No one can escape the Madness

This is a column.

Once it’s gone, it’s gone

While updating my phone it crashed and I lost all of my information. Initially, I didn't think it was such a big deal. I couldn't have been more wrong as I ended up spending most of the day trying to recover all of my lost information. It's really quite scary how much information can be lost in a matter of seconds. On my boat I have ...

Letting go of precious memories

When I was a kid, I used to dig through the family couch for loose change. It's kind of silly now, but that was the fastest way to land cash for me at the time. All that money I came across went straight to the local baseball card store.

A not so fond farewell

Just imagine the dark orange color that comes from a burning basketball jersey, one lit up by brokenhearted sports fans. LeBron James can't.

Whatever happened to roughing it?

A close relative of mine mentioned to me that he was going camping for two days at one of the local lakes. As he began to go through his packing list, he couldn't help to add a few things here and there. Before he knew it, his truck was completely full. He couldn't believe how much stuff he needed for just a few days of camping.

The importance of Brock Lesnar

About a year ago around this time, I wrote about the importance of Brock Lesnar, the UFC heavyweight champion that had the mouth to go along with his pit bull physique. He was a different kind of MMA fighter.

We’re all crazed fans

I've been thinking about this whole NBA free agency thingy. You know, the one that boasts the greatest free agency class in NBA history. There's the possibility of LeBron James, Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh coming together to build a superstar team, and load of other big-time hoop stars that can alter any team into a good one. I've also been thinking about the whole "Twilight" madness and how it relates ...

The perfect family getaway

This past weekend I received a hot tip on a camping location located slightly above Sonora. Being that it was going to be almost 20 degrees cooler up there than in the Manteca, I was open to the idea of spending the day someplace cooler. With my wife and son open to the idea of going for a little trip, we loaded the car with some essentials and off ...

Sharing the World Cup experience with strangers

Inside a downtown Modesto bar, while the customers were indulging in the FIFA World Cup, there was a problem. A major one.

June 23, a day to remember

For me, June 23 commenced shortly after 6 a.m. I was up for soccer. I thought that was all, since I had planned to watch the U.S. men's final attempt to make soccer important with fellow Americans before heading back to sleep. But that wasn't all: June 23, 2010, became one of the most awesomely shocking days in sports history - for the most part. There was also that marathon of ...

Losing sleep for soccer? Not a big deal

It's not natural to wake up around the same time as the sun to watch sports, even for the most diehard fans. To me, sports seem to be more of an after-work affair, an opportunity to share a good time with family and friends either in the living room or at a sports bar, or something like that.

Some of the best sports moments of this past spring season

During the spring, there are seven sports that encompass the lives of many of the area high school students. That means plenty of stories, late-game heroics and heartbreak moments happen during this time. So what I'm about to do won't be easy. Actually, it'll be extremely tough.

Mendonca’s return creates local buzz

Tommy Mendonca will be back in town. Well, sort of. The former Turlock High and Fresno State standout will make another set of appearances near his hometown next week, as the Bakersfield Blaze third baseman - of the Class A Advanced affiliate of the Texas Rangers - will start a three-game series against the Modesto Nuts at John Thurman Field in Modesto starting on Monday. Monday's game starts at 7:05 p.m., with the following games ...

It’s just not fair

What if Gordon Hayward's shot went in? If you were one of the millions who watched Monday night's NCAA Tournament Championship in Indianapolis, you know that Butler's best player was close to achieving immorality if his last-second halfcourt fling didn't bounce off the backboard at the Lucas Oil Stadium and then the rim before landing on the floor. It resulted in another celebration for Duke, a walking national championship trophy. It also resulted in perhaps ...

A look back at local prep sports

Sometimes I like to repeat myself, and I'm going to do just that here: High school sports are the purest form of sports. It really captures what sports are all about -- the passion, the endless hours of practice, the small-town glory. And sometimes the athletes get to showcase their hard work in front of thousands of people or just a few dozen, mostly parents and peers. The effort is all the same.

