Wyatt Thaller will have a bit of advice for his Vacaville High wrestling teammates making their first trip to The Clash National Duals in Wisconsin. The senior will warn them against leaving the hotel in La Crosse at night to go looking for food when the temperature dips below 10 degrees. And it most certainly will.
Thaller will speak from experience after cracking the varsity lineup last season to make the trip for the first time. The junior joined three of his teammates for what they thought would be a short walk to a sandwich shop. The joint was closed, however, so the four set out to find a convenience store.
They found one only after making one wrong turn after another and stumbling through a park in the dark. Thaller had packed a coat to combat the cold, but he opted to wear a hoodie because he did not expect to be out very long. By the time Thaller finally reached the store, even his eyebrows were shivering.
Chances are Thaller would have never gone by himself. And chances are his teammates would not have let him go. One lesson he has learned in four years of competing on the mat is the Bulldogs stick together through the thrills of victory, the spills of takedowns and the chills in Wisconsin.
Two seasons of toiling with the junior varsity team tested Thaller’s commitment and perseverance. Wrestling is not glamorous and that is especially true for underclassmen paying their dues in hopes of one day cracking the varsity lineup. Thaller admits to having wondered at times if his investment of sweat would ever pay off.
“It was difficult to stay with it,” Thaller recalled. “The only reason I stuck it out was because I made a lot of friends on the team and we were having fun. I had to push through it and stay in the grind.”
Thaller made the trip to Wisconsin last January by breaking into the varsity lineup at 175 pounds. He also made it to the Sac-Joaquin Section Masters tournament last February, but that was when his season ended abruptly. He was eliminated early after being pinned in both of his two matches.
The two days he spent at Adventist Health Arena in Stockton amounted to 6 minutes and 24 seconds on the mat. Thaller then became a cheerleader for his teammates as they advanced in the tournament. Going home is not an option for a wrestler no matter how distraught he might be after being flattened twice.
And there is never a good excuse for being pinned once, twice or whatever. “Stay off your back” is more than just a suggestion. “I made too many mistakes that got me on my back,” Thaller said. “I knew it was going to be a long day, but you have to stay with your brothers even when you lose.”
Having the freedom to eat to his heart’s content was little consolation for Thaller, who never had a problem making weight last season. Wrestlers are weighed on each day of a tournament, so Thaller knew better than to stuff his face in front of his teammates who were having to count every calorie.
Thaller cannot afford to have chicken tenders this season because he is cutting it close on weight. He will not let the scale stand in his way of returning to the Masters meet and surviving the first day at the very least. Thaller feels as if he owes it to the Bulldogs to pull his weight in his senior season.
“You learn you’re not doing it for yourself. You’re doing it for the team. It teaches you that wrestling is not a solo sport,” Thaller said. “I’ve got to fight as hard as I can. It’s been a long four years. I was just happy to be (at the Masters meet) last year, but I should be there now.”
