…hoping you’ll decide to attend!
Slight Intro
By no means intended as the infinite treatise on the Aggie Running Camp (we’ll leave that for the Historians) but intended as an Historical overview for those veteran’s keen on reflection and those relative newcomers who are wondering “What the Hell is this All About and Why Should I (and my family etc.) Attend?” Let it be said that in this, the 25th year of Aggie Running Camp, it seemed fitting to revisit the past 25 years in Timeline fashion to give us appreciation if for nothing else for Endurance! The Camp, as well as the Centipede are the Hallmarks of the Club…forming exclamation marks for the Original Club Philosophy, “The Faster We Run, The Sooner the Fun!!!” More than anything the Camp has served the umbrella purpose of Getting A Bunch of Friends Together, Old & New, to overindulge in several aspects of enjoyment, the main denominator being Running (though Non Runner’s are welcomed warmly) and the second denominator being the enjoyment of Libation (though Non Libators are welcomed as well!)…several of the members reverse the two, but none the less, these are the TWO…..The most important message here is that as a result of the Camp, Lifetime Running Friends and Lifetime Family Friendships have been forged, and in one sentence, THAT my Friends is Why People Continue to Make the Annual Pilgrimage to the Sierras…and why anyone reading this should also get in their car/van/bus/plane and head on up to Proesser Lake this weekend! On with the Show!
1978-1981 Montecito Sequoia Aggie Running Camp
Pony and Patches, owners of Montecito Sequoia Family Camp had a Great Idea…Hire Peanut and Tena (Anex then) to organize & conduct a Running Camp the last two weeks after their Family Camp in the High Sierras outside of Fresno. With recreation including ping pong, swimming, sailing, boating, serving as the backdrop Tena and Peanut invited key speakers (including Joan Ullyot, Joe Henderson, Tom Jordan, etc.) to conduct actual classes. Campers ran 3 times a day way the Hell up in the altitude. Food was served cafeteria style and was excellent (just like nowadays!) Aggies invaded the Final Week and shall we just say changed the complexity of the camp….Sure, a lot of running took place, even races/intervals around the lake but when the sun set frivolity was the Rule of the Night…campfire singing, bottle clanging, naked swimming, you name it, it happened….and the rest of the campers slept. Highlights included: Robyn Harms attending camp just 9 Days after being born in ’81, Mikee & Timbo driving/drinking from Mt. View to Camp & Back….with Tuna, slamming empty cans on the dashboard, sliding down the Rocks at Stone Creek, 10 mile runs to the Fire Lookout tower…and for me, running 117 miles in one week….
1982 The Langdog Cabin Camp
It may have been 2 years but I think it was one…Camp moved to Soda Springs to Rich & Terry Langfords cabin and you just friggin’ camped or slept wherever you could. Tena and I choose the Chrome Dome, one of those new fangled tents whose posts actually stuck together with cords!!!! Others, like Bert choose the Dirt…..Ron rode his motorcycle (among other things) from Quincy, Junior was building cabins, others flocked to Camp that year (still one week long) to do some Professional Wading in the Cool Creek….people were very fit….two races were included in the Program….the Where the Hell is Truckee 18 miler on the first Sunday, and the Serene Lakes 5 miler on Labor Day…with insane training in between…camp meals were “prepared” on the little Gas Stove in the Cabin….sojourn’s to the Gambling Mecca began….The Turning Point for the Camp came when one, starlit night, after too many beers etc….Denis O’Halloran loaded up his old Chevy Truck with me, Matt, Rich, Rocko…I believe, and we discovered a little Honky Tonk called the Serene Lakes Lodge 4 miles from the Cabin and it had it all, live music, local “talent”, jukebox, deck for dancing, kegs for stealing, and access to corndogs- how did we know they were frozen and well, not ours??!! After liberating a Keg from the Roof by throwing it off, and taking the fire extinquisher (never know when there’s going to be a fire in the Cab of your truck…..we sped out of the parking lot and gazed through the Fog back at the joint, looked at each other and said, “We might come back here!!”
