Week Six
 

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Monday April 23, 2007 - El Diamante High School (Visalia, California) This week of the Tour brings us to the central California valley and the heart of California’s dairy land, Fresno. This week is a bit of a hectic week because we are doing some bouncing around. We start off with two shows in Visalia, which is about an hour south of Fresno, then two days in Fresno, one day in Sacramento, and then back down to Stockton for the Asparagus Festival. It’s quite a bit of driving and moving around, but its still going to be a fun week.

Our show today was at El Diamante High in Visalia. Mondays usually take a little longer to set-up because the truck has been packed down tight for the weekend commute, plus we take extra steps on Mondays, which we call “preventative maintenance”. We’ve found if we give the ramp truck some TLC, it returns the favor by providing us with years of lasting service, and good shows. That being said, Mondays usually take longer, but not today. Actually today’s set-up went rather quick. By the time we finished putting in the last bolts and tightening everything up, I was greeted by a reporter and photographer from the Fresno Bee.

They were a bit early for the show, but they stuck around, snapped some pictures of the ramp, and took some notes about the upcoming show. Just as I finished talking to them, I noticed a TV cameraman headed my way. This next gentleman was from the local ABC station, and did an interview and got a few sound-bites. Not a bad way to start a week, a super fast setup, and two local media hits.

We had one big show today, right in the front parking lot. It was during lunch, and as the bell rang, students were allowed to get their food and come out to the parking lot to check out the show. Our athlete roster for this week, is the same as last week. We have Marc Englehart and Fabiola da Silva on inline skates, Danny Mayer and Anthony Furlong are our skateboarders, and Tom Haugen is the lone BMXer this week. The students crowded around the ramp and cheered, while the athletes did their tricks, and the Fresno Bee photographer and ABC cameraman captured lots of video and some great still photos. In addition to the action on the ramp, the students were able to stock up on some free milk as well. Producers Dairy joins us again this week, and they sent a truck and crew to El Diamante High this morning. These guys had plenty of milk to give away. They had crate after crate worth, stacked high in our autograph tent, and the students snatched it up by the handful.

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Tuesday April 24, 2007 - Mount Whitney High School (Visalia, California) Today was our final show in the city of Visalia. We are staying in Fresno, and Visalia is about an hour drive or so, south of where we are staying. Our show today was at Mount Whitney High School. It took a little while to get down there, but it was worth every mile we traveled.

The original plan was to have the show on the soccer field. After some heavy rains on Sunday, we were worried that the field might be too wet to hold the ramp truck. Our ramp foreman, Armand, and I went by the school after Monday’s show, and walked the field with Mr. Hammonds, who is an assistant Principal at the school. He agreed that the field would be too muddy, and we decided to set up on a nice level paved area, adjacent to the basketball courts. Setting up on a hard surface always makes for better skating/riding conditions on the ramp, and it certainly showed today.

We had one big assembly this afternoon from 1:00 – 2:00, and the entire campus came out to the blacktop to participate. The staff of Mount Whitney High had scheduled our show at their school, as a bit of a rally, or reward incentive, for the students to do well on their upcoming S.T.A.R. testing. Today was actually the first day of testing for some of the students, so our show was a perfect way for them to take a break, decompress from testing, and have a good time and get refocused for the remainder of the week.

The bell rang at 1:00, and students started to file into the blacktop area. There was a seemingly never-ending sea of people, streaming out of the main part of the campus. As they made their way out to the show area, the students were greeted by our friends from Producers Dairy. The dairy had a truck full of milk, and kids were taking the samples in two’s and gulping them down. Once the whole school had a chance to make it out to the ramp, we got the show started. From the minute we started, the Mount Whitney students were enthusiastic, and cheering whenever I asked.

Fabiola da Silva was definitely a crowd favorite. The cheering was so loud at certain points, that it was hard to hear the PA system. The athletes felt that vibe, and it showed through in their skating/riding. Danny Mayer and Anthony Furlong did just about every flip and varial trick they knew. Fabiola and Marc Englehart were doing 540’s, flatspins, and 720’s, while Tom Haugen did all sorts of barspin tricks, and some tailwhip variations.

