The Renegade Rip Vol. 83 No. 1

Kern Political Education, Features, Page 3

Brian Parks, Spotlight, Page 8

ECHL All-Stars, Sports, Page 10

The Renegade Rip Bakersfield College

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Vol. 83 ∙ No. 1

Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

Longtime Renegade reminisces

BC professor returns to her classes

By Brian N. Willhite Reporter

By Michael Morrow Reporter

Jan Stuebbe recalls a football game at El Camino in 1970 where 10,000 fans packed the stadium with 7,000 of those being Renegade fans. On the way to the game, Stuebbe, Bakersfield College’s quarterback, remembers seeing car after car go by with the red-and-white Renegade colors with “go ’Gades” in the windows. In a game that put two 9-0 teams against each other, Stuebbe reflected on the last-second missed field goal by El Camino.

“It was a great ending to the game, and we were surrounded by all of our fans. It was just a great experience,” said Stuebbe, the current athletic director at BC. When asked about how he played in that game, Stuebbe replied with a smile saying, “I did good, but it didn’t matter either way, because the team did good, and we won the game.”

This is just one of the many memories Stuebbe had of his time at BC and in the community as he looked back at his career. Stuebbe is set to retire from the education field and as an athletic director. July 1 after 37 years of serving his community.

Stuebbe grew up in Shafter and played high school football for Shafter High before coming to BC and having what Stuebbe calls a great time in his life.

“I remember the night before our first football practice.

I didn’t sleep all night, because I didn’t know if I could play up here,” he said. “My two years up here was just a great experience, playing for coach Gerry Collis and I met my wife Debbie the first weekend I moved into town. It was just a great time.”

After BC, Stuebbe went on to Colorado State University where he played quarterback for the Rams.

“I had a good time there, too, but it was nothing like playing for the Renegades,” said Stuebbe.

Upon graduating, Stuebbe returned home, and at the age of 22 began coaching. Stuebbe started at McFarland, and then moved on to Shafter for 16 years. After leaving Shafter, Stuebbe helped start the Centennial High program and was the athletic director and head varsity football coach there for five years before becoming the athletic director at BC. Stuebbe mentioned some of the highlights he’s had as a Renegade in the past 13 years and a few from previous Please see STUEBBE, Page 4

Kayla Broadhag / The Rip

Jan Stuebbe stands in Bakersfield College’s Memorial Stadium on Jan. 27. He credits the Renegades’ playing field as a home for many of his fondest memories.

Higher tuition fees on the horizon

By Brian N. Willhite Reporter

A new state budget has been proposed for the Kern Community College District and confirms expectations of reduced funding.

This contingent solution will also include an increase in student tuition fees raising them from $26 to $36 per unit, scheduled to go into effect July 1.

According to Amber Chiang, director of marketing and public relations for Bakersfield College, the new budget will have to pass through California voters before

reaching the district.

“It’s proposed by Gov. Brown as part of his package for the mid-year revisions on the budget. Unfortunately, the issue he proposed is contingent upon a budget solution to be passed by the voters in the summer,” she said.

Chiang also expressed her concerns about the new governor’s tax package and the chances that it will be approved by voters during the special election.

“California typically is not favorable toward additional taxes, but everything the governor put

After a semester away from her classes, professor Natalie Bursztyn has returned to her teaching duties at Bakersfield College.

The geology and earth science instructor was in Canada unable to return during the fall semester due to an ongoing issue concerning her employer-sponsored visa not being properly processed; however, her status has now been re-established, allowing her to resume her role until her visa is up for renewal again in 2012.

Since her return, Bursztyn has encountered many friendly faces that have welcomed her back to BC. “I’ve had such a warm welcome from students and faculty and it’s been really nice,” she said.

Bursztyn has also recently finished work on a new book, titled “Geology of Kern County,” published by Kendall Hunt.

Though the book is completed, it is currently not available in bookstores but it can be purchased through the publisher’s Web site.

“I started in 2008 and I received the Norman Levan faculty summer scholarship to work on it in 2009,” she said.

The Grace Van Dyke Byrd Library will be hosting a release party March 1 for the book; it will also be sold in the BC bookstore by then.

Bursztyn was also surprised to see that, upon her return, a fellow faculty member that wanted to recognize her contributions to the students and the school as well as recognize her personal achievements as a teacher nominated her for an award.

“David Koeth from the art department has nominated me for the Biggs Earth Science Teaching Award through the Geological Society of America,” she said.

The award recognizes innovative instructors who have been teaching for less than 10 years. The winner has yet to be announced, but, regardless of the outcome, Bursztyn is happy just knowing that she was nominated by her colleague.

forth is contingent on that package. Should that package pass, and should the governor’s budget be accepted as it is by the legislature, it would up our fees to $36 a unit,” said Chiang, who also feels that though the fees will be increased, it’s “still an incredible value for higher education and still nowhere near the actual cost of the education.”

KCCD’s chief financial officer, Tom Burke, explained what the budget proposal will include as well as underscoring how much of an effect the proposed $10 fee increase will have on the new budget plans. He also feels that it is unlikely that the fee increase will go back down.

“The community college system is going to have a $400 million reduction that equates to about $7.1 million reduction to the Kern Community College District. The proposed budget also includes $110 million in growth funding for the system or 1.9 percent growth. That would equate to about $1.9-million funding increase for KCCD. Those two items combined net to a reduction of about $5.2 million to the Kern Community College District,” Burke said.

Burke and everyone at KCCD and BC together have been anticipating and preparing for the cuts to happen. With a combination of spending reductions and an analysis of course offerings that can be cut, the district’s staff feels that they have prepared for this moment, assuming the proposed budget goes according to plan.

“We started our planning last year because we actually thought we would see these reduc-

tions hitting us this year. So we have plans put in place to deal with this reduction,” Burke said.

Chiang also discussed how BC has been planning for the budget reductions.

“Over the last several years, we’ve been really looking at the budget and how we can streamline operations; what we can do to start curtailing some of the cuts that have been coming at us since 2007-2008,” she said before explaining how BC will not be anticipating any cuts to staffing and classes.

“The cuts that we’re anticipating this year, we’ve already absorbed those, we’ve already taken care of them so we’re not expecting any mid-year cuts – no reductions in courses, no reductions in staffing and nothing like that.”

According to Chiang, BC has added courses this semester in the core areas of study that include classes in the math, science and English departments, which currently have the most waitlisted students.

“We added quite a few compared to Spring 2010 and at this point, no, we’re not looking to cut classes. What we’re looking to do, really, is to make sure that what we’re offering makes sense.

Not only that, they’re classes that the students need but that they’re offered in such a progression that it’s beneficial to the students and that we’re looking carefully at what we’re offering.

“We added 29 more classes this year over last year, which is quite a few actually, and it still didn’t fit the need of our students, as the waitlists have shown. Our Please see BUDGET, Page 4

Features

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The Renegade Rip www.therip.com

Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

Down and

Dirty Monster X | Monster trucks invade the Rabobank Arena

By Mateo M. Melero Reporter

As the men in the mammoth trucks at the Monster X show steered their machines inside the dirt-covered hockey rink at the Rabobank Arena Jan. 21, so did the boy in the Mini monster truck. The drivers dared dirt mounds, completed hairpin turns on a dime, and crushed plenty of cars.

When the boy attempted to pass over a series of dummy cars, the crowd cheered him on, hoping that despite his truck’s size he would make it over. He got his truck far enough on the cars to leave the mark of his tire treads alongside the big boys.

Credited as the world’s youngest monster truck driver at 7 years old, Kaid “Kid KJ” Weston operates his own half-scale truck called The Monster Bear.

“I’ve been saying I want to be a monster truck driver since I was 1,” said Kaid Having been to monster truck shows as early as 1, Kaid, according to his father, became glued to the motorized object at a very early age.

“One thing about KJ,” said father Tod Weston, “he enjoyed it, had a passion for it.

He picked it up real easy, like he was born to do it,” said Weston.

Starting off with the novelty Power Wheels cars, Kaid moved on to more sophisticated vehicles as he got older. When he reached the age of 6, Kaid began manning the half scale, 200-horsepower truck he drives today, with hopes of driving a more powerful truck in the near future.

“The next truck I’ll be driving is going to have a V8 supercharged engine with

Nathan Wilson / The Rip

Robert Haslam performs aerial stunts during the MX Freestyle portion of the Monster X Tour at Rabobank Arena on Jan. 21.

Nathan Wilson / The Rip

Seven-year-old Kaid “Kid KJ” Weston drives around the track for the fans during the Monster X Tour on Jan. 21. Kaid is billed as the world’s youngest monster truck driver.

300-horsepower,” said Kaid.

Though the very act of driving a monster truck may seem dangerous to some, Kaid is equipped and suited with a fire suit, seated in a five-point safety belt system, and his neck secured to avoid any whiplash. His father also carries a kill switch to Kaid’s truck, in case anything was to happen.

“It’s very safe for everyone involved,” said Weston, “There is an art to the drive... It takes a lot of technique.”

As far as Kaid’s off time goes, he spends his time like most other kids, playing video games, riding his bike and attending school where he says the other kids don’t quite believe him when he tells them he’s a monster truck driver. But at the shows, Kaid says other kids praise him.

And though Kaid shows tremendous skill in operating a truck, his father says, “No matter what, he is still 7.”

Nathan Wilson / The Rip

Children ride the monster truck Thumper at the Monster X Tour on Jan. 21. The show featured monster truck and Motocross stunts.

Nathan Wilson / The Rip

Dan Runce, in Bigfoot, drives vertically over a row of cars during the Monster X Tour on Jan. 21.

Features

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The Renegade Rip www.therip.com

Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

One-on-one conversation with comedian Regan

By Martin Chang Reporter

Brian Regan has slowly gained a following among fans, and gained the respect of his peers, with his brand of physical, highenergy observational comedy. He has appeared on “The Late show with David Letterman” over 20 times, and he tours over 80 cities a year. The Renegade Rip talked to Regan about starting out, drinking beer with fans, and the stupid guy inside his psyche.

He will be performing at the Fox Theater on Feb. 10.

RR: What were your first gigs like? Where were they? What type of venues?

BR: I started officially in a comedy club, and I performed there for over two years, but I worked there in addition to going on stage. I had to cook burgers in the kitchen, take back the fries after the show. Then when I went out on the road, after that, I played all kinds of places. I played comedy clubs, bars, a lot of bars. Bars that played comedy one night a week, or what they think is going to be comedy, and those rooms could be rough.

They could be a lot of fun, but can also be rough. But it’s what makes you better I think.

RR: Rough in what way?

