Preparing for the big race and parade
by Maralyn Fink
Al Nelson and Art Wainright unloaded and set up the sound equipment.
Parade participants got in lin for the St Johns Soap Box Derby is getting in line. The weather really was not co-operating at this point with rain. Adeline Feldpausch and Honorary Queen Alexia Munger were ready to go.
Soap Box Derby Inspection and Race, 2019
by Maralyn Fink
On Sunday I was at the races so here is what I found there.
A February 21, 2013 Look Back – The Soap Box Derby
by Barry Bauer
I got interested in the Soap Box Derby when I came across some negatives taken of the 1964 Derby race in St. Johns. Turns out I was a fan of it way back then as a picture of my car showed up on one negative. There’s no mistaking that ’57 Chevy convertible with a black top. It had to have been the only one in the country.
I knew that Bee’s Chevrolet had some Derby cars mounted on a hallway wall but they had disappeared. I inquired about them last year and learned they still had them but they were in storage upstairs. I learned that Bee’s would be remodeling their showroom and would be moving the cars out. I not only got pictures of the cars in storage but Jeff Feldpausch also let me get pictures of them after they got them down. He even offered to have them washed which was great. I wanted to show them at their best.
Jeff also had the equipment board which was a kit containing a helmet, toggle bolts, angle brackets, and should have had a steering wheel but was missing. Jeff and his dad, Bernard, handcrafted the steering wheels in a jig they made.
A telephone call to Bernard Feldpausch, one of the original organizers, gave me more information. He said one of the reasons for the Soap Box Derby was to teach boys how to work their hands and with tools such as a square. The majority of the car was supposed to be built by the boys
The weight limit was 250 lbs for car and driver and one year a boy had to go with a sheet covering for his car and that plus some dieting got him in under the limit.
One of the stipulations for entering the Derby was that if they won they couldn’t keep their cars. The Derby committee didn’t want a winning car to be entered into the next year’s Derby.
Bernard got a call one year from a mother asking him how she could get fiberglass off the kitchen floor. They built these cars wherever they could.
First Cast, A Custom-Made Fishing Rod
By Bob Holzhei
I slowly walked to the pond behind our rental home at Kings Gate, Punta Gorda, Florida to field test the Custom Fishing rod I had Tom Marks make. He is an avid outdoor angler from Derby, New York. Marks vacations in the winter at Kings Gate and orders his rod building supplies from Mud Hole, a Rod Building and Tackle Crafting Company from Oviedo, Florida.
I baited the number 2 hook with a Mr. Twister worm, after Outdoor Writer Dave Barus, from Aurora, New York showed me how to place the hook, making the worm weed less.
The Custom Metallic Red 7-foot rod, complete with a rattle Snake Skin handle created a “one of a kind” treasure. It was my first cast with the custom new rod. I slowly opened the bail on the STX Abu Garcia Reel, and slowly arched the rod behind me. The bait was cast to the other side of the pond. In that first cast, the line was suspended mid-air for a moment, and frozen in my memory.
I fished in the early years, once a year if dad had a good year on the farm. We’d drive just over an hour to Tawas, Michigan to board a perch fishing boat, The Miss Charity Isle. A love affair with the natural world was conceived on a family farm and was nourished as the crops sprouted from the ground.
As I got older, I’d ride my bicycle to nearby ditches, and adjoining cuts located near Quanicassee, Michigan to fish for perch from piers.
As I got older and married, I took my three boys on a charter salmon fishing trip out of Ludington, Michigan. We boated 12 nice sized salmon. Needless to say, I was hooked. The following spring, I purchased a used 1979 18-foot 11-inch Sport Craft boat. I was hooked, reeled in and would enjoy a lifetime love affair with the natural world.
The boat has been stored in a pole barn for the past three years, and I suppose I should sell it. Anglers go through stages of fishing, first fishing from nearby ditches, then to cuts, piers and eventually a boat is purchased. I’ve transitioned back to where I began and this summer am again fishing nearby piers.
As I returned 70 years later, I discovered the landscape had drastically changed. There were no perch or panfish in the area. The perch party boat relocated to a southern port and was taking folks across Lake Huron to Port Austin, at the tip of the thumb. That’s a long way to travel across the lake for fish dinners at a restaurant. Perch could be ordered from various restaurants in the area and the menu clarified, “the perch come from Lake Erie.”
