FRIDAY, MARCH 6, 2015
Outdoor Rec / Sports
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 7
All this talk about cougars … Inland Empire
them this year,
as long as the
cougars make
an attempt
to cooperate
to the fullest
extent possible.
I really wish
their hides were
bright orange or
something, but
I don’t see that
happening soon.
Anyway, get-
THE OUTDOOR COLUMN
ting
to my point,
By Todd Arriola
they aren’t a pro-
tected species,
I’ve noticed quite a bit
and they can be hunted,
of talk lately about cougar
though there are regula-
activity in our humble neck
tions and laws that need to
of the woods, so, I thought
be followed in order to do
I’d jump into the conversa-
so. Even with a tag, shoot-
tion in order to become
ing at a cougar within City
more educated about the
limits is a big no-no unless
situation, and to possibly
there’s an imminent threat,
pass on any wisdom I
and you’d be having a chat
might have gained from
afterward with local law
others in the know.
enforcement, and the folks
We’ve all heard about the
from the Oregon Depart-
reported sightings by lo-
ment of Fish and Wildlife
cals Kenneth Clement and
(ODFW). Whether an
Jennifer Watkins last week,
imminent threat or actual
on the west side of High-
planned mini-safari, you
way 7, on the south end of
wouldn’t be able to keep
town, so I won’t repeat the
the cougar.
major details there.
The sightings prompted
I am glad to note that
me to ask Brian Ratliff,
people, especially parents,
ODFW Biologist located
seem to be more cognizant
in the Baker City offi ce,
lately concerning their
about the elusive—or,
surroundings. No problem
maybe, not so elusive—
understanding the height-
cat. He said, “I see females
ened awareness there,
regularly barely over 70
since the idea of a cougar
pounds.” Even males,
in town attacking a child,
normally larger, rarely
a pet, livestock, deer, an
peak over 100 pounds, he
adult—take your pick—
said. “A 70-pound male
doesn’t really give one that
looks exactly the same as a
warm, fuzzy feeling.
70-pound female, except a
As sort of a New Year’s
male’s head may be more
Day “gift” to myself, I pur-
block-shaped, and there
chased a hunting license,
may be more muscle mass.
along with two cougar
But, coloration—identical.
tags, with the ambitious
I couldn’t tell you from
intention of actually fi lling
100 yards if I was looking
at a 70-pound male, or a
70-pound female.”
“Cats don’t sniff
around,” said Ratliff.
“They’re visual predators,
and they don’t use their
sense of smell for hunt-
ing.” Ratliff said he hasn’t
received reports of missing
cats, dogs, deer carcasses,
etc. yet. He said that con-
sidering the evidence from
the sightings, it’s diffi cult
to determine exactly what
the cougar situation looks
like, and whether one is
regularly visiting the area.
“Where human safety is
concerned, they’re not re-
located,” he said, explain-
ing that if a cougar were to
stay around town, it would
have to be euthanized be-
cause it would continue to
stay here otherwise. “In no
way, shape or form are we
low in cougar numbers,”
he said, so that wouldn’t
be an issue. In fact, their
numbers are growing.
Ratliff said that placing
a bucket or something else
over any tracks seen can
help to preserve them, so
they can be investigated
later on, and calling local
law enforcement about a
sighting is exactly the right
thing to do, since human
safety is a priority.
I wondered about the
increase in the number of
deer within our city and
others, because they’re one
of a number of prey for
cougars (what isn’t?), and
Ratliff said that it’s easy to
see why deer would hang
around, with the available
food sources, whether pur-
posely supplied or not. The
problem is, besides the po-
tential for cougars to also
stick around, deer gathered
together at the same feed-
ing spots regularly can lead
to spread of disease.
“If you stack your yard
full of deer intentionally,
you’re asking for an ani-
mal that preys on deer to
come there,” he said. The
feeding sites that ODFW
operates involves testing
for diseases, said Ratliff,
so, that’s not an issue
there. Some people like to
feed deer and have them
stick around, and some
don’t, but he noted to keep
in mind, there are potential
issues to consider.
