Newspaper Page Text
PAGE 2B - THE COMMERCE (GA) NEWS - TULY 30, 2008
Sport Shorts And Rec News
Auto Racing
Mom And Tot Swim
Commerce Park and Rec will
host a structured swim activity for
children ages six months through
two years.
The activity is scheduled for each
Tuesday from 11 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
through the end of July. Mothers
or fathers will handle their child in
the water. The sole purpose of
this activity is to acclimate the child
to the water, producing a greater
comfort level.
Pam Minish will lead the activ
ity, which will require no advance
registration. The fee is $3 per visit.
Children should wear air tight rub
ber pants or a special swimming
diaper.
Water Aerobics
Offered At Rec. Dept.
This Commerce Rec. Department
activity is a water exercise class for
adult men and women in gen
eral, but it is particularly benefi
cial to individuals with arthritis,
muscular disease, osteoporosis,
heart disease and recovery from
joint replacement as well as other
disabling injuries. Water aerobics
strengthens all muscles and joints
without the stress, stiffness and
soreness which accompany land
exercise programs. Workouts will
require participants to use their
arms, legs, hips and neck and will
elevate the heart rate through the
buoyancy of the water.
Experienced water aerobics
instructor Sharon Pruitt will lead
the class on Mondays, Wednesday,
and Fridays at 11 a.m. The class
will continue through early August.
Cost is $3 per class at the gate. No
advance registration is required.
No children will be admitted to or
allowed during class.
CHS Softball Tryouts
Commerce High School and
Middle School softball tryouts are
scheduled to being Monday, Aug.
4.
Tryouts will be held Monday
through Friday from 6:30 p.m. to
8:30 p.m. at the Commerce Rec
reation Department fields. All
athletes must have a physical and
other paperwork completed prior
to the tryout day.
For more information, call 706-
335-5942
Commerce Golf
Tournament Aug. 9
The Commerce Tiger football
“film crew” will host a three-man
Lauderdale golf tournament Aug. 9
to benefit the Commerce Booster
Club.
“That’s me and Jeff Streetman,”
explained Mark Fitzpatrick.
The tournament will be held at
Deer Trail Country Club, and two
starting times — 8:30 a.m. and
1:30 p.m. — are available. The
cost is $65 per player.
Prizes will be awarded to the first,
second and third-place teams, for
the longest drive, and for closest-
to-the-pin on the par three holes.
For information or to register,
contact Deer Trail Country Club
(706-335-3987), Fitzpatrick (706-
202-6585) or Streetman (678-776-
3135).
Soccer Registration
Grove Level Baptist Church will
be holding soccer registration next
month for age groups 4-6, 7-9 and
10- 12. The recreation program is
open to the public. Registration
will be held on Saturday, Aug. 2
and Saturday, Aug. 9 from 9:00
a.m. - 1:00 p.m. at the Grove
Level Baptist Church Recreation
Building. The cost is $45.00. For
more information, contact David
Vaughn at (706)652-3742.
CHS Cheer Camp
The Commerce High School
Cheerleaders will host the CHS
Community Cheer Camp Aug.
11- 13 at the Commerce Primary
School Gym.
The camp is for kids grades
pre-K through six and will run from
3:00 to 5:00 daily.
The $35 registration fee includes
a T-shirt.
Kids can register during the open
houses at the Commerce primary,
elementary and middle schools,
Tuesday, Aug. 5, 6-8 p.m. The
deadline is 6:30 p.m. Aug. 7 at the
primary school gym.
For information, contact Coach
Dianne Cotrell at 706-215-3001.
CMS Football Practice
Scheduled For Aug. 11
Commerce Middle School will
hold its first football practice on
Monday, Aug. 11, at 3:30 at the
high school.
Equipment will be issued to sev
enth and eighth graders beginning
Tuesday, Aug. 5, through Thursday,
Aug. 7.
Players must have a physi
cal before receiving equipment.
Forms are available at the CMS
office.
