On Thursday, Jan. 18, the Wiscasset boys basketball team traveled to Richmond and lost to the Bobcats, 79-46.

Richmond took a prominent lead early in the game and never were challenged.

For Richmond, Zach Small led all scorers with 38, followed by Matt Rines with 18 and Caleb Densmore had 13.

For Wiscasset, senior Zach Reed led the way with 23 (including making 11 of 13 free throws). Fellow senior Ronald Drake scored 10, senior Kobe Carrier had nine, and sophomore Billy Pinkham and junior Chris Loyola had two.

Richmond improved to 10-2 with the win while Wiscasset fell to 0-13. 

On Saturday, Jan. 20, the Wiscasset Wolverines hosted the Telstar Rebels. They lost this game by a score of 62-53. This was easily Wiscasset’s most competitive game to date and up until the last three minutes or so, it seemed to be a winnable game.

The game stayed close all throughout and proved to be a very interesting matchup for the fans. For Telstar, Jarrett Bean led the scoring with 25. Blake Rothwell was behind him with 13, and David Manson was third in scoring with 10.

For Wiscasset, many people were able to score this game. Senior Zach Reed led the scoring with 21. Behind him were senior Ronald Drake with 16, senior Kobe Carrier and freshman Dylan Orr with six each, and juniors Matt Chapman and Josh Gabriele with two each.

Telstar improved to 4-9 while Wiscasset fell to 0-14. Wiscasset’s next game is 7 p.m. Friday, Jan. 26 at Boothbay Region High School.

Over the course of a trying season, the Wiscasset Lady Wolverines have stayed positive and had two of their closest contests of the season over the last 10 days and on the road.

At Dirigo, Wiscasset had its best game of the season, losing 35-33 after leading at the half by four. Lindsey Gordon scored nine points in the game, and Maeve Blodgett sank two late free throws, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the home team.

“We have to give ourselves a chance to be successful, and often that simply means making fewer mistakes. I thought we did a nice job with that at Mt. Abram in the second half, and at Dirigo,” said Wiscasset Head Coach Ben Clark. “Our girls continue to work hard and keep a positive outlook. I love coaching this group for that reason.”

Thursday night, Jan. 18,  Wiscasset faced a tough Richmond team at home. The Bobcats are 9-4 in their first season in Class C and the Mountain Valley Conference, and rank fifth in the Class C South standings. “They are physical and aggressive and are a really good team in our league,” said Clark.

Richmond’s Sydney Underhill-Tilton dominated the first half, accounting for all but five points of her team’s first half offense, as Richmond jumped out to a 12-4 advantage after one quarter. A couple of hoops by Gordon and a Grace Webber three kept Wiscasset in the game, cutting the lead to 12-7 early in the second, but they wouldn’t get any closer the rest of the game. The Bobcats were the beneficiaries of 27 turnovers, which did not allow the Wolverines to get any closer the rest of the way.

With a modest 22-10 halftime lead, Richmond asserted itself in the third period. With Ashley Abbott and Bryanne Lancaster combining for 10 points in the quarter, the Bobcats outscored the Wolverines 18-5 in the decisive frame, and 28-11 in the second half. 

For Richmond, Caitlin Kendrick finished with nine points, and Abbott added eight. Wiscasset was led by Webber with 10 points and six rebounds, Gordon with five points and four rebounds, and Sydnie Thayer with five points and eight boards.

Finally, on Friday night, Jan. 19, Wiscasset made the trek to Bethel to face a Telstar team also looking for its first win of the season. 

Blodgett spotted Gordon for a quick two as Wiscasset struck quick, but Telstar answered. Behind two three-pointers from Aneah Bartlett, the Rebels went on an 11-3 run, closing out the quarter up 11-7. 

Gordon continued to supply the offense to start the second quarter with another hoop and a made foul shot. Telstar answered right back, outscoring Wiscasset 16-12 in the second, with three Rebel players with four points apiece. For Wiscasset, Webber had four points in the frame and Blodgett five, including a three. 

After trailing 27-19 at the half, Wiscasset’s Thayer picked up her fourth foul in the first five seconds of the third quarter, sending her to the bench. But after allowing a quick three, Wiscasset exploded for a 13-3 quarter, turning an 11-point deficit into a one-point lead after three quarters, 32-31.

After a Blodgett three-pointer put the team up 35-33 with 5:56 in the fourth, Telstar went on a 7-2 run to close out the game. Webber finished with 13 points and seven rebounds, Blodgett had 11 points and four rebounds, and Gordon had nine points and three rebounds.

“Ultimately, we made too many mistakes early in the game and didn’t make enough positive plays, offensively,” said Clark.  “We foul too much and that really hurts us.”

Added Clark:  “I was proud of how our girls fought back in the second half to make it a good game down the stretch.  There were many positives that we'll take from the game, including our defensive pressure that we extended to the full court in the second half. I thought that looked pretty good.”

Next up, Wiscasset hosts top-ranked and undefeated Boothbay Thursday. Junior varsity plays at 5:30 p.m and varsity at 7 p.m. On Saturday, Wiscasset travels to Richmond for the same start times. 

Boothbay defeated Wiscasset 65-22 in girls varsity basketball action Thursday night in Wiscasset. As a result, Boothbay is 15-0 on the season and Wiscasset is 0-15.

An annual trek along this historic canal is a real treat for nature lovers and local history buffs alike! The public is invited to explore the scenery and history of Bath's Peterson Canal on Sunday, Feb. 11 during Great Maine Outdoor Weekend. The New Meadows Lake Association, Bath Historical Society, Friends of Merrymeeting Bay, and Kennebec Estuary Land Trust (KELT) are sponsoring this annual hike starting at 11 a.m. along this historic Maine canal.

The guided 2.5-mile scenic hike (one way) is only possible when the water is frozen and will take approximately two to three hours. Meet across from the boat launch to the New Meadows Lake on Old Brunswick Road in Bath. Visit www.kennebecestuary.org for a map of the meeting location. Participants are urged to bring snowshoes, depending on the snow cover. Rides are available back to the starting point, or participants can return on foot via road or the canal.

The canal was built to around 1790 to connect the Kennebec River with the New Meadows River, facilitating downstream transportation of logs, “Lumber and Masts…directly into Casco Bay and to Falmouth without going to sea or running the hazard of going down that rapid torrent, the main Stream of the Kennebeck,” (from the petition to the General Court of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for permission to cut a canal from the head of the New Meadows River into Merrymeeting Bay, dated January 1, 1786).

For more information and to confirm that conditions are appropriate, check the KELT website www.kennebecestuary.org

Wiscasset Youth Cheerleading started out small with one team made up of sixth, seventh and eighth graders, called “Heat.” Since then, the program has continued to grow and is now separated into three teams: Blaze, Flare and Heat. In the past when numbers allowed, there has also been a team named Sparks, open to kindergarten through second graders.

Heat started with six girls the first year of competing. It now has 19. The team, once limited to grades six through eight, now includes grades three through nine.

Following Heat’s age group is Flare. This is a newer team that began competing for Wiscasset two years ago. It is open to grades four through six. Under Flare is Blaze, open to grades two through four. Many athletes participating in Wiscasset Cheerleading compete on more than one team, and also double as youth cheerleading coaches. Brooke Thayer, a freshman at Wiscasset Middle High School, competes on Heat and is a youth coach for Blaze.

“Being on multiple teams can be stressful, but seeing each team get better and better pays off in my mind. Knowing that I’m helping with that improvement makes it even more satisfying,” said Thayer.

Kimberly Dodge, the head of the program, has dedicated many years to helping the teams grow. She has watched members of Heat grow from sixth graders to high school seniors now competing on the school team. When asked to describe her coach, senior Corey Campbell said, “She has always been dedicated to the program and she never lets us down. She treats all of us like family and she cares about us a lot. If it weren’t for her the program wouldn’t be where it is today and there wouldn't be nearly as many girls participating today as there are,” added Campbell, who has been cheering for Wiscasset for eight years.

Alongside Dodge this year are coaches Steven Adam Holt and Kayla Bott, a former Wiscasset cheerleader who graduated last year.

The teams host many fundraisers throughout the season to raise money for clinics to better the skills of each team, buy mats to practice on, purchase music for the season, and more. In January, the parents and coaches organized a family and friends event to raise funds for the upcoming competition season and to give the town an opportunity to see the routines the girls have been working on since November before they head to competition. 

The Wiscasset Community Center opens its facility to the cheering teams to practice multiple days a week. All of the teams were set to kick off the competition season on Feb. 11 at the Maine State Cheer Challenge in Augusta. Each team has at least four competitions this season. This year’s cheering season ends April 28, with Heat competing at Six Flags New England. 

From Jan. 23 to Jan. 30, Wiscasset played two games. On Jan. 26 at Boothbay Region High School, a game against Boothbay ended in a 71-40 loss for Wiscasset.

