Sports

KICK IT LIC

August 21, 2013 by editor 7 Comments

If you passed by the field at Gantry State Park last week, you may have thought you were witnessing tryouts for the Manchester United junior team. Laid out on a 50 x 30 yard section were all sorts of cones, flags, and doodads, and kids of varying ages being put through soccer drills by a lean, good-looking, personable instructor with a strong island(not Long Island) lilt. His name is Trevor Daniel, and for one week only he held a free soccer camp in Gantry. His sponsors, Tony and Diane Jules, facilitated the funding of the camp, and Trevor donated his time, in the hopes that it would be the seed for continued classes, camps, and programs for the kids of LIC. I happened by the camp mid-week and spent about an hour observing Trevor work and train the kids. His enthusiasm for the game itself is only exceeded by that of teaching it to others. He’s knowledgeable about what works and is excellent at engaging the kids and keeping them focused. A herculean task, as any parent knows. While there are other youth sports programs available in LIC, this one is definitely a cut above. If you have a child between the ages of 3-8 years old, I highly recommend you get on the mailing list of Kick it LIC, both for your child’s sake, and so we can keep this treasure here. Who knows, today Gantry State Park, tomorrow maybe Old Trafford or Wembley?

Kickitlic@gmail.com

For all those parents who had a positive experience at the camp, please feel free to provide your testimonials in the comments section. It would help to spur others to get involved and bring Trevor to LIC.

Parents at PS78 Pushing for Outdoor Recess Space – all work and no play makes Jane bored and restless

City Opens Affordable Art Space in LIC – 22nd Century Picassos here

Laughing Devil Comedy Club Decides Not to Close – in the words of Nelson Muntz “Ha ha”

LIC-based Row New York Helps Local Teens Build Future

New LIC Pub Skips TV’s for Rustic Feel – a rehash about Woodbines on Vernon

UPGRADE COMING TO HUNTERS POINT BASKETBALL COURTS

May 28, 2013 by editor 3 Comments

Local resident, father, and hoops player Nathan Kamp, is in dialogue with the State Parks Department to bring a much needed upgrade to Hunters Point Park on 48th Avenue. His request list includes straightforward items such as resurfacing and relining the three courts(and also the handball courts), painted center court LIC logos, and new backboards and rims. The latter items are necessary to add nets to the rims, as the current ones do not have “ringlets” which enable the attachment of nets. Bigger wish list items include a redesign of the current park to include more seating around the courts to make it family and spectator friendly. Adding a bathroom structure, park office, and drinking fountain, as well as netting to keep balls out of residential areas. Finally, in the while-we’re-at-it category, he throws in a revamp of the toddlers play area on 5th Street, which has been closed for over a year and has become a real eyesore in the neighborhood. Nathan’s goal is for the park to become a cornerstone of the community and a place for kids to not just play basketball, but also to learn via park leagues and skills camps.

It is the spearheading of projects such as these, that are going to make LIC the best community in the nation. Not to mention the nexus of future Hall of Famers in Springfield. Basketball is the penultimate pick-up sport in America, and having these courts right in the heart of the community is a real boon for all the young here, boys and girls. But it requires recognition, action, and follow through to make it happen. Kudos to Nathan for doing so.

Reminder: One week from today, on Tuesday June 4th, is Taste of LIC. Also, this Saturday, June 1, from 11am – 3pm is the annual PS78Q PTA Spring Fair with games, rides, food, and drinks. Tickets are sold at the fair. Both these events are mandatory stops on the LIC social circuit: PS78 PTA Soiree -> LICAO -> PS78 Spring Fair -> Taste of LIC -> MoMA PS1 Warm-Up Series -> LIC Basketball Tourney? -> Halloween Parade -> …yeah you get the picture. We’re now rivaling Manhattan’s scene for socialites, athletes, celebs, and eurotrash. So keep your tuxes spiffy.

8th Annual Taste of LIC – Tuesday June 4th. Click on link to buy tickets.

