Chronicles the controversy over athletic priorities in the Louisville YMCA between 1892 and 1912 when Louisville YMCA general secretaries and physical directors tried to win acceptance of Luther H. Gulick's philosophy of athletics by the YMCA board of directors and YMCA athletes. This philosophy emphasized athletics as individual self-improvement; winning was not stressed. Describes the difficulties in gaining acceptance for Gulick's philosophy by the board of directors and the athletes, and the policy of the board and actions of the athletes once it was accepted.