Boothbay’s scorers included Kyle Ames with 23, Steve Reny with 17, Hunter Crocker with 16, Eli Gudroe with five, Keedan Davis with three, and Jacob Wilson, Sam Burnham and Ben Pearce with two each. For Wiscasset, senior Zachary Reed had 19, senior Kobe Carrier had seven, senior Ronald Drake and junior Matt Chapman had four each, and freshman Dylan Orr, junior Caleb Gabriele and sophomore Noah Haggett each had two.

After that game, Wiscasset fell to 0-15 while Boothbay improved to 10-5. The other game was on Tuesday, Jan. 30, when Wiscasset hosted the Richmond Bobcats. This game resulted in a 70-43 loss for Wiscasset.

Aside from the second quarter, this game was rather competitive. For Richmond, leading scorers were Zach Small with 34, Matt Rines with 10, Caleb Densmore with eight, and Danny Stewart and Ridenour with five each. For Wiscasset, Drake had 15, Orr had 14 including 12 in the fourth quarter, junior Chris Loyola had four, and Haggett, Carrier, Chapman, Caleb Gabriele and juniors Josh Gabriele each had two.

After this game, Wiscasset falls to 0-16 while Richmond improves to 13-3. When head coach Seth Farrington was asked about the loss of team captain Zach Reed again, and was asked about the most improved player thus far, he said: “Probably the biggest change is how we play offensively. We have to be deliberate and patient and use a lot of time per possession.

“A lot of players have improved but if I was going to pick one it would be Ron Drake. He’s our leading scorer now with Zach out and has been our most consistent offensive threat. A part of his game that doesn’t get noticed as much either is his rebounding. He’s a great rebounder from the guard position.”

Wiscasset’s next game is senior night, Feb. 1 at 7 p.m. against Monmouth Academy.

With the season winding down, the Wiscasset Lady Wolverines are still in search of that elusive first victory. However, the effort never wanes as the team is hard-nosed and continues to battle despite the situation. The team refuses to give up.

With games at home facing Boothbay (15-0) and on the road against Richmond (11-5) this past week, Wiscasset had its hands full. 

On Jan. 25, the Wolverines hosted the number one team in Class C South, Boothbay. Wiscasset was simply overmatched in size and ability, as the Lady Wolverines held without a point until just under three minutes left in the first half. The Seahawks feature three six footers in their starting lineup, with 6-foot senior Page Brown and two 6’1” sisters in freshman Glory Blethen and junior Faith Blethen. The trio owned this contest from the outset, helping Boothbay suffocate the Wiscasset offense. Wiscasset was held to two points in the half and five total through three quarters, as Boothbay established leads of 34-2 at halftime, and 54-5 after three quarters. 

For Boothbay, Brown led the way with 21 points, Faith Blethen had 13 points, and sister Glory had 12. Sophomore guard Chloe Arsenault added 10 in the 65-22 victory. For Wiscasset, senior guard Maeve Blodgett finished with nine points, three rebounds, and two assists. Grace Webber finished with seven points and Lindsey Gordon added four points and five rebounds.

Saturday night, Wiscasset travelled a short distance to Richmond to face a tough Bobcat team ranked fifth in Class C South. After watching the Bobcats jump out to a 12-0 lead, Webber caught fire. The spark plug guard rattled off seven straight points to close the first quarter, including a buzzer beater runner to close the gap to 12-7.

Richmond was able to hold Wiscasset to four points in the second, as the Bobcats took a 24–11 halftime lead, despite an off night offensive from Bobcat forward Sydney Underhill-Tilton. 

“Defensively our girls really competed and played hard.  They were all over the floor and challenged themselves to get out on the Richmond shooters,” said Wiscasset Head Coach Ben Clark. “To hold a team like Richmond to only 13 field goals was a definite positive and something we hope to build on.  We simply put them on the line too much by fouling.”

Wiscasset couldn’t get much offense going in the second half, with only nine total points. Richmond had trouble as well, as Wiscasset played the Bobcats  tough in the halfcourt, holding them to eight points in the third, to trail 32-16 after three. Wiscasset sent Richmond to the line 22 times as well, opposed to their five trips. 

In the fourth, Richmond got the best of Wiscasset 11-4 to close out the victory, 43-20. Underhill-Tilton finished with 12 points as did Bryanne Lancaster. For Wiscasset, Webber finished with 12 points, four steals and three blocks. Blodgett and Gordon each added four. 

“Lindsey played really well against Tilton, limiting her to only 12 points. Maeve is playing really well, and we are much better when she is able to beat her player off the dribble and get to the middle of the floor, and Grace had one of her better offensive games against Richmond,” said Clark. “They will need to continue to play well offensively for us to be competitive in our last two games of the season.”

Wiscasset was set to travel to Monmouth on Wednesday night for a 5:30 p.m. junior varsity game and a 7 p.m. varsity matchup against the second ranked Mustangs. Wiscasset then closes the season next Tuesday night hosting Mt. Abram. JV starts at 5:30 p.m., varsity at 7 p.m.

Junior forward Kaeti Butterfield scored 20 points and teammates Abbie Allen and Destiny Clough each added 10 as Monmouth cruised to a 70-23 win over Wiscasset Wednesday night in Monmouth.

Monmouth (15-1 and second in Class C South) got out big and early, owning the first quarter 21-6, as the Mustangs’ full court pressure was too much for a Wiscasset team on the road and without senior captain Grace Webber due to illness. 

Wiscasset (0-17) held Monmouth to just 10 points in the second quarter, but the lady Wolverines only posted five of their own as they found themselves trailing 31-11 at the half. Wiscasset’s Lindsey Gordon had seven of her team high 11 in the first half, establishing herself in the post to keep it respectable.

Monmouth took the third quarter 10-5, as the Mustangs utilized their depth and worked in some younger players. Two more hoops from Gordon and a Maeve Blodgett three was all the offense the Wolverines could muster in the fourth, as the Mustangs poured in 26 in the final frame, closing out decisively with their starters on their Senior Night.

Blodgett finished with five points and Sydnie Thayer had four for the Wolverines, who close out their season with Senior Night next Tuesday night at home against Mt. Abram (8-8, eighth in Class C South). Junior varsity begins at 5:30 p.m. Varsity begins at 7 p.m.

On Feb. 1, the Wiscasset Wolverines varsity boys basketball team hosted the Monmouth Mustangs in the Wolverines’ final home game of the season, and lost 61-32.

All of the first half was rather competitive, 27-17, even with Wiscasset struggling to make its shots. In the second half, Monmouth pulled away. Monmouth’s scoring was led by Connor Davies with 21 and Dylan Lajoie with 14, with Gabe Martin scoring 11 and Brock Bates scoring seven. For Wiscasset, junior Chris Loyola had 12, senior Ronald Drake had seven, junior Matt Chapman had four, freshman Dylan Orr with three, and senior Zach Reed, sophomore Noah Haggett and junior Josh Gabriele each had two.

Monmouth improved to 4-13 while Wiscasset fell to 0-17. Wiscasset’s final game of the season is Feb. 7 at Mt. Abram High School at  7 p.m.

Jevar Garricks scored six points in the last eight minutes leading the fifth and sixth grade Wiscasset Parks and Recreation traveling team to a 37-33 win over a visiting team from the Bath Recreation Department Thursday night, Feb. 1.

The game was tied 21-21 at the half. Back-to-back baskets by Braylon Williams put the visitors up 25-21. But with 10 minutes left to play, Alex Richard’s layup cut Bath’s lead to a basket.

The lead changed three more times before Garricks’ hoop at 3:14 put Wiscasset up for good. Richard hit two free throws down the stretch and Austin Trask added a basket in the final minute.

Bath got off to a fast start scoring the first six points of the game. Five minutes had run off the clock before Audie Plummer hit a foul shot to get Wiscasset on the scoreboard. With 10:22 until the half, Richard banked a shot in from outside the key, putting Wiscasset ahead for the first time, 10-9. Minutes later, Bath’s Sebastian Grover scored from underneath the basket and Williams added another hoop to put the visitors back in front.

Trask found Richard open for a basket tying the game and Cam Larrabee put Wiscasset ahead again 19-17. Bath then tied the game with 30 ticks left until halftime.

Wiscasset Coach Shane Plummer, assisted by Bill Davenport, have led the team to a 5-1-1 record this season. The team has three wins over Woolwich, defeated Bath teams twice and finished with a tie against Whitefield.

This is Plummer’s fourth year coaching the fifth and the sixth graders. “We’re having a lot of fun and the kids are learning how to play the game. We’re building for the future,” he said.

The team plays its home games in the Memorial Gym at Wiscasset Elementary School on Federal Street.

“This is our first Winterfest ever,” Nobleboro’s Oliver Blakesley, 9, said in the Wiscasset Community Center lobby where he, brother William, 2, and their father Paul Blakesley snacked between activities Saturday at Wiscasset Parks and Recreation’s Winterfest.

“I love it,”  the older sibling said. His favorite part so far was the horse-drawn wagon ride.

