My boy is just stoically strong and spiritually together

On St. Patrick’s Day, Cape girls track coach of the last 34 years George Pepper marked off the discus sector with a rolling lime or flour dispenser - whatever it was. I wouldn’t know, and I coached track alongside George for a lot of years, but I was never “that guy.” Not that manual labor is the Mexican beneath me, it’s just that I could never draw a straight arc if that makes any sense.

Pepper, in country cool, sings Randy Travis songs. The entire clan is like that - laid back, reserved, a high IQ and not getting up off any personal information unless asked by the right person. I have 33 years of personal contact history so I barely qualify as a confidant.

“Pep” was scheduled to have coronary bypass surgery Thursday, March 18, at Beebe Medical Center, and if you just gasped, “What?” - that was exactly my reaction. George never smoked or drank and has done cardio stuff his entire life; if he has a vice, it’s that he has no vices. But there was the genetic component.

“I thought I would be getting a stent but they did tests and said I need the bypass,” Pepper said at track practice while giving me permission to publish this fact in my column. “You may as well print it, you know how it is around here, half the town already knows about it.” Pepper said he expects to be out of work “teaching” eight to 12 weeks but back at track practice before that. George couldn’t have looked less worried on the eve of major surgery. My boy is just stoically strong and spiritually together.

GOOD VIBRATIONS - Research has proved that individuals deprived of one of the five senses have heightened awareness in the other four. It is a human survival compensation mechanism. Running with headphones bumping and blasting a deep bass into your skull is the opposite of being deaf. You hear fine, just not what you need to hear like a small plane landing behind you on the Hilton Head flat beach you choose to jog on. The chance of being struck by a plane while jogging on hard sand is remote but just maybe without the headphones you could hear the whoosh of wind and the pilot screaming, “Get out of the way!” Say it didn’t happen and the guy didn’t die but you would be wrong. “Give me a ticket for an airplane.”

HEART A LONELY HUNTER - Nick Sharp’s 6-year-old highly skilled and socialized black Labrador retriever, Hunter, who helped a crew of “good old boys” including Rob Dorman and Will Emmert get through the University of Delaware, passed away a few weeks back having drowned in a shallow swimming pool he got into but couldn’t get out of. Young men with trucks who go “duckin” and play lacrosse and include their dogs in everything they do are really missing Hunter Dog.

We all know the day you get a lab puppy you are opening up a world you can only see through their eyes, but you are setting yourself up for a broken heart. We “dog people” have all been there and if there is no heaven for labs, send us where they do go.

SNIPPETS - Shane Jensen, former Cape football lineman and wrestler, has been long-term subbing and coaching at Laurel. Shane is certified and knowledgeable in social studies and a writer and will soon be dually certified in special education. He is the real deal and will be a lifelong coach and community guy. I hope Cape gets a chance to snag him - he’d be a great asset for academics and athletics.

I filled out my 65-team NCAA basketball bracket in less than two minutes. I go higher seed in the first two rounds then mascots and colors after that.

Cape Crusader basketball has launched a fundraising campaign and it needs the money. If you can afford a donation, write a check to Cape Crusader basketball and give it to Tom Pederson or drop it at the Cape Gazette in care of Fredman.

There’s a boys lacrosse fundraiser Saturday, March 20, at the Outback Steakhouse in Rehoboth.

I was interviewed by young film students for Temple University, including a Kenyan from Amish country the day before the Polar Plunge. I told them I played football for Temple and their eyes lit up.

“Really, when was that”?

I refused to date myself although I do travel alone to most places. Get it? Get this!