SN
Sports &
Recreation
ODFW R EGIONAL F ISHING
R EPORT
THESIUSLAWNEWS.COM
SATURDAY EDITION | JULY 27, 2019
N EW LEGISLATION MOST SIGNIFICANT WILDLIFE CONSERVATION IN A CENTURY
Two bills — one signed by
the Governor earlier this
month (HB 2829), and one
recently introduced in the U.S.
House of Representatives (HR
3742) — offer the most signifi-
cant opportunities to fund fish
and wildlife conservation in a
century.
This year, the 2019 Oregon
State Legislature passed HB
2829 to create the Oregon
Conservation and Recreation
Fund to conserve and manage
Oregon’s fish, wildlife, and
their habitats.
The bill puts $1 million in
General Fund aside, to be
matched by $1 million in pri-
vate funds raised by ODFW, as
seed money towards an alter-
native, sustainable funding
source.
It also creates an Oregon
Conservation and Recreation
Advisory Committee to rec-
ommend how to spend monies
from the Fund.
The 2019 bill was based on
the recommendations of a Task
Force created by the 2015
Oregon State Legislature that
explored alternative funding
for fish, wildlife and outdoor
recreation.
Among other uses, the new
Fund will be used to imple-
ment the Oregon Conservation
Strategy, a blueprint for con-
servation in Oregon that sup-
ports voluntary actions to con-
serve species and their vital
habitats before they become
more rare and costly to protect.
“In 2016, the Task Force for
funding for Fish, Wildlife and
Related Outdoor Recreation
and Education conducted a
survey of Oregonians. It was
clear from the survey that
Oregonians strongly value our
state’s fish and wildlife, includ-
ing many people who don’t
hunt and fish. Yet the majority
of the funding for ODFW’s
programs are funded by hunt-
ers and anglers,” said Mark
Labhart, Chair of the Task
Force. “The Legislature agreed
and HB 2829 gets us started
and well on the way to imple-
menting
the
Oregon
Conservation Strategy.”
“The Oregon Conservation
and Recreation Fund will help
ensure that future generations
of Oregonians can continue to
enjoy the incredible natural
landscapes that are so central
to our way of life,” said
Representative Ken Helm
(D-Washington County), who
was one of the sponsors of HB
2829.
Another significant funding
source on the horizon is the
Recovering America’s Wildlife
Act (H.R. 3742), introduced on
See
WILDLIFE 2B
www.dfw.state.or.us/RR
MID COAST LAKES:
Stocking of the mid-coast lakes
began the first week of February
and will continue into June. Check
the stocking schedule online for
dates and locations of stockings.
These early stockings include:
Alder and Dune Lake, Cleawox,
Lost Lake, Munsel Lake, Thissel
Pond, Mercer Lake, Big Creek
See
T IME
O UT
By Lloyd Little
Retired teacher, coach and
game offi cial
FISHING 2B
With more than55 years as an
athlete, coach, parent and specta-
tor, Lloyd Little has gained some
insights and perspectives regarding
athletics. Each week, he shares
what he's learned about sports
from his multiple points of view.
Calendar
July 31
• Florence Softball
5:30 p.m.
Welton vs ACC (North)
Beachcomber vs
Lofy (South)
7 p.m.
Welton vs
Beachcomber
(North)
ACC vs Lofy (South)
Aug. 6
JARED ANDERSON/SIUSLAW NEWS
• SYSA registration
National Night Out on
at Miller Park
Or register online at
www.siuslawsoccer.
com. For more infor
mation, call 541-
600-4409 or email
siuslawyouthsoccer@
gmail.com.
Tide Tables
Entrance Siuslaw River
High Tide
Low Tide
June 27
9:23am / 4.6
8:43pm / 6.9
3:06am / 0.7
2:26pm / 2.8
July 28
10:29am / 5.0
9:35pm / 7.3
4:01am / 0.0
3:30pm / 2.9
July 29
11:24am / 5.4
10:27pm / 7.7
4:52am / -0.7
4:29pm / 2.8
July 30
12:13am / 5.8
11:18pm / 8.1
The ‘Next Level’
5:39am / -1.3
5:23pm / 2.5
2019 Siuslaw High School graduate Lexi Smith has been invited to play catcher for
America’s Team, which will compete against softball teams from around the globe.
S MITH TO CATCH FOR A MERICA ’ S T EAM
B Y J ARED A NDERSON
Siuslaw News
It started with a fake bunt.
“There was a runner on
second, and they went to steal
third,” softball catcher Alexis
Smith said of a summer ball
game she played a few years
ago.
If Smith were to go by the
book, “the second basemen
gets a lead almost on third
base to get us to throw to the
shortstop on second. And
then, when we throw to sec-
ond, the runner on third
would score,” Smith said.
