AISD superintendent shows his basketball cred

He’s no Dr. J, but Heath “Red Laces” Burns, Abilene Independent School District superintendent, showed his own razzle-dazzle Saturday during the first-ever 3-on-3 basketball tournament at the West Texas Sports and Fitness Expo.

Burns’ team, the Patriots, finished 3-1 and took second place out of five teams in the men’s open bracket.

In the final 15-minute half-court game, Burns missed his first shot, a long jumper without the jump, 17 feet out to the right. But when operating closer to the hoop, the big man showed technical footwork reminiscent, sort of, of Hakeem Olajuwon’s effective drop step.

He hit his next two of three, laying it up from under the hoop without ever facing the basket, but had his final attempt blocked out of bounds.

His team ultimately lost the game, but Burns — in a cutoff T-shirt and two knee braces — played spunky defense and used his power forward assets to block opponents way, way out.

Devious vs. youth: Sports expo’s hoops tournament a popular event

Perhaps it was confidence after a relatively easy victory in the 3-on-3 basketball tournament Saturday at the Big Country Sports Expo, but Jack Williams didn’t mind giving a scouting report on his own team.

“Every year we get a little bit slower,” he said.

Of course, he added, being devious and wily will almost always beat youth and athletic ability.

Williams, a 1992 Cooper High grad, teamed with Mark Wright, CHS class of ’93, and Bryan Conover, an Abilene High grad and assistant basketball coach at Cooper, to make a formidable entry in the men’s open division.

Their game Saturday afternoon had potential implications, particularly for Conover. One of the players for a team that called itself the Patriots was Conover’s boss, Abilene Independent School District superintendent Heath Burns.

“I’ll take him out if he comes in the middle,” said Conover, presumably joking.

Conover and his teammates won that encounter en route to winning the tournament.

Conover and his teammates have been playing together for about a decade. As 3-on-3 teams go, they’re older than most, with Conover the youngest at 33. Looks can be deceiving, however.

“Teams will look at us and think, ‘They’re big but they’ve got to be slow. They don’t dribble the ball, they just pass it.’ And then we kill them.”

The 3-on-3 tournament was a new addition to the Big Country Sports Expo, but expo director Jon Smith, president of the Abilene Youth Sports Authority, said it may expand to a stand-alone event.

“It’s gone really well,” said Keith Perry, who was running the tournament Saturday. “We hope next year to add a women’s open division.”

In addition to the men’s open division, there were four junior divisions: 12 and under boys, 12 and under girls, 16 and under boys and 16 and under girls.

The men’s open seemed to draw the biggest crowd. Several of Cooper’s basketball players were on hand to watch Conover play. It must be noted that the players didn’t razz their coach even once.

“They know better,” Conover said.

Sports Briefs

2002 celebration at Park City Ice Arena

The Park City Ice Arena is excited to host a celebration for the 10th anniversary of the 2002 Olympic Winter Games. The event is an open-skate session scheduled for Feb. 11 from 1 to 2:15 p.m. and it is free (admission and skate rentals) to the public. During this event, the public is invited to skate with Olympic athletes and grab them for a picture or an autograph. This event is also a great opportunity to visit with all of the sports clubs and teams that call Park City Ice Arena home.

Basin Rec’s 3-on-3 tournament

Looking to have the right to call your team the “Champs”? Look no farther than the Basin Recreation’s Hoop Classic. This 3-on-3 basketball tournament is the perfect time to showcase hoops skills. The tournament format is for both boys’ and girls’ divisions from third grade through ninth grade. The tournament will be held March 15-16. Please visit www.basinrecreation.org for more information.

Heated Vinyasa Yoga classes

Heated Yoga improves muscle tone and strength and gives a better cardiovascular workout, encourages detoxification through open pores and encourages better blood circulation. Starting Feb. 7, Silver Mountain Sports Club Spa will be offering three Heated Vinyasa Yoga classes each week. Heated Vinyasa Yoga classes are held at the Silver Mountain Kimball Junction Club’s Yoga Studio on Tuesdays at 7 a.m. and Thursdays at 9:30 a.m. and 5:30 p.m. All classes are free to members; nonmembers are welcome to attend with a day-use fee. For more information contact Silver Mountain Sports Club at Kimball Junction, 1526 Ute Blvd (435) 575-0350.

