The Rise Of Perennials, Like Bruce Rubin

Bruce Rubin. Photo courtesy Fox 29/WTXF.

By Ray Glier

Bruce Rubin will turn 81 October 13 and he still has expectations when he plays pick-up basketball once a week with players half his age. He wants to hit open shots, make an extra pass that leads to a layup, stay between his man and the basket on defense, and snatch his share of rebounds, even if they hit the ground first.

I admire these type of players because they have a bottom-up mindset, not top down. They have pride in foundational aspects of the game.

More than that, I admire how they still have an emotional attachment to a game they played as kids and have no intention of quitting because of a missed shot or two...or three, or four.

Bruce, who lives in Lansdale, Pa., became a widower seven years ago. He had a kids' game to lean on those Wednesday nights because 5-on-5 can create safe space.

And then, when he missed six months because of breast cancer, the night Bruce returned to the pick-up games, he walked into the gym to a standing ovation. There is no firmer emotional attachment than stirring compassion in others.

This is why we play.

Do you wonder what taking your old glove and a rubber baseball and bouncing it against the house can do for your attitude, not to mention your coordination?

You might have heard. Rubin is part of a trend of so-called "perennials." They won't go away from sports (and walking is a sport).

The number of participants in the National Senior Games, a biennial event for athletes 50 and older, has increased from 2,500 in St. Louis in 1987 to 13,882 in Albuquerque in 2019. The pandemic hit in 2020 dropping the numbers to 12,065 in 2022 and 11,681 in 2023, respectively, because Covid is viewed as a threat to many.

The number of people 65 and older who belong to health clubs has increased by 34% since 2010.

The number of athletes over 50 who participated in the New York City marathon the last 25 years has increased by over 100 percent.

Rubin is one of those perennials who don’t see the end in sight. They are using advances in sports medicine, training, and recovery strategies to stay active.

Bruce’s game is a mature game, but not in the way that he is old. It is "mature" in the way he has catalogued a lot of the nuances. He is about 5-foot-11, which makes him a tad taller for rebounds than normal, but he also has a long history of reading caroms off the rim.

“I have a better idea where the ball is going,” he said, which gives him a head start toward the ball.

Stuffing that rebound stat line helps make the game more fun. The pick-up games are usually evenly matched, he said, which means one play here or there makes a difference. Rubin can still make that decisive play.

Think about your own “mature” game and what advantages it gives you.

Here’s a swell story from the Fox station in Philadelphia. You can see Bruce is not explosive. There is some respect because you see a 35-year old doesn’t dog him with superior athleticism. Even if that happens, it means his defender is not in a position to help on defense because he is glued to Rubin. This is how the floor opens and Bruce understands that.

Rubin doesn’t mind when new players show up at the school in the North Penn School District.

“They don't give me any credit for being a quote, unquote, a player because of my age,” Bruce said. “And so they don't watch me as much as they should, until I make a couple of shots.”

You and I see the dehumanization of athletes every week. It’s not meant to be fun in many cases in the NFL, NBA, or colleges. It’s meant to demoralize for a mental advantage and I’ve grown tired of it.

Rubin never has to worry about that with the crew he is playing with. He first started playing these weekly games in 1977 when he hit 210 pounds and was overweight. Bruce started to get in shape and he has managed to “hang with” younger players because he weighs 155 and is more fit.

In more ways than one, if it wasn’t for basketball Rubin might not be with us.

One night he had a collision with two guys and ended up on the floor. The back pain wouldn’t subside so he went to the ER.

With time to spare given the wait times in ERs, Rubin did a self-exam. That’s when he found a lump on his right breast and had experts take a closer look. About 1% of all breast cancer is found in men and his was Stage 3b.

“No stigma,” he said of the breast cancer. “We’re all going to get something. I happened to get this.”

There was surgery and 20 radiation treatments and one medication, which he still takes. The next night after his last radiation treatment, Bruce was lacing up high tops to play again.

***
Bruce has a favorite slogan. It is by the composer George Bernard Shaw.

“We don't stop playing when we grow old. We grow old when we stop playing.”

“Lots of times, I find myself never planning to grow old. I don’t look 80, people tell me that,” Rubin said. “That's one of the reasons I play basketball. It keeps me young.”

So ask yourself. "What am I doing to make myself a perennial?"

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