After the show, the trivia session went pretty quick. These students definitely paid attention to the tobacco facts, and I even gave out some extra stuff.  We’ve had some great shows, and great students over the course of this tour. I don’t want to take anything away from any other group we performed for thus far, but today’s students at Mount Whitney were one of, if not the best group we have performed for this whole tour.

It wasn’t just the students either. The Principal, Assistant Principals, the teachers, everyone was so friendly, and so helpful. I wish every show could be like today. We must have had about 50 students come up to while we were tearing down to shake our hands and thank me and the ramp crew for coming out. That leaves a lasting impression on all of us here on the tour.

A special thanks today goes out to the Visalia crew from Producers Dairy. They were only with us for two days, but they were great to work with, and really enjoyed the show. We look forward to seeing you guys next year. Another big thanks goes out to Mr. Hammonds. We thank you for being flexible with the set-up area, and for taking the time to make today’s show a memorable experience for everyone. Lastly, this one goes out to all the students at Mount Whitney. YOU GUYS ROCKED TODAY!!!!! I’ll be talking about today’s show for years to come. Good luck on your S.T.A.R. testing, and we’ll see you all next year.
-- Jimmy C

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Wednesday April 25, 2007 - Sunnyside High School (Fresno, California) Today was a hot one. Yesterday was definitely warm, but today was even warmer. We are a little sheltered from the heat, considering it was in the mid 50’s all last week in San Francisco, and fairly windy. The weather report says this weekend it will creep into the 90’s. If today was any indication of the weather for the next week, the tour will definitely end on a “hot note”.

Our show today was just down the road from our hotel, at Sunnyside High School. The original plan was to do the show on the football field. Due to that fact that there was a track meet scheduled for today, we had to find an alternate location. Thanks to Mr. Guzman at Sunnyside High, we were able to move the show location, to the back of the campus, on a practice field. As we began to set up, we were paid a visit by one of the school groundskeepers. He rolled up in his golf cart and asked, “what’s this thing supposed to be?”.  When we informed him it was a halfpipe ramp he replied with, “NO WAY!!!!! NO WAY!!!!! You guys are joking right? This is really a halfpipe?”. We knew right there and then that this was going to be a great show.

Our show today was one big assembly, right after lunch. We had about a 45 minute window, and just like yesterday, the entire campus came out to watch. Producers Dairy sent out a local truck again today, and our old friend Cindy from Producers came out, to sample the milk. As the students made their way out to the practice field, they were greeted by Cindy who gave out plenty of milk. The show started at 12:45, and the athletes wasted no time getting to their big tricks. Just like yesterday’s show, the ladies all cheered as loud as they could whenever Fabiola would drop into the ramp. Anthony Furlong and Marc Englehart went for a doubles run today. Something they haven’t done in almost a week. At the end of the show, Danny Mayer even gave a few tries at a “kickflip Mctwist”. Halfway through the show, I noticed a cameraman walking around. Turns out, he was from the local FOX television station. This week has already been full of media coverage, and we were glad to see more. As the show wound down, we did the usual tobacco trivia for got milk? prizes, and per request of the school, I gave the students a short peptalk about the dangers of drinking and driving, seeing as how their prom is this coming weekend.

I wrote yesterday about how amazing the students of Mount Whitney in Visalia were. I figured it was going to be almost impossible to top a school like that. I have to say that today was just as amazing as yesterday. The students were so into the show, and so much fun to chat with afterwards. These last two days are the reason we do this tour. We see a new batch of students every day, but it will be a long time before I forget Mount Whitney, and Sunnyside High Schools.

Special thanks today goes out to Mr. Guzman of Sunnyside High. He had a full day today with our show, and the drunk driving presentation they had earlier in the day, as well as state testing. Not to mention the track meet, and having to move the show location at last minute. Mr. Guzman, you were a pleasure to work with, and we look forward to coming back if you’ll have us next year. Lastly, to all the students of Sunnyside High, I wish you all a happy and safe prom weekend, and remember what I said to you on the microphone today. It takes 30 seconds to call a cab, or your parents for a ride. It could save your life. PLEASE don’t drink and drive, and have a great prom weekend. We’ll see you guys next time.
-- Jimmy C

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Thursday April 26, 2007 - Bullard High School (Fresno, California) Today was our last day in the Fresno/Visalia area, and just like the last few days, it was a scorcher. We arrived at the school at 9 AM, and already it was in the 80’s. We were directed to the back of the campus by one of the security guards, and he showed us the area we were to set up in. It was a HUGE open field with plenty of space for the ramp. We picked the most level spot, and quickly got to work putting the ramp together. This was definitely the hottest day of the week thus far, and we were feeling it while setting up. We actually got set-up pretty quick and had some time to kill before the show. The athletes showed up, so we played a quick game of wiffle ball.