My wife and I camped for a month at a city park, noticing first that between 12 to 16 campsites were vacant. This popular park was always filled to capacity. After visiting with campers, I found out the park had raised its camping rates $ 90.00 a month to an outrageous $1,000.00 for a month. That was too much for a park with only water, sewer, and electricity. No additional amenities were provided. Internet and cell phone service was only available occasionally or non-existent. After the first week I longed to the month to end, and will return to the West side of Michigan where Lake Michigan awaits our return.
I suppose its good to camp at new places from time to time, to determine where my wife and I feel most comfortable.
A Look Back – 1968 Successful Deer Hunter
by Barry Clark Bauer
Tony Rositas of 700 S. Church Street got his first buck deer in 10 years of hunting Friday morning when he dropped this eight-pointer while hunting on state game land near Maple Rapids. The 190-pound deer was shot about 7:15 a.m. Son Robert Rositas was hunting with his dad at the time.
Maralyn’s Pet Corner – Why Do Some Dogs Bark More Than Others?
courtesy of Teresa K. Traverse
Why do some dogs bark more than others? Maybe your neighbor’s dog barks nonstop when he’s gone, or maybe your dog barks at every breeze, shadow or whisper. And then there are dogs that hardly ever make a peep.
You might love your dog unconditionally, but a dog that barks at everything and anything can get a bit exhausting. No one enjoys being jarred out of sleep to the cacophonous sound of dog barking in the middle of the night—especially when there seems to be no reason for it.
So, what causes one dog to bark more than the others? Here are three factors that could contribute to a noisy household.
Genetics and Breed-Specific Characteristics
Genetics and breeding for specific traits can play a big role in a dog’s proclivity for barking.
According to Dr. Stefanie Schwartz, a board-certified veterinary behaviorist based in Orange County, California, the frequency of a dog’s bark can vary from breed to breed, and it all depends on how their ancestors were bred.
“Barking was emphasized in some breeds more than others,” says Dr. Schwartz. She explains that this trait was likely “selected by our ancestors to help guard human settlements.”
Not all breeds known for barking will necessary be noisy, however. For instance, terriers tend to be more vocal. But not all terriers will bark excessively, says Dr. Schwartz. Huskies and Nordic breeds are also known to howl more than others, while most Basenjis don’t bark at all, says Dr. Schwartz.
Environmental Factors
Dogs get used to their environments, and they will react to sounds that are unexpected (like a knock at the door) and those that they don’t hear often.
If a dog was raised in a bustling city where they’re used to hearing constant noise, they’ll probably be less apt to bark in a noisy urban environment. But a dog who was raised in a quiet, rural area may bark at any sound.
“A city dog wouldn’t react to a siren (cops, ambulance) because it becomes part of the background noise, compared to a country dog [who lives] where things are quieter and less chaotic,” says Dr. Schwartz.
Unintentional Rewarding of Dog Barking
“Some dogs learn to bark for attention regardless of breed,” says Dr. Schwartz. “Barking is a response to not getting their needs met.” She also says that, “Barking can be a learned behavior where the dog signals to the owner, ‘I need something.’”
“It goes back to that basic of rewarding behavior,” says Dr. Katie Malehorn, DVM a staff veterinarian at Friendship Hospital for Animals in Washington, D.C. She explains that dogs will keep doing something if they are getting rewarded for it.
Many owners may pay more attention to the dog when he’s barking—accidentally rewarding him for the behavior, says Khara Schuetzner, a certified professional dog trainer and owner of The Doggie Spot based in Shawnee, Oklahoma.
Dr. Schwartz gave the example of one woman who gave her dog a treat every time he barked—giving him attention and fulfilling his need for food—and inadvertently training him to bark.
What You Can Do to Stop Dogs From Barking So Much
To help lessen your dog’s barking, figure out the root cause of the behavior.
Dr. Schwartz explains that you need to find out what the triggers are for dog barking. Once you figure out the triggering behavior, the best approach is to work with a dog trainer and veterinarian (or a veterinary behaviorist) to find the best ways to help your dog find alternative, more productive behaviors.
Dr. Malehorn says that you will need to be patient. Many dog owners won’t seek help or try to work on excessive barking until it becomes a serious issue. At this point, it is going to take time, consistency and a good training plan to break the habit.