Life lines
Posted on Monday, March 31, 2008
URL: http://www.nwanews.com/adg/Style/221448/
Adventure race The Ozark Challenge Adventure Sprint will begin sometime after a 6 a. m. team briefing Saturday at Byrd’s Adventure Center of the Ozarks. This multi-sport race will range across a 50-mile course through private property and take six to 10 hours. The race will test skills in orienteering, mountain biking, white-water paddling and other activities. Racers can compete as individuals or in teams of two, three or four. Solo racers will pay $ 135; all other racers will pay $ 95 per team mate. All racers must also have membership in the U. S. Adventure Racing Association or buy an $ 8 permit.
Registration is open through Wednesday at (479 ) 667-4066 and online at www. ozarkchal lenge. com. Race-day registration will not be accepted.
Two longer events, a 100-mile Advanced race and a 300-mile Expedition, have been postponed to next year. “On the positive side, our permit process is essentially complete and should easily transfer to a future date,” race director Zen Boulden says on the event Web site. “Postponing will allow adequate time to promote the race and will give participants plenty of time to prepare for an event of this length.”
The adventure center is at 7037 Cass Oark Road in Ozark.
Historic rides Park rangers with the Central High School National Historic Site will lead 7. 2-mile bicycle tours past nine places that played a role in the city’s 1957 civil rights crisis. A map of the route is available under the tour link at www. nps. gov / chsc. Rides will be offered at 2: 30 p. m. April 20 and 27, May 4 and 18, June 8 and 22 and July 6 and 20. All will begin in the parking lot of the Visitor Center, 2120 Daisy Bates Drive. Bring your bike, a helmet and water. More information is at (501 ) 374-1957.
Try lacrosse Hendrix College in Conway plans an afternoon and evening of fun and games Friday to celebrate the last home game in the Warriors’ first season as an NCAA lacrosse team. The Warriors will play Southwestern University (from Texas ) at 7 p. m. Friday, and Friday Night Stix will be a free community event before and after the game. Beginning at 4: 30 p. m. at the new Hendrix College Wellness and Athletics Center, there will be inflatable children’s games and a live broadcast by KLALFM, Alice 107. 7 radio station.
The school’s lacrosse and field hockey teams will let visitors try their hand at the sports. Lacrosse is sort of like soccer but played with long sticks that have net pouches for catching, carrying and tossing a hard rubber ball. Field hockey is like ice hockey, minus the ice.
First Security Bank will provide free food and drinks beginning at 5: 30 p. m., and a 15-minute fireworks display will follow the game.
The center is across Harkrider Avenue from Hendrix in Conway. Women’s weekend
Woolly Hollow State Park’s third annual Women’s Outdoor Weekend (WOW ) promises three days and two nights of educational outdoor fun and fellowship May 16-18.
Participants will practice basic camping skills, nature journaling, beginning bird watching, kayaking and cooking in Dutch ovens. They will hike to find native plants, learn about backpacking gear and build new friendships on a relaxed schedule that allows time to hang out by the pond.
“No matter what your age or experience your journey will begin here,” says park interpreter Julie Lovett, “so come and rejuvenate your soul.”
The $ 95 fee includes all gear, tents and meals. Reservations are available at (501 ) 679-2098 or julie. lovett@arkansas. gov. The park is north of Conway in central Arkansas.
Eat a bug DeGray Lake Resort State Park will teach basic survival skills in a 7-hour workshop April 19. Park interpreter Jason Parrie says the training is for the average hiker, hunter or outdoors enthusiast. Participants will get their hands dirty, he says, and depending on the weather might get wet. They also will eat a bug or two. Participants will create a basic survival kit, which they’ll take home. Ten people will be accepted; the fee is $ 35. He recommends the workshop for ages 10 and older (anyone younger than 18 must be accompanied by an adult ). Topics will include fire building, shelter, signals and water. Brief classroom time will cover survival strategy, first-aid, obtaining water and orienteering. Depending on weather, confidence builders could include kayaking, building a fire while wet, problem solving and eating insects.
The workshop will run from 9 a. m. to 5 p. m., with one hour off in which participants will eat whatever lunch they’ve brought from home. They should also bring a change of clothing.
Registration and more information are at (501 ) 865-2809 or jason. parrie@arkansas. gov. DeGray Lake Resort State Park is north of Interstate 30 near Arkadelphia. The park Web site is www. degray. com.
Hilly Hundred Arkansas Sheriffs Youth Ranches will conduct the 2008 Hilly Hundred bicycle tour at 9: 30 a. m. April 19 on an out-and-back route through Independence, Stone and Izard counties. The tour is aptly named, but riders are invited to turn around at any point they please; so you could ride as few as six miles. The ride will begin at the youth ranch in Bethesda (near Batesville ). The first 32 miles involve rolling hills with a turnaround at a breathtaking overlook. Those who press on will enter a loop that goes through beautiful but challenging climbs. The route includes four rest stops. The ranch will serve dinner afterward, and hot showers will be available. Entry costs $ 20 ($ 25 on the day of the ride ). Riders 18 years old and younger will pay $ 10. More information is at (870 ) 793-6841 and on the calendar at www. wrmccycling. com. Training resumes
The Little Rock Marathon Training Team will soon begin its summer maintenance and base-building programs. Coaches Hobbit and Tom Singleton will conduct an informational meeting for their free running and walking group at 6 p. m. Tuesday.
The group will meet at the University Park Adult Leisure Center, 6401 W. 12 th St. in Little Rock. More information is at (501 ) 626-8296.
Park party Pinnacle Mountain State Park patrons can celebrate the park’s 30 th anniversary from 2 to 4 p. m. Tuesday by eating cake and fl ying kites.
The party will be held in Stuckey Field, a large field on the corner of Barrett Road and Arkansas 300 that’s across from the entrance to the West Summit day use area. Volunteers will direct parking.
Patrons should bring their own lawn chairs, sun screen and kites.
The park is west of Little Rock in Roland. More information is at (501 ) 868-5806.
Name change The Fayetteville Tri-Sport Club is changing its name, dropping the word Fayetteville. The club is for anyone who enjoys swimming, biking and running — or all of those. Members come from around the state. Annual membership costs $ 20 ($ 25 for a family ), which includes discounts at Northwest Arkansas retailers, group workouts at Fayetteville Athletic Club, bicycle rides, runs, swim workouts, e-mail updates, social events, a bi-monthly newsletter, races and a comprehensive online calendar of active recreation. More information is at creelc@swbell. net, (479 ) 444-8188 and www. trisportclub. com.
Rocket 5 K Students and friends of Little Rock Catholic High School for Boys — and their dogs — will turn out April 12 for the fourth annual Rocket 5 K Race and a two-mile doggy stroll. More than 450 runners and walkers are expected to enter. Registration costs $ 20 ($ 15 for eighth-graders and younger ) and is available online at www. rocketalumni. com under News / Events. Race-day registration costs $ 25 and will be accepted beginning at 6: 30 a. m. at the school. The 3. 1-mile race begins at 8 a. m. Dogwalkers can participate in the Zeke and Friends twomile walk at 8: 15 a. m. for $ 20. (Zeke is a German shepherd that helps teach all kinds of life lessons at the boys school. )