ESTABLISHED 1868
A New SV Media publication
Friday, January 5, 2018
gilroydispatch.com • Vol. 151, No. 1 • $1
BUSINESS: Ice cream is a hot business even in cold weather P2
Armed robberies mar the holidays
LOCAL SCENE Did you buy this tummy tuck fraud?
➝ Local Scene, 16
THE LIFESTYLE MAGAZINE OF MORGAN HILL, GILROY & SAN MARTIN
JANUARY 5, 2018
A section of the Gilroy Dispatch & Morgan Hill Times
OU T & AB OU T OF NDAR CA LE EN TS EV
Gilroy’s Blue Lotus provides a healing path
Return to peace
POLICE CATCH ONE SUSPECT, LOOKING FOR OTHERS By Brad Kava Editor
Brad Kava
Savvier, Inc. last week paid over $1 million to settle a consumer complaint that it sold its “Tummy Tuck Slimming System” through misleading advertisements. The complaint alleged that the California-based manufacturer and seller of exercise and slimming products made fat reducing claims about its Tummy Tuck Belt and cream which were not supported by competent and reliable scientific evidence. It was further alleged that it was not complying with the automatic renewal law. The lawsuit, filed in the Santa Cruz County Superior Court, was brought by the California Food, Drug and Medical Device Task Force which consists of 10 California District Attorney’s Offices, including the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office. The judgment also includes provisions prohibiting Savvier from making any claims regarding their products unless there is competent and reliable scientific evidence. It is also prohibited from offering for sale any misbranded medical devices. Savvier is required to comply with automatic renewal laws which require clear and conspicuous disclosures to the consumer before they enter into a subscription service. Savvier and its counsel worked cooperatively to implement changes to its advertising and checkout process. Money from the judgment will be used to further consumer protection actions.
RIDE TO EAT Chaplain Rev JJ cleans his plate on an outdoor table at Cielito Lindo in Gilroy. The riders are so faithful to the 36-year tradition
Riding for burritos THE REAL STORY BEHIND THE GILROY NEW YEAR’S BURRITO RUN By Brad Kava Editor
SENIOR PERSPECTIVE P12 | TOXIC GARDEN P13
Inside this issue: Finding peace within
Thousands of motorcyclists packed Gilroy’s streets and restaurants on New Year’s Day, but few know the real story of how the burrito run started in 1982. Griselda Avila, 53, the owner of Cielito Lindo restaurant on Monterey Street, does and she can separate the myth from the facts.
It was New Year’s Day, 1982, and her father, Serafin, 82, had opened the restaurant in October, 1981. He kept the business open on New Year’s when nine bikers pulled up to eat. The riders were newly clean and sober and wanted a celebratory breakfast for their first clean year. They started in the morning in Redwood City taking El Camino and back roads but they didn’t find any place open until they reached Gilroy around noon and Cielito Lindo was open. “They came in and my father was so afraid,” said Avila. “He’d
heard of Hell’s Angels. He was very, very afraid. But then he was amazed because these people were so loving and caring.” The nine riders were appreciative of the meal and promised to come back the next year and bring friends. Avila said her father didn’t believe it would amount to much, but in 1983 some 37 riders showed up. The restaurant could barely handle that many and ran out of food. The riders promised to return the following year with more friends and the Avilas were prepared. More than 80 came for
On Friday at 4:26 pm, officers from the Gilroy Police Department responded to a report of an armed robbery at the Pizza Hut, located on the 1100 block of First Street. As an employee was putting money into the business safe, a man entered the business and brandished a handgun. The suspect demanded money and the employee immediately ran to the back of the business out of fear. The suspect fled the business without the money or any property. The suspect was described as a Hispanic male, with minimal facial hair. The suspect wore a black coat with fur around the hood, black jeans, grey beanie cap, and black shoes. Later that evening, a Gilroy Police Officer contacted a subject matching that description inside a blue 2007 Volkswagen Jetta parked near the Garlic City Club Casino, located on the 8600 block of San Ysidro Avenue. A high-risk stop was initiated. The subject, later identified as Izaak Diaz, 24, of Gilroy, failed to comply with commands and he fled in his vehicle. Diaz led police on a high-speed pursuit through parts of Gilroy and into Hollister. He continued the pursuit back to Highway 101 through ➝ Crime, 4
Making the solutions to resolutions NEW MEMBERSHIPS BOOM AT FIT REPUBLIC By Bryce Stoepfel Reporter
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It's a new year and with it, many Gilroyans have embarked on their New Year's resolutions. For many, those resolutions revolve around getting in shape–finally, and this time they mean it. But, if you want that new you, it's going to take some work.
"My goal is to get down to 140 and I really want to start building up the muscles in my glutes," Alexus Eva Marie said as she sweated it out on an elliptical machine. "It's a commitment to the rest of your life if you think about it. I'm in recovery, so this is a little bit more for me." Since November, 503 new members have signed up at Fit Republic–34 alone in January. Gyms are often packed at the beginning of the year, full of those working to fulfill their New
LEARN AT TOP COMPANIES WHILE EARNING YOUR DEGREE.
Year's resolutions. Unfortunately, the failure rate is high. To help combat the high rate of failure, gyms like Fit Republic are encouraging their members to join classes. "For New Year's resolutions, 80 percent of people quit within 90 days," Adam Davis, General Manager at Fit Republic said. "That is why we see a lot more people signing up for group training. People who have a scheduled workout routine are 40 percent more likely to stick to
their resolutions and see higher results." Fit Republic offers two packages for group workouts - $39 for two group workouts a week and $49 for an unlimited number of sessions. Starting at 6:00 am to 8:30 pm, the group workout programs progress through three stages. First, mobility classes work on stabilization, core strength, mobility and range of motion. Second, strength ➝ Fit Republic, 11
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