University of Virginia Library

Trainer Joe Gieck's Hands Full

One of the few teams of the
athletic department that gets little
publicity for its work is Joe Gieck's
team. The squad has only seven
players with Mr. Gieck as their
captain. They call themselves "the
Trainers."

The job of trainer is more than a
job for a horse doctor these days.
His responsibility includes taking
care of the injuries that befall the
players of both the Varsity and
Freshman teams. Not only does he
have to heal them, but he has to
play Miracle Worker and put them
in A-1 shape before the next game.

Joe Gieck has a great background,
and it shows. Rick Moschel
commented, "Mr. Gieck can heal
you in a week. He's the best in the
business." But his skill did not
come easily. Mr. Gieck got a degree
first in physical therapy and has
since received his Master's Degree in
Education. New on the team this
year is the head trainer of the
University of Richmond, Leonard
McNeal. Mr. McNeal is presently
studying for his doctorate.

"Training is becoming more and
more technical,"Mr. Gieck stated.
"We're forming a professional examining
board to test and register
new trainers, and we are now

recognized by the AMA." Training
is becoming a more highly skilled
field all the time.

This is Mr. Gieck's eighth year at
the University, and he feels like he
has run into almost every injury
there is. The most common injury
is damage to the knee, he says.
Most of these occur in soccer and
football games where the traction
of a game cleat is just as apt to lead
to an injury to an ankle or a knee as
it is to a score. This year the
number of injuries to football
players is much lower because the
players are wearing a new soccer
shoe during practice, instead of
regular game cleats.

When a player comes into the
training room, he is greeted by Mr.
Gieck's smile, Richard Fidler's
cigar, and a maze of apparatus.
Richard Fidler is the Senior
assistant student trainer. Some of
the equipment includes paraffin
baths, hydrocolators, which are for
wet heat treatments, microwave
diathermy, which is a heat
treatment machine aptly named
"Barbarella" because of its
electronic arms and flushing lights,
a knee rehabilitation table, and an
intermittent pressure unit used to
control swelling. In addition there
are three regular Whirlpool baths
and two more large ones set into
the floor of the Whirlpool room.

On the day of a football game
the team eats a pregame meal at
8:30, which is part of the training
diet prepared by Mr. Gieck. After
skull sessions, Joe and his assistants
work furiously to get the team
taped and wrapped so they can be
at the stadium by noon. During the
game Joe and two or three student
trainers work by the bench to treat
everything from minor injuries like
cramps and sprains, to more serious
injuries such as separated shoulders
or broken bones.

From the mass of injured
football players comes the one who
gets the not-so-coveted Gold-brick
Award, given every year to the
football player who has the most
elapsed time in the training room.
Mr. Gieck says that despite the fact
that the Cavaliers have been strong
this year, there are a few players
who are making a serious bid for
the prize.