10 minute read
Kids mow lawns
by Karmel Harper | k.harper@mycityjournals.com
While most kids spend their summers swimming in the local pool or lake, playing video games, sleeping in, or hanging out with their friends, 10-year-old Emiline Boldt and 13-year-old Carter Boldt mowed lawns for free for their Kaysville neighbors.
Inspired by a March 2021 KSL news story commending a 12-year-old Springville boy for completing a nationwide challenge to mow 50 yards, the Boldts committed to accomplish the same goal. The 50 Yard Challenge, created by the non-profit organization Raising Men & Women Lawn Care Service, challenges kids to cut 50 lawns free of charge for the elderly, disabled, single parents, veterans, and anyone else in need of lawn service. Rodney Smith Jr. founded the non-profit in 2016 when he saw a man struggling to mow his lawn in his hometown of Huntsville, Alabama. Smith got out of his car and helped him. A June 2018 CBS article states, “That moment inspired him to create the movement.”
Smith had a personal goal to mow 50 lawns in 50 states. He completed that goal in 39 days in 2017 by driving to 48 states and flying to Hawaii and Alaska. Smith’s endeavor started incorporating kids into the mission and the 50 Yard Challenge emerged.
Kids ages 7-17 sign up for the 50 Yard Challenge on the website www.weareraisingmen.com and send a selfie holding a sign saying, “I accept the 50 Yard Challenge.” In addition to a welcome package that includes shades, ear protection, and a white shirt, kids receive different color shirts for every 10 lawns they mow. Upon completion, the organization gives the kids their final shirt - the prized black shirt - a certificate, and a brand new lawn mower, weed eater, and blower. There is no time limit to complete the 50 yards. In the Fall and Winter, kids will rake leaves and shovel driveways so the challenge can be completed year round in any climate.
The Boldt kids started their challenge on May 7 and completed it on September 4. They mowed lawns on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, often mowing 2 - 3 lawns per day. During the final two weeks of their challenge, Emiline and Carter mowed lawns after school. While Carter had some experience mowing lawns from the previous summer, it was Emiline’s first time. Carter said, “Usually I will do the front and then Emiline will do the back, and then I will edge.”
Some lawns only took 30 minutes while others took 90 minutes. ‘You have to mow other people’s lawns but you can mow the same lawns multiple times.You can’t mow your own lawn to count. It has to be a service for others,” said Carter.
To take advantage of the cooler morning temperatures in the summer, the kids got up early. Carter said, “It was hot sometimes but we would get up early in the morning at 7 a.m. and start at 8:15 a.m. Sometimes it was really hot and sometimes it was cool. But after school, it was pretty hot.”
The kids’ mother, MaryJane Boldt, said, “When Carter saw the KSL article, he presented it to Emiline telling her it was a great way to bond. He was always spearheading this adventure. There were times Emiline waxed and waned throughout the process but she stuck with it and they completed it together. I am proud of them for setting a goal and seeing it through to the end.”
Emiline said, “It was probably one of my biggest accomplishments.” The neighbors they served were also incredibly grateful and regularly showed appreciation.
Even though the kids will receive brand new lawn service equipment for completing the challenge including a new lawn mower, Carter said, “We didn’t do it for the lawn mower. We did it to serve people.” l
Carter Boldt and his sister, Emiline, sport blue shirts while mowing their neighbors’ lawns, signifying that they have mowed 30 yards of their 50 yard goal. Photo courtesy of MaryJane Boldt.
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By Matt Patton | m.patton@mycityjournals.com
Nearly 10 years ago, University of Utah star linebacker Chaz Walker stepped off the field after helping the Utes to an overtime victory over Georgia Tech in the Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas. He led Utah with 15 tackles to help secure the win, which was a fitting way to cap off an impressive collegiate career where he led the team in tackles for two consecutive seasons.
But success at the collegiate level didn’t come easy for the former Davis High safety. He began as a walk-on in 2007, and over time he was converted to linebacker. In 2008 and 2009, he continued to put in the work and got on the field to play special teams. But in 2010, he finally got his chance to start at middle linebacker, and he never looked back, totaling over 200 tackles in two seasons.
Recognizing the hard work that it took to get to that level, Walker started training young athletes who were trying to do what he did – work hard and become a better competitor. After finding out that a gym had closed in Ogden, Walker seized the opportunity and picked up the used equipment so he could start a gym of his own in West Bountiful, the Kongo Athletic Club.
