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July 13, 2010
Levi Kitchen, a 9-year-old from Washougal, is on the fast track to the Loretta Lynn National Motocross Championships, Aug. 2-7, in Hurricane Mills, Tenn.

Kitchen up dirt

If Paul and Sara Kitchen lose sight of their 9-year-old son Levi, all they have to do is listen for the sound of his motorcycle. The Kitchen family lives about two miles away from the Washougal Motocross Park. Levi also has access to a couple of racing tracks in the neighborhood. He has been riding the one in his backyard since he got his first bike at the age of 3. "I just grew up liking it because my dad used to do it," Levi said. "A lot of my friends race like me. Sometimes, we go out together." After competing in several races over the past year, including five nationals, Levi finds himself in elite company. He has qualified for the 2010 Loretta Lynn National Motocross Championships, Aug. 2-7, in Hurricane Mills, Tenn.

July 13, 2010

Bike race returns to downtown Camas

The beauty of downtown Camas will be on display when the Camas Twilight Criterium returns on Saturday, July 31, for the first time in five years. David Hart co-directed the event through North River Racing between 2000 and 2004, before it relocated to downtown Vancouver. Hart moved to Camas in 2007. "Now that I live here, I thought I would address the idea of having a bike race through downtown," Hart said. "I like the small community feel. A lot of people live right here in downtown. You don't have to sit through a lot of rush hour traffic to get down here." Hart is the race director and Ed Fisher, owner of Camas Bike & Sport, is the promoter. "There is a lot of great racing in Oregon. I live in Camas, and I want people to see what my downtown is like," Hart said. "Camas has a lot to offer, a lot of beauty and a lot of business."

July 13, 2010
Crew members from Bernhardt Golf dig trenches to add pipes underneath the Camas High School varsity baseball field for better drainage. The other three CHS ballfields will receive the same treatment.

Weathered CHS baseball and softball fields are getting attention

Warmer weather in July gave members of Bernhardt Golf the green light to begin adding a new drainage system to the Camas High School baseball and softball fields. The construction company based in Beaverton, Ore., spent the last eight days digging trenches and fitting pipes under the varsity baseball field. Those holes have been filled with sand, which makes the outfield grass look like a football grid. Project manager Kevin Brown said it would take about three weeks for the field to be refurbished. "The new drainage system will remove surface water off of the field, which makes it dry quicker. Like pulling the plug on a bathtub, basically," Brown said. "This should improve all of the standing water in the outfield, and make the field playable earlier in the spring."

July 6, 2010
The Camas High School football team defeated Juanita High School of Kirkland, Wash., to win the Oregon State University Team Camp championship for the second year in a row. The Papermakers also beat a team of campers from Oregon State, Foss of Tacoma and Ferndale of California.

Camas defends OSU camp win

The Camas High School football team defended its Oregon State University Team Camp championship in smashing fashion Jan. 26, in Corvallis. "We had a lot of kids step up and play above the level they normally do," said head coach Jon Eagle. "I think that experience is really going to help them." Trailing by four points with about 20 minutes left, the Papermakers rallied to defeat Juanita High School of Kirkland, Wash., 16-12 in the championship game. Camas reached the end zone first on a run by Zach Marshall. He also came through with a 2-point conversion run to give the Papermakers an 8-0 advantage. Juanita battled back with a touchdown run, but the Camas defense halted the 2-point conversion attempt to stay on top 8-6.

July 6, 2010

CrossFit Camas no longer just a garage gym

CrossFit combines the movements of standing up, running, jumping, picking up objects from the ground, lifting them overhead, throwing them, pulling, pushing and more into unique workouts with endless variety. Athletes push themselves to new limits utilizing these methods in garages, barns and abandoned buildings around the world. There are no stationary weight machines, treadmills or elipticals, just a bar and some dumbells, benches, kettlebells, jump ropes and a C2 rower. During one session, an athlete might be asked to row for 500 meters, swing a kettlebell 25 times and then run for 400 meters in timed intervals. The next day, the work out changes but it's just as demanding. "One of these elements is not that bad, it's when you loop them all into one workout that you see the results," said Rob McBee, who co-owns CrossFit Camas with friend Ken Broadbent.

July 6, 2010

Fair will bring ‘Synergy’ to Washougal

On Saturday, Aug. 28, Columbia Gorge Medical Center, All-Pride Fitness, Pure Wellness Chiropractic and Washougal Sport and Spine are partnering up to bring the first "Synergy" health and wellness fair to Washougal. "The purpose of this is to draw the community together," said Deana Schlauch, office administrator at Columbia Gorge Medical Center. "It's a great time to get the family out, and to get information and resources about health and wellness in a fun way." A 5K and a 10K walk and run kicks off the event at 8 a.m., along with a kid's run. Races begin in the parking lot of the Pendleton Woolen Mill, located just off Highway 14 at Second and 17th streets. The course follows the Washougal Dike Trail, along the Columbia River. The 10K run and walk is $30 a person and the 5K is $20 a person. To participate in the kid's run, children are asked to donate a new school backpack filled with school supplies. Those backpacks will be distributed to Camas and Washougal schools, and given to students in need of school supplies. Race forms are available online at www.columbiagorgemedical.com. Mail registration and payment to Columbia Gorge Medical Center, 3307 S.E. Evergreen Way, Washougal, WA 98671. Forms can also be dropped off at the center.

