In his 36 years as a high school track coach, Lake Forest’s Lester Long has coached plenty of notable names.
There’s Rob Pelinka, the general manager of the Los Angeles Lakers. There’s Alan Benes, who played baseball in the major leagues for nine seasons.
Actor Vince Vaughn even played a character named Lester Long in the 1998 movie “Clay Pigeons,” a nod to his former long jump and triple jump coach.
More Top Picks Auditory Processing Disorder Vs Adhd How To Tell
“Those are the kind of things you don’t forget,” Long said. “I had the opportunity to be connected to some super young men. That was really special.”
Long recently earned career recognition as the Illinois Track and Cross Country Coaches Association named Long a 2020 North Division Assistant Coach Award winner.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, Long will formally accept the award in 2022 at the ITCCCA banquet.
Lake Forest head coach John Brumund-Smith reached out to the program’s former head coach, Denis Sheeran, once he heard the news. Brumund-Smith said they both agreed it was about time Long was recognized.
“He’s probably the most well-known coach in the building and in the conference,” Brumund-Smith said. “It’s just really nice to see him getting recognized for the amazing job that he does.”
A member of the Lake County High School Sports Hall of Fame, Long graduated from North Chicago in 1962. Besides competing in the long jump, Long was a basketball star who averaged 25 points a game and was all-state as a senior.
Long went on to have a successful playing career in college at McKendree and even earned a tryout letter from the Seattle Supersonics of the NBA. He would eventually settle down and start a family while playing semi-professional basketball for the Waukegan Wizards, a team he helped create in 1969.
While teaching at Neal Elementary School in North Chicago, Long coached high school basketball at North Chicago from 1984 to 1987. He joined Lake Forest’s track program as an assistant in 1985, and has been a fixture for the Scouts ever since at games and events.
Looking back on his coaching career, Long said he loves getting to work with student-athletes and being a part of their lives.
“You see young men and they’ve gone on to college, some have been very successful,” Long said. “You see that and you say, ‘Wow, that makes you feel good that you were a part of their lives at some point in time.’
“It’s special, and it’s still very special. I still enjoy it.”
Brumund-Smith pointed out that Long is a coach who does whatever it takes to help his athletes improve. He recalled Long reaching out to other area coaches in 2014 for advice on how to help a long jumper get through a slump.
That extra commitment to the kids, plus his warm personality, is what makes Long a favorite.
“Some people have to fake being interested and this and that, and Lester, everything is just so genuine about him,” Brumund-Smith said. “He genuinely cares, genuinely is wondering how you’re doing, is happy to see you and remembers you, and that’s why people like him so much.”
Long, who also coaches freshman girls basketball and freshman boys soccer at Lake Forest, is eager to get back to coaching in 2021.
Although he has retired from teaching, Long doesn’t plan on walking away as a coach any time soon.
“Right now, I’m thinking maybe two or three years,” Long said. “I’ll make a decision after that. This kind of honor that I just got from the ITCCCA kind of motivates you to keep going.”
Nick Frazier is a freelance reporter for the News-Sun.