Stillbrook Acres’ Ernie Rogers and Heather Phinney brought Belgian drafts Bob and Tony from the farm in Gray. Phinney had been through, but never to, Wiscasset. She was liking it, she said, adding, the center is a nice facility. The farm gave rides through the parking lot.

The sunny weather for the event was amazing, the recreation department’s operations manager Bob MacDonald said. “And these horses are amazing.”

Back inside, at a Morris Farm table with farm educator Lisa Packard, Baxter Hardwick, 5, of Wiscasset, was making a bird feeder. He wanted the apple to look like an owl. Poking the fruit with a stick, he created the eyes and mouth. The feeder will go in a tree at home, he and his mother Jodi Hardwick said.

Moments earlier, Wiscasset’s Debbie Speed stepped outside to another Morris Farm table where Chayli Buenger handed her a spoonful of ice cream. Speed took it inside to friend Angela Rivera’s son Natanael. The Brunswick boy, 3, ate it all.

Rivera was glad Speed encouraged her to check out Winterfest. “It’s awesome ... there is so much going on. It’s one heck of an event,” Rivera said.

Chewonki Foundation and Wiscasset Sno-goers also took part. As the snowmobile club prepared to give rides, membership chairman Bob Bruce said the group likes to do it each year because it might be some event-goers’ only time in their lives they will get to experience being on a snowmobile, and for others, it may start them on a lifetime of snowmobiling.

At a breakfast Wiscasset firefighters put on in the Senior Center as a fundraiser for the department, Leighah Bailey, 7, of Wiscasset and brother Hunter, 4, each gave a thumbs up and a smile when asked about the pancakes. The department made plain and chocolate chip. They were equally good, said Wiscasset Ambulance Service advanced emergency medical technician Megan Williams, having breakfast with Sita West, a paramedic with the ambulance service.

Longtime fire department member David Gagnon stuck with plain. “"I'm not really a chocolate chip type,” he said. 

Jeff Crafts of Wiscasset hadn't decided yet. “This is the first round,”  he said, laughing. He likes to attend community meals for a change of pace, he said, adding, he wanted to support the fire department.

Eight hours later in the Senior Center, the Cooper-DiPerri committee and other volunteers served a spaghetti dinner with salad and a table full of dessert options, to benefit the scholarship program that helps children and adults take part in recreation department programs.

Winterfest kicked off Friday with a family trivia night Parks and Recreation Director Lisa Thompson said Drew about 30 people. It went well and she would like to do more, possibly as part of the fall scarecrow festival or other events around the year.

Summer Ross put her team on her back, scoring 19 points as Mt. Abram beat Wiscasset, 45-30, in the final regular season game Tuesday night in Wiscasset.

Ross dominated the first quarter, scoring seven of her team’s 11, staking the Roadrunners to an 11-3 lead. For Wiscasset, senior Grace Webber scored six of her team’s eight second quarter points, as Wiscasset tried to close the gap, but Mt. Abram bested the Wolverines 10-8 in the frame to extend the lead to 21-11 at halftime. Not helping matters, Ross picked up her third foul in the second, relegating her to the bench.

Ross picked up where she left off to start the third, scoring eight points on an array of runners, jumpers and drives, as the Roadrunners outscored Wiscasset 14-4 in the decisive frame and took a commanding 37-15 lead to close the period.

Wiscasset had one last surge saved for the final quarter, as the scrappy Wolverines pulled out all the stops with full-court pressure, outscoring the Roadrunners 15-8 to close the season. Webber had six more for her team, but it wasn’t enough, as Mt. Abram held on for the victory. 

Webber finished with 13 points in her final game for Wiscasset, while Sydnie Thayer had five points and 12 rebounds. Lindsey Gordon had six points and Maeve Blodgett chipped in five assists. For Mt. Abram, Megan Sorel finished with eight points and Ashlyn Sorel had seven.

Hiking and camping with kids can be a wonderful way to bond as a family and introduce kids to the natural world. It can also be an occasion for disagreeable behavior and complaints. Damariscotta River Association (DRA) will help parents prepare for a summer of hiking and camping with kids “without the whine” during a free workshop on Saturday, Feb. 17 from 4-5:30 p.m. at DRA’s Great Salt Bay Farm.

With 25 years of experience taking kids outdoors, DRA Education Director Sarah Gladu will offer tips for pre-trip preparations and gear, ideas for on-the-trail games, and some natural history to enrich the experience for the whole family. Register by Thursday,  Feb. 16 by calling DRA at 207-563-1393.

This event is part of the Great Maine Outdoor Weekend (GMOW), a series of events in February and September led by outdoor oriented organizations and companies to celebrate the how, where, and what of being active outside in Maine. The goal of GMOW is to connect friends and neighbors with the natural world and to promote fun, physical activity, and good health.

Other GMOW events include a hike at Crooked Farm led jointly by DRA and Pemaquid Watershed on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 10 a.m., and Winter Fest, offered by DRA and the GSB School PTO on Sunday, Feb. 18 from noon to 3 p.m.

For more information about any of these events, and the DRA,  call 207-563-1393, email dra@damariscottariver.org, or visit www.damariscottariver.org.

The Midcoast Umpire Association of Maine (MUA) will be providing training for interested new members, or individuals looking to learn more about the game of baseball or softball.

The MUA assists with providing professional, quality officiating to local baseball and softball teams, grades 7 to 12.

All interested individuals are encouraged to apply. Training and education are provided by veteran umpires using hands on, online, visual and written study resources.

New member sessions for baseball will be scheduled for five consecutive Thursdays, beginning March 1. Softball training sessions will be scheduled in March, based on the availability of interested candidates.

Anyone interested in this challenging and rewarding opportunity are encouraged to register online at midcoastumpires.com under the “Join Us” section, or by contacting Chris Barstow at barstow@midcoastumpires.com.

Reach the sports department at: sports@penbaypilot.com. 

On Thursday, Feb. 8, the Wiscasset boys Wolverines varsity basketball team traveled to Mt. Abram to face the Roadrunners in the Wolverines’ final game of the season. This game was very close, ending in a 63-53 loss for Wiscasset.

At halftime, Mt. Abram was leading 32-17. Wiscasset brought it to a four-point game by the end of the third quarter, but could not take the lead. For Mt. Abram, scoring was led by Nate Luce with 21, along with Evan MacKay with 12 and Dawson Bale with 11.

For Wiscasset, the two seniors, Ronald Drake and Kobe Carrier, scored 18 and 15 respectively in their final high school game. Freshman Dylan Orr made four threes in the game, resulting in 12 points. Juniors Caleb Gabriele and Matt Chapman each had three points, and junior Josh Gabriele had two points.

This loss marks the end of the season for both Wiscasset and Mt. Abram. Mt. Abram finished 2-16 while Wiscasset finished 0-18. 

Give your skis and snowshoes a rest and take to the trails on a fat tire bike at Midcoast Conservancy’s Hidden Valley Nature Center at 131 Egypt Road in Jefferson on Sunday, Feb. 25, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The conservancy’s fat bikes will be there to try on the extensive trail network. Fat bikes, essentially mountain bikes with extra wide tires, were first designed for riding in snow and sand and are a growing trend all over Maine. Their ability to handle most trail challenges and conditions make them especially fun to ride.

The bikes will be available first-come-first-served. There is no charge; the idea is to give everyone a chance to try out this fun and accessible sport. Please bring your own helmet, and wear appropriate clothes for the day. If you have your own fat tire bike, please come join us. A fire pit will be blazing during a midday break for lunch. Bring something to eat (or roast over the fire!) and then hit the trails for another adventure. For more information or questions, go to www.midcoastconservancy.org/events, or call 207-389-5150.

On Feb. 5, the Damariscotta Board of Appeals reversed part of the Planning Board’s decision to allow Stepping Stones, Inc. to build six buildings at its properties formerly known as “Blue Haven,” at Hodgdon and Pleasant streets. Blue Haven had been owned by John Andrews, and had been willed to Second Congregational Church and the Lincoln Home, which decided to provide housing services to the poor.

The two parcels had originally held seven units; one stand-alone farmhouse with an in-law apartment; three cottages; a “tiny house”; and a trailer. Stepping Stones tore down the farm house that had needed repair, and planned to replace it, obtaining a building permit in summer 2015, but did not have the funds to complete the rebuild immediately, and instead, began to design a small-housing development on the site. By spring 2016, Stepping Stones sought approval to build seven units, triggering a site plan review by the Planning Board, and facing opposition from neighbors.

After more than a year, changes from seven to six units, several public hearings, and advice from legal counsel, Stepping Stones was granted an approved site plan in April 2017. The six units were to replace the farmhouse and the five existing smaller buildings on the lots. Legal counsel agreed with the planning board, the units were grandfathered because they had not been abandoned, nor had their use changed. Zoning rules would have allowed only three units on the two parcels.

Neighbor Gabe Shadis appealed, with a group now called Concerned Citizens of the Stepping Stones Housing Project. The appeals board rejected two claims by Shadis, that the planning board and code enforcement officer had not considered change of use, and that the planning board had not required Stepping Stones to demonstrate financial capacity to complete the project.

