Sports

On August 26, the annual workshop was held at the Pasatiempo Golf Club for the benefit of all of the girl golfers from the north county high schools. This year marked the 14th workshop. Girl golfers from Aptos, Harbor, Santa Cruz and San Lorenzo Valley high schools can attend for free.PGC donates the facility and The Nine Holes Ladies raise the money for other expenses.Funds will also include the proceeds from the sales of the Pasatiempo Art Show at the Hollins House on Sunday, August 30. 

Levi Stadium started the tradition of Friday Night Lights high school football games at the 49-ers home-field last year, with the double-header at the end of August, 2014.It grew up to be a triple-header this year, with six local schools participating in the Sept 18 event.The middle, 6 p.m. game, will square-off Scotts Valley High School vs. Watsonville High School. The last time these two played was in 2005, when both schools were still in the Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League, and the Falcons won, 21-0. WHS was realigned in 2006, and play now in the Monterey Bay League.Except perhaps in Texas, it's hard to fill an over 60,000 seat stadium for a high-school football game. The fact that it's a triple-header might help a bit, but reportedly each team guaranteed the Levi Stadium organization to sell at least 500 tickets or 1,000 total tickets. However, WHS has 3,000 tickets for adults and 2,000 for students according to the Santa Cruz Sentinel, while SVHS has 1,000 student tickets and 500 adult tickets. If WHS sells 5,000 tickets and SVHS sells only 1,500 tickets then the two teams would have moved 6,500 tickets. That would leave 53,500 seats for other people.In interviews with the Watsonville-Pajaronian newspaper, WHS players spoke about their entire extended families coming, including some flying in from the east coast. Scotts Valley's community has such capability, too.The tickets for the game went on sale Wednesday, August 19, at three locations in Scotts Valley and at least one in Watsonville:Rita’s Italian Ice in Scotts Valley, located at 222 Mount Hermon Road in the Nob Hill shopping centerSVHS main officeSVHS students storeCarmona’s BBQ Deli at 1040 East Lake Avenue in the East Lake Village Shopping Center in WatsonvilleThe adult tickets are $20, students $5, but the best deal is a trip on a rooter-bus. It's for students only, and for $20 includes a round-trip on one of two buses going to Santa Clara, a ticket to the game and a souvenir t-shirt [see image of t-shirt logo above]. A ticket for one of the High School games is good for the entire triple-header. Parking won’t be free, but as of press time, the 49-ers office could not quote a price except to say “it’ll be less than an NFL game parking fee.”

Sunday, August 16 marked the 47th running of Felton’s own ‘Race Thru the Redwoods.’ The race starts in the day-use picnic area of Henry Cowell Redwood State Park and is actually two races: the 10k and the kids’ mile.This year’s 10k had 403 pre-registered runners, plus 40 to 50 people who signed up on race day. The mile had about 100 kids signed up, many of whom had parents running as well.“This is sponsored by the Felton Business Association so many of the people on the board of directors are involved.” says Felton Feed’s own Judy Brown, “This is one of the ways that we raise money to contribute to the community.”This year was Brown’s fourth year volunteering at the race; some of the proceeds from which go back to sports teams at the local high schools including San Lorenzo Valley High School’s track team and Scotts Valley’s High School’s Volleyball team.Although not as well known as the ‘Wharf to Wharf, which draws more than 16,000 runners annually, the ‘Race Thru the Redwoods’ has drawn some international talent.“In the past we’ve had runners from as far away as New York, Mexico and South America, “said Brown. “However they were not just in the area to race.”Sue Sutton has run the race twice before with a best time of 54:23, “I live here in Boulder Creek and I hike here [at Henry Cowell] all the time; it’s beautiful and cool,” says Sutton, “Everywhere in Boulder Creek there’s a hill, so this is nothing.”The community as a whole is very involved in supporting the race. Santa Cruz County ARES ham Radio volunteers, like Mikail Barron, could be found all over the trail on race day. “It’s a pure safety thing; we can communicate better with them here,” says member of the ‘Race Thru the Redwoods’ team Valoree Mills.“This [race] is made possible by our major sponsors: Granite Contruction, the Sereno Group, Union Bank and Liberty Bank,” said Mills. Many of the raffle prizes were also donated by local businesses, like the grand prize of the kid’s raffle: a specialized bike was donated by Scotts Valley Cycle Sport.Scott Rasmann, who has run the race twice, says, “I really like trail runs; trail races are great and there are a couple of challenging hills, plus I support the local high schools which is very important.”Rob Collins, coach of SLVHS’s track and cross country teams could be found at the starting line of the kid’s mile, helping the kids to line up successfully for the 8:10 start time.“Me and my wife are the ones who started the kids’ race,” says Collins, who was inspired by the lack of opportunity for kids to compete in the Santa Cruz Mountains, “One of the biggest enjoyments for me was — [when] my son wanted to run his first race.”The old record, from when the [10k] race began in the New Leaf Market Parking lot, was around 33:20, according to Collins. “The winning time is in the 34 to 36 minute range each year,” now.This year’s winner of the 10k, Jacob Smith, finished with a time of 39:13, but many of the runners finished after about an hour.Up-and-coming runner Ava Mehlenblocher, 6, says she planned to run the kids’ mile, “As fast as the flash.”The winner of the kids’ mile, Cory Nounnan finished with a time of 6:33 with Kai Groleau coming in a close second with the same time. However, both races gave awards by age-group with groups from 6 and under all the way up to 12 for the kids’ mile, and runners from ages 10 to 71 in the 10k.Many runners fueled up for the race with breakfast in the park catered by the Cowboy Bar & Grill in Felton, and the runners’ perks didn’t end there. All pre-registered runners got t-shirts, and all of the kids got ribbons. There were also ‘Race Thru the Redwoods’ water bottles available, and even a face painting table set up in the picnic area.Many of the children running the kids’ mile were so young that parents had to run with them, and some were even carried over the finish line. However, every runner was greeted by a cheering crowd, regardless of their time.

