By Dan Hinxman, Reno Gazette-Journal

Golf in Northern Nevada and the Lake Tahoe area is getting cheaper, a clear indication that owners are reacting to the recession.

Many golf courses in the area have lowered their greens fees, in some cases significantly, for the 2010 season. Among the courses that have reduced their rates by 20 percent or more are D’Andrea (from $85-$95 to $69), Dayton Valley (from $70-90 to $40), Kiley Ranch (from $15 to $10), Empire Ranch (from $40-$45 to $27-$32), Nakoma (from as high as $85 a few years ago to $55), Sunridge (from $50-$60 to $40-$50) and Tahoe Donner (from $150 to $120).

Read the whole story

In celebration of National Bike Month, Nevada Division of State Parks is waiving entrance fees May 22-23 for anyone who rides or brings their bike to any of Nevada’s 25 state parks.

This weekend in State Parks is in conjunction with Nevada Bike to Work Day on May 21, and the League of American Bicyclists’ National Bike Month.

More information on bicycling in Nevada can be found at www.BicycleNevada.com or by calling (775) 888.RIDE.

Nevada Division of State Parks participates in the Nevada Bike Advisory Board’s statewide efforts to promote and improve bicycle riding, safety, enforcement, tourism, trails and events.

For more information on bicycling opportunities in Nevada State Parks in Northern Nevada, contact State Trails Coordinator Randy Moore at (775) 684.2775. In Southern Nevada, contact Rick Keller at (702) 875-4141, or visit www.parks.nv.gov.

By Kathryn Reed

Dave Borges says he never made it to the elite category in wrestling. That changed Saturday night when he received the Lifetime Service Award from the state Wrestling Hall of Fame.

“Dave is being recognized because of his long years of dedication and work and community service mindedness within the wrestling arena,” said John Taylor, who nominated Borges for the honor. “He has just given a lot of his time and efforts.”

Taylor also credits Borges for training referees in California and Nevada.

Dave Borges

Borges was one of 11 people to receive the Lifetime Service Award at the May 15 dinner in Sacramento before hundreds of people. The actual hall of fame is in Clovis.

He is one of the younger inductees. He also got in on the first ballot.

For 43 of his 56 years Borges has either been a competitor or a coach. And most of that time on the mat has been in South Lake Tahoe.

“The thing that stands out for me is my teammates along the way. Even today, (Taylor) who nominated me, I wrestled in the early ’80s and we are still great friends,” Borges said.

He said there is a camaraderie that grows as wrestlers compete, along with respect and lifelong attachments.

Although Borges has fleeting thoughts of competing in the senior circuit, he admits the sport is now a hobby and not a vocation.

“I’ve had desires to compete in (senior nationals), but then I see who is on the list. They are tough,” Borges said. “I keep it in proper perspective.”

Some of the guys still competing have day jobs, like being a Marine, that are more conducive to competing regularly. Borges is a chiropractor by trade.

It was his older brothers who got him interested in wrestling when he was a seventh-grader at what was South Tahoe Intermediate School. They competed, so then he did. So did the youngest Borges brother.

It was at South Tahoe High School that he developed his skills that allowed him to compete at the university level. A hand injury prevented him from wrestling his fourth year at Pacific University in Oregon.

He calls himself an above average wrestler who could hold his own against the elite wrestlers back in the day.

As an amateur he wrestled in Japan and Korea.

“There’s no money in wrestling. There are no sponsorships,” Borges said. “A lot of top guys in mixed martial arts have a wrestling background.”

Now Borges’ emphasis is coaching kids, mostly ages 5-12.

“We have some tough wrestlers,” Borges said of the youths on the South Shore.

They have a tough coach – a hall of famer, now.

By Robert Mladinich, Sweet Science

Although super middleweight Simon Ruvalcaba has an outwardly nominal record of 4-10-2, he has a master plan to put himself on the fistic map. Fighting out of his native Lake Tahoe, which is located on the California/Nevada border, the 31-year-old journeyman would like to put together a few wins before taking on Joey Gilbert, a star of season one of “The Contender,” who hails from nearby Reno.

“We would sell out the outdoor arena at the Montbleu, which used to be Caesar’s Tahoe,” said Ruvalcaba. “It would be the thrill of a lifetime, and it would be my biggest payday.”

Simon Ruvalcaba

In July 1989, when Ruvalcaba was all of 11-years-old, he was in the audience when future heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield stopped Adilson Rodrigues in two rounds there.

He was also present for the 1990 HBO tripleheader featuring Pernell Whitaker, Meldrick Taylor and Hector “Macho” Camacho in separate bouts, as well as for Lennox Lewis’s heavyweight title defense against Henry Akinwande in 1997.

Read the whole story

Spring will be around the Lake Tahoe Basin for the weekend, with highs in the mid- to high 60s.

But cover anything up you don’t want to get wet because rain is in the forecast for the early part of next week.

So much water exists that a kayaker has a lagoon to paddle through before reaching Trout Creek on May 14. Photo/Kathryn Reed

And the temperature is expected to drop at least 10 degrees on Monday and Tuesday from the weekend highs.

