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Super Bowl XVIII Coin Toss

Internet searches are often truly amazing. Sometimes they lead us on a wild goose chase. Other times they coax us away from an innocuous topic of interest, drop us in front of a treasure trove of information and offer an idea for an unthought-of story. Such was the case just the other day when I searched for a small piece of information about a former NFL football player who is now a sports media figure…

Suddenly, right before my eyes was a little gem that I had never expected to find. Pre-game activities at Super Bowl XVIII, in Tampa, Florida in 1984 – certainly nothing like the present-day circus that accompanies the event – paid tribute to George Halas, former head coach of the Chicago Bears. I am a die-hard fan of the Bears, as was my father before me.

There would not even have been an NFL without Halas. More interesting though was the fact that the coin-toss that year was accomplished by none other than Bronko Nagurski, an all-time legend in Bears history and football in general. (Nagurski played for Halas’ Bears) Several things instantly happened within my mind.

Small Fry Football League

A flood of memories took me back to when I was eight years old. A number of us neighborhood kids had assembled a group that started to play football, trying to emulate what we watched on television. Our fathers, responding to serious concerns voiced, no doubt by our moms, that we would, among other things, knock each others’ teeth out, organized us into a real team. They shelled out their own money for proper uniforms and equipment, and eventually organized us into the first “Small-Fry Football” league in our local area.

In the next few years as the number of teams grew, we all got bigger and stronger. And, for the majority of us, our love of the game grew as well. Mine certainly did, by leaps and bounds. I was fortunate to have come from good stock.

My father was a lanky six-feet-two and, dripping wet – in high school, anyway – weighed perhaps 180 pounds. He was a three-sport athlete, excelling in football. By the time I got to high school, my “gifts” included quickness, speed, and agility. I needed those attributes, as I was just shy of five-feet-ten (including the half-inch added by my shoes) and weighed about 160 pounds.

Dream Not Realized

I never stopped dreaming of playing professional ball, right up through my senior year in college when it finally became clear that, for a number of reasons, I would likely not realize my dream. Importantly though, back then I saw football as a game played by guys who simply loved the game.

But I digress… So, what does all that have to do with Bronko Nagurski? Patience, my friends. My point (in case you were wondering just where the heck I was headed with all this) was that just seeing the name Bronko Nagurski also took me back to 1972, the year I graduated from college.

By the very nature of life, high school and college years often tend to create incredible space between fathers and sons. My dad and I had gotten pretty far afield from one another by the time I graduated.

Bronko Nagurski’s Favorite Place

My father had likely wanted to reconnect. And thus, informed me that he wanted to – as a graduation present – take me to northern Minnesota to go fishing. The lake to which my father took me was Kabetogama, 25,000 acres of natural beauty. As it turned out, that lake was Bronko Nagurski’s favorite place to go fishing. He even had a cabin there that he used when he went hunting and fishing.

My father once pointed out the cabin to me. I can only describe it as incredibly rustic, but I knew it was a special and quiet place for Bronko. The cabin was only accessible by boat, except during the winter months, and then Nagurski would traverse the lake ice to get there.

According to Tim Watson, life-long resident, and fishing guide on Kab: “The Nagurski cabin was on the point just south of the Ellsworth Rock Garden. As you boat into the gardens, there is a reef on the right-hand side with a steel post on a tripod marking the rock. I call that Nagurski’s reef. The cabin was right on the point directly in from the reef. Wood frame cabin with a red roof. To me, that’s Nagurski’s Point“. View a map of Kabetogama and the location of Nagurski’s cabin. (Special thanks to Voyageurs National Park for providing this picture of Bronko’s cabin on Lake Kabetogama)

Naturally, my father also wanted me to see the gas station in International Falls that Nagurski purchased after retiring from football. Bronko also participated in professional wrestling to supplement his income. Football players, even those as good as Nagurski, made precious little salary back then.

1932, Fate, and the Northwoods

At the time, I’m sure that I was not very impressed. Not that Bronko Nagurski was not impressive. It’s more like… well, what is important for a newly minted college grad? I knew Nagurski had played for George Halas and the Chicago Bears, but that was almost fifty years earlier. C’mon. I was twenty-two years old, and I had more important things to think about. To be honest, at the time, I just couldn’t relate.

