December 17, 2004

Evergreen Sports

Forging peaks and valleys

Ken Nash charges IRONMAN at 76

By Justin Petersen
Staff Writer

Triathlete Ken Nash charges through the 26.2-mile running portion of the 2004 IRONMAN Competition. All photos courtesy of Ken Nash

Seventy-six-years young Ken Nash fought till the end in Kona, the site of Hawaii’s famed IRONMAN competition this past October. Despite failing to complete the 140.6-mile triathlon course, it was the memory of his wife Barbara that moved him.

The race marked Nash’s return to conditioned competition. In October 2000, his career as a triathlete came to a halt after he learned Barbara was sick with leukemia. When she passed away the following March, Nash—then 71—questioned his return.

“We found out she had cancer a week after we got back from Hawaii,” said Nash, recalling the last IRONMAN he would share with Barbara. That year he had triumphantly completed the course in a time of 15 hours and 12 minutes.

Barbara had bounded down, out of the stands to greet him. Holding hands, they crossed the finish line together with their daughter.

“It was a devastating time for me,” he continued. “We found out in October and they said they were going to cure her. They thought it was lung cancer. As it turned out, it had spread to her bones and into her brain. It was taking over her body.”

IRONMAN
Spanning 17 hours, implementing three disciplines, the IRONMAN is an unparalleled test of endurance. It begins with a 2.4-mile open ocean swim at 7 a.m. Without a break, athletes exchange wetsuits for bicycles and set out across Hawaii for a 112-mile jaunt, before finishing with 26.2 miles—a full marathon—on foot. Late comers finish at midnight.

Time cuts are interspersed, designed specifically for each event. Athletes must not fall far behind the pack. Otherwise they are disqualified.

“After Barbara died and I underwent some treatments of my own, I just sat around,” said Nash. “For about two years I just sat around and got out of shape again.”

An engineer drawn to teach at the community college level—Evergreen Valley College—late in his career, Nash claims he had not exercised ‘at all’ until he was 56.

“First I started running,” said Nash. “I had high blood pressure and my heart rate was terrible. I couldn’t get up the block—and that’s downhill. But I kept going out and running. After three months, I was running three miles a day three times a week.”

The steady improvement bred desire to compete. In 1986, at 64, Nash ran his first marathon.

“I was hooked,” he explained. “My feeling is that once you run a marathon, you can do anything.”

“It was about that time,” said Nash, “we were watching TV and there was this crazy race on.”

IRONMAN held Nash mesmerized. He recognized many of the characteristics he’d learned to value through a life spent at work and at home raising a family within the athletes. IRONMAN legends Steve Scott and Julie Moss, in particular, displayed honorable qualities in Nash’s eyes.

“They were doing such a great job, I remember,” said Nash. “Julie had competed with such grit. She crawled across the finish line that year.”

Barbara’s touch
Subsequently, Nash learned that Scott was scheduled to visit Reed’s Sporting Goods in San Jose. When that day came, Professor Nash stood front and center, anxious to meet young Scott.

The two spoke, Scott steering his elder toward a ‘nice bike.’ At this juncture, Nash remained a runner with an affinity for televised triathlons. He ‘swam some in high school,’ but had not biked since touring his neighborhood in grade school. Nor had he jumped in the pool with any serious intent. Ultimately, frugal Nash offered thanks to Scott but declined to purchase the bike.

It was Barbara that changed his fate.

“My wife knew I wanted the bike, so she went down there later that day and bought it for me,” said Nash.

He was a natural. Within two years, Nash had qualified for the world championships in Manchester, England. And at 65, Nash won the event, solidifying his place in the triathlon community.

“He’s one heck of a competitor,” said longtime friend and adversary Bart Anson.

Nash’s spirit
Anson recalled one incident in particular that exemplified the spirit of Nash.

“We were at the World Championships in New Zealand,” he said. “Apparently Ken was riding down a hill and somebody came barreling down behind him out of control.”

The cyclist clipped Ken, who slid ‘between 15 and 20 feet,’ pulling his skin across the pavement with him.

“Well Ken was stunned for a minute,” said Anson, “but he popped up, checked his bike and got back in the race.”

According to Nash, the race was over then. However, upon reaching the running portion, he perceived a small possibility.

“When I got there, I saw everybody’s bikes still waiting,” said Nash. “So then I thought, ‘well, maybe if I run well?”

Quick thinking and fast feet landed Nash in the mix despite a dazed expression and gory appearance.

