Recruitment letter from Baylor University to Mark Rauterkus

Ideal situation at Baylor, letter from Dr. Richard Couey

Letter on OU Bobcat letterhead from Mark Rauterkus to Swimming World

Bob Ingram, Editor
Swimming World and Junior Swimmer
PO Box 45497
Los Angeles, California 90045

Dear Mr. Ingram,

Run. "No thanks coach. I like the water. It protects me when I trip."

A socialized water wizard thrives chlorinate stench, broad shoulders and the arrival of the latest time standard. These youngsters seem to be bred for water with gills, fins and bleach-blond hair. And, gold-medal-swimming attitudes make swimmers believe that the best and only way to supplement a swim program is with more swimming -- not running.

Beginning an enthusiastic running program takes trickery, security, challenges and a multi-million-dollar contingency contract. 

Coaches fail to realize this and do not prepare for the dry-land sessions. Many coaches have started their teams with running but have quit because it does not come naturally. Vital originality and spunk is needed to keep a fish out of the water. 

In an article on my program, I can explain a three season plan. It has the coach's reasoning, methods and results. Swimmers response and black-and-white photos are possible. The well incorporated scheme gets the most out of a running swim team.

I have coached with the Ohio University men, Athens Swim Club Otters, Bernal's Gator Swim Club, Greater Pittsburgh Swim Club and some summer clubs. 

Does this idea interest you? I will be looking for your reaction. 

Sincerely,

Mark Rauterkus
345 West State
Athens, Ohio 45701
614- (athletics)

614- (pool)

Looking at UNC for grad school -- letters 1 and 2

From December 1981.

Then the second is from January, 1982.

I'd go to Baylor University instead.

UNC had some nice majors to consider.

Old school paper from a coaching course, vintage 1981 or 1982

My Goals as a Coach

By Mark Rauterkus, from 1982 Coach Course at Ohio University

I have strong feelings that coaching, like all of athletics, is influenced by luck. The luck involved in coaching is related to finding the proper coaching setting that best suits the coaching style, philosophy and needs.

Most of my coaching goals revolve around the perfect coaching situation. It is somewhat of a challenge to be hired by a special team who will welcome the coach with open arms, open checkbooks and with no strings attached.

When I find that great job, I’d be able to be established for the long-term project of developing the team and the athletes. My teams are driven hard toward success. Success needs identification, and my teams have personal and team goals.

One of my goals is to be the best in my state, association or conference. Some coaches I know have higher goals. They want to be a contender on the national level. They drive their swimmers to international goals. I feel this is like hitting your head against a wall. A coach can not make the best swimmers in the world. A coach can make the best swimmers in the state.

Most people, given a great coach and years of work, can contribute to a team effort at the state level of competition.

My last goal, once I get established in the ideal position which is breeding winner after winner, is to enjoy it. I want to have fun coaching. I wonder about coaching burn-out and boredom. I realize that doing the right job at coaching is a hard task that never quits.

To help me cope, I’ll need to have a good source of recovery and recreation at the end of the season and at the end of each day. Coaching is so intense that I will have to blow-off steam in other areas.

Another reason for better mental health and satisfying recreation is to save the ego from poolside failures . A coach can not win all the time. Sometimes a coach is so tied to the team that a loss is damaging to the individual. Other reinforcers to help bolster the identity and ego are important for long-term happiness in the coaching profession.

At this time I am too young to know where these other satisfactions will be derived from. I have always been one to have a few projects developing on the sidelines.

For the not so distant future, I would like to work on a full-time basis in a productive program. It is time for me to live off of my coaching income. I have developed my coaching skills and lived like a slave all my life. Now I am in the process of marketing my skills in an attempt to garner a regular paycheck. I am not interested in any further employment for the sake of "experience" rather than fInancial support.

Some of the most attractive jobs for the next few years are at the university level. In a campus setting I could coach most of the time and still be around the books in case I should feel the urge to read.

Who knows what the future holds? 

Like I said at the top of the paper, Luck is important. 

The harder I work,the luckier I get. 