The planning board met Jan. 8, and in a decision dated Jan. 16, provided supplemental findings of fact and the legal counsel’s opinion. On Feb. 5, the appeals board reviewed the planning board’s report and a legal memorandum by the attorney for Shadis et al, Jonathan Hull, outlining the argument that demolishing the structures, as Stepping Stones planned, nullified the grandfathering issue, and the ordinance in effect should be used.

Stepping Stones faced other recent issues. According to comments by Selectwoman Amy Lalime, an elderly tenant suffered from frozen pipes around the holidays and they were not addressed until after the holiday weekend. The tenant was moved from the trailer to one of the cottages and died on Jan. 21, most likely from a fall, according to Lalime. But according to Lalime, she had been living in “extremely deplorable” conditions and had not received adequate social services support. She was discovered by friends several days after her death.

In a letter to selectmen, Stepping Stones described the death as “tragic.” Stepping Stones member and treasurer Bruce Bachelder wrote that two board members had spent a great deal of time trying to help the woman, whom he described as “very disturbed.”

“Our Executive Director, Marilee Harris, had placed several calls to state agencies trying to get this individual help, and was told that if the resident would not come forward to request or accept help there was nothing that anyone could do.”

Bachelder said he was not sure how Lalime wanted Stepping Stones to “force social services upon  this resident. In violation of her rental agreement, the resident refused us access to her unit and refused to answer her phone or return messages.”

Bachelder said the agency filed an eviction notice and she had ignored that, as well. “We simply could not get through to her any other way,” he wrote.

Attempts to reach Police Chief Jason Warlick were not immediately successful.

An informative Concussion Awareness Night will be held Wednesday, March 14 at Lincoln Academy in Newcastle in the Nelson Bailey gymnasium from 5-7 p.m. Students, athletes, coaches and parents are invited to attend.

According to Megan DeRaps, athletic trainer at Lincoln Academy, this Concussion Awareness Night is to provide valuable information to students, athletes, coaches, parents, and community members about concussions. The keynote speaker will discuss how a sports-related concussion has impacted his own life. Eric Duffy, RN, and DeRaps will discuss information about what is a concussion, signs/symptoms, how to manage, proper return to academics, and proper return to play for athletics. There will also be a question and answer session at the end.

“This is a crucial topic that should not be overlooked, the evolving concussion research shows the value in taking appropriate measures when an adolescent experiences a concussion. Delaying or hiding recognition of a concussion can hinder the student both academically and athletically,” said DeRaps.

For more information, contact DeRaps at deraps@lincolnacademy.org or (207) 315-1926.

Ahoy, mateys! The Friends of Windjammer Days met Feb. 13 downtown and discussed this year’s festival. So, let’s start with the really big news – the following schooners were confirmed in January: Actress ( built by former owner East Boothbay resident Scott Kennedy in 1983. Kennedy named it after his grandfather, Oliver C. Weyant), Adventure, Alert, American Eagle, Ardelle, Eastwind, Ernestina-Morrissey, Harvey Gamage, Heritage, Lazy Jack, Louis E. Story, Lynx, Mary E, Sycamore, and True North.

Schooner liasion Pete Ripley also reported in addition to the locally based charter boats ready to follow your course all summer, three of the visiting schooners, Ardelle, Lynx and Adventure, will also be offering charters.

Entertainment Chair Bill Bailey informed the group of confirmed bookings: the Dyer Neck Gang and The Soul Sensations. He said he was exploring new bands and awaiting confirmation from others.

Mark Gimbel reported Landon Flynn of The Boothbay Harbor Oceanside Golf Resort has a new event planned for Thursday, June 28 on the deck: Chefs from restaurants around the region will be invited to participate in a chowder competition. Oceanside also plans to hold the post-Antique Boat Parade reception on Tuesday with free nibbles again.

Gimbel further reported that the Gathering of the Fleet, formerly known as the Parade of Sail, will be highly visible even if you’re not on a boat. Why? Because images captured by drones operated by Jonne Trees and Cody Mitchell will be shown on large screens in the Whale Park! This is most excellent news for windjammer fans on land. Let’s be honest: Watching these large, elegant ships glide into the harbor is breathtaking – no matter how many times you’ve seen it. And a narrator will announce each ship and include some background, captain or captains name(s) … that kind of thing.

Stay tuned for details – and keep checking the Friends Facebook page and the Festival website, www.boothbayharborwindjammerdays.org!

The Friends of Windjammer Days never turn away new recruits. Have a favorite event in the Festival? Be part of this dynamic group, sign on to your event’s subcommittee and be part of Windjammer history! The next meeting is at Boat House Bistro on Thursday, March 8 at 5 p.m.

Once again this year, FRANK 106.9 (WBQX, Thomaston) will be broadcasting high school tournament basketball featuring Oceanside, Camden Hills, Medomak Valley, Vinalhaven, Islesboro, Belfast and new this year Boothbay, Cony, Erskine Academy and Gardiner.

Coverage begins on Friday afternoon and will continue through the state championships for any of these high schools.

All of the games will also be streamed on our FRANK 106.9 Facebook page.

Due to Saturday very busy coverage, the Belfast Boys against Hermon will be moved to FRANK’s sister station, 105.5 The Wolf (WYBA, Islesboro)

Here is the schedule of quarterfinal games.

Friday Feb. 16

2:45 PM - Medomak Valley Girls vs Messalonskee

8:15 PM - Gardiner Girls vs Hampden Academy

Saturday Feb. 17

8:15 AM - Islesboro Girls vs. Temple Academy

1:15 PM - Oceanside Boys vs. Winslow

3:45 PM - Medomak Valley Boys vs Skowhegan

4:15 PM - Belfast Boys vs Hermon (on WBYA – 105.5 The Wolf)

5:30 PM - Erskine Academy Boys vs. Nokomis

7:45 PM - Camden Hills Boys vs. Cony

Monday Feb. 19

2:15 PM - Boothbay Boys vs Waynflete

Tuesday Feb. 20

11:15 AM - Vinalhaven Girls vs. Valley

8:15 PM - Boothbay Girls vs Traip Academy

By the light of the full winter moon, the Kennebec Estuary Land Trust (KELT) welcomes the public to explore Thorne Head Preserve in Bath for owls on Friday, March 2 at 5:30 p.m. Led by Maine Master Naturalist Alan Seamans, participants of all ages will listen to different owl calls, explore what makes a good owl home, and learn fun facts about these nighttime birds of prey. This is a free event.

Maine is home to eleven owl species, who spend all or part of the year in the state. These nocturnal predators can live in a variety of habitats from dense woodlands, to marshes, to urban environments like gulf courses or airports. Seamans will share recordings of various owl calls as he leads prowlers on a walk through the preserve. Meeting at dusk during a full moon will optimize chances of seeing or hearing owls as wintertime is their mating season. Owls will be listening for possible mates and more eager to respond to calls, even if they come from a recording.

Prowlers should bring snowshoes or microspikes (for traction) and a headlamp as well as dress to spend 1 – 1 ½ hours outdoors. Please sign up at www.kennebecestuary.org or call 207-442-8400. To get to Thorne Head Preserve from Bath, go north on High Street, which dead ends into the parking lot of the preserve.

On Saturday, Feb. 17, the Morse-Wiscasset wrestling team traveled to Sanford for the Maine Class A championships. In the first round, Wiscasset's Samuel Strozier, the second seed from the north, wrestled Collin Cyr from Noble. Strozier won by a pin at five minutes and 30 seconds of the third period.

In the semi-final round, Strozier, Wiscasset’s lone wrestler, faced the number one seed from the south, Isaac Plant from Sanford. And with a dramatic finish, Strozier won by a pin at 5:12 of the third period to advance to the finals.

In a tough-fought final, Strozier lost to Oxford Hills wrestler Zuka  Mabior 9-3. Mabior is ranked seventh in New England at 182 poumds. Morse's other co-captain Isaiah Cogswell placed fourth at 152 pounds. Strozier advances to All-states which will be held at Noble High School next Saturday, Feb. 24, when the top wrestlers from Class A wrestle the top wrestlers from Class B.

The Seahawks have won a quarterfinal game in Augusta, 65-64, over Waynflete Monday afternoon.

Boothbay Region High School’s Class C south boys basketball team had high scorers of Steve Reny with 21 points and Kyle Ames with 18.

The Wolverine cheerleaders team, coached by Kimberly Dodge and assistant coaches Kayla Bott and Stephen Adam Holt, consists of 13 athletes, both girls and boys. The Wolverines started off their season in November and put in a lot of hours to get their routine performance ready for their first competition in January.

This season, the team held practices up to five times a week. The competition cheerleaders also cheered at a basketball game every week. The Wolverines have skills clinics throughout their season with outside coaches to help clean up their routine before they hit the competition mats. It takes a lot of time and dedication to get competition-ready.

Head Coach Dodge has always put an immense amount of time into the high school cheerleading program. Senior Corey Campbell said, “Kim is always at all of our practices and competitions regardless of what is happening in her personal life. She puts an enormous amount of time and effort into the program to help us achieve our goals and make sure that we are having fun while doing so.”