BR: Rough in that those people were often not there to hear comedy. I’m talking about certain rooms, certain nights. They’re there to drink, to shoot pool, to start bar fights; they’re not there to be entertained by subtle social commentary. It might not be what they’re into at the time. A higher hurdle, so to speak, that you have to overcome, you have to really be on your game, to be

focused, to get the laugh.

RR: What was that party like?

BR: I realized they really didn’t have a party. But when I said, sure. They kind of had to manufacture a party.

They were stopping at pay phones saying, “hey we got a comedian.” And I could even hear that the other people didn’t know who they were talking about. [I could overhear] “Brian Regan … no Brian Regan, he’s a comedian.

Anyway he’s coming back to the house, we’re having a party. Call so and so and bring him over.”

So, they kind of made a party and it really didn’t come off great.

There were about eight people there, and it was just us sitting around having beers talking about them being fans of mine. I certainly enjoyed it. I sat in beanbag chairs and fielded questions.

RR: What did it feel like doing those early gigs?

BR: Thrilling, it’s sort of like being on a high wire without a net. You don’t know if you’re going to make it alive. That’s sort of like being a comedian when you first go on the road.

You know, it’s like, “am I up to this?” You judge yourself from night to night. If you have three nights that don’t go well, you start looking in the mirror going, “am I delusional?” Then you have another show and you’re on fire, then you go, “man that was great. I know how to do this.” It was exciting I guess, that was one thing that was so cool about it, the excitement to it.

RR: Do you have any good stories from when you were still getting experience on the road?

BR: You’ve heard the expression “hearing crickets?” The proverbial concept of having a bad show. I heard them one time when I was performing at a hotel on an island on the Pacific Northwest and it was a corporate gig.

Those people were not there to see comedy. I was on stage not doing well, somebody had a window open, I finished a joke I got no laughs. Then I heard a cricket outside go chirp, chirp, chirp and the audience heard it.

I said, “wow, I’ve heard of hearing crickets; that’s the first time I actually heard one.” The crowd laughed and I think they realized that we’re supposed to participate a little here. Then I was able to turn it around.

RR: What has it been like seeing your audience grow?

BR: It’s tremendous. I remember first time there were

photo courtesy of Micheal o’brien entertainment

Comedian Brian Regan performs his stand up routine. people in the audience there specifically to see me. I didn’t know what was going on! I had just done the MTV “Half Hour Comedy Hour” and basically until this point when I went out to perform in comedy clubs, people went to see a comedy show.

They didn’t know who was going to be on the show. I was on the show and these young guys were walking by me going,“that’s him right there.” I was going, “Who are they talking about?”

Then I realize they were looking at me. Then after the show, they came up and said, “We came up to see you.” And I’m like, “me? Why would you know anything about me?” I can see coming out to see a comedy show. And they said, “well,

we’re big fans.” I never had anybody say that ever.

I’m like, “what do you mean your fans? From what?” And they said, “we saw you on the MTV comedy hour.” [I said,] “And you guys are fans?” And they said, “yeah”. I thought, “wow.” I had never experienced that ever.

I was kind of naïve. It was my first time meeting fans. And they asked if I would go back to their house, if I would go back to a party.

I said, “sure, these are the only fans I have in the world; I want to have beer with them.” It was an interesting experience. Obviously, it has grown from there. I don’t go home with anyone who says they’re a fan anymore.

RR: Something I noticed watching your stand up, was the faces you make. You really move around, more then other comics I’ve seen. What inspired this?

How do you practice something like that?

BR: I started my comedy at a rifle range and I had to keep moving or I’d end up deceased.

(Ed. note: he’s joking here.)

When I started, I never purposefully set out to be a physical comedian or to use my face.

But when you really look at my jokes, it ends up being like little plays.

It’s me and another character.

Me and an inanimate object, an ironing board, a microwave oven, me and a doctor, a flight attendant. So I act out these little vignettes and to act them out you have to be physical. That’s why I do it. I’m not conscious of what I’m doing. It’s just getting into it

and when you get into it this is how it comes out.

RR: I’ve noticed that you’ve done your stupid guy voice for a long time. How did that character come about? And why do you think it has stayed in your act so long?

BR: It’s a version of my personality. It’s not my actual self.

When I’m at a party I don’t act like that. We all have part of our self, inside our psyche, that are a part of who we are and part of who I am is feeling dumb, when maybe I shouldn’t feel dumb.

When I’m onstage I’m exploring those fantasies to a ridiculous degree. So, that’s the way it comes out.

Hopefully people are relating to it and going, “yeah man, I feel like that myself sometimes.”

I think comedy’s better when they’re laughing with you and not at you.

RR: Your comedy focuses on the little things. How do you find this material and why do you think you use it in your act?

BR: It’s fun to find humor in the mundane.

We have a culture in our country that we live in. For me it’s fun to explore these everyday occurrences in our culture, whatever that may be, going to a friend’s house, going to the eye doctor, and try to find humor in what we all experience, going back to laughing with instead of laughing at.

I think laughs are more powerful when people are going, “man I know that experience. I’ve been on this ride.” The more commonplace the topic, the more likely you’ll get people saying, “ Yes, I’ve been on this ride before.”

Fashion is in transition as the new season is well on its way

By Chrystal Fortt Reporter

brandon barraza / The Rip

From left: U.S. Congressman Jim Costa poses with Elsa Florez and her husband, California Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez at a dinner held in Dean’s honor at the Bakersfield Country Club on Jan. 28.

State senate majority leader honored during charity dinner

By Sandra G. Ward Reporter

A dinner was held on Jan. 28 to honor California Senate Majority Leader Dean Florez at the Bakersfield Country Club. Proceeds from the event were to benefit the Center for Kern Political Education, a nonpartisan, nonprofit foundation of Bakersfield College. It provides students the opportunity to learn about and participate in the government and political arena.

The idea in developing the CKPE was to influence and create the next generation of political leaders.

Founders of the organization include retired BC professor Jack Brigham, attorney Milt Younger, and Bakersfield City Mayor Harvey Hall.

The program has benefitted community leaders such as State Senator Michael Rubio and Bakersfield City Councilmember Rudy Salas.

Social time for the event started at 5:30 p.m.

One guest who attended the event, and is one of the several advisers of the CKPE, was BC president Greg Chamberlain.

“I think this is a great opportunity to bring community members together to get together and support a great cause as well as honor Dean Florez,” said Chamberlain.

Other attendees were Chancellor of the Kern Community College District Sandra Serrano, California State University of Bakersfield president Horace Mitchell and retired Senator Art Torres.

Though the mayor was unable to attend, Bakersfield City Vice-Mayor David Couch was in

attendance for the awards ceremony where Florez was honored for his efforts in supporting the CKPE program.

Florez received his master’s degree in business from Harvard University in 1993 and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from University of California, Los Angeles.

He was elected to the State Assembly in 1998, serving two terms and elected to the State Senate in 2002.

Florez’s mother, Fran Florez, once served as the City of Shafter’s mayor and currently serves as a commissioner on the California High Speed Rail Authority.

When approached for comment about her son, Mrs. Florez said, “I am very, very proud of all the work he has done. And to think about 12 years of hard work for the people in the valley and for the farm workers and just for the working people, it just makes me really proud.”

High school students involved in “We the People,” an event supported by the CKPE also attended.

Senator Florez said, “We are very thankful for everybody supporting the foundation. This is where the young leaders come from. There is probably the next Senator or Assemblyman or Congressman in the room,” in reference to the students attending.

Tables were full as Florez was presented the award. Speakers throughout the evening included Art Torres, Milt Younger, Horace Mitchell and Rudy Salas.

Seating for the event started at $100 per person or through group sponsorship.

Christmas is over and thank God we don’t have to see the cheesy holiday sweaters, with their reindeer print and oversized Christmas tree broaches.

Fashion is made early and runway collections are shown a season before the actual season. Runway collections determine the new trends. However, some trends will stay for the entire season or some will just stay on the runway.

College students should avoid some winter looks from the spring runway collections and there are some spring looks that they should embrace.

The artistic punk look was in a few runway collections; almost all punk clothing should have been left behind in the winter like the Christmas sweaters.

Designer Balmain was sadly big on the look.

Balmain’s collection was surprisingly all about dark colors, spray paint designs with a lot of safety pins, studs, ripped fishnets, and tie-up ankle boots.

Balmain showed models wearing a loose-distressed tanks with an abstract American flag that looks like it was painted by hand and had some burn marks and holes on it that made the shirt look like it was sent to hell and back.

The only thing worth keeping from the old punk look is pieces of leather clothing. Leather jackets and pants look edgy but definitely throw away the safety pins and ripped fishnets.

Punk shouldn’t really be a trend to follow this spring, mainly after high school. Punk can look like a very juvenile style and should be left to the emotionally distraught teenager who’s looking for a way to express him or herself.

College is a place of young adults; students should go for a more adult fashion, like the minimalist style that’s very sophisticated and modern.

Solid colored outfits, patterned heels, and decorative jewelry looks professional and classy. Instead of crazy patterns and sparkles everywhere, neutrals, blues, and greens are worn in many layers with fabrics. Spring outfits should be eyecatching based on proportion.

Neon colors are pretty big for the spring and can be incorporated with the minimalist style. Neon colors need to be very small and used as a skinny belt, handbag, or earrings. Neon colors should also be toned way down with neutral colors otherwise it might look like too much.

Designer Aquilano Rimondi tried to use the minimalist look with proportion, but left out the rest of the minimalism by using colors and patterns. As a result the collection that tried to reflect spring was blaring with bright colors and dizzied floral patterns that looked like a flower power mess.

The best collection that reflected this year’s spring fashion is Alberta Ferretti’s collection; it’s the face of spring fashion and is more timeless than the minimalist look.

The collection is full of soft colors and very delicate designs with: floral crocheted lace, translucent sleeves, silk dresses, floor-length skirts, and knitted tops paired with strappy sandals.

It’s a dreamy, feminine style that has a bohemian tinge; Ferretti’s models looked like goddesses that sprang up from the earth.

News

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News Briefs “Cabaret” playing at Stars Theatre “Cabaret” is a play set in Berlin at the beginning of the Third Reich. It follows the love story of an English Cabaret dancer and an American soldier. Feb. 5 at the Stars Dinner Theatre 1931 Chester Ave. Bakersfield, CA 93301. For more information call (661) 325-6100.

Workshop seeks to prevent and educate about domestic violence Domestic Violence Restraining Workshop held in the East Bakersfield Community Resource Center located at 1700 Flower St. The workshop is by appointment only on Feb. 5 from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

Museum promotes ‘Family Day’ entertainment for community Family Day at Buena Vista Museum of Natural History is held at 2018 Chester Ave. Admission is $20 for two adults and up to six children for Feb. 5.