Demo Tuesdays at ZBAdventures

ZBAdventures is offering $10 Demo Tuesdays on its top-of-the-line Salomon Classic and Skate equipment and a 30-minute free first-time lesson to get you jump-started. Cross-country ski with the folks at ZBAdventures in the red yurt out at Newpark. Hours are 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information call (435) 901-0363.

Park City Recreation Spring Youth Soccer

Spring is around the corner and so is Park City Recreation’s Spring Youth Soccer League. Games will be Saturdays and some Wednesdays at Willow Creek Park beginning April 21. The registration deadline is March 30. Great incentives are offered for volunteer coaches. Call the PC MARC at (435) 615-5401 or register online at www.parkcityrecreation.org .

PC Recreation Futsal League

Futsal is a fun, fast-paced game of soccer played indoors. Park City Recreation is offering league play on Tuesdays starting Feb. 7; cost is $275 per team. For more information, contact the PC MARC at (435) 615-5400 or www.parkcityrecreation.org .

PC MARC drop-in Futsal

Drop-in futsal is happening at the PC MARC on Sundays, 6 to 9 p.m., beginning Feb. 5. Ages 18 and older are welcome; there is a $7 drop-in fee. For information, contact the PC MARC at www.parkcityrecreation.org or (435) 615-5400.

Full Moon snowshoe hike

The annual Full Moon snowshoe event is scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 4, from 5:30 p.m. until the cow jumps over the moon. The cost is $20 per person. (There is no discount for children as space in the shed is limited and this event sells out early every year.) Tickets are on sale at the Park City Library. Snowshoes are available on site, but folks are encouraged to bring their own, along with headlamps, warm clothing and their favorite beverage. For more information, contact Jillbette Kelly or Denise Carey at (435) 615-5819.

Robotics teams are gearing up

ESCANABA – Two local high school robotics teams are working diligently on their robot designs for a competition to be held downstate next month.

Escanaba High School’s Robomos is in its second year of existence, having competed in two downstate For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology competitions for the first time last year.

According to Robomos coach and science teacher Marie Young, the Robomos consist of approximately 30 members this year, and is divided into a number of specific groups focusing on various aspects. They include promoting and fundraising, website design, and building the robot itself – which entails programming and wiring the robot. Each FIRST robotics team must compete in two qualifying competitions in order to advance to later stages.

“There are five weeks of competitions and each team needs to attend two to qualify for states,” explained Young. “And it’s not a given that you qualify. You have to have enough points between those two competitions.”

This year the Robomos, along with Gladstone’s FIRST Robotics team, will compete in Traverse City in March before heading to downstate Niles to compete. Until then, each robotics team has six weeks to build a robot from scratch. FIRST supplies each team with a kit of items to build their robots, but the kits only include items such as batteries, screws, motors, some computer software – not everything needed to fully complete the robot, said Young. Rookie teams receive a bigger supply kit than teams who have competed before, but the repeat teams are able to recycle parts from their previous robots.

The theme for this year’s FIRST competition is “Rebound Rumble,” based on a basketball game concept, with an added component of having to balance on a bridge, said Young.

“There’s different parts to the game and the trick is to try to create a robot that’s good at each one of those parts of the game,” she said.

Some things they need to keep in mind when building the robot include how to shoot and pick up the balls, and how to get the robot on the bridge as well as how to balance it on the bridge.

This year marks Gladstone’s debut in the competition, as they decided to put their 30-member team together in the last couple months, according to their coach and science teacher Tim Barron.

“It’s been in existence for around 20 years,” said Barron, of the FIRST program. “This is our first year here of doing it. It sounded cool over the years, like it would be fun to do, but I was too busy to take it on, and decided to try it this year.”

Barron said there is a lot that goes into creating the robot, such as putting together the chassis, which is basically the frame of the robot with the wheels and the motors, in addition to wiring and programming it. But once students start putting the robot together and getting it to gradually work, one step at a time, it is a rewarding experience.

“The good thing about it is you line up a lot of adult mentors from the area,” he explained, as engineers from NewPage, EMP, and even parents, have come in to lend their assistance.

“We’ve appointed a student president, and we’ve got it divided up into committees, we call them, to get all these various jobs done,” explained Barron.

Barron expresses his thanks to J.C. Penney, the major sponsor for Gladstone’s team this year, and noted other businesses and organizations are helping to offset costs for additional robot parts needed and toward the expenses for the competition itself.

