Figure skaters in the spotlight at summer finals
Brian Boitano and Alissa Czisny, here comes the new wave!
It's time for the 43rd annual Sun Valley Summer Figure Skating Championships hosted by the Sun Valley Figure Skating Club (SVFSC).
The non-qualifying U.S. Figure Skating Association competition is Thursday through Sunday, July 16-19 on both Sun Valley Resort rinks.
Freeskate, Artistic Freeskate, Interpretive Improvisation and Compulsory events run all day on Sun Valley's indoor rink Thursday through Saturday.
And a spectator favorite, "Showcase Sunday," takes place on the outdoor rink. It features show-skating events with costumes and props. "Showcase Sunday" begins at 9 a.m. and continues through 4 p.m. Pairs showcase takes place at 2:45 p.m.
Events are open and free to spectators. In all, there are 99 events over the four days.
Among SVFSC members competing are Isabella Bourret, Alexandra Harten, Blake Letourneau, Grace Hoffman, Emma Stuessi, Sarah Brown, Samantha Bunting, Gracie Eagan, Caitlin Sholtis, Blair Baker, Arizona Simones and Claire Stickney.
USFSA testing takes place Sunday, July 19 on the indoor rink. Pre-registration is required. Competitors must meet USFSA qualifications for their competitive level. Call 622-8020 or visit sunvalleyfsc.com. Other USFSA test dates are Aug. 22-23.
Teams signing up for Nelson baseball tourney
Time is growing short to sign up for the 38th annual Ray Nelson Invitational youth baseball tournament in Hailey Friday and Saturday, July 24-25. But the field is shaping up.
Confirmed participating teams listed on the Wood River Baseball and Softball Association Web site (woodriverbaseball.com) are:
Minors (ages 9-10): WR Minors, WR Gold, Fruitland Cubs, Burley Cubs, Meridian Thunder, Idaho Falls All-Stars, Middleton All-Stars, Twin Falls Cowboys, Twin Falls Pioneers and Nampa All-Stars.
Majors (11-12): WR Gold, East Boise Thunder, Mini-Cassia Braves, Twin Falls Americans and Middleton All-Stars.
There is a limit of 16 teams per division for the summer meet, to be headquartered at Nelson Field in Hailey. Events include Friday evening's Donnelley Sports Skills Challenge along with the Atkinsons' Market and Splash N' Dash- sponsored barbecue on Friday.
Among the skills challenges are fastest around the bases, relay throw, around the horn and home run contest.
Entry fee is $325 per team, each team guaranteed four games. The tournament is named for Ray Nelson, a baseball booster from Hailey who bequeathed a love of the game to family members and friends. He passed away in 1970.
Local businesses might want to take advantage of the three-year $100 deal for outfield advertising signs at the Ray Nelson. Time is running short to make the signs. For details contact Lars Hovey at lhovey@blaineschools.org.
Entries close today for Perch's Backcountry Run
The Elephant's Perch of Ketchum has scheduled its 29th annual Backcountry Run for Saturday, July 18 starting at 8 a.m. from Hulen Meadows Park north of Ketchum.
Save-money advance entries close today, Wednesday at midnight at the Perch (726-3497) or active.com. Offered are 16.5-mile and 10-mile single-track courses in the Adams Gulch and Fox Creek drainages. Fees are $25 through July 15, and $35 on July 16 and 17. There is no race day registration.
Last year there were 78 runners on the long course and 182 finishers at 10 miles. Winners were Mike Sinnott (1.51:21) and Michelle Jensen (2.03:16) for the 16.5-miler, and Noah Hoffman (55:14) and Morgan Arritola (1.04:35) for the 10-miler.
Mackay preserves funding for high school sports
The Mackay High School Miners, an Idaho small school powerhouse in athletics, faced the prospect of losing school funding for extracurricular activities after the district's school board passed its 2009-10 budget in June. That budget didn't include extracurricular activities. According to the Idaho Falls Post Register newspaper, funding had dried up because of cuts in education funding from the state legislature and shrinking population.
But on Tuesday, July 7, the community passed a one-year, $250,000 supplemental levy that will preserve football, volleyball, basketball and track for the 2009-10 school year. The levy needed a simple majority to pass and it was approved 335-258. Back in May, Mackay proposed a two-year, $330,000 supplemental levy, but voters turned it down 161-149.
Mackay is one of the pillars of the 1A Division 2 athletic conference north of the Snake River that includes Carey, Camas County of Fairfield, Richfield and Dietrich. The Miners are the reigning State 1A Division 2 boys' basketball champions and perennially challenge for top honors in eight-man football.