While the demands of cheerleading may be great, the rewards are well worth it. At the Wolverines’ first competition of the season this year, MVC’s on Jan. 15, the team finished fourth. Then, in regionals on Jan. 27, the team finished fourth out of eight teams, qualifying it to compete at states for the third straight year. The team traveled to the Cross Insurance Center in Bangor for states this year, where the Wolverines took eighth place. The following day, the cheerleaders competed at the Maine State Cheer Challenge at the Augusta Civic Center and walked away with a first place finish to end their season.

At the end of the season, not only do the athletes on the team walk away with these achievements, they also leave the season with new friendships. Freshman Chrissy Easter said this season was the closest she has ever felt with a sports team. “Everyone was super welcoming ... and being on the team this year was a really good experience.”

When asked how she felt about the team, sophomore Shannon James said, “This team is more than a family, it’s greater than any other sport because everyone is truly needed, wanted, and loved.” Senior August Moore said, “The cheering programs in Wiscasset have been so amazing. All of the teams support each other and the younger kids look up to the older kids and that creates such a great bond with our whole cheer family. I started in sixth grade and now I’m a senior and I’m going to miss it so much.” The four seniors on the team are thankful for what the program has offered them throughout their years of cheering and are very proud of the team’s accomplishments this season. 

The cheerleaders will celebrate their season with an awards ceremony for the team, friends and family in March. 

The United States Power Squadron, now known as “America's Boating Club,” is offering two boating courses at Wiscasset Middle High School.

Marine Weather

This course focuses on how weather systems form, behave, move and interact with one another. The course benefits those sitting in their living rooms as much as those standing behind the helm of a boat. Class starts Wednesday March 14, (eight weeks) 6:30-8:30 p.m., $95. Power Squadron members $80.

Marine Electronic Navigation

Overwhelmed by all those functions on your GPS or Chart Plotter? This course covers the topics you need and want to know. Class starts Thursday, March 29 for seven weeks, 6:30-8:30 p.m., $95. Power Squadron members $80.

Registration is through RSU #1 adult ed., Bath, 443-8255.

The Central Lincoln County (CLC) YMCA and the Boothbay Region YMCA are offering 10 weeks of an expanded summer camp experience to give kids and teens an active and healthy summer!

The Summer Camp program guide will be available online and at both Ys beginning next Monday, Feb. 26. Registration is online at your home Y’s website. Registration for Y members begins at 8 a.m. on March 5 and then opens to the general public at 8 a.m. on March 12. Camps run Monday-Friday from June 18-August 24.

Summer camps at the YMCA provide youth ages 3-14 with safe and exciting opportunities to explore, learn, create and discover the world around them. Under the guidance of caring, enthusiastic and trained staff, children will create lasting friendships and lifelong memories. From sports and swimming to arts and adventure, the YMCA camps span a broad range of interests, while focusing on developing young minds and bodies. The camps inspire campers to embrace the Y’s core values of caring, honesty, respect and responsibility and challenge them to grow physically, mentally and spiritually. Staff are positive role models and will encourage campers of all ages to become better leaders, friends, and of course, have fun!

Summer camp offerings include Day Camp at Camp Knickerbocker, 157 Barters Island Road, Boothbay, with weekly activities that include beach play, swimming, kayaking and canoeing, field and court sports, arts and crafts, Baldwin Center Adventure Course, Exhilarating Playground and field trips to local venues and hiking preserves.

LIT and CIT programs will also run once again and provides leadership opportunities that prepare teens to not only become staff members at camp but to also become productive members and volunteers in their home communities. Participants work side by side with Camp Directors and Camp Staff to lead daily camp activities and will join forces with local organizations to volunteer in and around the community.

Campers grades 3-9 attending CLC’s popular Sailing Camp at Round Pond are sure to enjoy a fun-filled summer learning how to sail. The staff of experienced instructors will teach campers lifetime skills in a fleet of 14’ dinghies. No experience necessary, but kids should be comfortable in the water. Sailing Camp LIT program also available.

Scamper camp program is for youth entering Kindergarten. Campers enjoy the traditional day camp setting with participation in all Camp Knickerbocker has to offer.

Boothbay Critter Camp is designed to provide kids ages 3-4 socialization and educational growth through fun-filled activities focused on the unique developmental stages of preschool children. The program takes place at the BRYMCA Child Enrichment Center on the main Y campus. Campers will spend time on the natural playground and grow a garden, create art, go on picnics, play at the beach and park, learn about health and nutrition, play educational games, visit Camp K, go on exciting field trips, and more!

Summer Adventure Camp for Maine Explorers, ages 8-14, is for small groups exploring the best Maine has to offer: Fishing, Boating and Blazing Trails; Survivor Camp, Aqua Adventure; and Lighthouse & Beach Exploration.

The Y’s ever popular Music Theatre Camp for youth ages 6-12, offers two-week sessions focusing on all areas of the dramatic arts. Campers work in groups to learn acting and performing skills, theatre games, improved singing and dancing. Campers also enjoy traditional day camp activities like swimming and sports. Along with improving their theatre skills, campers will participate in the Theatre Olympics and rehearse and perform a fully staged Broadway Junior Musical!

Y-Arts Camps also include a new Maine Musical Movie Camp where kids ages 6-12 will work with staff to learn the musical, I Love Maine, by composer Joel Biron, and travel to locations around the state to film the various scenes. The session concludes with a selection of performances from the show and a preview of the movie. Broadway Babies for kids ages 3-6 is back again this session for a performance of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. Music Video Camp, where youth ages 6-12 produce an outline, create choreography and film a music video. Two half-day Y-Arts camp offerings for youth ages 6-12 are Dance Camp, where kids explore various styles of dance all set to Broadway music, and Theatre Workshop which focuses on the many aspects of musical theatre—from dance to stage makeup to improv.

Boothbay specialty camps are held at Camp K and include half-day LEGO camp, Boating Camp, STEM Camp: Science, Technology, Engineering & Math and Swim Camp; full-day Archery/Riflery Camp. Boothbay Sports Camps at the Y include Football, Basketball, Tennis and Soccer.

CLC YMCA offers specialty camps at the Y in Damariscotta for Metal Detecting/Beach, Arts & Crafts, FARMS at the Y Cooking, LEGO camp and Geocaching. Sports camps include Tennis, Baseball, Softball, Gymnastics, Golf, Football and Soccer.

Download the 2018 Summer Camp Guide at your Y’s website or call for more information: clcymca.org ~ 563-9633 or boothbayregionymca.org ~ 633-2855.

The CLC and BR YMCAs are key collaborative leaders improving the quality of life for all by being the champion for youth development, healthy living and social responsibility.

For information about any of the Y's events, visit clcymca.org.

The final score in girls Class C South basketball action at the Augusta Civic Center Tuesday night was Boothbay 59, Traip 40. Page Brown led Boothbay with 24 points.

Boothbay plays Madison at 4 p.m. Thursday.

The top-seeded Boothbay Region High School girls varsity basketball team defeated the fourth-seeded Madison Bulldogs, 53-45 in the semifinal round of the Class C South state basketball tournament at the Augusta Civic Center Thursday afternoon.

The victory advanced the Seahawks to the regional championship game at the ACC on Saturday at 7 p.m. where they will face the Monmouth Mustangs, winner of the other semifinal game earlier in the day.

High scorer for Boothbay was Page Brown with 17 points.

The sixth-seeded Boothbay Region High School boys varsity basketball team lost to the second-seeded Winthrop Ramblers, 61-60  in the semifinal round of the Class C South state basketball tournament at the Augusta Civic Center Thursday evening.

The victory advanced the Ramblers to the regional championship game at the ACC on Saturday at 9 p.m.

Leading scorer for Boothbay was Kyle Ames with 23 points.

The Kennebec Estuary Land Trust (KELT) invites kids, adults, and families to explore Maine's winter splendor at Weber Kelly Preserve on snowshoes. On Saturday, March 3, join Maine Master Naturalists Volunteers Priscilla Seimer and Becky Kolak on a wintery nature walk. Discover the fascinating relationship between flora, fauna, and the forest as the snowflakes fly. The trek starts at 10 a.m. and includes instruction, hot cocoa, and ample exploration.

Seimer and Kolak will lead participants through the preserve looking for signs of animals, discussing how life in the Maine woods adapts to the cold temperatures, and sharing how to make seasonal observations all year long. Phenology, or the study of seasonal natural phenomena, can be done by people of any age in any environment! It is a fun way to record interesting and everyday happenings in nature, which we can then look back on over the years to spot how our natural world changes with time.

Please register for this walk with KELT at 207-442-8400 or online at www.kennebecestuary.org. We will walk with or without snow, so participants should come prepared to spend two hours outside. In case of severe weather, the walk will be rescheduled. This program is generously sponsored by the Merrymeeting Bay Trust. To reach Weber Kelly Preserve, from Route 1 take Route 127 south and follow it for eight miles to Bay Point Road. Turn right and follow Bay Point Road for two miles to the preserve parking lot, which is located on the left.

