Sports

A professional wakeboarder performs a wild stunt on Emerson Lake in Susanville during last year’s Rock the Wake. This year the event will take place Saturday, June 22 and will feature more wakeboarders, more crazy stunts and one of the most impressive wakeboarding boats in existence.

Lassen County’s Eagle Lake offers fun in the sun for fishermen, boaters, swimmers, water skiers, wakeboarders and those just looking to get outdoors and enjoy some beautiful scenery.  File photos

June 19 — Looking to have some fun this summer? Lassen County is the right place to get out and about and enjoy the sunshine. With an immense amount of outdoor activities and a full schedule of events planned, Lassen County residents have no excuse to be bored this summer. Take a look at some of the events taking place throughout the coming months and recreational activities available:

Fishing

Anglers in Lassen County have lots of options when it comes to great fishing spots.

Eagle Lake opened its fishing season over Memorial Day weekend and, despite low lake levels, is seeing trout reeled in left and right. Located only about 16 miles outside of Susanville, Eagle Lake boasts trophy-size trout and beautiful scenery. While most famous for its trout, Eagle Lake is home to other species, such as tui chub, Tahoe sucker, Lahontan reside and speckled dace. Fishing licenses can be obtained at the Eagle Lake Marina.

Crater Lake is approximately a 50-minute drive out of Susanville and provides a smaller, more secluded environment where fisherman can enjoy reeling in rainbow trout.

Silver Lake also offers quiet and solitude for those looking to get away from it all. Silver Lake is about an hour drive out of Susanville. 

Boating

Despite lake levels being low, boats are still able to launch from the ramp at Eagle Lake’s marina, allowing them the opportunity to reel in fish and enjoy sunny days on the water. Looking to get out of the boat and into the water? Eagle Lake allows swimming, wakeboarding and water skiing.

Non-motorized boats can also launch at Silver and Crater lakes. Boaters should keep in mind Silver and Crater lakes are smaller — Silver Lake is 98 acres and Crater Lake is 5 — and the boat ramps are primitive.

Bike the Bizz

From now through October 19, the Bureau of Land Management, Lassen Land and Trails Trust and members of the Susanville Area Bicycle Association are partnering to provide a shuttle to local trailheads on the first and third Saturday of each month for riders and their bikes. Along with the shuttle, the organizations are offering to support bikers in having their perfect outdoor adventure. Participants can get advice on which trails will suit their skill levels, how far specific trails will take riders and much more information on biking the local trails.

Check-in for the shuttle is at 8 a.m.

Riders can get more information or register for Bike the Bizz by calling the Lassen Land and Trails Trust office at 257-3252.           

Geocaching

Geocaching is a recreational activity that combines technology with the great outdoors to create a thrilling adventure for people of all ages, backgrounds and interests. Geocaching is a modern day treasure hunt that uses GPS devices as a treasure map.

What do you need to go geocaching? Access to the internet, a GPS device (smart phones work, but will not be as reliable as a GPS device) and a sense of adventure. Participants visit geocaching.com to obtain GPS coordinates where caches are hidden, then use their GPS device to travel to the coordinates and hunt down the cache. Usually, coordinates will lead to a general location where the cache is hidden, but participants must then hunt around to uncover the treasure.

Caches can contain prizes, which are usually not high in monetary value. If you take a prize from the cache, the rule is that you must leave something of equal value for the next person.

According to geocaching.com, there are currently more than 600 geocaches waiting to be uncovered in Lassen County.

Sports and recreation for kids

Want to get the kids off the couch and away from the TV this summer? There are several recreational events, sports camps and activities for kids to participate in.

Susanville Little League is offering a new program called Extra Innings, which will feature Sandlot-style baseball, instructional clinics, home run derbies, night games and wood bat only games. Extra Innings is open to players ages 7-14. For more information, call Juanita Williams at 251-7782.

Lassen High School volleyball will be having open gym sessions throughout the summer for girls planning on trying out for next year’s freshman, JV or varsity teams. For more information, call Julie Schmidt at 257-5173.

Lassen High School is also hosting Camp Grizz, a basketball camp for boys and girls ages 8 to 15 from June 17 through June 20. For more information, email Dorinda Shaffer at dshaffer@lassencollege.edu.

Rock the Wake

The third annual Rock the Wake is set to take place from 3 to 7 p.m. Saturday, June 22 at Emerson Lake in Susanville and its organizers are planning to make this year unforgettable. The event is an exhibition of professional wakeboarders who will show off their skills on the lake for spectators. This year’s event will feature two rails, more wakeboarders, including the Hyperlite wakeboarding team and what is considered to be the best wakeboarding boat in existence — the Super Air Nautique G23.

Food, beer and refreshments will be available for spectators. There is a small fee for tickets. Children ages 12 and under get in free. All proceeds go to charity.

The entrance, as well as parking, will be through the Old Club House at 470-835 Wingfield Road. Spectators are urged to bring lawn chairs.

Demolition Derby

Engines roar, dirt flies, metal twists and crunches, machines collide and the crowd goes wild. This is what you can expect at the Lassen County Fair’s Demolition Derby Friday, July 6. The mayhem will begin at 5 p.m. at Diamond Mountain Speedway.

Tuesday nights on the trail

The Susanville Area Bicycle Association invites bikers, hikers, runners and walkers of all ages and skill levels to the Bizz Johnson Trail at 6 p.m. every Tuesday evening from now until October.

The event will begin at the kiosk on the west side of Richmond Road by the caboose, across the street from the Historic Railroad Depot. However, participants may join anywhere along the trail.