When the name Bronko Nagurski flashed before my eyes again, I now figured it had more to do with fate. My father’s high school team had won their football conference in 1932; Bronko had played for Halas and the Bears in ’32. I love the northwoods. My father was instrumental in that. I write a lot about the Northwoods, and not an article is written that I don’t wax nostalgic about something I learned as a result of being with my father on those trips north. There had to be a connection. Something made me want to know more about a guy who could possibly be one of the best to ever play the game of football.

Wearing #3 and Playing Fullback for George Halas

Bronislau “Bronko” Nagurski, according to Wikipedia, “was born in Rainy River, Ontario, Canada (November 3, 1908), of Polish-Ukrainian descent, and his family moved to International Falls, Minnesota, when he was five years-old.” That definitely qualifies as Northwoods! Nagurski played for the University of Minnesota Golden Gophers. In 1929 he led the nation in rushing yards and was a consensus pick for the 1929 All-American Team by sportswriter Grantland Rice (who, by the way, was also responsible for coining the phrase “Four Horsemen of Notre Dame).

Wearing #3 and playing fullback for George Halas and the Chicago Bears from 1930 – 1937 (and part of a final season in 1943), Nagurski, at six feet, three inches tall and 225 pounds was huge. Even most linemen at the time were not that big. But he was darn good and very well-respected, both on the football field and off of it. He mostly ran straight ahead and was next to impossible to bring down. It has been said that “Tackling Bronko was like trying to stop a freight train from going downhill”.

A Gas Station in International Falls, MN

In 1963, Nagurski was among the original 17 men inducted into the National Professional Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio. He attended the ceremonies with the ten other inductees who were still alive at the time. All the men got rings, but the jeweler had to make a new mold to accommodate Nagurski’s enormous ring size of – wait for it – 19 ½!

Football has never been kind to players’ body parts. The game made no exception when it came to Nagurski. He suffered from arthritis and multiple knee operations, but he never complained. Finally, in 1960, a tired Bronko Nagurski decided to return home to International Falls, MN and live a quieter, more “ordinary” life (although as I mentioned, he made an appearance – his final public one – at the 1984 Super Bowl to handle the official coin toss).

He opened a gas station in the Falls, too (Pure Oil, located near the corner of 3rd Street and 3rd Avenue) that he operated with his sons. It has been said that after he tightened your gas cap, the only way for you to remove it was with a wrench! He dearly loved the area, hunted, and fished mostly for fun. He even became a fishing guide on Rainy Lake for a while. As for his gas station in International Falls, it is no longer there. The building houses an insurance agency now. There is, however, a Bronko Nagurski Museum there!

Life Lesson

I have been unable to fish Kab since 2009, but now I realize there is an additional motive to return, if for no other reason than to renew a connection that has finally become clear to me. It would be great if we could all take a lesson out of Bronko’s playbook. Live life large and play the game with an intensity and love that is uncommon in today’s world. My father taught me the same lesson many years ago while encouraging me to compete in football, track, and baseball. That mantra is unfortunately noticeably missing in today’s sports.

Nagurski never bragged about his accomplishments. He never danced in the end zone after scoring a TD, he simply handed the ball to the ref. He never made a fuss or complained. Bronko just loved to play the game! Period.

Northwoods Connection

Bronko Nagurski will always be legend, and the image of the humble and gentle giant with steel blue eyes will always invoke what desire and tenacity are all about. From www.BronkoNagurski.com: “After more than a century of football, he remains one of the sport’s truly immortal legends.” Thanks Bronko, for literally reaching from beyond the grave to remind me of a truly a great Northwoods connection, complete with some of the best memories of my father that I have!

Stay tuned… I’m certain there are more Northwoods Connections out there. I’ll be out there looking for them. As always, I hope to see you On the Lake!

R. Karl

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Hot Humid & Storms Before Breakfast

My second cup of coffee was history and I had just finished re-covering my boat. The threat of storms again this morning was finally going to produce some desperately needed rainfall. This was the second driest June that I could remember in my 30-plus years on the lake. As the thunder rumbled in the background and the rain began to sizzle through the pine trees just outside my cabin, the melodic strains of one of my favorite CD’s soothed the nerves that had been jangled by an incredibly slow walleye bite and hot, humid air that had been accompanied by a brisk south wind for four straight days.

Jim Chappell’s CD Living The Northern Summer was on and the song “The Finest of Times” had started to play. My breakfast of eggs, hash browns and bacon sat steaming in front of me in the cool, humid air of the morning as I began to recall some of my own finest of times. According to my mother, I was only two years old when my parents had placed me in the bow of their boat as they fished a lake in northern Minnesota. Perhaps that is when I unknowingly developed my love for all things water.

