Boys' basketball

By DALE KUGATH

Sportswriter

NEW RICHLAND – The New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva boys’ basketball team remained the only undefeated team in Gopher Conference play. 

The Panthers bounced back from a loss to Hayfield to bounce the Randolph Rockets 75-45 in New Richland Friday. 

The Rockets dropped their fifth straight conference game and fell to 4-8 for the year. 

NRHEG, which defeated Randolph 69-53 and 77-59 last season, climbed to 5-0 in the Gopher and 10-2 overall.

Kubiatowicz, Parpart win at Stewartville

By DALE KUGATH

Sportswriter

The New Richland-Hartland-Ellendale-Geneva wrestling team enjoyed a good week. 

Coach Shawn Larson’s Panthers captured a key Gopher Conference dual against United South Central last Thursday. 

NRHEG had one of its best all-around performances of the season in finishing third among eight teams at the Stewartville Invitational Saturday. 

The Panthers are 2-0 in the conference and 9-5 overall. 

USC

WELLS – NRHEG won four of the final five bouts to capture a 40-30 victory over USC in Wells. 

When all else fails one can always talk about the weather, whether we can do anything about it or not. 

Do you think the day will come when we will have some control of the weather? It would be nice to think that we could alleviate some of the natural disasters that raise havoc with so many unfortunate individuals, businesses and organizations. But would we try to take it one step further and selfishly use it to our advantage? We laughingly say, “At least that’s one area the government hasn't been able to mess up yet.”

Think it isn't possible? I don't know. There are a lot of things that have become possible we never would have dreamed of once upon a time. 

I won't even go into the modern miracles, though I don't think of myself as being "that old." I'll leave it to the young people to understand the quirks and parts of electronic mysteries. It baffles my mind to think you can put a little box to your ear and talk or listen to people miles and miles away. 

My only concern is that there are side effects to even good things, and we seem to misuse them along the way. Some things gained, some things lost.

I admire people who keep an eye on the weather, who journal the weather every day. Others don't journal but know when to expect unfavorable weather because they "feel it in their bones." Still others believe in planting and harvesting by the moon, the effects of a thunderstorm out of season and what effect it will have on the next season.

Those are things old timers would go by before we had weather men and weather machines. But despite all our knowledge we still have weather we didn't expect, and it "hits or misses" us just the same.

The beautiful snowfall we had for the Christmas holiday was something to behold, even though we stomp through and blow and throw snow around. I watched a group of kids in Geneva build a terrific snowman. Snow can be fun, or it is not?

Cold weather is something else. It was 22 below, with 55 below windchill, in the local area on Monday morning, Jan. 6. What can one really do then?

Is there anything fresher than the not-always-welcome cold air that comes with it? It makes the air feel clean and sharp, as well as easier to breath (well not always).

In Minnesota we expect "cool" moments, which to someone from elsewhere might be anything above zero. But the cold weather that arrived that first weekend in January could well be described using that old saying, "When H _ _ _ freezes over." When the governor says "No School" because of the cold weather for the first time in 17 years, IT IS COLD.

Do the kids say, "Hurray! No school today!" – or do they wear a bored look and reach for their cell phones to share their misery with friends? With sports called off, do the kids rest or do they find something to keep them in shape?

Staying close to family and friends in cold weather, is the basis of a lot of memories of "when I was a kid," like heat generated by splitting wood for an old wood burning stove, flannel sheets, long underwear, face masks and something warmer and drier on one's feet than "tennis shoes." Styles change, but a good over-the-ear cap or helmet, warm gloves and a warm scarf come in handy. It also brings out parent advice of "Do you have a blanket or snowmobile suit in the car in case you have trouble along the way?"

Cooks think soup, chili, hot chocolate, coffee or tea to help “warm the insides" – as if that makes the outside not seem so cold.

Wrapping up in a warm comforter, quilt, or fuzzy blanket with a good book and an attitude for comfort can ease the stress as you try not to think of frozen water pipes, a vehicle that won't start or a trip not taken because it is too cold.

