Jay Unver Interview

I showed up at Plate City Training Center to chat with Zane Hodge after his recent sweep in the Mississippi Senior Olympics. He was finishing a bench press workout after coming home from the pool where he swam 5,500 yards. Below are some excerpts from our conversation.

Unver: Congratulations. 

Hodge: Thank you. (He sat on the bench where he had just finished his last set. I stood and admired his new axle bar)

Unver: Plate City has come a long way. So, now that you have had some success in the pool, will you do more swim meets?

Hodge: That depends. I did have a good time. But I have been poking around online and not finding any age-group swim meets anywhere around. Availability is the key.

Unver: You won gold in the 50 Free, the 100 Free, the 200 Free, and the 500 Free. That's certainly impressive. But do you feel in any way that your victories were tainted?

Hodge: Huh? Tainted! What could you possibly mean?

Unver: Beets. Randy Beets was not there to contest your dominance. That's what I mean.

Hodge: I hadn't even thought about Randy Beets. Why did you have to bring him up?

Unver: Because he has been your main competition for several years. The rivalry between you and him is what brought Big ASS to where it is today.

Hodge: Well no, my victories are not tainted. He doesn't even qualify for that competition anyway. He couldn't do it if he wanted to and the reason he moved to North Carolina was to get away from me whipping his butt every time we went head to head.

Unver: Can I quote you on that?

Hodge: Heck yeah. You can quote the Senior Olympic website that you have to be 50 years old. . .

Unver: That's not what I'm talking about.

Hodge: I know what you're talking about. I referenced his move to North Carolina. He is never going to admit why he did it. But that's the reason. Trust me, that's the reason.

Unver: (Hodge was so agitated at this point that I decided to change the direction of the conversation) Do you plan on doing the Senior Olympics again next year.

Hodge: Yes.

Unver: (I waited. I have interviewed him enough that he knew I wanted some elaboration. He was miffed at me bringing up Beets. Finally he spoke)

Hodge: Next year is a qualifying year. I can qualify for the Nationals.

Unver: How do you think you can do on the big stage?

Hodge: I don't know. I need to get faster. But I have two years to do it. Right now it's impacting every practice I do. The Chicot Challenge is coming up and all that is important for Chicot is low-end endurance. But today I did speed sets, heart-rate sets, and stamina sets. I'm working on streamline off the walls. I am thinking about pool racing constantly.

Unver: Back to Beets. You guys were tentatively scheduled to race in North Carolina. 

Hodge: Honestly, I haven't thought about that swim in months. They were supposed to reschedule it for sometime in July. Last time I checked, I couldn't get a date. So that one is a bit iffy.

Unver: Nervous about Beets. (Hodge stood up and turned red in the face}

Hodge: Heck no!! Is that clear enough.

Unver: Don't get aggressive with me.

Hodge: Quit stirring the pot. You, Sir, are a trouble-doer!

I knew I had worn out my welcome so I congratulated him again and left.