1983-1995 The Serene Lake Lodge Camps
And so it was to be….we returned the following year to the scene’s of the crimes and began 12 glorious years of Incredible Episodes of Runnin’, Funnin’, and Insane Relationship building. What we thought we saw the year before was right….there was a Camp Ground with two toilets (rarely working for the whole camp) and two showers (same rare functioning)….and for those who just didn’t want to lay in the woods, there were actually rooms & small cabins (??) at the Serene Lakes Lodge!! But better than that, they were in Drastic Need of a Competent House Band….and since one couldn’t be found, Mr. Green and the Men from Modesto were Born (Hatched?). Now there are enough stories to fill volumes about the Serene Lakes Lodge Years but let’s just mention a few…..a. Denis O’Halloran and the club took over the Serene Lakes 5 miler and put it on as a fundraiser for many of the 12 years….camp gradually was reduced to just Labor Day Weekend….Bud’s T-shirts got more outlandish and contemporary the more reefer, on never mind…we actually had sponsors come and go, Kaiser Dome (Doom), Dos XX’s, Converse, Reebok, etc…the mystery of the Jetta 9 has yet to be fully interpreted and the decision to “let’s get just one more case” didn’t help…..Joe Mangan’s bachelor party……Joe actually getting lost for an entire weekend….a very fit Larry Guinee…..the Really, Really Dumb idea of having a Chug Run….and the worse idea of Running from Serene Lakes to Squaw Valley (and vice versa) over the Pacific Crest Trail- very fast after Drinking for at least two nites….the exploding coke cans while Peanut and Matt laughed like Hyena’s (and Jill left camp, burnt and pissed!….kids being born and growing up…wives getting pissed at drunk husbands….drunk husbands getting pissed at the Lodge closing “right at 2!”…..the Band playing Friday and Saturday Nites….the Breakfasts….the Forty Niner’s playing on Sunday…..Rocko being the only person or dog to be asked to leave camp and never return…..Ivan doing intervals….many Aggies inviting themselves to the Serene Lakes Homeowners association meetings on Sundays, and actually voting on some issues…sand volleyball….The Fog ……The Fires….BBQ chicken…..Melissa and her Tequila Dance….The naked chick dancing in front of the stage….Team Vaseline….yes, Serene Had It All!!!!!
1996 & 1997 The Kidd Lake Camps
With the Lodge being scheduled for demolition (really) and the Homeowners getting just a little tired of us??? The Camp switched to the remote wilderness many of us had run in on one of the Long Runs from camp…..the beautiful Kidd Lake…capacity 50 campers…and we doubled that….much to the dismay of Jack who almost died dealing with us….make no mistake about it Kidd Lake had running, water, was way out there (yeah, we still drove into town), and beautiful…but we didn’t want to be responsible for Jack’s untimely death (which he came closer to every time another 4-6 Aggies were seen sneaking through the woods….no, saying we thought he meant 50 CARS!!! Didn’t do any good….we were simply Way Too Big…and we were growing!!
1998-Present The Proesser Lake Camps
With the club growing in numbers, runners as well as children (as many kids as adults in 2002) we needed a place to accommodate 100+ and I really don’t know who found Proesser. It really doesn’t matter because this is probably the best place we’ve ever had…water, beach, room, isolation, baseball diamond, horseshoe pits, Big Ass Hot Air Balloons, adequate bathrooms, good cooking facilities, overall an Excellent Place for Good Friends, Fitness Folks (hiking, biking, swimming, golfing, etc.) to enjoy each others company. Highlights have included Mother Nature Unleashing Her Fury one year and completely washing camp out, visions of Naked Aggies sitting by a fire destined to go out like something out of the Planet of the Apes still makes my stomach turn (and the corners of my mouth turn up in a smile), Joe Karnes being duct taped to a tree, Tuna imparting questionable, unverifiable knowledge to unsuspecting but caring people, marshmallow fights, Tequila Extravaganza, Pinata Punching for the Kids, boating in the Lake, and as has been the Consistent Theme Throughout All of the Camps for the Entire 25 years….
“A Bunch of Friends, Old and New, Just Enjoying Nature and Each Other’s Company”
…..And That, My Undecided Friends, is Why You Should Start Your 25 Years THIS YEAR!
Our Family will see Your Family There….
All 25 for Me!
-Peanut-