Businesses and school officials, along with the general public, had to change schedules, so as not to put people in danger by just being "out and about." Of course there are always those who brave the weather just to prove they can, especially if they boast of having Scandinavian blood that “may curdle but never freezes.”

There are jobs to consider and people who "have to be" some place at a certain time because …

In all seriousness, the weather can be a threat to those who have little or no control over their circumstances. Frozen ears, feet and bodies happen and it is more than sad, it is tragic. Hypothermia is serious. People really do need to be careful.

Deviation from a normal schedule can put people into a lot of last minute decisions, like where do the kids go when there is no school? A parent at home becomes the baby sitter, teacher, or professional dealmaker or breaker, thinking up things for the kids, who may be extra revved up from snacking on sugar treats, and "what can we do now" may be replaced by television, which may offer programming of less than acceptable viewing.

The sun can come out, making a mockery of the cold. It looks like it could be warm, but it isn't. It is just bright and beautiful, if you are inside where it is nice and warm.

We do know that eventually it will warm up. Just think how we would appreciate a little of this "cool" on a very hot summer day. I couldn't help but laugh when my computer "spam" carried an advertisement for air conditioning. Yeah, I thought somebody was thinking ahead of the time, they haven't been outside or they warmed up on too much "sauce" at the liquor store.

You be the judge. Some people will say the deep freeze was the result of "global warming." Who am I to say? Akk I know is it was just plain COLD!

Some of our Star Eagle readers have commented they like to read about events such as family and school reunions, birthdays and anniversaries, and birth and wedding announcements. In order to read about these important things we need our faithful readers to pass along the information to us. 

If you have birthdays and anniversaries you would like include, or news to share please contact me via e-mail, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; by postal mail, P. O. Box 192, Geneva, MN 56035 or telephone, 507-256-4405.

This week’s birthdays and anniversaries include:

• Thursday, Jan. 16: Carter Howard Hanson, Kiley Beenken, Craig Bailey, Remi Wayne, Joshua Crabtree, Joni Groth, Jeff Kaplan, Tracy Tracy, Melissa Wagner, Emily Bedker, Tena Bryce, Jeremy Anderson

• Friday, Jan. 17: Ava Elizabeth Schember, her 6th; Blake Michael Born/Norday, Don Anderson, Jan Bartsch, Annette Busho, LuAnn Johnson Prescher, David Strenge, Mike Peterson, Brayden Broitzman, Kayley Camerer

• Saturday, Jan. 18: Madilyn Hamilton, Deb Bohnoff, Todd Holland, Julie Bunn Hunt, Annie Miller, Tabatha Miller, Mark Misgen, Vicki Babb, Ruth Neidermeier, Garret Schley & Ellie Schley

• Sunday, Jan. 19: Brian Wayne, Laura (Otterson) Ortiz, Dennis Grunwald, Steve Jon Christensen, Barb Wayne Heyer, Kent Johnson, Thomas Kasper, Francis Misgen, Peter Spande, Dick Ewing, Dick & Laurie Swift

• Monday, Jan. 20: Brentson Lange, Jim Krause, Marc Nelson, Jenna Nicole Cooper, Pastor Alvin Cooper, Anthony Thostenson, Alicia Lizaazo,

• Tuesday, Jan. 21: Cooper Routh, his 4th, Joshua Dobberstien and Gerald Wobshcall

• Wednesday, Jan. 22: Reese Hendrickson, Taylor Lunning, Christian Sletten, Tom Haried, Lyle Shaunce, Barbara Van Gorkom, Jeff Miller, Heather Sargent

• Thursday, Jan. 23: Eugene Worke, "Emeritus" Bob Hanson, Eugene Cornelius, Rodney Sorenson, Dean Broitzman, Garnet Folie, Jeff Miller, Chris Paulson

• Friday, Jan. 24: Morgan Sophia Luhring, her 9th; Renee Polzin, Greg Menefee, Mary Cunningham, Trevor Tracy

• Saturday, Jan. 25: Calvin Thomas VanderStoep, his 5th; Sophia Mabel Olivia Mrotz, Max Thomas Powers Brekke, his 7th; Emma Meiners, her 6th; Paula Olson, Vernon Simonson, Lana Thompsen, Troy Phagan, Ladawn Hatch

May your special day be a happy memory and tomorrow a bright new promise.