July 6, 2010
Watching Ghana reach the quarterfinals of the 2010 World Cup gave Rev. Peter Gillette, pastor of the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, plenty of reasons to be excited.

World Cup brings Ghana native priest closer to home

The Rev. Peter Gillette, pastor of the St. Thomas Aquinas Catholic Church, in Camas, tasted heaven when his native country of Ghana defeated the U.S. men's soccer team in the round of 16 stage of the 2010 World Cup June 26, in South Africa. "When it got to overtime, I couldn't watch anymore. I went to the office to try and do some work," Gillette said. "So, I'm following online and I see that Ghana is up 2-1. I couldn't believe it. I went back home and enjoyed the rest of the game." When Ghana and Uruguay squared off in the quarterfinals Friday, Gillette wore his Ghana jersey with great pride. He had never been more nervous and excited. Only an afternoon mass could tear him away from the television. In 1974, Zaire became the first team from Africa to reach the quarterfinals. Cameroon followed in 1990, and so did Senegal in 2002. On Friday, Ghana attempted to become the first team from Africa to advance to the semifinals.

June 29, 2010
The Washington Soccer Academy Pilots and the Oregon Soccer Academy Galaxy collided in the championship round of the Clash at the Border tournament Sunday, at Cardon Field in Camas. Ryan Wessel heads the ball for the Pilots. He is flanked by teammates Joe Snedeker (left) and Noah Moncrieff (right). The Pilots conquered the Galaxy 4-0, scoring all four goals in the second half.

Beautiful weather brings exciting soccer

Six champions and five other finalists from the Washington Soccer Academy highlighted the eighth-annual Clash at the Border soccer tournament Friday, Saturday and Sunday at fields in Camas, Washougal and Vancouver. The WSA Pilots U-13 boys soccer team kicked off an exciting championship triple-header Sunday, at Cardon Field behind Camas High School. They scored four goals in the second half to defeat the Oregon Soccer Academy Galaxy 4-0. "We finally won the Clash after two years of finishing in third place," said Joe Snedeker, a 12-year-old Pilot from Washougal. "Coach gave us a pep talk, and that got us pumped up. After the first goal, we started scoring easily." Pilots coach Ross Blanchard could not have been more proud. "The boys came out with some passion and fire in that second half. It was fun to watch," he said. "Two of those goals came in the first four or five minutes, but they just didn't let up. I hope they take that second half and keep building off of that."

June 29, 2010
Meadow McWhorter is dunked with Gatorade after the Mt. Hood Community College softball team won another NWAACC title on May 24.

Soaking up softball

Drenched in Gatorade, Meadow McWhorter is having the time of her life. The 30-year-old, who grew up playing softball in Washougal, is the proud head coach of the 2009 and 2010 Northwest Athletic Association of Community College's champion Mt. Hood Saints softball team. The 1997 Washougal High School graduate has coached at Mt. Hood for eight years. "There's so much mental toughness to our sport," McWhorter said. "If you fail 7-out-of-10 times, you're still considered a good player. If you only fail 6-out-of-10 times, you're a great player. It all depends on how you handle that adversity so you can come through in those clutch situations. "You could be 0-for-3, but that last at-bat could be the most important at-bat of the game," she added. "If you get the hit that helps us win the game, that's the only at-bat you're going to remember."

June 29, 2010
Daniel Osterhage is honored for volunteering to help special needs children play soccer.

Changing people’s lives with something as simple as soccer

Through The Outreach Program for Soccer, referred to as "TOPSoccer," physically and intellectually challenged children of any age are given the opportunity to kick a soccer ball around and score a goal. It would not be possible without volunteers like Daniel Osterhage. The 14-year-old from Camas, who runs for the track team at Skyridge Middle School, found time to help the Camas-Washougal Kickers TOPSoccer team last fall. Washington Youth Soccer awarded Osterhage for his efforts by naming him TOPSoccer Buddy of the Year. He received a plaque Monday at Cardon Field, behind Camas High School, and recorded a video message thanking the organization and the kids he got to work with. He also thanked his parents Gary and Marni, and Camas-Washougal Soccer Club TOPSoccer coordinator Tami Naffziger. "When you put your mind to it, you can help somebody else out with something as simple as soccer," Osterhage said. "For these kids, just playing soccer is a reward. When you see the kids smile when they score a goal, or pass the ball to their friends, it's rewarding. You know you're doing something good for the community."