Homage letter for Charlie Salmon

“It is hot today!” I exclaimed as the young man kept toiling away at the rear tire of the dirt bike. “Better get used to it” he said as he began to pump air into the tire, “this bad boy should be ready soon.” I couldn't wait to have my first ever go around on a motorcycle. As the engine revved up Charlie twisted the throttle and let go of the clutch for a quick run around the yard, just to make sure everything was working right before he let me have a chance. “How's it running?” I asked as he slowed to a stop in front of me. “She's purring pretty good. You can try now. Hop up on the seat and I'll teach you how to give it gas as you let up the clutch.” Patiently he kept at it as the engine sputtered out time and time again. I was losing patience, I just couldn't get the hang of this machine. “You just gotta be smooth and feel the bike forward” he said as I tried for the umpteenth time to get the bike into gear. This time the rear wheel started to turn and the bike lurched forward. I let go of the clutch and I was cruising as fast as 1st gear would take me. “SHIFT UP! SHIFT UP!” shouted Charlie as the engine roared a high-pitched squeal. “Shift?! How do I do that?” “Clutch, then press the peddle.” I grabbed the clutch but couldn't find the next gear as the bike slowly crawled to a stop. “Dangit, I'll get this next time” I said as Charlie ran over to inspect the bike. “Next time is gonna have to wait, seems my handiwork has done too much handiwork and we got a flat.” Eventually I would figure out the start, the shift, even the driving off a mound of dirt all thanks to Charlie's determination to teach me the finer aspects of handling his dirt bike.


That summer was the first time I had ever traveled by myself and the first time I had truly felt like an independent person. That summer was the first time I'd rode a dirt bike, the first time I ever got up on water skis, and the first time I caught air on waterskis and met the water first-hand face first. It was a magical summer that was the first in a chain of events of personal exploration and it was all thanks to a cousin who lived in another universe called the country and the things I learned from him about being self-sufficient and being the best at what I did.


From then on I took a new perspective into all the things I did. After Grandmother passed, I found myself thinking about family a lot. I didn't know how to pay homage to one my favorite things, until after I returned from a month long backpacking trip in Montana. From then on before each of my cross country races I would take the time, on the starting line, to close my eyes empty my mind and say a little prayer. Run Hard for friends, as I pictured the faces of my friends Joleen and Tomas, Run hard for family, as I pictured Grandmother and all my aunts and uncles and my cousins ending with the memory of that summer with Charlie, Run Hard for my team and for myself. It never let me down as I raced with maximum effort every time.


This leads me to a story that I feel I must tell to explain why I am unable to come pay homage at the memorial for Charlie. As a senior captain, completely aware as the responsibility I had to continue the 3 year rein my team had over the State of Wisconsin, I had felt as though my team was lacking in the competitive edge to be the best they could possibly be. The guys were lost in running certain times and in the fact that we hadn't placed well at most of the meets that season. But I knew that my runners were stronger and better than they believed. So I put a challenge to them, I questioned their effort and I pushed them to work hard and run faster as we completed a ten-mile run. We dropped down to within 20 seconds of their race pace for the last two miles, just so they could understand first-hand that they always had more to give for the team. Then at the team meeting I challenged all of them to forget about running for a time and a place, but instead just to run for someone on the team. For the seniors, for the freshmen, for themselves. But to run their hardest for the team. Standing on the starting line, we were a focused group. As I crossed the finish line, I knew I had succeeded in teaching them what they needed to know about their own abilities. The reason I knew was because I could see my teammates ahead and just behind me as I myself crossed the line in a lifetime PR of 16 minutes and 54 seconds for 5k. I knew we as a unit had found the spirit of what being a Shorewood Cross Country team was about. As a varsity unit, we got together and ran over to the JV team as they prepared to begin their race. We were ecstatic and I put it to them to succeed as the Varsity guys had. As they left our huddle and returned to the line a freshmen, Ben Tyler, came up to me and said with an enormous smile “I did it. I ran for you and I ran so well. I ran for the seniors and I feel amazing.” A giant smile came across my face as I gave him a hug and we cheered the JV team on.


Ben is now a junior and will be competing at the WIAA State Track and Field meet this weekend. He has made some huge strides since that freshmen season at the edge of the varsity team. He set the school record in the 5k last season, a blazing 15 minutes and 44 seconds at our home invite. He took 5th place at the state meet that year and is now a contender to win the 2-mile race at the state meet. His PR is 9:39, but he will go faster. He has told me how helpful I was as a senior to embody the spirit of running and teach him how to lead. I have had the amazing opportunity to be an assistant coach for the Shorewood track team this spring.


When I found out from my dad about Charlie, I was heart-broken. He had always been such a strong and unique person in my life, but no longer would I be graced by his smile. Just hours earlier I had watched Ben, Peter, Emily and a girls 4 by 400 relay qualify for state. I could not wait to see them represent the uniforms I so dearly loved. But the news of Charlie made me realize my priorities had changed. My dad asked me if I was going to come and I had no answer at first. I couldn't quite grasp what had happened and I wanted to see my team compete at the state meet. So I told him to call me the next day and I will have decided. By the time the phone rang the next day I hadn't made a decision and as he asked me again if I was going to come to the memorial I said that I was really torn between state and Charlie. He said, in a very somber tone, I should do what I feel I need to and that he wasn't going to influence my decision. I sat with the phone to my ear as the memories of Charlie flooded my mind, a mix of the images of the state meet and that great summer with Charlie begin to meld into a new thought. What would Charlie want me to do? Then I remembered the conversation we had at Grandmother's funeral, when we talked about our running and he told me to keep it up and to beat his best time. I finally spoke and said I think Charlie would want me to see out this coaching thing. I think he would want me to succeed at it and that can't happen if I am in Texas. I thought to myself about the next year when I will be coaching our Cross Country team and how happy he would have been for me. My dad with a noticeable change in tone said Ya thats good I think thats a great thing I'll let the family know. I told him that I needed to tell them.


So this Friday afternoon Ben will be toeing the line at the University of La-Crosse's new track stadium, where 15,000 people are expected to watch the meet. He knows what I am sacrificing for him and I know he will run for Charlie Friday as he did for me two years earlier. If there is one aspect of myself that I hope my runners will emanate, it is my un-ending compassion. I know they already glow with it and Ben, Peter and the girls will run that much harder for me, but mostly for Charlie. I love you all with the endless compassion I have and I hope you understand why I have decided to see through my coaching. This is just the first time Charlie will have motivated me as a coach, but he will forever leave an amazing impact on my life, as that summer brought me to where I am currently, his memory will take me everywhere I go from this day forward.


Love,

David