The club, which was named after his linebacking group at the University of Utah, started as a place for young athletes to get custom speed, strength, agility and diet plans to help them get to the next level in sports.
“A lot of clubs around the state are just only focusing on the kids that are really good at their sport at that point in time,” Walker said. “The way many of the other coaches and I grew up, we weren’t the kids that were super good at a young age, we had to put in the work and put in the effort.”
When the Kongo Athletic Club moved to Kaysville in 2015, it quickly began to evolve. Rather than just focusing on performance training, Kongo expanded to team sports. Around that time, there was one basketball team and around 100 kids involved with performance training. With the change of focus to team sports, the club now has 46 teams and oversees more than 2,000 youth. They offer opportunities to join club basketball, baseball, volleyball, soccer, softball, lacrosse, and E-Sports teams.
“We want to take these kids that might be entry level in competition sports and get them to play on our top travel teams,” Walker said. “We’ve had good success with kids coming in with a limited knowledge of sports and then evolving and growing over a two-to-four-year period and ended up being some of our top players.”
While they have been successful helping kids obtain athletic scholarships, the focus of Kongo Athletic Club isn’t just about getting youth to the college playing fields.
“My version of success stories is a little bit different from some others,” Walker said. “I look at kids that didn’t have friends, weren’t very good at sports, and yet now are one of the top players in our top teams. Our main goal is to find a spot for every kid trying to better themselves in sports.”
The Kongo Athletic Club is located at 535 N. Kays Drive in Kaysville. More information about getting specialized training or to join a Kongo club team can be found at kongosports. com. l
The Kongo Athletic Club has several club sports teams, including basketball, baseball, volleyball, soccer, softball, lacrosse, and E-Sports. (Photo courtesy Chaz Walker)
High school cycling league growing in popularity
KAYSVILLE—Cycling may be a sport that doesn’t get as much attention as it probably should. The Utah High School Cycling League (UHSCL) is providing high school students with an opportunity to compete in a sport that most people probably don’t know a lot about.
According to its website, www.utahmtb.org, the UHSCL is in its 10th year of existence. When it started in 2012, the league had a little more than 300 student-athletes taking part. In 2021, the league projects there will be roughly more than 5,000 high school students from around the state participating. The league also has more than 2,700 registered coaches.
Davis High School is one the schools participating in the league. And it fields a team of 158 student-athletes between grades 7-12.
Of the 158 students from Davis High, 120 students are in grades 9-12. Seventh and eighth grade students start off in a junior development program, allowing them to learn about mountain biking in a positive environment.
Freshmen, sophomores and juniors compete at the junior varsity level on various skill levels. A varsity race is four laps, which is anywhere between 24 and 32 miles long. It also has a climbing distance of 1,500 to 2,000 feet.
The sport is growing in popularity among girls. Davis High currently has 39 girls on its cycling team.
“That continues to grow,” said Davis High cycling coach Travis Remington. “We love having girls part of the team.”
The UHSCL is made of four regions around the state – North, East, Central and South. Within each region, there are four races, leading up to the state meet set for Oct. 22-23 in St. George.
“The races are incredible,” Remington said.
The North Region, which includes teams from Davis, Farmington, Woods Cross, Bountiful and Viewmont high schools, has held races at Beaver Mountain (Aug. 28), Snowbasin (Sept. 11) and Soldier Hollow (Sept. 25). A fourth race will also be held Oct. 9 in Vernal.
Remington says the sport is for every-
one.
“It’s for the kids whose moms and dads aren’t the richest,” he said. “If you join the team, you’ll get to ride.”
And it doesn’t matter the skill level of the rider. Remington said he had a student-athlete come join the cycling club after throwing his shoulder out in swimming. Remington said the student-athlete just wanted something to do.
That being said, however, Remington does encourage those interested in picking up the sport to get out and start riding.
“Start on smaller trails, so they can build up their skills,” he said.
In all, the UHSCL has 92 teams around the state. Teams are as big as 205 student-athletes, and are as small as five student-athletes. According to its website, the UHSCL is the largest mountain bike league in the nation.
“It’s phenomenal the growth we are seeing in Utah,” Remington said.
He credit’s part of the growth to the easy access to mountains around the state.
The foundation of the league is based on five core principles – fun, inclusivity, equity, respect and community.
For more information, visit the league’s website at www.utahmtb.org l
By Mark Jones | m.jones@mycityjournals.com