Hell Week language is scary. The drill descriptions are strong enough to put the fear of retribution into any young football player’s heart. Found on the coach’s advisory web site are these Hell Week ‘two-a-days’ drills:Discipline: Up downs, Suicides, Running (a lot, like 2 miles non stop), Death valley bear crawl (bear crawling with someone on your back)Hard hitting: Bull in the ring, Hitting tackling dummyBlocking: Pushing the sled, One-on-ones So the lingo is often scary. If you were in some other location where the coaches might have a ‘drill-sergeant’ like attitude and a ‘what-won't-kill-you-will-make-you-stronger’ mentality, those deadly terms were often prophetic.In 2003, heat-exhaustion deaths made the National Collegiate Athletic Association prohibit ‘two-a-days’ on consecutive days during the first five days of practice. NFL eliminated them all-together.In local high schools, the first few days are without helmets and padding, to ease dehydration.Both San Lorenzo Valley and Scotts Valley high schools started football practices on Monday, August 10. Led by head coaches, respectively, Dave Poetzinger and Louie Walters, both teams prepare for the first competition – Santa Cruz Coast Athletic League's 2015 ‘FOOTBALL JAMBOREE’, to be held on Friday, August 28 at 5:30 pm at the Cabrillo College.Scotts Valley has a really ambitious preseason schedule, highlighted by the September 18 game at the 49’s Levi Stadium vs. Watsonville HS.On a sad note, it seems the Falcons’ new sports complex won't have the stadium lights as planned, due to a threatened lawsuit by the neighboring residents. In the past, Santa Cruz High School faced a similar predicament when their lights were to be installed. They solved their problem by using lower poles and special lighting with modifiers that prevent excessive light-spillage outside of the stadium. Perhaps not all is yet lost for the Falcons.

Two championship games for the Independent Order of Odd Fellows San Lorenzo Valley Men's division Softball League were played last Wednesday at the Highlands Park in Ben Lomond.In division B, two underdogs – third at the regular season's end, the Sharks met the fourth place Mountain Mechanics, who held a seemingly comfortable lead through the championship game's first 6 1/2 innings, and went into the bottom of the seventh with a five points lead. But then the Sharks, known for the last inning rallies, loaded bases twice and, with fewconsecutive single runs, started chipping away at the Mountain Mechanics lead. With two out and some outstanding last ditch defense, though, the latter prevailed, 15 - 14, and claimed the championship.Chris Amos was a winning pitcher, Sharks' Robert Smith the losing one.In the division’s A game, Mud Dogs beat the Flingers 12 - 9.

