Photo by Sean Patterson
Dennis Burke has been a familiar face in Canby for the past 17 years. He arrived here as a teacher in 1983 and later took the helm of the school's varsity boys basketball program in 1989. He will continue to coach the Cougars even as he serves as athletic director.
By Sean Patterson
of the Herald
It takes the visitor only seconds to come to the
realization that Marlo Treit is a man with a need for speed.
In one corner of his Aurora Airport digs stands the ultimate rarity - a fully operational
MiG-21 Russian fighter he purchased a few years back in the Czech Republic. It has the
capability of going 1,700 mph and can reach the edge of space.
But that's only the beginning. There are cars, parts and accessories that would make even
the most ardent, experienced motorhead shake his head in amazement.
Along the walls are plaques, pictures and every imaginable piece of memorabilia
chronicling his 40-year love affair with vehicles of all sorts.
It is, in effect, a museum dedicated to the science of speed, with the crowning jewel
being Treit's lakester - a long, sleek speedster he designed and built himself. With it,
he and his drivers and crew have established a land-speed record in a different class each
year since 1996.
Sporting a HEMI supercharged, fuel-burning V-8 engine with 2,500 horsepower, the car has
made regular pilgrimages to the mecca of land-speed records, the Bonneville Salt Flats in
Utah, since Treit completed it in 1988.
It is, he says with a proud smile, the fastest open-wheel vehicle in the world.
"I guess you could say we're slaves to speed," says the 62-year-old Treit with a
laugh. "There came a point where I realized we had the opportunity to put together
the ultimate car, and when I say car I mean piston-powered, open-wheel vehicle. This isn't
thrust-powered, which is basically a jet with wheels.
''It's hard to explain the motivation. You do it for the personal pride and satisfaction.
You don't have the crowds out there like you do in racing.
It's a personal thing.''
Treit and his loyal crew, featuring Canadian driver Les Davenport at the helm, set records
in various categories in the 1990s, but it wasn't until August of 1998 that they hit their
apex.
It was then that the Treit & Davenport racer became the fastest open-wheel car in
world, posting an average 333 mph time to shatter the 15-year-old class record by 15 mph.
To do it, Davenport had to average that speed over a one-mile pass in both directions and
do so within the hour.
It was a banner occasion for Treit, but rather than make him complacent, it only seemed to
fuel his desire to pursue continued success. Last year, with local driver Korey Bligh in
the driver's seat, Treit's vehicle competed at the world finals and set the unblown record
in B class.
In doing so, Bligh joined the elite 200 mph club and ran over 277 mph to surpass the old
record.
This September, Treit hopes to run a 366 cubic-inch motor in Bonneville and break the
existing 275 mph mark in that class. "I think we can do 300," he says, smiling.
Treit also has his eye on another land-speed car, a Streamliner, which differs from the
lakester in that the wheels and tires are all enclosed.
"That would be the 15th car I've had," he says. "I've had motorcycles,
dragsters, roadsters, a season in a sprint car, turbine dragsters and Bonneville
participation. It was in the mid-1950s that the fascination with the motoring and racing
of cars and motorcycles became a way of life."
He began drag racing in high school with a 1939 Ford Tudor that he had built. Before long,
he and friend Bob Jenson put together a roadster that broke 100 mph for the first time.
He set a national speed record with his motorcycle in 1959 (174 mph), and in the mid-1960s
established the world's fastest exhibition speed on his motor bike.
He also raced turbine-powered drag cars, and by the mid-1970s had built a Mazda lakester.
In 1981, he posted his first-ever 300 mph ride when he hit 308 in his streamliner.
"The way I see it, land-speed records are made to be broken," he says.
"I've probably had a dozen of them, and I've even seen my own records broken the same
day I set them. It's all part of the game."
As for Treit's future, he hopes to take his lakester to the only other place in the world
that compares to Bonneville: Australia.
