Volume 24 Issue 13
Inside:
What’s New At Café Olé?
June 17, 2016
See Neighborhood Magazine!
Named The 2014 ‘Small Business Of The Year’ By The Wesley Chapel Chamber Of Commerce! The Direct-Mail News Magazines Serving New Tampa & Wesley Chapel Since 1993! For the complete list of the neighborhoods that receive this publication by direct mail in New Tampa (zip code 33647), see page 50!
Hoop, There It Is: New Tampa Resident Sets A Guinness Record By John C. Cotey Justin Dargahi doesn’t have the smoothest shot around. His form isn’t ideal, his finish isn’t textbook. In fact, you could argue he looks a little awkward as he fires the basketball towards the rim, jumping forward a bit, landing on his right foot. “My shot’s been laughed at all my life,’’ Dargahi says. Until it starts going in, which it almost always does. Swish. Swish. Swish. Dargahi, who lives in Hunter’s Green, is one of the newest entries into the Guinness Book of World Records, for that not-ideal, non-textbook, awkward-motion shot, after he made 26 three-pointers from the NBA range in one minute. Shooting at the top of the key from 23 feet, 9 inches away, Justin broke the old record of 25 threes in a minute held by Oregon’s Dan Loriaux, who also holds the record for most treys made in one hour (1,077) and in 24 hours (10,381). “I told some friends that I set the record, but they just told me to come see them New Tampa resident Justin Dargahi recently made it into the Guinness Book of World Records when it’s official,’’ Justin said, laughing. for making 26 NBA-range (23’-9”) three-point shots in one minute. Well, it’s official. Justin says the record doesn’t sound like the Three-Point Shootout, held during the The former Land O’ Lakes girls basketball assistant coach set the record Jan. 4 much to some, who are convinced that an NBA’s midseason All-Star Weekend, twice. It takes consistency and resilience, Jusin the Land O’Lakes High gymnasium. His NBA player could set it if they tried. But, he record-setting morning, for which he had to says some have, most notably former Boston tin says, and the fortitude to throw up almost file an official application, as well as hiring Celtics All-Star forward Paul Pierce and for- a shot a second. After about 10 shots, most basketball officials and recording the event, mer NBA journeyman and sharpshooter Ja- shooters’ arms grow weary. After 20, they was finally certified by the Guinness Book of son Kapono, who led the NBA in three-point hurt and after 30 the ball gets heavier, and shooting percentage twice and also won the shooting form becomes a bit unraveled. World Records last month.
Also Inside This Issue: News, Business & Sports Updates Montelione Replacements Line Up In District 7, First-Ever U.S. Crystal Lagoon Coming To Wesley Chapel, Skating Facility Hosts Hard Hat Tour, Local Engineer Brings The Chill, New Tampa Rotary Keeps Busy, Prep Teams Wrap Up Spring Football & Local Business Features!
Pages 3-40
Neighborhood Magazine
Local Model Shows Off Looks & Model Behavior, Café Olé Perfects Spanish Cuisine, Girl Scouts Make Their Mark In Tampa Palms & More Neighborhood Nibbles & Business Bytes!
Pages 41-52
On Justin’s most recent attempt, which was the fifth time he had tried to break the record, he missed his first shot but then made his next six. Halfway there (at 30 seconds), he had 16 makes and only five misses. And, with 7.8 seconds left, Record No. 26 swished through the net. Justin, however, thought he had only made 25. After missing his final four shots, he extended his arms in agony, despite the cheering from the girl basketball players on hand. “We had to make sure and check the video,’’ he said. In all, Justin shot 38 times in 60 seconds, and made 26, for a remarkable 68.4 percent. “It’s a little bit of notoriety, that’s nice,’’ said Dargahi, who works for Future Home Realty, which has six Florida offices, including one in Wesley Chapel. The official Guinness Record certificate now sits over the fireplace in his home, a testament to setting a goal and achieving it. His next shot at fame, he says, may come from the free throw line, where the current record is 52 made in one minute from that 15-foot distance. For Justin, the road to the record books was a natural one. He grew up a shooter, always drawing crowds and breaking records at the pop-a-shot games you find at arcades and theme parks. He first played organized basketball at Tampa Baptist and Tampa’s Cambridge Christian, and had college aspirations. But,
See “Hoops” on page 19.
Former BayNews 9 Reporter Set To Co-Anchor WCNT-tv! As you’re receiving this issue in your mailbox, the first-ever episode of WCNT-tv — the only video news and information program devoted to the residents and businesses of Wesley Chapel and New Tampa and the exclusive webcast partner of the Greater Wesley Chapel Chamber of Commerce (WCCC) — is being recorded and is expected to premier on its own Youtube.com channel on Sunday, June 26, 7 p.m. While that announcement itself is pretty amazing, I am even more excited to be able to announce that former Bay News 9 on-air talent Susanna Martinez has agreed to coanchor these webcasts with me. WCNT-tv, which is a partnership between Full Throttle Intermedia and the New Tampa & Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News, will come to you from the Florida Hospital Wesley Chapel Studios. Susanna, whose roots are in television journalism, helped launch Bay News 9, the Tampa Bay area’s first 24-hour local news channel. For six years, Susanna worked as
an on-air television news reporter, bringing some of the area’s most significant stories and weather-related news into the homes of millions of viewers throughout the 11th largest media market in the country. Prior to moving to Tampa, Susanna was the main news anchor Susanna Martinez at WKAG-TV 43 in Hopkinsville, KY, where she started her broadcast career. “Like Bay News 9, I think WCNT-tv will create another local phenomenon and I am excited to co-anchor the program with Neighborhood News editor Gary Nager,” says Susanna, who also is the public information officer for the Southwest Florida Water Management District (aka “Swiftmud”). The first news segment Susanna and I will produce will feature a video look inside
the new Florida Hospital Center Ice (see pg. 10), as well as some updates to our now-famous maps of the Wesley Chapel area, each of which have attracted tens of thousands of page views on our Facebook page and thousands of click-throughs to our website. WCNT-tv’s first Wesley Chapel Chamber Featured Business will be VIP Pest Control, which we featured in these pages a couple of issues ago. At our press time, I couldn’t yet announce which restaurant would be the first featured in WCNT-tv’s “Gary’s Neighborhood Dining News” segment, but it will be a delicious visit to an awesome restaurant anywhere in the Tampa Bay area, because of our limited dining options in our local area. For more WCNT-tv information and updates, visit NTNeighborhoodNews. com or see the ad on pg. 38. — GN