Sports Leader

A PUBLICATION FROM THE N’WEST IOWA REVIEW
JULY 2017
GO
RIDE
for a
NITWITS cruise area stressing
safety in numbers
GOLDEN:
DE JONG EXCELS IN
PAN-AM GAMES
HEADING HOME:
HEALTH FORCES KURTH
TO LEAVE DUGOUT
KEEP MOVING:
VANDER PLAATS WINS IN
FIRST MARATHON RACE

Sports Leader OCAHS July 2017.qxp_Layout 1 7/3/17 10:57 AM Page 1
WORKING TOGETHER.
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Family medicine clinics in Hospers, Orange City, Paullina,
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2 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

ALSO INSIDE
ALSO INSIDE
VOL. 10 • NO. 4
8
“We never leave anyone behind. You can learn
a lot from each other on the rides”
Cheri Bosman
NITWIT ORGANIZER
24
ON THE COVER
JULY 2017
19
8 MARTY KURTH SEES
BASEBALL DIFFERENTLY
Robbed of his eyesight, the legendary
Gehlen Catholic baseball coach still led
the Jays for one more season.
14 BRINGING HONORS
FOR TEAM USA
Sibley-Ocheyedan senior-to-be Hunter
De Jong won gold and silver medals at
the Pan-Am Games in wrestling
19 BICYCLING GROUP
GOES PLACES TOGETHER
The NITWITS bike group started in the
80s but disbanded for a while. Now the
group is back and bigger than ever.
24 VANDER PLAATS
TAKES ON NEW DISTANCE
Following a successful career as a runner
at Unity Christian High School, Jacob
Vander Plaats ventured into a marathon.
JULY 2017 | THE SPORTS LEADER 3

Grandma’s
TIDBITS
MARATHON
THE PLAY
Get out, get active
Summer to some people is the perfect time to take it easy and relax.
Others, however, look at it quite differently.
That doesn’t always mean getting outside. Sibley-Ocheyedan senior-to-be Hunter De
Jong has been as busy as anyone this summer, but his pursuits have come inside gyms
and arenas. He’s spent his summer wrestling.
De Jong has done a little traveling, as many people do during these months. In fact, one of
his recent trips took him overseas for the first time. De Jong was a part of Team USA at the Cadet
Pan-Am Championships in Buenos Aries, Argentina.
De Jong ended up coming home with two medals
from the event.
Recent Unity Christian graduate Jacob Vander Plaats
decided he wanted to try something new this summer,
so he went north to Duluth, MN, for the annual
Grandma’s Marathon. A complete novice in the marathon
game, Vander Plaats admits he didn’t have as
much training as he should have and he didn’t have
much of a game plan. Still, he managed to win his age
group.
Another group interested in traveling has focused its
efforts more locally. The NITWITS bicycle club tells you
right in its name what it is all about. The acronym NIT-
WITS stands for Northwest Iowans Touring Western
Iowa Together Safely. The group uses social media to
organize rides, stressing safety in numbers and enjoyment
of the sport.
“Being together with
your son seems like a
wonderful part of the
summertime traditions.”
Scott Byers
SPORTS EDITOR
Unfortunately, this summer was the last summer in the dugout for legendary Gehlen Catholic
baseball coach Marty Kurth.
Kurth has lost almost all of his eyesight due to a medical condition that worsened during the
season. Kurth continued to soldier on, using his trusty fungo bat as a makeshift cane to help
him get around when needed. He also put a lot of faith in his trusted assistants, one of which
was his son, Ty.
Being together with your son seems like a wonderful part of the summertime traditions and
was a good way for Kurth to ride into the sunset of his career.
FIRST RUN IN
1977
WITH
150 ONLY PARTICIPANTS
26.2
MILES
LONG
SOURCE: WWW.GRANDMASMARATHON.COM/HISTORY
2:09:06
MEN'S RECORD TIME
2:53:15
VANDER PLAAT’S TIME
READ THE WHOLE STORY ON PAGE 25!
Recent Unity Christian graduate Jacob Vander Plaats won his age
division at this year’s Grandma’s Marathon.
THIS PUBLICATION IS SPONSORED BY
THE MANY BUSINESSES AND INSTITUTIONS LISTED THROUGHOUT.
The Sports Leader is published several times a year by Iowa Information Inc., Sheldon, IA.
For advertising rates and other questions, please contact us.
The Sports Leader, P.O. Box 160, Sheldon IA 51201
1-800-247-0186 • (712) 324-5347 • e-mail: sports@iowainformation.com
©2017 The Sports Leader. No material from this publication may be copied or
in any way reproduced without written permission from the publisher.
4 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

