By Gretchen Reynolds, New York Times

Rupturing an anterior cruciate ligament in the knee is a nightmare. As the parent of a teenage son who is seven months out from ACL reconstruction surgery, I can attest to the physical and psychological toll it can take, not to mention the medical bills. But a practical new study suggests that changing how sports teams warm up before practices and games could substantially lower the risk that athletes will hurt a knee, at a cost of barely a dollar per player.

Injuries to the ACL, which connects the tibia and femur and stabilizes the knee joint, are soaring, with an estimated 150,000 cases a year. The ligament is prone to tearing if the knee shears sideways during hard, awkward landings or abrupt shifts in direction – the kind of movements that are especially common in sports like basketball, football, soccer, volleyball and skiing.

Motivated by the growing occurrence of these knee injuries, many researchers have been working in recent years to develop training programs to reduce their number. These programs, formally known as neuromuscular training, use a series of exercises to teach athletes how to land, cut, shift directions, plant their legs, and otherwise move during play so that they are less likely to injure themselves. Studies have found that the programs can reduce the number of ACL tears per season by 50 percent or more, particularly among girls, who tear their ACLs at a higher rate than boys do (although, numerically, far more boys are affected).

Read the whole story

By USSA

SQUAW VALLEY — Tim Jitloff (Reno) brought a crowd of thousands to a roaring crescendo Friday with another masterful performance in Squaw Valley to win his second consecutive Nature Valley U.S. Alpine Championships giant slalom title.

The Olympian, who grew up nearby and raced as a young athlete at the 1960 Olympic resort, captured his second victory in three days at Squaw with a 1.61 margin of victory over Brennan Rubie (Salt Lake City). Fellow Olympian Jared Goldberg (Holladay, Utah) was third, as Olympic gold medalist Ted Ligety (Park City) did not finish the final run.

“It was sketchy in there for a second, but I kept it solid, I kept it safe. When I got down at the bottom here I did charge to make sure I got in there,” Jitloff said. “I just put down two good ones today, two solid ones. I didn’t do anything over the top. Yeah, it was a good day.”

• Caltrans reported that the percent of healthy pavement on the state highway system increased from 75 to 84 percent from 2011 to 2013 – an increase of 4,500 lane miles of smoother pavement.

• According to the Associated Press, “South Korea said a consortium of Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment and Indonesia’s Lippo conglomerate has received a preliminary license to build a casino-resort near the country’s largest airport, stepping up competition among Asian countries to lure Chinese tourists.” Caesars is the parent company of Harrah’s Lake Tahoe and Harveys.

• South Lake Tahoe is working to make codes less confusing to business owners. There will be two workshops for the public to give input — April 2 and May 7 from 5:30-7pm at Lake Tahoe Airport.

• Diamond Peak Ski Resort was awarded three Gold ADDY awards for its website.

• The Bicycle Advisory Committee of the South Lake Tahoe Recreation Facilities Joint Powers Authority will meet April 4 from 9-11am in meeting room adjacent to the City Council Chambers at Lake Tahoe Airport.

By Nextgov

Facing international pressure, the U.S. government has agreed to give up control over important technical aspects of the Internet.

The Commerce Department will no longer oversee the Internet Corporation of Assigned Names and Numbers, a nonprofit group that manages the Internet’s address system.

Larry Strickling, the assistant secretary of Commerce for communications and information, said the “global Internet community” will have the final say over the database of names and addresses that allows computers around the world to communicate with each other.

The Internet was invented in the United States, and the country has long maintained a central role. But as the Internet has grown, other countries have demanded a greater voice in its governance.

Edward Snowden’s leaks about the National Security Agency’s mass-surveillance programs have exacerbated resentment over the central role of the United States in managing the Internet.

Read the whole story

By Cathy Locke, Sacramento Bee

A Nevada man is in El Dorado County jail, accused of attempted murder after he allegedly held a gun to a teenager’s head and threatened to kill him.

Sheriff’s deputies responded to the 2900 block of Spruce Street in Pollock Pines on Wednesday evening regarding a report of shots fired and people arguing about a gun.

Read the whole story

The Spring Caregiver Series 2014 is series of six-week classes designed to assist caregivers of all stages, while providing professional knowledge on aging related topics. The classes will begin April 7 and will continue for six concurrent Mondays.

