Gary Flett, center, after leading St. John Lutheran to the 1982 Class 1A state track title.

The following essay was written by Tony Nogueras, a member of the late Gary Flett's 1982 state championship team at St. John Lutheran.

   When I last saw him about two years ago at a reunion gathering in Ocala, coach Gary Flett, former track coach at St. John Lutheran, appeared frail and emotionally spent after a series of physical ailments and years of watching his mother slip away from the ravages of Alzheimer’s. I fought hard to suppress the thought that he was spiraling towards an untimely death. My fears were realized when I received a call from Coach Dennis Meunier, head football coach at St. John and longtime friend of Gary, letting me know that my coach had passed.  

   Predictably, memories of Coach Flett and my high school years at St. John dominated my thoughts and emotions following the news. Our relationship transcended that of a coach and athlete. My parents' divorce and a move from my hometown of Atlanta at the age of 12 left me without an everyday presence of a father figure during my formative years in Ocala. Coach Flett filled much of that void during the high school portion. The rest the faculty and coaches at St. John jokingly referred to me as his son. If I managed to get in any trouble, he heard about it first. We were also inexorably bound by our accomplishments on the field of competition.  

   After coming tantalizingly close the two previous years, it all came together for Coach Flett and the St. John Lutheran boy’s track team one magical evening 25 years ago at Showalter Field in Winter Park. St. John claimed the state championship with a dominating performance, winning by 23 points over rival Mt. Dora Bible. Fittingly, coach Flett earned coach of the year honors.  

   That night of monumental achievement was years in the making. The journey to greatness started in the late 70s, when Coach Flett began honing his technical expertise while working with one of his first great athletes, Adam Asquith. Coach Flett, a sprinter and jumper in college, possessed limited knowledge of the other track and field events yet Adam was interested in learning the pole vault and ultimately becoming a decathlete.  

   Coach Flett and Adam’s father, known affectionately as “Doc” (a doctor of veterinary medicine at the University of Florida), purchased the Track and Field Omnibook, the holy bible of track and field technique. They began the experimentation process in earnest with Adam as the prize pupil. By Adam’s senior year he cleared 15 feet in the vault, won a state championship, and earned a scholarship to Mississippi State University.  

   Adam’s younger brother Andrew also won the state pole vault title twice. In fact, St. John dominated the most technical of field events by winning the vault an unprecedented five years in a row at the state meet and with four different athletes – the ultimate testament to the technical expertise and coaching ability of both Coach Flett and Doc.  

   Born partially of the fact that St. John was a small 1A school with a limited athlete pool, and inspired by the example of Adam, we all strove to become multi-event athletes

   With Coach Flett and Doc now fully able to coach all the events at a level not seen in many collegiate track programs, St. John produced numerous multi-event champions. I was a two-time Junior Olympic regional decathlon champion and finished as high as seventh at nationals. Les Lewis, a sprinter and pole vaulter, also won a regional decathlon championship and was a key component of the state championship team. 

   The ultimate validation of our coaches and program came at the High School State Decathlon Championship of 1982. The meet grouped all schools regardless of size. That meant tiny Class 1A St. John would compete against 3-man teams from the largest 4A schools in the state. Les Lewis and I teamed with Russell Madar, a discus thrower and quarterback of the football team, and finished a combined third out of nearly 100 schools. Had the meet organizers not substituted the 220 yard dash for the javelin out of a safety concern, we most likely would have won.  

   More than championships, both Coach Flett and Doc taught us the process of achievement that helped us build confidence to face the many challenges that life inevitably presents. Their legacy lives not just in the many accomplishments in the arena of competition, but in the lives of his former athletes and that which we have achieved as career professionals, husbands, fathers, and even coaches.  

   A case in point - this past spring I had the opportunity to coach my 14-year-old son Gabriel and his middle school track team in the Marin County, Calif., championship meet. In addition to winning, our 400x100 meter relay team came within .15/100ths of a second of erasing a 37-year-old record. We were the only relay team measuring our steps for the exchanges as well as executing flawless blind handoffs. Little did they know that in no small measure they had Coach Flett to thank for their victory as his talents as a coach and mentor flowed through me to the next generation of athletes.