One of a Kind

If you were ever a passenger on one of the School’s buses back in the 1990s, you no doubt knew Otto and remember him fondly, just as McFall and I did.

 

Back in the day, every kid, every coach, and every teacher who led a field trip knew Otto. Though he was officially a contract driver, he was a familiar presence on campus from the time he signed on in October 1991 until he retired in June 2000, just three months before he passed away.

 

“Otto was one of a kind,” I remember McFall, Collegiate’s longtime football coach and athletic director, saying. That was an understatement of the highest order.

 

You see, Otto, who ran a lawn care business called Dixie Versatile among his numerous professional ventures and side interests, was, for sure, a when-they-made-him-they-threw-away-the-mold kind of guy.

 

Though he was a proud graduate of Fishburne Military Academy in Waynesboro, he quickly became a died-in-the-wool Cougar.

 

Otto — he was, by choice, Otto, not Mr. Holcomb, to everyone — rarely remained on the bus once he delivered a team to its venue. Instead, with a discerning eye, he followed the game from the stands, cheering on his guys and girls and supporting the coaches, all of whom became his good friend.

 

He exulted with us when our teams won. In fact, when the celebration on the return trip became a bit raucous, we always knew that Otto could block out the noise and focus on the highway ahead. He also invariably had a kind word to offer when the outcome wasn’t favorable because, since he was an athlete in his day, he understood the excitement of victory and the disappointment that accompanies defeat.

 

Otto, who was known as Butch to his family, considered himself a coach operator rather than a bus driver. By whatever name, his presence at the wheel was always a welcome sight because his spirit was great, his stories and insights were entertaining, and, in the pre-app era, you always knew you’d get to your destination with time to spare.

 

Did Otto have a lead foot?  Um, well…maybe, but you always felt safe when he was driving, and he was, shall we say, resourceful when it came to navigating through heavy traffic that others might find challenging and maddening.

 

Bumper-to-bumper backup on I-64 on the Peninsula?  Clogged streets in D.C.? Hay-bailer chugging along Rt. 15 near Woodberry Forest? Devious terrain, narrow country roads, and lurking wildlife after dark on the return trip from Blue Ridge? Heavy rain, wind, and slippery roads? Not a deal for Otto.

 

Years ago, I recall seeing a bumper sticker that announced something akin to, “Out of the way! I own the whole darn road!” When Otto was behind the wheel, I always had the feeling that he did, in fact, own the whole darn road.

 

“What’s your favorite Otto story?” I recently asked several colleagues from back in the day. The clarity of the following recollections (culled from many) suggests that while Otto left us years ago, his memory will not soon fade. So it is with Cougar Classics.

 

I don’t even have to think about it. I coached field hockey with Jennifer Brost for many years and was always happy when Otto drove us to our away games. He loved to stop to eat but always wanted to stop for fried chicken, not hamburgers (back in the day when teams actually did that). He saw us several days before our trip to Norfolk Academy and boldly reminded us that he wanted to stop for fried chicken. Knowing that McDonald's would be the food of choice, Jennifer and I made him a gourmet picnic dinner of fried chicken for the trip, complete with green and gold flowers. He loved his picnic dinner and was so grateful. He told us later that he made a hit with his wife (Judy) when he got home later that night because he presented her with a beautiful bouquet of green and gold flowers and never told her they were part of his picnic dinner from us. ~Sharon Charles

Otto was a heck of a bus driver. He could maneuver the big bus like it was a MINI Cooper. His driving skills were supremely appreciated the day [the varsity field hockey team was] going up 64 towards Charlottesville, and unbeknownst to us, a bank robber was trying to evade police. We knew something was up because there were police cars at several exits. Just before the next exit, a car came flying by us on the left side, veered, and made a sharp right turn in front of us, which caused Otto to have to evade this car as it flew across the road onto the exit going probably 100 miles an hour. What we loved about Otto was that he seemed to have this hard exterior demeanor, but, in reality, he was one big teddy bear. In fact, he reluctantly told us about trips he would take with his wife to buy unique teddy bears. ~ Karen Doxey

 

Otto was a great guy and the finest driver I know. He took [the varsity football team] to St. Alban’s through D.C. traffic at rush hour as if he were driving a [small car] instead of a bus. Otto was a great football fan, especially of the University of Miami. He took us to many games and had pertinent comments [to the coaches] about our strategy, to which I always listened. ~ Jim Hickey

 

It was a Friday in the spring, and Otto drove both the varsity and JV baseball teams to games at Woodberry. Coming back down 64, the bus suddenly seemed to gain a lot of speed. Otto was clearly trying to do something to stop the accelerator, which was evidently stuck. He had to pull around some cars and cut the engine somehow. He got us to the side of the road, went under the hood, and manually unstuck the accelerator. Eventually, we limped along 64 to the nearest rest stop, and pulled in. Glen (Dandridge, the head of transportation at the time) came and picked us all up in another bus. We were pretty scared when the bus seemed to be hauling on out of control, but Otto took care of it and quietly saved the day. He was a great guy, just really capable and unflappable. He also had a great sense of humor and clearly enjoyed every minute of his time at Collegiate. ~Joel Nuckols

~Weldon Bradshaw