"They have a salt flats there that is in the middle of nowhere, miles from
anything," he said. "I'm hoping we can get there in the spring of 2001. I'd like
to say I've run the car at the only two salt flats in the world."
After all, when it comes to land-speed milestones, he's done just about everything else.
Champ, Keil
score big as
Gators get 10th at state
Lisa Champ finished either first or second in each
of her events to lead the Canby Gators to a 10th-place team finish at the Speedo Oregon
Swimming 11-and-Over State Championships July 27-30 in Pendleton.
Champ swam stronger every day that the meet went on, as she blew away the competition in
all of her Sunday events. Her finishes enabled her to be the meet's high-point champion
for women ages 15 and older, and qualified her for the Oregon Swimming zone team.
The zone team is an all-star squad that travels to the West Coast Zone Meet Aug. 15-19 in
Fresno, Calif., this year. It is a select group that is made up of swimmers who meet
certain time standards, apply for the team, then are accepted by Oregon Swimming. She set
four zone priority times in Pendleton, and her application was gladly accepted by Oregon
Swimming.
Overall, Champ placed first in the 200-meter freestyle (2:10.63), first in the 100
backstroke (1:09.10) and took the gold medal in the 100 freestyle (1:00.53). She also
placed second in the 400 freestyle (4:40.72), runner-up in the 100 butterfly (1:07.70) and
second in the 50 freestyle (28.47).
And while Champ dominated the meet, 11 other Canby swimmers were also big contributors.
For starters, Jacob Keil placed high in the 11-12 boys age bracket and added significantly
to the team's point total.
Keil ended up third in both the 50 and 100 backstroke, dropping nearly a second in the 50
for a time of 35.19. He also got fifth in the 200 individual medley with a time of
2:45.77, a drop of 2.5 seconds. He also dropped nearly five seconds in placing sixth in
the 100 butterfly (1:18.44), and added a 10th-place finish in the 200 free by dropping
three seconds off his personal-best time.
Meanwhile, among 13- and 14-year-olds, Casey O'Brien cruised to a fourth in the 100 breast
(1:20.60), a fifth in the 200 breast by dropping 2.3 seconds (2:55.18), a 10th in the 50
free and an 11th in the 400 IM with an eight-second drop.
Also faring well was Corey O'Brien, who 11th in both the 100 and 200 butterfly in his
15-and-over group. He dropped 1.4 seconds in the 100 fly (1:05.51), placed 13th in the 200
back and also dropped 4.3 seconds to finish 13th in the 400 IM.
Not to be outdone, Joshua Garcia swam well to get 11th in the 400 freestyle and 13th in
the 200 IM. His times improved in both those events, as he dropped nearly 7.5 seconds in
the 400 and 1.7 in the 200.
In 11-12 Girls action, Nicole Schuh dropped 3.8 seconds in the 100 breaststroke, finishing
12th (1:32.12) despite being rated 21st coming in.
Rachel Polack placed 14th in the 50 freestyle, and Jenny Hertzberg swam in the 100 fly.
In other events, Alex Laskey continued his topflight swimming, dropping time in both the
100 and 200 breaststroke to place 16th in those events in Men's 15-and-over racing, and
Michelle Maier dropped time in several of her Women's 15-and-over events, including 5.3
seconds in the 200 breast.
She placed 17th in the 200 IM and 18th in the 400 IM.
Finally, James Adams took fourth place in the Men's 15-and-over 100 fly, then followed up
with a fifth-place performance in the 100 free. Erin Dean pulled in at 15th place in the
Girls 11-12 400 freestyle, and dropped a half second in the 100 free.
In relay action, the team of the O'Brien brothers, Laskey and Adams placed fourth in the
400 free, fifth in the 200 medley, sixth in the 400 medley and seventh in the 200 free.
The girls team of Dean, Schuh, Hertzberg and Polack were eighth in both the 200 medley and
400 free, and 10th in both the 200 free and 400 medley. Hertzberg and Schuh both set
personal-best split times in their leg of each of the girls relays.
