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Colville, Washington |
Sunday, May 11, 2008 |
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Local Sports
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Wednesday, 07 May 2008 |
Monty Ray Jones recuperates from hip surgery
and thinks about life without wrestling
BY CHRIS COWBROUGH
S-E Sports Editor
After leading The Colville Basement Boys to a ninth place finish in last weekend’s USA State Freestyle Champi¬onships at East Valley High School in Spokane, their long¬time coach, Monty Jones, has decided to call it quits.
Jones made the same an¬nouncement a couple of years ago. This time, the longtime youth soccer and wrestling coach says he isn’t kidding. Honest.
It’s time—time to turn over a thriving and successful youth wrestling program that has been a verdant source of wrestling talent for the high school program…to other dads.
“It has been a great run, but it’s time to put my wrestling shoes out to pasture,” Jones said before going in for hip replacement surgery on Monday.
Yes, call it wear and tear from too much mat time with the kids over the years and odometer miles.
Appreciates all the support from local businesses
“All fun and good things must come to an end…so it is for my coaching in Stevens County,” added Jones, who has been coaching young peo¬ple for the past 29 years. “It has been a joy working with all the different businesses that support youth so well in Colville. Without them, there would not be any club sports.”
Jones says he has always appreciated the opportunity to live in such a supportive, sports-oriented community.
“This is a great town to raise your kids—it’s just a great sports town,” the former Colville High School wrestling coach added. “Now, instead of putting out dollars for a week¬end in a gym full of young men wrestling, I think we will save up and go on a vacation.”
Jones said that he and his wife Shelley, the erstwhile “Princess DeSales,” have only been on one vacation in the past 26 years.
Jones said that his wife has been “the backbone” of the program—and to him.
“I can’t thank her enough…she has followed me around to so many gyms…state to state. She has never com¬plained. What a woman.
“Shelley is a true coaches wife—and she takes pretty good pictures too (photogra¬pher for the Statesman-Exam¬iner). Without her, there would be no club team, nor a coach spending three nights a week working with the youth on the mats and spending 13 to 15 weekends in a gym a year.”
‘It’s time to let Shel¬ley pick where to go on a weekend.’
Jones says it’s time—well past time—to do something for his wife besides drag her to all those sweaty gyms.
“It’s time to let Shelley pick where to go on a weekend,” Jones said. “Maybe a cruise would be nice.”
Jones wasn’t talking about a cruise to Kettle Falls and back either.
“No, I’m not talking about a cruise in our Tahoe, driving back from another tournament,” the longtime coach quipped.
“If there was an award for Woman of the Year, Shelley would win it hands down. She has been a second mom to thousands of kids in the last 29 years, making sure that no one goes without.”
Jones says it’s his fervent hope and wish that The Basement Boys can sustain itself and carry on.
“I hope and pray that the dads who have been helping me the last several years will continue to run The Basement Boys Wrestling Club,” he said. “I have all the faith in the world that they can do it and do a better job.
“Thanks again, Colville. I will miss coaching very badly…more than you can believe. But it’s time.”
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Wednesday, 07 May 2008 |
Kettle Falls High School student Sara Hein (left) takes possession of a nine-pound Crunch Bar from Miss Kettle Falls, Amber Hopkins. The candy bar was the big prize in a candy bar fund-raiser conducted by the KFHS wrestling team. It was one of several fund-raisers initiated to help raise money for summer camp.
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Wednesday, 07 May 2008 |
The annual Panorama League track and field meet will be held on Saturday at the Colville High School track and field complex.
Events will get started at 9 a.m.
The meet will feature some of the top Class 1 and 2B talent in Washington state. Among the state champions who will compete in Colville is Northport High School three-sport star Kaprina Goodwin. Her specialty is the hurdles.
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Wednesday, 07 May 2008 |
Plenty of offense when the
top two Panorama clubs collide
BY CHRIS COWBROUGH
S-E Sports Editor
Northport’s Tucker Gug¬lielmino and St. George’s Ten¬ton Hauff, two of the most feared hitters in the Panorama League this spring, squared off on the mound in game one of a key doubleheader last Thurs¬day in Spokane.
In the opener, Hauff and St. George’s struck early, building a 5-0 lead before the Mustangs struck back to get within 5-4 in the fifth inning.
But that was the high point for Northport, plagued by some shoddy fielding in a 10-4 loss.
In the second game, North¬port’s David Meldrum over¬came an early 3-0 deficit and pitched well, according to his coach Don Baribault.
NHS erupted for 10 runs and eight his in the third in¬ning to blow the second game open and ultimately garner a split with a 13-12 win.