But that’s not what hap-
pened in this case.
“I was smart enough to
throw to third because I knew
what they were doing,” she
said. “There was a runner on
second, and the runner went
to steal third. But I threw
down to third to get her. It got
past her, and then the short-
stop was backing her up. The
shortstop got it, and the girl
was running home — and she
threw it to me and I caught it.”
The runner was in a pickle,
going back and forth between
bases.
“We were just throwing it
back and forth and she was
running. And then I got it and
graduated, she was
Sky-Em
League
Second Team All-
League honoree
and was selected
from among the
Oregon
School
A c t i v i t i e s
Association’s 4A
classification of all-
league
rosters
throughout
the
state.
And Smith was
just chosen for
America’s Team, an
educational pro-
gram that brings
NED HICKSON/SIUSLAW NEWS
Lexi Smith played catcher for the Lady various sports —
Viking for two years, receiving all- from softball to vol-
leyball — to differ-
league honors both seasons.
ent countries in an
she wasn’t stopping. So, I just
attempt to bridge
put my guard up and she ran cultural divides through
into me. And she fell, but I sports.
was still standing. Most of my
“She established herself as
teammates didn’t know what one of the top catchers in 4A
was going on, they were con- softball this year. She is a hit-
fused. But I knew it. I just ter that will provide a lot of
threw to third. It takes a lot of pop in our lineup,” said
playing to realize what people Brittany Hendrickson, who is
are doing, and what ways you the head coach at Mount
can score runs.”
Hood and is coaching team
Smith has been standing Oregon for an 11-game tour
tall as a catcher in a wide vari- in Australia next year.
ety of teams throughout her
“I got an email from the
career. As a catcher at Siuslaw
See SMITH 3B
High School, where she just
Until you are a professional
athlete playing in an all-star
competition, athletes every-
where are moving to the “next
level.” As young athletes, most
of our competition is age-re-
lated. Birth certifi cates are
carried by worrisome parents
thinking their early maturing
super star may be accused of
being too old.
Th is was defi nitely my ques-
tion a few years back when I
watched the NFL punt, pass
and kick competition on TV.
One 13-year-old male partici-
pant had a full beard and tow-
ered over his fellow compet-
itors. As athletes compete in
skills competition in a variety
of sports, the goal is to reach
the next level. Most oft en, I
read about college athletes
foregoing their remaining
years of eligibility to move on
to that next level. Th e rising
salaries and increasing prize
money rewarding profession-
al athletes seems to have an
infl uence on the decision of
some underclass players to
turn professional.
Once athletes enter a mid-
dle or high school’s selected
sports programs, their “next
level” is generally dictated by
their grade levels with pro-
gression following a grade-ap-
propriate level of competition,
i.e., athletes advancing from
seventh-grade to eighth-grade
sports teams. Upon entering
high school, there are multi-
ple levels of team selections.
Depending on the sport and
skills an athlete possesses at
the high school level, progress
generally moves from frosh to
junior varsity to varsity. Small-
er schools, like Mapleton, will
oft en have fewer levels, with
teams are chosen by coaches
from players who show up for
tryouts. It is then that an ath-
lete’s “next level” may some-
times warrant skipping the
lower-tier teams.
See
LITTLE 3B
July 31
12:57pm / 6.1
6:25am/ -1.8
6:15pm/ 2.2
Aug. 1
12:08am / 8.3
1:40pm / 6.5
7:10am / -2.0
7:07pm / 1.8
Aug. 2
12:59am / 8.3
2:22pm/ 6.8
7:54am/ -2.0
7:58pm/ 1.5
M ARINE B OARD WARNS PADDLERS , FLOATERS OF LOW WATER LEVELS
Marine board warns pad-
dlers, floaters of low water lev-
els
It’s that time of year when
lower water levels create safety
challenges for paddlers and
floaters, especially inexperi-
enced recreators who are unfa-
miliar with how to safely
maneuver their craft around
obstructions near the banks or
just below the surface of the
water.
The Oregon State Marine
Board offers the following tips
on how to have fun and stay
safe:
• Always float with a friend,
especially in paddlecraft or
float tubes. Have at least two
boats or float devices and a
plan if you become separated.
Always fill out a float plan or
give detailed information to a
friend or family member about
where you’re going, when you
expect to return, what clothing
you’re wearing, and who’s with
you. Also, put contact infor-
mation on your craft so if you
get separated, the craft can be
returned.
• Keep your wits about you.
Boating in rivers can be
extremely relaxing; so much
so, that it’s easy to be hypno-
tized and less aware of your
surroundings. Always keep a
sharp lookout and routinely
scan from left to right and
right to left for logs, submerged
objects, and the watch the
See
LEVELS 2B