Police Chief Wyn Lohner
said, “Based on the sight-
ings, we’re convinced that
it’s real. It’s been a while
since we’ve had a sighting
in town. We haven’t had
any more sightings since
then (last Thursday), that
I’m aware of.”
A cougar was euthanized
within City limits before,
but that was 12 years ago.
He said a potential cougar
threat and report are
treated very seriously, and,
“A cougar is a predator,
and whether a predator is
a human or an animal, we
see it as a threat, and we’ll
do what we need to.”
“We do have reason to
believe a cougar is living
in that area of town, and
just be cautious with kids
and pets, and if there are
missing pets, or remains
of a deer are seen, let us
know.”
He said he’s also pleased
to see the increase in
awareness from commu-
nity members, and human
safety is the highest prior-
ity. I agree. Good luck with
your adventures.
Short Course
Championship
Submitted by Noel Scott
Baker Swim Team and La Grande Swim Club attended
the Inland Empire Short Course Championships on
February 27- March 1. BST sent 8 athletes, LGSC had 14
attend.
There were 361 total swimmers representing 17 teams
from Oregon, Washington and Idaho. Justin Miller and
Riana Scott from Baker City swam for LGSC. The fol-
lowing are their results:
Girls 13-14 500 Yard Free 6 Riana Scott 13 LGSC-IE
5:33.45
Boys 13-14 500 Yard Free 12 Justin Miller 14 LGSC-IE
5:25.38
Boys 13-14 200 Yard IM 6 Justin Miller 14 LGSC-IE
2:15.16
Girls 14&U 400 Yard Medley Relay
5 LGSC-IE A 4:29.99 Romayne Ricker 13 Riana Scott 13
Grace Knutsen 13
Kennedy Kruse 13
Girls 13-14 50 Yard Free 9 Riana Scott 13 LGSC-IE
26.88
Boys 13-14 50 Yard Free 9 Justin Miller 14 LGSC-IE
25.85
Girls 13-14 100 Yard Breast 10 Riana Scott 13 LGSC-
IE 1:16.29
Girls 13-14 100 Yard Back 10 Riana Scott 13 LGSC-IE
1:07.17
Boys 13-14 100 Yard Back 8 Justin Miller 14 LGSC-IE
1:01.95
Girls 13-14 200 Yard Back 6 Riana Scott 13 LGSC-IE
2:21.35
Boys 13-14 200 Yard Back 6 Justin Miller 14 LGSC-IE
2:12.20
Girls 14&U 400 Yard Free Relay
4 LGSC-IE A 4:00.81 Grace Knutsen 13 Kennedy Kruse
13 Romayne Ricker 13
Riana Scott 13
Girls 13-14 100 Yard Free 8 Riana Scott 13 LGSC-IE
58.54
Boys 13-14 100 Yard Free 11 Justin Miller 14 LGSC-IE
56.26
The BST results will be coming from their coach, if you
have not already received them. Thank you for including
these kids results.
52nd Annual Middle School Basketball
Tournament held in Huntington
By Eileen Driver
Eileen@TheBakerCountyPress.com
The 52nd Annual
Middle School Basketball
Tournament was held Fri-
day and Saturday, February
27th & 28th, at Huntington
K-12 School. The school
puts on this tournament
annually to provide an op-
portunity for athletic com-
petition, social develop-
ment and recreation for the
children of small schools
in the region.