As the school year approaches, San Lorenzo Valley High School’s water polo teams are being whipped into shape. This abrupt end to the tranquility of summer comes in the form of Hell Week, five days of intense practices to prepare for the upcoming season.

In the Independent Order of Odd Fellows' San Lorenzo Valley Softball Men's Summer League two semi-final games, played last Wednesday at Highlands Park, there were two, contrasting patterns.In the first game, Mountain Mechanics jumped to an early lead and were never threatened, as they hammered the Nailers, 20-6. During the regular season, a 10-point lead would kick-in a mercy rule and the game would be over, but in the playoffs the teams must play 7 full innings (unless there are extra innings).In the evening game, between the Sharks and the Woodpeckers, the game was close until the last inning. Tied at 20-20, the Sharks scored a run at the bottom of the 7th inning, and so they will meet the Mountain Mechanics in the championship game next Wednesday, August 12, at 6 p.m. at Highlands Park.The August 12 game has a “Shakespearean-like” family’s conflict side to it. There will be a first-ever grandfather/grandson duo on the Mountain Mechanics team. Chris Currier and his grandson, Ben Knudson, will be pitched against a “Father with Three Sons” (Mark Mullins with his sons Billy, Robert and John, all former jocks at SLVHS) on the Sharks team.

Thousands crowded the street from the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk’s Cocoanut Grove to the Santa Cruz Wharf.This year’s annual Wharf to Wharf race took place on July 26th. The six-mile race that was run from the Santa Cruz Wharf to the finish at Capitola’s Wharf Road began at 8:30 a.m.Other racers were there to do their best while enjoying a fun atmosphere. Many wore costumes or carried flags, like San Lorenzo Valley High School graduate Kaila Gibson who raced with the elites and was decked out in Superman running gear.Organized by expected finish time into corrals of runners, the competitors chatted, prepared, and warmed up with the help of upbeat music and warm-up dancers.It was 43 years ago when Santa Cruz’s Wharf to Wharf was only able to claim 273 runners. “I was here at the very first one in 1973,” said Ken Thomas, President of the race’s Board of Directors, “Today we’ve registered 16,000 runners.”This year’s race was especially important to the race’s future. “We are evaluating start and finish lines to see if we can add more people or if it’s going to stay the same,” said Race Director Scott McConville.“The elite athletes are really fast this year,” said McConville, “The depths of the men’s field is probably it’s strongest in the past ten years.”Elite level competitors come from around the globe to compete in Santa Cruz’s Wharf to Wharf, and many are hosted by local families. “The country that’s had representatives with the most success has been Kenya,” according to Thomas.One of these international runners, Shadrack Kosgei, hails from Kenya. This year’s race was not Kosgei’s first run in Santa Cruz, “I’ve won three times, second two times it’s going to be my sixth time [racing],” Kosgei said while warming up in front of the Boardwalk Bowl.Kosgei came in second behind Sam Chelanga, just missing what would have been his record-winning fourth win.Kosgei, Chelanga, and Risper Gesabwa, the women’s winner, all come from Kenya.Local volunteers play a huge part in making this race happen. Many of them come from the county’s high school sports teams. In the spirit of giving back, some of the proceeds from the race are given to help fund our local high school’s sports programs including San Lorenzo Valley Middle School, Scotts Valley’s Middle School and many other schools.The race also sponsors two scholarship funds. Two students are awarded scholarships annually from each fund; one fund is for two-years and the other for four years. Scholarships are awarded to high school scholar-athletes. Two recent recipients are San Lorenzo Valley’s Claire McMillan in 2014 and Scotts Valley’s Vanessa Fraser in 2013.Whether running for gold or to have a good time, the festive atmosphere of the race brings runners back year after year.

