30
Wednesday, February 4, 2015 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
BAJA RACE:
Gabe Willitts is
set for college
Continued from page 1
leakage.
“The plug went another
112 miles before we could
repair it,” Willitts said.
The course punishes equip-
ment — and it has pitfalls for
the riders, especially when it’s
shrouded in dust. That makes
the advance week of pre-ride
opportunities crucial.
“You memorize spots
where you can go fast and
spots where you can die,”
Greg said.
Gabe had “a pretty good
crash during pre-run,” which
let him know just what he was
getting into.
The Willitts took the most
fraught portions of the race,
when crowds of motorcycles
and spectators make things
sketchy. Attempting to pass in
clouds of dust is a dangerous
maneuver.
“Starting the race is peril-
ous and finishing the race is
perilous,” Greg said. “I started
the race and Gabe finished it.”
Gabe acknowledged some
nerves going into the week of
prep.
“I was kind of scared at
first, then I got super-excited,”
he said. “Everybody was
really understanding of where
I was, level-of-riding-wise.
I got comfortable later on in
the trip. I’m glad we got to
pre-run.”
As he rode toward the fin-
ish, Gabe believed he was
closely pursued by another
rider, which put the pressure
on. It turned out that the other
rider’s bike had broken down
and he dropped out.
“I was running away from
a ghost,” he said.
There was another concern
to navigate, though.
“Pretty much the whole
town is on the course in their
minivans and stuff and driv-
ing backwards on the course,”
Gabe said.
He made it through the
throngs and across the finish
line. He couldn’t know for
sure he had capped a victory
for his team, because penalty
points can be assessed for
course violations.
“I didn’t want to assume
that I’d won, but I had a feel-
ing,” he said.
The feeling was on the
money: his team had pulled
out a victory. And that victory
was sweet for his dad, too.
“We’ve never won this
race,” he said. “I have two
second-place trophies… Now
my buddies are clamoring to
have (Gabe) back on the team,
because he’s smart and fast.”
Of course, for Greg, the
thrill of winning a tough race
was the least of the emo-
tions coursing through his
consciousness.
“It was emotional for
me,” he said. “I had a desire
to see him, see him healthy.
I had a high level of anxiety.
Normally, I get off the bike
and I’m relaxed. I had to run
after him, chase him down,
give him a big hug.”
The race is physically and
mentally exhausting. The
nature of the terrain forces a
rider to stand up on the bike
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SELMA: Students were
moved, angered by
movie depiction
Continued from page 3
photo provided
the hardware marks a moment.
— sitting won’t get it done
and could put you on the
ground. Handling the bike like
that taps every bit of strength.
“Afterwards, I felt like I’d
gone rock-climbing for four
days because my arms were
completely dead,” Gabe said.
Greg put in some training
in advance to make sure his
middle-aged body could han-
dle the strain. Crossfit-style
training and hot yoga did the
trick.
For the father-and-son duo,
the race was a big moment,
since Gabe will be heading
off to college next year. He
plans to major in mechanical
engineering.
“He got a lot out of this
trip,” Greg reflected. “Dad
got five times more out of this
trip.”
And Greg has plans to take
on similar challenges with
another Willitts rider, just a
couple of years younger.
“I look forward to doing a
similar-style trip with my son
Sean in the near future,” he
said.
in this southern town with
one specific reason: votes
for African-American citi-
zens. Although the 14th
Amendment gave them the
technical right, apathy from
the White House and over-
whelming racism from local
governments kept blacks
from the polls for years,
through intimidation and
outrageous requirements.
The movie documents these
atrocities and the brave men
and women who stood up to
say enough is enough. Other
notable actors included Oprah
Winfrey and Tom Wilkinson.
The high school teachers
were thrilled by this oppor-
tunity. They all emphasized
both the generosity of the
donor and the impact of the
experience. Gail Greaney,
SHS history teacher, was
quick to point out that many
civil rights activists were
also high school students,
enforcing just how relevant
and applicable the movie
was. Other teachers raised
awareness as to how impor-
tant it was the event be taken
seriously. They all firmly
believed the events depicted
in “Selma” were significant
events in history and that
every student should under-
stand their effect on the
United States.
The story was heartbreak-
ing. As Sisters Movie House
owner Lisa Clausen said, dur-
ing viewing “the only sounds
were some tears.” Time and
time again students brought
up the death of one of the
protesters, a young man,
who was shot and killed by
a police officer. The movie
focuses intensely on his fam-
ily’s grief. In a world where
people are easily desensi-
tized to brutality this movie
brought it to the forefront
and forced its viewers to real-
ize just how bad things were.
As many students noted,
white people hated blacks
with such a passion it drove
them beyond logic and into
monstrosity.
The movie loses none
of its punch in recording
events from 50 years ago.
If anything, it is even more
relevant, as freshman Shae
Gascon pointed out. In light
of recent events in New York
and Ferguson, the question of
race relations has risen again.
Selma highlights how far the
nation has come, and also
how far there is to go. The
anonymous donor and high
school staff both believed
that it is important for stu-
dents to be aware of these
facts, stomach-churning and
heartbreaking as they may
be.
Approximately 90 per-
cent of Sisters High School
students were able to attend
and are grateful for this
unique opportunity. As 11th-
grader Tara Greaney said,
“Understanding the events of
the past will help us make a
better future as we ourselves
become adults.”
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