Weekend Wanderer

Greg Risling

Ah, California. The land of frozen yogurt, cellular phones and our own

special cuisine.

Not to mention a wealth of recreational activities just waiting to be

taken advantage of. Whether it’s snowboarding in the mountains or surfing

in the crystal, er, green waters, there is no reason to sit on your

couch.

You usually have to pay to play these days, especially for extreme

sports such as sky diving or bungee jumping. So what can you get for free

these days and still get a good workout? Funny you should ask. I decided

to sample the best of what the Newport Beach and Costa Mesa parks and

recreation departments offer. I was surprised at what I found.

First stop was a tennis match against my girlfriend under the lights

at Mariners Park in Newport. I accepted her challenge and conjured up

images of that infamous match of Bobby Riggs getting pummeled by Billie

Jean King in straight sets. No way was I going to get beat.

We headed to the park where there were two courts, one of which was

empty. Much to our delight we found that the lights were on until 10 p.m.

With nearly two hours to play, I was ready to give my best Pete Sampras

imitation.

Granted, my serve has zero velocity, traveling about 20 mph when I hit

the ball in the sweet spot of the racket. Pretty pathetic. Watching our

neighbors’ match even did more to knock down my ego. These guys were

putting top spins and slicing with the best of them. I was struggling to

hit the ball in the service box.

Needless to say, I defeated my female foe 6-3, 6-0, 6-2, dispatching

her in less than 1 1/2 hours. It was fun to run her around the court,

hitting drop shots and baseline backhand smashes. The competitive juices

raced through my body. We called it a night but did I mention there was

no cost? We went back three days later for another round.

If you want to play at night, you can either go to Mariners Park on

Dover Street and Irvine Avenue or Las Arenas Park, which has four courts

at 16th Street and Balboa Boulevard. Other public courts in Newport are

in West Newport at 57th Street and the river jetty and Irvine Terrace

near Malabar and Evita streets. The latter two don’t have lights.

Next stop was the golf course that I was obviously ill-equipped for,

both skill and equipment-wise. My golf clubs are so old they look like

they were used by Ben Hogan. My woods -- most are metal composites today

-- are actually wood.

I dare not step on a course unless I’ve been to the range a handful of

times. Unfortunately, I haven’t hit a bucket of balls in a while, so I

passed on the two 18-hole courses at the Costa Mesa Golf Course. The two

courses are perfect for the beginning to average golfers with long

fairways and few sand traps and water hazards. But my philosophy is, if

you aren’t decent at a sport don’t play it.

I took my antiquated set of clubs and took some swings. It seems that

the shorter the iron the better my game looks. My game gets progressively

worse when I start hitting with the woods. I putted for an hour working

on my short game but I decided I’m best suited for the sidelines for now.

Those who have a decent game can pay $33 on the weekends and $24

during the week to play on the Los Lagos course, known to be the better

of the two greens. The Mesa Linda course runs $25 on the weekends and $18

on the weekdays.

“I love this course because it isn’t expensive and it’s a good place

to work out the kinks in my game,” said Matthew Adelson, who didn’t want

to reveal his handicap. “My friends and I come out once a month and share

a good time, no matter how bad my slice is that day.”

Enough of golf. I like to ball. Basketball. You can’t always find a

good pickup game unless you know where to go. Most Orange County

residents know about the competitive games in Laguna Beach, usually

reserved for those who have dunking ability.

If Laguna isn’t your cup of tea, head over to 38th Street Park on the

peninsula where you can find games every day of the week. It’s tough to

get a game on the weekend unless you bring your own team but weeknights

after work are always good.

I went on a Sunday and didn’t bring a team. Not many were impressed by

my scrawny frame but at 6 foot I could manage with some brawny guys.

I played with a smaller version of Jason Williams sans the trash

talking, a Kevin Garnett look-alike and one guy who needed only to sit

under the basket to get a rebound. He was that big.

We fell behind early but scrapped our way back. Sweaty bodies pushed

for position and some cheap shots were definitely thrown. But one rule in

pickup must apply: don’t call a foul unless you are bleeding or a loud

sound has stopped play.

I was hacked unmercifully but I expected that. We won the game 11-9

(play by ones) and held the court for two more until we got skunked by a

team who took advantage of our exhausted state.

“The games are pretty competitive down here,” said Brian Jackson. “If

all else fails, you come here because you know they will be running.”

Sore from my prior day’s half-court haplessness, I decided to go for a

swim at the downtown recreational center on Anaheim Avenue in Costa Mesa.

The community pool is open six days a week to the public and costs a

measly three bucks to use.

The pool was virtually empty with only a few hearty souls doing laps.

The busiest times are Tuesday through Thursday when the hours are form 5

to 6:30 p.m. But try Monday, Wednesday or Friday during your lunch hour.

The pool is open from noon to 1:30 p.m. The pool is also open from 10 to

11:30 a.m. Saturday.

Relaxed from my dip and my week of attempted athleticism I was

impressed with the activities our cities offer. There are hundreds of

classes from yoga to salsa dancing available that obviously cost money.

But you can’t beat playing for free or for a few bucks. Take advantage of

these outlets. See if your friends call you a couch potato after that.

For information on the aforementioned activities or available classes

this fall call the Costa Mesa Community Services Department at (714)

754-5300 and the Newport Beach Community Services Department at (949)

644-3151.