Shaws Reward Card Summer Offers

Top Notch Field Hockey Camp at Salem State College

April 30, 2008

Where: Salem State College
When:  August 11-15 (Day Camp: $225.00), August 18-22 (Evening Camp: $120.00)

The Top Notch Field Hockey Camp will be held this summer at Salem State College.

The camp is being run by Jill (Spadorcia) McGinnity the Head Field Hockey Coach at Salem State College, Marybeth Mahoney the Bishop Fenwick Head Coash, and Leanne Harris, Salem State Assistant Coach.

Two sessions are being offered:

  • Session 1, a Beginner/Intermediate Day Camp, will run from August 11-15, 9:00 am to 3:00 pm,  Ages 10-16
  • Session 2, an Advanced Night Camp, will run from August 18-22, 5:00 pm to 8:00 pm, Ages 14-18

For more information, call 978-542-7260 or email at jillspud@yahoo.com.

Click here to download the brochure for the Field Hockey Camp.

Ipswich Cheerleading Coaching Vacancy

April 30, 2008

Ipswich High School is currently accepting applications for a fall cheerleading coach.

Interested candidates can call, e-mail or use traditional mail to send resumes and a letter of interest to Tom Gallagher, Director of Athletics, Ipswich High School, 134 High Street, Ipswich, MA 01938 or at ipsath@ipswichschools.org.

Speeding Whale Watching Boats Present Risks to Whales

April 28, 2008

An article by Beth Daley in the April 28, 2008 Boston Globe describes the results of a recently published study indicating that New England whale-watching boats are often going too fast near whales in the waters of the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary and disregarding a pledge made by the whale watching operators to slow down when near or approaching whales.

Ms. Daley’s article describes the results of a study published this month in the journal Conservation Biology. Dave Wiley, lead author of the report, funded by the International Fund for Animal Welfare, an advocacy group, is a research coordinator for the Stellwagen Bank National Marine Sanctuary.

According to the latest available statistics, the whale watching industry in New England generates about $30 million a year in revenue.

It is an interesting article with comments by whale watching boat operators and researchers. It also illustrates how difficult it is to interpret and enforce compliance with voluntary guidelines.

Here is the link to Beth Daley’s article that appeared in the Boston Globe:

Annual Peak Performance Speed/Conditioning Clinic

April 28, 2008

When: June 25 to August 18
Where: Various locations including Newburyport, Amesbury and Triton.

The Annual Peak Performance Speed/Conditioning Clinic will be offered from June 25 to August 18 for male and female athletes in grades 6-12.

The clinic will be held at various locations including Newburyport, Amesbury and Triton. Strength and conditioning coach Jason Beauparlant will run the clinic, which is designed to increase an athlete’s speed, change of direction, explosiveness, and flexibility and prevent injury.

For more information visit the Peak Peformance website or e-mail jason@peakperformancecamp.net.

Cape Ann Hockey School

April 28, 2008

When: Sunday Evenings, June 1 through August 3
Where: Graf Rink, Low Street, Newburyport
Cost: $160 per skater or $25 per week (for walk-ons)

Cape Ann Hockey School is hosting a youth hockey total skills and power skating clinic at the Graf Skating Rink. The eight-week clinic will be offered on Sunday evenings starting June 1 and running through August 3.

Two sessions are being offered:

  • Mites & Squirts: 6:00 pm to 7 pm
  • Pee-Wees & Bantams: 7:00 pm  to 8 pm

The cost is $160 per skater or $25 per week for walk-ons.

For more information, call 978-462-8112 or e-mail capeannhockeyschoo@hotmail.com.

Tough Week For Beach Restoration Efforts on Nantucket and Winthrop

April 27, 2008

It was a tough week for beach restoration supporters on the Island of Nantucket and in the Town of Winthrop.

Sconset Beach Preservation Fund’s Beach Replenishment Plan Loses By Large Margin
On the Island of Nantucket, the Sconset Beach Preservation Fund’s (SBPF) proposed beach nourishment project was soundly defeated in a non-binding question in last Tuesday’s election on the Island.

According to an article in the Nantucket Inquirer and Mirror by Jason Graziadei, 84 percent of the voters who answered the ballot question voted against the SBPF’s plan to dredge 1.8 million cubic yards of sand from a shoal off the eastern shore of the island and dump it along the Sconset bluff in order to save the homes there from coastal erosion.

SBPF’s plan has been hotly contested from the outset by some Island fisherman and residents who believe that the scope of the beach restoration effort will destroy the fishery off the Sconset bluff. The proposed beach replenishment effort, according to the Coalition for Responsible Coastal Management, a group formed to oppose the SBPF’s current plan, would cover 275 acres of cobble bottom and would cause irreparable damage to the fishery off the bluff.

The SBPF beach replenishment plan has become a hot button issue on Nantucket. The resounding defeat of the proposed plan by the voters should be sufficient cause for the non-profit organization to reexamine the scope of its plans and work more closely with Island fishermen and residents opposed to the current plan to come up with a more viable solution.

See the following resources for more information on the erosion issues on Nantucket Island:

Army Corps denies permit for Winthrop beach restoration

A little closer to Newburyport, the Town of Winthrop received the news from the US Army Corps. of Engineers on April 23, 2008 that the Corps. has denied the state a permit to dredge 500,000 cubic yards of sand from the ocean bottom to bolster 37 acres of the eroded Winthrop Beach shoreline. Local residents have been blaming erosion for causing the flooding problems in the area.

In a written statement, Brigadier General Todd T. Semonite, the North Atlantic Division commander of the Corps, said that the decision was made “due to public interest factors and the availability of less environmentally damaging alternatives.”

According to an April 23, 2008 article in the Boston Globe, the project would have entailed dredging up sand eight miles offshore and then hauling it by barge to the Winthrop shoreline because it would have taken years to truck the sand through the town’s narrow residential streets.

The Winthrop beach restoration effort had heavy opposition from the National Marine Fisheries Service in Gloucester, MA.

For more information, read the following article in the Boston Globe:

Fortunately for residents and property owners of Plum Island, there doesn’t appear to be a significant base of opposition to the beach restoration of Plum Island at the current time.

Local Baseball/Softball Notes In Boston Globe North Extra Bases Column

April 27, 2008

Julian Benbow, in the Boston Globe North Extra Bases column has the Amesbury Indians and Ipswich Tigers of the Cape Ann League ranked as the Number Two and Number Three girls high school softball teams in the Boston Globe’s North region. Here are his top five picks:

Top 5 Softball Teams
1. St. Mary’s (5-1)
2. Amesbury (7-1)
3. Ipswich (5-1)
4. Danvers (5-1)
5. Peabody (5-1)

He also gave kudos to Newburyport’s Kyle McElroy, the sophomore pitcher for the Newburyport High School baseball team who threw a five-strike outs, five-walks no-hitter against Georgetown in the team’s 10-0 victory.

Related Link: Globe North Extra Bases

City of Newburyport Public Meetings, Week of April 28th

April 27, 2008

Here is a link to the list of Public Meetings scheduled for the week of Monday, April 28th through Friday, May 2, 2008:

Annual Events at Hampton Beach

April 27, 2008

Here is a quick link to the list of Annual Events scheduled for 2008 at Hampton Beach.

The official Hampton Beach 2008 season kick offs on Memorial Day weekend, May 25th. The first fireworks show of the season will be on sunday, May 26th.

For more information:

Visit the Hampton Beach District website.

Hampton Beach Web Cams — See The Beach Whenever You Want

April 27, 2008

Here are two links to Hampton Beach web cams:

Enjoy!

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