Winter Sports

A half hour is all you need to maintain proper weight, get your blood flowing and improve health, according to the Society for Vascular Surgery, which forwarded us a list of calories burned by various winter sports from Livestrong.com. In one hour, a 155-160 pound person can burn: +511 calories cross country skiing +365 calories downhill skiing +563 calories playing ice hockey +511 calories ice skating +400 calories shoveling snow by hand There hasn't been any snow here so far this winter, so how about burning : +281 calories bicycling +329 calories carrying golf clubs +211 calories walking the dog “Welcome 2012 as your year to become physically fit and keep your vascular system healthy,” said Dr. Anil Hingorani, a member of the Society for Vascular Surgery.

A half hour is all you need to maintain proper weight, get your blood flowing and improve health, according to the Society for Vascular Surgery, which forwarded us a list of calories burned by various winter sports from Livestrong.com. In one hour, a 155-160 pound person can burn: +511 calories cross country skiing +365 calories downhill skiing +563 calories playing ice hockey +511 calories ice skating +400 calories shoveling snow by hand There hasn't been any snow here so far this winter, so how about burning : +281 calories bicycling +329 calories carrying golf clubs +211 calories walking the dog “Welcome 2012 as your year to become physically fit and keep your vascular system healthy,” said Dr. Anil Hingorani, a member of the Society for Vascular Surgery.

Rick Platte's eyes went narrow as he steered the 3-ton contraption down a hallway inside the skating rink, then went wide as a child's as he rolled it onto the ice. In his seat 8 feet in the air, Platte, 44, a contractor from West Laurel, spun the wheel of the Zamboni a bit too sharply, slid it into a fishtail, then straightened things out in time to complete a smooth turn and continue along the boards. Not bad for a first time on the resurfacing machine of his dreams. "That's exhilarating," said Platte, one of seven people who went to the Gardens Ice House in Laurel this week for a class on all things Zamboni, including time at the helm of the ice-making wonder.

Rick Platte's eyes went narrow as he steered the 3-ton contraption down a hallway inside the skating rink, then went wide as a child's as he rolled it onto the ice. In his seat 8 feet in the air, Platte, 44, a contractor from West Laurel, spun the wheel of the Zamboni a bit too sharply, slid it into a fishtail, then straightened things out in time to complete a smooth turn and continue along the boards. Not bad for a first time on the resurfacing machine of his dreams. "That's exhilarating," said Platte, one of seven people who went to the Gardens Ice House in Laurel this week for a class on all things Zamboni, including time at the helm of the ice-making wonder.

It really has happened, and I can't believe it.I can't believe the Board of Education can simply take money earmarked for overtime custodian pay -- money used so youth sports groups can use school facilities on weekends -- and use it to cover expenses elsewhere.The $600,000 the board has decided to spend elsewhere means our kids won't be able to play such popular winter sports as basketball and wrestling on the weekends, unless youth and recreation groups are able to come up with about $50 to $60 an hour.

The Mount Airy Youth Athletic Association will take applications for winter sports programs from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Oct. 18 and 25 on Mount Airy Middle School grounds.Programs include:Basketball for boys and girls in first through eighth grade. Cost is $30 for children through fourth grade. Practice begins in December.The cost for older youths is $50. Participants cannot play for other teams as well. Select team tryouts and team drafts for boys and girls will be in November. Contact the coach for details.

The No. 7 and undefeated Owings Mills wrestling team rallied from a 20-point deficit Monday to defeat No. 9 Hereford, 36-35. Heavyweight Abe Tadros recorded the deciding pin for the Eagles. Tadros' win came minutes after Hereford (15-2) reclaimed the lead, 35-30, on a fall by Taylor Gload 32 seconds into the 215-pound bout. "It was one of the best and most exciting matches that I have witnessed," said Owings Mills coach Guy Pritzker. Boys basketball No. 8 Edmondson 71, Reginald F. Lewis 48:: Kavon Pyatt led all scorers with 17 points to lead the Red Storm (12-2)

Josh Selby had a game-high 28 points and eight assists as No. 10 Lake Clifton beat host Northwestern-Prince George's, 60-48, Thursday. The Lakers (9-3) are on a six-game winning streak. "We kept them at a distance once we got up," Lake Clifton coach Herman Harried said. "When they made baskets, we just pulled away again." The Lakers led 15-9 after the first quarter before stretching the advantage to 34-20 at the half. The Wildcats fell to 6-4. Wrestling No. 10 Hereford 72, Woodlawn 4: : The host Bulls (17-1)

Seton Keough's Achiri Ade scored a game-high 13 points and the No. 6 Gators upset No. 2 Roland Park, 43-31, Friday. This marks the second loss this week for the Reds, who fell to No. 1 Archbishop Spalding, 38-26, on Wednesday. Seton Keough (7-4) built a seven-point lead at halftime. The Reds' Daisy Alaeze was held to eight points. No. 5 Digital Harbor 63, Dunbar 43: : After trailing by two at the half, the Rams (5-2) outscored the Poets, 30-12, in the third quarter. Digital Harbor's leading scorers were Asia Logan (14)

CAMDEN, Maine -- It takes gumption to rocket down a 400-foot chute of ice at speeds fast enough to melt a pair of nylon ski pants. It takes a little something extra to do it at minus-10 degrees wind chill in a sleeveless sequined wedding dress. Nearly 1,000 gumption-filled grown-ups and children filled a hillside on the outskirts of Camden over the weekend to streak and shriek their way through the U.S. National Toboggan Championships -- a winter sports wingding that's one-part athletics and one-part costume party.