Report Card

Ohio U Report Card - summer school class

Lived at 345 West State Street. That was the other side of the tracks! 

Report Card

Sports Math, call to others

Sports Editor

«magazine»

«Company Name»

«city», «state»  «zip»

Dear Sports Editor,

To help combat  the growing problem of American illiteracy and poor fitness, the Sports Support Syndicate is offering you a unique opportunity. We want you to join your colleagues in the industry to assist in the production of Sports Math. This new book, due in 1991, is edited by a veteran, public school teacher presently in charge of a gifted program. The book engages readers in both math and reading skills through the use of individual, sports-related math problems from a wide range of sports.

As a small publishing company of sports-oriented books and literature, the Sports Support Syndicate is releasing more than 20 titles in 1991. We concentrate on information which will benefit and educate athletes and coaches. We also engage in projects which entertain and increase the awareness level for lesser known sports and fitness pursuits.

Inclusion in this project would offer your magazine the opportunity to:

- increase your subscriptions with a form of free advertising, 

- associate your name with the worthwhile cause of literacy, 

- tap into a new market, and

- expand the awareness of your sport to the general public.

In exchange for these opportunities, we are asking for the following from «magazine»:

1) Please submit three sports-oriented math problems in a word problem format with the correct answers. Two of the word problems should contain all of the information necessary to solve the problem. One of the word problems should require sport-specific knowledge. For example, a touchdown in football equals six points, or a perfect score in bowling equals 300 points or three outs in baseball equals half an inning.

2) Please submit camera-ready logo of your masthead which will accompany one of the word problems.

3) Please submit one sports action half-tone with a caption identifying the individual(s). Half-tones which in some way indicate the athlete's thought process will be especially appreciated. The caption should include photography credit. The size must be larger than 2" by 2" and smaller than 6" by 9".

4) Please submit subscription details for your magazine for any readers interested in contacting you for a subscription.

We believe that Sports Math  will be an important book in both the Sports and Educational communities. It is also an opportunity for your publication to reach a new market.

Your submissions should be mailed by April 30, 1991 to:

(edited)

The Sports Support Syndicate will furnish «magazine» with a Press Release and a review copy of the finished book. 

We thank you for your assistance. Should you have any questions or comments, please feel free to contact me at the address noted at the top of the letterhead.

Sincerely,

Chick Agnew

Vice-President

Sports Support Syndicate, Inc.

====

Last month, the Sports Support Syndicate invited your organization to take part in a unique project aimed at increasing reading and math skills through sports-related word problems. Sports Math, Our deadline has come and gone, but we would still like to encourage your participation in our project.The response we have received thus far has been positive and inspiring. We have received from a wide variety of publications covering the entire spectrum of the sporting world. From the United States Golf Association to the National Archery Association, from the Skydiving Magazine to Human Kinetics Publishers, from the Canadian Volleyball Association to The Championship Group of auto racing, responses are arriving at the office of the book's editor.

If you recall, this is an opportunity not only to get free advertising with an untapped market, but expanded awareness of your sport in association with a worthwhile cause. Do you really wish to by-pass such a chance?

In the event that you set the request aside, I will quickly review that which we are seeking in football equals six points.

Schedule at OU

Report Card

Report Card

Mark Rauterkus began a Fan Appreciation Day at Ohio U Swimming with a meet vs. Kentucky

Article appeared on Friday, Feb 13, 1981, in the Ohio University Post.

Ohio University vs. Kentucky in Athens, Ohio.

All those who attended the meet could go to a local drinking establishment after the meet to meet and mingle with the swimmers, and have free beer. 

Letter to the editor at the OU Post

Around January 30, 1981. I lived in The College Inn in my junior year as I went back to Athens, Ohio after working in the spring and summer of 1980 in Boston while working at Harvard and the BGSC. 

OU Schedule

Resume at age 22

Report Card at OU

Took yoga and fencing!

Report Card

Took classical guitar course. 

Address in the College Inn, 631 South Congress.

