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About Polk County itemizer observer. (Dallas, Or) 1992-current | View Entire Issue (June 24, 2015)
12A Polk County Itemizer-Observer • June 24, 2015 Polk County Sports ADULT RECREATION Pickleball returns to Dallas for summer Sport gaining popularity in Polk County, club attracting new players By Lukas Eggen The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — Richard Winn has seen pickleball grow in popularity in Dallas since he teamed with the city’s recre- ation department in 2013. Now, he’s helping expand the city’s offerings to those looking to try the game, or taking their pickleball game to a new height. Pickleball is open to peo- ple of all ages each Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 a.m. to noon at the Roger Jordan Community Park ten- nis courts. This year, the city has more equipment to use. “We have these portable nets we received from a grant from the USA Pickle- ball Association (USAPA),” Winn said. “These nets are about $137 each and we bought two of them. They’re much better because last year, we were using, like, badminton nets and they sagged and you could never get them to be the right height.” Pickleball can be played in singles or doubles. Similar to tennis, opponents return hits over a net and score a point when an opponent does not return a ball suc- Give It A Try What: Pickleball open play and lessons. Where: Roger Jordan Community Park tennis courts, Dallas. When: Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to noon. For more information: Dick Winn, 503-803-8065. cessfully or the ball goes out of play. No previous athletic expe- rience is needed. “Some people come to us having never played any- thing,” Winn said. “It takes them maybe six months and they get really into it.” The city also has equip- ment, including paddles and balls, for newcomers to use while they learn the ins and outs of the sport. “Paddles can cost $45 to $125,” Winn said. “If you play one time and you don’t like it, then what do you do? We let people come use our paddles and discover if this is for them.” Pickleball can be played in singles or doubles. Winn said they had about 18 peo- ple playing on their first day on June 15. Since then, they’ve had experienced players, new players and everything in between. Winn has already had an experienced tourna- ment player give tips, while other locals have traveled to tournaments to compete or watch more skilled players. “We just want people to show up,” Winn said. “Walk through the gate. We give them lessons if they need it and have some fun.” For players who take a lik- ing to the sport, Winn said they have formed a Dallas pickleball club, with dues of $10 for a couple annually. The dues help pay for more equipment for people to use, including balls, two more nets and paddles. A tennis court can accommodate four pickleball courts, Winn said and the club would like to, at some point, have enough nets to have multiple games playing on both courts. Pickleball will run through Sept. 25, and Winn hopes this summer attracts even more new players in the area. “The game is growing by leaps and bounds,” Winn said. “This is an easy way for people to learn and try out something new.” LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Pickleball has attracted a mix of experienced and new players. City adult rec looks to diversify Dugan: He will Dallas considers bringing running events to the city By Lukas Eggen The Itemizer-Observer DALLAS — It seems like a distant memory for Dallas Recreation Coordinator David Brautigam. Yet, it was just four years ago that Dallas didn’t have any adult recreation to speak of. Oh, how things have changed. Men’s basketball and co- ed softball recently kicked off their seasons, and both have seen all-time highs in participation. “Co-ed softball went from 10 to 14 teams this year,” Brautigam said. “Men’s bas- ketball has increased to 12 teams (from 10) and has doubled the amount of teams when it first started.” The city also offers co-ed volleyball, pickleball and more throughout the year. “It’s a balancing act of not spreading ourselves too thin,” Brautigam said. “That’s been my focus is to establish it and make sure it’s running properly and we get participation. Then, we can start looking at other things that people want to see.” Now, the city is doing just that. Dallas will hold its first-ever tennis tourna- ment Aug. 8-9. A corn hole/bean bag toss tourna- ment will be one of the fes- tivities during Summerfest, and dodgeball and kickball tournaments are also in the works. “A lot of people want these kinds of programs,” Brautigam said. “There are a lot of little things we want to do to fill in the gaps. I think we’re trying to capture a large variety of people in a large variety of sports.” Brautigam also hopes to have a Halloween fun run this fall and hopes to bring more running events to the city in the future, as well as looking into starting a weekly walking club. “We have people going out of town to go to run- ning events,” Brautigam said. “We can do a lot of those running events here. We’ve formed a committee to start looking at next summer to have those kinds of events.” This fall will also see the start of intramural sports for ages 12 to 18. Plans to expand offerings is a result of feedback and increasing participation numbers among both kids and adults as Dallas’ recre- ation programs grow at rates exceeding Brautigam’s expectations. But the number of partic- ipants is a secondary con- cern. The main thing is that