By TONY TAGLAVORE, Journal Sports

Carved out of tucked-away land surrounded by pine trees on the good side of the Louisiana-Texas state line, a quarter-mile circle of red clay dirt saved Derick Grigsby’s life.

Grigsby had just struck out on a promising baseball career. So promising, the Houston Astros chose Grigsby — and paid him a $1.125 million signing bonus — in the first round of the 2002 Major League Baseball amateur draft.

“He had a fastball that lit up radar guns and a slider that buckled knees,” wrote esteemed Houston Chronicle baseball writer Richard Justice.

But on the eve of his fourth season in the Astros organization, Grigsby’s grandmother died — on the same date his mother died six years earlier.

Ballgame.

“I had pretty severe depression and anxiety,” he said. “I still deal with anxiety today. The depression, not so much. I still go to counseling.”

So, Grigsby came home, finding comfort while working on his father’s race car. There was also the weekly payoff pitch — cheering Dad to the checkered flag on Saturday nights at Boothill Speedway in Greenwood.

“Just getting out there and being around people,” he said, “it was good for me.”

These days, Grigsby spends late nights (“It’s really like a whole other 40-hours-a-week job”) turning wrenches on his car. Saturday evenings, Grigsby is turning the wheel left, while Dad cheers.

“It’s the competition,” Grigsby said, explaining a hobby which costs more than it pays. “We’re not out there making a living for sure. Just being able to race like I always wanted to means a lot.”

Like several of the 115-120 drivers hauling their cars to Exit 3 on I-20 in Greenwood, Grigsby once dreamed of racing at legendary tracks like Daytona and Talladega. “I thought I was going to be the next biggest thing,” he admitted. Now, the 39-year-old married father of four settles for earning part of a $12,000 weekly purse — spread over six classes of races.

“To be the fastest and baddest race driver at that moment,” said fellow racer and track promoter Brian Frazier, explaining why drivers love Boothill. “To be the guy holding the trophy and, back in the day, kissing the girls in victory lane.”

But for all the excitement, attendance (both fans and drivers) has dropped off like a Limited Modified running on fumes.

“My grandstand area will hold 3,200 people, and it would be standing room only,” Frazier said of Boothill’s glory nights. “Now, those standing room only crowds only happen a few times every year. It used to be every week.”

You don’t have to pop the hood to find out why.

“Cars aren’t easily worked on,” Frazer said. “We aren’t car-centric, or as ‘car nuts’ as my dad’s generation was, and as my generation was, where we could work on them. We’re struggling with our crowd dying. I don’t know another way to say it.”

Meanwhile, Grigsby — who spends more than 50 hours a week changing oil, tires, and brakes at his lube shop — keeps working his “other job.” Grigsby’s skin-cracked hands are a self-described “mess.” There’s grease under his fingernails, and hard, yellow-tainted callouses that take a romantic toll on his wife.

“Last night,” he said, “she was saying how she didn’t like how they felt on her hands.”

But it’s all worth the price to be, mentally, in a better place.

“It’s kind of like an escape from every day, and the stress of everything,” Grigsby said. “When you get out there and get strapped in, you don’t have to worry about your problems. You’re just out there having fun. It’s kind of like a getaway.”

Grigsby and his fellow racers will be back on the track at Boothill, having fun, Saturday night at 7:30. Gates open for the loyal fans and all comers at 6.

Photo courtesy SCOTT BURSON

By DAVID ERSOFF, Journal Sports

The Shreveport United 03 girls club soccer team advanced to the Louisiana Soccer Association’s State Cup semifinals this Saturday by going 1-1-1 in the preliminary round last weekend in Lafayette. They join the SU 03 boys team, which earned a bye straight to the semifinals, Saturday in Baton Rouge.

The SU 04 boys team could not overcome multiple injuries, and was not able to advance to the semifinals, going 0-3 in the preliminaries.

The SU 03 girls began the preliminaries Saturday against Thibodaux, who tied them during the regular season. They took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Landry Jones, with Khiana Roraback making the assist. They were able to hold that edge until with 20 minutes left in the game a Thibodaux player hit a rocket that found the back of the net. The game remained tied when the final whistle blew. Bailey Moore came up big in goal, making multiple game saving saves for Shreveport United.