Taste of LIC Bringing Bites to Queens Waterfront – a two-hour feeding frenzy by the water, plus a raffle, auctions, rapper Champagne Jerry, political speeches, you know the drill

Stuck in The City, There’s Lots To Do – even the NYT gives a shout out to Taste of LIC. Is this a sign?

Five Story Building Rising Across From PS1 – just like Taste of LIC, every nook n cranny of LIC is being stuffed, in this case w/ residential real estate

LIC’s Z Hotel to Offer Rooftop Yoga Classes – plus a Saturday rooftop party series as well. Wonder if you can get a combo ticket? Then you can hit on tourists in the morning and at night.

The Boozy LIC Special at Sweetleaf – LIC makes Paper Magazine, the beginning of our ascent …or descent?

THE FABULOUS JAMES BOBO

April 24, 2013 by editor 2 Comments

The door to olympic gold... — The door to olympic gold…

I’m going to Wichita
Far from this opera forevermore
I’m gonna work this job
Make the sweat drip out of every pore

Well we told you we’d have more to say on sports, and today’s profile is a little more down to earth and achievable than say, major league baseball. James BoBo is the Director of LIC Kids, and a familiar face to many parents and children around Long Island City. His gymnastics classes are almost all booked solid, and for good reason. Anyone who has seen him in action, knows about his enthusiasm and terrific command of the classroom. Not an easy chore when you’re trying to corral a dozen four-year olds to stay in a line. James knows all the tricks for kids, and can break it down really well. He has been at LIC Kids for three years, and was recently put in charge of revamping the program and staff.

James grew up in a family of nine in Wichita. All his siblings were very athletic, and his first love was football. Because he was always viewed as a leader, he was made a quarterback in high school, despite his then wiry frame. In an attempt to put some muscle on him, after tenth grade the football coach convinced James to give gymnastics a try. Despite being a complete novice and thus very awkward, he found a mentor in his new coach, and persevered to a level that garnered him a college gymnastics scholarship in Kansas. After college, he continued with gymnastics on a professional circuit that took him all over the world. While competing at a tournament in Japan, the sponsor of the event offered him a desk job in NYC, which is how he ended up in the Big Apple. Finally, after founding a gym and gym consulting business in Brooklyn, and then teaching how to coach at Hunter College, James ended up in LIC.

“There’s a little bit of gymnastics in each kid” says James, and his emphasis is to be all inclusive and use gymnastics as a boost for kids with low muscle tone and a lack of coordination to build confidence. “We can give them the basics so no one feels left out of athletics,” he continues “thus making kids better than they were, all while having fun.” He’s added new after school classes in dance and karate, and hired high energy professionals. His goal is for every kid in this community to know that this is their indoor backyard and for their parents to know that this is a place you can trust. Plus you get a gymnastics teacher par excellence to boot.

LIC Kids Website

PS 78Q PTA Spring Dinner and Auction – Tuesday April 30th from 7-10pm at SHI. Dinner, Drinks, Auction …basically bacchanalia par excellence.

PS 78 Adds Extra Kindergarten Class for Waitlisted Kids – but not before putting 25 sets of parents through a week of angst. Sadistic no?

Waitlisted Queens Parents May Ship Children to Brooklyn Catholic School – umm, in light of the story above, has anyone bothered to tell St. Stans to cancel the bus?

How To Spend a Weekend In LIC – nice slideshow, but they forgot Show Palace

Court Square Diner – photo essay about the diner and area around it

LIC Development Site to Hit Auction Block – residential site on Purves Street

LIC Fire Threatens Star Studded Art Gala – what? you invited Matthew Barney and Chuck Close but not me???

QueensNYC Has A Fan In Neighborhood Blog – oh that’s better, a little salve for my bruised ego. What’s a blog?

LICTALK MAKES THE NEW YORK POST, and adds a little cachet

April 22, 2013 by editor 9 Comments

LIC Field Skyboxes — LIC Field skyboxes being constructed?

