Page 10 - Ft. Irwin High Desert Warrior, May 4 2018

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Community
High Desert Warrior May 4, 2018
www.aerotechnews.com/ntcfortirwin
Battling mountains (and lake monsters),
Fort Irwin cyclists put themselves to the test Story and photos by Codi Kozacek
NTC / Fort Irwin PAO
FORT IRWIN, Calif. — Maj. Kim Dortelus remembers the first big hill she encountered as a new cyclist.
“I looked at it, and I didn’t even try to ride up it. I walked,” she said, laughing.
She was working in Texas at the time and, as a registered nurse, had started riding bikes along with patients who were healing from post-traumatic stress disorder. Within six months she conquered that hill. Now, stationed at Fort Irwin’s Weed Army Community Hospital, she looks forward to the challenging climbs on her rides.
“You have to pay for it, but it’s worth it,” she said. “I think that’s one of the things I enjoy most about cycling – the sense of accomplishment.”
On the Saturday morning before Fort Irwin’s Tour de Irwin bike race, Dortelus was out for a ride with fellow cyclists Sean Bannon and Capt. David Crews. The race is an annual event hosted by Outdoor Recreation, with three distance categories ranging from 2.5 to 40 miles. Heading west from Fort Irwin, the route passes NASA’s Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex, winds through low mountains, and drops into a vast dry lake. The way is riddled with the oddities common to the desert – giant boulders painted with eyes and teeth, a “Beware of Sharks” sign next to a metal fin bolted into the cracked dirt, even a sinuous metal sculpture of Nessie rising from the dry lake bed.
Dortelus, Bannon and Crews have competed in cycling races and even full-length triathlons. But while they train regularly and work with coaches to track their progress, they say the real draw isn’t competing or winning – it’s seeing how much they are capable of doing.
“That’s the amazing thing about endurance sports – it’s just seeing how much your body can do when you take your brain out of the equation,” Bannon said. And it’s something anyone can pursue, he added. “Triathletes aren’t special humans, they can just mute that part of their brain that says ‘quit.’”
Dortelus agreed. She said she doesn’t pay attention if other riders pass her on hills or if she has to slow down occasionally. Her advice? Just keep pedaling.
Dortelus,BannonandCrewsareallpartofTeamRed,White&Blue,anonprofitorganization that connects veterans and their families through physical and social activities. The Fort Irwin chapter hosts regular cycling rides and has started a triathlon training program.
Codi Kozacek
Cyclists Maj. Kim Dortelus (left) and Sean Bannon (right) train at Fort Irwin as part of the local chapter of Team Red, White and Blue. They say they enjoy the mental and physical challenge of endurance sports.
Atomic Jazz concert brings world class musicians to Barstow
By Codi Kozacek
NTC/Fort Irwin PAO
BARSTOW, Calif. — If you hear the word “jazz” and think “elevator music,” think again. From big band tunes to soul, a big part of the genre’s allure is its versatility, according to Barstow High School Band Director Dan Barilone and members of Barstow High’s ‘Jazztecs’.
On May 10-11, the Jazztecs will host guest artists Tom Politzer and Adolfo Acosta for the ninth annual Atomic Jazz concert in Barstow. The second night, May 11, is a free performance exclusively for military service members, first responders and their families. The show will have something for everybody, Barilone said.
“We have everything. We’ve got the rock, we’ve got funk, we’ve got the ballads, we’ve got swing – anything a jazz band should be playing, we’re going to be playing.”
Politzer, on saxophone, and Acosta, on trumpet, are both part of the iconic Tower of Power horn section. The band was found- ed in Oakland in 1968 and has recorded with a diverse array of artists, including Aerosmith, Elton John, Little Feat, Phish, Santana and Heart. For nearly a decade, members of the group have made the trip to Barstow to share a stage with the Jazztecs.
“They hype us up – I think we’re good and we’re better when they get here,” said Barilone. “It’s just been a great friendship that we’ve developed with the guys over the years, and they’ll come in and remember
these kids by name.”
Barilone served as a U.S. Army bands-
man in the 1970s, and he said he knows the importance of entertainment when it comes to the troops.
“We try to get involved in as many mili- tary things as possible,” he said. “I know the importance of having music around, versus a boom box. If we can substitute for that any time, I’m all for it.”
The Jazztecs perform regularly through- out the Barstow community, something the students say is an important part of the band.
“Sometimes we’ll play for the elderly, sometimes we play for elementary schools, so it really just depends, and I just love seeing the reactions of people,” said Malik
Snoubar, lead trumpet for the Jazztecs and a senior at Barstow High School. “They enjoy having us, and it’s great to be a part of it.”
Michael Edwards, the Jazztec’s lead trombone and also a senior at Barstow High School, added that the community concerts are important because Barstow has been supportive of the school’s music programs, even as music programs have been cut else- where across the country. And the biggest concert of all is Atomic Jazz, he said.
“The two big guys, Tom Politzer and Adolfo Acosta from Tower of Power, they definitely make the show what it is. When they come around, the band just gets a lot tighter and it’s a great concert,” Edwards
See JAZZ, Page 11
For more information go to www.irwin.army.mil