The cold weather of the past week or so has brought back some old memories from my days as a youth growing up north of town. Looking back to those early days of my youth, I still get a warm feeling when thinking about spending time in our cozy little house on those cold winter days.

The other day as I arrived home from work, I was in the stairs landing taking off my coat and boots and one of those memories came back to me. I could see my dad coming in the door after he’d finished work and had shoveled snow so he could get the car in the driveway. In the winter time he always seemed to have an endless supply of moisture dripping off the end of his nose. I can remember how happy I would be when I knew that he would be “in” for the night. He would take his coveralls, jacket and boots off in the basement landing and set his boots on the first step going down. I guess this memory came to me when I found myself doing the same exact thing all these years later.

As far back as I can remember, Dad had always kept a horse or two. When we first moved to Bridge Avenue, there were hardly any houses. Ours sat on the north side of what is now Glenview Drive, and my aunt and uncle lived on the south side. It was barely more than a field road at the time and ended at the pasture fence at the back of our lot.

When my grandpa’s barn burned down, we got the old milk house and moved it to the back of our lot and my dad soon converted it to a horse barn. We kept horses there for many years until the land around us started to be developed and more and more houses started popping up.

My dad had two registered American Saddle bred horses that he was mighty proud of. One was named Champion (after Gene Autry’s no doubt) and the other was Easter Ann. I can remember my dad feeding Champion carrots and apples out of his hand. That horse would also pull a cigarette out of his shirt pocket and a handkerchief out of his back pocket if he left it hanging out. There were a few times when the folks would take horseback rides down some of the back roads in the area. I can recall one such time when Elmer and Mary, some family friends, had taken me along in the car as they followed along behind. Suddenly a car came over the hill and spooked my mom’s horse, causing it to rear up and then take off running, throwing mom into the ditch. Dad immediately rode off after Easter Ann, catching her a little ways down the road. That story was repeated many times over the years whenever mom wanted to remind dad that he seemed to be more worried about the horse than my mother. Luckily, she wasn’t hurt, but I really can’t say that I can ever remember seeing her ride again.

When my sister Judy was born Dad had to sell Easter Ann to pay for the hospital bill, and I don’t think that it was too long after that he had to find another place to keep his horse. I was never very interested in horseback riding, so it was kind of ironic my sister Judy eventually became the horseman I knew he’d wanted me to be. Over the years he’d owned many horses which he had kept in various locations. The one place I liked best was the old Joe Juve farm that stood where the football fieldhouse is now. I would ride with dad on many winter nights to help him with chores after he’d come home from a long day at work. Some nights went fast, but most of the time it would take way too long for my liking. He was meticulous in currying them and brushing their mane and tail. Dad always talked to the horses because he said if they recognized your voice they would feel comfortable. He was particularly patient with a horse he had named Pedro, a beautiful gelding and a registered Tennessee Walker. The previous owner had beaten and abused the horse, so Dad would spend hours working with the horse and eventually taught it to trust man once again.

Yes, the cold weather reminds me of those cold winter nights spent in the barn waiting while Dad took care of the horses. There was something cozy about that too; because the barn actually seemed warm to me when that cold wintery wind was busily whirling snow about outside.

— — —

I have heard mixed reports on area fishing, but the one thing that seems constant is the number of small walleye being caught in the channel. This is a good sign for the years ahead. I have heard mixed reports coming from some that have fished Pickerel Lake. Everyone agrees there are good numbers of panfish, perch and northern, but not everyone has been able to entice them to bite. Outside of the channel the fishing has been slow on Albert Lea Lake and Fountain has been doing pretty well for panfish and perch by the beach.

Until next time, don’t let a little cold weather keep from enjoying a little “hard water” fishing.

Please remember to keep our troops in your thoughts and prayers in the New Year because they are the reason we are able to enjoy all the freedoms that we have today.

Echoes From the Loafers' Club Meeting

"You are one of the hardest-working men I know."

"I wish I could say the same thing about you."

"Well, you could if you were as big a liar as I am."