East Boise wins Babe Ruth baseball tourney in Hailey
The East Boise Americans run-ruled Jerome Northside 14-4 Saturday at Hailey's Founders Field in the 14-15 year-old championship game of the annual Wood River Babe Ruth Baseball Tournament presented by Wood River Baseball and Softball Association.
East Boise also beat Northside 16-8 and Wood River 16-1 in preliminary games of the four-team tournament, so the Americans (3-0) outscored their opponents 46-13.
Wood River's only entry, the 14-year-olds coached by John Brashears, won 9-6 over Kuna in its opener then lost 16-1 to East Boise and 6-5 to Jerome Northside. Leading the WR attack was leadoff hitter Braxton Parish (.444 with 2 doubles).
Also played mainly at Hailey's Nelson Field last weekend was the 13-year-old Babe Ruth tournament. Finalist teams were Eagle Storm and Meridian All-Stars. Placing third was East Boise. Wood River had no 13-year-old teams competing.
Mountain bikers at Brundage
Ketchum mountain bikers Silas Hesterberg (5:30.40) and Corey Bellinger (5:37.25) finished 1-2 in the Pro Men's class of Sunday's Brundage Bomber Downhill that wrapped up two days of Wild Rockies Series fat tire racing near McCall.
The 18th annual Brundage Mountain Festival also featured cross country racing on an eight-mile Elk Trail loop Saturday, and Saturday's Brundage Bomberman super downhill. Wood River Valley results by class follow.
Meanwhile, Ketchum's Sam Young (1.38:28) was fourth among Pro Men in the second annual Jug Mountain Ranch Race that was part of the June 28 Wild Rockies event in the Long Valley near McCall.
Brundage cross country
Pro Men: 1—Dave Harrison of Fairfield 1.56:14. Pro Women: 1—Jenny Tobin of Boise 1.50:07. Trailblazers 10-12: 1—Krystofer Sorrell 12:44. Beginner Men 40-up: 3—Jack Greenberg 1.03:55. Beginner Men 16-18: 4—Mathieu Sorrell 1.22:34. Sport Men 19-29: 4—Jeremy Greenberg 1.37:58.
Brundage Bomberman
Pro Men: 2—Dave Harrison 13:03. Beginner Women: 1—Annie Byerley 18:57. Beginner Men: 5—Mathieu Sorrell 16:33. 9—Krystofer Sorrell 30:55. Sport Men: 9—Ross Cooperman 16:13. 10—Lenny Joseph 16:16.
Ski Club plans a bike ride to Galena Lodge
The Sun Valley Ski Club is planning a bike ride to Galena Lodge on Thursday, July 16. Bikers should bring a water bottle and meet in the Sawtooth National Recreation Area headquarters parking lot eight miles north of Ketchum at 9:45 a.m. The ride will leave at 10 a.m. and be followed by a no-host lunch at Galena Lodge.
Valley Club hole-in-one, and Bigwood, too
Don Atkinson aced the Valley Club West Course fourth hole on Monday, July 13, using a 5-iron from 174 yards. Witness was Dale Jones.
On Friday, July 10, Kevin Carey used a 7-iron to ace the 184-yard par-3 eighth hole at Bigwood Golf Course at Thunder Spring north of Ketchum.
Durtschi in Kentucky for Tour of the Red River Gorge
Ketchum cyclist Max Durtschi, 18, is in Kentucky competing for the Hammer/CMG Racing Team in the International Cycling Union (UCI) 2.1 Elite Tour of the Red River Gorge near Lexington. Durtschi raced the same event last year as a solo cyclist and won a criterium silver medal.
The Elite Tour event started Tuesday with a prologue and road race. A longer time trial stage takes place today, Wednesday. The penultimate stage is the epic Battle on the Byway Race through the Red River Gorge Thursday, July 16. Friday's twilight criterium in downtown Lexington finishes the week. Visit tour-rrg.com for more information.
Durtschi, a home-schooled student with the support of Hailey's Wood River High School, John Hopkins University and The Center for Talented Youth, flies from Lexington to Quebec, Canada for the 41st Le Tour de l'Abitibi (LTA) set for July 20-26.
Basketball camp coming July 27 to Hailey
Camp director Carson Sofro has announced there are nine spots still open for the Hot Shot Basketball Camp Monday through Thursday, July 27-30 at Wood River High School.
The Hailey camp has a morning clinic from 8-9:50 a.m. for kindergarten through third grade boys and girls (72 kids maximum) and also a Day Camp from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. for boys and girls in grades 4-12 (maximum 100 players). All players receive a camp t-shirt.
Visit hsbcamps.com.
