Recreation & Sports

The Wilmington Trails Committee is hosting a trail event Saturday, September 27th (Rain date September 28th). The hike will be two of Wilmington’s newer trails: The Shearer Hill Trail and the Raponda Primitive Trail.

Everyone is invited to meet at 10 AM at the entrance to the Shearer Hill Trail, which is at the field on the left hand side of Shearer Hill Road in Wilmington just before you come to the Marlboro Town Line which is at the intersection of Grant Road. You will see vehicles parked along the road. More information about the route will be provided once everyone gathers at the start. The hike will begin at 10:30am.

The Walpole Wild Blue and the Claremont Cardinals kept their hopes alive for for a first place regular season finish in the Connecticut River Valley Baseball League with victories in their most recent games. The team they are chasing, the undefeated Putney Fossils, return to CRVBL action this weekend.

The defending champion Claremont Cardinals beat a shorthanded Walpole Maples team, 13-1 at Barnes Park in Claremont. Veteran pitcher Mike Wells, kept the Maples off balance all day with an assortment of scuffed fastballs and doctored curves. Wells threw 6 strong innings, allowing one run on three hits, with 6 strikeouts. He also helped himself by starting a nifty double play to stop a possible rally in the 4th inning. The offense was paced by the four hit and five RBI performance of Mr. Nate Duford. Todd Bersaglieri raked three hits and Andrew Sullivan had two more.

After a break over the Independence Day weekend, six of the seven town teams in the Connecticut River Valley Baseball League return to action next Sunday, each of them hoping to gain ground on the undefeated Putney Fossils. The Fossils enjoy another week off after running off nine straight victories to start the season. Regular season play will end in early August with two weeks of playoffs to determine the winner of the 2014 CRVBL Cup.

The Putney Fossils remain undefeated in the Connecticut River Valley Baseball League after a doubleheader sweep of the Sunapee Old Lakers, while in other local adult baseball action, the Claremont Cardinals defeated the Brattleboro River Rats, while the Walpole Wild Blue came out on top of its crosstown rival, the Maples.

Putney took the first game of its twin bill by a 6-3 score with RIchard Bissell picking up a complete game win, and Keith Lyman driving in a pair of runs while going two for three at the plate. In the second game, the Fossils romped to an 18 – 6 win that featured a monster offensive performance from Kyle Whitworth who went four for four, including a home run and five runs batted in. Danny Lichtenfeld earned the victory on the mound.

WALPOLE, NH – The Putney Fossils continued their winning ways Friday night, June 6 with a 7-2 victory over previously undefeated Walpole Wild Blue at Hubbard Park.

Hard throwing Fossils right-hander Danny Lichtenfeld was masterful on the mound, scattering six hits and three walks over eight innings while fanning six and allowing no earned runs. Bob “Bullet” Englehart pitched a perfect ninth to close out the game.

In the only game on last weekend’s Connecticut River Valley Baseball League schedule, the Claremont Cardinals shut out the Sunapee Old Lakers, 9 – 0. All eight teams in the region’s adult baseball league return to action this weekend.

Jon Nicholas picked up the complete game win for the Cardinals, giving up four hits while striking out eight. Nicholas was also the team’s offensive star, going four for four, driving in a run and scoring twice.

WALPOLE TEAMS SWEEP CRVBL WEEKEND GAMES

It was a great weekend for the town of Walpole in the Connecticut River Valley Baseball League, as the town’s two CRVBL teams were winners in the most recent league action.

The Walpole Wild Blue remained undefeated and tied with the Putney Fossils for the league lead, as the Wild Blue cruised to a 25-1 victory over Keene in a game played at Dummerston Field. Pitcher Ryan Kohler struck out 9 in four innings to get the win, while going three for four with four runs batted in at the plate. Other offensive stars included Jamie Spence, who went four for four with six RBI, Gary Dennis, who went three for five with four runs scored, and Chris Ballou, who crossed the plate six times.

Have you seen the rowers on the West River this spring? Brattleboro Outing Club’s RowBOC and the Putney Rowing Club have teamed up to offer a Learn to Row Clinic and they are still accepting novice rowers.

Meet other new rowers learning to row under the expert instruction of Tim Whitney, Grahame King, Thom Collins and Kristin Dawley. Clinic sessions take place on the West River and the Connecticut River at both rowing clubs.

The Putney Fossils moved to the top of the Connecticut River Valley Baseball League standings with its second victory, while the Newport Polar Bears picked up their first win of the year in the most recent CRVBL games.

Putney relied on strong pitching by Danny Lichtenfeld and Richard Bissell, to beat the Claremont Cardinals 6 to 4. Offensive contributions were team-wide for the Fossils with Chris Jensen collecting two RBIs and Steve Kapral, Steve Stanley, and newcomer Chris Larro each collecting a hit and two stolen bases respectively. For Claremont, Jon Nicholas banged out three hits and scored a pair of runs, while John Grainger collected two hits and drove in two runs.

