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30 * WATERLOO CHRONJCLE + Wednesday, May 23, 2007 Better to be safe than sorry in golf ‘ve been in Waterloo Region since the early 1970s and I Idon‘l remember a rain/wind storm as bad as the one that blew through our area last week. So, you ask, what‘s that got to do with golf? Well, I just happened to be taking part in the opening fun tournament for the men‘s night at the Waterloo Golf Acadeâ€" my when the storm took turns pelting us with rain on the western edge of Waterloo. When you play as much golf as I do, you don‘t even start or stay out if there‘s rain in the air or in the forecast. Howevâ€" er, because it was a team scramble event I stayed on the course longer that 1 would have normally. That was mistake number 1. Quite simply, I got drenched and my equipment â€" golf bag, head covers, club grips, towâ€" els, etc. â€" still hadn‘t dried out by the next morning. m Fortunately, or perhaps wisely, L did not make mistake number 2. And that would be to "suck it up" and stay out on the course until the rain had passed. My playing buddy Jim and I headed to the clubhouse as the sky got darker and darker west of where we were. We were safely in the clubâ€" house when the full fury of the wind and rain hit about 20 minâ€" utes later, still damp but in the drying process. Give full marks to the staff at [___ JLGRLY _ j WGA. After doing a head count at the height of the storm, it was apparent at least three guys were still somewhere on the course. One guy struggled in just seconds before manager Jamie Cowan borrowed a small vehicle and set out on the cart paths to try and find the other two golfers who hadn‘t been heard from in more than 30 minutes. Fortunately, the pair had taken refuge in a barn that sits alongside the eastern edge of the course. Although they didâ€" n‘t hear Cowan‘s calls to assist them, it ended happily when they worked their way back to the clubhouse during a lull in the rain. And that‘s right. The rain isn‘t going to hurt me. But what accompanied last week‘s storm can hurt you. And that would be lightning. Nevermind the hail. Sure, I‘ve heard all the odds about lightning actually hitâ€" ting somebody â€" apparently you have more chance of winâ€" ning a lottery â€" but I‘m in the unique position of once being about 50 feet from someone who was struck and killed by lightning in my home town of Niagara Falls. I‘ve been hearing for more than 50 years that old line: "What are you, a candy cane? A little rain isn‘t going to hurt you." It was a tragic death but made even sadder by the fact that the two couples were putting out on the 18th hole at the then Willoâ€"Dell Golf Club when lightning killed one of the men, just seconds after they had joked about "beating the Around the same era;1 was covering a Canadian golf Continued on page 34 Local track stars set new standards Less than ideal condiâ€" tions last week didn‘t stop local track athletes from turning in some impressive results at the Districtâ€"8 and WCSSAA trackâ€"andâ€"field championships at Kitchenâ€" er‘s Centennial Stadium. Resurrection won the overall Districtâ€"8 title, while the surging Sir John A. Macâ€" donald Highlanders finished second to Cameron Heights in the WCSSAA finals. Cold and rainy May weather has become a hallâ€" mark of the annual track championships held at the area‘s biggest outdoor track facility. And while that usuâ€" ally means an absence of recordâ€"breaking performâ€" ances, as athietes battle the elements as much as the standards already set, there were a couple of notable exceptions. WCI‘s Nicole Roeder bounced back from a stress fracture in her foot last year, to set a record in the senior girls long jump in her first The Kâ€"W Kodiaks were a little late out of the gate last year in preparing for their first seaâ€" son in Major Series Lacrosse. Kodiaks get ready to take next step It was only well after the other teams in the MSL had solidified their rosters that the Kodiaks had found out they had secured the franâ€" chise _ rights _ to _ St. Catharines. That allowed them to join a league touted as the best lacrosse outside of the pro ranks in North America. But the Kodiaks had already had a successful run in the Senior B circuit as a twoâ€"time President‘s Cup winner so they knew how to SPORTS By Bos VRBANAC Chronicle Staff By Bos Vrsanac Chronicle Staff â€" year in the competition Sir John A. Macdonald‘s Asa Ambrose and Craig Zeeh battle in the final leg of the senior boys 4X100 metre final at last week‘s WCSSAA trackâ€"andâ€"field championships. _ Roeder, who doesn‘t train with any of the local track clubs but had previâ€" build a strong team from _ onship run ready to make scratch. Plus they had a _ the leap of faith with them. nucleus of players who had So the Kodiaks surprised been part of that champiâ€" _ no one by making the playâ€" ously won an OFSSA gold in the midget girls long jump two years ago, beat the old record on her first try. The BOB VRSANAC PHOTO www.rywwater|ioo.com CLICK HERE Yolkswagen New & Cortified Preâ€"owned Cars old WCSSAA standard was 4.86 metres, while Roeder cleared 4.91 on her first attempt. So how did she top that? She broke her own record jumping 4.97 on her very next attempt. "I was pushing for 5.0 (metres) but I didn‘t really want to hurt myself," said Roeder, whose main passion is still basketball. "My foot still hurts sometimes after the long jump. "My personal best is 5.15 metres, so that‘s pretty good with no training at all." Roeder didn‘t even know she broke the record until the longâ€"jump tabulators told her she had exceeded the standard. A few quick confirmations with a track official and she was the new record holder. offs in the first year in the Major Series, giving the Barâ€" rie Lakeshores a real test in the first round before bowâ€" ing out in four games. "I didn‘t even realize it until they got all excited," said Roeder. "Then on my second jump they said, ‘She did it again.‘ "I didn‘t even get that excited, I was trying to keep my focus. This year‘s Kodiaks won‘t have that handicap to overâ€" come. They have a solid nucleus of returning veterâ€" ans with MLS experience including Kyle Arbuckle, Dave Brown and Kelsey Orth. "This year we had time to plan for it, whereas last year it was dropped right in at the last minute and tried to react to everything," said the Kodiaks bench boss and general manager Greg Humâ€" mel. "We had a chance to plan, and by July 1 we had a chance to understand really Volkswagen Waterioo Continued on page 31 Continued on page 33