Professor Alan Gross reflects on five decades that reshaped orthopedics, tracing the evolution of fresh osteochondral allografts from early immunology insights to a global shift in cartilage restoration. He recalls how timing, collaboration, and bone-bank development propelled advances in knee and hip revision surgery, alongside the rise of modern chondrocyte transplantation. Gross describes an active life at 86—still operating, mentoring, and raising athletic twins—while noting how teamwork eases complications and sustains joy in practice.