Looking Forward to the Northern Summer

One of the things that my dad seemed to always look forward to? Our annual trip to Minnesota to a little town named Bagley. It was there that he had made a significant recovery from what would be a lifelong battle with the effects of the malaria acquired in the jungles of Guadalcanal during World War II. And it was there that he had found some of the peace that I believe he wanted to share with his family. We stayed in a small log cabin, one of a half-dozen or so, owned by Hank and Irene – relatives of a sort – a short distance from a small lake. Every summer until I was about 9 or 10, our family spent a week or so “Living the Northern Summer.” My mother, father, sister and I laughed and ate dinner together, swam in the lake and fished, played cards and enjoyed the simple things that life had to offer.

North of the Border

Years later we journeyed a very long way to a place called Lac de Milles Lacs in Ontario, Canada for another fishing trip or two. Again, we enjoyed the things that families enjoy together, and life couldn’t have been any better. Don’t get me wrong. Neither my sister nor I enjoyed the outhouse that was at least 100 feet from our cabin.

My sister did not enjoy the leeches in the lake either! Her desire to go for another dip in the lake was overpowered by the thought of the dozen or so that attached themselves to her legs following an afternoon swim. And there was no shower, either. The only water available came from a pump at the kitchen sink. It was always ice cold! Many times, there were complaints from my sister & me about being dragged along on all these trips. But we were a family and we stayed together as one. The fishing, by the way, was better than excellent!

But then something terrible and altogether unavoidable happened: we grew up. Family vacations become difficult when the kids get to high school. There are always other priorities. I think I almost forgot how to fish. And my old rod and reel? They sat neglected in the damp of the basement.

Graduation Gift

When I graduated from college, my father announced that he had heard from a friend at work about a lake in northern Minnesota and that he was taking me there for a graduation present. It had been years since I had done anything of that sort with my dad. Frankly, at the time, my sentiment was: “what kind of a graduation gift is this?” Well, you know what kinds of things college can often do to a person. Looking back, my response was very selfish. But the end result… Ahhh, now that’s a different matter entirely.

My sister had married and moved to California and so it was just my mom, my dad and I who tried to recapture some of the finest of times. And to be sure, we did. The trips back to Minnesota brought back some terrific memories. I had to learn to fish all over again. But it was the time together with my parents that I will always treasure. Unfortunately, only four trips were to be made by that trio. I too had suddenly decided to chase my fortunes on the left coast. My father then retired and, a year later he died. The job-related stress – and the malaria, I believe – had taken their toll on his heart. He was only 63.

Continuing the Tradition

The year of my father’s death – 1976 – was the only year that I did not journey back to the lake in Minnesota. I returned from California and for the next 25 years, my mother and I would head north every June for that special magic on the lake. My sister would fly all the way from San Francisco to join my mother and me, and the three of us continued to enjoy “Living the Northern Summer.” In 2000, my mom finally rejoined my dad.

My sister continues to make her own journey every June and we still share a great tradition that really started back in the 1950’s. So, as I sit at the table this morning and look out at some of nature’s finest gifts – the pine trees, the wildlife, the lake – I drift back to the simpler and slower pace of another time. I have my own boat now and a lot of other things that perhaps I don’t need. But I have the one thing that has made me a better person. I have something that I could never live as well without. I have my memories of great times and a great family. Thanks Mom and Dad, and Patti, too for The Finest of Times!

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Ingredients

• 1 lb. uncooked fresh fish, chopped*
  (blue gill works best, but any fresh fish will work well)
• 1 cup canned corn (or fresh sweet corn cut off the cob
• ½ cup finely diced onion*
• ½ cup finely diced green pepper*
• ½ cup finely diced celery*
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• ½ tsp. dry mustard
• Pinch of cayenne pepper
• Salt & pepper to taste
• 1 egg, lightly beaten
• 1 ¼ cups plain breadcrumbs
• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 2 Tbs butter
• 1 package Hollandaise sauce mix

Fish Cake Instructions

*To speed up the prep time at home, we sometimes use our KitchenAid mixer using the meat grinder attachment with the coarse blade to grind the fish, onion, green pepper and celery together. The fish and vegetables will be chopped/ground to a uniform size very quickly!