JULY 2017 | THE SPORTS LEADER 5

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MARTY KURTH
STORY BY JACOB HALL | PHOTOS BY JACOB HALL AND SUBMITTED
Last blast
Gehlen Catholic baseball coach Marty Kurth steps down due to health concerns
Marty Kurth has worn many hats during his
time at Gehlen Catholic, but the constant
lid of choice has always been his baseball
cap.
Kurth has coached baseball at Gehlen for 31
years. During his time at the school he has also
served as an assistant boys basketball coach and
head girls basketball coach. He was athletic director
for seven years.
“That’s the reason I had to do the basketball,”
Kurth said. “As AD I couldn’t find a basketball
coach — so I took the girls job. I said I’d do it
for two years until they found somebody and
eight years later I said my two years was up.”
LIKE FATHER LIKE SON One of Marty Kurth’s trusted assistant coaches on the Gehlen Catholic baseball team this
summer was his son Ty. Kurth had to rely on Ty and assistant coach Solomon Freking to relay what was going on during the games
due to Marty Kurth’s failing eyesight, which was the reason he decided to step down at the end of the year.
PERFECT FIT
Growing up in Remsen, Kurth picked up the
game right away. It fit just right.
“I’m not very big — I’m a little guy — and little
guys can play baseball,” Kurth said. “I could hit…
I could do about everything. You don’t have to be
real tall. I just loved the game, it was summer and it
kept me out of trouble. It was just something I grew
up doing all the way through.”
He played second base for Remsen St. Mary’s in
high school, winning a state title in 1983 — the first
of three in a row for the school.
He continued his playing career at Westmar. But,
similar to how things have turned out with his
coaching career, his playing career didn’t exactly
end on his terms either.
“I was voted team captain my senior year but I
didn’t get to play because I went into the Education
department and they wouldn’t let me get out of
school to go play baseball because I had to do my
student teaching,” Kurth said. “That was kind of
a bummer because I was MVP my freshman and
junior years and I didn’t get to play my senior year.
I have one year of eligibility left.”
Despite the disappointment of hanging up the
cleats prematurely, Kurth wasn’t ready to give up on
8 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

“I still love the game for the
game. I’m still a student of
the game and it’s something
I try to preach to my kids —
being students of the game
and learning about the game.”
Marty Kurth
GEHLEN CATHOLIC BASEBALL COACH
baseball completely.
“I knew I’d have my teaching degree and I knew I’d
try to find a teaching and coaching job,” he said. “I
didn’t think it was done. It was definitely sad to see
my playing career was over. I had a hard time handling
that like any ball player when he’s done. But
every now and then I still went out to practices to talk
to the guys and to help out a little bit. But the part
about being done as a player — that’s a tough time.”
OPPORTUNITY KNOCKS
Kurth was approached about the Gehlen Catholic
baseball job as a senior in college. He was working at
Adler Sporting Goods.
“It was around Christmas or right at the first of the
year when a couple parents came in and asked if I
would be interested in taking the baseball job that
summer,” Kurth said. “They said they didn’t think
they’d have a coach and didn’t want the program to
not play.”
Kurth, who was 21 years old at the time he was
approached, had a college teammate who was willing
to coach with him and the pair took over Gehlen’s
program.
“I still wasn’t finished with college,” he said.
One can imagine the ego that a fresh-out-of-college
coach who played college baseball might have had.
“I think if you would talk to people back then
they’d say I was pretty young and confident — and
maybe use another c-word — cocky,” Kurth said. “But
I was confident in my abilities and confident in what
I knew about how to play the game. I played it with a
ton of energy and I played it for the fun of the game
— that’s how I try to coach.”
EARLY CHALLENGES
The first three years weren’t great. Kurth called them
a bit of a dry spell.
“We’d taken over a program that had a couple
down years in a row,” he said. “That first we might’ve
WELL-EARNED AWARD
Gehlen Catholic held a special ceremony for retiring baseball coach Marty Kurth before his final home game with the Jays. Several
of Kurth’s former players were involved and the school gave Kurth a trophy commemorating his time with the school.
JULY 2017 | THE SPORTS LEADER 9

