Final Salute

There was much more to Larry Franklin’s life story than one record-setting jump.
But that one record-setting jump is a fine place to start.

Franklin, who died Sept. 4 at the age of 73, holds the oldest listing in the WIAA state track and field meet record books.

Larry Franklin

A senior at the old Madison Central High School in 1965, Franklin cleared 25 feet ¾-inch on his last of seven attempts — although years later, he insisted it was his fifth jump — to win the state broad jump title at Monona Grove High School.

While one or two competitors have come close in what is now called the long jump, Franklin’s state-meet record has stood for 55 years and counting.

As with so many other things in life, he didn’t do it alone.

Franklin had foot-fouled on four of his first six jumps, including two that would have resulted in even better marks than his record-setter. And the competition was tough — three of his opponents had already broken the existing state record earlier in the event.

As the moment of truth neared, Franklin consulted his older brother, Joe, looking for a favor.

“I was told Larry came over to Joe and said, ‘Put this towel at the 25-foot mark. That’s the goal I want to go for, so put it there so I can see it,’” said Reggie Franklin, Larry Franklin’s nephew.

“His last jump was great, but he was sad. He walked back and said, ‘I didn’t get to the towel. I was trying to get to 25 feet and I didn’t.’

“And that’s when Joe said, ‘Man, I set that towel down at 26 feet.’”

Prep track and field photo: Larry Franklin and his 880-yard relay state champion teammates of 1965

Larry Franklin, left, with his 880-yard relay teammates Bruce Victor, Pete DiMartino and Dan Henderson, after winning the 1965 WIAA state meet in 1 minute, 31.1 seconds.

Newspaper accounts said Franklin actually took flight about 6 inches behind the foul board on that last jump — and while he soared past all his competitors, he finished four inches short of that year’s best high school jump in the nation.

Later that summer, he won the Amateur Athletic Union national meet in Houston with a jump of 24-9.

Franklin also teamed with Dan Henderson, Pete DiMartino and Bruce Victor to win the state 880-yard relay in 1 minute, 31.1 seconds. Franklin also won the broad jump in 1964, clearing 23-6.

Franklin was one of seven siblings (four boys, three girls) who grew up on the South Side of Madison. He earned the nickname “Night Train” as a running back on Central’s football team, and also played basketball.

His brother Joe went on to play basketball at the University of Wisconsin and became the Badgers’ all-time scoring leader at the time, pouring in 1,215 points from 1965 to 1968. His total still ranks 24th all-time on the Wisconsin list. Joe Franklin died in June, suffering from heart disease and cancer.

A younger brother, Jerome Franklin (Reggie’s father), still is listed in Madison Area Technical College’s basketball record book.

“History shows none of the Franklin boys were afraid of shooting the rock,” Reggie Franklin said.

“You can say that again,” Jerome Franklin said with a laugh.

But Larry Franklin didn’t follow those brothers’ footsteps into college.

“He had scholarship offers from all over the country,” Reggie Franklin said of Larry, “but he decided to join the Navy instead. His mother and father couldn’t believe it.

“He had a friend who wanted to join and they were going to go in together,” Reggie Franklin said. “But then his friend failed his physical, and Larry went in by himself.”

Franklin served three tours of duty in Vietnam as a member of the Navy Seabees — traveling around the world three times, by his account — and spent a total of 23 years in the Navy before eventually settling in Washington state with his wife, Doris.

“He got back to Madison from time to time,” Jerome Franklin said.

In 2010, the Wisconsin State Journal ranked the top 100 Madison high school athletes of all time, and Larry Franklin’s jump earned him the No. 51 spot on the list. He also was named to the Madison Sports Hall of Fame in 1998, joining his brother Joe, a 1989 inductee.

By all accounts, Larry Franklin’s record-setting jump was just the takeoff point for a happy and productive life.

“Even in his final hours,” Reggie Franklin said, “(and) even if he was sick or hurting, he always had a smile and was always positive.”