After what happened to Ross on his walk to the arena on Friday and his determination to see every game, it’s safe to assume he won’t miss a game as long as he’s alive.
Ross crossed the street from the area where he parked and was hit by a car. Most of the damage, it turned out, is to his left ankle. But those on the scene, of course, told Ross he needed medical attention.
“They said, ‘Let’s call an ambulance,’” Ross said. “And I said, ‘No, I gotta make it to Flyin’ To The Hoop. I like going to Flyin’ To The Hoop. No, I’m fine. I feel real sore, but I think I can make it.’ I won’t miss it.”
After exchanging insurance information with the driver, Ross, a 66-year-old retiree who worked 43 years for the local cable TV companies, stood up and walked through the freezing night air, his ankle hurting more with each step.
“I made it to the office where you come in and I told them what happened,” Ross said. “They said if you have any problems, just let me know because we have trainers that can look at your foot. They were really nice at the door.”
Ross watched the two games and drove home, but by Saturday morning he was in a lot of pain. He went to urgent care. After X-rays revealed ligament damage but no broken bones, his lower leg was wrapped and splinted.
“They told me something’s wrong,” Ross said. “And I said, ‘I’m still going to Flyin’ To The Hoop. That’s my yearly treat to myself.”
Ross will return to the doctor this week. But certainly not before Tuesday.
A friend drove Ross to Saturday’s game, but he drove on Sunday and Monday and parked much closer. He’s on crutches but took his usual seat in the top row of the corner behind the visiting team’s bench. He sometimes sits with people he knows and has met over the years coming to the event. They talk almost as much as they watch.
“Just to be able to see teams that I would never be able to see come right here to Dayton,” Ross said. “I don’t have to do the traveling. They’re doing the traveling for me. And I can see the teams that I’ve seen on ESPN come to the little city of Dayton. That’s really nice when I’m watching ESPN and I say, ‘Wait a minute. I saw them at Flyin’ To The Hoop.’”
Flyin’ To The Hoop president Eric Horstman gave Ross a Flyin’ T-shirt that he proudly wore on Sunday. “He told me I am his No. 1 fan,” Ross said.
Ross likes a lot of the players he’s seen this weekend, but none stood out more than Garfield Heights sophomore Marcus Johnson, who scored 40 points Saturday night in a double-overtime win.
“The one I like the most is that No. 11 from Garfield Heights,” he said. “He was amazing. I’m just glad he’s from Ohio.”
Ross graduated from Jefferson High School in 1976. He was a wrestler, not a basketball player, so he also supports the Butler wrestling team all the way through the state tournament every year. He also makes time to attend boys basketball tournament games at Trent, Butler and UD Arena.
Ross, the father of two adult daughters, gets no argument from his wife, Teria, about his wrestling and basketball addictions.
“She knows this is my desire,” he said. “She don’t even question it. When the tickets go on sale, she says go get them. You enjoy yourself. I know that’s what you love to do.”
Ross, however, doesn’t take for granted that he got to keep his Flyin’ attendance streak alive.
“When the car hit me I had a backpack on my back, so that saved me from hitting my head on the concrete, Thank God,” he said. “But I was determined to make it to Flyin’ To The Hoop. These four days satisfies me for the rest of the year.”
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