Sunday morning the Shreveport team faced off with the New Orleans Spartans, who they topped 2-1 during the regular season. The result this time was only briefly in question, with United dominating play. Roraback scored a pair of goals, with assists from Erin Campbell and Madalyn Van Devender. Moore made a few saves, but was never pressed. This win secured their advancement to the following weekend. The question remaining: what seed they would end up with following game 3.

Sunday afternoon’s game was against a familiar foe, seven-time reigning State Cup champion Baton Rouge Black. Both teams were assured of advancement. The first half was hard fought, with the United girls having a few good chances to score, but unable to break through. Moore had four saves in the half. In added time a Shreveport defender was called for a foul in the box, giving Baton Rouge a penalty kick, which it converted. The second half played out similarly, except there was no penalty kick and the score stood 1-0 Black at the end.

The SU 03 girls earned the third seed and will rematch against No. 2 Baton Rouge Black on Saturday at 10:45 a.m. in Baton Rouge. Despite last Sunday’s outcome, the United girls have a lot on confidence, having not surrendered a goal in the flow of play. The formula to stopping them has been found. The winner will face the winner of the other semifinal game between top-seeded Cajun Rush and No. 4 Thibodaux in the championship contest Sunday at 9 a.m. in Baton Rouge.

The Shreveport United 03 boys team, seeded fourth, will face the No. 1 LA Fire Navy Saturday at 10:45 in Baton Rouge. They fell to LA Fire 3-1 on March 12 during the regular season play. The winner will meet either Baton Rouge Black or Mandeville Soccer Club in the final Sunday at 2.

The 03 boys team is coached by Rob Jump. The team is full of All District and some SBJ All-Metro players from the recently completed prep season. They hope to shock the league by winning the state title from the fourth seed.

By HARRIET PROTHRO PENROD, Journal Sports

Have you heard this one? A group of women sitting around the clubhouse, talking about the upcoming golf tournament at their country club. “I’m winning a trophy this year,” one of them says with consternation. “All I’ve gotta do to win a division is get my handicap higher. Guess I’ll go play a few rounds at Querbes.”

Yes, it’s a joke, but it’s not that far off. In fact, a version of that conversation actually took place at a local country club recently. Truth is, there are a number of women who are reluctant to play at Querbes Park Golf Course because of the lack of ladies’ tees.

First you must understand that I fit into the “average” golfer category, meaning my handicap hovers between 14 and 16. In a good year, I can get it down to 11 or 12 (those years, however, are few and far between). That means I’m going to shoot (on average) in the 80s – good days will be low 80s and not-so-good (that’s my wheelhouse) will rise to the upper-80s or – the golfing gods forbid – the low 90s.

In other words, I play from the women’s (or ladies’) tees. Those of you who would condemn (or cancel, or whatever) me go ahead. I’m not offended when they’re called ladies’ or women’s tees. (I also appreciate it when a person of the male gender opens the door for me.) Politics aside, call them what you want. Women – and older gentlemen who like to play these particular tees – who are offended by that term like to call them “forward” tees. Potato/potato.

All golf courses are not set up the same. Years ago, you would generally find three tee boxes – the forward, middle, and back (or championship) tees. Nowadays, courses may have up to five tee boxes with different colors representing different distances and levels of difficulty.

Huntington Park Golf Course has five: black, gold, blue, white, and red. Call them what you will – it’s 6,954 yards from the black, 6,646 from the gold, 6,304 from the blue, 5,656 from the white, and 5,068 from the red. Par for the course (a great term) is 72, except for the ladies, which is 74 (Nos. 17 and 18 are par-5’s for us). Even with a couple of holes on the front nine that are difficult for the average woman golfer to reach in regulation, it’s set up pretty fair.

Just what is fair? In a study commissioned by the National Golf Course Owners Association and conducted by the Sports & Leisure Research Group, it was determined that “women who play golf at facilities that follow best practices tailored to them will play the sport more often and enjoy an enhanced overall experience, while rewarding course operators with better financial results and pace of play.”