Jammin’ 3-Wheeler Trike Club Jammin’ 3-Wheeler Trike Club Meeting is going to be at Lorene’s Restaurant, 6401 Ming Ave. Feb. 6 beginning at 9 a.m. Questions call Jim Schwenk at (661) 331-6013

Belly dancing lessons by Tribal Fusion Tribal Fusion Belly Dancing offers dance workshop at the Enchanted Cottage, located at 30 H. St., 93304 from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Feb. 6.

Golden State Mall hosts Tai Chi classes Tai Chi classes held upstairs in ballroom of Golden State Mall, 3201 F. St. on Feb. 7 with two sessions offered. First held from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m. and the second from 5:45 p.m. to 6:45 p.m.

Mood Disorder Support Group meeting Mood Disorder Support Group at 5121 Stockdale Highway at the KCMH Consumer Family Learning Center. A support group for the people with depression or bipolar disorder set for Feb. 7.

Toddler Time event at Beale Toddler Time at the Beale Memorial Library at 701 Truxtun Ave. on Feb. 8.

Children 18 months to two years old accompanied by parent are invited for music, nursery rhymes, stories and much more.

Parkinson’s Disease Support Parkinson’s Disease Support Feb. 8 at the first Presbyterian Church at 1705 17th St. from 2 p.m. to 12 p.m. It’s a potluck luncheon dedicated to victims of Parkinson’s disease. Those interested in attending contact (661) 399-2758.

Art Exhibit Exhibition Maynard Dixon’s West: Space held at 1930 R. St. at the Bakersfield Museum of Art will be held Tuesday through Thursday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and weekends from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m. Members admission are free, Adults $5, students $2, seniors 65 and up, $4.

Crazy Cupcake Contest at Beale Cupcake Craze Contest held at Beale Memorial Library located at 701 Truxtun Ave. will be held on Feb. 10 at 3:30 p.m.

Valentine Concert at Rabobank “Valentine’s Super Love Jam,” in the Rabobank Arena and Convention Center at 1001 Truxtun Ave. on Feb. 11. Prices are $25.20 to $35.50.

Valentine’s day run CSUB PEAK Valentine’s Run is a fundraiser held at CSUB, 9001 Stockdale Highway at 9 a.m. on Feb. 12 for the Physical Education and Kinesiology Majors. Registration before Feb. 5 guarantees T-shirt size and availability.

WWE Raw: Road to WrestleMania WWE presents Raw: Road to WrestleMania at the Rabobank Arena on Feb. 13 at 5 p.m. General Admission beginning at $15 up to $60.

Free Income Tax Preparation Kern VITA Free Income Tax Preparation appointments can be scheduled by calling 211, though some sites take walk-ins from Feb. 1 through April 15. Taxes are prepared free by IRS certified volunteers for patrons who earned less than $50,000.

Condors vs. Victoria Salmon Kings Condors vs. Victoria Salmon Kings at the Rabobank Arena beginning at 7 p.m. on Feb. 15. Prices range from $10 to $23.

Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

STUEBBE: BC athletic director discusses retirement Continued from Page 1 stops in the community.

“Working with the community is a definite highlight to me because they’re very supportive and interested in our athletic program. Another highlight I’ve had was when the Shriners got out of the Potato Bowl, and I got to work, and I had a message from Wes Bradford with Clifford and Bradford Insurance and he said ‘I want that game,’ ” said Stuebbe. “Now for seven years we’ve had the Clifford and Bradford Golden Empire Bowl. Wes is a guy in the community who just wants to give back. He doesn’t make any money on the game, and he’s the best sponsor of bowl games in the state. To me, working with people like Wes has been a real highlight.”

For Stuebbe, another big accomplishment was the remodeling of most of the sports complexes including the fitness center, the William H. Wheeler and Jeffery Townsend Pool and Aquatic Center, and the Dean and Adah Gay Sports Complex, which houses the baseball and softball fields. Stuebbe referred to them as “some of the best in the state.”

Stuebbe also recognizes the people he has had the chance to hire, work with, and teach.

“I’ve been involved with hiring three-quarters of our staff, and they’re all quality individuals and could be

kayla broadhag / The Rip

Jan Stuebbe stands next to the trophy case in the athletic offices Jan. 27. His efforts as a Renegade quarterback helped Bakersfield College win many of the awards on display.

Division 1 coaches in my opinion.

Working with student athletes has also been very great. Eighty-five percent of our students are local and of our second-year athletes, 50 percent go on to a four-year college, whether they play or not,” he said. “We have some continue with their playing careers and some don’t, but continue their education because they’re halfway to their degree. And seeing kids move on, is just great.”

Stuebbe realizes how much time and effort goes into being an athletic director and just wants to live a more normal life. With 180 home competitions a year, Stuebbe says he hasn’t had a full two-day weekend in quite some time. Stuebbe also suffered

a stroke a year ago in December of 2009 and took a leave of absence during the spring semester in 2010.

“After 13 years, I just feel it’s time for me to move on. That is a long time to keep that schedule up and worry about budgets and fund-raise.

It’s very rewarding, but I think it’ll be healthy for me and healthy for the college to make the change,” Stuebbe said. “I don’t feel old enough to retire, but it’s time to do something else, maybe in the private sector. I’ll miss the relationships I’ve built with the faculty and staff, but I won’t miss the demands of this job and that’s when I knew it was time to retire.

“I had my stroke a year ago in December, and I was off for four

BUDGET: Proposal still uncertain Continued from Page 1 students are still trying to get classes because there are just so many students and not enough classes to go around,” Chiang said.

Community colleges around the state have all been making cuts to their programs including some that have eliminated their summer school programs, an option that BC president Greg Chamberlain said will not happen at the college, though it is possible that fewer classes will be offered. Additionally, accord-

ing to Chiang, some colleges are taking out loans to support their colleges and make their staff’s payroll.

“We haven’t had to have layoffs, we haven’t had to take out loans to make payroll like other colleges in the state have had to do for the last two or three years – we haven’t had to go there,” said Chiang. “But the longer the state budget goes without being passed, the more likely that is because the colleges are not getting paid.”

months, but that was far from retirement. I was pretty much housebound for a couple months and that was different because my life stopped and my life has never stopped. It didn’t really have an effect on this decision, I mean, I had time to think about it, but even before the stroke I knew my time was getting closer. I knew I wouldn’t be working for too much longer at this job,” said Stuebbe.

As for who is going to replace Stuebbe, no one has been named. Stuebbe believes a lot of the coaches at BC have the potential to be a good replacement, but doesn’t want to be on a hiring committee. He says he is here through the semester to assist if someone is hired before July 1.

Check out therip.com to get the latest news and updates on what’s happening around BC

Activist in the making: step one

Campus

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The Renegade Rip www.therip.com

Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

Merchants offer hand-crafted goods on campus

By Monica Bolger Reporter

Several licensed jewelry vendors have been advertising and selling their items at Bakersfield College for the last two weeks.

Godo Palomino and his son, Kenny Palomino, are owners of a Native American arts and crafts kiosk and sell at both BC and Cal

State Bakersfield.

“I’ve gotten a lot of students, faculty members and even parents that have come to purchase the items I put out,” said Godo Palomino.

The Palominos display a variety of different accessories and apparel in their kiosk that are styled with an indigenous, Native American look but are also

made modern and trendy.

The merchandise advertised are both small and large in size, such as hair and body décor, sterling silver rings and earrings, bracelets, fashion jewelry, claybeaded trinkets, clothing and handbags.

“The skirts and blouses are made of alpaca wool and cotton and are hand-woven by women

in South America,” Palomino said. He described the clothes as “very warm.”

Along with the enjoyment of selling his merchandise, Palomino takes pride in the time that has gone into them and the manual labor spent carefully crafting, molding, soaking and dying them into valuable, marketable goods.

Since arriving on campus, Palomino has noticed a significant increase in his products sold this semester, and attributes the rise of sales to the student population increase.

Busé Erkin is currently attending BC and has taken the time to check out some of Palomino’s items.

“I bought a pair of earrings

that are going to make the perfect gift,” said Erkin. “They were inexpensive, and super clean and shiny.”

Emilio Ceballos is also a student that found an item he thought was worth buying.

“I bought this crystal-beaded rosary that I’m wearing. It was only $10, so I treated myself,” Ceballos shared.

Orange Harvest draws crowd

By Monica Bolger Reporter

The Bakersfield College Agriculture Department hosted its annual Orange Harvest sale on Jan. 24-25 at the Agriculture Farm across from the Grace Van Dyke Bird Library.

Kelan Rockholt was one of many students in professor Bill Kelly’s class that were given the assignment to work the event as a chance to earn mandatory and extra credit points in the class.

“We’re supposed to pick the oranges with the stems, then bag and sell them. The oranges that are split

or bruised are throwaways,” said Rockholt. “The oranges that don’t have a stem but are still in decent shape, we juice.”

Professors also joined the event by passing out ladders and shears to the orange pickers.

Kelly, a current member of the California Agriculture Teachers Association and a forestry professor, arrived with a smile on his face and encouraging everyone, including students outside of class, to participate in picking and buying oranges.

“Keith Haycock, who is now retired, was the one who originally

came up with the idea of the Orange Harvest back in 1970,” said Kelly. “The types of oranges we grow here on the farm are Navel oranges and if we don’t sell all of them, then we usually donate the rest.”

The bags of oranges that were self-picked were sold for $3 and the bags that were pre-picked were sold for $5.

“The money made from the sale of the oranges usually goes to support field trips, farm equipment, plants, and any other expenses needed to help the agriculture department,” said Kelly.

Brandon barraza / The Rip

Brandon barraza / The Rip

Brandon Core and Mohammed Mobhasir work together to pick oranges at the annual Orange Harvest sale hosted by the Agriculture Department on Jan. 25.

Professor of agriculture Bill Kelly shows off bags of pre-packed oranges that he has prepared for customers at the Orange Harvest sale at BC on Jan. 25.

New printing options available in the Student Services building

By B.Whited

Printing Services

Reporter

Since the beginning of the most recent fall semester, Bakersfield College has been allowing students to print their work upstairs in the Student Services building next to the Financial Aid office instead of just in the Grace Van Dyke Bird Library.

For a fee of 10 cents per print, students can make as many copies as needed. However, they should not forget to load their Gades card down at the library first because Student Services is not equipped with the same money transfer machines that are found in the library.

Jesus Arago is the computer programmer in charge of overseeing the printing services.

“Students like to come here because it’s more convenient for them,” he said.

He spoke about what students would need to do if they wanted to use the services provided.

He recommended that if a student chooses to print in the Student Services office that they be mindful of the rules that are in place. “Please turn all cell phones off and do not log onto MySpace, Facebook or Twitter because you will be asked to vacate the premises.”

Norma Coca, a freshmen majoring in child development, commented on why she used the machines in the Student Services building instead of the ones in the library.

