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Southern Exposure: Players Overcome Physical Adversity, Miles of Swampland to Play on Batom Rouge 65+ team

March 1, 2001 – Senior Softball-USA

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana ˆ The roots of senior softball are spreading in the Deep South, nurtured by fellowship and driven by the love of competition.

The players come from all over Louisiana to join Bill Clark's 65+ team. A retired IRS agent travels 200 miles to play with the team and several others drive through some of the most remote swampland in America to play on the Safeway Transportation 65s.

One player's journey to play has been truly heroic.

Andy Wilbert, a 66-year-old outfielder for the team, seriously injured the shoulder of his throwing arm in 1997.

"We heard it pop and we knew it was bad," said Clark. "Andy thought his softball days were over. But the doctors told him that a total shoulder replacement would give him a slim chance to get back in the game."

Wilbert took the chance, had his left shoulder replaced and spent the next two years in a long, painful comeback.

"He started back in 2000 and now he can play full time. He has to use a cut-off man now, but he has a pretty powerful throw," said Clark.

And Terry Fox, who pitched with the Detroit Tigers organization in the late 1950s and early '60s, is playing outfield after major back surgery 7 years ago.

"He just started playing again," said Clark. "He practiced with us for two Sundays and you could tell right away he was a ballplayer with serious talent."

What draws seniors to make these kinds of sacrifices?

"Fun and friendship," said Clark, who retired in January from Associates Commercial Corp, the largest independent financier of 18-wheelers in America.

"And we are fortunate that Baton Rouge has a well established senior softball league," said Clark, 65.

"I started playing in the league 15 years ago ˆ we play 2 to 3 nights a week for 4 months of the year ˆ and I was shocked at the stamina of the people who were playing at 50 years old," said Clark, who catches, pitches and plays first base. "The league has grown by word-of-mouth over the years ˆ and a lot of strong friendships have developed," he said.

Today the Baton Rouge Senior League has 10 teams that play in April and May and September and October.

"It gets pretty humid in the summer, which gives us a reason to travel," explained Clark, whose team plans on playing in 16 to 20 tournaments this year. "We like to go to tournaments in areas that are no more than a 6 or 7 hour drive."

Clark's traveling team has been together for 8 years and has had an assortment of sponsors and names, including "Together Dating," which drew more than a few comments.

"Together Dating was my daughter's company ˆ she sponsored us for a few years," said Clark. "Her company did compatibility testing for singles who didn't like the bar scene."

While the name changed, the team's basic principles remained the same.

"There are no prima donnas on the team," said Clark, "We don't allow it. In fact, the reason Ted Farrar (the retired IRS agent) drives 200 miles to play with us is because of the chemistry of the team."

The team's first season in 1991 was memorable.

"A bunch of us got together and played locally," said Clark. "We ended up winning the state softball championships, which allowed us to go to Syracuse, New York, to compete in the Senior Olympics.

The Safeway Transportation 65s also include:

-- Phil Duplessis, 66, plays shortstop and is the owner of General Window, which makes residential and commercial windows.

-- Leo Laurent, 66, plays outfield and is retired from one of the Baton Rouge chemical processing plant

-- James "Cooter" Zimmerle, 66, plays infield and pitches. He is a retired high school teacher, who also coached football, basketball and baseball.

-- Charlie Richard, 65, plays outfield and works for the Lafayette Council on Aging. He is a gold medal winner in track and field in Senior Olympics ˆ and one of the fastest runners on the team.

-- Henry Smith, 70, plays both infield and outfield. He owns Alexis Group, which develops software programs for the learning disabled, and is a former college professor. Another good runner, Smith runs 6 to 7 miles a day.

-- Don Bayard, 66, plays outfield and owns an electrical contracting company. He lives in New Iberia, which means he has to detour around some nasty swamps north, then east to get to Baton Rouge.

-- George Wilkerson 66, pitches and travels from Lake Charles, about 120 miles due west of Baton Rouge.

-- Ron Piontek, 66, plays second base and owns a printing company in New Iberia. Another avid runner, he came in third in the New Orleans Marathon and runs about 10 miles a day.

-- Billy Huffty, 65, plays both infield and outfield. One of the graduates of a 60s Baton Rouge team, he is a surveyor for the telephone company.

-- John Joilet, 65, plays first base and is retired from the fire extinguisher business. He lives in Morgan City ˆ almost to the Gulf of Mexico in dense Louisiana swampland.

-- Noah Figaro, 67, pitches and plays first base. He's retired and his sons were both pro athletes. They played at Notre Dame and then one became a professional basketball player and the other a pro football player.

-- Dave Smith, 67, plays outfield and is a retired National Immigration Service agent.