“Marty has a psychology major,
so he’s a very logical thinker.
He can come across to the
kids in a way that — it’s more
about life than it is baseball
sometimes. I think the kids
respected him for that.”
Jen Kurth
MARTY KURTH’S WIFE
only had 14 kids out or something like that. We
didn’t win many ball games. The next year we won a
few more, but then we had a misfortune.”
Gehlen had played its home games at Westmar,
but in Kurth’s third year, the field was removed and
a swimming pool was built.
“We didn’t have any home games that third year,”
Kurth said. “That was a rough year because we were
really a nice ball club, but I believe we only won one
or two games that year. One of the games we won
we actually beat the conference champion. We were
a nice team, but we didn’t have any place to practice.
We had three home games at LeMars Community
— everything else was on the road. We practiced out
at River View, but it was a softball field. When we
took infield our outfielders were behind the fence.”
Things turned around eventually.
“We had a group of kids in junior high who really
loved the game and they’re kind of the group that
changed things around,” Kurth said. “Baseball became
important.”
The Jays made it to the state title game in 1994.
State was played in Boone at that time and only four
teams made it. In 1995 the tournament was played
in Carroll. Gehlen won the state title that year.
“As a kid you’re all ‘rah-rah’ and enthusiastic,”
Kurth said. “But I can actually remember just sitting
in the dugout and watching the kids. That’s what it
was all about — the jubilation and excitement for
them. I remember the first few minutes just standing
there and watching. Then, my assistant coach,
Dean Harpenau, about broke my back when he
picked me up off the ground and said we did it.”
A FAMILY THING
Kurth’s wife, Jen, had a strong grasp for baseball
— and sports in general — before they were married.
“I remember when we were dating we’d watch
Sports Center and all of the abbreviations on the
screen and all of the terminology — I knew a lot
of that already,” Jen said. “He always told me I
impressed him because I knew about it. Now it’s
funny because all the parents who sit by me at ball
games will ask me what this or that means. I’m their
reference. It’s not just baseball — it’s also football. I
know football pretty well too.”
He coached both of his sons on the baseball field
— Mitchell and Ty. That opportunity undoubtedly
stands out as a highlight of his coaching career.
“It’s difficult to put into words, but man, I
couldn’t be more proud of being able to do that
and see them grow as young men and baseball
players,” Kurth said. “They really worked hard and
committed themselves. It was something that they
really wanted. To be able to enjoy that together and
culminate it with a trip to state — it’s something
I’ll never forget and I know they feel the same way.
Believe me, there were times after the game where
we would rehash a lot of different things — a lot of
good and a lot of bad — we talked a lot of baseball.
But, it was pretty dang special.”
10 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