“It’s more quiet up here than it is in the library,” she said, “and I don’t have to wait forever to get on a computer.”

Students can print school work upstairs in the Student Services building for 10 cents a copy with a loaded Gades card.

Kayla Broadhag / The Rip

From left: SGA members Kat Oldershaw, Gilbert Hernandez and Brian Rathfelder make plans for the info booths Jan. 19.

SGA offers assistance to student body

By Amber T. Troupe Reporter

The information tables placed at different locations around campus greet students arriving on campus every semester. The Bakersfield College Student Government Association prepares these tables.

SGA has been putting these information tables up every semester for over two years, ac-

cording to vice president Brian Rathfelder.

“It’s just something we’ve been doing,” said Rathfelder. “And we want to continue to help the new and enrolling students find everything they need.”

The volunteers maintaining the stations range from members of the SGA, BC club members, along with faculty and administration members. Other volunteers come from a mass of emails and fliers

posted and sent out campus-wide, according to Rathfelder.

SGA sets up these tables personally every day during “Welcome Week” from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Each table has one or two volunteers offering cookies, hot chocolate, coffee, BC planners as well as campus maps. Faculty members work the booths in 30-minute increments and students worked in hour increments.

“We bring info to new students arriving on campus,” Rathfelder said. “And show what programs are available to them such as disabled and single parent programs.

“Our main goal is to provide an overall better college experience to future students.”

Rathfelder explained that SGA is creating a welcoming atmosphere for any first-time students attending BC.

Opinions

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The Renegade Rip www.therip.com

Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

Staff Editorial

Chronic dropping and overpopulation has negative impact on students Bakersfield College is overpopulated and the impact that overcrowding has on the student body is something the administration of the Kern Community College District has to deal with.

While students come to BC at the start of every semester in hopes of advancing their education, whether it be to improve their chances at getting a job or

for a sense of personal satisfaction, it’s becoming more difficult for them to meet these goals.

This is due to the large increase in student population in the past five years, combined with the 14 percent reduction of classes offered in the same time period, although BC has been adding more classes over the years they have not returned to their former

number yet, due to the economic troubles of the past few years.

With nearly 18,000 students enrolled by the start of the semester, according to the Bakersfield Californian’s web site, BC classes are overcrowded and the waitlists are full. After registration opens many core classes are filled within a few days, at best, and the waitlists are at maximum

capacity soon after.

There is nothing wrong with an increased interest in education, especially during an economic downturn, but it becomes a problem when many in attendance don’t seem to be interested in the classes they have filled and stop going or drop the class – usually after financial aid payments have come through.

Obama must face problems

By Keith Kaczmarek Reporter

Mr. President, I must admit that I’ve always been a fan. I respect your rhetoric, I admire your politics, and I recognize your place in history.

As I watched the State of the Union Address of 2011, I thought that you hit all the right marks.

The people want jobs, safety, and the promise that we are educating, innovating, and otherwise paving the way to ensure that the ever-nebulous American Dream remains a reality. We even want to come to some sort of agreement with our fellow Americans who share this land, but not our particular political opinions.

That being said, it’s time to man up. There are certain truths that need to be addressed, offered in no particular order: 1. If you want careers in science and education to suddenly become popular again then you need to recognize that, considering the advanced degrees required and debt accumulated, they don’t pay well and are hard to get.

While full-time and tenured educators may make respectable wages, the entry-level educator is making slave wages if they can find a job at all. I personally have seen fine educators shuffled from college to college simply

because they could not play the tenure game, and it is a loss to us all. Only the most idealistic go into those fields and they pay a high price, and that needs to change because finding a good educator who is also an idealist is like asking lightning to strike twice.

Also, if you want children to start emulating great scientists instead of athletes in the NFL, then scientists need to start making NFL wages.

The only way to do that is to reform intellectual property law so that corporations do not own everything created by scientists who are drawing a salary even when they do stuff in their own garage and on their own time.

Allow the great inventors of our time to actually reap the rewards of their genius.

2. Boldness got you elected and boldness will get you reelected. It’s not a political failure to have a great idea shot down by petty politics, but a political strength that can be used to show that your opponents need to be voted out of office.

Your political opponents are not going to let you do anything innovative. They have decided to salt the earth of the political landscape so that no idea from your administration is going to

Reporter

Nowadays no one cares about extremely lifted trucks, or at least I don’t.

All I see are trucks that are lifted from the ground with humongous tires put on them and Hot Wheels look-alikes.

Once in a while I see these socalled lifted trucks on the streets cruising around town, and I just think they really need to grow up.

I know they were once famous years back, but this is a new era.

Then again, if you want to make things harder for yourselves when entering and exiting your

’G ade Feedback

truck, so be it.

But what if one night someone is following you on your way to your car and you own one of these lifted trucks and it takes you about five minutes to get inside, you’re screwed.

Personally, I think that there should just be regular trucks out on the streets. It’s OK to drop your truck a little or even lift it, but be reasonable and not take it to the extreme.

And for those who feel the need to personalize their trucks, they should just go to a local toy store and get one of those toy models.

It would also be a whole lot safer for civilians in case of an

the courses are unable to get in.

The students who chronically drop within the first few weeks should have some sort of restriction placed on their registration status to prevent them from ruining the chances of more dedicated students making progress.

BC needs to address the issue of overpopulation and chronic dropping.

‘StarCraft II’ takes number one spot of 2010 games

By Zak Cowan Sports Editor

have a chance to succeed regardless of the merits. This behavior may seem criminal at worse and merely shortsighted at best, but it is a fact that your political opponents don’t want your resume to get any shinier regardless of the cost to the country.

You really need to call them on that.

Shame them into working for the interests of this country.

Reason and rhetoric failed, so now every time they threaten to filibuster every bill until they get more tax cuts for the rich or they pass a useless and costly repeal bill that has no chance of being

made into law, you need to highlight their folly to the American people. Hopefully by the next election cycle, we’ll end up with new politicians who actually want to address the needs of the nation.

3. Shut down Guantanamo or give those guys a trial, end both wars, end the domestic surveillance started by Bush, and rethink the endless war on terror that has no win or even lose conditions.

Our diplomatic efforts might go a little further if the world didn’t see us as a burgeoning police state with grand delusions.

Commuters bothered by unnecessarily lifted trucks far too often in Bakersfield

By Cristal Rodriguez

The issue becomes even more frustrating when students drop classes immediately after the census date when professors are unable to add more students to the class.

The once full classes sink to a third of their original size and although there is now space for more students the add date has passed and students in need of

accident.

Just think about it, if you were to be in a car accident anytime soon, would you rather it be with a regular truck or an enormous lifted truck? I would much rather prefer a regular truck.

I understand there are still people out there in Bakersfield and throughout the United States who find these trucks amazingly fascinating, but that doesn’t mean those of you have to own one of these monsters.

There are other options to fulfill your desires such as building one at home, drawing one, watch movies or read books and magazines about them.

Also, throughout the year they

have events at Rabobank Arena where they go all out and make the arena look like an outside dirt field and they have these monstrosities smashing cars and performing stunts. These shows even have small children driving the trucks.

I don’t think these events ever sell out and I think it’s a total waste of money, but this is where all the truck fanatics can go with friends and drink if they like, go crazy and enjoy themselves.

So with all do respect, if you own a monster truck take it easy on the road and respect all the “tiny” cars around you because I am sure they don’t like the feeling of possibly being smashed.

It can be hard to narrow any category to the five, or even ten best, but in an industry like that of video games, where hundreds of products are released every year, with every one containing hours of time dedication, that task of picking the best can be quite intimidating.

Above all else you go with the ones you wholeheartedly loved, and these were mine.

5. “FIFA World Cup South Africa 2010” The best sports game of the year just bleeds realism, and when I first picked this one up I must have played 15 matches before I took a break.

The soundtrack was absolutely perfect for a soccer game, especially one featuring the first World Cup played on the African continent. The gameplay is as realistic as it gets and the graphics are top-notch as well.

“FIFA 10” was also a superb game and it was pretty much the same as its World Cup counterpart, but I just can’t help enjoy being the United States, and beating Brazil or Spain in the finals so I can hold up the trophy of the greatest tournament in the world.

4. “Halo: Reach” Oh Halo, you will always hold a special place in my heart.

The final Bungie-developed installment to one of the most successful gaming franchises ever, “Halo: Reach,” is first-class in every aspect, and takes number four out of five. Fourth is probably disappointing to most of the Halo community, including Bungie themselves, but it was outperformed in many features by the games ahead of it.

Although Reach was topped in some areas, it provided fans with the goods that put Halo on the top of the gaming world nearly ten years ago; it is still the best team-tactical FirstPerson Shooter on the market.

Bungie has yet again given their fanboys a double dose of their favorite drug.

3. “Limbo” The Spike Video Game Awards’ Best Indie Game winner only uses two buttons and a joystick, a drastic difference between it and the rest of the top games of the year and their often complex user interface, and yet it is as mentally challenging and satisfying as any of them.

Games such as “Pac-Man” and “Donkey Kong” dominated their times without the need of

3D and Playdead Studios has done the same in the form of this dark and mysterious 2D puzzle-platform.

“Limbo” is the must-play game of the year, and can be had by anyone up for the task – although the mild violence of the silhouette of a child being killed by giant spiders might be a little too much for some.

2. “Red Dead Redemption” The first great western video game hit the ground running in late May. Red Dead built on what Rockstar gave us in the Grand Theft Auto series and turned it into something that even my Grandpa could truly enjoy. The voiceover acting was the best in any game released during 2010, with Rob Wiethoff leading the cast as the gritty ex-outlaw protagonist John Marston.

The downloadable content that came out for “Red Dead Redemption” was the best for any game, and possibly the best of all time. “Undead Nightmare”, the final Downloadable Content, amalgamated two of my favorite things; zombie movies and videos games, and turned Red Dead into a dark and disturbing tale of disease and madness.

1. “Starcraft II: Wings of Liberty” Blizzard Entertainment spent what seemed like an eternity on the sequel to the 1998 hit. It felt so right killing Zerglings again after such a lapse between the two games. “Starcraft II” has amazing graphics, but the game can run on seemingly any computer purchased during the last five years with a tweak here or there.

The balance in the multiplayer is far and away the best in the industry, as seemingly every unit has a weakness that another can exploit. That chess game of strength versus weakness is what makes this game so exciting and so unpredictable.

People all around the world will play this game for the next 12 years until Starcraft III is released.

2010 brought great additions to the game world, a lot more than those on this list, and there is no doubt that 2011 will be the same.

While there are sure to be original Intellectual Properties that will surprise, it seems that the year in gaming will be dominated by the slew of additions to current video game franchises like “Portal 2” and “Gears of War 3,” and I’m all for it.