According to Dan Brown, owner of Bicycle Bananas in Susanville and member of the Susanville Area Bicycle Association, many people are afraid of getting out on the trail alone at this time of year because of mountain lions. The weekly event gets people out on the trail in groups, making them feel safe, while also allowing them to meet and get active with other community members.

For more information, email Brown at dan@bicyclebananas.com.

American Legion baseball

America’s favorite pastime will be played in Susanville throughout the summer. The Susanville American Legion baseball team, the Renegades, have games scheduled through July, including a hometown, wood bat only tournament Friday, June 21 through Sunday, June 23 at Memorial Park.

For a complete schedule of upcoming games, see the sports calendar on page 1C.

These are only a few of many great events and recreational activities available to locals and visitors of Lassen County this summer. There is no doubt the vast outdoor spaces of Lassen County will be bursting with activity this summer as residents and visitors take advantage of the many recreational opportunities at their fingertips. See the Lassen County Times’ sports and recreation section for more events and activities coming your way.

Hunter Morris slides into second during the Susanville Renegades’ doubleheader against the Galena Silver Sox Saturday, June 8. The Renegades split with Galena, losing the first game, but winning the second.  Photo by Maddie Musante

June 17 — The Susanville Renegades baseball team hosted the Galena Silver Sox for a doubleheader Saturday, June 8 at Memorial Park. Both games were close and exciting for fans who came out in full force to watch the Renegades in their second home game of the season. The Renegades lost the opener, 11-3, but won the second game, 6-5.

The first game was close with the Renegades down 5-3 in the sixth inning. However, the Silver Sox erupted and got six runs to seal the victory. Hunter Morris, Tommy Sharpe, Ryan Sharpe, Daniel Perry and Adrik Yacelga each had one hit for Susanville.

In the second game of the doubleheader, fans witnessed one of the more exciting games in recent history. The game went back and forth, with Galena leading, 5-4, in the bottom of the seventh inning. The Renegades got a break when Galena committed an error on Hunter Morris at the start of the inning.  Yacelga then came through and laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt. After a strikeout, Ryan Sharpe singled and then went on to second when Galena threw home to cut off the run. At that point, the Renegades had runners on second and third with two outs and Jake Hatzell was up to bat with a full count. After fouling off numerous pitches, he lined a single to score two runs, causing the Renegades to storm out of the dugout and mob him.

It was a big win for the Renegades, as the Silver Sox were previously undefeated.

Garrison Collier pitched five innings and gave up four runs. Izak Davenport pitched the innings and Perry pitched a three-up, three-down seventh inning. Offensively, Perry got three hits. Yacelga, Hatzell, Ryan Sharpe and Skylar Inguerson each had two.

The Renegades are currently 3-3 on the season. 

Nathan Horward, driving car No. 81, and Richard Longacre, in car No. 07, make their way around a turn.  Photo by Maddie Musante

June 13 — Lassen County racing fans were out in full force to hear engines roar and watch dirt fly at Diamond Mountain Speedway’s second racing event of the year Friday, May 31. The crowd was not disappointed, as the races provided hours of entertainment between the mini, strictly and modified division car races.

Mini division results

In the mini division heat race, Galen Hainline won first place in car No. 11h, Lary Whitebird, in car No. 97, took second and Bailee Glenn came in third driving car No. 75.

Hainline also took first place in the trophy dash with Whitebird getting second and Glenn coming in third.

The results were much the same when it came to the main event. Hainline won the race, Whitebird came in second and Glenn got third.

Mini division standings

Hainline currently stands at the top of list in the mini division with a total of 86 points. Whitebird is in the number two position with 82 points, Glenn holds the number three spot with 76 points and Michael Nichols is next with 39 total points.

Strictly stock division results

Junior Toon, driving car No. 33, won first place in heat race #1, Dan Dias, in car No. 427, took second place, Fred Kresky got third place in car No. 3 and Samantha Schultz came in fourth in car No. 05.

In heat race #2, Nathan Howard won first place driving car No. 81, Gene Cain took second in car No. 100 and Aaron Mayne, in car No. 13, got third place.

Dias came back to take first place in the trophy dash, while Howard took second, Toon came in third and Cain got fourth.

Dias again claimed the first place spot in the main event. Richard Longacre came in second, Schultz took third, Cain was fourth, Mayne came in fifth and Toon got sixth.

Strictly stock division standings

Toon boasts the number one spot in the strictly stock division with a total of 81 points, however, Schultz is not far behind him, taking the number two position with 80 points. Mayne and Cain stand side-by-side in the number three and four positions, each with 77 total points. Longacre is fifth with 76 points and Dias has sixth place with 42 points.

Modified division results

In heat race #1 of the modified division, Winn Zinn won first place in car No. 17z, Matt Murphy was second in car No. 6m, Dennis Arnold, in car No. 13, got third place and Joe Wood, in car No. 3a, came in fourth.

Tom Canniff won heat race #2 in car No. 68, while Mitch Murphy, in car No. 7m, took second place and Steve Bejcek got third in car No. 20.

Zinn was the winner of the trophy dash, Canniff came in second and Murphy took third.

In the main event, Riley Simmons won first place driving car No. 21r, Matt Murphy came in second place, Zinn took third, Bejcek got fourth, John Sloan, in car No. 14s, was fifth, Mitch Murphy got sixth, Arnold came in seventh and Richard Gorton, in car No. 96x, was eighth.

Modified division standings

Simmons currently stands in the number one spot in the modified division with 83 total points. Bejcek is in second place with 78 points, Arnold is third with 75, Matt Murphy is fourth with 79, Sloan is in the fifth place spot with 74 points and Zinn takes sixth with 41 points.

The next racing event will take place at Diamond Mountain Speedway tomorrow, Friday, June 14.