There was a time when coaching Ty didn’t seem
likely.
“I thought about getting out so I could enjoy
watching Ty,” Kurth said. “I thought it might be
best, but he didn’t want any part of that and the
family said I wasn’t going to do that to him.”
Jen recalled memories of what she thought
might’ve been Marty’s last game in the dugout.
“I remember the last game that we played when
we thought he was done,” Jen said. “It was over at
Remsen St. Mary’s. He stood out on the ball field
SHOWING RESPECT
Akron-Westfield coach Gordy Johnson shakes hands with Gehlen
Catholic coach Marty Kurth during a ceremony celebrating
Kurth’s achievements with the Jays. The contest was the last
conference home game for Kurth, who retired after the season.
and just stood there and I knew he was thinking
‘this is it.’ All of us — the kids, myself and I think my
parents and Marty’s parents were there. We went out
to the field and stood out there with him and cried
and hugged each other. We knew that’d probably be
it. But after talking about it for a few days we said he
couldn’t not coach Ty.”
Ty and his team qualified for state in 2014, losing
in the semifinals. Ty was around Gehlen’s baseball
program all the time.
“I was bat boy for forever,” he said. “Since I could
walk I was basically in the dugout with dad. I was
mowing the baseball field before I even weighed
enough to start the mower. There was a weight limit
that was required to get the blades going so dad
would put a bag of grass seed and I’d sit on it just so
I could weigh the seat down enough so I could start
the mower.”
Ty lives at home. So while time and players may
pass, the conversations at home remain the same.
“They get home and that’s all they talk about is
baseball,” Jen said. “What should’ve been done
during the game… it’s always at least an hour and
a half conversation about what could’ve happened
and what should’ve happened.
“A lot of times I’ll come home and I’ll tell them
this is what they should’ve done.”
It’s not just for the boys, either.
“Baseball has been our life, there’s no doubt
about it,” Kurth said. “Just last night we sat in
here and watched the Twins do their thing. We do
baseball — that’s what we do. My daughter worked
down in Des Moines for the Iowa Cubs — baseball
is just in our blood. But she’s moving back home.
She thinks it’s time to get closer.”
END IN SIGHT
Kurth has lost his vision in the last year. His left
eye suffered a stroke on July 25, 2016. His right eye
endured a stroke on June 3 of this year.
It wasn’t totally unexpected. His father lost his
vision at an early age as well.
“Unfortunately my dad lost his sight much, much
earlier than I did,” Kurth said.” It’s the same type of
deal. He was legally blind by the time I was maybe
eight or 10 years old. He was just a plumber and did
his thing. But growing up in Remsen, I guess (baseball)
was meant to be.”
Former player and assistant coach Solomon
Freking has helped through this season as well as
Kurth’s son, Ty. Players relay what happens on the
field to Kurth.
With tournament play on the horizon, the next
game could easily be Kurth’s last.
“Every year at the end is tough,” Kurth said. “Obviously
we’ve played our last regular season game,
but I hope this season lasts a few more weeks. That
final game will be tough for me. I would have maybe
gone another year I believe, but it was time for
me to step aside and let somebody else run the program.
We’ve been talking about it for a while. I was
preparing myself for that. But it’s still never going to
be easy when it’s that final game.”
Kurth’s love for baseball won’t vanish. He’s played
the game since he was five. He’s still coaching at 52.
“I still love the game for the game. I’m still a student
of the game and it’s something I try to preach
to my kids — being students of the game and learning
about the game,” Kurth said. “There are things
that happen still today that I’ve not seen in 31 years.
It’s fun to talk about those things.”
Odds are Kurth was going to step aside after next
season anyway, but the early ending isn’t any easier
to handle.
“We knew we were getting down to the end,”
Jen said. “Either this year or next year would be his
last. We were actually kind of looking forward to it
because that’s all we’ve ever known is baseball. Baseball
has always been our summer. We were looking
forward to getting more time at the lake and doing
stuff outside of baseball. You just hate to go out this
way.
“Gehlen and baseball has been his life. The school
has been good to him. Marty has a psychology major,
so he’s a very logical thinker. He can come across
to the kids in a way that — it’s more about life than
it is baseball sometimes. I think the kids respected
him for that.”
JULY 2017 | THE SPORTS LEADER 11

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HUNTER DE JONG
International
14 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

STORY BY SCOTT BYERS | PHOTOS BY RICHARD IMMEL/USA WRESTLING
sensation
De Jong a gold medal winner
Hunter De Jong had never been out of the United States
until a couple of weeks ago.
Now as he approaches his senior year at Sibley-Ocheyedan
High School, De Jong is a gold medal winner.
De Jong earned a spot on Team USA at the Cadet Pan-Am
Championships, which were held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, on
July 7-9. He competed in both freestyle and Greco-Roman disciplines,
earning his gold in freestyle and taking a silver in Greco-Roman.
“It was really exciting,” De Jong said.
De Jong traveled to Akron, OH, in June to compete in the UWW
Nationals.
“I guess it’s kind of like the World Team
Trials,” De Jong said. “I have no idea how
their point system works, but I do know
I was the only kid in my weight class to
place in both styles.”
De Jong was fifth in Greco-Roman and
seventh in freestyle at that event.
Even after competing there, De Jong
said he didn’t even know the Pan-Am
Championships existed until he got a call
about three days after the event asking if
he wanted to be on the team.
“It was a complete shock. I didn’t know
what to say,” De Jong said.
Because there is very little time between
nationals and the Pan-Am Championships,
De Jong was given just 24 hours to
decide if he would take part. He and his
“My goal was to
win two golds. My
mindset was I was
going to do whatever
I had to do.”
Hunter De Jong
SIBLEY-OCHEYEDAN SENIOR
parents made a quick trip to Minneapolis, MN, where they could
secure a passport in one day. And just like that, De Jong was on a
plane headed to Argentina.
“It was a little awkward at first because no one knew each other,
but we started to bond very quickly,” De Jong said.
The wrestlers arrived in Argentina on July 4 and started workouts
right away. De Jong said there was little time for tourism.
“All I really got to see was what you could see from our hotel and
then the route that we took to The Center, which is where we wrestled,”
De Jong said.
De Jong was trying to stay focused on the task at hand anyway.
“My goal was to win two golds,” he said. “My mindset was I was
going to do whatever I had to do.”
De Jong had a pin, two technical falls and a 10-4 decision in win-
JULY 2017 | THE SPORTS LEADER 15