“Ken was covered in blood,” said Anson. “And he was running with his helmet on. But he never quit.”

“That’s the type of man he is. He never quits.”

Despite the fall, Nash finished the race in second place, minutes out of first.

“One of the things that is wonderful about this sport is the quality of life,” said Nash.

He shared that joy with Barbara. According to Ken Nash, his wife Barbara took up exercise in secret.

“She would say, ‘I’m going for a walk,” said Ken Nash. “And she would take off one way while I went the other. One day, and I’m not sure why, I decided to follow her and see where she walked.”

Nash caught up to Barbara—but not so quickly.

“Without my knowing it, Barbara had taken up jogging,” he continued. Apparently Barbara spent the time Ken set aside to train for training of her own.

Barbara developed into a competitive athlete in her own right. Just months before being diagnosed with cancer, she won a 10-K in her age category.

“Sharing that moment with my wife and daughter has been my proudest moment in competition,” said Nash, returning to the Ironman 2000.

Road to recovery
After two years on the couch, as Nash states it, it was a chance encounter with an old friend that led Nash to reconsider his future in triathlons.

“I was up in Jackson, Calif., and ran into Bill Bell,” he explained. Bell—a fixture in the triathlon community—was planning an invitational race to celebrate his 80th birthday.

“He came trudging into the little general store up there and said, ‘I’m having it and you’re invited,” recalled Nash. “So I went down and did it.”

Training followed Nash’s rekindled enthusiasm. At 74, he was back in the swing, seeking out any race he could to qualify for the IRONMAN.

“It wasn’t until I started training,” said Nash that I learned my wife had planned a big party for my 75th [birthday] over in Hawaii.”

The plans added fuel to the fire. A rejuvenated energy followed Nash from race to race as he attempted to qualify.
In August, as if pre-ordained, Nash qualified in Santa Rosa.

However, disaster loomed.

Training for IRONMAN, determined Nash was catapulted over his handlebars when his bike malfunctioned. The result was a broken clavicle and eight broken ribs, a concussion and several days in the hospital.

With two months remaining until IRONMAN 2003, Nash was burned but not beaten.

“My daughter had a dream she would be at the finish line when I got there,” said Nash. He subsequently rushed out of recovery into warp-speed.

“I trained with one arm,” he said.

In October 2003, with 30 friends and family members present in support, Nash attempted the impossible, embarking on the IRONMAN without sufficient training.

Nash competed. He surpassed the cut-off points in both swimming and biking, but failed to complete the run in time.

Kona 2004
Now three years since Barbara passed, an undying determination found Nash treading water on a crystal clear day in October.

Triathletes fear such days where high clouds levitate over gusty winds. The phenomenon churns up choppy waves.

Teetering bikers struggle to hold the road without flying into harsh lava rock spread by volcanoes during prior millennia. Perhaps, running is most difficult in such conditions. In the last grueling leg, exhausted, flickering spirits face up to 80-mile- per-hour head winds, stealing their breaths at a breaking point just short of the finish line.

Yet, for the seventh time, Nash’s name shone amongst the most superb athletes in the world. He had made it back—for Barbara—and himself.

“The swim went pretty well, despite my time,” he said. “There must have been a strong current because other people I know posted similar results.”

Throughout the biking portion of the race, Nash acknowledged hot temperatures and steady winds, but ‘felt good.’

Taking to the trail on foot, he had plenty of time to finish. However, about eight miles out, a police car pulled up next to him.

“He said, ‘You’re in trouble,” conveyed Nash. “I said no, I’m not. I’m fine. He said, ‘No, you’re leaning.’ We went back and forth for a while and when I saw my shadow I realized how right he was.”

Soon Nash discovered a bulge developing on his back. He finally stopped.

“I realized I was going to fall on my face if I kept on going,” he said. “I told the officer to call the ambulance and I pulled out of the race.”

The race was a culmination of emotion and personal struggle endured by Nash—a testament to grit. He forged ahead when he was sad and filled with despair, by his own account. Yet, he did not finish on top of the podium.

Regardless, Barbara would be proud.

“Most of the guys I know say, ‘I’m never coming back and they do,” finished Nash. “I’ll be honest. I plain got tired of training this year. My goal next year is to do shorter races. But I already did Alcatraz...”

He won.

San Jose Grand Prix

Downtown to host Champ Car World Series in July

The San Jose City Council recently approved downtown San Jose as the site of the San Jose Grand Prix open-wheel street race on the international Champ Car World Series this July.