Every year in mid-July a group of over 30 teenagers make their annual pilgrimage to Mammoth Lakes, California for the Fall Creek Running Club’s high altitude training camp. From s’mores around the campfire to movie nights and hot springs, these kids enjoy the best that nature can offer while training for their upcoming cross country and track season.This year’s camp was held at the Shady Rest Campground from July 18 to 24 and hosted 34 teens and 12 parents.“I’d have to say getting to experience different trails and new places to train was really cool,” says first year camper Sophia Zachau, “Being able to do other things like going to the hot springs and June Lake while we were there was also nice; that way we were able to take a break from training constantly.”Brendan Fitzgerald, another camper, described his experience by saying, “Mammoth is a beautiful place with sun and flat land, a great town, lakes, hot springs, and many more things to do.”Rob Collins, coach of the Fall Creek Running Club and SLV track team, has been going on the trip since 1999. “A lot of the parents actually run it, I just show up and enjoy myself,” says Collins.The Fall Creek Track Club is not the only training group to have fallen in love with this location and all it has to offer. The Mammoth Lakes area is also the favorite training grounds of many of the nation’s top Olympic marathoners like Meb Keflezighi and Shalane Flanagan, and as many as two dozen other high school and college teams from across California.SLV alumni Anna Maxwell, one of the many returning runners, said “From dealing with the bears every night, to ghost stories and jokes around the campfire, to listening to the stories from battered and hairy Pacific Crest Trail hikers in the local volcanic hot springs; it’s all part of the experience. It’s a great place to get quality summer training in, but it is also a place that brings kids together and helps foster the team mentality that has lead the legacy of successful runners Coach Collins has produced.“Some of the campers are not even runners. Collins says, “We’ve had other kids from other sports — you don’t have to be a distance runner to do this; it’s just kind of a camping trip.”More information about the Fall Creek Running Club can be found at www.fallcreekrunningclub.org.

Bullseye Archery, the newest archery shop in Scotts Valley, is the perfect place for hunters and beginning archers to stock up on gear and knowledge of the bowman’s art. Larry Spittler and Jeanne Burke are the owners of the shop located at 5299 Scotts Valley Drive, which opened on March 1, 2015. “We do tuning of bows, cam bows, and regular bows, and we sell any kind of bow that you could possibly want,” Spittler said, “plus the stuff to go with it.” Spittler, an archer of 40 years, said that he started practicing archery in the sixth grade after witnessing Howard Hill’s archery expedition at Golden Gate Park in San Francisco in 1964. “I did (archery) in college and 40 years later I’m going ‘I think I’d like to shoot a bow again,’ a lot of people do the same thing,” Burke said. “They come in here and they haven’t shot in years.” Bullseye has a beautiful display of bows ranging from English longbows, Australian Aborigine bows, recurve bows, and compound bows — originally called cam bows — with a small selection of crossbows as well. “The thing is don’t be afraid to try something new, if you have never tried it before,” Burke said. “Because we are very helpful, we can tell you and offer you anything.” For those interested in getting started in archery, the two main bows for beginners are the recurve bow — which is curved at the tips — and compound bows. “(Recurve bows) used to be the fastest bow 30 year ago, (and) then some engineer got the wise idea of putting pulleys and cams on the end of bows,” Spittler said. Compound bows can shoot longer distances than the recurve bow, and they usually have lighter draw weight. However, the recurve bow is more traditional and much less expensive, giving the bow wielder a sense of the device’s history and beauty. “If you are going to get started with a recurve with really good equipment then you’re looking at about $300,” Spittler explained, “in your cam bows you’re probably looking at $700.” Recurve bows are for fun, he said, while the compound bow is all about hitting the target. The shop stocks bow parts, knives, and throwing axes. It also sells a variety of targets, which are very popular items. “That’s one of the reasons why (archery is) so successful here, so many people have room to have a range in their back yard,” said Bullseye’s Store Manager Gabrielle Garrett, a regular archer since 2008. With the start of deer hunting season, the shop has recently stocked up on broad heads and other points and blunts for hunting. Bow hunters typically shoot with compound bows, but some use long bows and recurve bows as well, Garrett said. Their equipment goes fast and they have bows on consignment and old arrows that have been repaired for $2 each. “Some people would rather do that — especially for their kids who loose them and break them all the time — than pay for new arrows so we sell a lot of those and we are constantly repairing arrows and making new sets,” she said. Currently, the shop does not have an archery range or classes. “Most of the time, I tell people to go to Archery Santa Cruz because they have an indoor range and walk in instruction — or to go to the Santa Cruz Archery’s Club, but then you have to have your own equipment and they only teach classes once a month,” Garrett said. Spittler said that they would eventually like to have a shop with a range, but in the mean time he directs most people to the range at De Laviega Park, which is open to the public on Saturday and Sunday from 12 to 5 p.m. Bullseye Archery’s well-organized shop is open from 3 to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday. Those in need of equipment or archery advice are encouraged to stop by.