there continues to be a de- sire for adult recreation pro- grams, and that the city is there to help meet those de- sires. “As long as the interest in- serve two roles Continued from Page 10A His key to success is hav- ing a family that under- stands his position and sup- ports him. “Everyone is on the same page,” Dugan said. “My wife has been very supportive. She understands what my roles are, and she married into that. My son will be at Perrydale and he’s excited to go to the games and see the older students.” Among Dugan’s first du- ties will be to help shepherd Perrydale’s move back down to Class 1A starting this fall. “I think that 1A is a good fit for us,” Dugan said. “The kids have been really com- petitive at this level. We’ve had teams compete for state, and I think that’s going to happen some more.” As Dugan prepares for his new roles at Perrydale, he’s ready to take on what will be a busy, but fulfilling sched- ule, he said. “This is the place I love,” Dugan said. “I’ve been around here for almost two decades. I’m excited about this year.” SCOREBOARD CLUB GOLF CROSS CREEK GOLF COURSE MEN’S CLUB Tuesday, June 16 Results LUKAS EGGEN/Itemizer-Observer Jake Bailey looks to drive to the hoop during a men’s basketball game on Monday night. creases, that’s the direction we want to go,” Brautigam said. “Whether that is 100 teams or 50 teams, as long as kids and adults are par- ticipating, that’s our mis- sion.” As Dallas looks to contin- ue to diversify its offerings for both adults and children going forward, Perhaps most importantly, he’s see- ing more and more people taking part in living a healthier lifestyle. “It’s an opportunity to serve people and keep our c o m m u n i t y a c t i v e,” Brautigam said. “That’s real- ly what we want to do.” Two-Man Best Ball Gross — 1 (tie), Bob Mason-Roy Shupe, Bill Karjala-Michael Willem and Dan Spell-Paul Disney, 37. Net — 1, Jack Duncan-Lee Taylor, 26; 2, David Karr- Dennis Bergman, 29; 3 (tie), Darrel Smedstad-Bob Sprinkle, Jeff Lorenz-Bob McCleery and Ken Woods- Ken Ross, 32. SPORTS BRIEFS Local girls soccer team places first BEAVERTON — A girls soccer team from Dallas finished first in the 3v3 soccer tournament on June 13 at the Beaverton Soccer Club Complex. Dallas went undefeated and won by 10 or more goals in each of their games. The win qualifies them for a national tournament in Orlando. The squad may try and raise funds for the trip, or will compete in a tournament in Vancouver at the end of July. The team includes Neesa Olson, Jesi Agee, Ivy Agee, Nicolette Sossie and Addy Mendez. To view a team photo, visit www.polkio.com. Train: Time to rest up and stay hydrated Continued from Page 10A 7. Just glad to be done: Upon finishing the bike ride, my legs didn’t feel like they could walk, let alone go for a run. 8. Return of optimism (or delusions): After sitting for a few moments while heading home, the thought creeps in … that wasn’t so bad. Let’s do this! Now, all the blood, sweat and tears have led to this. The triathlon is Saturday at 9 a.m. (a change from its orig- inally scheduled start time of 10 a.m. due to predicted hot temperatures on race day). But your final prepara- tion must begin now. For starters, make sure to stay well-hydrated, organiz- er Brian Joynt said. Tragical- ly, that means it’d be best to avoid a pre-triathlon cele- JOLENE GUZMAN/Itemizer-Observer Lukas Eggen and Emily Mentzer before their 500-yard swim and 15.5-mile bike ride last week. bration involving adult bev- erages. “In the days leading up to your event, putting a lot of fluids in your body is impor- tant, especially with the warmer temperatures ex- pected,” Joynt said. Then, there’s the night- before meal. As a high school cross-country run- ner, that was my favorite meal. Loading up on carbohy- drates meant anything on my plate that looked edible was going to be devoured. Carb-loading is important — but be smart about it, Joynt said. “Don’t do anything you haven’t done before,” Joynt said. “Don’t eat a big pasta dinner if you’re not usually eating pasta. Don’t eat any- thing spicy if it might upset your stomach because noth- ing is worse than an upset stomach during a triathlon.” And, when Saturday rolls around, don’t forget to eat something small about one hour prior to race time. Finally, no more strenu- ous activities — something I can excel in! “You’ve done your train- ing,” Joynt said. “Don’t stress out about it and try and do a heavy workout at the last second. You want to keep your legs fresh. Maybe go for a light, slow jog to keep them loose, but no more 15-mile bike rides or hard runs.” Once Saturday hits, Joynt recommends getting there an hour early to set up your bike, change of clothes, etc., and suggests having one bottle of water and one sports drink for the race. There will be water avail- able at the turn around point of the running por- tion. Headed into the final days before my first triathlon, one thing is clear to me — eight weeks goes by fast! I have no idea how I’m going to fare, but I’ll go on record with the time I’m shooting for: 2 hours, 5 minutes and 35.44 seconds. It’s time to put up or shut up as they say. Training for this triathlon hasn’t been easy, but it has been fun. Part of me still imagines a triumphant finish, one with a strong sprint to the end. More realistically, if I’m still standing at the finish line, that would be a plus. As difficult as it may be, I’m starting to see the appeal of these events. And a part of me yearns to do another one. But first, let’s just see how I feel Saturday afternoon.