What do you think of the solar panel parking lot?

Editor’s note: ’Gade Feedback is a feature that asks students their opinion on various topics.

Compiled by: Rip Staff

Angel Gonzalez, hardware engineering: “It provides good shade.”

Asalia Perez, undeclared: “It’s good to have because it saves the school energy.”

Kurtis Halburn, construction tech: “It’s cool because it saves time if you have class on that side of campus..”

The Renegade Rip Winner of the 2003 and 2008 JACC Pacesetter Award The Renegade Rip is produced by Bakersfield College journalism classes, printed by Bakersfield Envelope & Printing Co. Inc., and circulated on Wednesdays during the fall and spring semesters.

The newspaper is published under the auspices of the Kern Community College District Board of Trustees, but sole responsibility for its content rests with student editors.

The Rip is a member of the Journalism Association of Community Colleges and the California Newspaper Publishers Association.

Editorial Board

Staff

Editor in Chief..........................Michael Wafford Opinions Editor..............................Julian Moore Sports Editor..........................................Zak Cowan Copy Editor ...........................................James Licea Photo Editor....................................Nathan Wilson Features Editor............................Gregory D. Cook Online Editor................................Annie Stockman Production Editor......................Samantha Garrett

Reporters: Monica Bolger, Martin Chang, Andrea Delanty, Chrystal Fortt, Breanna Gray, Kevin Foster, Tawny Jamison, Keith Kaczmarek, Tyler McGinty, Mateo M. Melero, Michael Morrow, Esteban Ramirez, Cristal Rodriguez, James Timothy, Amber T. Troupe, Sandra Ward, Brandon Whited, Brian N. Willhite, Michael Williams Photographers: Brandon Barraza, Kayla Broadhag, Joe Cota, Ryan George, Megan Luecke

Adviser.......................................................Danny Edwards

Richard Rivera, business: “It’s good because it contributes to a free energy source.”

Sarah Johnson, liberal studies: “It’s good for the school but it was thought out very well.”

Write The Rip

Letters should not exceed 300 words, must be accompanied by a signature and the letter writer’s identity must be verified.

The Rip reserves the right to edit letters, however, writers will be given the opportunity to revise lengthy or unacceptable submissions.

If an organization submits a letter as a group, it must be signed by only one person, either the leader of the organization or the letter writer. Pen names are not allowed and anonymous letters will not be published.

How to reach us

-Address: Bakersfield College, 1801 Panorama Drive, Bakersfield, CA 93305 -Phone: (661) 395-4324 -Web site: www.therip.com

Reviews

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The Renegade Rip www.therip.com

Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

Statham fixes up the big-screen as ‘The Mechanic’

By Breanna Gray Reporter

The remake of the ‘72 film, “The Mechanic,” stands alone as thrilling and action-packed, but when compared to the classic it falls short.

Jason Statham ovie plays the eview lead role of Arthur Bishop, who is an emotionless hit man with good intentions.

Once corruption starts within

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the agency he works for, Bishop finds an interest in an old friend’s misguided son, Steve McKenna, played by Ben Foster.

As soon as McKenna starts learning the trade, Bishop’s finetuned methods of assassination start to go astray.

The film is filled with clever and ruthless action scenes and insights into Bishop’s mindset for killing, building a connection to the character.

Many scenes were changed or just cut out from the original in order to integrate new technology and current problems.

The most disappointing change to the film is the personalities of

the main characters.

Charles Bronson originally played Bishop, who was an older, more refined man with high-class tastes, instead of the cold, machine-like muscle man Statham portrays.

The remake depicts McKenna as a foolish man who cannot do anything right and sees the assignments as an outlet for his revenge and anger.

As long as you don’t compare it to the original too much and appreciate it for its more modern take with more extravagant action and up to date characters, it’s worth the trip to the movie theater.

Courtesy of IMDb.com

Jason Statham, as the Mechanic, hangs from a building during a scene from the film.

Nike and Zigs inspire ‘swag’

By Julian Moore and Michael Morrow

Opinions Editor/Reporter

LeBron 8 Love him or hate him, LeBron James typically has one of the best selling shoes on the market.

And this year is no different with the Nike LeBron 8.

There are currently two versions of hoe eview the shoe out with v five different color schemes.

The biggest snag on these sneakers is the $160 price tag.

But if you can fork over the money, it is definitely worth the purchase.

Whether it was walking or playing ball, the feel in the shoes is something I noticed immediately. The v1, with its weight, feels like cement at first but soon it’s almost empowering.

Definitely something low post players would love as much as a drop-step. There is little-to-no impact when coming down off the glass with the great cushion system. Just like James’ Cavalier jerseys, these shoes are on fire.

T h e hoe eview l i g h t e r shoes, on the other v hand, are perfect for guards to keep the crossover quick and deadly.

They’re light and much less clunky, which makes running in these shoes feel effortless. As

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S R 2

much as I love the NBA-meetsMarty McFly look of these shoes, I am not sold on them being a mainstream ball shoe. I just can’t bring myself to say this version leaves the competition in the dust like the v1 does.

The v1 comes in four colors, uses Nike’s Flywire technology and has a heavy frame for a basketball shoe at 17.7 ounces.

Much of the shoe’s weight comes from the foam cushion on the inside, which is actually a memory foam design.

Whereas the sleek and slim v2 is a more stripped down version with a clear outer mesh for a more breathable feel. But the most important feature of the shoe is the lighter weight (16.6 ounces). Nike also puts their Flywire design at the forefront with the core left exposed.

Each shoe provides great ankle and arch support but the v1 is a far more complete basketball shoe and delivers on the “swag” for the hefty price.

ZigTech The Reebok ZigTech and new ZigTech Slash is an all-around trainhoe eview ing shoe made for ig ech true comfort and is easily the most comfortable shoe I have ever worn.

The “energy drink for your feet” really does give you a boost of energy while doing whatever you need to get done in your kicks. Whether it’s running to build endurance or stay in good

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Video game delivers with gore and thrills

By James Timothy Reporter You wake up, disoriented. There’s a light shining in your eyes. Squinting to try to make ideo ame out the source, eview y o u h e a r garbled words that become slowly clearer until you realize that someone is repeating your name. “Isaac, Isaac. We’ve got to get you out of this straitjacket. Isaac… can you hear me?” The voice pleads. “Isaac, you’re in terrible danger.”

The orderly in front of you stops shaking your shoulders momentarily to claw frantically at the restraints that bind your arms to your torso. Before you can think, the orderly throws his head back and lets out a bloodcurdling scream as some unidentifiable claw-like appendage tears through his chest, stopping only inches from your face. You’re immediately covered in an obscene amount of blood as whatever is brutally massacring the man begins to take control of his body, stretching it into hideous proportions.

You thrust your head forward and hit the monstrosity as it undulates and writhes, and it falls to the floor where the screams blend with the noises of blood spattering the walls, the ceiling, you.

Stumbling forward, you look for something to reassure you, you’re not next. Then ghostly

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Annie Stockman / The Rip

LeBron v2 (left), Reebok ZigTech (center), LeBron v1 (right) all available at your local Foot Locker stores. condition, walking around campus all day, or playing basketball, ZigTech by Reebok has got it right. And for a little over 100 dollars, you get maximum productivity out of the ZigTechs.

I spent a day visiting three four-year schools I was interested in and decided to take the ZigTech Slash out for the trip. I drove to L.A. from in town and walked the three campuses without even a thought of my feet being uncomfortable.

In fact, the ZigTechs performed so well, I felt I had the energy to just continue to walk around the city and enjoy the sites.

I also tested the ZigTech Slash out on the local courts around town. Usually, after about fiveto-six games back-to-back, I start to ache pretty bad in the knees and legs. But with the Slash, I confidently put in a few more games with a boost of energy throughout.

ZigTechs come in many colors

at your local sneaker stores, but if those colors don’t suit you, the Reebok website allows you to customize either shoe in various different colors.

ZigTech by Reebok prides themselves on the motto “more train with less pain” and has soft padded insoles and a soft padded lining that completely surrounds the heel which Reebok says slows down the rate of torque your heel receives with other shoes.

The zig-zag shaped sole of the shoe absorbs the impact of your heel to the ground and transfers the impact into the energy you receive.

And the light-foam sole keeps the shoe a lighter shoe to run with. The ZigTech reduces wear and tear on key leg muscles by 20 percent over time.

I’ve had my ZigTechs for a month and I’m not sure what good it has done for me, as far as preventing wear and tear, but as a shoe, it exceeds expectations.

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green shapes collect at the center of the screen, resolving themselves into one word: Run. So begins “Dead Space 2,” Visceral Games’ sequel to the popular “Dead Space.” Despite the fact that most rats have a greater attention span than me, and that I am not a great fan of the genre and the current craze with First-person shooter games such as the Halo and Call Of Duty series, I nevertheless found myself drawn into this moody world thanks to the tight linear game play, intuitive controls, and almost hysterical amount of violence.

The game begins with you controlling Isaac Clarke, who has woken from a coma in the medical facility of a space station orbiting Saturn.

Adding to the already delightful scene of blood-spewing psychopathic invertebrates, Isaac has the additional pleasure of suffering from a deep psychosis and is spiraling into the depths of madness.

The thing that stands out the most about “Dead Space 2” is the fear you experience. The developers have done an outstanding job creating an atmosphere filled with dread. You constantly hear cries of terror from the next room over, and rounding a corner is done slowly, with a quickening pulse while you psychologically prepare yourself.

You’re never prepared though, and the scares are frequent.

Play it in the dark, at night, when everything is quiet for the best effect, I promise I won’t mock your girlish shrieks.

Expresso Cafe has warm hospitality and offers student/faculty discounts

By Cristal Rodriguez Reporter

The Expresso Café located on Mt Vernon Avenue, across the street, from the Renegade Memorial Stadium, is an incredible place to go and relax.

Located estaurant where the Supreme eview Bean used to be.

They have many selections when it comes to desserts and drinks such as: cakes, bagels, cookies, candy, tea, coffee (hot or cold), soda, juices and if you want something they don’t offer, you can create your own.

They also have sandwiches and soups that are very delicious.

The prices are very affordable for the quality of their foods and drinks.

The look for the Expresso

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Brandon Barraza / The Rip

The Expresso Cafe is located across the street from Bakersfield College at 3601 Mount Vernon Ave. and is in the former location of the Supreme Bean.

“What is an upright desk or stand with a slanted top used to hold a text at the proper height for a lecturer called?”

Editor’s note: BC Brains is a feature that asks students a question to test their knowledge of all things trivial.

Compiled by: Rip Staff

sweet.

I ended up enjoying a delicious ice blended drink made with white chocolate and whipped cream.