The Monmouth Academy Mustangs will play for the girls Class C state basketball championship as the Mustangs took the Class C South title Saturday night, 51-47 at the Augusta Civic Center. The Mustangs will face the winner of the Class C North match-up, Houlton/Dexter, at the Augusta Civic Center next Saturday, March 3 at 7:05 p.m.

The win was Monmouth's 20th of the season.

Monmouth returns to the state title game. Monmouth won the title in 2017, 46-37, over Dexter.

Boothbay's leading scorer was Faith Blethen with 21 points.

Monmouth's leading scorer was Tia Day wth 14 points.

On Feb. 24, Maine's top A and B class wrestlers traveled to Nokomis High School for the New England qualifier/all-state meet with a chance at representing Maine in Providence in Providence, Rhode Island at the New England wrestling championships. Wiscasset Middle High School senior Sam Strozier qualified for the Providence event.

In the first round at Nokomis, Strozier wrestled Ellsworth's Charlie Hughes. Strozier won by a pin at 3:06 of the second period. In Strozier's second match, he faced four-time state champion, Winslow's Ryan Fredette. Fredette is ranked number one in New England at 182 pounds and placed second at New Englands last year. A  tough-fought match had Strozier losing by technical fall in the third period, 19-2. In his third match, Strozier wrestled Jonah Potter from Wells. Strozier pinned Potter at 3:20 of the third period, putting Strozier into the consolation finals against Cony's Aaron Lettre with a chance to fulfill his dream.

Strozier  went out and did just that, beating Lettre 11-0 and securing his spot on Team Maine this weekend in Providence, where the wrestling will start at 5 p.m. Friday. Strozier has competed on the Morse-Wiscasset team as the lone Wiscasset member. Morse hasn’t hasn't had a wrestler qualify for New Englands since Michael Alvarez qualified in 2013.

“This was Sam's dream all year.  He worked really hard in the off-season and the hard work paid off,” said Morse-Wiscasset Coach Mike Bennett.

The Wiscasset Wolverines competed at the State Class B Swim Meet at Bowdoin College on Feb. 19 and 2o. While just two swimmers, they represented Wiscasset extremely well.

The Wolverines train and compete individually with the Lincoln Academy Eagles and the Boothbay Region Seahawks. They share practice time, transportation and coaching with the two teams. This year, the Class A and Class B State Meets were dedicated to longtime swim coach Don Strout. His years of dedication to the student athletes and swimming were recognized at all meets.

Swimming for the Wolverines are sophomore Maria West and freshman Nathan Gilliam. Gilliam broke the school record this year with a time of 5:29.80 in the 500-yard freestyle. He placed ninth at the State Meet in that event as well as 11th in the 200 freestyle. Gilliam shaved off time from his best time in that event. Due to the small numbers, they were unable to field any relay times.

West, whose sister Julia is the record-holder for Wiscasset in the 100-yard breaststroke, competed in the 200 individual medley and the 100 breaststroke. Marie shaved off hundredths of a second in the breaststroke from her best time.

The Wiscasset swim team needs swimmers. At one time, the team had a state champion in the 50 freestyle as well as a state-winning 200 freestyle relay team. With numbers dwindling, the need to attach to the current situation was warranted. The three schools are unofficially known as “Lincasset Bay.”

While experience in competitive swimming is a plus, anyone who can swim all four strokes is encouraged to join the team next season. Hopefully, the WCC Unsinkables will deliver some swimmers to the high school team in the coming years.

For Wiscasset Christian Academy’s girls volleyball team, the wait is over. WCA won its first Athletics for Christian Education League championship Feb. 23 over Calvary Christian Academy. WCA won its first volleyball league championship since 1983 with a straight sets victory over the Turner-based school.

WCA advanced to the championship match on Feb. 19 with a victory over Lisbon Falls Christian School.

“Aleeya made the last kill, and it was amazing,” Coach Julie Jones of Wiscasset said in a phone interview Tuesday, about her daughter, team captain Aleeya Jones, getting the final point for the win. Jones added, Aleeya’s younger sister Madison is Aleeya’s setter. Other team members are Emily West, Isabelle Lewis, Abby Lewis, Natalie Sleeper, Hayley Weymouth, Katie Hilton, Alannah Campbell, Gloria Seaman, Oliyshia Carrow, Farrah Casey, Lindsey Jones, Joanna Collins, Kenney Sprague, Cassidy Jones and Kelsey Jones.

Coach Jones discussed the team and recounted the championship in an email Tuesday. “Most high school teams add to their team every year with new students entering into the high school level. Me, I have to add young ones starting from fourth grade to help field a team because we are a small Christian school. This is the way it's been for so many years. It's not easy finding 12 high school girls from a school of 25-52 students. Volleyball team-building, bonding and the making of a strong ‘6-pack’ is very difficult on a small team made up of different ages. For the last couple of years, I have been able to work with the same high school girls and younger to build this team of champions. Yes, four of them are family, and let me tell you it's not easy coaching two daughters and two nieces, but with the all around heart and passion to want to win from the other teammates, this year was absolutely easy!

“With only losing one match this volleyball season against a team many expected us to beat, my team walked into the championship game knowing it was truly up to them. They knew they needed to bring out all they had practiced and to be a unified team more than they ever had, and they did!”

Matthew Forgues, otherwise known as Matthew Calling Elk, from Boothbay, is hoping to do his hometown proud by qualifying for the 2020 Olympics.

Forgues, 25, has been racewalking since he was 4 and his big sister, Lauren (now Albaum), was 9. Lauren had started racewalking through the USA Track & Field program at Wiscasset Community Center. “He was too young to start, but he wanted to do it, so we did the summer program,” Albaum said. “He wasn’t allowed to enter the meets, but he’d come to practice, and as soon as he was old enough he immediately jumped into all the track and field stuff.”

Racewalking is a long-distance footrace in which the athlete walks fast. It’s an Olympic sport. Forgues is training now, and will continue to train for the next two years, to hopefully secure a spot in 2020.

Racewalking differs from running in that one foot always has to be touching the ground, and the leading leg must be straight from the moment it touches the ground until it passes under the center of the body.

Brother and sister continued racewalking throughout middle and high schools, and each was the respective state record holder for Boothbay Region High School.

Now in San Diego, Forgues is training for 50K races after running marathons in Chile and New York. “He did great in both of those with no training,” Lauren said. “You need endurance for those longer marathons, and he has that.”

On Jan. 20, Forgues placed second in the USA Track & Field National 50K Race Walk Championship in Santee, California. It was his highest finish in a national championship race. In 2015, he placed fifth in that race; in 2016, he placed fourth; and in 2017, he came in third. “We’ll see what I do next year,” he said. “I’d like to keep the streak going.”

Forgues said his latest racing season started in July. In September, he won the 40K National Championships. His training had been going well, he said, then he pulled both hamstrings around Thanksgiving. “That put me on the elliptical for about two weeks. It was really, really painful.”

He got better, and then a week later, around Christmas, he came down with the flu. “I was out of commission for another seven days. I started easing back into it, but at that point I just kind of had to ride the wave and see what happened.”

A few weeks ago, Forgues and his coach decided to fly down to Monterey, Mexico for a race. The plan was to just walk the first 40 kilometers at a fast pace, and then if he felt okay he’d keep going, but if he felt it was enough, he’d drop out at 40K. “It was really supposed to be just kind of a test run.”

He started out at his goal pace, and stayed on it throughout. “When 40 kilometers rolled around I was still on pace, and I felt fine, so I decided to finish.”

He said he fell off pace a little in the last 5K, but he finished in four hours, 11 minutes, and 43 seconds – 12 minutes faster than he had done in a previous race. He came in eighth – his highest international finish ever. “It was a huge, huge personal best. Most people don’t ever set a personal best like that.”

After high school, racewalking was put on the back burner while Forgues attended first Ashford Univesity in Iowa, on a NIAAA (National Interscholastic Athletic Administrators Association's scholarship), then Goucher College, a private co-educational liberal arts college in Baltimore.

After graduation, he went to teach on an Indian reservation, Standing Rock, in North and South Dakota. There, he rekindled his love of racewalking, according to Albaum.

Serious racewalkers spend a lot of time training, and it costs money. Forgues holds down a full-time job as an educator at a Whole Foods Market in San Diego, and spends 20 to 30 hours a week training. He’s $15,000 in credit card debt. “It’s pretty much like working two full-time jobs. I put all my training expenses on a credit card. It’s a huge cost to train full time.”

There have been some food issues for the athlete, too. He started seeing a naturopathic doctor when he first arrived in San Diego. “Everything I ate was making me sick,” he said. “It was going on for months.” He learned he had a lot of food intolerances, including lactose intolerance, and low iron levels.

