Letters

I'm glad you reminded this Giants fan why my favorite member of the team is a 50-year-old man who hasn't played a game since 1986.
—RYAN SULLIVAN, Fort McMurray, Alberta

Dusty's Fan Club
I enjoyed reading about San Francisco Giants manager Dusty Baker (Easy Rider, Aug. 23). He is truly a player's manager. If you need proof, look at his newborn son, who's named after one of Dusty's former players, Darren Lewis . The baby's godfather is another of Dusty's former players, Willie McGee . I hope that Dusty's laid-back approach rubs off on other managers and that race is eliminated as a factor in hiring managers.
ADAM DICK, Cranberry Township, Pa.

Growing up a sports fan in Los Angeles in the late 1970s and early '80s, a kid had many choices for a favorite athlete: Magic Johnson , who was flashy and creative; Kareem Abdul-Jabbar , who was stoic and dominant; and Steve Garvey , who appeared to be the perfect all-American. Mine was Dusty Baker , though I could never figure out why. Thank you for the explanation.
DANNY KING, Santa Monica , Calif.

As a 50-year-old male growing up in the same era as Dusty, my idol was Martin Luther King Jr. I do believe that the night Mr. King had his dream, the person he was dreaming of was Dusty Baker . Baker is living the American Dream.
TERRY HOWE, Evansville, Ind.

Different Strokes
I was inspired as I read the story of Bill May's perseverance and commitment to synchronized swimming (Out of Synch, Aug. 23). That led to dismay as I read the last line, which quoted one of his teammates saying, "He'll be a hero someday." Look again. That guy holding his breath underwater with a smile on his face is already a hero.
KATHY FAZZALARO, Waltham, Mass.

I've been fairly successful in life because my dad taught me a valuable lesson: Follow your dream, just don't pick a knuckleheaded dream. A grown man taking up a woman's sport—and it's not even so much a sport as a performance art—falls into the knucklehead category.
JEFF SCHEIDEL, Chicago

My heart bleeds for Bill May. As a pre-Title IX female, it's easy to empathize with him for being excluded from the thing he does best and wants to do most. Maybe someday the sports world will stop spinning out of balance, and another deserving white male athlete will be allowed to rise from the ranks of the oppressed. Dare William May dream? Maybe someday he'll be on the cover of SI's swimsuit issue.
DEBORAH HOWLETT, Chicago

It's about time that you gave some much overdue exposure to the great American pastime of synchronized swimming. I eagerly await the next issue's article on same-sex ballroom dancing, another great American pastime.
STEVE JOHNSON , Ham Lake, Minn.

Profile in Courage
Just when I think that all of the stories behind the Columbine tragedy have become public, Rick Reilly tells us another. God bless you, Dawn Anna. May you one day find the peace and understanding you seek.
WILL BOYD, Spartanburg , S.C

Everyone thought I was crazy: Here I was, 6'4" and 250 pounds, sitting in my office and crying while reading a sports magazine. What a touching story.
SEAN SCULLY, Loveland , Colo.