NEWS
MyEagleNews.com
Wednesday, July 7, 2021
A3
A cross-country adventure
deCycles Indiana
pedals from Seattle
to John Day en route
to Denver
By Steven Mitchell
Blue Mountain Eagle
A cross-country cycling
group based out of Indiana
pedaled their way through
John Day on June 18.
The “deCycles Indiana”
group, which included 45 rid-
ers on a 1,600-mile ride from
Seattle to Denver, were on day
seven of their three-week tour.
The group pulled into the
John Day Church of the Naz-
arene to stay the night and
showered at the Grant County
Fairgrounds.
Norm Houze of Blooming-
ton, Indiana, who has served as
the tour director and on-road
supervisor, said the trek is a
“modern-day pilgrimage.”
“Instead of riding a camel,
The Eagle/Steven Mitchell
Longtime deCycles veteran Norm Houze pulls into the John Day Church of the Nazarene.
I’m riding a bike,” he said.
Houze said a pilgrimage
is a journey to an unknown
place.
Houze, a veteran of
upwards of 25 cross-country
deCycles trips, jokingly said
he had spent nearly half of his
life “homeless” sleeping on
church and gym fl oors across
the country.
The 45 riders included a
wide range of students and
young adults of all back-
grounds and cycling abilities.
The group had riders as
young as 13 and some as old
as Houze, who is in his late
60s.
For some of the group’s
younger members from
Indiana, the trip provided
them their fi rst glimpse of a
mountain.
Ezra Townsend, 15, of
Columbus, Indiana, said see-
ing Mt. Ranier when pulling
out of Seattle was like nothing
he had ever seen in Indiana.
“It was just crazy,” he said.
“I’ve never seen anything like
it. It’s just completely dif-
ferent from what we have in
Indiana.”
Townsend said he was
always casual about athletics,
The Eagle/Steven Mitchell
From left, Adam Reckers, Ezra Townsend, Cael Hickock and Kian
Kadlec of the deCycles group stand in front of the John Day Church
of the Nazarene after biking from Seattle on their way to Denver.
but the deCycles trip, to him,
sounded like an adventure that
he could not pass up.
Adam Reckers, who cel-
ebrated his 16th birthday in
John Day, said his family is
really into biking and travel-
ing. He said, when he heard
about the trip and that the
group that was based an hour
away from where he lives, he
was “all for it.”
Townsend and Reckers
said they would encourage
anyone, regardless of age or
ability, to go on some kind of
journey.
“Maybe not this specifi c
trip,” Reckers said, “but just
go out and enjoy the world.”
‘The Little Red Schoolhouse’ comes to life in Painted Sky production
By Steven Mitchell
Blue Mountain Eagle
The Eagle/Steven Mitchell
Maddie Bailey, left, looks on as Alyssa Catalani scolds Benjamin Finley during the June 30 production of ‘The Little Red Schoolhouse’ at the Canyon City Commu-
nity Center.
The Eagle/Steven Mitchell
From left, Josie
Hollowell, Sam Bailey,
Oliver LaFramboise,
Christina Manitsas, Ivy
LaFramboise, Emma
Charette, Teagan Gib-
son, Arti McKnab, Cleo
McKnab, Elliana Griffi n
and Gunner Gibson
ahead of the June 30
production of ‘The Lit-
tle Red Schoolhouse’
at the Canyon City
Community Center.
The Eagle/Steven Mitchell
From left, Julie Reynolds, play director, talks to Sam Bai-
ley on June 30 at the Canyon City Community Center be-
fore Painted Sky for the Art’s production of ‘The Little Red
Schoolhouse.’
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The Painted Sky Center for the
Arts wrapped up its summer drama
camp with “The Little Red School-
house” production at the Canyon
City Community Center.
The one-act play follows the
story of Mary Bronson, a young
teacher and her challenges to wran-
gle in her classroom of unruly stu-
dents, which include giggling, gos-
siping girls, bullies, teacher pets
and the entitled daughter of the
head of the school board.
The play, directed by longtime
Grant County resident and former
Grant Union High School teacher
Julie Reynolds, takes place in the
1940s. Reynolds said the script
required some updates to ensure
political correctness.
Wednesday’s production was
Painted Sky’s fi rst performance
that did not come with pandemic
restrictions.
Alicia Griffi n, Painted Sky’s
director of operations and the
play’s sound director, said the cen-
ter’s winter performance came with
a “a lot of hoops to jump through.”
The kids were required to
wear masks throughout the whole
performance.
“It’s just great to be able to see
their little faces,” she said.
The play, Reynolds said, was
chosen for no other reason than it
was a production that was doable
for the cast, given the two and a half
week window they had to prepare.
Painted Sky will host vari-
ous camps throughout the sum-
mer. The schedule can be found
atpaintedskycenterforthearts.
wildapricot.org.