The San Jose Grand Prix, scheduled for July 29 – 31, will be contested around the HP Pavilion and surrounding downtown streets. It will be the eighth stop on the 2005 Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford schedule.

“The San Jose Grand Prix will bring world class racing excitement to our downtown streets, and it will bring San Jose to the attention of millions of people across the nation and around the world,” said Mayor Ron Gonzales.

“The event will also benefit our local businesses and generate revenues that help support vital city services for our residents.”

In addition to the auto race itself, plans for the San Jose Grand Prix call for a week of activities including concerts, fairs, charity events and promotional activities. The festival is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of fans to Northern California’s largest city and become a mainstay on the Champ Car World Series calendar.

Under the proposal, the city and the San Jose Redevelopment Agency will invest $650,000 toward the $3 million infrastructure costs to install and remove barriers, equipment and street improvements needed for the race.

Over the next 10 years, revenues from the event would repay the public investment with interest. Event revenues and Canary Fund Enterprises would pay the balance of the project cost.

Canary Fund Enterprises, an affiliate of Canary Fund, will produce the San Jose Grand Prix. Canary Fund, founded by Don Listwin, is dedicated to advancing the science of the early detection of cancer.

“On behalf of Canary Fund, I thank Mayor Ron Gonzales and the city council for their support of this project,” said Listwin. “The San Jose Grand Prix will provide Canary Fund with an exciting platform to raise awareness and money for its unique new approach in the battle against cancer.”

Canary Fund collaborates with cancer research centers including the Stanford University Medical Center in Palo Alto and the UCSF Comprehensive Cancer Center in San Francisco. Canary Fund was also recently announced as the “Official Social Cause” of the Champ Car World Series.

“The city council has made a decisive statement in favor of bringing a historic event to the city of San Jose,” said Bob Singleton, San Jose Grand Prix general manager.

“The San Jose Grand Prix will be much more than a race. It will be a weeklong festival of activities that will generate significant revenue for the local community and businesses. Whether you’re a fan of racing or not, I guarantee that people throughout Northern California will put this week on their calendar as a ‘must-attend event,’ ” Singleton said.

The Champ Car World Series features some of the greatest racecar drivers in the world competing in the most diverse and exciting series in the world. Champions Sebastien Bourdais, Jimmy Vasser—who hails from the Bay Area—and Canadian Paul Tracy are among the drivers who battle for the Vanderbilt Cup, which is awarded to the winner of the Bridgestone Presents The Champ Car World Series Powered by Ford.

A.J. Allmendinger, the 2004 Roshfrans Rookie of the Year who was born in Los Gatos and resides in Hollister, will be another contender. In addition, Mexican drivers Michel Jourdain, Jr. and Mario Dominguez will compete among an expected 18-car field. The title is contested on oval circuits, temporary street circuits and permanent road courses in 15 cities in the United States, Mexico, Canada and Australia.

Retired NFL Referee Fred Silva Dead at 77

Evergreen resident’s NFL career spanned more than 20 Years

Fred Silva, widely known for his coolness under fire as a respected official in the on-field maelstrom known as the National Football League, died Dec. 3 at the age of 77 in a Palo Alto hospital. The cause of death was attributed to congestive heart failure.

A highlight of Silva’s NFL officiating career came in the 1980 Super Bowl XIV between the Los Angeles Rams and Pittsburgh Steelers, when he headed the NFL officiating crew. The game, played in front of more than 103,000 spectators at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, was also seen by a worldwide television audience of more than 100 million viewers.

Silva joined the National Football League in 1968 after several years officiating at the collegiate level in what was then known as the PAC-8 conference. The long-time resident of The Villages in Evergreen was a versatile athletic official, recognized equally for his skills on the basketball court and baseball diamond, as well as on the gridiron.

His son Fred, Jr. recalls watching his father referee UCLA basketball teams led by Lew Alcindor, now known as Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.

“My father had a vibrant competitive spirit and his love for sports served him well, both personally and professionally,” said Silva’s son Fred, Jr. “He was very determined to succeed at anything he put his mind to.”

Players remember their coach
Silva became San Jose City College’s first athletic director in the1950s, and he coached football, basketball, baseball and track teams during his tenure at the school.

He led the Jaguars vaunted football teams to championships in 1956, ’58, ’59 and ’60, coaching such stars as former Oakland Raiders quarterback Shon Gallegos and Chicago Bears offensive lineman Jim Cadile.