Driving by the Bruces

I have two wonderful neighbors — both named Bruce — who live across the road from each other. Whenever I pass their driveways, thoughts occur to me, such as: most people are self-taut.

Winter weary or filled with the wonder of winter

I was driving. My sister, Georgianna, whom I tend to call Georgie, was riding shotgun on a cold, blustery day. I pointed out the plethora of birds that flew up from the graveled roadsides at the approach of my car.

I identified snow buntings, Lapland longspurs, horned larks, dark-eyed juncos, and American tree sparrows.

Georgie didn’t seem as excited about seeing the birds as I was. It wasn’t because she doesn’t like birds.

Her lack of enthusiasm was because she doesn’t like winter.

She blames that on her birth month. She was born in June. By the time cold temperatures arrived, she was used to being warm.

It makes sense, I guess. I like winter.

I was born in March. A blizzard was held in honor of my arrival.

I thought that was how things would be.

Christmas redux

I was doing some Christmas shopping. I considered some chocolate-covered cherry cordials. They are disgustingly sweet candies that my father favored. I found the candy aisle easily. I couldn’t miss it. It was everywhere. I found the candy of my father’s dreams. A couple of things had changed since I last encountered them with buying on my mind. These candies were called "cordial cherries." I guess they were friendly fruit. The other change was that the product was now available in three varieties — dark chocolate, milk chocolate, and French vanilla. I didn’t have a three-sided coin to flip. Faced with three choices, I chose none.

Mr. Goodtape

My glove box refused to stay shut. That’s no problem for a Mr. Goodwrench wannabe like me. I duct-taped it closed. With duct tape, all things are possible.

I’ve been married for a long time. I’ve used up most of my good ideas for gifts for my bride. Worthy presents are still obtainable, but difficult to find.

I gave my wife a classic film for her birthday. It was a package of 24 exposures of 200 speed Kodak Elite Chrome film for color slides that promised "Vibrant, pure colors with natural skin tones." It had a best used by date of October 2001. I’d found it behind shelved books at home. She wasn’t surprised. I should have given her duct tape.

Casino chronicles

I told stories on stage at a large casino. I suppose there are small casinos, but I don’t think I’ve ever been in one.

I visited with some of those in attendance. One, Jan Leach of Garrison, walked to her hotel room to retrieve something she’d forgotten. Not only had she forgotten something in her room, she’d forgotten how big the facility was. When she returned, she said, "The next time I go back to my room, I’m staying there."

A life lived well

I attended the funeral of a friend, Rod Searle of Waseca. The clergyman read one of Rod’s favorite poems, one written by William Cullen Bryant and titled, "Thanatopsis." "So live, that when thy summons comes to join The innumerable caravan which moves To that mysterious realm, where each shall take His chamber in the silent halls of death, Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night, Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams."

Rod abided by that.

Customer comments

Ric McArthur of Morpeth, Ontario wrote, "I'm retired. Mondays are just early Saturdays."

Libraries gave me wings

Please join me as I present a program at the New Richland Public Library on February 26.

Owly

A great horned had owl-waiting, hooting as if there were still a few flowers left in the bunch. Listen for great horned owls to start their duet hooting in January. Chickadees begin whistling, "Spring’s here." They might be overly optimistic, but spring is somewhere.

Meeting adjourned

It was 12 degrees below zero. I went for a walk. It would have been a cracklin’ mosey for Neil Diamond. I forgot to wear a hat with earlappers. I know, I know. I held my gloved hands over my ears. That prevented me from hearing anyone ask, "Cold enough for you?"

I finished the walk in the sunshine. We can take a lot of winter if the sun shines. A kind word is sunshine on a cold day.

