Steamboat Pilot & Today

The grass is still green, the air is still warm and, with summer in full swing, nobody wants to start thinking about fall.

But high school students will put the lazy days of summer behind them Monday and start focusing on football, volleyball, soccer, tennis, softball and cross country.

In less than two weeks, the football team will travel to Aurora Central to play its first game of the season Aug. 27.

The boys tennis team will play its first home match of the season the same day, and the volleyball, cross-country and girls softball teams will follow. Golf already started.

Sure, the calendar tells us it's August, but the start of high school sports is a reminder to all that fall is creeping back into our lives.

Watching a few hard hits on a football field will drive home the point that the season has arrived.

For those of you who still want to hold on to what's left of summer, there is one more week of the Steamboat Springs Rodeo Series that will include the Pat Mantle Memorial and season finale.

There are a couple of mountain bike races left, but that series will be done by Labor Day, and the local running series is in the home stretch.

The arrival of fall always catches me off guard.

I wake up one day and realize that the greens of summer have given way to the more earthy tones of fall. The nights are cooler, and the days are shorter.

For some, it's a time to reflect on a summer that went by way too fast.

For me, there never seems to be enough time to take in all those softball or soccer games, not enough time to take that backcountry fishing trip that I planned or hang out on the deck and sip some lemonade.

But fall comes with a sense of excitement and wonder. The teams and players are fresh, and I'm excited about covering the games. I can't help but wonder which high school teams, and players, will rise to the top this season.

This week, those teams and players will step onto the playing field with the same questions.

Some of them will bring along high expectations, and others will spend the next few weeks discovering their hidden talents during two-a-days and grueling practices.

For most people, fall marks the end of summer. A time to look back and say goodbye to the things that make summer so special.

But for others, fall is a beginning.

It's the time to answer questions and chase dreams on the playing fields, volleyball courts and golf and cross-county courses.

--To reach John F. Russell call 871-4209

or e-mail jrussell@steamboatpilot.com