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Page 10/The Battalion/Thursday, March 26, 1987
A&M water skiiers to host Polar Bear tourney
By Kellie Copeland
Reporter
Sleepy-eyed collegiate water
skiers, some having traveled several
hundred miles the night before, will
don wetsuits and brave the chilly
morning water to compete in the an
nual Polar Beat Water Ski Tourna
ment hosted by Texas A&M March
28 and 29.
Fifteen teams from Louisiana,
Oklahoma, Mississippi, Arkansas
and Texas are expected to attend
the first tournament of the season,
held at Ron Alton’s water ski school
in Buffalo.
Gary Caldwell, president of the
A&M team, said Polar Bear was
given its name because the weather
inevitably turns Arctic-like for the
tournament.
Four tournaments are held in the
spring season each hosted by a
Southwest Conference team.
Water ski tournaments consist, of a
women s and men’s team from each
school which compete in three
events jump trick and slalom
Each event is judged according to
a c< it air .set of criteria, and partici
pant; get an individual score which
is added to each team member’s
• ore to get an overall team stand-
ing.
I ryouts are held throughout the
spring season to determine who will
ski on the A team, which officially
represents A&M. Any member of
the waterski club i: elegible to ski on
the B team, but these member’s
scores do not count officially. The
club is open to all student: and fac
ulty.
A&M is currently ranked fourth
n the region behind Northeast
Louisiana University, Louisiana
State University and the University
of Texas.
Caldwell said, “We’re competing
with some ptetty stiff competition.
The Southwest Conference has
some of the nation’s best skiers.
The team is a little shakier this
year as four seasoned skiers grad
uated last year.
“We really need more women on
the team,” said Dianne Normand,
who is the top trick skier for the
women s team. “We can’t he compet
itive with the top schools because we
don’t have a full women’s team, and
the scores of the men's and the wom
en’s team are added together.”
Last May, the team was informed
that its practice site, located three
miles northeast of the A&M campus,
would be filled in because of devel
opment plans by the property’s
owner, Burt Wheeler.
T he team’s future looked a little
uncertain until former team mem
ber and record holder for the jump,
Richard Ameen, came to the rescue
by developing a ski site near Carlos.
“The team needed a place to ski,
and it’s always been my dream to
own a lake, so I decided to realize my
dream and do the team a favor,”
Ameen said.
Although the team has a place to
practice, it must travel 26 miles over
desolate, winding roads to reach the
lake. The site is available only on
weekends, and the cost of practice
has nearly doubled.
“Losing the lake was probably the
worst thing that has happened to
us,” Caldwell said.
“When the lake was so close, we
could go out and ski whenever we
wanted to, and it was easy to get
members to practice. Now, it’s a 25-
Photo by Kellie Copela As
Texas A&M Water Ski Team member Charlie
Ameen loses control as he goes over a jump at
Century Lake. The team is hosting the Poluta
Water Ski Tournament this weekend.
minute drive, and we can only prac
tice on weekends.”
Caldwell said the team’s perfor
mance has deteriorated noticeably.
“We just don’t place as well at
tournaments,” he said. “Two years
ago we placed third at regionals,
right behind Southwest Texas, and
almost went to nationals in Califor
nia. But this year we weren’t very
close.”
Membership in the water ski club
and potential talent for the team has
decreased. Caldwell said the re
duced membership is a direct result
of the inconvenience and increased
cost of skiing at the new practice site.
“We lost our income when we lost
the use of the lake, so we had to sell
the club boat,” Caldwell said.
The team receives some funds
from the extramural department for
traveling expenses and entry fees,
but members can expect to spend
$75 to $200 a semester for gas and
maintenance fees for the ski boat
owned by Richard Ameen.
Caldwell said A&M is at a disad
vantage compared to competing
schools such as NLU and LSU,
where skiers are recruited and given
scholarships much the same as col
lege football and basketball players.
Team members said they have a
bit of a visibility problem, and they
would like to make more people
aware that A&M has a competitive
water ski team.
“Some people still think wertjf
another recreational organizat:
said Nolan Lange, a team men
“We just don’t get the recogcf
that other college ski teams it
that other sports at A&M get;fc
practice just as hard andtakts
sport just as seriously.”
Caldwell said the team encourij
anyone who is interested in ^
skiing to join the club and toaCSj
the meetings held in RudderTo»
“We want people to comeocjj
the ski site and to tournaments
they can see what competitiveo
giate skiing involves. We are*:
to help people who wanuoski
Ra
FOR
— Pete
Texas li
Rangers’ McDowell fits team’s requirement
PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. (AP)
— Center fielder Odibbe McDowell
Fits the Texas Rangers’ age require
ments.
On a team filled with fuzzy-faced
rookies, McDowell is the senior
member of the Rangers’ starting
outfield with one year, 142 days of
major league experience.
Flanked by left fielder Pete Inca-
viglia and right fielder Ruben Sierra,
the Rangers have one of the young
est outfield units in the major
leagues.
McDowell also fills the Rangers’
other requirements in the outfield
and feels capable of being the out
field “quarterback.”
“It’s not like I’m alone out there,
I’ve got plenty of help,” McDowell
said. “I’ve got (coaches) Joe Fergu
son and Dave Oliver moving us
around.
“I feel confident to just go out
there and know I’m going to do
well.”
There was a time however that
McDowell couldn’t be assured he’d
play in the big leagues following a
1979 auto accident.
“I ruptured my spleen and had to
have it removed,” McDowell said. “It
was a pretty bad accident and it came
at a crucial time in my life.”
McDowell was nearing the end of
his schoolboy career as a three-sport
most valuable player at Hollywood,
Fla. McArthur High School when
the auto crash sent him to college in
stead of a pro baseball contract.
“I had a chance to be drafted my
senior year in high school, and the
accident kind of washed that away,”
McDowell said.
“At the time, I thought ‘oh, what a
tragedy.’ But it turned out to be a
blessing.”
McDowell had played two seasons
at Miami Dade North Community
College, was a two-time All-Ameri
can at Arizona State and played on
the 1984 U.S. Olympic team before
he caught the eye of Rangers Man
ager Bobby Valentine.
McDowell played 1 11 games for
the Rangers in 1985 and became the
first Ranger player to hit for a cycle
with a 5-for-5 performance July
23 rd.
McDowell became the Rangers’
fulltime center fielder last season
and added to his glitter wth 105 runs
scored, a club record.
“He’s improved every year-
been here,” Valentine said,
continues to improve, he'll adn
some of those high goals he'sselij
himself.”
McDowell says his only
to improve all of his skills.
an eight
vvm hot
his first
14-1 vie
Oddil
fish alsc
the spri
fourth
with on
Bordi in
“I’ve got to give it lOOperceni.
as if it were my first yearandjusii
it will be when it’s my 10th
McDowell said. “I know I canff
the outfield.”
Incaviglia is starting his sef*
season in the major league:
Sierra is starting his first full 5^1
with the Rangers.
“If Oddibe’s in center field
supposed to take charge out -
and he’s used to doing that, T
ers Coach Art Howe said.
The California Department
of Transportation
will be recruiting
Civil Engineers on
March 31
sign up at the
TAMU Placement Center,
Rudder.
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