PAN-AM CHAMPIONSHIPS
FREESTYLE 85 KG
Round 1 - Sunny Singh Benning (CAN)
won by decision over Marcos Paulo Barbosa
Da Silva (BRA) (Dec 6-0)
Round 1 - Pedro Dayanne Garay Lopez
(MEX) won by decision over Christian
Allen Salter (PUR) (Dec 8-3)
Round 2 - Hunter Khristian De Jong (USA)
won by fall over Christian Allen Salter
(PUR) (Fall 2:24)
Round 2 - Pedro Dayanne Garay Lopez
(MEX) won by decision over Sunny Singh
Benning (CAN) (Dec 7-2)
Round 3 - Hunter Khristian De Jong (USA)
won by decision over Pedro Dayanne
Garay Lopez (MEX) (Dec 10-4)
Round 3 - Christian Allen Salter (PUR) won
by decision over Marcos Paulo Barbosa
Da Silva (BRA) (Dec 10-3)
Round 4 - Hunter Khristian De Jong (USA)
won by tech fall over Marcos Paulo Barbosa
Da Silva (BRA) (TF 10-0)
Round 4 - Christian Allen Salter (PUR) won
by decision over Sunny Singh Benning
(CAN) (Dec 12-4)
Round 5 - Hunter Khristian De Jong (USA)
won by tech fall over Sunny Singh Benning
(CAN) (TF 10-0)
Round 5 - Pedro Dayanne Garay Lopez
(MEX) won by tech fall over Marcos Paulo
Barbosa Da Silva (BRA) (TF 10-0)
GRECO-ROMAN 85 KG
Round 1 - Luis Alfredo Lopez Vazquez
(MEX) won by tech fall over Igor Fernando
Alves De Queiroz (BRA) (TF 10-0)
Round 1 - Hunter Khristian De Jong (USA)
won by fall over Christian Allen Salter
(PUR) (Fall 1:56)
Round 2 - Luis Alfredo Lopez Vazquez
(MEX) won by tech fall over Christian
Allen Salter (PUR) (TF 10-1)
Round 2 - Hunter Khristian De Jong (USA)
won by fall over Igor Fernando Alves De
Queiroz (BRA) (Fall 3:42)
Round 3 - Luis Alfredo Lopez Vazquez
(MEX) won by tech fall over Hunter Khristian
De Jong (USA) (TF 10-2)
Round 3 - Christian Allen Salter (PUR)
won by tech fall over Igor Fernando
Alves De Queiroz (BRA) (TF 11-2)
ning the freestyle bracket. He got two
pins in three matches in the Greco-Roman
field.
De Jong said that it is easy to see
which countries focus on Greco-Roman
and which focus on freestyle.
The United States takes a more balanced
approach and features folkstyle
wrestling at the high school and college
levels.
“It’s tough to chose, but I think I
like Greco the best. I like working the
upper body and there I don’t have
to worry about guys getting after my
legs,” De Jong said.
De Jong said he wrestles for roughly
eight months out of the year. He has
traveled all over the country in the
summer for freestyle and Greco-Roman
events.
Last year he became the first
Sibley-Ocheyedan wrestler to earn
All-American honors in both events
at the Cadet and Junior Nationals
in Fargo, ND. He was fourth in Greco-Roman
and seventh in freestyle.
De Jong trains at a facility in Omaha,
NE, and at the regional training
center on the campus of South Dakota
State University during the summer
besides doing some workouts on his
own.
“Both of those places have plenty
of kids my size to choose from. My
practice partners are very good,” De
Jong said. “In Omaha it’s mostly high
school kids, but when you go up to
SDSU that’s almost all college guys.”
De Jong is a three-time state
qualifier for Sibley-Ocheyedan. He
took fourth at state in the Class 1A
195-pound bracket last year.
De Jong carries a career record of
128-24 for Sibley-Ocheyedan going
into his final season.
“The stuff I do over the summer is a
GRAPPLING FOR GOLD Sibley-Ocheyedan senior-to-be Hunter De Jong and Luis Alfredo Lopez
Vasquez of Mexico lock up in Greco-Roman competition. De Jong, who won gold in the freestyle division,
suffered his only loss in this match and wound up with a silver medal in the discipline.
tremendous help. I learn so much in
those matches,” De Jong said. “It definitely
does transfer over to folkstyle.”
He has big expectations for his
senior year, enough so that he has
decided he will not play football this
fall.
“I’m going to keep wrestling all
summer and take just a little break in
the fall,” De Jong said. “My mindset is
to be a state champion.”
De Jong also has a goal to wrestle at
the college level. He said the recruiting
attention hasn’t heated up yet.
That attention should be coming
soon.
16 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