The Robomos’ major sponsor is EMP, Young said, with representatives from the company serving as mentors and working hands-on with the group. However, she noted there are a number of community sponsors who have provided them with materials, mentoring or supplying funding, since the program can get costly when factoring in travel costs and purchasing additional parts for the robot. A list of local sponsors is being collected at this point, she noted.

“It’s truly an investment for community businesses and so forth to see the high school kids here get this type of a hands-on experience. It’s just huge,” she said.

After six weeks of working on their robot all teams have to “bag and tag” their robots at midnight on Feb. 21, which means they must all stop working on them at this time. Once their first competition is over, they also have to bag their robot before the next competition, giving them only six hours during the week of the following competition to fix any problems they faced with their robots the first time around. This is where having a big budget and many sponsors comes into play, as some schools create two robots so they can work on one while the other is bagged.

Some ways the Robomos are raising funds for their group include a 3-on-3 basketball tournament later this month, as well as selling energy efficient light bulbs, wristbands, and planning a golf tournament.

As for the future of robotics in the area, Young said Escanaba is planning to host a competition next year. They wanted to host one this year, but could not get it to work out, he added.

“There isn’t really any held in the U.P. whatsoever because it’s sort of a growing thing now in the U.P.,” said Young. “Gladstone’s in their first year, Marquette had their first year last year along with us …That would be great to have one in Escanaba, so that’s our intention and our plan is to actually have one here next year.”

Approximately 2,400 teams are expected to participate in the FIRST competitions this year. The purpose of FIRST is “to help high school-aged young people discover how interesting and rewarding the lives of engineers and scientists can be,” according to an overview of the competition.

For more information on either robotics teams, contact Escanaba or Gladstone high schools. The Robomos’ website is located at www.wix.com/eskystudentcouncil/robomos.

Mile posts: Tim Dwight keeps on running

Missouri State Athletics Hall of Fame member Casey Owens with Iowa Athletics Hall of Famer Tim Dwight,

Tim Dwight admits he had no idea what he would do with his life when his 10-year NFL career came to an end after the 2007 season.

He found, among other things, triathlons and running.

“I’ve had a great opportunity to do a lot of things in my life,” the former University of Iowa football and track All-American told a crowd Friday at the annual Capital Striders dinner and meeting at The Machine Shed restaurant. “I’ve played 18 years of football. I’ve been really lucky.”

Today, Dwight lives in Iowa City and devotes much of his time to his foundation, which raises money to help needy kids with scholarships and provide assistance to the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital of Iowa.

He is involved with a company that sells solar energy sources to companies and home owners. He went into great detail Friday about the impact solar energy will have in the future for the U.S. and the world.

He also holds the Tim Dwight Football Camp each year in Iowa City.

He is passionate about all of these things. Throw running and endurance sports in there as well.

He and the Capital Striders members revealed Friday that they will be collaborate for a new race, the Dwight Dash, in the Des Moines area later this spring to benefit his foundation. The race will likely be 5 kilometers in length. He said the date is tentatively scheduled for May 19.

Dwight caught the triathlon bug not long after retiring after one season with the Oakland Raiders in 2007. He entered the Iowa Games Triathlon in 2008, placing 121st out of 298 finishers.

Since then, he has competed in more than 10 triathlons and his first marathon, the Twin Cities Marathon. Then came a huge endeavor: his first Ironman Triathlon, Ironman Coeur d’Alene in Idaho last June.

Dwight said he was so cold from swimming the first half of the 2.4-mile swim that he had to stop and rest. He needed 2 hours and 15 minutes to complete the swim.

“I breast-stroked coming back,” he said.

The 36-year-old covered the 112-mile bike in 7 hours and 28 minutes and the marathon in 5 hours and 15 minutes. He finished the exhausting race 284th overall, in 15:19:24.

“I’ve built my life on hard work; it’s impressive what you do,” he told the runners. “It’s a different mindset. It’s been fun to implement myself into the runners’ world.”

He plans to run in the Drake Relays 8k race in April and likely his own race. It sounds as if he’s going to stay in running and triathlons for a while.

NOW, ABOUT THAT IOWA GAMES: Dwight laughed when he was asked about his two-week odyssey of competing in 25 events for the 25th anniversary of the Iowa Games last July.

“The last event (on July 16) was track and field and I had five (six) events — shot, discus, long jump, 100, 200, 4×100. I did the long jump — I haven’t long-jumped in like 18 years — and two minutes later I ran the 100.”

