Scott Swanson
July 3, 2011
Former Oregon State University wrestling All-American Les Gutches was delivering some tips to a rapt audience last week at the 11th annual Santiam Wrestling Camp at Sweet Home High School.
With dozens of eyes locked on him, Gutches, who won two national championships at 177 pounds at OSU, in 1995 and 1996, and went on to five U.S. Open championships between 1996 and 2000, instructed youngsters ranging in age from single digits to high school graduates, on some of the finer points of the sport.
Gutches was the keynote presenter but the camp, which ran from Tuesday, July 5, through Friday, was loaded with talent this year, director Steve Thorpe said.
“The level of competition at this year’s camp was incredible,” he said, noting that the campers included the top three wrestling recruits in the state this year – Churchill’s Zach Brunson, Peter Russo of Newberg and Brandon Griffin of Sprague.
The 180 campers, who included 26 members of the Canadian national team, also included several state champions and triple crown winners (OSAA, freestyle and Greco state title winners), and numerous wrestlers headed for the Junior and Cadet National Championships in Fargo, N.D. and the Canadian nationals.
Some of the best high school teams in Oregon were represented, including Roseburg, Newberg, Thurston, Churchill, Sprague, Dallas, West Albany, South Albany and Riverside, in addition to a large contingent from Sweet Home.
Gutches, who grew up in Rogue River and Medford and who is now director of program development for USA Wrestling, assured campers that they were fully capable of achieving great things, noting that numerous Olympic athletes have hailed from Oregon in various sports.
“If you’re an Oregonian, you can achieve those things,” said Gutches, who was a member of the 1996 Olympic team in freestyle. “Oregon is a great state to be a wrestler.”
His commitment to Oregon wrestling was evident as he told a reporter that the camp is run by “a high-caliber coach who really cares about wrestling and who really does a lot for the sport” and that it “really is beneficial – because it is located in the greatest state in the nation.”
“The key is the number of high0quality coaches and parents sitting on the sidelines,” he said of the Santiam camp. “Success doesn’t happen in a vacuum.”
Colin Hoeft, head coach of the Saskatchewan Wrestling team, said the Canadians brought their top two wrestlers this year instead of just their top individual in each weight, as they have in previous years, as they prepare for the Western Canada Summer Games in August.
Hoeft said the reason why they come to Sweet Home is “the kids get what they need here.”
“This is a training camp, not a wrestling camp,” he said. “They’ve learned that the kids are expected to compete.”
Thorpe said legendary Oregon Wrestling Hall of Fame coach LaMont Simons, who founded the South Albany wrestling program and whose son Mike is now head coach at Thurston, told him that Sweet Home is unique.
Thorpe said Simons told him: “‘You couldn’t do this anywhere else.’”
“This town welcomes the camp,” said. “The various businesses, from the Laundromats owned by Brad Newport and Lee Fields, to Safeway, Speedee Mart – appreciate the wrestlers. Not many schools would allow something like this to go on – something that’s a partial fund-raiser for the Mat Club.”
He said he appreciates support from administrators who allow the use of the two gyms and wrestling room, which makes the high school “the right facility for this.”
Three Sweet Home wrestlers – Colton Schilling, who returned last Wednesday from an exchange trip to Russia, Tyler Cowger and Trever Olson – are among the state team competitors who are headed to Fargo this weekend.
Thorpe said the three have been “wrestling non-stop this spring and into the summer.”
“They are going there with hopes of being all-Americans and winning matches,” he said.
Schilling made All-American last season and Cowger finished one match away from the honor. Both will compete as Cadets again this year, Schilling at 119 and Cowger at 140.
“Both of them have their sights set on being finalists or even winning national championships,” Thorpe said.
The competition will be stiff, he predicted.
“This is a national tournament, not just the word ‘national.’ You can expect the brackets to have anywhere from 70 to 125 kids.”
This will be Olsen’s first year in the Junior Nationals and he’s been working hard.
“He has dedicated himself this entire spring and into summer,” Thorpe said. “He has not stopped wrestling. He has pushed himself to win matches at the national tournament and ultimately to be a state placer next year. He is doing what he has to do to be successful.”