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Kings of the Castle
Bryan Bros Bid Goodbye
“Don’t tell me about your dreams of a castle,” Wayne Bryan likes to say, “show me the stones you laid today.”
When Wayne’s identical twin sons, Mike and Bob, were eight years old they taped an image of their dream castle on the Camarillo family’s refrigerator door: To become the No. 1-ranked doubles team in the tennis world.
They then laid the stones, day after week, month after year after decade, until completing a castle that surpassed their wildest dreams. Indeed, when Mike and Bob retired last week at age 42 their career looked like Camelot.
Together, Mike and Bob have singularly been Mikeandbob – a two-headed monster with four arms and four legs, standing 12 feet, 7 inches tall and weighing 370 pounds. Even Hercules could not slay Bobandmike on a tennis court.
Their final stat line as a pro tandem: 16 Grand Slam doubles championships and 119 overall titles, both all-time records by a mile, plus an Olympic gold and bronze medal for good measure. As for their refrigerator goal, they were ranked No. 1 in the world for 438 weeks during 22 years on the ATP Tour.
Mikeandbob also authored one of the greatest goodbye statements in sports history, rivaling Lou Gehrig’s famous “Luckiest Man” speech in my eyes. It reads like an award-winning children’s book yet is inspiring for adults too:
“Many years ago, two brothers left home and embarked on a journey up a tall mountain. With knowledge from their parents and fueled by boundless passion, they moved up the mountain together, their eyes fixated on a peak they could see on the distant horizon.
“They lifted each other over boulders, pulled each other up steep cliffs, and kept each other warm when storms battered the mountain. If one boy became weary, the other pushed harder and when one boy had doubts, the other fearlessly pressed on. They often slipped and were bruised but loved their fight against the stubborn mountain.
“After years of climbing, the boys finally reached the top. The view was beautiful but not what they expected. They saw a vast landscape filled with endless ranges of even taller peaks. Without looking back, they continued on.
“The trail eventually disappeared but the boys kept going, clearing their own path and exploring undiscovered lands they never knew existed. No matter the direction, they stayed together, for they knew their journey was impossible alone.
“And when their bodies could carry them no further, they turned around and gazed upon the world they had travelled. They looked at each other, smiled proudly, and headed home shoulder to shoulder, with a newfound peace and a bond stronger than ever.”
Along their journey, Mikeandbob have behaved like knights in shining armor. For example, they gave one of their rackets to a 10-year-old boy in Japan who was fighting cancer. More than that, they stayed in touch. When they later learned he was on his deathbed, they rushed a final package to him.
A small thing? The young fan passed away wearing a gift match-worn shirt autographed by his two heroes.
One more example of thousands: For a young girl fan who was in the hospital after attempting suicide, Bobandmike sent a video message complete with a musical performance – Bob on keyboard, Mike on drums – of an original song they wrote specifically for her.
Around the time the young Bryan Brothers posted their castle dream on the refrigerator, their mom Kathy told them: “It’s far more important who you are as person than who you are as an athlete.”
Remarkably, Mikeandbob climbed this Mount Everest, too.
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Woody Woodburn writes a weekly column for The Ventura County Star and can be contacted at WoodyWriter@gmail.com. Follow him on Twitter and Instagram at @woodywoodburn. His books are available at www.WoodyWoodburn.com.
Check out my memoir WOODEN & ME: Life Lessons from My Two-Decade Friendship with the Legendary Coach and Humanitarian to Help “Make Each Day Your Masterpiece” and my essay collection “Strawberries in Wintertime: Essays on Life, Love, and Laughter” …
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