Mesler thrilled to hang with ex-Bills
BATAVIA — Rubbing shoulders with his former Buffalo Bills idols was just the latest thrill of this spring for U.S. Olympian Steve Mesler. Mesler, the gold-medal-winning bobsledder from Buffalo, was one of the celebrities at Jim Kelly’s 24th annual golf tournament Monday at Terry Hills Golf Course.
Steve talks about how his life has changed since winning gold
“My dad and I went to every game from ’88 to ’96 before I left for the University of Florida,” said Mesler. “So to get to come here and hang out with these guys and golf, it’s an honor for me to be included. … I was at the Comeback Game in 1993, and the only reason we stayed after the first half was my dad and two friends we were there with hadn’t finished their beers yet. It was 40 degrees and raining. Then Houston scored again and we started scoring.”
It has been a whirlwind three months for Mesler since the Winter Olympics, when he and his three teammates became the first American team to win the four-man bobsled gold since 1948.
Within a week of winning his gold medal in Vancouver, he helped deliver the Top 10 list on the Late Show with David Letterman, appeared on NBC’s Today Show and was introduced at a New York Rangers hockey game.
In April, Mesler and teammate Curt Tomasevicz got to fly in an F-16 fighter jet at Luke Air Force Base in Arizona. He also went to the White House and met President Obama.
“Bill Burton, a guy who’s a City Honors grad just like myself, works in the White House,” Mesler said. “He’s the deputy press secretary, so he walked me in through the Oval Office. We were there with the whole Olympic team and got to take a picture with him [Obama]. It’s been like that for three months.”
Mesler got to meet movie star Tom Hanks in the waiting room at the Letterman show. “He was so friendly and so excited,” he said. “He talked about how he and his son were watching, and his son was pushing a couch around his living room during the race and after the race. It’s pretty neat that somebody like that stops and watches. That shows the power of the Olympic Games.”
Mesler has more invitations on his agenda. He will go back to his college alma mater this fall to be grand marshal at the homecoming parade in Gainesville, Fla.
Meanwhile, he’s working on his post-bobsled plans. He’s planning to go into Olympic sports commentating. He’s working on starting an education program with the U.S. Olympic Committee.
“I’ve spent two weeks in my bed in Calgary the past three months,” Mesler said. “It’s busy but its fun. Everywhere myself and the four-man team go everyone’s excited, so it’s pretty neat.”
