FRIDAY, MAY 13, 2016
Classifieds / Outdoor Rec
THE BAKER COUNTY PRESS — 7
HELP WANTED
BAKER SCHOOL DISTRICT 5J is currently accepting ap-
plications for a BMS science teacher and a PE/Health
teacher. For a complete description of the positions go to
www.baker.k12.or.us or contact the employment division.
You may also call 541-524-2261 or email norma.nemec@
bakersd.org.
5.20
BAKER SCHOOL DISTRICT 5J BAKER SCHOOL DIS-
TRICT 5J is currently accepting applications for a BHS
Assistant Football Coach and a Fall and Winter Cheer
Coach. For a complete description of the positions go to
www.baker.k12.or.us or contact the employment division.
You may also call 541-524-2261 or email norma.nemec@
bakersd.org
5.20
PUBLIC NOTICE: WEED SPRAY GIVEAWAY!
For 2016, Baker County Weed District will again be giving out herbicide on the following locations, dates, and times.
This fully mixed, ready-to-go herbicide will be targeting whitetop and scotch thistle. Folks need to bring chemical-resis-
tant containers, preferably gas or oil cans, and a pair of chemical-resistant gloves. Please, no food containers. There
will be a five gallon limit imposed for each residence.
Note!!! New location for Baker City Giveaways!
Where
Date
Time
Huntington Service Station
April 22
8:00 - 11 AM
Richland/Halfway - Wildflower Corner
May 6
7 - 12 Noon
Baker City - Old ODOT Building
May 21
7 - 12 Noon
1050 S. Bridge
Baker City - Old ODOT Building
May 28
7 -12 Noon
1050 S. Bridge Street
Hereford Hall /Unity Hall
June 3
9 AM - 10:30 AM
Hereford - Unity
Ethanol is not my friend
quickly here
(okay, winter
takes some
time), and
grass seems
to grow with
a vengeance,
having taken
a break dur-
ing the cold
months. Ad-
mittedly, I’ve
not always
made a habit
of draining
THE OUTDOOR COLUMN
mowing and
weed-eating
By Todd Arriola
equipment
Two weekends ago
properly after
spent with my much better
the growing season, lead-
half, Brandi and Airianna,
ing to hassles after winter
enjoying the activities
has passed.
at Geiser-Pollman Park,
Having said that, con-
provided by the volunteers
sidering the remarks from
for Healthy Kids Day
people more knowledge-
(front page, last issue), and able about engines than
last weekend spent with
me, and the issues experi-
the same, as well as other
enced by some, with gaso-
special ladies, for Mother’s line that contains ethanol, I
Day, distracted me from
believe I may have a good
the obvious issue of tam-
foundation upon which to
ing growing lawns with
stand, to place blame for
equipment that is less than
my grass mowing woes.
100% operational. My
For example, a gallon
conclusion: ethanol is not
of ethanol contains, to my
my friend.
knowledge, less energy
Every year, this amaz-
than a gallon of gasoline.
ingly quick growth in grass That doesn’t thrill me
(and weeds) should be ex-
to begin with, because
pected, but it seems to be
I would be necessarily
a “surprise” each time, for
using and paying more to
some unknown reason(s).
use ethanol, or fuel with
Seasons seem to change so ethanol. Strike number
one. A local engine repair
man told me that ethanol
“soaks up water like a
sponge,” and it can dam-
age fuel lines, etc., which
is obviously not great for
engines. Strike number
two. As if I needed to hear
more, when I consider the
energy and subsidies it
takes to produce ethanol,
and the overall process
involved, light years away
from any claim of “saving
the environment,” a strike
out comes to mind.
During the trouble-
shooting of my mowing
equipment issues, I ended
up changing the engine
oil, the oil filter, the fuel
filter, the spark plug, and
draining and replacing
the fuel. Basically, about
every fundamental thing I
could do outside the engine
and carburetor, without
dismantling the mower
(too much).
I even have started using
ethanol-free fuel, from a
local gas station, in my
pickup, notably, not a new
model. This is because
I’ve experienced issues
with it also, and funda-
mentally and logically,
I start from the power
source, and the fuel source,
and go from there. This
experiment is still ongoing,
because damage may have
already been done, using
“regular” fuel, with ethanol
added.