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18 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

NITWITS BICYCLE CLUB
iking
STORY BY SCOTT BYERS | PHOTOS BY JOSH HARRELL
Being a NITWIT isn’t so bad. In fact, once you learn more
you might decide you want to.
In this case, we aren’t talking about the traditional insult.
We are talking about a group of bicycling enthusiasts
in Sheldon.
The clever acronym NITWIT stands for Northwest Iowans Touring
Western Iowa Together Safely.
Pete Hamill was a part of the bicycling group that came up with
the name way back in the 1980s.
“It went for about five or six years back then and then it just
kind of evaporated,” Hamill said. “A few years ago we kind of got
the idea again. I’m on the Sioux County trails board and the trails
board in Sheldon. I just thought it was time to get one started
again.
“Cheri (Bosman) started to organize Tuesday rides.
s Back
I couldn’t think of anything else to call it, so we used
NITWITs again.”
Hamill said the original group disappeared partially
due to challenges in communication
back then.
“I suppose at one time we had a
mailing list of 35-40 people. That was
part of the problem — back then you had
to do everything by mail,” he said. “There
were no cellphones. There wasn’t the internet.
It was hard to get in touch with everyone
to get anything organized.”
Hamill, who is now 71, never stopped
riding even when the club was disbanded.
“It’s good exercise. It’s easy on the
joints,” Hamill said. “And when you do it

Social media
helps propel
growth
with a group it can be a fun social activity.
Chuck De Hoogh and I used to go out
every morning. I took my daughter on
RAGBRAI when she was 14. We’ve done
RAGBRAI, or at least part of it, a number
of times. One time my daughter Holly
and I rode Highway 60 all the way to
Minneapolis. We just got hooked on it.”
Bosman said she started riding because
“I needed a hobby.”
“My kids were grown. My husband
started to do a lot of fishing, and I didn’t
particularly care for fishing, so I ended up
doing this,” she said. “Everybody’s reason
is different. Some are getting ready for
RAGBRAI. A few are training for a triathlon.
Some of the others are runners who
just do the biking as kind of a second
thing to do to complement their running
so they aren’t doing the same thing all the
time.”
Bosman said biking is a healthy habit.
“I do it somewhat for health reasons. I
find that when your are exercising that if
you are enjoying what you are doing you
get more out of it than if you consider the
exercise you are doing to be a chore,” she
said.
Hamill and Bosman credit social media
sources such as Facebook for helping
the group find new life. The group posts
information and reminders on when the
rides are on the site. Members also will
let others know when they are planning
to go to other towns or events for a ride.
There currently are 89 members listed in
the Facebook group.
Bosman said there are many reasons
why riding with a group is a great idea.
“First of all, there is safety in numbers.
A car is going to see a big group of bikes a
lot faster than it will see one person on a
bike,” Bosman said. “It’s also a good way
to meet people, to get some exercise and
to just enjoy life.”
The group’s Tuesday rides generally
begin at Peoples Bank in Sheldon.
“We try to stay in groups. If there are
enough people sometimes there is a faster
group and what we like to call a more
20 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

