LTEC co-founder Ray Sidney, left, plays with curlers from Austria, Turkey and Brazil. Photo/Provided

Athletes and curling leaders from 34 countries descended on the South Tahoe Ice Arena for a friendly curling event last weekend.

This was the first time World Curling Federation members have visited a United States curling club as part of their congress meeting.

Eight teams of four curlers competed in a modified bonspiel and skills competition. Five curlers from the host Lake Tahoe Epic Curling club took part in the competition, alongside such big name curlers as two-time Olympic gold medalist Cathrine Lindahl of Sweden, and Bent Ånund Ramsfjell, vice president of the World Curling Federation and a member of Norway’s 2002 gold medal-winning men’s curling team.

The visit was part of a weeklong WCF Congress taking place in Reno.

Curling is the fastest growing Winter Olympic sport in the United States. For more information about curling in Tahoe, go online.

The Carson Valley Trails Association is having its annual Hike for Health Trail Adventure Day on Sept. 20.

This year’s event is a multi­location Family Day with a barbecue at the Nature Conservancy’s River Fork Ranch. Interpretive hikes and activities will occur at the River Fork Ranch, Fay ­Luther Trail, Genoa Canyon Trail and Minden Gazebo from 8am-1:30pm. The event is free.

Participants must sign a release and waiver form. A parent or guardian signature is required for participants age 17 and under. No dogs allowed.

The schedule for the day is as follows:

At the Nature Conservancy’s River Fork Ranch on Genoa Lane: ● 8am: Identifying Birds of the Carson Valley Hike led by Jim Woods of Birding Under Nevada Skies. ● 9am-noon: Art Activities and Trail Treasures on­going with Genie Littlebeaver and Joni Jackson, CVTA Board Members. ● 10am: Explore River Fork Ranch by Bike (bring your own bike) led by Norah Gastelum (2­4 miles dirt road) ● Noon-1:30pm  BBQ Lunch ­free to CVTA members, donation requested from non­members.

At Fay­Luther Trailhead on Foothill Road: ● 8am: Forest Mysteries ­ “Bugs and Crud” (1 mile easy) presented by Gene Phillips, Nevada Forestry Tree Health Specialist. ● 10am: Glacier & Earthquakes in Your Backyard. Learn about the geology of the Carson Valley. Led by Peggy Ristorcelli, CVTA member and geologist (1­3 miles/easy­moderate). ● 8-11:30 a.m. Fay Luther Trail Treasures. On­going, self led, using CVTA’s Trail Treasures guide. At Genoa Canyon Trail: ● 8am Genoa Canyon Hike led by Steve Hale, CVTA board member. (4­6.5 miles moderate/strenuous). Meet at Genoa Canyon Trailhead on Carson Street in Genoa.

At the Minden Gazebo: ● 9am: Minden History Walk led by Charlotte Settelmeyer Bass.

For more information, contact Chic and Sue Moxley, 775­.265.­0766, or email info@carsonvalleytrails.org.

By Daniel Fisher, Forbes

Park City Mountain Resort has agreed to pay $17.5 million bond to keep the ski lifts running this year, postponing a showdown with rival Vail Resorts over who will operate one of the nation’s most popular ski areas.

Park City’s owner, closely held Powdr Corp., faced the potential loss of most of its skiable acreage after somebody in the organization mistakenly allowed the company’s $150,000-a-year lease on the mountaintop — arguably Park City’s single most valuable asset — expire in 2011. Vail pounced on the situation last year, signing a $25 million-a-year lease with the neighboring Canyons resort and taking over litigation against Powdr with an eye toward ejecting it from the site and combining the two into a single ski area.

Things didn’t exactly go Vail’s way, however. In an Aug. 27 hearing over the bond, Judge Ryan Harris expressed extreme skepticism over Vail’s claim landowner Talisker was entitled to more than $100 million to protect it against losses from Park City’s continued use of the mountain top. Not only does Park City own the parking areas, base amenities and water supply for snowmaking, but Talisker traded away the development rights on the land so it can be used for little other than skiing.

Read the whole story

A slew of events are on tap for this weekend’s 19th annual Lake Tahoe Marathon.

On Saturday at Pope Beach in addition to the kayak, stand up paddleboard, three swim events, duathon, super hero 5K costume race, the Optimist Club will host the annual Kids Fun Runs.