He’s still dealing with those, but is able to keep them under control by being very careful what he eats. He said he burns “a ridiculous amount of calories” training. On an easy day, he racewalks seven miles, but an average day involves 12 to 15. “In theory I can eat whatever I want, but in reality I can’t. I do eat junk food now and then, but I pay attention to diet and nutrition issues.”

To qualify for the Olympic team, Forgues will have to make the top three in his event at the trials and meet required time standards. “You could win the mile, but if you’re running the mile in eight minutes, they’re not going to send you to the Olympics.” He said the time standard for his event is four hours and six minutes. “It was a really, really good sign that I’m able to walk 4:11 now, and it was pretty easy. So that bodes well for 2020.”

“For my event there’s a window in which I can hit the time standard. I’ll have to break that 4:6 barrier anytime between Jan. 1, 2019 to May of 2020, and then I’ll have to finish in the top three at the Olympic trials.”

After the race in Monterey, Forgues said he feels like he’s gotten a huge boost in confidence. “I really truly feel like it’s not just a hope. So many dream of the Olympics and don’t make it, but I feel like I have a very, very realistic chance of doing it.

“That’s something I never thought I’d say. I knew it was going to be an uphill battle for me to meet the time standard, but after doing it last weekend, and doing it with such ease, I’m pretty confident that I can do it. After having shaved off five minutes in two years, I shaved 12 minutes off in a month.”

“I’m feeling a lot more confident than I’ve ever felt. You never know what will happen, but I’m feeling very capable now.”

Albaum had to give up her racewalking career a few years ago after contracting Lyme disease and, as a result, arthritis in one knee. “I’m limited now in what I can do, so now I have to resort to watching Matt, which is fine. He’s doing enough for the both of us.

“Physically he’s got what it takes to make an Olympic team, especially in the 50K. But he’s working full-time at Whole Foods, and it’s a full-time job to be an athlete. His workouts are four, five and six hours. If he can survive the schedule, he’s got it in the bag.”

Forgues is thankful for all the support he has gotten, monetary and moral. He’ll be visiting his hometown in May, when his sister promises him a niece.

Forgues is the son of Linda and Michael Forgues of Boothbay.

None of the staff, students or others the Wiscasset Newspaper interviewed at Wiscasset Middle High School Thursday were surprised senior Sam Strozier earned a berth in the New England high school wrestling championships. But they all had a surprise for him.

Minutes before dismissal, Strozier walked into Stover Auditorium to the cheers of teens and adults including parents Ed and Shelley Strozier and Shelley’s sister Dee Dee Fifield. To the tune of Queen’s “We Will Rock You,” the crowd stomped, clapped and chanted, “Sam will, Sam will rock you.” WMHS teacher Warren Cossette coached them moments before, with help from the multi-sport athlete’s fellow seniors Lindsey Gordon and Vanessa Dunn and junior Matt Chapman. Gordon held a sign reading, “All I do is” followed by an illustration of a safety pin, a play on the pin in wrestling Strozier has done many times to his opponents this season as he competed as WMHS’s lone member of a Morse High School-Wiscasset team.

WMHS’s Beth Smith put the secret in secretary as she contacted each classroom directly to come to the gym and saved Strozier’s for last to keep the surprise. She invited Strozier’s family to wait in the conference room until classes started arriving. There, she briefed them on what to expect. In an interview during the wait, Strozier’s parents expressed thanks for the school honoring their son’s achievement and said he’s earned the recognition. Like others, they said his qualifying for New Englands did not surprise them.

“He’s worked hard. He works hard for himself, he works hard for his team, for the school, and he works hard for his parents, which makes him an all around great kid,” his mother said. Ed Strozier added he would like to thank the school for paying for Strozier’s event registration and hotel room.

In separate interviews, Strozier’s longtime track coach Josiah Winchenbach and Wiscasset schools’ athletic director-assistant principal Mandy Lewis concurred about his dedication to training and competing. “When he puts his mind to something, that’s all he thinks about,” Winchenbach said. He called Strozier a utility athlete, one who can do whatever is asked of him.

“He’s one of the most dedicated student-athletes I’ve been able to work with,” Lewis said. “His success comes from his determination. He perseveres, he doesn’t quit, and he has the best attitude.”

Dunn and Gordon said they wanted to show their support Thursday because Strozier shows so much support for, and is a good leader for, students in other sports at the school.

Strozier smiled as he entered the gym. Interviewed after the rally, he was looking forward to the competition in Rhode Island and was pleased the school turned out for him. “It was pretty great having everybody come support,” he said. Asked about his successful season, he said everyone helped make him better, including the other teams.

According to his parents, Strozier’s first contest is Friday night against Massachusetts’ sixth-placed wrestler. Strozier qualified as Maine’s number three wrestler in the 182-pound division, they said.

Wiscasset Middle High School swimmers Maria West, a sophomore, and freshman Nathan Gilliam prove no matter how small a team is, great things can still be achieved. 

The two athletes, coached by head coach Don Strout, Earl Brewerand Anneliese Pugh, have represented Wiscasset strongly this season. An individual agreement the school has with Lincoln Academy allows the swimmers to practice and compete with both Lincoln Academy and Boothbay Region High School. The Maine Principals Association allows schools to collaborate through individual or team sports via a process. The individual agreement allows the Wiscasset swimmers to keep the Wiscasset identity and swim as part of a team.

The unofficial team name they go by is Lincasset Bay Swimming. West and Gilliam are exhibition swimmers, and sometimes they are able to step up and fill in as competing swimmers on the relay teams of Lincoln Academy and BRHS when they are down athletes. The two swimmers work hard to achieve their goals by practicing five days a week alongside Boothbay and Lincoln academy students at the Boothbay Region YMCA. 

The athletes get a good mix of workouts throughout the season. Brewer, an assistant coach, is a certified water aerobics teacher and can provide the swimmers with a workout before warmups. They occasionally do dry workouts, too. The swimmers feel fortunate to get the amount of pool time they do. They get the whole pool for 90 minutes at a time, which is an opportunity not many other schools get. The team also provides a valuable system for the swimmers that allows them to be bussed from Skip Cahill Tires to the Boothbay Region YMCA. Not only do both athletes put in a lot of time during their regular swim season from September to April, but they are also both USA Swimmers. West and Gilliam are part of the WCCU team at the community center and coach Lori LaPointe has been  important to their training. 

When asked to describe her experience on the team, West said, “I have amazing coaches who are very patient. You can definitely see that they put a lot of time into what they are doing. They also make sure that we always get the help that we need, no matter what. The best part of this sport is that anyone can do it. People think they can’t do it if they can’t swim fast but really anyone can do it. It’s so positive and it’s way better than any other sport I’ve done. Everyone swims and there are no problems, you really feel like a team and a family.”

Gilliam believes the season was a success for both him and West. Gilliam broke the school 500 freestyle record with a time of 5:29.80. He also placed ninth at the State Meet in that event, and 11th in the 200 freestyle. West competed in the 200 individual medley and the 100 breaststroke.

The two competed at the State Class B Swim Meet at Bowdoin College in Brunswick on Feb. 19 and 2o. This year, the Class A and Class B State Meets were dedicated to Strout. His years of dedication have not gone unnoticed. This will be his last year coaching and he will be missed.

West and Gilliam are hopeful more students will join them on the team. 

Wiscasset Middle High School senior Sam Strozier was still in the game following Friday night’s start of competition in the New England High School Wrestling Championships.

“Sam made it through the first night, going 1-1,” Strozier’s mother Shelley Strozier reported on the Wiscasset Newspaper’s Facebook page late March 2. “The last match was incredible, (he) ended up with the win in triple overtime (and the) end score was 2-1 ... This guy does not want his season to end. Proud of you Samuel Strozier!”

Strozier competed this season as WMHS’s lone wrestler on a Morse-Wiscasset team.

Wiscasset Middle High School senior Sam Strozier said Sunday, he was feeling good about his top 12 finish at the New England High School Wrestling Championships March 2 and 3 in Providence, Rhode Island. “I’m pretty sore,” just about everywhere, he added in the phone interview before the family’s next sporting event of the weekend, his sister Anna’s cheerleading competition.

Shelley Strozier reported her son’s wrestling results on her Facebook page Saturday night to wide congratulations.

WMHS’s lone wrestler competed on a Morse-Wiscasset team this season. He went 2-2 in the 182-pound division of the New Englands, with a win and loss each day including a triple overtime win Friday night. Day two marked his last day wrestling for Wiscasset and wearing the Morse Shipbuilders’ blue and white, his mother notes in the post.

She writes, one word sums up her feelings: Pride. “With your drive and determination, Samuel Strozier you’re sure to go far in life.”

Her son said Sunday, his favorite part of the experience was Friday’s win, because it got him through to the next day of the event. He hopes to keep wrestling in college, possibly at the University of Southern Maine, he said.

Jon Dunsford and other Boothbay Region Land Trust volunteers have been hard at work clearing trails for the quickly approaching hiking and biking season. A trek down one of the Pine Tree Preserve trails with Dunsford showcased some of the progress the volunteers have been making over the past couple weeks.