“I do it somewhat for health reasons.
I find that when your are exercising that if
you are enjoying what you are doing you
get more out of it than if you consider the
exercise you are doing to be a chore.”
Cheri Bosman
social group,” Bosman said. “We never leave anyone behind. You can
learn a lot from each other on the rides.”
Where the groups go is determined by the wind. The idea is to always
have the wind at your back when you are on your way home.
Bosman said the rides have been drawing anywhere from eight to
two dozen people this summer. She said there are quite a few who are
doing it to get into shape for RAGBRAI — The Des Moines Register’s
Annual Bicycle Ride — which travels through the northern portion of
the state this year. Often, weather is the determining factor on just how
many people show up. The route typically has participants pedaling to
Ashton, Matlock, Archer or Hospers, but often varies.
“We started going to Getting’s Garden a couple of times a year and
that’s always a fun destination,” Bosman said. “Last year Peoples Bank
gave us some watermelon to have at the end of the ride.”
The distance of the ride is completely up to the rider.
“Different people go different distances,” Bosman said. “Sometimes
JULY 2017 | THE SPORTS LEADER 21

A LITTLE HELP
FROM FRIENDS
One of the benefits of bike riding
with a group is there is always
someone to help out should
trouble arise. Here three members
of the NITWITS group address the
situation after a rider had a tire go
flat during a recent ride around of
Northwest Iowa.
“We started going
to Getting’s Garden
a couple of times a
year and that’s
always a fun
destination.”
Cheri Bosman
you might be feeling good and want to go farther. Sometimes
you might have other commitments you have to get
back for or you might just think it’s too hot and you turn
around earlier. It’s never a race. You determine what you
want to do.”
She does recommend having good equipment.
“Most of the people in our group have road bikes, but
not all. Some have kind of hybrids — what I would call a
comfort bike,” Bosman said. “The main thing is to have a
bike that is in good working order. If your bike isn’t in good
working order, you are going to struggle and it doesn’t take
long for you to figure that out. But they don’t have to be new
bikes or anything. Some of our group members have vintage
bikes.”
The rides start as soon as the weather allows in April and
Bosman said again, depending on the weather, the group
may keep going until November.
“Generally what happens is it eventually gets too dark,”
she said.
There are several other biking groups in the area in towns
like Sioux Center, Spencer, Milford, Doon, LeMars and
more. Hamill noted there has been a renewed effort to expand
and link area bike trails, giving enthusiasts plenty of
places to ride.
Both Hamill and Bosman noted that “membership” in the
NITWITs group is a loosely defined term.
“Just look us up and ask to join,” Bosman said. “We want
people to join in. The more we get riding, the better.”
22 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

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24 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

MARATHON
MAN

JACOB VANDER PLAATS
Vander Plaats finds
redemption in race after
injury-marred senior year
Unity Christian’s Jacob Vander Plaats enjoyed a
storied four years in cross-country.
His team finished third at state twice and
ran second twice.
But last fall an injury limited how well he performed
at state. After finishing sixth at state as a
sophomore and fifth as a junior, he crossed 24th.
“My leg started hurting in the middle of
cross-country and I thought it was mostly just
muscle pain,” Vander Plaats said. “But after state it
was hurting a lot and we decided to do an X-ray. It
turned out to be a broken fibula.”
The memories of the race at state are vivid.
“At the end of the state cross-country race it
popped,” he said. “I sort of went down and I think
that’s when it broke
completely.”
“I was hoping to get under three hours.
I was really happy with that. I wish
I could’ve finished the last six miles
faster than they were, but I’m still
happy with how it turned out.”
It was a difficult
ending to such a
strong four-year
run in the fall
sport.
“I went into the
race and wasn’t
feeling great but
hoping I could run
as hard as I could
and just try to help
my team as best I
could,” he said. “It
hurt at the start, but
once I got going it
wasn’t really hurting,
I just felt out of
it — like I couldn’t
keep my legs moving fast enough.”
As he crossed the finish, he went down.
“I was lying right by the finish line for probably
five or 10 minutes,” he said. “I was kind of disappointed
because I didn’t think our team would do
as well as it did. But it was a relief when it was over.”
ROAD TO RECOVERY
For two months he was limited, with one exception.
Jacob Vander Plaats
GRANDMA’S MARATHON FINISHER
“They said I could do hockey because it was protected
by shin pads,” he said. “I didn’t start running
again probably until three months after I found out
it was broken.”
He made his comeback during the track season.
He recovered enough to run third in the 3,200 and
sixth in the 1,600 at state.
With a successful track season behind him, he
turned his sights toward something bigger — a marathon.
26 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

