Cottage Grove Sentinel
Sports & Recreation
B1
THURSDAY | AUGUST 5, 2021
Fresh start for CGHS cross country
Kendrick Murphy
kmurphy@cgsentinel.com
A
ODFW R ECREATION AND F ISHING
R EPORT
myodfw.com/recreation-report
Updated July 29, 2021
Warm weather fishing
updates and guidance
Drought and low water levels per-
sist and temperatures will be spiking
again this week.
The fall Chinook season on the
Columbia and in coastal rivers
opened Aug. 1. There are special
regulations in place this year for the
Columbia and south coast, so be
sure to check before you go.
Catch rates for hatchery coho
have been good, and took a jump
over the last week. Salmon fishing
in the cooler ocean breezes is a great
way to beat the summer heat.
Wildfire closures and
restrictions updates
Access for fishing and big game
scouting is getting tricky.
Fire danger in many parts of the
state remains extreme. The Forest
Service has closed the Umatilla Na-
tional Forest to the public, and the
Oregon departments of parks and
forestry have banned all campfires
on their lands east of I-5.
To keep up with the latest clo-
sures and restrictions on private
forest lands, check out: myodfw.
com/articles/hunting-and-fire-dan-
ger-oregon.
To help you navigate the status of
popular recreation sites on public
lands, natural resource management
agencies in Oregon have released an
interagency status map that shows
open, closed and reduced service
areas on a single map, regardless of
reason for closure.
To view the map, go to: wildfire.
oregon.gov/Pages/Recreation-Im-
pacts.aspx
Finally, check the zone reports for
updates on specific waterbodies.
Hunting and fire danger
Early season hunts often take
place during the peak of the wildfire
season.
Experienced hunters know to
check for fire closures before their
hunt. Visit myodfw.com/articles/
hunting-and-fire-danger-oregon
for links to the most current fire
closures and restrictions.
Register for shotgun skills,
pheasant hunting workshops
ODFW is offering several of its
popular shotgun skills and pheasant
hunting workshops beginning in
June.
A shotgun skills class is a pre-
requisite to a pheasant hunting
workshop. These classes fill quickly,
so sign up soon.
Visit myodfw.com/workshops-
and-events for more details.
Athlete of
the Week
fter nearly a quar-
ter century under
Jim Settlemeyer,
the cross country team at
Cottage Grove High School
(CGHS) will have a new
head coach starting this fall
— Ricky Knutson.
Knutson, who also is the
Cottage Grove track and
field head coach, will now
be able to have both the
cross country and track pro-
grams under the same roof.
Coach Knutson is excited
to develop consistent align-
ment with his programs
starting this season.
“I love the sport of cross
country,” said Knutson.
“The experiences I had
growing up and the friends
see CGHS on B2
KENDRICK MURPHY/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
The CGHS cross country team warms up on Aug. 3 ahead of the upcoming season.
Aquatic Center summer programs off to
swimmingly good start
By Daniel Friis
for The Sentinel
What goes together better than summer-
time and a pool? Not much.
Thankfully, at Cottage Grove’s Warren H.
Daugherty Aquatic Center, a slew of aquatic
programs and fitness opportunities have be-
come available for kids and adults of all ages.
Not only this, but more programs are slated
to be offered as summer rolls along.
Like many other businesses, the Aquatic
Center couldn’t wait to reopen their doors to
the public after a year of frustration.
“It was a breath of fresh air,” said Josh
Norton, a pool manager for the Aquatic
Center. “I took this job a year ago so that I
could create a community, and I finally feel
like I’m doing that now.”
Unlike other businesses though, the
Aquatic Center prides itself on inclusion.
They offer programs to people of all ages,
sizes, and physical abilities.
“Our mission really is to create a diverse
set of aquatic programs,” Norton said. “We
want to provide something to every demo-
graphic of our community whether they are
the elderly who need therapy or kids who
need lessons.”
DANIEL FRIIS/COTTAGE GROVE SENTINEL
Free swimmers and “aquacisers” get their early morning workout in the pool.
Once the mask mandate was lifted and
restrictions started to lighten, Norton and
the rest of the Aquatic Center were ready to
bring some normalcy back to the commu-
nity.
The first program they offered this sum-
mer was a swimming school launched four
days a week at no charge. The school lasted
all throughout July, and it saw around 100
participants each day.
Last weekend, the Aquatic Center
launched their 10th annual Elementary Tri-
see AQUATIC on B2
Jesse Williamson sweeps 2021 Mark Howard Memorial
CGS Modified Nationals
Contributed by Cottage
Grove Speedway
Night two of the Mark How-
ard Memorial Cottage Grove
Speedway Modified Nationals
took place on Saturday, July 31.
Two Speedway Motors IMCA
Weekly Racing Program divi-
sions topped the bill, includ-
ing the IMCA Modifieds and
Royalty Core Custom Grille
& Truck Parts IMCA North-
ern Sport Mods. Additionally,
they were accompanied by the
Todd’s Auto Body Sprint Cars,
Senior Sprints, and Hardtops.
The 52-lap, $2,600-to-win
feature started off with Jesse
Williamson obtaining the lead
on the initial start.
After that, the Coburg chauf-
feur reigned supreme against
the competition, but he did
COURTESY PHOTO
Jesse Williamson has collected five straight wins since July 4.
have to be smart on the restarts.
As a result, eight total stoppag-
es occurred, including four in
the last dozen circuits.
There were points in which
This week’s athlete of
the week is senior cross
country runner Piper
Youngmayr. Piper
has attended Steens
Mountain Running
Camp and been a staple
member of off-season
workouts.
lapped traffic was caught, and
Williamson was briefly chal-
lenged; he flexed his muscle
against the field from those
times on. Nevertheless, Jesse
Youngmayr
will be
finishing her
CGHS cross
country
career under
new head
coach Ricky
Knutson.
PHOTO BY KENDRICK
MURPHY/CG SENTINEL
Williamson swept the weekend
en route to his record leading
seven Mark Howard Memorial
Cottage Grove Speedway titles.
Williamson has amassed an
impressive five straight wins to
his credit, going back to Inde-
pendence Day, on July 4, when
he was victorious for the first
time in 2021.
All triumphs have been
earned in KMJ Performance
Oregon State and Shaw Race
Cars Western Region action.
Corbett’s Collen Winebarg-
er was second with the Rich
and Nikki Biehn owned entry,
driven by Nick Trenchard of
Klamath Falls, ending the race
third. Stayton racer Grey Fer-
rando placed fourth over fifth
finishing Jake Mayden from
Springfield. Mayden won the
consolation feature earlier in
the evening.
A new face emerged vic-
torious in the Royalty Core
Custom Grille & Truck Parts
IMCA Northern Sport Mods.
Anthony Pope, from Roseburg,
captured the lead on lap sev-
en and didn’t look back from
there.
Racing for car owner Doug
Coffman, Pope overtook Cor-
bett youngster Skyler Wine-
barger to gain first place in the
see CGS on B2