J ust about every Olympian worth his mettle will eventually tell a TV camera that the dream took hold years ago in front of a television set. There is nothing like wall-to-wall coverage of the Games to inspire young and old alike to try a new sport, or re-energize the passion for one, and the Vancouver Olympics are no exception. "The numbers always go up during the Olympic season," said Linda Monney, who runs the skating program at Piney Orchard Ice Rink in Odenton. "Then the numbers gradually go down, and in the fourth year we start all over again."

H is T-shirt reads "Just Add Ice." His left shoe has a sole of Teflon half an inch thick, just right for the art of sliding. And early on a Saturday morning, as his breath turns to clouds in the custom rink (air temperature: 33 degrees), George Shirk gazes toward the target, or "house," at the far end of the ice, where a foe has unkindly left two 42-pound stones in his path. "He's putting the screws to me today, isn't he?" Shirk says with a laugh as he considers how to play the final shot.

R.J. Harris scored 19 points as the No. 4 Arundel boys basketball team beat visiting Meade, 84-64, Thursday. The Wildcats (16-1) held an eight- to10-point lead most of the game and outscored the Mustangs (6-10) every quarter. Meade's Marcus Snipes led all scorers with 21 points. No. 5 Digital Harbor 70, Southside 50: : Justin Jackson scored 24 points and Davon Usher 20 to lead the Rams (16-3) past the visiting Jaguars. No. 10 Annapolis 80, North County 48: : The host Panthers (15-1)

The No. 7 and undefeated Owings Mills wrestling team rallied from a 20-point deficit Monday to defeat No. 9 Hereford, 36-35. Heavyweight Abe Tadros recorded the deciding pin for the Eagles. Tadros' win came minutes after Hereford (15-2) reclaimed the lead, 35-30, on a fall by Taylor Gload 32 seconds into the 215-pound bout. "It was one of the best and most exciting matches that I have witnessed," said Owings Mills coach Guy Pritzker. Boys basketball No. 8 Edmondson 71, Reginald F. Lewis 48:: Kavon Pyatt led all scorers with 17 points to lead the Red Storm (12-2)

Jordan Latham scored a game-high 21 points to power the visiting No. 3 City boys basketball team past Logan (W.Va.), 70-49, at the West Virginia Shootout Tournament in Morgantown on Saturday. The Knights (12-1) led 16-11 after the first quarter and 32-24 at the half. City's biggest lead was 11 points, and the Knights never trailed. Nick Faust and Michael Cheatham each scored 18 points for City. Girls basketball Archbishop Carroll (Pa.) 59, No. 9 Seton Keough 45: : Erin Shields, bound for Saint Joseph's, scored a game-high 35 points, including six 3-pointers in the first quarter for the visiting Patriots (12-2)

The No. 2 River Hill girls and the Atholton boys won the team titles at Friday's Howard County indoor track and field championship meet at Prince George's Sports and Learning Complex. River Hill repeated as girls champion with 97.33 points, beating out Long Reach (75). The Atholton boys, who took third last winter when River Hill also won the boys crown, easily captured this title with 115.5 points. Reservoir (88) finished in second place. Aneesha Scott of Long Reach (55 meters, 300 meters)

The Sun's high school preview of winter sports - basketball, wrestling, indoor track, hockey and swimming - will be published tomorrow.

McGowan thanks fansI would like to take this opportunity to give my heartfelt thanks to all the fans of the Orioles and the citizens of Baltimore for giving me such a warm welcome as the new stadium voice of the Orioles.As I've said many times, Rex Barney was loved and respected by Orioles fans everywhere, and I intend to work very hard to maintain the high standards he set during his long career with the Orioles. Like Rex, I too find it thrilling to not only announce at Camden Yards, but to be able to personally meet the greatest fans in the world!

Josh Selby had a game-high 28 points and eight assists as No. 10 Lake Clifton beat host Northwestern-Prince George's, 60-48, Thursday. The Lakers (9-3) are on a six-game winning streak. "We kept them at a distance once we got up," Lake Clifton coach Herman Harried said. "When they made baskets, we just pulled away again." The Lakers led 15-9 after the first quarter before stretching the advantage to 34-20 at the half. The Wildcats fell to 6-4. Wrestling No. 10 Hereford 72, Woodlawn 4: : The host Bulls (17-1)

Corey Spence went 5-for-6 from the free-throw line in the final 1:30 as visiting No. 13 Dunbar upset No. 6 Edmondson, 54-47, Tuesday. The Red Storm (10-2) led by one with five minutes left before Dunbar coach Cyrus Jones put five guards on the floor to combat Edmondson's tall forwards. "We were able to spread the floor and attack off penetration," he said. Derrell Edwards had 15 points for the Poets (9-3), and Jerry Lovelocke had 15 for Edmondson. No. 15 Douglass 49, Northwestern 43: : DeWayne Brewer scored 13 points as the host Ducks (10-3)