If you do not have a meat / food grinder (or maybe you’re in a cabin with just the basics available), simply combine the chopped fish, onions, green peppers, corn and celery in mixing bowl and toss well.

In another bowl, combine mayonnaise with mustard and cayenne. Stir into fish mixture. Add salt and pepper. Use rubber spatula and gently fold in egg and approx. 1/3 cup of the breadcrumbs. Chill (covered) the fish mixture for about an hour.

Note: Fish mixture may be “soupy”. Add more breadcrumbs as needed or cut down on the mayonnaise from the ingredients section).

Form the fish mixture into 6-10 patties (size is your preference) and carefully cover patties with remainder of the crumbs.

Heat a non-stick, heavy aluminum or cast-iron skillet over med-high heat; then add 1 tablespoon of oil and 1 tablespoon of butter. Cook patties over medium heat (about 3 minutes per side). Add more oil or butter if necessary.

Sauce: Although I started by making homemade Hollandaise, the time taken to do it right was excessive. Therefore, I started using the package version. It’s faster and just as good. Also, I learned to add things like a bit of Worcestershire to “dial up” the flavor a bit. Just follow the directions on the package. Spoon onto cakes when ready to serve.

I sometimes like to make the cakes up the night before, and store them in the freezer, uncooked. In the morning, I pack them in my cooler and bring them with me. After a few hours of fishing, I pull my boat up to an island and take out my gas grill and Kab Cakes and have a gourmet breakfast right there on the rocks! Can’t beat it with a stick! Hope to see you on the lake!

rk

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Well, it’s a little further away than that, but I can dream, can’t I? So, what else is there to do in the waning days of winter when cabin fever is about ready to drive you nuts? I would say that it is high time to try some outdoor activities for some winter fun. How about a little ice fishing?

Off to Northern Minnesota

I used to be a “fair weather” fisherman, meaning that I only went fishing when the weather was warm and I could get my boat out on the water.  But a number of years ago, I actually drove to northern Minnesota to spend New Year’s Eve at a resort on Lake Kabetogama that stayed open all winter .

Since the lake was sufficiently frozen and the temperature was not insanely cold, I decided that as long as I was there, why not give it a shot?  The owner was kind enough to auger a couple of holes for me about a hundred yards out and I dropped a line into the frigid water.  All I had was a small three-legged stool to sit on — not even a wind-break — and a small child’s pole that I adapted for the trip.

I was thankful that there was no wind on that particular day. I’m sure that I would have lasted a total of about 9 minutes outdoors in less favorable conditions.  The quiet was deafening and the serene solitude was incredible.  I only caught one perch that day, but it was I who got hooked.

Are You Serious?

Now, if you are going to get really serious about this, there are a ton of things that you will need to acquire… at least at some point in time. But most of you out there who already are hooked on the fun of ice fishing know that.

I’m directing this at those of you who may not have tried this side of fishing as of yet. My suggestion would be to simply check out some sites on the Internet that advertise ice fishing — and there are a bunch of them — and give them a call.

Find a place that is not too far from your home that will supply you with a heated shanty, equipment and bait and give it a try. At this point in the winter, the ice on most lakes is thick enough to at least be out on foot. For more information on ice fishing gear, check out my article on equipment.

Rookies Take Heed

Many lakes are frozen to a depth that will even allow vehicles to drive on it. But if you are a rookie, DO NOT drive out onto any lake unless a knowledgeable guide from that lake has first been consulted or, better yet, is accompanying you. I have heard far too many horror stories about cars and other vehicles going through the ice! In any case, this is a great way to help cure the winter blues. and fresh fish from your favorite lake is still way better than anything that you might purchase at your local market.

Lots of Options

Winter sports are surely not for the faint of heart.  But if the hustle-bustle rat race and other stresses have got you feeling that you want to scream, my suggestion would be to head north for a little getaway.  If fishing is not for you, try some cross-country skiing, snowshoeing or even snowmobiling.

We have finally gotten some snow in the mid-west and if you are anything like me, you’ve been looking for the right excuse to get out of the house for a little fun and some exercise.  Before you know it, it will be time to head north to your favorite fishing spot and some more summer fun.  But why wait for the summer?

There are plenty of places out there with great winter rates and winter is just as great a time to enjoy the out-of-doors as the summer is.  I’ve got a little trip planned in about two weeks.  Maybe I’ll see you… On the Lake!

rk

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