Fall Activity Sign-Ups
The Commerce Park and Rec
Department will be accepting reg
istration for its youth programs
through August 1. Programs
include Flag Football/Flag Cheer
for ages 6-8, Tackle Football/
Tackle Cheer for ages 9-12, and
soccer ages 4 and up.
Age control dates for football/
cheerleading prior to Sept. 1,
2008. Age control date for soccer
prior to August 1,2008.
Registration will be accepted
weekdays from 1 p.m. - 5 p.m. at
the Park & Recreation office at
American Veterans Memorial Park
on Carson Street.
Participants must be present at
the time of registration to be sized
for uniforms.
Birth certificates are required for
all participants. Parents of post
players may call 706-335-3236 to
verify a birth certificate is on file.
No registration will be accepted
without a birth certificate.
Indy Tire Woes Reminiscent Of 1969
There’s no way to sugar coat it.
Sunday’s NASCAR Sprint Cup
race at the Indianapolis Motor
Speedway was painful to watch.
That was because tire issues
on Sunday caused drivers to tip
toe around the storied 2.5 mile
track, and caused NASCAR
to throw several competition
caution flags to allow teams to
change the quickly worn out
tires for new.
The problem was that, for
some reason, there was never
enough initial rubber laid on
the track surface to prevent the
abrasive asphalt from ripping
the tires to shreds. Usually this
is a problem that fixes itself as
the race weekend wears on.
But not this time.
The result was a race where
drivers had to resist the urge to
go fast, crew chiefs had to fight
the urge to throttle tire company
officials, and fans had to fight
the urge to fall asleep.
Now in all honesty it was a
situation that, by race day little
could be done about. All indica
tions had been that by the time
the race was hitting its stride,
the problem would have fixed
itself.
But it didn’t, and NASCAR
had to do the best they could in
the situation. They did this with
the use of competition cautions,
choosing to put safety ahead
of ticket sales. For that, they
should be commended.
So too should the drivers and
crews, many of whom decided
to run very conservatively. That
meant many potential winners
never really flexed their muscles,
but in doing so, they not only
made sure they stayed safe, but
also made sure that they did not
put their fellow competitors in
harm’s way unnecessarily.
The whole situation was, as
BY BRANDON REED
Down
The
Stretch
that great philosopher Yogi Berra
once said, “Deja vu all over
again” with a similar moment in
time back in 1969.
The inaugural Talladega
500 was held at the Alabama
International Motor Speedway
(now called Talladega
Superspeedway) in September
of that year.
Bill France Sr. built the tower
ing Alabama track as a sister
facility to the 2.5 mile track in
Daytona Beach, using the same
basic shape.
But Talladega was a little wider.
It was banked a little steeper. It
was a little longer at 2.66 miles.
The purpose was simple. It
was intended to be the fastest
closed course racetrack in the
world.
The proof was there. Piloting
the newly engineered Dodge
Daytona Charger, Charlie
Glotzbach turned a lap in
practice at 199.466 mph. By
contrast, fellow Dodge driv
er Buddy Baker had won the
pole at Daytona in February at
188.901 mph.
But there was a problem. When
the drivers took to the track, the
high-powered engines spat out
so much horsepower that the
tires were wearing out in just a
few laps.
The drivers, in the guise of
a newly formed Professional
Drivers Association, voiced
their concerns angrily to France.
They asked that he postpone the
event to allow Firestone and
Goodyear to fix the problem
with the tires.
Big Bill disagreed. He felt that
the gas pedal went both ways,
and that if the drivers would sim
ply slow down, they could race
safely. He even took to the track
himself in a Tiny Lund prepared
Ford to try to back it up.
The drivers were incensed by
this notion. They had come to
race, not to be a pretty parade
for the Alabama fans.
When an agreement couldn’t
be reached, members of the
PDA loaded up their racecars
and went home.
France scrambled, and filled
the field with drivers from the
previous day’s support event,
and ran the race. Richard
Brickhouse piloted a new Dodge
Daytona Charger to victory.
