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' " I, - /!/ If .r/Av-V mil Wiikw'Sk . Sftg BBS , ■ , l 1 ■ < , ' , 1 1 BBSSBIIIBfllBBIBBBBBB WMpnpm mmhHrhm SïSÆâlSflilSïi Br'S'. SSB.""/;'SB'-BlS ^■i S;illil ûmÊmmWÊm Wia0MmÊ0m litMS ■ v. ' -.7 •• V . V. '• V / : ; • V ■ i. /; • V/.V. V. v V Mil tiMMpfit ismrnàmmmiM' vsbsb : .7bbbb IBB BrT ' jRpSfi ■ r : / V.. 7 r - " ' w ' - ' V '■'■ . ► Che Canabtan Statesman WEDNESDAY, AUGUST 20, 1997 SECTION TWO Mountain Biker is King of the Hill BORN TO RIDE -- Dan Salter, of Courtice, won the Ontario Cup mountain bike racing championship title in his age and event category following a third place finish at the National Championships held in Barrie recently. The 28-year-old rides over 350 kilometres kilometres a week during training. All that riding was put to the test this past weekend when he entered a 24-hour endurance race with a team of three other riders. Training camp for the Bowmanville Streetsville (September 6), and Stouffville Eagles opened this past weekend in Whitby (September 13), before opening the regular as they began preparations for their third season on Sunday, September 21, against season in the Ontario Provincial Jr. A hock- Ajax. ey league. Sunday evenings will serve as the club's Over 40 hopefuls hit the ice at Iroquois regular home night, with three other home Park Arena in Whitby on Sunday for the first official practice of v ;„, WMANV , n the season. This weekend, the team will stage a pair of intra-squad games. The annual Black and White scrimmages scrimmages will be played on Saturday and Sunday beginning at 12:30 p.m. in Whitby. The preseason kicks off with three road games on consecutive nights. The Eagles will travel to Cobourg (August 25), Streetsville (August 26), and Stouffville (August 27). Their first home exhibition game of the season will be on Tuesday, September 4, against Lindsay, at the Recreation Complex. They will also have return encounters with Cobourg (September 4), games on Friday night, and one on Tuesday during the regular season. season. Some home games will be broadcast on Rogers Community 10. In addition to the 15 veterans veterans who are expected to return to the hockey club, manager Mike Lain g is excited about Chad Penney providing some stability in goal this season. Penney, from Courtice, has played the last three season in the OHL for Niagara Falls and Erie. The club is also hoping to sign two other players. One is a big tough forward who played in the OHL last season, The other is a former Jr. C Eagle defence- man during the 1993-94 season, Matt Cardwell. Pie played university hockey on the cast coast last season. by Jennifer Herr Staff Writer Dan Salter describes himself as a "two wheel fanatic". And that description is paying off for the 28- year-old Courtice resident, who, as of last weekend, weekend, brought home the Ontario Cup Mountain Bike Racing championship title in his age and event category. Salter ensured himself of that title August 10, when he came third in the National Championships at Hardwood Hills in Barrie. He was in good company, as the likes of Olympic silver medalist Alison Sydor took to the "sandy, dusty, dirty", trail. Salter added the bronze to an already stellar season, in which he's taken home five, top-five finishes. Although he's always had a two-wheeler of some sort, from a road bike to a motorcycle, Salter just got seriously involved in mountain biking about three years ago. "I needed a lifestyle change," he admits. "I was spending a lot of time in the pub." Egged on by friends, Salter says he started entering races, and was surprised at how well he did. Since then, he's spent a good deal of time with his bike, clocking over 350 kilometres a week in training. In spite of being a mountain biker, Salter does a lot of his training on a road bike. "It's a little easier on the body. The recovery time isn't as long, and it's good for developing cadence. It helps me work on my endurance," says Salter, a case worker with the Region of Durham's Social Services department. Endurance was key for Salter last weekend, as he joined an Elite team for a 24-hour race, also at Hardwood Hills. The race attracts about 1,600 race fanatics, who participate in relay teams throughout the 24-hour period, using battery-powered battery-powered lights through the night. Increased Exposure Salter credits not only last year's Olympic games, but the increased coverage brought about by ESPN's Extreme Games, broadcast here on The Sports Network, for popularizing mountain biking. "It's an up and coming sport. (The television coverage) is bringing younger people into cycling," says Salter, who is sponsored by D'Ornellas Bike Shop in Scarborough. In Durham Region, Salter says there's plenty of opportunity for people to get involved with the sport. Durham Forest in Uxbridge is something something of a "Mecca" for mountain bikers, says Salter. About one race a month is hosted there. And Dagmar has a Wednesday night series of races. Salter takes part as often as he can, though often local races conflict with his extensive training schedule. Last winter, Salter took up cross-country skiing skiing as a form of cross-training. He says he may become competitive at that as well as mountain biking. "It could be the next one," he says with a smile. Athlete and a Scholar Gymnast Alisha Conahan mixes gymnastics gnd schgo[ while on a full scholarship by Chris Rourke Staff Writer BHS graduate Alisha Conahan has completed her sophomore season at Northern Illinois University by accomplishing accomplishing two great feats. Conahan, who will enter her third year this fall at the Dekalb, Illinois, university, was named the team's most valuable player on the gymnastics gymnastics squad. She also made the dean's list in her last semester. She's attending the school on a full gymnastics scholarship, scholarship, double majoring in Physical Education and Sports 'Medicine. She accomplished a 3.75 grade-point average out of a possible four. "It was a really good year for myself, but the team didn't do too well due to a few injuries," Conahan said. Conahan broke the school record on the uneven bars with a near-perfect 9.95 score. She also went to the individual NCAA Regionals, only the fifth ever from her school to do so. Along with the team MVP award and the dean's list, Conahan was named to the NCAA All- American team. She is currently ranked 10th on the bars and 30th on the beam in all of the U.S. Conahan also had to battle through a serious injury. She herniated a disk in her back. "I hope I can stay healthy this year and do as well as I did this past year," she added. "I'm not 100 per cent. I don't know if I ever will be, but it's okay." Conahan, who'll turn 21 in December, leaves tomorrow (Thursday) for school, where she'll start practicing five days a week, four to five hours a day for the 1998 season, which begins in January. Conahan has three more years before she graduates. After graduation she will go to graduate school to get her degree. Alisha Conahan Bowmanvillc's Sommer West will be returning home from the Canada Games in Brandon, Manitoba, with a silver medal as a keepsake. „ Representing Ontario in the women's softball event, the provincial \K/pkC\ fit squad came up short in their bid for gold, losing to British Columbia. V VCol U I Because Ontario waltzed through the round robin undefeated in the dou ble knockout format, British Columbia had to win twice to capture the gold. In the first game, B.C. posted a decisive 11-1 victory, forcing a one- game gold medal final. In the championship game, B.C. prevailed 3-1. v/UI I lyJ The championship games were played on Friday, August 15.