It i, ,l l w~y., Sd U to report the passing of a me mber of th e Gymnast ic community, especially whe n th e circumsta nces are of a viol ent and spectacular natur e, as in th e case of young Gordon McCollom. High School Gordon McCollom fi rst entered gymnastics a t Sout he rn California's Corona De l Mar Hig h School in the mid 60's. Here he wo rked under the coac hing o f Ron McNicko las and '56 Ol ympian Di c k Bec kner (w ho later became hi s fat he r-in -law). Gord on co mpete d AA throughout his high sc hool yea rs. With the Lon g Horse be in g his best eve nt, he won th e '68 ClF and th e Oran ge Cou nty Championships. Typ ical of hi s sense of humor was an accident tha t took place in th e fa ll of his freshman year when Gordon acc id ently broke his arm: A st uden t was immed ia tely se nt to get a mag az in e in orde r to make a splint for his arm a nd Gordon ye ll ed after him, " make it a Modern Gym nast!" Summer Camp Six yea rs of sum mer ca mp was spent at Gymnast ics Camp Gualala dur in g Gordon 's co mp eti ti ve yea rs, three years as a camper a nd three years as a cou nse lor. College Gordon a ttendedSal State Univ. Long Beach wh e re he w~ s coac he d -by Ken Bartlett (who lat e r beca me his brother-in-law) . While a t Long Beac h State he taught gymnastics to deaf children in Santa Ana for a period of two years; and from '71-'72, he was captain of the gym team at CSU LB as well as th e " Most Out sta nd ing Gym nast. " Gordon won the PCAA - All-A ro und Championship for '72, and the team also won the cham pionsh ip that year. 1973 int roduced Gordon 's coaching career. He was th e first Gymnastic coach at Edison H.S. in Huntin gton Beach, California, where he remained active until his untimely accident.
IN MEMORY
GORDON McCOLLOM December 21, 1949 September 12, 1975
Wing Walking Because of his gymnastic ability, Gordon was approa c he d by Joe Hughes _to perform as a "Wing Walker" in air shows. Gordon flew three sea so ns with Jo e Hughes during the summers of '73. '74 dnd '75. As a " Wing Walker," Gordon appeared in Air Shows throu ghout the USA and Canada, and due to hi s gy mnastic abilities, he added many new tri c ks to the act. It was considered the only tru e win g wa lking act in the world. Gordon was a freeagent o n the wing in the sense that during part of hi s pe rformance, he was not strapped to th e plane as compared to other wing walk ing act s wh ere th e rider is attached to the airplane. On Se ptember 12, 1975, at the Reno Air Circ us , Gordon McCollom was killed during his performance. Standing on the wing while the plane was in an inve rted position, Gordon woul d grab a ribbon stretched across the runwa y during the plane's low pass at the ground. On the fatal pass, the carburator began sputter in g o n the pull-out just enough to ca use the rudder of of the plane and Gordon to hit th e ground, e nding the career of a wonderful yo ung man_ It is with regre t and sympathy that we at Gymna st send our condolances to all of Gordon 's family and friends. In ho nor of Gordon 's memory, Cal State Univ. Long Beac h, will institute an annual " Most In spiratio nal Gymnast" award . (Edison High School has set up a scholarshp fund in his name ... and in lieu of flowers, a donation should be sent to the McCollom Scholarship Fund c/ o Mike Po If, 1532 E. 7th St., Lon g Beac h, CA. 90813)
GYMNAST Nov. '75