Mom's letter, photocopied to us all

ML to Mark, letter

Fletcher Gilders and I drove my van to New Orleans and had a wonderful time

Ohio U financial aid going to my junior year

College costs in the day were not like modern times. The work study was to be an assistant swim coach for the college men's team. 

Rolling in the cash

I would have been living in Boston and coaching at BGSC in the summer of 1980. I left Ohio and my money there to collect interest. Inheritance.

Bank One closed and merged with JP Morgan. Defunct July 1, 2004. If anyone can find this bank account, we might be rich! 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bank_One_Corporation

Withdrawal from Ohio U to move to Boston to coach with BGSC at Harvard

Official paperwork on withdrawal from Ohio U.

Resume as a 21 year old swim coach. Meet Mark Rauterkus

This resume would have been used to land the job with Bernal's Gator Swim Club in April 1980. 

Ohio University Men's Swimming - Times Summary from 1979-80

* = New MAC Record

** = New OU Varsity Record

Penn Aqua Club needed a swim coach but didn't have a lifeguard job -- so NOT for me.

I went to Boston and Harvard and BGSC for the summer of 1980 instead. 

Jeff Tarr, OU Swimmer does the 1650

Sports News

TIM HILL

Ohio University

Sports Information 103 Convocation Center, Athens, Ohio 45701 Phone, Office: 614/594-5031 

March 4, 1980

ATHENS, Ohio...... 

Imagine 1650 yards of freestyle swimming.

That's more than 16 minutes of agony in the water. Consider the physical strain, the mental drain, and the fact that you'll probably gulp more water than air.

So goes the swimming life of Ohio University’s Jeff Tarr, as he prepares for the Mid-American Conference Swimming Championships, March 6-8, 1980, at Bowling Green. 

During his first two swimming campaigns at Ohio, Tarr swam in the shorter freestyle races and an occasional long-distance race with standout Daniel Wolokita.

But when Wolokita did not return this season, Tarr was given the chore of both the 1,000 and 500-yard freestyle competition in preparation for the Mid-American Conference marathon, the 1,650-yard freestyle.

Tarr has covered the 1000-yard race in 10:13, his best-ever in a dual-meet competition. He also has covered the 500-yard freestyle in 4:57 this season.

Bobcat Swimming Coach Fletch Gilders appreciates Tarr's tireless efforts: "Jeff has proved all season that he can endure the long race. During his first two years here, he was an excellent sprinter. Out of necessity he has become our long- distance swimmer."

Tarr noted:

Has the changeover been difficult? "Practice always is kind of depressing, knowing the long distance that I have to cover, but I realize that my physical and mental preparation have to be constant, especially if I'm going to go it or not during my races.

In the competition, time sheets of the opponents' efforts are available, and "this helps me prepare for my race," the Lima Shawnee graduate pointed out, "but I can't worry about their times, because I'm swimming my own race as well as pacing the good distance men in the league.

Mentally and physically, you have to pace yourself in these long races, the business administration student stressed, "making sure you don't start out too fast or too slow.

"I've got to keep a tab on myself as well as the opposition," he said, adding, 

"I'm swimming against not only my opponents but also against myself. If you don't, that's when they blow by you.

Tarr counts on the "lap counters" during his races so he knows the distance left and how much effort to put forth down the stretch.

"It's easy to lose track, and you rely on their info so you can give it what is needed," he said.

Tarr swam a 17:13 in the MAC 1,650-yard race last year, a race that he will compete in only once this season. The marathon is only completed at the MAC Championships.

Although Gilders is somewhat skeptical, Tarr feels he can produce a 16:30 time in the event, 43 seconds faster than last season.

So goes the swimming life of Jeff Tarr: a 1650-yard race in the water, a 66-lap race at a 15-second pace. Gulp!

 

OU Report Card

150 Zoology was no joke. That was the course that was often taken 2 or 3 times. It was the one that split the pre-med majors too.

