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Columnists - Columnists: Ron Agostini

Tuesday, Sep. 09, 2008

Modesto throws a victory party for Olympic rowing gold medalist Erin Cafaro

Path to gold medal is etched on rower's hands

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The secret to Erin Cafaro's Olympic gold-medal fame is told by her hands.

They're covered with calluses, tiny mountain ranges of calluses across her fingers and palms. When you feel her cement handshake, you don't forget it.

Those bumps weren't accrued by a few 5-irons on the range or sweeping the back porch. No, these have been collected through years, not days.

Days of 4 a.m. walks to the boathouse. Days of workouts that left her breathless. Days of oars in the water. Days of dreams.

Seven years' worth of commitment, in fact, that took her to glory in Beijing last month.

"All worth it," Cafaro said. "I'll take it."

Cafaro, 25, smiled and laughed Monday night during the city of Modesto's homecoming thank-you in her honor at Mancini Bowl. About 300 were treated to hot dogs, ice cream and apple pie to recognize the woman who filled the bow seat on the United States women's eight crew that seized gold.

"If I could split this medal into 500 million pieces, I could give a piece to everybody," she said. "I have a medal around my neck, but I feel like a lot of other people could wear a piece of it because I would not be here if I didn't have this support system."

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On this night, the support system waved tiny American flags as confetti and streamers flew. Cafaro is the fourth Modestan, and the second in 12 years, to win gold, an amazing feat for our fair burg. Why this outreach often results in greatness was on display during the Cafaro celebration, a composite of her life's journey.

There was Michele Wolf, Cafaro's fifth-grade teacher at Stanislaus Union Elementary School, remembering the girl who couldn't get the part she sought in the "Nutcracker" because she was too big for her costume.

"She finally found one that fits, but there's gold on it," Wolf said.

There was Debbie Bertucci, her ballet teacher, clutching a photo of a 5-year-old Cafaro, all dimples with a tiara perched on her head.

"She performed on this stage," Bertucci said.

There was John Potter, her basketball coach at Modesto High. When he opened the gym for extra shooting at 6 a.m., he always found her at the door. When her basketball goals faded, she turned to rowing as a walk-on at Cal.

And there was Mike Glines, the former Central Catholic High football coach and Cafaro's mentor. His Sunday footwork drills, a staple for local athletes for years, often drew the blond Modesto High graduate seeking -- as always -- to improve.

"From the first time Erin stepped into the gym, I knew she was something special, even when she face-planted in front of everybody," Glines said. "She was tough, talented and a tenacious competitor."

It's not hard to detect a trend here. Cafaro's undeniable skills were nurtured, not unlike those of gold medalists Wilbur "Moose" Thompson in the shot put in 1948, Cy Young in the javelin in '52 and Tisha Venturini in women's soccer in '96. That's why Modestans see a little of themselves in Cafaro, the smallest member of her victorious crew.

Her hero's reception has taken her by surprise. Not long ago, she loved sports only for sports' sake. She was 6 and present at Candlestick Park the day the earth shook during the 1989 World Series. Her idol was Giants first baseman Will Clark, whose No. 22 jersey she wore Friday night when she threw out the first pitch at AT&T Park.

By the way, Cafaro still adds 22 seconds or 22 reps to the end of every drill or workout, partly because of Clark and so she "knows I'm doing more than my competitors."

Though only 23 days have passed since her Olympic championship, the ribbon on her gold medal is frayed. She often is upstaged by that shiny alloy, and she hardly minds.

The medal has transported her on an amazing winner's lap -- Oprah Winfrey's show last week, lunch earlier Monday with Gov. Schwarzenegger and, next month, an appearance at the White House.

"He (Schwarzenegger) was trying to convince all of us to get agents to make our lives easier. He knows more than anybody," Cafaro said. "I have so much more respect for people who are famous. This will last another month or so for me, but I'll always be famous here. It's not easy. I take a lot of naps."

The occasional nap is all the rest she and her endorphins allow. Cafaro remains a world-class athlete pointing toward the 2012 Olympics in London. Her days begin with an eight-mile run, and that's only a warm-up. She schedules the bows and curtain calls for later.

"I stay on my feet as much as possible," she says. "Some people who get into the spotlight forget how they got there. I don't want that to be me."

Worry not. She's become a spokeswoman for the Olympic movement and, to no one's surprise, a role model.

When Abigail Ridge, 9, touched Cafaro's gold medal, she knew what it meant.

"It was real cool," she said, "and heavy."

And earned with hands of steel.

Bee sports columnist Ron Agostini can be reached at ragostini@modbee.com or 578-2302.