The scurs were off the mark with temperatures coming in warmer than forecast. Oddly enough, no one has complained after the previous week’s brutal cold. Will our good fortune continue? Starting Wednesday, partly sunny with a slight chance of a snow and freezing drizzle mix. Temperatures rising from 20 to near 30 after midnight. Thursday, mostly cloudy with a slight chance of snow. Highs near 30 and lows falling to just below zero. Friday, mostly sunny with highs in the lower teens above zero and lows in the lower single digits. Mostly sunny on Saturday with highs near 20 and lows near 5 above. Sunday, sunny skies with highs in the upper 20’s and lows in the mid-teens. For Monday, mostly sunny with highs near 30 and lows in the mid-teens. And for Tuesday, mostly sunny with highs near 30 and lows again in the mid-teens. The normal high for January 17th is 22 and the normal low is 4. The scurs will be interviewing for the Vikings head coaching position. If they keep messing up these forecasts, they’ll need a job somewhere.

The snowfall from last week accumulated about an inch at the ranch, with another 1.5” Tuesday a.m., making roughly 3.5” for the month. We’ve measured a little more than 14” for the winter. Luckily, we haven’t had large accumulations and the snowfall has tended to melt away during the melts. Given the windy conditions we’ve experienced several times over the past couple months, we could’ve had a real mess on our hands. As it is there are plenty of little nuisance drifts that seem to appear exactly where one doesn’t want them. One also has to feel fortunate after the recent warm up. Typically when we get into the period from about January 11th to the 20th we see the coldest days of the winter. Not that we are out of the woods yet, but every day we stay above normal it makes it less likely that we’ll see another long stretch such as we went through in early January. Our daylight period is stretching out to over two minutes more per day as well. Will we see more snow in February? Stay tuned.

Venus has disappeared from view in the evening sky to the west before sundown. It will be back to its “morning star” status once again in the eastern sky by the end of the month. Jupiter is now the dominant planet in the night sky, already fairly high in the eastern sky by the mid-evening hours. Its yellowish color easily distinguishes it from the stars. The Full Moon will follow Jupiter across the sky on the 15th. Of course if it’s cloudy it won’t be visible, but you’ll have to trust me on this one. The Full Moon for this month goes by the Full Wolf Moon. Wolves could often be heard howling outside the Native American encampments of the northeast. The Ojibwe called this the Great Spirit Moon and the Sioux knew it as The Moon of Frost in the Teepee. Indeed, the teepees would’ve been nothing but frosty in those days of old.

One has to be glad we’re not into a heavy covering of snow if you’re concerned about the wildlife out here. The fields have had snow cover but it has been short-lived, making it possible for deer, turkeys and pheasants to find the food out here in the fields easily. It makes it even easier for them when people like our neighbor Mark and his son Brock plant the kind of cover they have. They were recently recognized with the Outstanding Windbreak Award in Steele County. It looks like it too from our living room window at the ranch. It has really grown over the past decade and no doubt provides shelter from storms and predators. Frequently we can see pheasants hopscotching their way across the fields from their place, to their CRP, to our yard and then to our CREP acreage. Sunday my nephew saw the first two rooster pheasants we’ve seen in several weeks. Thanks neighbors!

We continue to see cardinals daily and they have set up shop in the brushy edge areas on the east side of the lawn. One of the males is particularly red while the other has some darker color mixed in with the red. The female has probably been the most active though, appearing when the males stay behind in the thicket. Others are also noting lots of cardinal sightings. There have been large groups of American tree sparrows as of late, although the Harris sparrow may have ski-daddled when the weather was brutally cold. Smart bird.

Fudgie and Ruby continue to enjoy winter. There are times you’d swear they’re little furry kids. Once you put them outside, they like playing in the snow and running through it as fast as they can. For an old dog Fudgie can still really motor, especially when the sheep get too close to “her” gate. Ruby gets into a tizzy anytime the OMC 330 is approached and especially if it’s started. Good thing there are 8 ply tires on it or she would have bitten a hole in them a long time ago. Still smile when I feel Ruby tugging on the tires and her fierce growling before the skid loader starts. Music to my ears.

Small villages of permanent fish houses have dotted area lakes for several weeks now. Fishing appears to have slowed since the recent cold snap. That or the fishermen have. Rumor has it there are likely more hands of cards being played than fish being caught. Some are reputedly not even wasting time drilling holes. As one wise fisherman once told me, there’s no law that says you have to fish.

See you next week…real good then.

I read with interest a story about Medford’s volleyball coach not having her contract renewed for next year. This coach continually increased the win total every year, and Medford volleyball had the best year in the history of the program last fall.

