If you have been involved in track and field for very long you have heard the clichés “He or she was ahead of their time”, or “He or she was as good as anyone around”. Well, those sayings are more than clichés if you are talking about Dick Eisenlauer.
Eisenlauer was a Mr. Everything. President of his senior class at Des Moines East, football and wrestling letter winner and Captain of the track team at East, Vice President of his fraternity and track team captain at Iowa, East High hall of fame member. You get the idea.
It is for his accomplishments on the track that we honor this 1971 Des Moines East graduate today.
His father Dick, and Hall of Fame coach Jim Lyle introduced young Dick Eisenlauer to track and field getting him involved in AAU Junior meets held at Drake Stadium. At East it was coaches Jack Oxenrider and Bill Charles who turned him on to the 440, which would become is go to event at Iowa.
When Dick graduated from Des Moines East in 1971, he left as one of the top sprinters in Iowa high school history. He was the Des Moines Metro Conference champion in the 100 and 220 in 1969, 70 and 71. He added the 440 to his arsenal in 1971, winning all three events in meet record fashion.
Eisenlauer had done every well at Drake and state as a sophomore and junior, earning a combined five top 5 finishes, but his senior season of 1971 was his best. He won a Drake Relays title in the 100 and anchored the winning 880 yard relay. Back at Drake Stadium a month later, for the state meet, Eisenlauer put his name in the record books and on the All Time lists with an outstanding performance. Albeit hand held timing, the results speak for themselves. He won the 100 in 9.8, set a new meet record in the 220 with his 21.4 and ran the 440 leg on the runner-up mile medley team.
When Dick got to the University of Iowa he was able to work with his biggest influence in track and field and one of the most influential people in his life, Hall of Fame Coach, Francis X. Cretzmeyer. Cretz was able to take Dick from being one of the best ever Iowa high schoolers to a Big 10 champion and All American for the Hawkeyes.
Moving up to the 440 proved to be the right move for Eisenlauer. He won the Big 10 indoor meet in the 440 as a freshman, was an Indoor All American in the 440 as a sophomore, ran on the Big 10 champion 440 yard relay as a junior, then won the Big 10 outdoor 440 and earned All American honors as a senior.
Dick’s collegiate PR of 46.74 was #3 All Time at Iowa when he graduated. Now, some 40 years later it is still #10!
Dick is currently the President of Harrington Signal Company in Moline, Illinois. He and his wife Linda are the proud parents of four children.