I remember coach Rideout.  I would think everyone who either ran track or played football would remember him as a real neat guy.  We joked around a lot.  I remember one day I was trying to get out of practice so I played sick and when he gave me a thermometer, I stuck it in the hot tub for a little while.  With a smile on his face he said he was glad to see the hot tub had not cooled off any!!

Two memories of Coach Rideout. 

In the school newspaper, some humorist made up the "Name Game." Here are the two examples I remember.

Mary can. /  Mary cannot.  /  Mary Cantu.

Wayne ride in. /  Wayne not like it.  /   Wayne Rideout.

The other memory is more personal.  Coach Rideout made all of us on the tennis team "weigh in" every year. The scale was in the gym and I recall a bunch of guys being  in the bleachers when I had to go out there.  He didn't say my weight out loud, but he did comment, "Good Lord, Colson.  You weigh more than I do!"  Of course that wasn't saying much.  He didn't ever seem to  weigh more than 90 pounds soaking wet, but I was still pretty humiliated. 

Well, I have a feeling that NONE of you are going to remember this except me, and I probably shouldn't share it, but . . . . . I think I was a junior when for some unknown reason my science fair project got selected to be shown at the regional science fair held in Houston.  For the life of me, I don't remember what my project was, so not sure what I learned by doing it, but anyway . . . Doc Rideout and a female teacher (whom I don't remember) were the two chaperones for the students.  I think there were 4 of us students who went.

I decided that it would be fun to do something "neat" while in the big city of Houston, so I scanned the Houston Post newspaper.  I just happened to see an ad for free roller coaster rides at the amusement park out on South Main Street.  After several suggestions from me, the group decided that we should all go and enjoy our one night off.  I noticed that Doc didn't have much to say when I was begging to go, but he was always fairly quiet. I didn't realize that this was a "red flag".

When we got to the park, I persuaded everyone to ride the coaster first and asked Doc if he would like to ride with me.  Being the gentleman that he was, he graciously agreed.  I thought that the ride was fabulous.  HOWEVER, as soon as we got off, Doc went over to the fence and started throwing up.  He was a very sick man.  I was so embarrassed and felt very guilty.  I had literally "made" him go on the ride.  Of course, I never dreamed that he got motion sick so easily.  It never crossed my mine at the age of 16 that it would be anything but fun.  I think he was so sick, that the other teacher with us had to drive us back to the hotel.  I really felt badly.

About a week later, Doc saw my daddy at Central Texas Harware and he told him that he had made a decision to never chaperone students from the Class of '63 if Charlotte Cole was in the group.  Well, I decided that he was probably teasing.  So, . . . . I started collecting the ads that were run weekly for the free rides on the roller coaster.  My mother and Miss Ruth, his wife, were in the same Evening Study Club, so for Christmas, I put them neatly in a very lovely wrapped Christmas package and had mother take it to their Chrismtas party and give to Miss Ruth for her sweet husband.  Well, I waited and waited and waited and doc never mentioned his Christmas gift.  So, he "got" me in his gentlemanly way.  He taught me to never beg someone to do something if it didn't feel right in their heart.

What a "man" he was to all of us, not just a teacher/trainer/coach. I will always admire him and his ways.

Prior to his teaching days--"Doc" and his twin brother attended North Texas State University where they ran on the track team.  I know this because both my parents attended North Texas (where they met and subsequently married following Daddy's graduation) during the same "pre-war" years.  Daddy said that watching the two run side by side was like seeing a single person--they ran stride for stride.  

Years later, Doc and Ruth's son (David--if my memory serves me) and his wife lived near me and she "baby sat" one of my sons during the day while I was working.  

Charlotte Cole Wilson wrote:

I remember his wife because she was the one who handed out military draft numbers.  I think her office was in the Varisco Building.