The classes will take place at Lake Tahoe Resort Hotel in South Lake Tahoe.

For more info, call 530.621.6151.

Nevada Department of Wildlife is looking to regulate collecting the trophies to protect deer and elk populations. Photo/Tim Torell/Nevada Department of Wildlife

By Sean Whaley, Las Vegas Review-Journal

CARSON CITY — There’s gold in them thar antlers, and as a result, the Nevada Department of Wildlife is looking at regulating the growing practice of “shed hunting” to protect the state’s deer and elk populations.

Deer and elk shed their antlers every winter and collecting them has become a lucrative pastime for some and an outdoor recreational activity for others.

The antlers are used in a variety of ways, including as chandeliers, furniture or other decorative items.

Read the whole story

Bruce Rettig of Meyers is going skiing soon at Sugar Bowl with a friend or family member because he is one of Lake Tahoe News’ paid subscribers.

On occasion paid subscribers receive special benefits. He happened to win the contest Thursday. The reward was two day passes to Sugar Bowl.

It’s fast and easy to fill out a paid subscriber form.

Here are reasons to do so:

“I’m a paid subscriber because LTN is my daily source of what’s happening in my world. I feel informed and ready for my day, when I read what’s posted every morning. In addition, LTN is my conduit of fun. It’s my source for all the events happening in and around Tahoe.” — Denise Haerr

“The LTN we read every morning at home or on the road.” — Les Wright

Lake Tahoe News needs paid subscribers for two reasons — 1. It’s required by law to keep our adjudication so we may publish legal notices. You may have noticed earlier this year we added a category at the top of the home page called Legals. El Dorado County Superior Court in November deemed Lake Tahoe News an adjudicated publication; 2. Cash flow keeps us in business. It’s as simple as that. We have advertisers who we are thankful for, but we rely on readers as well.

— Lake Tahoe News staff

Douglas County is looking to have Larry Werner be the interim county manager when Steve Mokrohisky leaves in April.

The commissioners on March 20 directed staff to work out a contract with Werner. Werner retired last year as manager of Carson City. He is also a former public works director for Douglas County.

Peckham & McKenney has been hired as the recruiting firm. The process is expected to take four to six months.

The salary range for the next county manager will be between $135,000 and $185,000. The low end is more than Mokrohisky is currently making.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

More rabid skunks have turned up in El Dorado County. The number is at seven.

“While it isn’t unusual to find animals that test positive for rabies in California, the reporting seems early and the activity higher compared to previous years for our county. We aren’t sure if more skunks are active due to the dry winter or we are simply seeing increased reporting by the public,” Alicia Paris-Pombo, El Dorado County health officer, said in a statement.

Since the beginning of the year, two rabid skunks were found in Pollock Pines, one in Shingle Springs, three in Garden Valley and one in the Pleasant Valley area. Animal Services is not aware of any human contact with any of the skunks.

Rabies activity has varied from year to year in El Dorado County. Confirmed reports of rabid animals have included:

• 2013, one bat and one skunk
• 2012, one bat and five skunks
• 2011, three bats and three skunks
• 2010, two bats and five skunks
• 2009, two bats, two skunks and two foxes.

Historically, most of the rabid animals have been on the West Slope, with smaller numbers reported in the South Lake Tahoe area.

The following precautions should be taken to prevent the spread of rabies:

• Maintain current rabies vaccinations for dogs, cats and livestock
• Keep property free of garbage, stored bird seed and left over pet food to avoid attracting wild animals; keep pet doors closed at night to avoid entry of wild animals into the home
• Do not approach, pick up, feed or handle unfamiliar dogs, cats or wild animals
• Do not approach an animal that appears to be sick or is acting aggressively; report it to Animal Services
• Do not handle a dead animal with bare hands
• Call Animal Services if you see an animal that exhibits signs of rabies (such as staggering, confusion and/or aggressive behavior)
• Notify Animal Services immediately of any person or domestic pet that is bitten or potentially exposed to a rabid or suspected rabid animal
• Report any exposure to bats; bats are one of the most frequent carriers of rabies in California.

Animal Services staff may be reached at 530.573.7925.