The National Weather Service is calling for a chance of showers for most of next week.

The Tahoe Rim Trail Association still has spots left in its 165-Mile Segment Hiking Program for the summer.

In the 165-Mile Segment Hiking Program participants will hike one section of the Tahoe Rim Trail every week for a total of nine day hikes or seven day hikes and a backpacking trip.

All hikes are guided by our fully trained and competent volunteer guides, and the hiking group will be composed of the same people every week, so you’ll get a chance forge new friendships and meet hiking partners.

Upon finishing the program you will be inducted into the 165-Mile club, receive a hat, T-shirt and pin, and a lifelong membership number.

The TRTA shuttle will transport you from the ending trailhead to the start of your hike so at the end of the day there’s no need to worry about that extra drive to get back to your car. The $500 membership level for the 165-Mile Segment Hiking Program helps the TRTA in providing educational programs and in letting us maintain and enhance the trail as our mission requires.

Sign up now for your Segment Hike experience in 2010. The hikes start on either June 18 or June 19 and finish with the backpack on Aug. 13-15th or the last day hike on Aug. 21.

Space is limited.

For more information or questions, call Mila at (775) 298.0238 or e-mail programs@tahoerimtrail.org.

By Jeff Delong, Reno Gazette-Journal

Late-season storms add to the mountain snowpack and regional water supplies but as temperatures rise this week, folks should notice some other changes.

Creeks and rivers will rise. Melting snow will translate to rushing water which will become a muddy brown.

Melting snow in higher elevations should have rivers peaking May 31. Photo/Kathryn Reed

“It should start ripping by this weekend, I would think,” said Dan Greenlee, a federal hydrologist and snow surveyor.

Monday’s storm, particularly strong for mid-May, dropped more than a foot of snow in parts of the Sierra. The Lake Tahoe Basin’s snowpack Wednesday was 132 percent of average for the date.

Read the whole story

The Tahoe Rim Trail Association is still building new trail. Join the TRTA at 6:30pm on May 19 at REI in Reno for a presentation by the TRTA.

Learn how to become a trail steward. As a volunteer you will learn new skills, meet like-minded people, and give back to your community trail system. No experience is necessary.

Workdays are every Saturday, Tuesday, and Thursday (9am-4pm) throughout the spring/summer.  The Rim to Reno Trail System and The Daggett Trail System will be discussed. Check out www.tahoerimtrail.org for more info.

Celebrate the start of Lake Tahoe’s trail season by volunteering to build trails, or participate in a family fun hike on June 5 starting at 9am.

The Tahoe Rim Trail Association event will begin at Van Sickle Bi-State Park off Lake Parkway in Stateline.

To participate, register at www.tahoerimtrail.org or contact Amanda at (775) 298.0239 or trails@tahoerimtrail.org.

The day will start with a morning celebration where the TRTA’s 1,000th member of the 165 mile club will be honored. Then trail building begins.

Volunteers of all skill levels, physical abilities, and ages are welcome. No experience is necessary. All volunteers will receive a free lunch sponsored by REI. After an afternoon of trail building, there will be a volunteer party hosted by Explore Tahoe, at the urban trailhead in South Lake Tahoe.

Bring the family for a fun hike at Kahle Park from 10am-noon for kids from ages 6-12.

This is the second trail building season of a multi-year project which will ultimately connect the Tahoe Rim Trail with the Van Sickle State Park, re-route the TRT off of paved roads, and provide stunning views of Lake Tahoe to more people.

As the only ski and snowboard resort still open at Lake Tahoe, Alpine Meadows Ski Resort will offer $25 all-day adult lift tickets to any guest with a 2009-10 season pass from any other mountain May 14-16 -– the mountain’s final weekend of the ski season.

Guests simply present their 2009-10 season pass at the ticket window to save (limit one ticket per day, per passholder).

With top-to-bottom skiing and riding via Summit Six Express, a mid mountain snowpack of more than 12 feet, and fresh snow this week, Alpine Meadows’ legendary snow is guaranteed to live up to its reputation for offering world-class terrain.

Alpine Meadows received more than 50 feet of snow this winter.

Live music May 15-16

Funky Miracle will perform from the Alpine Meadows Bandwagon from noon to 3pm in the base  area May 15; and Subjek 2 Change will jam for the ski and snowboard season finale May 16.

Annual Mad Cow Downhill

An annual cult favorite, the Mad Cow Downhill beckons all speed lovin’ skiers and snowboarders to wax up their downhill gear for this annual top-to-bottom race. A mass start for one ski division and one snowboard division will be heard by all when the Alpine Meadows ski patrol detonates an avalanche charge to signify the start. Racers can choose whichever descent route they deem fastest from the top of the Summit Six chair all the way to the base lodge. The skier and snowboarder to reach the finish first snag a 2010-11 Midweek Plus Sunday season pass which will hang from the finish line arch. Start time is 2pm.

Entry for the Annual Mad Cow Downhill is free and will take place on the base lodge sun deck. Helmets are required.