The kids runs are  free. It is for toddlers to 12 year olds. The age divisions are one year and the distances are appropriate for each age. All the kids get a medal, hot dogs and drink.

Basic time schedule:

8:30am: Kayak and SUP events
9:30am: Swim races with distances of one-half, one, and two miles
10:30am: Optimist Kids Fun Runs (costumes encouraged)
11:15am: Super Hero 5K (costumes encouraged).

For more info, go online.

Zephyr Cove Elementary second-grader Sofie Hansel makes contact with the ball as classmate Aliana McLey watches. Photo Copyright 2014 Carolyn E. Wright

By Kathryn Reed

ZEPHYR COVE – “To be a tennis champion, you have to be inflexible. You have to be stubborn. You have to be arrogant. You have to be selfish and self-absorbed. Kind of tunnel vision almost.” — Chris Evert

The youngsters on the court don’t know yet how true Evert’s words are. They may not even be future champions or even know who won the U.S. Open this year. But they are quick learners based on most of them realizing a forehand is much easier to hit than a backhand.

Zephyr Cove Elementary School students are spending part of this week and next on the courts across the street from their school. Prior to stepping on the court, physical education teacher Brenda Capshaw went over vocabulary, basic skills, and how to hold a racket. Even etiquette was part of the lesson plan. It seemed to pay off. As a group of second-graders walked outside the fence Sept. 9 where a couple people were playing they were super quiet. On the court it was rather orderly as everyone lined up on the service line to be fed balls by Stewart or parent volunteers.

Keiran Born, 7, sends a backhand across the net. Photo Copyright 2014 Carolyn E. Wright

“I’m good at backhand,” exclaimed Keiran Born as a ball whizzed across the net for a winner.

He was the only player interviewed who said he preferred backhand to forehand. Maybe he’s following in Roger Federer’s footsteps. After all, the U.S. Open semifinalist is considered to have one of the best backhands of all time – and it’s not a shot often taught to kids these days.

Like many on the court Tuesday, this was Keiran’s first time to play tennis. Capshaw, who is in her second year at ZCES, said the idea for the tennis program came about from parents. Rackets were secured, balls found and courts donated. Zephyr Cove Tennis Club Foundation, which operates the six courts on Warrior Way at the Douglas County park, donated the court time to the school for the two days of instruction this week, and two that will take place next week.

“Tennis is a sport that can be played at any age, but one that is so much easier to learn as a child,” Carolyn Wright, president of the tennis foundation, told Lake Tahoe News. “While there are so many winter sports for our youth to participate in, tennis is something they can take with them no matter where they live or how old they are.”

Mariana Hernandes returns a ball from parent volunteer Sara Dee. Photo Copyright 2014 Carolyn E. Wright

Aliana McLey is already a convert. She wants to play more than just twice in a two-week period.

“It’s really fun because you get exercise,” Aliana said.

That’s exactly what Capshaw is trying to achieve – getting kids to be active.

“Our curriculum is based on a wellness program, physical fitness, getting them to move, and off the phone and video games,” Capshaw told Lake Tahoe News. “Students who jump and get out use the same part of the brain as when they are reading, so active kids tend to be better readers than students who are sitting.”

But she is the only PE teacher for the K-6 school. Students receive a minimum of 45 minutes of physical education each week. (Capshaw also teaches art, music, and the gifted and talented program.) While there is still recess in schools, students today are less inclined to organize kickball or handball games. More of them are just sitting around, Capshaw said. That is why PE has become more relevant for this generation.

“Getting PE back in schools is not just about sports, but more of an education about your body, moving it, keeping it healthy in fun ways through games and sports,” Capshaw said.

Sofie Hansel is a believer in putting what is learned at school into practice in real life. She had played tennis a couple times before, as evidenced by her ability to adeptly connect her junior-size racket with the fuzzy ball. The best part for her was getting to hit ball after ball. She said it makes her want to play more.

If the adults involved in the tennis program have anything to do with it, Sofie and her classmates will find themselves at Zephyr Cove Tennis Club on a regular basis.

By Hudson Sangree, Sacramento Bee

The catastrophic collapse in real estate prices that started in 2007 left more than a legacy of mass foreclosures in the Sacramento region; it also left vast expanses of newly preserved open space in the Sierra Nevada that the public can use for recreation.