Day of the K.B.F. (Kick Board Fight)

THE DAY OF THE K.B.F

By Mark Rauterkus, Assistant Swimming Coach, Ohio University Men's Swimming

Every athletic team has a nature. This unique personality has many contributing factors. The team's roster and staff, with their respected ages, experiences, abilities, and the sport, all influence a team's nature. For instance, baseball's World Champion, the Pittsburgh Pirates, claimed to be "family." Before and during the 1976 01ympic Games, the U. S. boxers had an astounding record and astonishing closeness. this University, the men swimmers have been building a team character at pre-season practices. 

An excitement was lifted from the splashes as the team entered the water. The warm-up was designated by the coaches, sitting in the stands, slightly removed, as a 1,000-yard distance was done (any way the swimmer prefers). This type of set is referred to as "choice. Such freedom always is appreciated by the swimmers and, consequently, was abused. The shallow end was plagued with bystanders acting somewhat like a social club.

However, if close attention was paid, the swimmers were in two social cliques. freshmen forming one group of swimmers, called "rookies," which means they have to do some small chores before and after each practice. (These are duties that would be taken care of by managers in revenue sports, i.e. football and basketball.) Meanwhile, the vets make up the other half of the team.

The vets stand together and have experience over the rookies. It is quite an advantage. These guys had started the year with close friendships already developed from previous years. However, the vets generally are willing to share their experiences and pass along tradition.

The workout that day was a typical early-season practice. Typical, with Fletcher Gilders as the coach, means anything could happen. The team expected a wide range of workouts and activities throughout the week, but overall, the tendency was for the coaches to be lax in the early weeks. Applying pressure to the swimmers too soon in the season will hurt the squad more than help it.

Besides, it was Friday; and like every other O.U. student, the swimmers were wired-up for the weekend by Friday afternoon.

"The rookies are up to something, Fletch," I said. As the coaching assistant, I was seated next to him. We shared The Post and nondescriptly kept an eye on the guys. Four rookies had emptied the cupboard which housed all the kickboards. The kickboards then littered the deck behind their starting blocks at the shallow end of the pool. The rookies then proceeded to kick with a board to the opposite end of the pool and try to secretly flip the board over the bulkhead to the deck near the base of the diving board. This continued nonchalantly throughout the 40-length warm-up. while, we played along by pretending not to notice.

David Sebastian, a wide-eyed freshman who talks with a high-pitched Jersey voice, got bold. Then, He slipped out of the water and gathered the kickboards into two stacks. Then, after first checking to see if the vets were still soaking their heads in stroke, he dashed into the close quarters of the men's locker room with one stack. Bob Pethick, another rookie, followed his buddy with the second stack of kickboards. After ditching the kickboards, the guys came back to conclude the warm-up.

Meanwhile, Fletcher got into the game. He shuffled down to his office, back to the stands, and to his office again. Then after decoying his team, he finally entered the locker room. I could tell at this point that Fletcher was going to play along, because he secretly moved one stack of hidden boards from the locker room to an adjacent space which still was out of the swimmers' view. The groundwork had been set. When he returned, I descended from the stands, and we started to run the practice.

The workout stimulated the rivalry. The workout was a continuous series of relay races. The coaches picked the teams and the events. Always reigning in Lane #4 was the fastest combination of freshmen swimmers, and in the neighboring lane, the vets' finest relay swam. The outside lanes had combination relays made up from the existing swimmers. Wagering on the races and extremely close finishes further provoked the feud.

There was a value to this workout. Fletcher proceeded to explain his reasoning to tired ears after one hour of 100% sprint swimming. "We wanted to see a few things, and we saw them. We looked closely at your starts, he said. The guys' and even my attention began to drift away during the coach's discourse.

"In other words, get off your duff!" The guys rose and started conversing as they slunk towards the showers. I presumed Fletcher was done babbling. Philip, an upper- classman who holds the University's individual-medley record, was teetering the lip of the pool while heading toward the locker room. Then, from seemingly out of nowhere, Sebastian gave Phil a push into the water.

"I don't believe you did that!" Philip repeated at least five times. 

By this time, Sebastian and his fellow rookie, Pethick, had made a quick escape to the refuge of the shower room. Meanwhile, all the other rookies lingered and began to pick up the remaining kickboards.