As Dunsford continued pruning the trail’s edges, he pointed out that the growth is clearly aging after roughly 100 years since the preserve was left to grow back over. Like most of coastal Maine, even the preserve was nearly bald during the height of late 19th century shipbuilding. 

Keeping the paths clear is more than simply orienteering, said Dunsford. Besides identifying the paths, it moves small and large branches, fallen trees and dead leaves, allowing the soil to dry which is important for hikers and especially bikers who could happen upon a sudden stop.

“But most importantly, and this is my theory, no science – all the ticks live in the leaves, so if you blow these leaves off the trail, it’s much better. We’re all learning, but we don’t know as much as we need to about ticks.”

Dunsford pointed out a spot through a clearing off the yellow trail which was shaped by melting glaciers. The deposits of boulders and moss-covered ledge is quite a sight.

“We have some almost Alpine conditions back on the higher ridge, so we’ll never put a trail there just because people will walk all over the moss and everything. One of the reasons we meander these trails around is we’ll open up the view so you can see things like that.”

Additionally, said Dunsford, on an open trail like the ones Pine Tree Preserve provides, bugs are not an issue.

“Here, we have a nice breeze coming off of Linekin Bay.”

Continuing on around the yellow trail half-touring, half in pursuit of his party, Dunsford stopped every once in a while and lopped off any low-hanging branches.

“For those on bikes, you have to think much higher than you normally do,” he said as he cut a couple branches that were above his head.

Dunsford said he asked some bikers to ride through and make a note of the trail’s conditions. They told him there is a lot to cut.

After a couple twigs snapping and the flash of a red jacket a short distance ahead, Dunsford called out, “I figured you were going to walk back so we could pick up all those heavy logs.”

Bill Prince and Jeff Long were making their way back around the trail to intercept Dunsford.

As the three continued down the path Prince and Long came from, more branches were cut and more small trees were moved. Dunsford said  some of the fallen trees would have to wait for another volunteer who brings his chainsaw out to do all the heavy cutting his Korean hacksaw and the loppers cannot manage. However, up ahead on the trail, another fallen tree just lined the edge of the path.

“This one’s new,” said Dunsford.

“Nicely placed, too,” said Long.

“Couldn’t ask for better than that,” said Prince.

Continuing on the yellow trail back to the parking lot, Dunsford explained there are a couple more potential trails he would like to open, but the next season or two will determine hikers’ and bikers’ needs for more room to roam.

How do you identify a tree if it has no leaves? The Kennebec Estuary Land Trust (KELT) invites the public to the first event in the Stewardship Series to learn how to identify trees in winter on Saturday, March 24 at 10 a.m. at Morse Pond Preserve in Georgetown. Led by Stewardship Coordinator Cheri Brunault, participants will uncover clues to name the trees of the forest, even if they are not wearing their distinctive foliage. This program is great for budding naturalists or landowners looking to strengthen their knowledge of local tree species, as well as anyone looking for a thoughtful walk in the woods.

Brunault will share how to identify a variety of tree and shrub species that grow in Morse Pond Preserve using twigs, branch structure, and bark. This preserve has been a favorite among KELT preserves since the trail opened in 2015, and offers a diversity of tree and shrub species.

This event is free and open to public. Registration is required by March 23 due to the limited class size. Please contact KELT at 207-442-8400, email bkolak@kennebecestuary.org, or online at http://kennebecestuary.org to sign-up. This is a light rain or shine event and the workshop content is targeted for adults and children 10 years old and older.

To reach Morse Pond Preserve from Rt. 1, take Rt 127 south into Georgetown. After 10.4 miles, turn right onto Seguinland Rd. The preserve parking lot is 1.4 miles down, on the right. Carpooling and careful parking is encouraged.

Visit www.kennebecestuary.org or call (207) 442-8400 for more information.

March 8 was a day to stay off the roads as much as possible, with schools and Wiscasset Community Center closed due to a late winter snowstorm. March 9 found people out in the new snow enjoying the sun or continuing cleanup.

The storm, two weeks before spring, delivered several inches and took out power to parts of area towns.

The Central Lincoln County (CLC) YMCA and the Boothbay Region YMCA are partnering again this summer to provide children and teens the opportunity to learn values, build new skills, develop confident, make meaningful new friendships, and experience the outdoors.

YMCA Camp Knickerbocker is the Y’s traditional day camp for children 6-12 years old. Located on beautiful Knickerbocker Lake with 65 acres of forest and wetlands, our day camp is a true outdoor experience for youth.

Campers develop skills through a diverse curriculum of traditional camp activities that encourage youth development, healthy living, and social responsibility. Weekly activities include beach play, swimming, kayaking and canoeing, sports, art and crafts, the Baldwin Center Adventure Course and field trips to local venues and hiking preserves.

Scamper Camp at Camp K is our day camp for students entering kindergarten in the fall. Scamper campers enjoy the traditional day camp setting with participation in all that Camp Knickerbocker has to offer. Throughout every activity at camp, we strive to support youth in three ways: friendship — we are here to inspire kids to make friends for a lifetime; achievement — we are here to show kids what they can do when they believe in themselves; and belonging — we are here to welcome kids and make them feel comfortable being themselves.

Camp Knickerbocker will run for ten weekly sessions in 2018 from June 18 through Aug. 24.

Registration is now open for Y members and the general public, and scholarships are available. To view the summer camp guide, register for camp, or complete a scholarship application, visit your home Y’s website at clcymca.org or boothbayregionymca.org.

The CLC and BR YMCAs are key collaborative leaders improving the quality of life for all by being the champion for youth development, healthy living and social responsibility.

The Augusta team won the fifth and sixth grade boys 2018 Blasters basketball tournament held this past weekend at the Boothbay Region YMCA.

Augusta defeated Rockland, 44-38, in the championship game, behind 13 points from Parker Sergent and 12 points from tournament MVP, Alex Fourier.

The host Boothbay team went 1-2 in the tournament, defeating Wiscasset in the opening game and losing to the Golden Eagles and Rockland. Wiscasset lost its second game to Augusta in the double elimination tournament.

On its way to winning the championship, Augusta defeated Medomak (twice), the Eagles (twice), Wiscasset, Boothbay and Rockland.

At a time of political change, one thing is clear and consistent: Americans strongly support saving the open spaces they love. Since 2016, when it was founded by the merger of four land and water conservation organizations, Midcoast Conservancy, has been doing just that for the people of midcoast Maine. Now Midcoast Conservancy announces that it has renewed its land trust accreditation – proving once again that, as part of a network of 398 accredited land trusts across the nation, it is committed to professional excellence and to maintaining the public’s trust in its conservation work.

Midcoast Conservancy Board Chair Susan Russell said, “The accreditation seal is a sign of trust, one that means so much to both our organization and the members who have conserved or are considering conserving their land with us. Accreditation is a promise that we will care for that land according to their wishes, and offers peace of mind. That trust strengthens our place in the community, and enables us to expand our work with confident partners. Jody Jones, executive director, added “When our four conservation groups merged, only one of the founding organizations had the accreditation that we all now enjoy. Being accredited builds confidence throughout our service area that we meet the highest possible standards, and conveys value to our work and standing in the conservation community.”

​Midcoast Conservancy had to provide extensive documentation and undergo a comprehensive review as part of its accreditation renewal. The Land Trust Accreditation Commission awarded the renewed accreditation, signifying its confidence that Midcoast Conservancy’s lands will be protected forever.

Accredited land trusts must renew every five years, confirming their compliance with national quality standards and providing continued assurance to donors and landowners of their commitment to forever steward their land and easements. Almost 20 million acres of farms, forests and natural areas vital to healthy communities are now permanently conserved by an accredited land trust.

Midcoast Conservancy recently celebrated the addition of the 1,000 acres that comprise Hidden Valley Nature Center in Jefferson to the land in its care. HVNC is a model community forest, meaning it is land whose “benefits include economic benefits through active forest management, clean water, wildlife habitat, educational opportunities, and public access for recreation”, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Forest Service, which awarded HVNC a $400,000 grant in late 2017.

“It is exciting to recognize Midcoast Conservancy with this distinction,” said Tammara Van Ryn, executive director of the Commission. “Accredited land trusts are united behind strong ethical standards ensuring the places people love will be conserved forever. Accreditation recognizes Midcoast Conservancy has demonstrated sound finances, ethical conduct, responsible governance, and lasting stewardship.”

Midcoast Conservancy is one of 1,363 land trusts across the United States according to the most recent National Land Trust Census, released December 1, 2016 by the Land Trust Alliance. This comprehensive report also shows that accredited land trusts have made significant achievements.

• Accredited land trusts have steadily grown and now steward almost 80% of conservation lands and easements held by all land trusts.
• Accredited land trusts protected five times more land from 2010 to 2015 than land trusts that were not accredited.
• Furthermore, accreditation has increased the public’s trust in land conservation, which has helped win support for federal, state and local conservation funding measures.

A complete list of accredited land trusts and more information about the process and benefits are detailed at www.landtrustaccreditation.org.