First on the list of “best practices” was this:

Four or more sets of tees, with the forward set of tees ideally under 4,500 yards (though up to 4,800 yards considered) all to allow golfers to reach greens in regulation.

The rule of thumb for that determination was taking the average woman golfer’s tee shot and multiplying it by 30. Yes, the survey was conducted 11 years ago so improvements in equipment would drive that total higher on today’s courses. I don’t have a problem with a 5,000-plus-yards course as long as the tees are fair – for the average woman golfer. If you’re a championship woman golfer, play from the back tees.

It didn’t take long to find other women golfers who feel that same way.

“That’s one of the reasons our ladies’ group moved to Huntington,” says Nina Glorioso. “It’s frustrating when you hit two incredible shots and you say, ‘My gosh, I’m not even near (the green).’ There’s no reason you should have to use driver, 3-wood, 3-wood on a par-5. It just got frustrating. I know they used to have ladies’ tees at Querbes.”

Indeed they did. There are now three tee boxes at Querbes Park Golf Course – black, silver, and gold. According to the scorecard, black is 6,139 yards, silver is 5,851, and gold is 5,388. All three distances are par-71.

“My daughter was in town a couple of weekends ago and I brought her here to play,” a Querbes regular – of the male persuasion — said one recent afternoon. “She was confused that there weren’t ladies’ tees, so we just moved her up (to hit her drive) where it would be fair.”

Recent statistics show an increase in the number of new golfers to the sport. Sure, beginners are going to play slower than the average golfer. If the tees are not fair, however, those long rounds are not only going to be frustrating to the beginner; they’re going to infuriate the group behind it…and the one behind that one.

“If they would put the ladies’ tees (back at Querbes), that would help the pace of play,” says Glorioso, who is quick to point out she misses playing at the historic golf course. “I love Querbes. I want to play there. I know, for not lots of money, they could make it fair.”

For sure, it would require some work – and money. But at least they wouldn’t have to buy the red tees – they’ve still got the old ones. They’re on the property — in storage.

We’re sitting here on the cusp of one of my favorite times of year. It’s spring; dogwoods and azaleas are blooming, everything is turning green, except for the yellow dust that falls like a heavy mist from my pine trees. I’ve already had to break out the lawn mower so, yes, it is spring.

As much as I enjoy watching the metamorphosis of the drab shades of winter evolve into a kaleidoscope of color, there is another experience that supersedes being there for the birth of yet another spring. Wild turkey season opens in Louisiana and the prospect of hearing a longbeard gobbler sound off from the roost and watching him, in full strut, slowly shuffle his way to my gun makes other springtime happenings pale in comparison.

Before having the experience of an encounter with a gobbler, you have to know where he hangs out once he leaves his roost tree and the only way to do that is to scout. This involves looking for tracks, droppings, feathers and strut marks in addition to hearing the actual gobble of your quarry.

Time has to be spent in the woods along old woods roads, log decks, pipeline and power line rights of way looking for the telltale sign where turkeys are hanging out.

While looking for evidence of turkeys in an area, on more than one occasion, I have found other treasures as a bonus.

A few springs ago, I was walking an old woods road with wild flowers pushing through the new green grass when I spotted something that seemed out of place. Upon closer examination, the tip of white protruding from the greenery was the tine of an antler that had been cast aside as always happens once buck deer drop the old to begin growing the new. For the moment, I forgot turkey tracks, retrieved the prize that now rests in my office.

On another occasion, I was walking through a food plot near a deer stand when I spotted an antler among the clover. Another trophy got a ride home in my truck.

As exciting as it is to find shed antlers, there are other treasures that are more mind-boggling. One day I was walking a recently plowed pipeline that exposed bare iron ore-laden ground in search of turkey sign when a small rock at my feet looked different. It was an arrow head.

