West alum fulfills dream of returning to Rose Bowl – as UW team-chiropractor

Attending the 1992 Rose Bowl between the University of Washington and the University of Michigan, with more than 100,000 fans filling the historic Southern California stadium, made a life-impacting impression on one young fan, who vowed to return one day to “the granddaddy” of all college bowl games in some capacity with his hometown Huskies.

Nearly three decades later, that young fan fulfilled his dream – returning to the 2019 Rose Bowl as UW’s team-chiropractor.

Who is that young fan,you ask? Curt Rindal, D.C., CCSP® (West, ’12)

Prior to entering Palmer, Dr. Rindal attended UW, where he earned a degree in economics while playing on the Huskies’ baseball team.

He played in the Milwaukee Brewers’ minor-league system for nearly two years, before ultimately deciding he wanted to pursue a career as a chiropractor.

Considering his father, two brothers, an uncle and cousin all became chiropractors, it was a “natural fit” for him to follow a similar career path.

Dr. Rindal initially worked with his brother, Kevin Rindal, D.C., CCSP®, a 2006 graduate of Palmer’s main campus, at InHealth Sports Injury and Performance in Seattle, before opening his own practice, Rindal Sports Chiropractic, in 2017.

Upon his return to Washington, Dr. Rindal was appointed chiropractor for the Huskies’ football team. His role has since expanded, and he’s now providing similar care for other UW sports teams.

“Working with the UW football team has been so much fun, and an honor,” said Dr. Rindal, who earned All-Pac 10 honors as a collegiate baseball player.

“My relationship with the athletic training staff, medical team, and coaches, has grown steadily during the past four years. I’m visiting the training facility more frequently, and treating a broader spectrum of issues.”

The Huskies’ football team has posted a 39-15 record in the four seasons since Dr. Rindal’s appointment, and has qualified for a “New Year’s Six” bowl-game the past three seasons – culminating with this year’s Rose Bowl berth.

He vividly recalls his family’s trip to Southern California to attend the 1992 Rose Bowl.

“I remember the grandness of the game and being in a stadium with 100,000 screaming fans. It was like nothing I’d ever experienced!”

His return to the Rose Bowl for this year’s game was equally exciting – but in a very different way.

“The day started early; we have about 90 minutes to get the team ready before games, so we were busy from the minute we arrived at the stadium,” said Dr. Rindal, who feels “very fortunate” to have attended Palmer West for providing him with a strong education on the treatment of athletes, and for developing a Sports Council program that provides students with multiple on-field opportunities to develop strong sports-chiropractic skills and build confidence in caring for athletes.

“Running onto the field with the team at the Rose Bowl is something I’ll tell my grandkids about. I’d place this at the top of my post-Palmer achievements. It would have been nice if we won (Ohio State defeated the Huskies, 28-23) — but the day was a reminder that you never know where life will take you, so never stop working at achieving your goals, or dreaming big!”