Eight schools par-
ticipated this year in both
boys and girls basketball
competitions with a double
elimination. The two-day
event was held in the
Huntington School gym
and was entered into by
the Huntington Panthers
coached by Elizabeth
Williams and Amy Jones,
Adrian Antelopes coached
by Nolan Shira, Nathan
Bayes and LaDawn Bayes,
Harper Hornets coached
by Scott Talbot and Van-
essa Lovell, Prairie City
Panthers coached by Ryan
Gerry and Billy Colson,
Cove Leopards coached by
Jason Gorham, Jordan Val-
ley Colts coached by Mike
Eiguren, Ryan Bruce, Silas
Skinner and Todd Gluch,
Willow Creek Warriors
coached by Todd Gregory,
Austin Gregory, Brad
Jacobs, Bill Jacobs and
Michael McGourty and
the Powder Valley Badgers
coached by Molly Smith
and Betsy Nedrow.
After many hard-won
battles the fi nal boys bas-
ketball game was played
by the Powder Valley
Badgers and the Prairie
City Panthers. The game
was intense the entire time
with both teams doing their
best to not let the other
side gain an edge. The fi rst
half ended with Prairie
City having a one-basket
lead with a 15-13 score.
The second half had
even more back and forth
action culminating in a
score of 25-25 with 35
seconds to go in the game.
Everyone held their breath
when the end of game
buzzer sounded with a 3
point shot in the air, shot
by #10 Omar Benites and
let out a loud cheer when it
made the basket ending the
game with a score of 28-25
making the Powder Valley
Badgers the tournament
Boy’s Champions.
The fi nal girls basketball
game was played by the
Jordan Valley Colts and the
Harper Hornets.
Although the Hornets
put up a good fi ght it just
wasn’t their day, and the
Colts won by a landslide
with a fi nal score of 56 to
14 making the Jordan Val-
ley Colts the tournament
Girl’s Champions.
Four trophies are given
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Eileen Driver / The Baker County Press
Final boy’s game between powder valley badgers and prairie city Panthers
out in both the boys and
girls categories—1st,
2nd, 3rd, and Consola-
tion, as well as a coveted
Sportsmanship Trophy for
the school who displayed
the best overall spirit and
respect for other teams and
referees, and 20 All-Star
Awards, 10 boys and 10
girls, are given by oppos-
ing coaches for most valu-
able players in the games.
Scott Bullock, Huntington
School Superintendent /
Principal, thanked all the
schools and students for
participating, the teach-
ers and coaches for the
donation of their time, the
Lion’s Club and Hunting-
ton residents for volunteer-
ing to man the entry booths
and had the pleasure of
handing out the trophies
and awards.
Here’s the winning
lineup:
Boy’s Basketball
1st Powder Valley Bad-
gers
2nd Prairie City Panthers
3rd Harper Hornets
Consolation Jordan Val-
ley Colts
Girl’s Basketball
1st Jordan Valley Colts
2nd Harper Hornets
3rd Prairie City Panthers
Consolation Powder Val-
ley Badgers
Sportsmanship Trophy
Willow Creek Warriors
All-Star Awards - Girls
Regann Skinner #2 Jordan
Valley Colts
Taylor Warn #4 Jordan
Valley Colts
Alexis Wilson #11
Harper Hornets
Kassie Jordan #34
Harper Hornets
Sadey Speelmon #4
Adrian Antelopes
Ashley Jacobs #1 Wil-
low Creek Warriors
Raven Maloy #32 Prai-
rie City Panthers
Logan Nedrow #13
Powder Valley Badgers
Rebekah Farrell #2
Cove Leopards
Tyalinn Harrison #21
Huntington Panthers
All-Star Awards Boy’s
Omar Benites #10 Powder
Valley Badgers
Marshall Baldwin #34
Powder Valley Badgers
Levi Burke #21 Prairie
City Panthers
Lucas McKinley #22
Prairie City Panthers
Luke Ekstrom #32 Wil-
low Creek Warriors
Morgan Butler #1
Harper Hornets
Hunter Youngblood #33
Cove Leopards
Zeke Quintero #13 Jor-
dan Valley Colts
Thomas Finding #30
Adrian Antelopes
Nolan Nantz #51 Hun-
tington Panthers