In the meantime, my
sister-in-law had purchased
a new push mower, with
the explicit instructions
that my brother (or anyone
else, I think) not ever use
it. This helps to inspire a
quick remedy for the cur-
rent mower issues, since
hers is the only machine
currently able to cut grass,
and stay operational for
more than five minutes.
Maybe we’re just cursed
to experience mechani-
cal and other issues, but I
think that at least one of
the problems may be fuel-
related, though the jury is
still out on that issue.
Just to be clear, I do
prefer choices in today’s
world, and I don’t want
to keep others from using
gasoline with ethanol, if
they desire, for whatever
reasons, including any
manufacture recommen-
dations/requirements.
However, in my singular
case, I will remain in the
ethanol-free camp for now,
choosing that option for
all of the engines I have
daily contact with. We’ll
see how that works out,
but there is one thing I do
know, without any doubt
whatsoever: the grass and
weeds aren’t getting any
shorter...
Local man is
new Special
Olympics coach
for World
Games
BY GINA K. SWARTZ
Gina@TheBakerCountyPress.com
Bryan Tweit has been a
downhill ski coach for the
Special Olympics for the
past 25 years. His tenure
with the Special Olympics
is pretty impressive. He’s
coached athletes from
Baker City, Union, La
Grande, even John Day.
He has run sectionals and
regionals at Anthony Lakes
and for the last several
years he’s helped run the
state games at Mt. Bach-
elor, in charge of all the
downhill events keeping
both Coaches and Athletes
organized. Recently, he
learned some pretty excit-
ing news.
He applied for and was
selected to be a coach for
the Special Olympic World
Games being held in Aus-
tria in 2017.
“I was pretty excited,” he
said of learning the news.
“It’s a pretty long
process. It’s almost like
applying for a Fortune 500
company,” he explained.
“You have to give a ton of
information. There has to
be lots of references. You
have to have a state direc-
tor give you a reference
as well. Several hundred
applied. There is one head
coach and 12 U.S. coaches
that were selected.”
According to Tweit,
although the games will be
held in 2017. “It is really a
10-month process starting
now.”
Tweit indicated that part
of the training required is
what they call “dry land
games,” exercises for the
athletes to start getting
them in shape for when
there is snow.
“We find and identify all
the athletes that we are
going to be working with.
The local athletes around
Submitted Photo.
Brian Tweit is headed for Austria as a coach.
here that I know will be
going have already started
some of that work. We
were lucky enough to have
two athletes from Oregon
that were selected to at-
tend, both from our area.
One of them has been com-
peting for at least 25 years,
I’ve coached. The other I
know has been competing
for several years. It was
pretty impressive that there
were only two spots for the
State of Oregon and both
spots went to athletes from
our area,” said Tweit.
No exact count of
Athletes was available but
Tweit expected that infor-
mation soon.
The USA World Special
Olympics Team will take
care of all travel expenses
to Austria and while they
are there so, “It’s not an
expense we have to worry
about,” said Tweit. One of
the most important thing
the Special Olympics
stresses is that the athletes
never have to worry about
paying or pay for the op-
portunity to participate.
Fundraisers are held to
benefit the local chapters
of the Special Olympics,
most notably Serve It Up
Hot and Tip-A-Cop in
which local Firefighters
and Law Enforcement Of-
ficers spend and evening
serving patrons at Barley
Browns Brew Pub with all
“tip” proceeds and gener-
ally a substantial dona-
tion from Barley Brown’s
benefiting the local Special
Olympic chapters also
cultivating a friendly
competition between the
two departments. Tip-A-
Cop was held Thursday
May 12.
Leave young
wildlife alone
May and June are the months when newborn animals
are getting their start in the wild. Help them out by giving
them space and leaving them alone.
ODFW and Oregon State Police remind Oregonians
that taking young animals out of the wild isn’t just
against the law—it’s also bad for the animal. These
animals miss the chance to learn important survival skills
from their parents like where to feed, what to eat, how to
behave as part of a group and how to escape from preda-
tors.
