By John Philip Wyllie
Tijuana-born Bonita Vista High pole vaulter and inside linebacker German Palma doesn’t have to look far for his inspiration when his muscles start to quiver at the end of a long and grueling workout. He just has to think about his father.
“My dad took care of his 10 brothers and sisters when he was a kid after his father died. His mother was sick, so he became the family provider. My dad has always worked so hard. He tells me if he can make it this far with only about a fourth grade education there is no reason why I can’t get a great education and do really well in sports.”
The Palma family arrived in this country when German was only six. At that time he didn’t know a word of English.
“When I first arrived here I went to West View Elementary School in Imperial Beach. They had a good program there. In first grade they spoke to me mostly in Spanish, but slowly they taught me English. I picked it up quickly and had a lot of friends helping me out. We had a lot of support, so we got used it. At home we use both English and Spanish. I think I have more of an accent in Spanish now than I do in English.”
While Palma likes to reminisce about his arrival in America he is focusing most of his attention on the upcoming football season. You will find him most days in the weight room, out on the field or running the hills of the nearby streets. The first organized team practice is still many weeks away, but that doesn’t stop Palma from training as if the season has already started.
“German is one of those kids that will give his best to be the best,” according to trainer, Joe Sheffield. “During the track season he came in not knowing how to pole vault. He (missed the mat) and landed on the ground several times while he was learning and that would have made most athletes gun shy, but not him. He kept with it until he could pole vault 12 feet which was our J.V. best. On our football team he is the new kid on the block. The coaches have really noticed him and constantly used him as an example (of someone that works hard). Everybody looks up to him due to his work ethic. He started last year on the J.V. team, but was later moved up to varsity. Now he is creeping up on the guys that started on the varsity team last year.”
Palma is hoping his individual training this summer will give him the inside track on the starting inside linebacker position.
“The way I look at it, why should I be sitting at home watching T.V. when I can be out here creating a better version of myself? I usually start out with some speed training. That includes a lot of sprints. Then I switch to power training with the bags. After that I head for the weight room and work some days on my legs. That includes hamstring workouts and squats. On other days I work on my upper body with bench presses and other upper body exercises. I don’t want to be too bulky on my upper body and then have weak legs. The idea is to be ready to compete in sports not just to look good. I am out here almost every day unless I am told to take a rest. Sometimes a few of the other guys join me.”
With Palma’s growing speed, strength and tenacity, his teammates would be well advised to join his daily workouts. Otherwise they could be spending a lot of the season watching him from the bench.