Here’s a rundown on some of the sports-related community events taking place in the North Whidbey area.
Central Whidbey Soccer Club
The Central Whidbey Soccer Club is seeking sponsors.
The club offers ways to support the organization through sponsorships.
For more information, contact Amy Briscoe at 929-7829 or albrisco1074@gmail.com. Online sponsorship is available at www.coupevillesoccer.org.
Swim School
Fall swim school registration will be Friday, Sept. 10, beginning at noon.
All levels of swimming are taught from parent/child through adult.
Call 675-7665 for more information.
Registrations are now being accepted for the fall Kidz Love Soccer program.
Classes meet on Saturdays from Sept. 18 through Nov. 6.
Classes are available for parent/child through 10 years old. Fee is $60.
Register at John Vanderzicht Memorial Pool, 85 SE Jerome, or call 675-7665.
Elks Soccer Shoot
All youths ages 13-and-under are invited to participate in the Elks Annual Soccer Shoot at Fort Nugent Park Saturday, Sept. 11, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
There is no charge for participating in this event.
The winner will be eligible to participate in the state finals which will be held later this year.
AAU Basketball Tryouts
The Oak Harbor Cats, an AAU girls basketball team for fifth through eighth graders, will hold tryouts Sept. 13, 14 and 15 from 6 to 8 p.m. at North Whidbey Middle School.
For more information, contact Judie at 320-1057.
Youth Firearm Safety Program
Central Whidbey Sportsmen’s Association, as part of its ongoing Firearms Safety Program, is sponsoring a Youth Firearms Safety Class Sept. 18.
The class is free for all youth ages 8 to 16 who wish to learn firearm safety, proper handling of firearms, sighting, marksmanship, how to read a target and firearm laws. The class also includes firing range instruction and much more. Instruction is provided by retired Island County sheriff’s department firearms instructors.
Each youth must be accompanied by an adult.
The class meets Saturday, Sept. 18, at 9 a.m. and will last until done, approximately 4 p.m. Firearms and ammunition will be provided.
Participants should bring a lunch, including a beverage.
The class will be held at the CWSA clubhouse and range located 2.5 miles south of Coupeville on Safari Street, which is just south of Highway 20 and Morris Road and just north of the Outlying Field. There is a sign on the highway.
If you have questions, please call Rod Mourant at 360-632-0756.
Free Laser Bore
North Whidbey Sportsman’s Association is offering the public a free opportunity to Laser Bore Sight rifles prior to the coming hunting season.
There are a limited number of appointments available Sept. 25 between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Call Frank at 679-0893.
Hunting Meeting
People interested in hunting on NAS Whidbey Island property during the 2010-11 season are required to attend the “One-Stop-Shop” meeting at Crescent Harbor Adventures (marina) on the Seaplane Base Monday, Sept. 13, from 5:30 to 7 p.m.
The meeting will cover on-base hunting permit requirements, hunting areas and base access procedures; after which hunters may register, pay the $13 permit fee and receive permits.
New for 2010, a limited archery-only deer season will be offered on select areas of Ault Field and Seaplane Base for DOD-affiliated personnel only (active duty, reservists, retirees and DOD civilians).
Hunters must have a Washington state hunting license in order to be issued a permit. There are no state license vendors on the installation. Hunters must also present licenses for the species they wish to hunt to acquire a base hunting permit. Civilian hunters may participate in the pheasant release program on the base.
Specific documents required to receive a base hunting permit:
Pheasant hunters: DOD- or state-issued picture identification card or badge and Western Washington pheasant license (with odd/even selection).
Waterfowl hunters: DOD-issued identification card, Washington state small game license, state migratory bird validation and federal duck stamp (attached to your license and signed across the face).
Deer hunters: DOD-issued identification card, Washington state big game license with archery deer option and tag.
Questions may be directed to John Phillips, 257-8873, or the Environmental Office, 257-3914.
Crabbing Closure
Recreational crab fishing will close for a catch assessment in most areas of Puget Sound at sunset on Labor Day, with summer catch reports due by Oct. 10.
Seven areas of Puget Sound will close to crab fishing Sept. 6, including marine areas 6 (eastern Strait of Juan de Fuca), 8-1 (Deception Pass to East Point), 8-2 (East Point to Possession Point), 9 (Admiralty Inlet), 10 (Seattle/Bremerton), 11 (Tacoma/Vashon) and 12 (Hood Canal).
Crabbing in all of those areas will be open the entire Labor Day weekend, Sept. 4-6.
All sport fishers licensed to fish for crab in Puget Sound must submit summer catch reports to the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW) by Oct. 10 – whether or not they caught crab this year.
