PEQUANNOCK LOSES TITLE GAME

The Pequannock Little League got trounced, 14-3, in the state championship game by Bordentown. They simply didn't play well, and were stunned by the 9 runs and 5 home runs BT put up in the 3rd inning. They never got it going. Here's a look.

UMPS MAKE CONTROVERSIAL CALL

The Pequannock Little Leaguer's I've been following lost 5-4 to Bordentown -read Tim Leonard's game story that was ultimately decided on a close play at home plate. With the scored tied at 3-3 in the 4th, a Bordentown runner leaped over the tag of the catcher on a bang-bang play at the plate. In my video you can see what appears to be a slight brush off the leg by the catcher, but it's really too close to call. The ump called the runner safe -despite Pequannock's manager Dan Leva's protest.

PQ tied it back up at 4-4 on Anthony Scillieri's 2nd dinger of the night, but then Bordentown went ahead again on a home run in the 5th. It was a great game, very closely played.

The two teams will play for the state title on Tuesday night.

BOYS OF SUMMER

TALE OF TWO LITTLE LEAGUE TEAMS
Pequannock and North Bergen South have made the New Jersey Little League state finals and play this week in a four team round-robin. Over 300 teams competed this year in NJ, in hopes of reaching Williamsport -the international Little League Championship round played in Pennsylvania.

Both teams are gearing up; Pequannock Little League has dedicated their season to a stricken teammate, and North Bergen South has beaten the odds all year. These two videos take a look at two special teams. Pay particular attention to the big surprise in the North Bergen piece -very funny...
North Bergen South Little League

Pequannock Little League

BECKHAM RETURNS

Soccer star David Beckham prepared with his team the Galaxy for Saturday's game against the Red Bulls -which ended in a 2-2 tie. Could hardly understand a word the guy said, yet he had sick tattoo's and gave us a good show in a light workout at Giants Stadium.
And yes, he did takes his shirt off.

TEANECK HOUSE EXPLOSION

A massive gas explosion in Teaneck flattened a home at 1320 Hastings Street and left one man dead. See dramatic video of firemen battling the blaze.


BTW, shot this video very quickly, using the Canon S5-1S. This is a terrific little digital point-n-shoot that captures great video. It's good for stills as well. This was a quick edit as well.

Here is time-line:
6:15pm explosion occurred
6:30 received work of a working fire
6:35 received word that house exploded, ran to my car ASAP
6:50 saw huge plume of smoke as I drove the 3 mile route from The Record
7:00 parked my car a ran through the yard of neighboring house, dodging police
7:00-7:30 shot video for neighboring yards, and behind police tape
7:30 left the scene, raced back to The Record to edit
8:30 had rough edit video posted on www.northjersey.com
9:30 had photo gallery of pictures shot by Leslie Barbaro, Michale Karas, and myself
next morning re-edited more complete video

The GREENBROOK SANCTUARY on the PIP

Naturalist Nancy Slowik leads a tour of the little-known Greenbrook Sanctuary atop the Palisades. Greenbrook is a 165-acre gated nature preserve within the Palisades Interstate Park, high above the Hudson River.
Read the story by Evonne Coutros.

With its breath-taking views of the the river and NY, scenic pond and bog, and endless hiking trails, it's a nature lover's paradise -especially in a this economic climate where more people are staying close to home for vacation. Take a look.

ELIZABETH'S WEDDING DAY

Elizabeth Brown, my wife's cousin, was married on July 4th at a wonderful backyard ceremony and reception at her parents home near Allentown, PA. What a great wedding!

I used this spectacular affair to test drive the video capture on a new digital point-n-shoot camera, the Canon S5IS. The Powershot gets a big thumbs-up, and did a great job of not only capturing great video but the audio was remarkably good, especially considering all the competing sound; music, dinner clatter, talking, etc.

I didn't shoot very much, as I try not to work when I'm a guest, but I couldn't help myself.
Here's a video short from the wedding.

Congrats Elizabeth and David, here's to a lifetime of happiness and good fortune.