He said the littany of events was a challenge, especially for an aching hip from his football days.

“I probably put 3-4 years on that hip,” he said. “This hip is like 90 years old.

“This year’s Iowa Games have been the most challenging events I’ve ever participated in,” Dwight said on the Iowa Games website. “From the triathlon, 3-on-3 basketball, horseshoes, air marksmanship, track and field to swimming, the Games have tested my endurance, skill and focus not only as an athlete, but as a sportsman as well. The 2011 Summer Iowa Games will be an event I’ll never forget.”

He finished first in his age group in two events: the long jump and, you guessed it, horseshoes.

CLUB NEWS AND AWARDS: Fitness Sports owner Steve Bobenhouse said the recent Living History Farms race “was our most successful one.” The race raised almost $185,000, with all of the proceeds going back to a number of charities and groups. Host Living History Farms will be a big benefactor. A total of $8,000 went to the Capital Striders.

Board president Mike McGinn handed out some awards. The volunteer of the year award went to Brad Dains, who is was voted in a new board member. Dains was instrumental in organizing water stops for the fall and winter training runs. The sponsor of the year was Fitness Sports.

McGinn said both the Loop the Lake and the Capital Pursuit entry fees stayed the same and the Capital Pursuit made more of a profit. Capital Pursuit also had the eighth-most finishers in the 10-mile race in the 29-year history of the event. The Striders will be sponsoring a third race with the Dwight Dash this spring.

Among the groups the Striders support include three local track clubs and Iowa Kidstrong and its See-Us Run Des Moines program. The Striders also gave away $1,000 college scholarships to three high school seniors in 2011. The winners were Tanelle Berard of Dowling Catholic High School, Drew Prescott of Urbandale High School and Kelsey McDougal of Roosevelt High School.

To read more about running and triathlons, follow me on Twitter (@LanceBergeson)

Tags: Tim Dwight

Central Bucks efforts for Coaches vs. Cancer continue Feb. 11

Central Bucks Athletic Association and the girls and boys
basketball teams from Central Bucks East High School will host
their fifth annual Coaches vs. Cancer fundraiser Feb. 11 at the
high school in Buckingham.

The event includes a 3-on-3 basketball tournament for boys and
girls in grades three through eight, concessions, raffles, a silent
auction, exhibitions from the high school teams, and a game between
Central Bucks teachers and seniors.

Also included: an appearance by Temple men’s basketball coach
Fran Dunphy, the Kutz Elementary School jump rope squad and a
concert featuring students from the Central Bucks School
District.

This year’s fundraising efforts are more poignant as the
organizations involved remember Morgan Mysza, a student at Holicong
Middle School who died in January after a long battle with brain
cancer. Mysza played travel basketball and soccer for CBAA and
Buckingham United.

Over the past four years, the Central Bucks youth have raised
more than $120,000 for the fight against cancer.

To register for the 3-on-3 tournament or for information, send
email to Elle Durkac, edurkac_22@yahoo.com, or visit
www.tcteams.com/cbbasketball.

Angie Mountain: 215-345-3065; email: amountain@phillyburbs.com;
Twitter: @HomeFields

© 2012 phillyBurbs.com . All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

3-on-3 basketball tourney, fundraiser planned

GARRETT — The Judy A. Morrill (JAM) Recreation Center in Garrett is hosting a 3-on-3 basketball tournament and fundraiser on Saturday, Feb. 4, with games starting at 8 a.m.

The tournament includes brackets for middle school, high school and adults. Team can be co-ed.

The cost for middle and high school players is $10 per person, while adults will be charged $20 per person.

The tournament is a double-elimination format with games played to 16 points.

All participants will receive a T-shirt after the tournament. The winners will receive a trophy and their team named on the JAM Wall of Fame.

A shooting contest will also be held for free throws, three-point and half-court shots. The cost for each contest is $2 per person.

Everyone is welcome to participate in the shooting contests, even if not playing in the tournament.

The shooting contests will be held from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. The proceeds from the fundraiser will help support the not-for-profit mission of the JAM Recreation Center, specifically supplies for the gym and for future league activities.

Interested players can register at the center from now until 9 p.m. Monday, Jan. 30.

Phone the center at 357-1917 with any questions. The center is located at 1200 E. Houston St., Garrett.

Terry Shaw: YWCA hosts series of family game nights

Journey Tyler has been playing hoops since she was big enough to hold a ball.