While the record books show
seven caution flags during the
running of the event, none are
recorded to be due to an acci
dent.
After Sunday’s event at Indy
it’s clear today just as it was
back in 1969, that the technol
ogy of the new car has outrun
the technology of the current
racing tire.
This is something NASCAR
and Goodyear must address.
This is more than just an issue
about having a good race.
The bottom line is that if the
two pieces of technology can’t
work in unison, the safety of 43
drivers becomes a risk.
That’s a risk nobody wants to
take.
Brandon Reed is a reporter
for MainStreet Newspapers, Inc.
Contact him at brandon@main-
streetnews.com.
FOR THE BEST BUYS, READ THE CLASSIHED ADS
kj
h A
Why You Should
Vote
Ron Johnson
Republican
Jackson County
Chairman
Ron: Proven record of tax & budget cuts
Opponent: Favors tax abatements for large corporations not
citizens.
Ron:
Accessible to all citizens.
Cell 770-310-4515
Email chairman@windstream.net
Opponent: Has refused to publish contact information, except
for the big Gwinnett developers.
z'
There is a HUGE grassroots movement to give the
government back to the people of Jackson County.
N .
Join the supporters of
*Ron Johnson* and Tony Beatty*
and help make this historic event happen.
Vote With Us On August 5, 2008
For
Ron Johnson
County Commission Chairman
Paid political advertisement - Paid for by the candidate.
« Cha China!
Buy One
Siflail Frier. SJ3Z99
he»Cimamfr Di^cpunl-
mihiit PtUalt: S5O.00
z-rejrcuniriti Price: to.so
Get Two Free
RftflirFrue; W 24.73
NErt Customs* Ditiuun!: J3Z3.DO
Uail-ln debars S5Q.W
D3to Curd Purchase Discounl ^9.99
zAenr tonlract prjet; >5.00
Offer exclusively available at:
Commerce
305 Steven B. Tanger Dr. just past Home Depot
706-335-9821
Cellular Center
veriyon
'wireless
Jefferson Your neighborhood wireless store
OS-129 S/GA-I1S £ Old Pendergrass Rd.
706-387 0653
■i>n - SurrfcdfQi'S lint: Fnt '.r-v W: *1 itT^ n! ini*rstaiip£ Ini i ificremcninjts.iv.vr^guirwv 7C Pfiijul.wy £ Aflmrnm j .UirihYft*|Y&a,t. am***ay • .vrr*aa* ns** utajjih:
. ijL*1 £ mi! >i;n rvj. liM-i iCsJtf d:l:1 ID P'-s 1(5 y i.r = iU At m- fen -j- itmiI.'u V F it i :y 5h##fll I- , r I ■<**. ?-yi AiJfflKf II^XllTAHT -TQNfiLIMnf
IoCuiilm^r Aflrtil, CSlnfl N&itf fflTff| 4 (WK ifSpftWil. fo SHI H*ly A ^ruryirt £ S-1 WMB i -ra; I tlMilir *Hf^} *hl CHfVrb Hfwl
wrvHiip. net <vd jU!b cyim HebriPi liMru: tuft Shipov clur?n *vjw *ppU Liev-vfc-KM'j-Irtius: Add' 4 i.-:nj.Vums- apphr ffitwen* ftridih end
enrefflge- rri#ps. jt ■w'tiwwir c vttubati! MontJWy tnttii dbCounC} r*fct na- -itk* cm VrtmAed Artyl-mc tariuto o-anv. Lmuled lime ul?r. Wh<te l«L onli at Ctfu-'ai
tcnlcr jocabcm. H?iCca Jin new jclwellon- w-uurv i cr-iy. *>Ocn'I SiO Jugr^Oe l« mat jduIy. DiriP’s & tovcjuc va' King Iw Hrvite. ron everywhere. "DITer cio-mi Juhr Jl
2QOU. 6 iOC'-B CBllUlW Center