99 Speedway heats up

This weekend the SRL Spears Southwest Tour Series returns to the New Stockton 99 Speedway for Johnny Brazil/Jackson Rancheria/Teamsters Night. With only four races remaining in the 2012 SPEARS Southwest Tour Series, four drivers have emerged in the battle for the 2012 series championship. Lakeport's Derek Thorn, Jim Pettit II of Prunedale, M.K. Kanke of Frazier Park and Jason Gilbert of Dublin have all built a sizeable cushion in the point standings (141 ...

Better off not knowing

This past weekend while out fishing Clark Fork, I was reminded of the first time I was given an open book test. I remember thinking to myself that it would be easy. I didn't study much because I figured the answers were right in the book, so why study.

Boxing’s Olympic fall

It's no secret that the sport of boxing has experienced a dip in popularity. Public perception of the sweet science has soured as newer generations of fight fans redirect their attention towards Mixed Martial Arts, leaving boxing aficionados to ask why. So what is the problem? Over expensive Pay-Per-View Events, the lack of primetime programming, or the failure to market boxers not named Manny Pacquiao or Floyd Mayweather? The answer to these ...

One last fling with outdoors

As the summer break is winding down it seems like a lot of people - including myself - are attempting to get in one last camping trip before the new school year begins.

Only a day trip away

This past week I went and camped out at Clarks Fork with family and friends. It was a 100 mile one way trip to get there, but well worth the drive.

Don’t be lured in by gimmicks

I was asked recently about a lure that was being advertised through an infomercial. The lure being advertised supposedly was outlawed on certain lakes because of its sure effectiveness. They even had professional anglers promoting the lure as a must-have bait for every angler. Many of the anglers promoting the product were unknown professionals and the lure supposedly caught just about every species of fish.

Fees, fees and more fees

Live or lure, that is the question

I was asked the other day about using live bait and what I thought about using it. I, like most anglers, started out using live bait. A worm threaded on a hook underneath a bobber was all I ever used as a kid. As I got older, I started experimenting with the different live baits and still occasionally will use live bait. I was introduced to using artificial baits one day while fishing ...

Bad spark plug slows Speed down

Although Scott Speed picked up a season's best 25th place finish in last Sunday's Toyota/Save Mart 350 at Sonoma Raceway, it was a bittersweet weekend for the Manteca native as he left his home track thinking that it could have been much better. Speed was just settling in on the second lap of the 110-lap race when he noticed something was terribly wrong with his Leavine Family Racing #95 Ford. He headed for ...

Kokanee up for a good fight

Speed returns to NorCal

There will be plenty of old-fashioned hard nose rubbing and grinding when the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series returns to the beautiful Northern California wine country for 24th consecutive year with the Toyota/Save Mart 350 this weekend at Sonoma Raceway.

Know before go camping

Recently my wife gave me the green light to reserve a campsite for an upcoming camping trip. Being that we have a newborn and a nine year old, choosing where we were going to go was tough. What I found even harder was choosing the right campsite.

Nothing like Valley fishing

Back in 1989 my family moved to Manteca from San Jose. Before then, we would make the trip every weekend to fish mostly the Delta and Lake Amador. I was in my teens at the time, so I didn't mind the drive. Actually, I slept most of the way home but not the way there, I stayed awake for every mile. I actually remember heading over the Altamont Pass thinking to myself that ...

Holmes sputters in Vegas, looks to Sonoma

The 2012 frustrations of Escalon's Eric Holmes continued in last weekend's NASCAR K&N Pro Series West Series Star Nursery "200" at the Bullring at Las Vegas Motor Speedway.

Get in to get organized

Many of us spend a lot of time preparing our boats for our next fishing trip. What always frustrated me was that it seemed like once I was finally on the water, I ended up reorganizing everything that I had spent the day before finding the perfect spot for. This was especially true when fishing out of a smaller boat.