It is a very welcoming place.

Expresso Café is a locally owned business, not corporate, they see each other as a great big family.

This café is very healthy and the bakers make everything in the morning so that all their products are fresh. Almost all of what they offer, as far as pastries, is made with whole-wheat flour.

All of their products are local and made here in California.

They try to stay green at all times and are very big with recycling and helping out the community, plus all of their foods are organic.

Expresso Café has been open for two months; their hours are Monday through Thursday from 7 a.m. till 5 p.m. and Friday through Saturday 7 a.m. until 2 p.m., and are closed on Sunday.

Brent Elmore, Biology: “A lectern.”

Devin Gibson, Psychology: “A podium.”

Kevin Sagadl, Criminal Justice: “A podium.”

Nathan Jones, Criminal Justice: “A podium.”

Shannon Holland, Nursing: “A teacher’s stand.”

Correct answer: A lectern.

BC B rains

Café is very sophisticated and fancy. Their idea when creating this café was to bring a San Francisco coffee shop to Bakersfield and not be so rushed.

Starbucks doesn’t even come close to this café when it comes to the décor.

This place is very elegant and has everything you will need to relax and study for class or just to hangout with friends or coworkers. It is also a great place to have work meetings.

They offer the daily newspaper and free WI-FI for all its customers.

As a bonus, all Bakersfield College students and staff get 10 percent off their purchase. It’s an all around great environment and has great customer service.

Being a first time customer I had no idea what to choose from on the menu, they told me they could make me what I would like as long as they had the ingredients, they were very friendly and

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BC student uses dance moves for inspiration

By Breanna Gray Reporter

College students can relate to the importance of having an expressive outlet for regaining focus and letting go of stress. Maui native and Bakersfield College freshman Lena Savoeun, who goes by DJ, is 21 years old and dance has been his form of escape for the past 16 years.

Savoeun channeled the negative energy in his life and taught himself how to dance at a young age by watching Michael Jackson’s music videos. When he was five years old, he found that dancing helped him cope while his mother suffered from alcoholism.

But it wasn’t long before turmoil struck even harder. “I quit dancing for like a year because I was going through a hard time after my dad had passed away,” he said, “then when I was seven I started dancing again. I took it serious and also just messed around.”

Only two years after his father’s death, social services took Savoeun and his siblings away from his alcoholic mother. They brought him to California where he was separated from his siblings.

He was placed in the foster program and was bounced from family to family. “It was pretty rough. I stayed with about six foster families,” he said. “They just couldn’t ever really be there for me like regular parents. They just got their money, and that’s how I saw it.”

The transition was difficult.

Savoeun had to learn English and how to adjust to a life that never seemed to be stable. But dance was always there for him. He said that he would dance, “just to forget about stress and forget about everything.”

The most difficult obstacle for him to deal with was the sense of never belonging. “I’m scared to get closer to people then lose them. I try to make a family, but I know what’s going to happen.

I’ve been through it too much,” he said.

photos by gregory d. cook / The Rip

Bakersfield College student Lena “DJ” Savoeun practices his dance moves at The Gate recreation center Jan. 27.

Savoeun credits dancing as giving him the inspiration to overcome much of the hardships of his life.

He enrolled in BC this semester to become a paramedic and is currently taking general education classes after finding support from his friend David Balderas.

Savoeun was having difficulties with housing when he reconnected with his old friend. He now lives with Balderas, who he considers the only one to be true family.

He dances whenever he gets the chance. He doesn’t care if it’s alone, with his crew, at school, or anywhere he feels the inspiration.

Every week he dances at The Shindig with Stage One Crew where he goes by the name Bboy Maui. The Shindig is a part of a church organization that al-

lows young people to hangout and show off their skills in a safe environment. It is also where he gives lessons in break dancing and practices with his crew.

His dream in life is to make something out of his dancing. He said that if he could compete in a dance contest with his crew and take home first place, he would consider that the greatest success.

He believes that he is able to overcome everything in his past by staying positive about what may come in the future. He said, “I don’t mope around and dwell on things. I just move on with my life because I know that there are more things out there to see and to learn.”

Parks seeks to entertain crowds with hypnosis show

By Sandra G. Ward Reporter

Brian Parks, a self-proclaimed student of gelotology, the study of laughter, has brought his new comedic hypnosis show to town.

He will be performing at the Replay Lounge & Grill in February, in addition to a one-night performance at The Center of Improv Advancement at the Ice House.

Parks believes laughter is the best medicine and focuses on making sure people laugh during his shows. “When people’s minds are just adrift, that’s when you get some of your funniest stuff,” said Parks.

Parks has been a longtime veteran of stage, stand-up comedy and improvisation since 1973.

He has even done some serious acting on stage and hosted a radio talk show in the ’90s for KNZR. “I have been around stage and theater for as long as I can remember,” said Parks.

Parks learned the technique of hypnosis and earned a certificate as a hypnotherapist from the Psycho Neurology Foundation in 1985.

While practicing as a massage therapist, Parks began using hypnosis to enhance the therapeutics of massage treatments. “People have told me that the effects of the massage treatment lasted much longer with the combined hypnosis to the treatment,” Parks said.

After spending much time performing and becoming accustomed to interacting with the public, Parks took a night job for about six or seven years that prevented him from that interaction.

“I enjoy working with people and

Gregory D. Cook / The Rip

Comic hypnotist Brian Parks demonstrates the infectious power of laughter at the Replay Lounge on Jan. 26. doing hypnosis. And I like being in front of a crowd and making people laugh,” said Parks. “That is what I do.”

Eventually, Parks decided to get back into doing something that he enjoyed, being among crowds of people and making them laugh. Parks took workshop classes in Las Vegas on mastering the use of hypnosis in performing to large crowds.

Now, he is attempting to bring those skills, along with audience participation, together to perform

for audiences in Bakersfield.

Shows are scheduled for Feb. 2, 9 and 18 at the Replay Lounge on Buck Owens Boulevard at 8 p.m.

On the 18th, special guest George “The Giant” McArthur will be performing with him. On Feb. 4, Parks will be performing at The Center for Improv Advancement at the Ice House on Chester Avenue.

Ticket prices start at $12 at the door. Discounts are available online at www.brianparks.com.

Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

Sports

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Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

BC baseball team ready for opener

By Julian Moore Opinion Editor

The Bakersfield College baseball team has been holding night practices in various weather conditions the last few days in preparation for its opening tournament at home.

BC will be hosting a tournament to open the season on Feb. 3 at 7 p.m. against Irvine Valley.

In the meantime, the Renegades are preparing for the fog and damp weather but are hoping not to get it.

“We haven’t yet exposed our players to playing in the foggy, damp, wet, cold weather, and with the potential of that happening Thursday night when we open up, is why we’re starting now,” said head coach Tim Painton.

The Renegades are hoping that last season’s pitching will carry over. The entire pitching staff looks to be the strength for the Renegades as seven of its ten pitchers are returning sophomores this season.

“We return an awful lot on the mound, and it’s been very good throughout the fall for us,” said Painton.

“I think going into this, we return more pitching than we do position players and certainly that should be the strength of our ball club.”

BC’s pitching staff was 14-8 in conference last year and Painton will look to sophomore Bryan Maxwell to head the rotation.

“Maxwell obviously had an outstanding freshman year for us a year ago,” he said. “He’s definitely a guy who is going to start on the mound for us.”

Maxwell pitched in 101 innings while the next closest player to him had 76.

“We also have Marcos Reyna, who was with us two years ago.

He sat out last year with an injury, so we’re certainly looking to

him. He was a 14th round draft pick two years ago,” he said.

Painton will also be depending on Travis Gifford and Joe Neilson in the rotation. Gifford, a sophomore out of North High, threw out of the bullpen last year and will be asked to do more this season. While Neilson will be going back to the rotation where he was 5-0 as a starter.

“He pitched well for us, pitched on the postseason for us and had some experience, and is a kid that just doesn’t beat himself. So right now it looks like he’ll probably be in the starting rotation for us.”

Rounding out the bullpen will be sophomore Chris Rodriguez, who will be the Renegades’ closer this season.

Rodriguez, a Sanger High graduate, was a back-up third baseman last season who is rather new to pitching.

“What we saw out of Chris was tremendous arm strength and he was behind a little bit offensively last year. We sat down at the end of last season and I was going to approach him with the idea of pitching, but he approached me with it. He’s fairly new at pitching but he’s somebody who will run the baseball up there at 91, 92 miles an hour. So we’re looking at him to be our closer, and I think he will do a very good job in that role,” Painton said.

Along with the returning players in the bullpen, the Renegades bring back infielder David Pennington. Last season, Pennington began the season bouncing around the left side of the infield until he was moved to second in an attempt to get more offense out of the position. This season Pennington could be sharing time at shortstop and the outfield.

“Our depth in the infield is very good, we do not have the same amount of depth in the outfield. Because of Pennington’s versatility and athleticism he’s

able to move and do some other things,” he said.

“We have to see how things play out, but today he’s our shortstop.”

This move is a direct result from the players who transferred at the end of last year.

“We lost three very good ones, obviously with [Imaad] Nuriddin, [Andrew] Letourneau, and [Sam] Westendorf. We lost three extremely fast outfielders; three guys that provided an awful lot of offense,” he said.

“We’re just a new look out there with inexperience, and we don’t run as well as we did a year ago.”

Pennington does run well, that’s really the one tool he can take out there that we may lack a bit. But we’ll just have to see, right now he’s our shortstop.”

BC will also have a new catcher behind the plate as Dylan Nasiatka transferred out to Hofstra University. But Painton doesn’t feel that there will be a “feelingout” period between the pitchers and catchers.

“I don’t think that chemistry is going to be a problem. We have Nathan Ketelhut behind the plate, who was with us last year.

Brock Allen was a redshirt for us last year, so he’s been around our pitching staff. Brian Haney is another returning catcher, who just broke his ankle so he’s out.

But I don’t think we lose a whole lot from a pitcher-catcher standpoint. We lose a lot offensively with Dylan Nasiatka leaving, but I think the defensive aspect of the catching position is in good hands,” he said.

Another task the Renegades have is to fill the heart of the order after the departures of Nasiatka and Art Charles.

“If we open up tonight, which we don’t, freshman Elijah Trail would be somewhere in the lineup. He really, really played well from about the middle of the fall

Annie Stockman / The Rip

Renegades shortstop David Pennington bunts during practice at Gerry Collis Field on Jan. 31. Pennington could be rotating all over the field as the season moves foward. on. Another would be redshirt freshman, Mike Spingola, who had gone out of town and came back.

“Jacob Nielson will be somewhere in the middle of that lineup. They’re all guys who just give you consistent at-bats.”

Painton also spoke on the different dynamic the offense looks

to be.