Crabbers may submit catch record cards to WDFW by mail at CRC Unit, 600 Capitol Way N., Olympia, WA 98501-1091. They can also report their catch online at https://fishhunt.dfw.wa.gov/wdfw/puget_sound_crab_catch.html from Sept. 7 through Oct. 10.
Sport crabbers who continue to crab in areas of Puget Sound that remain open after Labor Day should record catches on their winter catch cards, said Rich Childers, shellfish policy lead for WDFW.
“This fishery is becoming more popular every year, which makes it more important than ever to track the catch as closely as possible,” Childers said. “Catch reports by individual crabbers are a critical part of that effort.”
Crabbers who fail to file their catch reports on time will face a $10 fine when they purchase a 2011 Puget Sound crab endorsement.
Childers noted that this year’s reporting deadline has been extended by more than two weeks to give crabbers more time to file their reports. Those who meet the deadline will be entered in a drawing for one of 10 free 2011 combination fishing licenses, which allow the holder to fish for a variety of freshwater and saltwater species.
Areas of Puget Sound scheduled to remain open after Sept. 6 include:
Marine areas 7S, 7E, and 7N (Bellingham-San Juan Islands), which are scheduled to remain open Wednesdays through Saturdays only, plus the entire Labor Day weekend, closing Sept. 30.
Marine areas 4 and 5 in the Strait of Juan de Fuca and 13 in southern Puget Sound, which are scheduled to remain open seven days a week through Jan. 2.
For more information about recreational crabbing in Puget Sound, see WDFW’s website at http://wdfw.wa.gov/fish/shelfish/crab.
Floatation Use Study
Volunteers are wanted for a life jacket (personal floatation device) observation study.
Washington State Parks, Seattle Children’s Hospital and Harborview Injury Prevention and Research Center are working together to conduct a life jacket observation study in August and September of 2010. Volunteers are needed to observe life jacket use among persons of different ages on boats in Washington waters. One of the observation areas is Cornet Bay.
Volunteers will need to attend webinar or two-hour in person observation training and observe life jacket use for a minimum of two 90-minute sessions at one of 32 sites (which includes Cornet Bay) across Washington.
If you are interested in volunteering to observe PFD usage, please contact Anna Zimmerman at Seattle Children’s Hospital at HYPERLINK “mailto:anna.zimmerman@seattlechildrens.org” anna.zimmerman@seattlechildrens.org or 206-987-6975.
Volunteers will receive $75 or equivalent in life jackets for each 90-minute observation.
Volleyball Officials
The Northwest Board of Volleyball Officials is looking for people interested in officiating women’s volleyball at the high school level.
Officials are needed in the South Whidbey, Coupeville, Oak Harbor and Anacortes areas. There will be training required as well as basic start-up fees.
If interested, please call Lori Olson at 360-966-7039.
Boat Ramp Registration
Crescent Harbor Adventures, the air station’s outdoor recreation and marina facility, recently implemented a vehicle registration system for the boat launch ramp east of the Navy Exchange.
The ramps are open for all and all users must register. The registration must be visible in the windshield of the parked vehicle.
Vehicles with a valid DoD decal may launch for free; others must pay $5.
The launch ramp is available from dusk to dawn. There is no parking on the launch ramp and there is no overnight parking of authorized vehicles, boats or trailers in or around the boat ramp area.
The primary purpose of the new registration system is to track utilization for future improvements and capture demographics information.
Whidbey Island Running Club
The Whidbey Island Running Club, sponsored by the North Whidbey Park and Recreation District, is looking for interested runners to train for the cross country track season.
Interested participants can contact the John Vanderzicht Memorial Pool at 675-7665 or head coach Catie Rodeheffer at 279-2196 to get information on practice times and locations.
North Whidbey Aquatic Club
The North Whidbey Aquatic Club is a competitive swimming program of the North Whidbey Park and Recreation District. It includes swimmers of all abilities and ages from 6 through college.
Tryouts occur Mondays, Tuesdays and Thursdays at the city pool from 4:45 to 5:30 p.m. New swimmers should be able to swim a length of the pool in freestyle and backstroke.
The first two weeks are free.
For more information, please call the pool (765-7665) to speak with head coach Neil Romney or view the team’s website at www.teamunify.com/pnswznwac.
Whidbey News-Times Sports Photos
Sports photographs taken by Jim Woolbright for the Whidbey News-Times are available online for everyone to view and download.
Woolbright’s photos can be found at gallery.me.com/jameswoolbright.
Woolbright generally takes over 100 photographs of the events he attends and would like everyone to have access. He said, “I am a sort of give-the-families-what-they-want kind of guy.”