So why was she not renewed? There has been much speculation, and I’ve seen reports that she was fired for not playing the “right” people. I’ve also seen rumors that she has been accused of bullying players. We may never know.

It got me to thinking about coaching. As I continue coaching Jayna’s basketball team, this is the 18th team I’ve coached for basketball, plus 13 years of coaching baseball. I used to be convinced I would coach forever and that I wanted to be a varsity coach. No more. When I’m done with Jayna’s group and after a stint of coaching Anton for baseball, I’m through.

It’s not that I don’t enjoy coaching. When all you have to worry about is that – coaching – it’s a fantastic job. But there’s so much more involved, even at my level, and I can’t imagine what our varsity coaches deal with.

Last fall, I threw the idea at Pat Churchill, NRHEG’s boys’ basketball coach, that we might never see another varsity coach that stays at that level for 30+ years, such as Ted Pelzl and Jeff Reese. He agreed quickly; while he enjoys his position, he thought that being a varsity coach for that long is unrealistic today for most people.

Let’s look back at the Medford volleyball position. If the coach indeed bullied players and scared some off from the team, that’s very wrong. Why would she do that? Did she feel pressure to win? Someone once told me that in small communities like ours, no coach has ever been fired for not winning.

Or look at the other possibility – not playing the “right” people. Listen, I understand that parents want to see their children succeed and get a chance, but life doesn’t always work that way. Do parents do the same thing if their children don’t qualify for an advanced placement class in school? I’m guessing the griping happens a lot more in extracurriculars. If you want a chance to play more, then work harder. Also, understand that some people just might be better than you in the end. It’s the same experience some people have in the job market.

Coaching at a varsity level is a different beast today than it was when I was growing up. Back then, your season was clearly defined. Fall sports started in mid-August and ran through October. Winter sports went from November until February. Spring sports were an exception, where school events happened from March to May, and then most of us played summer ball.

Today, you have 12 months of some sports. Basketball coaches have players leaving for volleyball practice, football coaches see players playing fall baseball, and all summer coaches fight with basketball leagues during June and July. You don’t just get to be a varsity coach during your season; it’s a year-round job.

People grumble if you don’t win. Everyone has an opinion on what you should change, whether it’s the offensive scheme or the playing rotation. Hey, I have opinions too, but I can at least look at things from the perspective of someone who has a lot of years of coaching under my belt.

My goodness, John Schultz helped lead our girls’ basketball team to a state championship, and I’ve still heard complaints about how he runs the program. Are you kidding me? What do you think can improve? He’s helped set up the program so that even after this year’s seniors leave, there won’t be a giant dip in talent, and there will be fundamentally sound players.

Some people just won’t be happy unless their vicarious inclinations are fulfilled through their children. It’s time to get the blinders off and recognize that most coaches will always do what they feel is best for their program, even if it might not be what you like. Not every coach is great and not every coach makes good decisions, but most of them do what’s best for the team.

It’s difficult to find coaches these days; just ask Dan Stork about that task. It doesn’t make it any easier since so many coaches know that they have to do so much more than just coach kids. My hat’s off to those who can carry on at a varsity level for an extended period of time. I know, and I hope others do as well, that you’re doing the best job you can.

Word of the Week: This week’s word is concatenate, which means to link together, as in, “Dr. James Naismith was a wise man when he was able to concatenate a peach basket and a ball to create basketball.” Thanks to Galen Spinler for this week’s word! Impress your friends and confuse your enemies!

Julie Ann (Lundberg) Ryden went to be at home with her Lord on Wednesday, January 15, 2014.  

Julie was born to Darrel and Betty (Lundberg) Lundberg on December 10, 1957 in Durand, Wisconsin. Julie attended Pepin Public Schools in Pepin, WI between 1963 and 1971. In 1971 she moved with her family to New Richland, MN where Julie attended New Richland-Hartland High School and graduated in 1976. From 1976-1978, Julie attended North Park College in Chicago, IL. From August 1977 until February 1978, Julie was an exchange student at Sodra Vatterbygdens Folkhogskola in Jonkoping, Sweden.