When I was a cub reporter, the world of sports was an alien thing.
One look at my thick glasses and you can tell I never played high school sports. I was drawn to books and writing, and my career as a journalist was a natural outgrowth. I was a news reporter. Sports coverage was for the sports guys. I dwelt in a different universe.
But one of my first weekly assignments was coverage of a small town high school football game. Camera in hand, I crossed the browning grass of the exterior stadiums into a whole new environment.
Between the martial, thumping pep-band music, or the chill of the autumn wind creeping through my jacket, the smell of the homemade burgers on the grill, the roar of the crowd or the thrill of being on the sidelines in a real contest, I was hooked. From then on, I volunteered to shoot high school games.
It was only gradually that I came to understand why all those people were there. A home game was the main event. Spectators are witnesses to some of the best, brightest and most driven of their town’s future generation, pushing themselves for their own betterment and the glory of their community.
This winter, the youth of Snoqualmie, North Bend, Fall City, Carnation, Riverview and Duvall will test their abilities in basketball, gymnastics, wrestling and swimming. As always, the Valley Record will tell their stories.
For the second season, our newspaper’s sports staff are covering both the Mount Si and Cedarcrest High School varsity teams. For years, this newspaper chiefly focused on Mount Si, but with increased numbers of readers in the Riverview School District, we have reenergized our efforts in the Lower Valley.
Decades ago, Lower Valley teams figured prominently in the pages of this newspaper. Now, as connections with Cedarcrest’s sports program grow, they will do so again.
Our dedicated sports staff is small—essentially freewheeling, contributor Rhett Workman with tape recorder and scorecard, and myself, your editor, behind the camera, as assisted by numerous parents, coaches and amateur shutterbugs. Sports coverage takes time and technology, and the routine sacrifice of our ‘off hours’ to attend matches and drive the miles to important games.
The reason we do this is because we recognize the importance of sports to a community. Sports shape youth in positive ways, and provide a local rallying point. In an era when readers sometimes ask, ‘Where is the good news?”, one can always point to the sports page and show examples of fine young people engaged in positive, team-focused behavior.
As we begin a new season, I wish to thank all of the parents, coaches, parents and volunteers who help this newspaper cover local sports through their tips, interviews and submissions.
I’d also like to thank the patient and professional ticket-takers, support staff and referees who graciously allow us access to fields and sidelines.
Special thanks go to photographers Sandy Horvath, Curt Carlson and Christy Trotto for the many times they have contributed images for the benefit of our readers.
Together, these combined efforts have helped us provide a window on one of the most vital of communal activities: The Valley’s youth sports.
• E-mail Editor Seth Truscott at editor@valleyrecord.com.