“Honey call the accountant, our ship has come in!” was the first thought I had when reading my name in this Sunday’s New York Post. All the hard work and cutting edge journalism that me and the news team here at LICtalk have put in over the past year, has finally paid off. Who says reporters shouldn’t make the news? Not us. We blatantly trumpet ourselves and are willing to flog a story to any two-bit rag, not to mention such an esteemed paper as the New York Post. Woodward and Bernstein have nothing on Gary Buiso, the author of the article. In addition to working the phones and all his sources tirelessly, Gary stalked the players at the entrances of numerous buildings on Center Boulevard to such an extent that it would make Rupert Pupkin proud. Of course for long time readers of this website, the fact that the NY Mets call LIC home shouldn’t really come as news. Just under a year ago, we were the sole major media outlet sharing this knowledge when we published our expose entitled “Which NY Mets Are Living In the New TF Cornerstone Building?” Our intense focus on, and ever-expanding coverage of Long Island City, has continuously yielded local nuggets such as this. That’s why great reporters like Gary Buiso seek us out, and exactly why you should too. In fact, we’re using this occasion to debut our newest category “Sports.” As you can imagine, we’ll have a lot more to say about this topic in the near future. In the meantime, we’re going to finish this story with a shameless goad for comments: Which NY Mets have you seen in the neighborhood and where?

Mets Town: Stars Living Near Stadium in Queens – maybe they can throw a little batting practice to your kid. There’s nothing like jacking a 92 mph fast ball onto 5th Street to build the self-esteem of a ten-year old, just look at me.

THE LIC SOCCER MAN

March 11, 2013 by editor 7 Comments

Have you ever wandered by the Queens West Field on 5th Street and 47th Avenue, viewed all the men and women having fun playing soccer, and wondered “How do I go about participating in that?” Well we have the answer for you, and it’s really very simple: Long Island City Community Soccer. This organization was founded by Dale Choonoolal in 2008 to play on the Queens West Field, and he has subsequently expanded to Murray Park and sites in Brooklyn and Manhattan. Dale was originally an analyst at Allen & Co. when he spotted the then unused QW field. He applied for a permit and a time slot, formed a meetup community, and now oversees two dozen leagues full time. But the original pickup soccer games in LIC are his first love, especially since he now has a girlfriend in Hunters Point. This Spring, there are two things he’s promoting locally:

We’ll have Coed Pick up Soccer on Thursday evenings from 6pm to 8pm & Saturdays at 1pm at Queens West Sports field. These pick-up games are co-ed, fun, highly organized, and social. At the end of the games we’ll head for drinks or a much deserved mimosa & brunch. It’s very community oriented and meant for folks from the community to meet each other through the vehicle of soccer.
Also, this spring for the first time there will be a Soccer league at Queens West Sports Field. We’ll have a Mens league on Saturdays from 10am to 12pm. Here’s my league Website where folks can find info about the league: http://nycsoccer.com/ We’ll be doing a Mens league this Spring and in the near future we’ll do Co-ed leagues.

Dale originally built the LIC group around women’s participation, so as to make the concept as much of a social outing as it is competitive. In addition to drinks and brunches after the games, he has put together a few group outings to places such as Montreal and the ski slopes. He also believes being highly organized is the key to the games being a success, and thus the teams are broken up prior to arrival.

Now, here is where the The Editor comes in with his push. One thing Dale would love to see is lights added to both Queens West Field and the fields on Murray Park. Sure, some would complain about noise coming from the field at night blah, blah, blah. The reality is that the window for working adults to use the field Monday to Friday is very small depending on time of year. On average we are talking about two hours a night(you pick it, 5-7pm, 6-8pm if you work until 5pm and cannot get home in time, zilch in Dec/Jan etc.) By adding lights, one can easily double this utilization and still have everyone long gone by 10pm, the same time that Gantry Park closes. As long as they are already spending so much on upkeep for the field, it is in a prime location, and the immediate area is about to see a more than doubling in population, how about spending a little money and cutting through the red tape to really maximize the fields usage?

Van Jumps Sidewalk in LIC, Killing One and Injuring 4 Others

Farmers Market Proposed for Hunters Point – a second attempt at this, hopefully w/ the increased population it takes hold. Kind of a chicken or the egg thing, were there too few vendors or people the first time?