Letters To The Editor

Gilman fine coach, better man

I just read Dave Trimmer’s article titled, “Celebrate Gilman now” (April 6) and I agree wholeheartedly with Trimmer’s opinion to name the gymnasium at Ferris High School after coach Wayne Gilman. However, I feel Coach Gilman deserves the honor, not only because of his accomplishments as a basketball coach, but because of the man he is. I coached girls basketball at Ferris High School for five years while Wayne was the boys coach so I witnessed his contributions to his students, the school, and to the community.

His sincerity first caught my attention in 1994 when he supported the girls varsity team, sitting through our games even when we weren’t very successful (how many boys coaches make time to watch their girls teams play?). Later, in 1996, he attended a dozen of my practices to teach my girls team his famous match-up zone defense. I truly admired his coaching, not because of his wins and losses, but because when I watched him coach, he illustrated such class in his actions and words.

For 16 years Wayne has danced in the faculty dance line for Ferris PTG’s Ham on Regal production, and the applause he receives at the student show reveals how the students admire him, even though he has no rhythm!

Finally, in all the years I have known Wayne, I can honestly say he is one of the few individuals I have ever known who has never said an unkind word about anyone. In a world where life can be unfair, Wayne Gilman stands so far out in his field with his positive outlook on people and on life that he deserves this honor, in the year 2000, when we who know him will be able to pack the gym and give him the standing ovation that he deserves. Janet Skaife Spokane

Classes first, sports second

Dave Trimmer (“League Off Track”, March 30) argues that the benefits of high school track, notably kids’ participating, being successful and feeling good about themselves, will be sabotaged by the new GSL track meet schedule, which is unbalanced and potentially unfair. Trimmer blames the high school principals, who are reluctant to schedule meets during classes.

If the principals, however, do not make the integrity of the educational process their highest priority, they are betraying their mission. Does Trimmer, who says “let’s be honest” about students’ desire to be out of class, have any idea what it is like to be the student who does not get to leave for a sports event? How easy is it to schedule a fair and valid exam when athletes from a variety of teams will be absent the day of, or the day before, an exam? What are the odds that even the cleverest instructor can create a lesson plan which is as stimulating and accessible for students who are absent as for students who are present?

GSL principals ought to be supported in their efforts to keep the athletic “tail” from wagging the academic “dog.” Let nothing get in the way of students having success and good feelings about solving equations and composing cogent essays. Rick LaBelle Spokane

Disagrees with Landers

After reading Rich Landers’ article (“Persistence gives hunters what they want”, March 30) and noticing the number of inaccurate and unapplicable comments, along with the underlying statements that imply that I or any other member of the WDFW Commission are on the commission for self-serving reasons, prompted me to reply to this article.

My first exception to Rich’s article is directed to his concerns about the season length for archers in unit 101 Sherman not being shortened along with the modern rifle seasons.

The units of concern for buck harvest are units 105 through 124 and units 127 through 142. The recommendation is to reduce the season from an average of 16 days to nine days for modern rifle hunters, who harvested 5,901 bucks from these units in 1998 (1999’s report is not yet out). The late archery season is proposed to also be reduced from 25 to 17 days, even though the archers only harvested 202 bucks from these same units in 1998.

Unit 101 has not had a late modern rifle season for about 25 years and is the only major whitetail unit in the region that has been a traditional late archery-only hunt in the November time frame. It should be realized that even with no late rifle season in this unit, modern rifle hunters took 536 bucks, compared to archers’ 61 in 1998.

Fact two is, unit 101 is not out my back door as Rich stated. I live in unit 121 Huckleberry and have for over 40 of my 45 years.

Rich’s reference to me being an archer is basically accurate but not complete. I am a hunter. I have hunted successfully with all three weapons, bow, modern rifle and muzzle loader. In the last eight years in this state, I have hunted with modern rifle for deer and elk seven years, archery hunted for deer one year and muzzle loader hunted for elk one year.

I go to either Oregon, Montana, or Idaho to archery hunt, mainly because all of these states have at least twice the early archery opportunity for elk as Washington does.

Rich’s statement about the make up of the WDFW Commission is also not correct, although it is close. I am not the only hunter on the commission. Bob Tuck from Yakima is also a hunter. Whether or not having mostly hunters on the commission is vital to the body making good decisions concerning hunting is yet to be seen.

Being a member of the WDFW Commission is the toughest job I’ve ever had. The issues are complex, the emotions of the public run high, the decisions are always tough and never please everyone. Having the public misinformed, or confused by reporters only makes the job tougher.

In closing, I would like to add that before any rifle hunters decide to take up a bow and join me in Unit 101 for the late archery season as Rich suggested, they need to do two things. First, put down your rifle and pick up your bow, just as I would have to. Then realize that you will spend a lot more time in the woods to have about half the chance of harvesting an antlered deer as you did with your rifle, just like I would have to. Kelly O. White Chairman, WDFW Commission

Van Reenen is No. 1

John Blanchette’s column (“Rivals throw conventional ugliness aside,” April 2) declared that Ian Waltz was the best combination shot putter-discus thrower WSU has ever produced.

I would like to offer Jon van Reenen as a rebuttal to that assertion. Van Reenen was the outdoor NCAA discus champion during his three varsity seasons at WSU from 1968 to 1970 and also won the shot put title at the indoor NCAA championships in 1968. Although predominantly a discus thrower, van Reenen holds the WSU shot put record with a throw of 65 feet.

It is true that Waltz holds the official WSU record for the discus, but it is equally true that van Reenen was ranked 7th, 6th, 4th, 5th, and 7th in the world in that event by Track & Field News for 1969, 1970, 1972, 1974, and 1975, respectively. In addition Jon set a world record of 224 feet, 8 inches in the discus on March 14, 1975.

Since he was a South African national van Reenen could not compete in the Olympic games during his career or these world rankings might have been even higher. I suggest Ian Waltz has a ways to go before his accomplishments equal those of Jon van Reenen. David Wollkind Pullman