a spill not too long ago when I was biking around here in Foley. So I’m riding along the golf course, and all of the sudden this dog comes up beside me. It was a Golden Retriever, the friendliest dog known to man. He didn’t bark or anything, just going along with me. Well, I hit a curve and fell. The first thing I’m thinking on my way down to the cement is, “How is this going to affect my bowling tonight?” [Laugh] Anyway, the dog is all over me, licking my face. His master came out. This must have been a wealthy dog because he yelled at the dog, “Go to your room!” [Laugh]

 

Do you believe you’ve been a role model for others around you?

I don’t know how much of an impact I’m having with the seniors now around me, but back when I was teaching I think I made a big impact on the student body. I’ve had many kids tell me that after they graduated they got into jogging and running to keep fit.

I also have four kids, and they’re all unbelievable. One daughter runs marathons, and the other two are bigtime into Zumba, you know, exercise dancing. That’s great exercise. And a lot of the grandchildren do sports. We had a tragedy and lost our son in an auto accident right after he finished college. He wasn’t even driving.

I lost my wife a few years ago, and I met Suzie after moving here to Foley, and she’s been a great companion. She’s an Alabama native.

 

With the Southern accents all around you, does she serve as your interpreter?

Yeah, sometimes! [Laugh] The people around here are very nice. Southern hospitality is a real thing to me.

 

Why did you decide to retire to Alabama?

The reason is that my wife and almost all my friends in New York had passed on. I was out in a rural area and getting older, and I was reminded of an expression, “Don’t die as an obscure person. Go out in a blaze of glory.” There really wasn’t anything there to hold me. So, I decided to mix things up a bit. I sold the farm to my daughter and son-in-law. My son-in-law’s father lives in Foley. I had gone there as a snow bird for eight years, so I bought a place here. There are a lot of things to do.

 

And now, the National Senior Games are following you to Alabama!

I think it’s just great. I couldn’t believe it the first time I heard they were coming to Birmingham. They have all the facilities there, and I’m sure visitors will be treated to the same hospitality I have found here.

 

You must be grateful to have persevered and be where you are today.

I think so. There’s a story that relates to that. I was an amateur pilot when I lived in New York. I did it into my 80s. Just before I moved south, I was coming back from a flight and the radio beacon wasn’t working at my home airport. I was lost and getting very low on fuel. I had to find a landing area. I said, “God, this is going to be all over the papers. Help me!” I looked down and there was an airport right underneath me, imagine that! Well, I landed alright. After that, I decided that God wasn’t ready to get rid of me yet. And I’m grateful about that. I also decided it was time to quit flying. I hadn’t killed anybody, and I don’t think you get more than one chance like that.

 

Well, you won’t kill anybody running, or bowling, or playing golf.

I won’t kill myself either! [Laugh]

 

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