NJ AT WAR; GUARD SAYS FAREWELL TO LOVED ONES

NJ National Guard soldiers from Teaneck bid a sad farewell to loved ones at the Teaneck Armory before loading onto buses at dawn to catch a flight to Fort Bliss, Tx. They'll spend the next 2+ months in the New Mexico desert before shipping off to Iraq.

This was one of the saddest and emotional events I've covered, seeing so many young families separated, including young single mothers, saying good-bye to loved ones at dawn at the Armory. For most, this will be the last time they will see their loved one for at least a year.
Tore out my heart.

Video chronicles the last 10 hours, from midnight through the following morning, where they departed on a jumbo-jet from McGuire Airforce Base. This very well might be my best video yet. Shot a lot of tape on this one.

NJ AT WAR; Goodbye ceremony for NJ Guard bound for Iraq

Nearly 2,850 from the New Jersey National Guard’s 50th Infantry Brigade Combat Team bound for Iraq, received a heartfelt farewell salute at Fort Dix. Full coverage.

I have been following the Guardsmen from New Jersey National Guard’s 50th Brigade Combat Team out of the Teaneck Armory. 2,800 citizen soldiers are deploying to Fort Bliss, Texas for a summer of intense desert training before they leave for Iraq.

To learn more, see The Record's NJ at War series.

EPA Says Sludge Hill is as clean as it will get

The EPA says only small particles of Ford paint sludge remain in area commonly known as Sludge Hill, despite recent protests of the contrary by local residents. Video takes a look at the cleanup site. Read the story.

This is a story I have worked on for years, and stunningly it is still mired in mis-management, poor communication between the EPA, DEP, and the Upper Ringwood community. There is so much distrust on all sides. To learn more about the Ford sludge dumping, see The Record's award winning reporting: ToxicLegacy.com

KRAV MAGA

The Krav Maga Federation in Teaneck teaches the martial art, which is the original Israeli self-defense system, to people of all ages and abilities. Read story.

This aggressive brand of self-defense is widely practiced in Israel, and teaches students how to defend yourself in a street fight against many assailants. The training is very rigorous.

NJ AT WAR; Single Mom prepares for Iraq

Spc. Marlene Martinez of Ridgefield, NJ, a 21-year old single mother, prepares for deployment to Iraq and separation from her son, Josiah, just 5 months old. Read full story.

I have been following the Guardsmen from New Jersey National Guard’s 50th Brigade Combat Team out of the Teaneck Armory. 2,800 citizen soldiers are deploying to Fort Bliss, Texas for a summer of intense desert training before they leave for Iraq.

NJ AT WAR; Capt James Egan

Captain James Egan is only 29, but already he has seen combat in Iraq. Now he'll be going back as a National Guard captain. Egan has moved back home with his parents in Glen Rock, NJ, as prepares for deployment to Iraq. Read full story.

I have been following the Guardsmen from New Jersey National Guard’s 50th Brigade Combat Team out of the Teaneck Armory. 2,800 citizen soldiers are deploying to Fort Bliss, Texas for a summer of intense desert training before they leave for Iraq.

Madagascar comes to the Bronx Zoo

The Wildlife Conservation Society unveiled Madagascar, a new exhibit at the Bronx Zoo inside the restored historic Lion House. Lemurs, crocodiles, dambas and cockroaches hailing from Madagascar are among the newest residents at the Bronx Zoo. It is the first "green certified" NYC's first renovated landmark building. Read story.

The Bergen County Weights & Measures Task Force is conducting random inspections of gas stations through Memorial day in an effort to ensure motorists aren’t cheated. They recommend that motorist's get out of the car and watch "the sale," as well as double check that the price at the pump matches the street sign.

Gas prices this month have reached the $4.00 per gallon mark. Ouch.

Bears Go Wild

Two orphan bears from the Woodlands Wildlife Refuge were returned to the wild by the New Jersey Division of Fish and Wildlife. This video shows the bears being tranquilized, documented, then transported to an undisclosed location where
they were born. Read the story in The Record.

They were returned to region were they were born, watch them stagger from the transport cage into the woods. Look at the size of them, and they are mere cubs...