By this time, I was just holding my breath. Then it came. Sebastian and Pethick a re-emerged from the locker room, loaded with kickboards. They dropped them and started hurling them at the vets. Everybody looked to Fletcher to see if he would speak out against his massacre attempt. He was laughing. Then the vets started to flee. A retreat was in order or else get clunked. But, they met the same fate from the shallow end.

The rookies had the vets trapped in the middle without any kickboards. It was a moment of glory for the freshmen. The joy was seen in the faces as they tried to guide the projectiles into the bodies of teammates.

The vets were trying to shield themselves any way possible. But soon, the strategy of a kickboard fight enters and momentum changes. In the K. B. F. (code for kickboard fight), the gist of the conflict lies in the exchange of the kickboards. like any other battle known to man. No one gets defeated, and no one wins.

In the K. B. F. one always gets excited and continues to hit a man when he is down. So, the rookies kept punishing the vets until their ammo had expired and was all in the hands of the vets. It is impossible to throw a kickboard and then recover it without your opponent first firing it back at you.

The vets then returned the favor of the rookies by letting them have it. Since the Styrofoam can inflict no pain nor be thrown with any speed or accuracy, everyone has a good time with this "hit-and-be-hit" philosophy of war.

With this in mind, I suggest that the University President, Doctor Ping, wire the American Embassy in Iran and invite the captives and the captors over for a K. B. F. In fact, the Shah might also drop by to try out his arm. If the results mirror the same results obtained by the O.U. swimmers, then everyone will have had let out all of their tensions and aggressions and then be able to live together in this small world of ours, peacefully. 

And, swimmers, don't we know it! That seven-foot by 25-yard lane of water can get awfully small with two, three or four college swimmers trying to stroke away to intervals. Now, I hope you understand that every practice at 0. U. does not end in this manner. However, it is nice to recall what one October practice was like (especially now that you are swimming with such intensity every day), and the taper is just around the corner.

Chapter Two: A concluding remark about the 1980 Freshmen-Vet rivalry

Ashland College was scheduled for a dual meet at O.U. on Feb. 9, 1980; however, back in the fall, Ashland called us to cancel the meet. This left an open date for the Bobcats. So, an intra-squad meet was held according to regular-meet procedure.

The freshmen flanked one side of the pool, and the upperclassmen, the other. The final score was 51-60, in favor of the ROOKIES.

The freshman class is the strongest class of swimmers to enter O.U. in recent years. Moreover, this year graduation will take NOBODY from our squad! The nucleus is here. We have something to look forward to. Ohio University is "up and coming!"

Report Card

Address: 110 W. Union Street

VW essay from freshman essay

Foodstamps came after moving out of the dorm

Jimmy Carter was US President. When living off campus, sophomore year, the money was tight. This happened one year. In fall 1980 I moved into The College Inn. Senior year, moved back off campus and there was not a way to get the foodstamps. 

Break from Athens Swim Club - dismissal letter

Fired. But they re-hired me some time later.

This one hurt. But, I was still coaching the OHIO U Men's Team. And, the next summer I'd be able to go to coach at Harvard and with BGSC.

Report Card from OU

GPA, 3.4

Philosophy of Sport course, BANG!

Sports in our Society, BANG again!

Report Card

Report Card

Winter quarter, 1978-79.

Introduction to Coaching as a course is sometimes needed to show for coaching certification. 

The UP courses were University Professors. Great classes. 

GPA = 3.457

Preparation for Competitive Swimming is a preparation for Life -- What every parent should know about completive swimming.

More FAQs & As are at https:Read.SwimISCA.org.

Report Card, Freshman year, first quarter, 3.47 GPA

UP, Subtlety of Communications by Roger Bennit, best class. 

Freshman year

Aquatics plan for Athens, Ohio, Park Director from a new coach, Mark Rauterkus

This plan was sent to those in charge of the Athens City Pool. 

Plan in PDF

Letter to Admission for Mark Rauterkus to Ohio University

Admissions letter to Ohio University

Penn Hills Senior High School -- Class of 1977