The final team meet of the summer season for Canby is Aug. 11-13 in Bend. Last year, the
team placed second to the host squad in that meet.
Van Tassel hits .444
in Oklahoma
By Sean Patterson
of the Herald
Michael Van Tassel traveled to Broken Arrow, Okla.,
with the intent of enjoying himself and helping his Oregon Diamond Studs succeed at the
13-and-under Continental Amateur Baseball World Series.
Van Tassel managed to achieve both goals.
At the plate, the 13-year-old Aurora resident batted .444 in helping his Oregon team win
three of its seven games at the event, which drew 30 all-star teams from all over the
world.
He even chipped in valuable time as a left-handed pitcher, allowing no hits, one run and a
couple of walks in four innings against Brazil.
"It was a good experience and I'm glad I went," he said of the trip. "We
actually won our first three games and lost our last four. The teams got harder as we went
along, the competition more intense."
The 12-member Oregon squad, made up of players from all over the state, defeated Maryland,
Oklahoma and a third team before dropping games to Brazil, Michigan, Texas and St. Louis,
Mo in action July 27 through Aug. 4.
That gave the boys a 15th-place finish overall.
In the field, Van Tassel had an opportunity to pitch and play first base and right field.
He was picked up by the Studs' Rob Abbotts, who spotted him playing for a North Marion
Senior American team in mid-July.
Upon learning he had be selected to play, Van Tassel spent several days asking local
individuals and businesses for financial support.
"They (the sponsors) really made this possible," he said. "I had to raise
about $1,600 and I did it. I just want to thank those who contributed."
The girl is
a Champ
Canby swimmer
She is perhaps the most talented swimmer ever to
come out of Canby, but last season, Lisa Champ wasn't feeling quite like the champion she
is. A torn ACL, sustained in a skiing accident early in 1999, kept her from competing at
her best - and planted doubts in her mind about her future in the sport.
"I wasn't having as much fun, and I think I was a little burned out," she
admits.
But Champ isn't one to dwell on hardships or what could have been. Rather, she decided to
give it her all in 2000, and that spirit of determination has paid off.
Recently, Champ narrowly missed becoming the first Canby swimmer to get a Junior National
time when she darted the 100-meter freestyle in 1 minute, .21 seconds - just two
one-hundredths of a second off the required mark.
She also earned a spot on Oregon's Western Zone regional swim team, an elite squad of
about 80 swimmers that will compete at the Western Zone Championships in Fresno, Calif.,
Aug. 15-19.
Champ qualified for zones in eight events - the 50, 100, 200 and 400 freestyle, the 100
and 200 backstroke and the 100 and 200 butterfly - but she'll be limited to six events at
the competition.
Making it to zones is nothing new to Champ - she went three straight years, 1995-97, and
won the 100 free in 1997 - but this year's berth was something special.
"I've worked harder and been a lot more focused this year," she says of her
turnaround. "I've also done more weight training. I think I've finally gotten back to
where I feel I should be as a swimmer. I haven't felt that way the last couple of
years."
Ultimately, Champ would like to get her Junior National time in her specialty, the 100
freestyle, at zones. She'll also go for the magic mark (2:09.09) in the 200 free.
Her Canby Gators swim coach, Eric Laitinen, believes she's got a legitimate shot at it.
"She's very capable of doing it," Laitinen said. "In that pool with that
kind of competition, she'll have a great shot. I think it really hit her at Senior
Regionals (in Federal Way, Wash., last month) that she was capable of it. She was just two
one-hundredths off it at that meet."
After zones, Champ, 17, will continue to swim for the Gators before embarking on another
high school season at Canby High, where she will be a senior this year. She already owns
five CHS school records.
"I'd like to continue beyond that and swim in college," she said. "Like I
said, I'm enjoying myself again. It's been a fun year."