Cadile was drafted by NFL legend George Halas and spent his entire 11-year career with the Bears. He noted that Silva “had simply a tremendous impact on my life, both as a person and a coach. To me, he was ‘Mr. Perfect’, an individual with a lifelong love of sports and an absolutely tremendous work ethic.”

Gallegos, also a resident of The Villages in Evergreen, recalled what he remembered most about Silva.

“I was one of two quarterbacks playing in an East-West Shrine game, but I didn’t get to play until the fourth quarter,” said Gallegos. Although he threw a few touchdown passes and his team ultimately won, Gallegos was feeling very low after playing only the last quarter in an all-star game.

Silva came down to the field to cheer him up and told Gallegos, “Shon, you’re the best player out here.”

“He didn’t have to do that,” said Gallegos, who decided to go to San Jose City College, where Silva coached, because of those uplifting words. Gallegos went on to graduate from San Jose State University and played a year of professional football with the Oakland Raiders in 1962.

“He was a nice guy, not a hard-nosed guy who yelled and screamed,” added Gallegos, who won a Pop Warner award in 1961 in his last season at San Jose State.

Silva’s earlier years
Born in Oakland on Oct. 18, 1927, Silva capped an illustrious prep athletic career by gaining all-state honors as a quarterback at Oakland’s Castlemont High School.

After graduating in 1945, Silva immediately joined the U.S. Marine Corps, and was honorably discharged in late 1946. He then enrolled at San Jose State University, graduating in March 1950 with a degree in education.

San Jose advertising executive Dave Heagerty knew Silva for nearly 65 years, the pair having grown up together in Oakland. They attended Castlemont as well as San Jose State, remaining lifelong friends.

“Fred had a great sense of humor and a razor-sharp wit, which occasionally served him well in tense situations during NFL games,” recalled Heagerty. “He was also a mentor to many younger people interested in athletics as a career choice.”

Silva is survived by son Fred, Jr. (Jacquie) of San Jose and daughters Karen Silva of Los Gatos and Kathy Lane (Rod) of Columbus, Ohio, along with four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

Funeral services were held on Saturday, Dec. 11 at 2 p.m. at the Veteran’s Administration Hos-pital Chapel, 3801 Miranda Ave. in Palo Alto.

A personal tribute to Fred Silva

By Tom Harney
Special to the Times

I’m sure that Fred would have been pleased with his memorial service at the Veterans’ Administration Chapel in Palo Alto, Calif.

Particularly heartwarming were the tributes paid to Fred by his former players at Willow Glen High School and San Jose City College who talked about the positive effect that Fred had had on their lives.

Several former players spoke of how Fred had been a father image to them, how he inspired them to do their best, how he encouraged them to talk about what they wanted to be or what they could be.

The comments from the former players were from the heart, and at times humor seemed to lighten the load that all of us were feeling. One player spoke of how he first met Fred as his high school civics teacher, and said, “He was a pretty good teacher, too; he was always two chapters ahead of us.”

Another former high school backfield player spoke of asking Coach Silva how he could do a better job of blocking incoming linemen to protect the passer. Coach Silva said, “Fake high and hit him low.” “I tried it, and I broke his [the lineman’s] leg,” said the former player.

Another former player half-jokingly mentioned that without Fred’s influence, “he might have ended up in Pelican Bay or San Quentin.”

This is just a sampling of comments, but as I listened to all the former athletes talk about how Fred had influenced their lives, I thought how wonderful that a dedicated teacher and coach like Fred had made such a positive contribution to so many lives. A teacher truly never knows where his or her influence ends.

Those former players probably didn’t know that they might have missed Fred’s positive influence on their lives, if Fred had gone the route of a movie star instead of a coach.

In the spring of 1949, the Athletic Department at San Jose State received a phone call that there would be a casting call in San Francisco at the Clift Hotel for college football types to try out for the leading role in an upcoming movie.

Fred and I and a few others tried out, but didn’t get the part. Aldo Ray, a big guy from Crockett, Calif., with a unique sandpaper voice, got the part and went on to fame and fortune, but I doubt if Aldo Ray ever came close to receiving the tributes that Fred got from his former players at his memorial service.

How fortunate those players were to have Fred Silva for their coach. And, how fortunate for Fred that he was able to influence many lives so positively.

Tom Harney is a resident of The Villages who played football with Silva at San Jose State. Harney is also a frequent contributor to the Evergreen Times.