The Connecticut River Valley Baseball League got its 2014 season underway as the league champion Claremont Cardinals started their title defense with a 7 to 2 win over the Brattleboro River Rats at Dummerston Field. All eight town teams in the league are scheduled for games this weekend at locations in New Hampshire and Vermont.

Brattleboro, VT–Families, friends and teams from work are invited to celebrate the 33rd Annual Bowl for Kids’ Sake to benefit Youth Services’ Big Brothers Big Sisters program on Saturday, April 5. The fundraising event will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with teams signing up for a one-hour time slot at Brattleboro Bowl on Putney Road.

The 4-5 p.m. time is reserved for teams of teens and “Bigs and Littles” and will have a special “Cosmic Bowling” atmosphere. The financial goal of the event is to raise $65,000 in pledge money and business sponsorship to help cover the cost of running the Big Brothers Big Sisters program.

Last year the inaugural Tulip Trot 5K had over 250 enthusiastic runners and walkers. Please help us make this year’s event even bigger and better! Come out rain, mud and/or shine and support the Green Street School PTO while you walk or run down neighborhood streets and scenic woodland trails. Let’s get out and moving to celebrate the springing of spring!

The fourth annual is set for Sunday, June 8, 2014. The Tour is a set of scenic farm-to-farm bicycle rides tailored to most levels of ability, with 15-mile, 30-mile and 60-mile routes. There is also a five-mile walking option.

This year, organizers have added two new routes, 15 and 30 miles in length, both designed to be suitable for beginner to intermediate riders with moderate skills and strength. Both of these rides include rolling hills on paved roads, and a long stretch of relatively level dirt road along the Green River.   

All of the routes begin and end at Lilac Ridge Farm in West Brattleboro, and feature incredible views, farm and woodland terrain, New England villages (one with a covered bridge), and much more.

The tour is part of the annual Strolling of the Heifers Weekend, which takes place June 6-7-8 in the heart of New England — Brattleboro, Vermont. The centerpieces of the weekend are the world-famous Strolling of the Heifers Parade and the Slow Living Expo, both on Saturday, June 7. Come for the Parade and Expo, and stay for the Tour!

My personal interest in Cameroon goes all the way back to 7th grade, when I had to write a report on this west African country. Ever since then, I have kept up on the news on Cameroon, and that includes their world cup team, the Indomitable Lions. , this year they are combining the famous German defensive love of precision, with the fast run and attack strategic style more commonly adopted by African teams. The combination is proving powerful.

Competition Slated for February 15 and 16 in Brattleboro, Vermont

BRATTLEBORO, VT. – The Harris Hill Ski Jumping Competition slated for February 15 and 16, 2014 in Brattleboro, Vermont will feature more than 40 of the world’s top jumpers from the US, Europe and Canada. One contender is Chris Lamb of the Andover Outing Club, who won the 2010 and 2013 Harris Hill competitions and holds the hill record for the longest jump, 335 feet. Lamb says he’s looking forward to competing at Harris Hill and retiring the Fred Harris Trophy. The Fred Harris Trophy has only been retired five times.

Lamb is only one of a number world-class jumpers who have competed at Harris Hill—some as recently as last year. Of the recently announced male members of the U.S. Olympic ski jumping team all have competed at Harris Hill. This includes Nick Alexander, Nick Fairall, Peter Frenette and Anders Johnson.

Club and Tournament Scrabble is more than just a pastime.  Like chess and bridge, it is played as a competitive sport all over the English-speaking world.  Brattleboro is fast becoming a hotbed of Scrabble players, with a weekly club session and a developing group of friends who take the game seriously (while alllowing room for laughter and orientation of newbies.  

Like any competitive game, there are fundamentals and preparation involved with becoming a top player.  I am committed to promoting the game and to helping folks who wish to dive more deeply into the fascinating world of club and tournament play to improve their skills and become a part of this vibrant community. 

A Scrabble Club meets every Thursday night beginning at 6:00 PM at the Marlboro College Grad Center on Vernon Street.  We are an eclectic group of word nerds who play the game as it is played in a tournament setting, yet value and support newcomers in their exploration of Scrabble beyond the dining room table or cell phone.  

If I’ve piqued your curiosity and you don’t mind finding out how much you DON’T know about Scrabble, we invite you to bring that curiosity along with your sense of humor to our club.  

Here’s a story about a project underway in China to build the world’s largest skatepark.

The size of four football fields.

Iyengar Yoga classes start this week in Brattleboro and Saxtons River, taught by veteran teacher Chris Beach. Chris has been practicing Iyengar Yoga for 27 years and teaching for 16 years. He has studied in Pune, India, with the Iyengar family four times and is a student of a wide range of senior teachers including Patricia Walden, Manouso Manos, and Gloria Goldberg. He is certified at the Intermediate Junior III level.