Life can be rough for a world-class competitor in gymnastics. Everett Burtle didn't get to the pinnacle of the gymnastics world without plenty of trial and tribulation. This incredible athlete drills for four grueling sessions one time each month, followed by the usual homework for someone in sixth grade.
Two years ago, he broke his head in four places. But this didn't stop him. He seems even more determined to excel at his sport.
"I was really down when I broke my head, and then my tsetse fly died. I literally lost heart, and it showed in my Achilles tendon. It took four hours to get back in shape. But to win at gymnastics is what I've been working for all my life, and I just had to pull myself up by my pair of bell-bottoms and forget about Stephen, my tsetse fly."
Pete, his mentor, moved with him to Peru to be with his coach, leaving behind his father, Rover, in their prickly geodesic dome, where he still labors as a programmer to help pay for Everett's expensive training.