STORY BY JACOB HALL | PHOTOS BY JOSH HARRELL AND SUBMITTED
FAST FACTS
GRANDMA’S MARATHON
1977
HAD ITS FIRST RUN IN
WITH
150 ONLY PARTICIPANTS
26.2
MILES
LONG
2:09:06
MEN'S RECORD TIME
2:53:15
VANDER PLAATS’ TIME
AFTER RECOVERING FROM A
BROKEN FIBULA
VANDER PLAATS PLACED THIRD IN THE 3,200
AND SIXTH IN THE 1,600 AT STATE
FINISHING STRONG
Jacob Vander Plaats finds an extra boost of energy as he heads down the final stretch at Grandma’s Marathon
in Duluth, MN. Vander Plaats had never ran a marathon before and admitted he slowed down for a stretch in
the final third of the race, but he recovered and ran well enough to win his age group.
“I went into the race and wasn’t feeling great but hoping
I could run as hard as I could and just try to help my
team as best I could. It hurt at the start, but once I
got going it wasn’t really hurting, I just felt out of it —
like I couldn’t keep my legs moving fast enough.”
Jacob Vander Plaats
JULY 2017 | THE SPORTS LEADER 27

“I really enjoyed it. I definitely want to
do that one again and maybe some
other ones too. My time qualified for the
Boston Marathon and I think it’d be
super fun to do that.”
Jacob Vander Plaats
DECORATED RUNNER Jacob Vander Plaats runs at the Class 2A state-qualifying meet in 2016. He was a part of four state cross
country teams and medaled twice as a senior at the state track and field meet. He recently won his age group at Grandma’s Marathon.
RACE DRAWS INTEREST
More specifically, he wanted to try
Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth, MN.
“Last year Schuyler Malenke said he
was going to do it after he graduated
from high school and he did it,” Vander
Plaats said. “Then I thought it sounded
like fun. I decided I was going to do it in
the middle of March or early April.”
He hiked his training miles up significantly
after track.
“I felt mostly pretty good,” Vander
Plaats said. “There was a little bit of
soreness.”
Training required more than miles.
“It was just a lot more eating healthier
and taking care of my body and
sleeping better,” he said.
Originally he planned to run the 5K
the night before the marathon.
While an injury in the fall wasn’t
enough to stop Vander Plaats, the traffic
was.
“We were supposed to get there two
or three hours before we did,” he said.
“There were so many people there.”
DIFFERENT KIND OF RUN
After years of competing in distance
races, he tackled a new beast.
“I started the marathon way too fast,”
he said. “My first 10 miles were under
an hour — something like 59:26. Then
I was feeling good through mile 14 or
15, but my legs started getting really
sore. Miles 20-25 were the toughest.
I walked a couple of times and just
slowed down. I was able to bounce
back a little bit that last mile.”
Vander Plaats ran the marathon in
2:53:15. He finished first in his age
group — males 12-18 years old. He was
132nd out of 6,444 runners.
Not bad.
“I was hoping to get under three
hours,” he said. “I was really happy
with that. I wish I could’ve finished the
last six miles faster than they were, but
I’m still happy with how it turned out.
After I finished it was super hard to
walk because my calves and quads just
tightened up a ton. I was just hobbling
around every where.”
Looking back, he’d tweak a few
things if he had to do it again.
“I’d train a little bit longer,” he said.
“I only had a month to actually train
for the marathon because I didn’t want
that training to interfere with track. And
I’d start the marathon a little bit slower
so I’d have more in the tank at the end.”
RETURN IS POSSIBLE
Vander Plaats took a month off and is
now training to run at Dordt.
Odds are he’ll return to the marathon
circuit sooner rather than later. He already
has a few ideas.
“I really enjoyed it,” he said. “I definitely
want to do that one again and
maybe some other ones too. My time
qualified for the Boston Marathon and
I think it’d be super fun to do that.
Maybe the Twin Cities Marathon and
the Chicago Marathon.”
28 THE SPORTS LEADER | JULY 2017

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