As Dick began to know the catcher on the USS Hornet softball team, he inquired about the athlete’s strength, as Dick immediately recognized that he could throw a ball like a rocket. The young man stated that he lifted weights and to the delight of Conner, he led Dick to the weight room on the ship.
An aircraft carrier had about 3,000 men on it, and the weight room was about the size of an average bedroom. Even at that, Dick never saw over four or five men inside the weight room. The weights were all loose, and if you wanted a dumbbell you had to make one yourself. As best I can remember, there was no Olympic set, just a barbell and dumbbells.
When Dick was growing up, he had a set of weights, but was not interested in the iron, however, his focus had changed dramatically, and he was now addicted to weight training. It was all he could think about. Dick recalls, “I never knew much about the science of genetics, but within about 90 days I was on a roll. One I thought would go on forever.”
The USS Hornet, where Dick was assigned, was harbored in San Diego, North Island, and was within walking distance of a gym. He was led to the gym by a gentleman named Jim Thacker, who shortly thereafter announced that he was not interested in lifting any further.
Conner was now on his own…and being on your own in a gym in those days was an eye opener.
The gym on North Island was far better than the ship’s gym. But it was not a place for the weak of heart. The gym was small and jammed with young men, some were Marines, some Submariners, and some Navy Frogmen. At least this was where the troops would train, as North Island was where all-of-the-above could be found.
None of this meant anything to Dick. The young man knew he had to lift weights. “In that gym during that time period, you had to resist the other guy’s desire to use the barbell, dumbbell, etc., you wanted to use, because equipment in gyms at that was very limited. I also noticed at this time, that I never saw a woman training in the gym with men. It never entered my mind that women would and should train with weights,” Conner notes.
As Dick was training on his own, he was witnessing men lift what he considered to be really super weight, and that convinced him that he had to get stronger in order to be bigger. On one of his trips to the North Island gym, a guy approached him and complimented Dick on his lifting, telling him that he had really improved. That comment left a strong impression on Conner and he says it was like a shot of adrenaline on a permanent basis.
Soon, his days at the North Island gym were soon to be over as his ship was preparing for a Far East cruise. The first stop was Hawaii, which did not interest Dick at all, as he was focused on lifting weights. The ship went on to Japan and Dick trained in the base gym in Yokosuka, and he considered that gym “ok.”
Dick’s favorite location was the Philippines where he found a gym that was operated by an older guy. The owner loved his gym, and he took time with Dick to give him tips and point out what he needed to do. Dick did not discount the gym owner’s opinion, however, he couldn’t steer away from his favorite exercises…the exercises that he was now strong enough to show off. At least to someone who knew nothing about weight training.
While training at the Subic Bay gym in the Philippines, Dick was told by a very strong guy that when he returned to San Diego, he needed to go to a gym owned by Leo Stern.
When the cruise was over and the ship returned to dock in San Diego, Dick made quickly found his way to Leo Stern’s gym.
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