We first met Gardner in Sydney in 2000, when he ended Alexander Karelin’s 13-year winning streak and took the Olympic gold medal in Greco-Roman wrestling in one fell swoop. In his farewell match at the 2004 Olympics in Athens, he won the bronze in the same event. This is typically the most we hear from Olympic athletes, save for wannabes like Bruce Jenner who never quite know when to go away.
Bruce Jenner… ’70s athletic icon, ’80s Wheaties pitchman, ’00s plastic-surgery ghoul.
Rulon Gardner isn’t out there looking for fame. He turned down millions from Vince McMahon to wrestle in the WWE after his success in 2000, so we know he’s out for a quick buck.
But I’ll be damned if the man doesn’t have a unique knack for cheating death.
This weekend, Gardner and two friends were flying low in a small aircraft when they part of their plane caught the water. Instantly, the party was thrown into 44-degree water, with few supplies for survival. After swimming for over an hour, they finally made it to shore, and were forced to spend the night without fire or food. Amazingly, none of the three men suffered major injuries, and were merely treated for mild hypothermia-related injuries to their feet.
Why is this man smiling? Because the wilderness has nothing for him! NOTHING!! He’ll outlive us all! (image courtesy of rulongardner.com)
In 2002, Gardner famously lost a toe to frostbite after getting lost while snowmobiling in Wyoming. In 2004, he was hit by a car while driving a motorcycle.
Rulon Gardner’s feet after his mishap in Wyoming. I don’t know for certain which toe he lost, but my guess is it’s the black one. (image courtesy of rulongardner.com)
The moral of this story is, while Rulon Gardner is a swell guy, but never, ever find yourself alone with him… unless you’ve got a survival show on the Discovery Channel.