Gary Hall Jr. > Message Board > Fans > Page 5 of 7

February 5, 2004

Hi Gary,

Caught you on Cold Pizza this morning. Cool hairstyle!!! I am a former pool rat from way back who always envied freestyle sprinters. I was quick but couldn't compare to the real pool rockets. I went on to compete in Water Polo and swimming in high school and college....

I admire you for giving back so much to the swimming world and continuing to inspire young and old through your efforts. I myself coached age group swimming for a short time and enjoyed the experience. There are some real winners (coaches, athletes) amongst the swimming community who strive to maintain the ever increasing high standards that have made the USA Teams so competitive. It requires a passion and dedication as well as sacrifice. Thanks for your huge contribution to the evolution of this sport. Glad to hear you and some of your colleagues are pursuing surfing. Maybe I'll catch you on the North Shore of Oahu and challenge you to a mock surf contest!

Bud Webb (So Cal water rat)

February 2, 2004

Gary,

Sa-Weeet!! I've never been "posted" before.

Is Islamorada open to non-world class paddlers like myself? If so, I definately will find a time to go down and learn from the best.

Any books or videos you would recommend?

Thanks again,
Chris

From Gary: I recommend listening to your body - coming to a race club clinic and buying a Race Club membership... the shirt and hat make you swim faster!!!

Dear Mr. Hall,

As I was looking thruough a Sports Illustrated magazine, I saw the article on sports and diabetes. It was very informative to my family since my 15 year old son was diagnosed with Type I Diabetes 2 years ago. He always was an avid basketball player but since being diagnosed, he felt that he couldn't be his absolute best. Being a high school freshman and already 6'5", we want to encourage him not to let anything stand in his way. I was very happy to see the videotape that you produced and will be ordering it immediately. Thank you for sharing your thoughts and insights on how to deal with Diabetes in relation to the sporting world.
Sincerely,
Barbara Pohrte
January 21, 2004

From Gary:
Hey to you too,

Those chances are really good if you send the photos with a self addressed stamped returned envelope to:

Gary Hall
The Race Club
1521 Alton Road
#291
Miami Beach, Florida 33139

Peace and Love,
Gary

January 21, 2004

hey Gary just wanted to say thanks for getting back to me so fast, I had one other question....i saw you boxing at the burgdorff meet, i was wondering what the purpose of this was and if it had anything to do with core strengthening, or if u just enjoy doing it. thanks again

T.J. Southmayd

From Gary:
You'll notice that boxers and swimmers have very similar builds. We both have nice big late and the rotation in punching is very much the same. It has been an importnat part of our training.

January 21, 2004

Hey,
Its been a long long time. I just googled you on a fluke and I found some information on you. We swam together at Brophy. Hope all is well.

Shoot me an e-mail sometime. By the way, the day you tied for the gold in the 50 I was on my honeymoon in Spain. I avoided my wife that night (I was watching you on TV in our hotel room), which wasnt all that easy to do.

Best Wishes,
Chris Hood

Dear Mr. Hall,

I recently competed at the Sectional meet in Clearwater and recognized you there. . . I was wondering where you got your suits! They were Hi-Larious! Oh and the googles were hardcore! They rocked!

Peace Out,
Bianca

Gary's reply:
I got them from somewhere very deep in the forest growing on a tree. I will be sure to pick enough for everyone else next time I visit this tree (which will be very soon) and I will offer them for sale on my web site.

Peace and Love,
Gary

January 16, 2004

Gary,

I heard you last night on "Late Night" on ESPN. Congratulations with what you are doing for swimming. I look forward to watching your performance in Athens.

Be a Fish!!

--Chris
p.s. I am a triathlete. How do I swim fast?

From Gary:
Thanks! Kick really hard and don't get tired :-) Keep at it!

From Chris:
Yes, all well and good if I had flippers for feet, Ian Thorpe I am not. Alas, they are narrow and I have been known to take 2 minutes to kick one length of the pool in practice. How can I improve the kick phase without asking for different parents?

I graduated from the University of Houston (Go Coogs!), so I appreciate the Longhorn help.

--Chris

From Gary:
Hey Chris,

Listen to your coach and do a lot of swimming! You can also come on down to Islamorada for a lot of swimming and one of the best vacation lands out there. We'll help you with your kick!

Be well. Speak to you soon.

Gary

January 16, 2004

I'm a big fan but I would like to tell you that your shadow boxing is kind of embarrassing. First of all, people expect you to be intense and focused in a big race. The public is turned off by silliness before and after a race (like the men's 4 x 100meters in track). They know that you train hard and are striving for the best so they think it's strange that you could appear so carefree. Speaking for myself, I get so wound up before competing that I would be more likely to not even wave to the crowd at all. Lastly, your form on the shadow box needs a lot of work. But otherwise keep up the good work. You are a talented, good looking, intelligent guy that is good for swimming. Maybe I can race against you some day.

From Gary:
It is not the swimmer that wins that has fun.
It is the swimmer that has fun that wins.

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