“I don’t know that we’re going to be the same type of offensive team, we don’t have the speed that we had last year. But I think we do other things better than last year,” he said.

Every new season is exciting; we’re excited to get it going,” he said. “We’ve got a lot of new

faces. We lost pretty much every position player that started every day for us a year ago. But that’s the challenge with any new season.

“I think everybody is excited to get going and get on the field and see somebody in a different uniform. We’re tired of intersquading and seeing each other.”

Men’s basketball continues letdown

By Michael Morrow Reporter

Brandon Barraza / The Rip

Marshall Lange takes the ball around a Citrus College player during a game Jan. 29.

During the break, the Bakersfield College men’s basketball team has posted a record of 4-9 and 1-6 in the Western State Conference South Division.

Overall the Renegades are 7-15 and are looking at their first losing season under head coach Rich Hughes.

Hughes and the Renegades have had four-straight 20-win seasons to go with five-consecutive appearances in the regional playoffs. But the playoffs won’t happen for the Renegades this season. If they win out, they will be tied for third in conference.

In the past five seasons under Hughes, BC has gone 119-44 for a 73 percent winning percentage.

With this season included, the percentage drops to 68.

On Jan. 29, the Renegades fell victim to rival Citrus College by 17 points, 91-74. And the losses don’t get any better. BC has lost by 25 at Santa Monica, 12 at College of the Canyons, and by 10 to both West L.A. at home and at Citrus.

Hughes attributes the Renegades troubles to both lack of size up front and the defensive play of the team.

“Our problem from the beginning of the year has been defense and rebounding. We don’t rebound well and we don’t defend when we need to defend. That’s been our Achilles’ heel all year,” Hughes said. “We’re not going to overpower teams with our size, so we’re going to have to really work hard and really be good at

brandon barraza / The Rip

Head Coach Rich Hughes talks to his team during their game against Citrus College on Jan. 29. BC lost the game 91-74 and now has a record of 7-15. our rotations on defense, and be really good at outworking people for rebounds and we just haven’t done that consistently.”

Hughes spoke on some of the other problems the team is having.

“For us right now, it’s all about energy. In the last couple of games, we’ve played 15-20 minutes of high-energy basketball and we don’t quite get that.

We need 40 minutes of playing hard and energetic basketball.

The things that we teach them in practice they have to translate it to the game and that’s not always happening.

“When it happens in the game we’re having success, but when they don’t put it together we struggle. Those couple of minutes of a game when we have a lapse, that’s the difference in the game, especially when you’re not as big as some of the other teams,” said Hughes. “At Santa Monica we had a little twominute lapse where they were so good that we made mistakes and next thing you know we’re down ten.

“And we’re not talented

enough firepower-wise offensively to overcome those mistakes on defense.

“We’ve had teams in the past where we’d have lapses on defense, but we had such good offensive players that we could still find a way to get it done.

“This year’s team has to play a pretty dang good 40 minutes to beat teams that may have a little more talent than we do,” he said.

Hughes continued with the offensive ineptitude of the team.

“This is the lowest scoring

team I’ve had here, by far. The team knows that there will be nights where we’re going to be good offensively and others where we struggle, so we can’t count on that.

“We have to hang our hat on the defensive end and rebounding. We’re getting better, but we’re still not there yet.”

BC has five games left in the regular season and up next for the Renegades are games at West L.A. on Feb. 2 and home against Canyons on Feb. 5.

TUTOR

English & Accounting John: 319-9480 BC and UCLA grad

Sports

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Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

Column

Open Mike

Megan Luecke / The Rip

Condors forward Eric Lizon (23) trips over goaltender Michael Ouzas of the ECHL All-Stars team in the pre-game skills shoot-out Jan 26.

Condors face all-star team

By James Licea Copy Editor

The 19th annual East Coast Hockey League All-star Classic was hosted at Bakersfield’s Rabobank Arena on Jan. 26. The ECHL All-stars won 9-3 leaving the crowd of Condors fans upset, but unsurprised.

An arena of 7,397 hockey fans attended the game to see the Condors go against the ECHL All-stars. Many Bakersfield residents came to cheer on their home team. Others traveled from various locations to see the 2011 Allstar Classic.

This year’s game took an unusual format from most ECHL All-star Classics.

Instead of both teams being groups of all-stars, the Bakersfield Condors went against the best of the ECHL. Prior to the game, a meet and greet was held at the Bakersfield Marriot ballroom on Truxtun Avenue, Jan. 25.

Fans had a chance to chat with players, get autographs, as well as view the Stanley Cup and the ECHL Championship Trophy, the Patrick J. Kelly Cup. The Stanley Cup was also taken to the Pediatrics Unit at Memorial Hospital earlier in the day.

During the game the trophies were on display at the Condors photo booth.

Fans lined up to get photographs standing next to the two trophies.

Various skill competitions took place at the opening of the event including, fastest skater, king of the shoot-out, hardest shot, and shooting accuracy.

After the opening competitions, the

singing of the Canadian and American national anthems began the game.

ECHL All-star Mark Arcobello made the first goal 2:06 minutes into the game. This set a precedent for the rest of the period. All-stars Chris Langkow, and Ryan Ginand made two more goals in the first period. The Condors made no goals.

The game being held in Condorstown, some attendees were filled with contempt that their team was playing a group of All-star players. Others were simply joyous at the fact that they got to witness an all-star Classic in their hometown, along with getting a look at the Stanley Cup. At the end of the first period, Condors fan Matt Elliot spoke of the control the all-stars had over the Condors.

“At first I didn’t think they would [dominate], seeing how they’re just a bunch of different teams thrown together into one,” he said.

“I figured they might struggle a little bit, not having really worked together, but it’s looking like they have a bit of an advantage.”

Bakersfield Condor’s remained goalless in the game until 1:28 minutes into the second period with a goal by Joel Broda, assisted by Barry Goers and Guillaume Lefebvre.

Condors fans cheered in the audience loyally at every attempt and completion of a goal and even took part in a massive wave that spread throughout the arena. Jeers were shouted by the crowd toward the all-star players with each of their many goals.

Megan luecke / The Rip

Condors forward J.M. Beaudoin (27) defends against ECHL All-Star defenseman Josh Godfrey (2) from South Carolina on Jan 26.

The game continued in the same direction for most of the following two periods.

Two more goals were made by the all-stars in the second period and four in the third period. Some points in the game gave Condor fans a bit of hope, gaining two points in the second and one more in the third.

Actor Kevin Connolly made an appearance between periods along with Texas Rangers Pitcher and former Bakersfield College Renegade, Colby Lewis.

Pascal Morency scored the second point for the Condors with assists from Vyacheslav Trukhno and Brad Snetsinger at 17:32 minutes in the second period. The last point for the condors was

scored by Joel Broda 4:16 minutes into the third period, unassisted.

Stockton Thunder fan Jim Blair, from Lodi, traveled to see the all-star game and expressed his puzzlement about the format, “It’s something different for me to see one team against the all-stars.

When we had the all-stars game, we had all all-stars.

“It’s different. I’m glad I came, so far.”

Condors fan, Valarie Carrillo said, “it was exciting to see the best of other teams come and play against our team.”

Carrillo felt that despite the loss, it was not unfair to put the Condors against a team of all-stars. “Our team is good; I think they could hold their own.”

With Super Bowl XLV being Sunday, football fans are excited about the matchup of two storied teams.

The Pittsburgh Steelers and the Green Bay Packers have had multiple championships and multiple Super Bowl wins. But this season the Michael Morrow Steel City will walk away with their seventh Lombardi trophy, putting them two ahead of the San Francisco 49ers and the Dallas Cowboys.

Growing up in Chicago, I hated the Bears and got into the sport watching Brett Favre the gunslinger break just about every possible passing record available for quarterbacks. Naturally, you would think I was a Packer fan and would pick them to win it all this year. But the reason I think they won’t is because the Packers haven’t felt the wrath of how swiftly and thoroughly karma can come back to bite you.

After dumping Favre three years ago, the Pack went ahead with Aaron Rogers at quarterback and tried to put the whole retired-unretired mess behind them. Meanwhile, Favre wanted to be released so that he could join the team of his liking, but instead the Pack did what was best for them and traded him to the Jets.

What a way to treat a record-shattering veteran. Aside from the debacle with the Jets and the retirement quandaries, Favre has been a model player for the league and I believe Favre will retire for good. And that bad karma won’t allow the Packers to win the title this year.

The Steelers have a bit of karma working on their side. To start the season, many league fans counted Pittsburgh out, when two-time Super Bowl winning quarterback Ben Roethlisberger was suspended for four games after allegations of rape surfaced yet again.

On defense, the NFL’s rule implementation cost linebacker James Harrison the largest fines on the season and made Harrison contemplate retirement.

For all the doubts the Steelers have had about Roethlisberger and for the fact that Harrison would like to stick it to the commissioners office for being told to change the way he plays the game, the Steelers have overcome major adversity and will be ready for this game.

Not only will they be ready, but the “us against the world” mentality will start to seep in and Pittsburgh will be on top of their game and dominate the Super Bowl.

My last key component to why the Black and Yellow will hoist number seven is the experience factor. Green Bay has two players that have played in a Super Bowl – defensive back Charles Woodson and defensive tackle Ryan Pickett – both failed to get a Super Bowl ring. The Steelers have been there before recently and have 25 players that have played in the Super Bowl.

The Steelers have a tremendous advantage and you just can’t bet against that.

BC softball team takes first game against Taft

By Kevin Foster Reporter

Last Thursday the Bakersfield College softball team went on the road for the first game of the season against Taft College and won 7-0.

Freshmen pitcher Jessica Simpson, Julie Estep, and Annissa Carrendar combined for a one-hitter.

Laura Fox, Brittney Messer, and Jazmin Irvin all had two hits.

Infielder Danielle Ayer was injured during the game.

“As I was sliding into home plate I sprained my ankle. It’s not too bad, the trainer said it’s only mild, but it still hurts,” Ayer said. “I should be able to play in the next game.”

Head Coach Sandi Taylor is confident in her team’s improvements over the offseason.

“We have been in a bit of a rut, but we have a lot of left-handed speed, depth at pitching, and we did a lot of team bonding in the offseason,” said Coach Sandi Taylor.

“We will play every game our hardest and hope the winning comes our way.”

Freshman catcher Kara Frankhouser commented on the team’s transition from last year.

“With only four sophomores and the rest freshman you’d think this is a rebuilding year, but in our case we have all crossed paths during either club or high school ball,” Frankhouser said. “Like our practice shirts say ‘New year, New team, Same Dream.’

“We host the state finals here and I definitely think we can be a part of it.”

The three returners are third baseman Fox, outfielder Courtney McCormack, and pitcher Taylor Ward. Fox was second all-team Western State Conference last season.

