Dale Crisler was an athlete, coach and sports leader in Rice Lake and Barron County for more than a half century. A Barron High School graduate, in 1954, where he was a multiple letter winner in baseball. Crisler went on to play catcher for the UW-River Falls baseball team, also lettering in four seasons. In 1966 he moved to Rice Lake to teach physics and math at the Barron County campus, where he coached baseball for 30 years partnering with Denny Grivna. While at UW-BC, Dale went on to receive his Doctorate in Physics, giving him the title of “Doc”. Upon his retirement, he was bestowed the honor of Professor Emeritus. Crisler played fastpitch softball for the Oredockers in the Red Cedar Men’s Fastpitch League from its inception until 2016. He was the Oredockers manager from 1980 until he was 80 years old. His Oredocker teams won eight league championships from 1981 to 2015 and were also the SASA Class C State Tournament champion in 1991. That team then represented Wisconsin in the national tournament in Oklahoma City. Crisler coached the 1983 and 1984 Rice Lake 15-to-18-year old boys team to National FPSB Championships in Highland, Indiana and Salt Lake City, Utah. The victory in 1984 qualified the team to play in the Junior Olympic World Tournament in 1985 in Fargo, North Dakota, where Rice Lake won the silver medal following a 2-1 loss to New Zealand. Beyond the diamond, Crisler began volunteering at the American Birkebeiner and became a charter member of the Superior Lobe Chapter of the Ice Age Trail and was instrumental in organizing the Hulda Hilfiker Classic Wooly Mammoth run/walks, as well as hikes the Murphy Flowage Recreation Area. Crisler lives with his wife Carole in Rice Lake.