Unfortunately, every year about this time, ODFW
offices across Oregon get calls from people concerned
about “orphaned” deer fawns, elk calves, seal pups and
other animals they find alone. But the mother animal
is usually just off feeding not far away. She will return
soon, so don’t interfere.
“People often pick up animals they find alone out of
good intentions, without realizing they may be sentencing
the animal to an early death by removing it from its natu-
ral environment and its parents,” said Julia Burco, ODFW
Wildlife Veterinarian.
“Never assume one of a young animal is orphaned
unless you saw the parent killed,” continued Buco. “In
almost all cases, the parent will return once it is safe to do
so, like when people and dogs aren’t around.”
If an animal is injured, or truly orphaned, it needs spe-
cial care. Oregon’s licensed wildlife rehabilitators have
the knowledge and facilities to provide this care. They
use special methods that limit human interaction and
mimic the animal’s natural lifestyle as much as possible,
so the animal can hopefully be returned to the wild.
Before picking up any wild animal, call ODFW, Oregon
State Police, or a wildlife rehabilitator for advice. Re-
moving or “capturing” an animal from the wild and keep-
ing it in captivity without a permit is against state law
(OAR 635-044-0015), as is transporting many animals.
Last year, seven people were cited for such offenses (No
wildlife holding permit/Take-hold young game mammal).
Follow these tips if you encounter young animals in the
wild:
Deer, elk and other mammals:
Never assume an animal is orphaned. Don’t remove it
from the forest, including your backyard. Female deer
and elk and other mammals will often leave their young
temporarily for safety reasons or to feed elsewhere. They
will return when it is safe to do so (when people, dogs, or
predators are not present).
Call your local ODFW office, Oregon State Police
office, or a local licensed wildlife rehabilitation center
when: 1) you see an animal that you know is orphaned
because you observed the dead parent animal, or 2) the
parent hasn’t returned for several hours or even up to a
day, or 3) if the animal is clearly inured or in distress.
Bunnies are rarely orphaned; mother rabbits only visit
den sites at dusk and dawn to feed her young.
Keep your dog or cat away from young wildlife, espe-
cially in the spring.
If you see a seal pup, young sea lion, or other marine
mammal that appears stranded or in distress, contact
OSP’s hotline at 1-800-452-7888.
Birds:
Leave fledgling birds alone. It is natural for fledgling
(mostly feathered) birds to be awkward while learning
how to fly. If you see one on the ground, leave it alone
and keep your distance. Bring your pets under control
and indoors if possible. The mother bird will feed it for
several days on the ground until it “gets its wings.
Return nestling birds to the nest. Nestlings (baby birds
not fully feathered) found on the ground can be gently
and quickly returned to the nest. If the nest is out of
reach, place the bird on an elevated branch or fence, or in
a nest made from a small box, out of the reach of children
and pets. Leave the area so the parent birds can return.
Bring your pets indoors. Cats are a major cause of injury
and death for all birds, killing millions of birds in the US
annually. Keep your pets away from fledgling birds learn-
ing to fly.
Be careful when pruning trees as there may be a bird
nest in the branch. Wait until birds are out of the nest.
Beware of cavity nesters. Barn owls and other birds
could be nesting in hollowed-out trees or logs and in
haystacks.
What if a bird flies into a window and appears hurt?
Birds can be confused by reflective surfaces and mistak-
enly fly into windows. If you find a bird that has been
stunned as a result of a window strike, put the bird in an
uncovered box with a towel on the bottom. Keep it in a
quiet place away from pets and check back in a couple of
hours. If the bird has recovered, it will have flown off. If
not, contact a local ODFW office or your local wildlife
rehabilitator.
Let turtles cross the road. In May and June, females
begin searching for suitable nesting grounds to lay their
eggs. If you see a turtle on the ground, the best thing to
do is leave it alone and let it continue on its path. It’s fine
to move it off a road (if it is safe for you to do so,) but put
it on the other side, where it was headed.
Ladies golf
scores
Following are the results for the May 4, 2016 Quail
Ridge Ladies Golf Day.
Predict your score:
1st Flight Sammye Linzel-by one point
2nd Margo Kenworth-by one point
3rd DaDonna Uttenreuther-by 5 points
Bridge Winners:
1st Joan Colton
2nd Margo Kenworthy
3rd Betty Combs