BILL GOES BANANAS FOR GILDA'S

Ervolino gets laughs for Gilda's Club
Record columnist Bill Ervolino was at the Laugh-Off at Bananas in Hasbrouck Heights, a fund raiser for Gilda’s Club of Northern NJ.

Cub Caught

A 125-pound black bear was tranquilized and captured on a tiny Passaic River island in Paterson -the third largest city in New Jersey. Although bears often get lost in suburban towns during the spring mating season -when cubs are sent away by their mothers, to see one in the city of Paterson is highly unusual. This bear made his way onto a tiny island in the Passaic River, where he was tranquilized and caught by the city's animal control then turned over to Fish & Wildlife for a release at a later time.

NJ AT WAR; A wedding, then off to war

NJ Guardsmen Carmen Villegas and Victor Hernandez were married today in a civil ceremony at the Nutley Boro Hall, just weeks before Villegas' deployment to Texas for training before shipping off to Iraq.

Villegas serves in the same unit as her son, Filipe Diaz, also deploying to Iraq. This is perhaps the first time ever a mother and son have deployed together -in the same unit.

The couple will be separated for nearly two years, as they will not be deploying at the same time. He is with a different company that deploys in December. She leaves in June.

To learn more, see The Record's NJ at War series.

Sorenstam announces she will retire

Annika Sorenstam announced today at the Sybase Classic at Upper Montclair CC, that she will retire from the LPGA Tour at the end of the year.

Sorentsam was matter-a-fact in her announcement. No Brett Favre sobbing act here, although she did reference his announcement saying she wanted to go out on top like Favre. Annika explained that she wanted to start a family and settle down. Here's what she had to say.

NJ at WAR; A MOTHER'S LAMENT

Amina and Mariam Kure of Teaneck will deploy to Iraq with the National Guard for their second tour of combat duty this summer. Inseparable since birth, the 25-year old twins will be sent their own ways for the first time in their young lives. Their mother, Libaba,is not happy and wants to know why her twins can't be given the same status as married couples. The Guard has allowed spouses to live together.

Kure has asked that her girls be allowed to stay together, but the National Guard has yet to respond. They deploy in mid-June.


To learn more, see The Record's NJ at War series.

Imam faces deportation

Imam Mohammad Qatanani, the prominent Paterson-based Islamic leader, talks about his upcoming deportation charges.

NJ at WAR; Training for Iraq

I spent some time recently with New Jersey National Guardsmen training for an upcoming deployment to Iraq slated for this summer -the largest deployment of NJ National Guardsmen since WWII.

For many of these part-time soldiers, this is the second or third deployment, and many are past the typical age of a soldier, giving the whole operation the feel of the place like a bunch of weekend warriors. However, I saw plenty of camaraderie and dedication.

The training camp is a three week session, before they head to Texas for more intense training this summer. Here's a look at a typical day of training at Fort Indiantown Gap, PA. They call the place FIG.

HALLS OF FAME -August 23, 1966

THE BEATLES AT SHEA
Introduced by Ed Sullivan, the Beatles play their first major outdoor stadium concert, selling what was then a box office record $304,000 in tickets. The band plays on a stage at second base, as uniformed police lined the basepaths. But the 55,000 screaming fans hardly heard the 30-minute set of a dozen songs.

The Beatles played a second show on Aug. 23, 1966. In following years, Bruce Springsteen, The Rolling Stones, the Who, The Clash, The Police, Simon & Garfunkel, Elton John, Eric Clapton, Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix also performed there.

Record editor Barbara Jaeger and her childhood friend Gerry Noble talk about being at the famous concert.


To see more, visit The Record's multimedia project, Halls of Fame .

HALLS OF FAME -April 15, 1976

NEW YANKEE STADIUM
Remodeled Yankee Stadium reopens with the Yanks beating the Minnesota Twins, 11-4, ushering in a new era of Yankee baseball tradition.

Retired Record reporter Bob Kurland talks about his days as the Yankees beat writer in the Bronx.


To see more, visit The Record's multimedia project, Halls of Fame .