One of the non-returners that Taylor was enthusiastic about was former Wichita State player BreAnna Brown.

Brown had a .238 batting average and three home runs for the Shockers in 2009 before transferring for personal reasons.

“I expect to bring my knowledge about [Division I] softball to the girls and help them all become better players by pushing them harder,” Brown said.

The team will host a double header against San Diego City this Friday, which is the one-year anniversary of the softball stadium being open.

“If you like fast-paced softball and speed then come watch our girls play,” said Taylor.

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Women continue to push for playoffs

By Michael Morrow Reporter

The Bakersfield College women’s basketball team picked up wins three through seven on the season all in conference.

After what looked like another tough losing season for the women, the Renegades have pulled to 5-3 in the Western State Conference South Division after beating Citrus College 65-61 on Jan. 29.

In nonleague games to start the season, the Renegades were 2-9 and playoffs looked grim. Now the Renegades are 7-12 overall and 5-3 in the WSC South.

Gabi Morales, a freshman forward, mentioned what the difference was between league and nonleague games.

“Our team just finally picked it up and started playing together,” she said. “All of our hard work is paying off.

Morales is second in league in scoring with a 17.1 points per game average and led the Renegades in the win against Citrus with 14 points, 13 rebounds, six blocks and six assists. Morales talked about the individual numbers and accomplishments.

“I don’t care about all that stuff, because I couldn’t do any of it without my team,” said Morales.

Up next for the Renegades, is a game at West L.A. (1-6 in WSC South) on Feb. 2 and home against Canyons (7-0 in WSC South) on Feb. 5. For a sure shot into the playoffs, BC would need

Brandon Barraza / The Rip

Renegades forward Claudia Gonzalez hits the ground after a first half drive to the basket Jan. 29. The Renegades defeated Citrus 65-61. to win out through the remaining five regular-season games and hope for some losses for Canyons and Citrus.

Without those losses, BC

will still need to maximize their win total and try to get a second place finish in conference in order to be selected by a committee.

Morales hopes for the best when it comes to making the playoffs and believes “getting into the playoffs would be exciting.”

Brandon Barraza / The Rip

Bakersfield College point guard Dianna Roseburr turns the corner on the defender on her way to the basket in a game at BC Jan. 29. Roseburr had 14 points against Citrus.

Swim teams start off season with WSC relays The Bakersfield College men’s and women’s swimming teams are preparing for the Western State Conference relays, their first competition, which will take place in LA Valley on Feb. 18.

The womoundup en’s team finished third overall in the conference last year, with the men’s only finishing seventh.

The team’s coach, Charlie Pike, is focused on getting the men to make a jump in those standings this season, and for the women’s team to finish in the top three for their second straight year.

“I am sure that we are going to have a huge improvement on the guys’ team,” Pike said.

Another thing that Pike and his team are striving for this season is to get some swimmers to qualify for state, as last year not one made the cut.

For now the team is doing what Pike is looking for out of them.

“They’ve been putting in the effort,” he said. “And if they keep showing up like they have been

R

Annie Stockman / The Rip

Katja Thacker of Bakersfield College returns an opponents backhand at a scrimmage against College of the Sequoias on Jan. 29. The teams’ first match is Feb. 24.

Tennis ready for season

By Tyler McGinty Reporter

The men’s tennis team at Bakersfield College has a familiar face leading it this season: Rob Slaybaugh the new head coach.

After Regina Csibi-Krueger left to coach tennis at Cal. State Bakersfield, Slaybaugh came back after a three-year break from coaching tennis at BC. The team still has until Feb. 3 to prepare for their first official match, and they’re still playing practice matches against each other and training to see which order they’ll play in for the singles matches.

Only four sophomores came back including the top two players from last year, Nick Jacobs and James Griffin, which makes over half of the team, new players.

One of these new players is Tim Donaldson, who placed third in the valley last year as part of a doubles team.

Along with returning sophomore James Griffin, who made it to state last year with his doubles partner, BC has two experienced doubles players on the team this season.

Even though the team is most-

ly freshmen, Slaybaugh is optimistic about this season saying, “This year’s team looks stronger than last year’s.”

Gene Lundquist, the coach for the BC women’s team, is “enthusiastic and cautiously optimistic” about the 2011 season.

The women’s team has five returning sophomores and, like the men’s team, they are hard at work determining the singles order before their first game.

One of the new freshmen is Denisa Hronadkova, an exchange student from Slovakia who just graduated from Frontier High School.

Lundquist said the team has plenty of strong players, and they’d have to be to live up to last season’s team.

Although they only placed fourth in the conference, the team was nominated for a Pepsi Scholarship Trophy, and the team had an average GPA of 3.29. “We’re real proud of that,” says Lundquist. “In addition to being athletes, they’re good students.”

The men’s team’s first official match will be at BC on Feb. 3 against Fresno City College, and the women’s teams first official match will be Feb. 24 at Ventura College.

… they’ll get there.”

Track and Field The track and field program is currently in preparation for the upcoming season.

Dave Frickel, the men’s track and field team’s coach, is happy with the turnout of the team this year.

“We’re looking at probably between 35 and 40 for the men and probably about 25 women, so that’s a pretty good-sized group,” said Frickel.

According to Frickel, the team is currently working on getting all the athletes eligible before they get into real competition, as well as getting the team into the shape they need to be.

He is looking forward to watching how the team can progress.

“I think we have some talent out there, so we’ll see what happens as the season goes.”

The women’s track and field team finished third overall in the Western State Conference last year, and last finished on top in 2007.

The men’s team ended the 2010 season fourth overall and last won the conference in 2000.

Men’s Golf The golf season is here and there are big expectations for this year’s team.

With two of the better golfers from last year returning in Rufie Fessler and Rich Gilkey, the expectations are high.

Coach Bill Kalivas is expecting the team to challenge for the conference championship and to get the whole team into the regional, which is near the end of the season.

Some of the players that have impressed Kalivas so far are Dillon Russell, who had just finished his term in the military, his brother Daniel Russell and Tavaris Triplett have impressed with their abilities.

“I hope that we can have the top three best individual scores,” Kalivas said. “For them to putt good and for them to hit the fairway good.”

They play their first match on Feb. 7 at Canyons.

Eyes of the Rip

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Wednesday, Februar y 2, 2011

Dinner

Gregory D. Cook / The Rip

Playboy chef caters BC fundraising dinner event

A single rose in a champagne flute serves as a simple but elegant centerpiece for a table at the Sterling Silver Dinner in the Bakersfield College cafeteria Jan. 29.

Joe Cota / The Rip

This dessert was one of the many dishes prepared by Chef William Bloxsom-Carter.

By Mateo M. Melero Reporter

Attendees to the third annual Bakersfield College Sterling Silver Dinner on Jan. 29 were shuttled from their cars in golf carts by student assistants into the lavishly decorated campus cafeteria, where throughout the night they feasted upon the culinary delights of Playboy Mansion Chef William Bloxsom-Carter and the students and staff of the BC culinary arts program.

Music accompanied the dinner and fine wines chosen by event coordinator and BC Foundation head, Mike Stepanovich, were served.

Throughout the night Bloxsom-Carter interacted with the culinary students, offering advice, stressing desired procedure, and offering words of encouragement as the students served the food they prepared.

“You guys are the professionals, they’re the consumers,” said Bloxsom-Carter. “They’re going to say ‘What am I getting here tonight’ and Chef Davis brings up a very valid point – you’re here to make that person feel like they’re the only person that matters in your life.”

As the students hustled in and out of the kitchen, they were often offered words of encouragement from Bloxsom-Carter, hearing often, “Smile when you serve the food, it makes it taste better.”

BC culinary student Ainsley Fulton, earlier in the week prior to the event, said, “[Carter] makes you think five times instead of twice.” Bloxsom-Carter also worked with BC culinary students a week before the Sterling Silver Dinner.

During the dinner, BC Chef Suzanne Davis, acting as captain to the front-end servers, spoke on the importance and the rareness of the Sterling Silver event in a student’s curriculum.

“We don’t have any preparation for this kind of event,” said Davis. “Usually we have a contained restaurant, the Renegade

Room, that is the only exposure they have to dining room stuff that they have. It is rare that we ever get an opportunity to do a banquet of this caliber on campus. Once a year, that’s all we get.”

When problems occurred, Bloxsom-Carter initiated solutions. During the serving of the cheese course it was brought to their attention that more cold plates were needed. BC Chef Pat Coyle came into the BC Panorama grill to inquire on the status of the dish.

“You guys about ready to serve that or what?” said Coyle.

“No, you no what, we have plates that are in the walk-in, we need those out, but they’re kind of warm,” responded BloxsomCarter.

“I told them to put them in the freezer real quick,” said Coyle.

The plates were chilled in time and the Shaft Aged Bleu Vein Cheese Plate, with Toasted Marcona Almonds, Port-infused Figs, strawberries, and with Sauternepoached Apricots, were served in appropriate fashion.

“Talking about the plate and the composition of the plate, you have to look at the balance of things as well,” said BloxsomCarter. “We try to go with odd numbers like three strawberries on the plate like we had on the quail dish; we had three mushrooms on the plate; three carrots on the plate. Visually, it’s more pleasing.”

When asked about the nature of working under banquet conditions BC culinary student Olimpo Alvarez said, “It’s actually more relaxed. It’s fun.”

As the night winded down and students began to go home, BC culinary student Aviel Menchaca said, “I learned a lot. It was my first time serving as a college student. It was kind of hectic, but we got through it. It was a fun time. I liked it.”

According to Coyle, the BC culinary program strives to present an environment that is as close as possible to a restaurant, but the Sterling Silver dinner of-

Gregory D. Cook / The Rip

Chef William Bloxsom-Carter, executive chef of the Playboy Mansion, applies a lemongrass glaze to a plate of roasted lamb chop appetizers in the Bakersfield College cafeteria in preparation for the Sterling Silver Dinner fundraiser Jan. 29. Much of the food served at the dinner was raised and grown by BC agricultural students. fers a more unique learning experience.

“In functions like this, we have a lot of students here, but they get to see the presentation, the plating, and the way things are cooked for banquet work. They don’t get to see that every day in the Renegade Room,” Coyle said.

Gregory D. Cook / The Rip

The Bakersfield College cafeteria is transformed for elegant dining for the Sterling Silver Dinner on Jan. 29. The annual dinner serves as a fundraising event for the Bakersfield College Foundation.

Gregory D. Cook / The Rip

Playboy Mansion Chef William Bloxsom-Carter (left) works with Bakersfield College culinary student Domingo Eskandan to prepare a vegetarian dish for guests of the Sterling Silver Dinner in the BC cafeteria Jan. 29.