With their nemesis not running along with two other seats up for election a group of Wendover softball players are planning to put some excitement back into Wendover Recreation Board elections.
“We are definitely talking about running at lest one candidate,” said Luciano “Lucky” Munoz. “It is about time the Recreation District board listens to more than just golfers.”
The current Recreation District Board earned the ire of some soft ball players last summer when the players started an ad hoc second season after league play ended.
The central issue according to both Munoz and to District Parks and Recreation Director Shawn Gregory was whether the new quasi league should pay for liability insurance for the new season.
According to Gregory the answer was Yes.
“I really don’t want to be the bad guy here,” Gregory said. “And I know these are good guys but in these times where anyone sues at the drop of a hat the Recreation District has to protect itself.”
“We already paid the insurance for this summer’s season,” said Munoz . “Besides these are just pick up games. There are no formal teams. The umpires when we have them aren’t paid. We are just a bunch of players who want to keep our skills up for next season.”
Early into the showdown it appeared the difference of opinion could land some one in jail. The district put up signs warning that the playing fields had to be reserved for all practices and that police would be called on trespassers.
However a confrontation was averted the next week by bad weather and the intervention of West Wendover Police Chief Burdell Welsh.
“We had a nice talk for about two hours,” Welsh said. “I explained to them about a civil disobedience arrest and what were its consequences. With the weather being so bad they didn’t play.”
According to Gregory the cost of a liability policy would be between $300 and $400 or less than $30 a player.
In the end the district and the soft ball players agreed to about half that amount.
But softball players warned that last summer’s peace was only a cease fire and that come election time in 2014 they would make their voices heard.
In a posting on the High Desert Advocate’s web page a blogger named Coach posted: “I think its horse sh** what the rec. Is doing!!! We r paying a big amount to play softball, sponsored or not, we pay too much money for our time to be cut short. I dnt understand why they wanted the season to be done n over with within 1 month of play.. three games a day is nessessry cause we paid for lights… now we r doing our own thing by trying to play pick up games, but if we dnt pay more $ they not gonna let us play?? Seems to me all they want is more $? We are all vaulentery players vaulentary umps we keep our own score why should we have to pay any more money on top of the 700 $ we pay to start a season (late season at that) a lot of ppl look forward to softball season in wendover, but right now our (1) month season is a joke!!!! We pay the money show us the respect we show the rec. With paying our fees??? That’s all I’m saying. …..”
If the players can keep that passion they could well put at least on candidate on the board. The seat of vice chairman Heidi Lewis, who players blamed most for the fight last summer will be vacant due to term limits and two other seats now held by Bob Loncar and Gary Corona are also up for the ballot.
Any Recreation Board hopefuls must file in Elko between March 3rd and March 14th to appear on the November ballot.
“It is about time the Recreation District board listens to more than just golfers.” I’ve attended a lot of meetings for a lot of years, and I’m usually the only one there.
How can the Rec board ‘listen’ when people only give input when they’re mad after the fact?
Not a valid argument as far as I’m concerned. No, I’m not on the board, either.