Depressed land prices allowed private conservation groups to snap up thousands of acres, much of which had once been planned for housing. The properties stretch along the Interstate 80 corridor from the crest of the mountains to the town of Truckee, north to the Feather River and south toward Lake Tahoe. The parcels form a quasi-public park system – one owned by nonprofit groups but accessible to the public, mostly free of charge.

“Increasingly, land protected for the public benefit is owned by private charitable organizations,” said Tom Mooers, executive director of Sierra Watch, a Nevada City-based group that’s played a leading role in recent conservation efforts.

The nonprofits’ holdings include the 3,000-acre Royal Gorge cross-country ski resort. Developers paid $35 million for the property at the height of the housing bubble in 2005 and planned to build 950 condominiums and single-family houses. Then the market collapsed, making the arduous task of building atop Donner Summit infeasible.

The Bay Area developers who owned the land were ready to unload it, and conservation groups were eager to buy. They agreed to pay $11.25 million in the summer of 2011, near the bottom of the real estate market.

Read the whole story

The following is an update from Lahontan Regional Water Quality Control Board in regards to dredging on the California side of Lake Tahoe:

• Obexer’s Marina – issued dredging authorization April 23.
• Meeks Bay — authorized dredging May 23; completed, included a beach replenishment.
• Tahoe City — authorized dredging Aug. 8. Had an incomplete application in May so once all the information was gathered they didn’t get approved until August. They have not dredged yet.
• Tahoe Keys Property Owners Association – issued authorization with beach replenishment Sept. 8.
• Tahoe Keys Marina — no applications.

By Hannah Weinberger, Outside

If the reward-based philosophy of the fitness tracking industry hasn’t kept you from skipping workouts, it might be time to try a different approach.

Enter Pavlok, the habit-forming, accelerometer-equipped wearable that won’t let you avoid your goals. The neon-yellow wristband helps track fitness benchmarks and uploads progress to an app. But instead of only rewarding positive behaviors, Pavlok (think Pavlov) is a taskmaster that uses negative reinforcement.

Pavlok users who do what they set out to can earn money and prizes, but as the fitness band’s creators explain on their website, “The carrot isn’t enough—sometimes you need the stick.”

Hit the snooze button twice or skipped the gym? Bluetooth 4.0-capable Pavlok shames you on Facebook by letting friends know you’re sleeping in or slacking off. You can also sync with a buddy and monitor each others progress—if you’ve fallen off the wagon, your friend can remotely shock you or require you to pay a fine.

Read the whole story

By Abigail Wise, Huffington Post

Ascending a cliff, boulder or even an indoor rock wall requires a large amount of physical strength and endurance. Some conquer climbs through nutritious meals and campus board pull-ups. Meanwhile, for some diehard climbers, that endurance was historically powered by canned beans and a wide variety of snacks from the Tioga Gas Mart outside of Yosemite.

But with or without the gas station nibbles, there’s no doubt that climbers know a thing or two about a healthy lifestyle. Here’s how rock climbing helps you lead a happier, healthier life.

Contrary to what many beginners may believe, climbing requires much more than upper-body strength. The success of sending — or completing — a route relies heavily on a long list of physical factors, including intricate footwork, lower body strength and lean muscle mass. Although not often thought of as a common form of cardio, ascending walls is a sure way to get your heart pumping, similar to the way climbing stairs or jogging does. A one-hour climb session can burn well over 700 calories. Plus, tricky maneuvers and lengthy reaches often require developing flexibility that wasn’t there before. To increase bendability, more and more rock gyms are incorporating yoga studios into their facilities.

Read the whole story

The moon from the West Shore on Sept. 7. Photo/Kathryn Reed

Sprinkles have been falling throughout the basin Monday morning.

The National Weather Service in Reno is calling for a 30 percent chance of scattered showers throughout the region for Sept. 8.

Still, the high today is expected to be 75 degrees. Temps are expected to keep rising through the week, with low 80s in the forecast for the end of the week.

With a 10 percent chance of rain showers this evening, it may obscure the full moon. Sept. 8 is the Harvest Moon — so called because it is the closest full moon to the Sept. 22 autumnal equinox.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report