Northport led 13-4 after five innings, then had to hold on.
The third inning was capped by a two-run home run by Ca¬sey Cox. Dillon Dombrowski added to the fireworks in the inning by slamming a Grand Slam home run.
But St. George’s battled back in the fifth and sixth in¬nings to cut the big NHS lead to 13-12 before Meldrum set¬tled down to retire the Dragons in the seventh.
After a leadoff single by the Dragons in the seventh, Mel¬drum got a strikeout, then served up a big double play ball to end the game.
Baribault conceded that he wasn’t happy about the split and the lack of inspired play from a team that has lost only twice this season.
“I was very upset with my team after the first game loss,” Baribault conceded. “We lacked intensity and focus in a big game. We bounced back in the second game, but we let down during their comeback.
“It was nice to see our younger kids support Gug¬lielmino in the one day this season when he wasn’t at his best.”
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Wednesday, 07 May 2008 |
Dan Holt of Kettle Falls finishes Boston Marathon
On April 21, Dan Holt of Ket¬tle Falls had the honor of run¬ning the 26.2 miles of the Boston Marathon, the world’s oldest an¬nual marathon. The Boston Marathon is also significant be¬cause it is the only American marathon that requires runners to meet a qualifying standard.
Many people run, but few take on the challenge of running a marathon. Of marathon run¬ners, only a small percentage find it within themselves to make the cut for the Boston Marathon.
Achieving a qualifying slot for the Boston Marathon became Holt’s goal in the fall of 2005. Over the next 2 ½ years, he fo¬cused on making it into the Boston Marathon. He began running in February 2005 with the idea of participating in Spo¬kane’s Bloomsday that spring.
Bloomsday was such a posi¬tive experience that he became intrigued with the idea of run¬ning greater distance. In late July 2005, he completed the San Francisco Marathon.
Lifestyle change
By this time, a lifestyle change was underway. He entered the Leavenworth Half-Marathon as a motivator “to keep the good things happening.”
At that half-marathon, Holt was able to cover the distance at nearly a Boston Marathon quali¬fying pace and the dream was born.
Holt was going to get to Bos¬ton.
Holt prepared throughout the winter of 2005/2006 to make a spring attempt at qualifying. He ran the Whidbey Island Mara¬thon in April 2006 and made a tremendous improvement over San Francisco. But he missed qualifying by 15 minutes.
Undeterred, Holt spent all summer training for another at¬tempt in the fall. He ran a hard paced, “reckless” marathon in September 2006 in Skagit County. Holt said he felt “de¬feated” when he had to drop out after 24 miles.
One month later, Holt took to the Spokane Marathon with a humble goal of just finishing.
With a more relaxed attitude and a more reasonable first half pace, the Spokane Marathon was where Holt managed to qualify for his ultimate goal—the Boston Marathon.
Holt said he found challenging ways to maintain his marathon fitness for the next year-and-a-half. In that time, he completed the Ironman 70.3 Hawaii Triath¬lon and ran a trail Marathon in the Grand Teton Mountains.
“Both events would have stood alone as grand achieve¬ments for me, but I never stopped dreaming about crossing the finish line in Boston,” Holt recalled.
On race day in Boston last month it was cool and overcast as the runners waited for the starting gun to sound.
Moments before the start of the National Anthem, military jets flew over the course and the sun broke through the clouds, Holt recalled.
Could it get any better than this?
Everything seemed so effort¬less as the parade of runners snaked down the route to Bos¬ton.
“The course was crowded with spectators for the entire dis¬tance,” Holt remembered. “There are many emotional ups and downs during a marathon, but the crowd never stopped cheering.”
All those ‘Cardiac Hills’ took a toll
All of Holt’s preparation and years of conditioning were neces¬sary to get through the last few painful miles as the legendary hills of the Boston Marathon be¬gan to exact a toll.
During those tough miles, Holt said he thought about all the people who believed he could do it.
Holt pushed on.
Finally, the line was in sight and Holt’s goal had been achieved. He crossed the finish line in 3:26.49 hours to finish in the top 26 percent of all starters.
Would he do it again?
“Everything about the Boston Marathon exceeded my expecta¬tions,” he said when it was all over. “Boston truly was a reward for all the miles.”
Holt said he hopes his journey can inspire others.
“Our dreams can come true when pursued with passion,” Holt said. “Running in the Bos¬ton Marathon is just one exam¬ple. Great things are hidden in all of us.”
Dan Holt reaches his goal and runs in the Boston Marathon.
Holt stands on Boston Marathon starting line.
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