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20- PORT PERRY STAR - Tuesday, July 7, 1998 "Scugog's Community Newspaper of Choice" se ---- i STAR IO) YN SIDIEIESY bos eth ed Se At Large.. Port Perry's Todd Healey takes a look at today's world of sports White Field Boss were burning up the track at the PLOW WOW: Pro- Modified smokers like this - annual Blackstock Tractor Pull last weekend. John RIK DAVIE / PORT PERRY STAR stock 4x4's. The alcohol-fueled equipment roared through their runs and thrilled the crowd with their 800-plus horsepower pullin rails. Earle Trewin did Frey of Nestleton took the first place prize for what he does best, he and his Allis won handily. Ld From Corner Five Title chase open as Hanley handed an Indefinite suspension from Mosport By John "Wally" Nesbitt Special to The Star Jeff Hanley will not win the Mosport Late Model title this year. The disgusting and disturbing on- track antics of the two-time and defending series champion two weeks ago have resulted in an indefinite suspension for the Georgetown resi- dent. On the plus side, the title chase has now become a whole lot more interesting. Points leader West Lee Talons padded his advantage by taking the first heat race with local driver Grant Edwards in his Vital Signs Chevy Monte Carlo matching the feat in the second of the 10 lap dashes. Sixteen cars took to the track for the 20 lap feature with Port Perry's Edwards jumping into the lead at the green flag. The race's only caution flag flew six circuits later when Bill Kendry looped his Lumina in turn three, bunching up the field. On the restart, West Lee Talons powered past Edwards coming out of the sec- ond corner and drove on to a three car length victory. Edwards held on for second place ahead of a challeng- ing Ian Bourque. Talons maintains his overall points lead with Bourque and Newcastle's Jamie Hale in a virtual tie for second spot. Port Perry's Edwards sits comfortable in fourth place, a scant four points back. In Saturday's ThunderCar fea- ture, Craig Perry crossed the line in first place, but a technical infraction in the Dodge Challenger resulted in disqualification for the Whitby driver, handing the win to Orono's Shawn Hardy. Joe Anderson, Fred Travis, Terry Shaw and Dave Crowther fol- lowed Hardy to the checkers. Heat victories were scored by Roy Martel, Larry MacKenzie, Les Stanley and Crowther. The Motor City's Duke Paul has been out of racing for three years, but the rust has obviously scraped off very easily. Paul, in the purple #65, claimed one heat win and then led the field from green to checkered in the inci Turn to Page 22 4 Spring i vs The Auto Specialist. Report or score not sent in by Auto Specialist coach. In a close 14-12 game Tyrone just slipped by Wotten Hammerheads. Tyrone was led by Shawn Johnson with two hits and two RBIs, Johnny 'T'Flute pitching a great game and Katie Hartford having a great defen- sive game. Wotten bats were hitting hard with Katrina Wotten hitting a triple with two RBIs, Kyle Driscol hitting a home run and Tyler Watson playing a great defensive game. Cartwright Minor Ball report Tyrone slips by Wotten in a 14-12 squeaker Mite Overridge Flames burned by Spanky's Haulage on the bat of Brian Jensen with a grand slam, triple and seven RBIs while team- mates Dustin Parker and Travis Burton provided the strong pitching to lead the team to a 20-8 victory. Spanky's defense was provided by Sean Taylor who caught four pop flys. Nathen Evans with one fly ball and Erin Lang pitching one good inning. Shaw Industrial slipped by United Church Saints by a 13-6 score. Shaw was led by Justyn Kennedy and Rina Prendergast both hitting a home run and'single while teammate Shannon Perry played a strong game as the catcher. The Saints played on the bats of Josh Novak with a home run and two RBIs, Jamie Lee Martin hitting a home run and Jamie Novak's sparkling defensive play. Squirt In what could have been a good rain shortened game between Marlin Travel and Swain Seed Sluggers Turn to Page 22 Golf: A Wasted Walk? Of golf, Mark Twain, an avid golfer, once wrote, "a good walk spoiled," thus rendering perhaps the most succinct epithet ever uttered concerning this madden- ingly endearing and wildly popular game. Given that most golfers at some point have experienced the same club-throwing, blue-aired vexation as Twain, what umbilical cord has golf tethered to our hearts that keeps us coming back en masse to the course? It is our staunch belief that maybe today we'll break 100, or that like a pipe-dream lottery winner we'll drain an ace? Maybe, but these kinds of challenges can be attributed to any game and are not indigenous simply to golf. No, the answer lies, I believe, in the game's def- inite lack of barriers. The young, the old, men, women, it matters little to the golfing Gods, if you can grip it, you can rip it. Think of it this way; unlike most sports, time is of no constraint, unless daylight is waning or you're a doctor and your beeper goes off on the 12th green while playing behind a foursome whose youngest member invented the wheel. As well, unlike most sports, golf has few boundaries on the playing field. "Granted, the holes which border the course's perimeter are out of bounds, but that still leaves approximately 100 acres with which to plunder. Mind you, the penalties for such forays can be severe, but many golfers feel they haven't gotten their monies worth if they didn't "see the whole course." And for beginners, the game is very user-friendly, which is to say that your game improves rapidly with each successive round. But the real kicker, the main attraction is this: golf is a remarkably a physical game, requiring repetition and mental preparation to become adept and not the physical strength, endurance, and exertion required for other sports. Ever watch the pro golfers on the PGA tour? Not exactly the stereotypical physical speci- mens of the athletic profession are they now? They more resemble well-dressed stand-ins for The Full Monty than jocks, and while the naysayers will point to portly pro athletes from other sports such as Cecil Fielder, Oliver Miller, or William "The Refrigerator" Perry, these are the exceptions and not the rule. And besides, the Fridge was a two-sport athlete initially recruited for basketball and even at his heaviest playing weight, could dunk a basketball, while the only thing Craig Stadler has ever dunked is a doughnut. And for the 40-somethings, the story gets better. Consider that at the pinnacle of pro sports, the age. bracket of 35 to 40 is deemed the death knell for athletes, a time when the bloom is off the rose and age is eroding the skills that got them to the pro ranks. But not so in golf. In fact, golfers are considered to be in their prime at 40 with the best yet to come. Not a particularly ringing endorsement for the physical necessity of the game is it? So with all the barriers that other sports impose upon their players basically devoid in golf, what's not .to love about the game? The only barriers at the grass- roots level are self-imposed and those can be modified at whim, with "Mulligans" and "gimmes" allowing the player to do what cannot be done in other sports or life for that matter: play it over. And speaking of love, Freud put forth the notion that golf's appeal lay in the nature of it's equipment, in that the clubs represented phallic symbols, but I don't know, sometimes a putter is just a putter. A good walk spoiled? Yeah, but at least it was a good walk. See you on the links. Todd Healey is a life-long Port Perry resident who will be offering his thoughts on sports on a regular basis in The Port Perry Star. You may recognize him from his Parks and Rec position at the Scugog Arena or as a contributor at other local papers over the years. Today is Todd's first day touching on a cornucopia of local and abroad sporting events. Welcome aboard Todd. | LN I ET ET