Picking it up, I was transported back in time as I tried to imagine how it got there. I realized that long ago, Native Americans roamed these hills in search of game. Perhaps an errant arrow launched from a primitive bow had missed its mark, or it could be that the arrow had hit the target, and the deer ran before expiring on the site of the pipeline. I’ll never know the answer, of course, but it is a mind-stretcher just to consider the possibility of what may have happened hundreds of years ago.

That’s not the first arrow head I’ve recovered while scouting for turkeys. A couple more made their way into my pocket until I could get home with my special treasures.

On another occasion, I was walking along a pipeline on our hunting club, stopping in a patch of clover to listen for a gobbler. Looking down, I spotted a 4-leaf clover right between my boots. Did it bring me luck? If memory serves, I was able to call in and bring down a gobbler that day.

When you’re out turkey hunting this spring, it’s always an adrenalin rush to be able to locate and call in a mature turkey gobbler. If the turkeys don’t cooperate, though, be on the lookout for some of these special treasures that when found, can make failing to get a gobbler not such a bad deal after all.

By TONY TAGLAVORE, Journal Sports

Shreveport’s Lindsay Gosslee Langford hasn’t scored a goal for the U.S. Soccer Women’s National Team.

She’s yet to win an IndyCar Series race.

Nor has she scored a point for Butler University’s basketball teams.

But for those who have, Langford is a vital asset.

The Captain Shreve High School, University of Alabama, and Louisiana Tech University graduate is a sports dietitian with Ascension St. Vincent Sports Performance in Carmel, Indiana (just north of Indianapolis). The meat and potatoes of her current and past client list include soccer star Megan Rapinoe, Six-time IndyCar Series race winner Graham Rahal, the NFL’s Indianapolis Colts, the NBA’s Indiana Pacers, and Butler University’s men’s and women’s basketball teams.

“When you’re a professional — and even when you’re not — you’re always looking for that edge,” Langford explained. “‘What’s something that my competitor may not be doing, so I can be better than them?’” Nowadays, I feel like everybody has their own strength coach. Everybody has someone that helps them (deal) with injury. Not everyone has truly latched on to nutrition. From a performance enhancing standpoint, also from a recovery standpoint, when you’ve got back-to-back games or races, ‘How can I recover as quickly as I can?’”

A big part of Langford’s work for the US Soccer Women’s National Team is “menu preparation.”

“I design a menu that is based around performance-enhancing foods,” Langford said. “Foods that dilate the blood vessels to allow more blood to get into the muscles. That helps with recovery. What are some foods that are high Omega, fatty acids, that help with inflammation? What are specific antioxidants that help fight off some of the muscle damage from a hard workout?”

It sounds like Langford has the soccer players’ complete trust.

“Good nutrition is so crucial to being able to compete at the highest level, and Lindsay is one of the best nutritionists in the game,” said USWNT defender Abby Dahlkemper. “She is extremely knowledgeable in her craft, and has helped me get my body to where it needs to be.”

Butler’s student-athletes have seen the benefits of Langford’s work.

“The things she has really championed for us the last couple of years have been some processes such as sweat analysis, so we get the right hydration plan for each player,” said Ralph Reiff, BU’s senior associate athletic director of student-athlete, health, performance, and well-being. “That has greatly reduced our muscle cramp and fatigue issues.”

While Langford enjoys working with athletes and teams from a variety of sports, she really enjoys working with the Indy Car people.

“Those drivers are very receptive, because they have not had any education before,” Langford said. “Nobody’s paying attention to them from a nutrition standpoint. But it’s very much needed when they’re in the car, and it’s 120 degrees in the fire suit, and they’re losing 10 pounds of fluid in a race. That’s a big deal. That’s nutrition. That’s hydration.”

You might think being a mother of two boys, ages 8 and 10, Langford is strict on what her children eat. But she tries to find a balance between being mom, and being a dietician.

“On road trips, we get McDonald’s, and they look forward to that, but they don’t ever ask for that. That doesn’t mean we don’t eat out. We eat at Chick-fil-A plenty. But they are educated on the foods we want to fuel with frequently, and the foods that we get to fuel with for fun. I never restrict. They get a treat in their lunch every day.”