Our show today was during lunch. As the bell rang, the students grabbed their food and made their way out to the soccer field to check out the action. Marc and Cindy from Producers Dairy came out again today, and passed out plenty of free milk to quench the students’ thirst in the heat. Danny Mayer was on fire today.  He pulled a Mctwist in the middle of the show, and even tried a couple of kickflip Mctwists towards the end of the show. Marc Englehart and Anthony Furlong went for some more doubles runs today. Each day they do that, it looks better and better, and the students really enjoyed it as well. Tom Haugen pulled superman airs and tailwhips with ease, while Fabiola flatspinned her way across the ramp. It was a short show, but the athletes filled that time frame with as many tricks as they could.

After the show, I went through my usual trivia questions for got milk? prizes. When I give the skateboard away, I always give it to the student who gives me the best tobacco fact, something that they learned on their own, and that I didn’t tell them during the show. Normally this takes a good ten minutes or so to give away, because I make the students really dig deep for a good fact. Today, it literally took me one try, basically about one minute. The first student I called on, not only had a great fact, but she had 11 pages worth of facts. She had gone into the library prior to the show, jumped on the Internet, and downloaded and printed 11 pages of tobacco information from different websites. Now that’s what I call determination, and putting forth the extra effort. I’ve had students take notes before, or download a single page of facts, not 11 pages! That was a first for me, and something I will not forget. You can see a picture of this lucky student posing with her skateboard, on the photo gallery from today’s show.

Special thanks today go out again to Marc and Cindy from Producers Dairy. We know it was hot today, but they never complained about the heat, and kept passing out that milk. We’ll see you guys next time.
-- Jimmy C

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Friday April 27, 2007 - Rosemont High School (Sacramento, California) Last school show of the week today. We have been spent the last few days in Fresno/Visalia, but after yesterday’s show, we made the two and a half  hour drive to Sacramento.

Our show today was at Rosemont High School. Since we had afternoon shows down in Stockton at the Asparagus Festival, we had to have an early show today. Fortunately for us, the folks at Rosemont High were able to make that happen, and we were included as part of a big rally they were having for S.T.A.R. testing. We set the ramp up on the football field, right in front of the home side bleachers. Right around 9:45, the students started to file into the bleachers. It almost looked like there wouldn’t be enough seating for everyone, but they got the whole school into that one side of the bleachers.

The rally started out with a few announcements, and then a group of students with a GPA of 3.8 or higher were acknowledged. After that, some of the school staff and student government members hosted a few games. They did a knock off of FOX TV’s “Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader”. Instead of 5th graders, it was teachers against the freshman, and if I’m not mistaken, the teachers won. By this time, it was close to noon and starting to get mighty hot.

Fortunately for a lucky few students, the next game played was a water balloon toss. Students had to pair off into teams, and throw balloons at one another from a good distance, and try to catch them without breaking them. The team with the most unbroken balloons won a prize. It was all good fun, but after 45 minutes, it was time to get down to business and do our show.

As soon as we started the show, the students were cheering, and very into the performance. They kept cheering, and the athletes really poured it on. Fabiola was going a little higher than usual today, and Marc Englehart and Anthony Furlong went for a couple of doubles runs again today. Tom Haugen did almost every tailwhip and barspin variation he knew how to do, and Danny Mayer was kickflipping and 540ing his way over every inch of the ramp. It was a quick show, but it was a great show, despite the heat.

Special thanks to the student body and activities director, for putting together such a fun rally.  I’ve done lots of shows that were part of a rally before, but never anything this fun. You guys did a great job, and we’ll see you next time. That wraps it up for week six.  We are off to Stockton for the Asparagus Festival, and then its one more week of schools before the spring tour wraps up.
-- Jimmy C

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