The 10-year-old was mixing it up with boys who were taller and older Thursday at the YWCA Phyllis Wheatley Center, but that didn’t keep her from nailing a three-pointer, diving for loose balls or playing scrappy defense.

“I’m proud of her,” said her mother, Angela Tyler. “She can hang with the boys.”

It was all part of Family Game Night, which included a 3-on-3 basketball tournament meant to get families together at the 124 S. Cruze St. location. Journey’s team didn’t win the grand prize ($100 Subway gift card) or take second place ($50 gift card), but they had a lot of fun.

“I’m lovin’ it!” Samantha Dunn said as she watched her sons, Michael, 11, and Mario, 7, battle alongside their neighbor on one of seven teams playing that night. Jaishon Tyler, 12, rounded out the line-up for the Cool Kids. (Though only three could play at a time, teams had no roster limits).

Dunn laughed at the team name and said maybe they should have been called The Midgets, which drew groans from the kids.

“This is really good to see,” Dunn said of the gym full of people. “Especially when they all get along.”

Carl Allen was smiling as his sons, Carl Jr., 13, and twins Wesley and Robert, 11, went at it for the East End All Stars.

“Oh, we’ll be hearing about that for awhile,” he said when Wesley hit an open shot.

Danielle Dimond, health and fitness director at the YWCA, said the idea of the event was to get families to come together with a physical activity and to enjoy a healthy meal. The night’s menu included chicken tacos. The Y also provided tips on preparing healthy, affordable meals.

Any families in the community are encouraged to participate.

Two more game nights will be held, one at 6-8 p.m. Friday and 6-8 p.m. Feb. 10. There’s no limit on family size, but only three members can play at a time. Registration is on a first-come basis. To sign up, contact Dimond at Ddimond@ywcaknox.com.

The program was made possible by a $2,500 grant from the Junior League of Knoxville.

While the main branch of the YWCA is located downtown at 420 West Clinch Ave., the Phyllis Wheatley Center serves East Knoxville as a community center. It provides free after school programs for kids, offering tutoring, mentoring, sports and artistic opportunities and nutritional education. Churches and other organizations use it for a variety of events. Seniors also meet there for lunch, exercise and education.

Ellie’s 1st Annual CF Shootout Basketball Tournament

Please join us on Saturday, March 24th for the 1st Annual CF Shootout 3-on-3 Basketball Tournament!

The goal of the tournament is to raise funds and awareness for the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation in honor of Ellie, a 15 month old little girl with cystic fibrosis (CF).

Only one registration is needed per team. read more

Five Things to Know Today, Jan. 30

Welcome to Monday and a new week. Here are some things to know about the day.

The weather: Sunshine is in the forecast, with a high of about 62 degrees. The low tonight will be around 34 degrees. The National Weather Service has issued a fire danger statement because of low relative humidity in Gwinnett and other counties.

Gas prices have taken a big jump over the weekend. Prices for Lilburn reported to www.georgiagasprices.com for a gas of regular started at $3.42 (at Citgo, 331 Rockbridge Road at Lawrenceville Hwy) and topped out at $3.47 (at seven gas stations in Lilburn).

Hoops. Register now for the 3 on 3 Basketball Challenge, a new event from the Gwinnett parks department set for Saturday. There’ll be teams of middle school, high school and adult players, and prizes. The games are in the gym at Best Friend Park, on Jimmy Carter Boulevard in Norcross, starting at 9 a.m. More info at 770 417 2212.

Hats. Cowboy poetry has come a long way from a few campfire circles to a nationally and internationally renowned part of our national literature. The last week of January marks the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering and has for years. If you’re not in Elko, Nevada, this week, you can still follow a livestream or catch the archived clips. Tune in and listen to our Western bards.  

Shots. It’s the anniversary of a dark first in American history: The first assassination attempt against a U.S. president, in 1835. A deranged painter named Richard Lawrence pulled two pistols in the Capitol and fired at close range at President Andrew Jackson. Both guns failed to fire, and Jackson reacted in anger, clubbing Lawrence with his cane before onlookers wrestled the attacker to the ground. Lawrence was found not guilty by reason of insanity and spent the rest of his life in a cell. The attempt left Jackson with a lingering suspicion that his political opponents had set the gunman on him, and his vice president, Martin Van Buren, took to carrying two loaded pistols when he visited the Senate.