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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
LAKEPORT, Calif. – Mythical, majestic and “just plain wrong!” were some of the exclamations overheard on Saturday in Lakeport as the seemingly-impossible happened time and again: airplanes landing – and taking off – from the surface of the waters of Clear Lake.
It was all part of the action at the 31st annual Clear Lake Splash-In, which continues Sunday.
Seaplane pilots from around the United States made their way to Lakeport for the annual Splash-In, the largest gathering of seaplanes west of the Mississippi.
The annual celebration of seaplanes featured handmade, ultra-light and antique craft.
“Once again, the community support for this event has been great,” said Chuck Kimes, organizer of the event.
Kimes credited Melissa Fulton, chief executive officer of the Lake County Chamber of Commerce, Doug Grider, Lakeport's Public Works superintendent, the Upper Lake Future Farmers' of America and the Sea Scouts for helping make this years' event another success.
Although primarily a seaplane pilots' event, the Clear Lake Splash-In attracts the young and the young-at-heart alike who want to get a closeup look at these magnificent flying machines.
“I'm amazed at the variety of airplanes here,” said Walter Windus, chair of the Splash-In Board of Directors.
Windus explained that the variety of planes participating in the event is unique – and even unusual for seaplane pilots to experience.
“There are all makes and models here, from planes made in somebody's garage by hand, to planes over 50 years old, restored and worth over $1 million,” he said.
Lake County resident and seaplane pilot Mike Dunlap, who was on ramp patrol duty with his trusty golden retriever to keep the crowds safe, also noted the cooperation and assistance the city of Lakeport gives to this event.
The two-day event, which has taken place in Lakeport for 28 out of the 31 years the event has been held, is a great benefit to the local economy, Dunlap explained.
“Between motel rooms, dining out, buying fuel and more, we've estimated that participants add more than $80,000 to the local economy during the Splash-In,” Dunlap said.
The call came over the radio before 1 p.m. that so many planes had flown in for the event that Lampson Airport was full – there was no more room for “regular” planes to land, park and take a shuttle over to the site of the Splash-In.
“But they'll make room,” Dunlap said, as he was expecting another pilot from Nevada who had already registered.
Because of the more stringent guidelines this year to prevent the introduction of quagga and zebra mussels, coupled with the inspection program, organizers were concerned that it might keep pilots from coming – but that was not the case.
“We worked with the county and we worked with our pilots, and everything worked out fine,” Kimes said.
As spectators admired the seaplanes on the grounds of Natural High and the docks at Skylark Shores, wondering how the planes made the leap from water to sky, Dunlap joked, “What keeps planes in the air? Money. And Seaplanes? More money.”
But for the aficionados of aviation, as well as seaplane pilots and dreamers, seeing the intersection between sky and water was priceless.
E-mail Terre Logsdon at
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- Written by: Lake County News Reports
LOWER LAKE, Calif. – The previously winless St. Helena Saints stormed into Lower Lake Friday night and dominated the Trojans football team by a score of 37-12, handing Lower Lake their first defeat of the season.
Lower Lake’s win/loss record now stands at 2 and 1.
After the loss, a visibly discouraged head coach Stan Weiper said he was “surprised at how bad we were” and added, “We were out of sync from the start.”
St. Helena got on the board early, needing just five plays – all runs – to score first, capped by a 30-yard sprint from Saints running back Charles Bertoli into the Trojans end zone.
The extra point by kicker David Martinez made it 7-0.
Lower Lake’s Marcus Radovan took the ensuing kickoff return back to St. Helena’s 47 yard line, but EJ Jermany fumbled the ball on the Trojans' opening possession and St. Helena recovered.
The Saints took advantage of the turnover, driving 73 yards in nine plays to score their second touchdown.
Lower Lake got on the board with their next possession – the longest of the game for the Trojans – when Devante Scott carried the ball six yards into St. Helena’s end zone and brought the score to 14-6.
“We’re capable,” Weiper said. “We just need to get back on track.”
But St. Helena answered on their next possession, taking 11 plays to march 65 yards downfield, scoring on a Richard Hoppe quarterback keep from the Trojans’ 6-yard line. The added extra point brought the first quarter to a close with Lower Lake trailing 21-6.
An interception on the Saints' 29 yard line by defensive back Peter Del Bondio led to a 37-yard field goal by David Martinez, and St. Helena broadened their lead to 24-6.
The Trojans were forced to punt on their next possession, and when the Saints scored on a 21-yard run from tight end Alex Quirici, Lower Lake ended the first half trailing 31-6.
The Saints continued to dominate in the second half, when Bertoli ended Lower Lake’s opening third quarter possession by intercepting an errant Trojan pass and returning it 64 yards for another St. Helena touchdown.
The Trojans managed to score only once more in the game, when Roy Percoats ran the ball 85 yards downfield to score Lower Lake’s second touchdown.
After failing to make the twp-point conversion, the Trojans trailed 37-12, the final score of the game.
“We didn’t do anything well,” Weiper said after Lower Lake’s first loss. “We thought we could play competitively, and we just didn’t.”
The Trojans went three for 12 with 48 yards passing (and two interceptions), and carried the ball 38 times for 274 yards rushing.
Defensively, Trojans linebacker Antonio Hines had an impressive nine tackles, one assist and one quarterback sack against the Saints.
In junior varsity action, Lower Lake’s Jessie Meldrum caught a Jason Mallory pass at midfield to score the game’s only touchdown, and the Trojans made the two-point conversion to beat the Saints 8-0, improving their record to 2-1 this season.
Lower Lake plays again next Friday, Oct. 1, at home against Upper Lake, which lost to Ft. Bragg 48-12 on Friday night, bringing their record to 1-2 this season. The Trojans will travel to Cloverdale to take on the Eagles Oct. 8.
For more pictures of the game visit www.sportsphoto.us/20100924/index.html.
Follow Lake County News on Twitter at http://twitter.com/LakeCoNews and on Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Lake-County-News/143156775604?ref=mf.
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- Written by: Lake County News reports
The fire began Saturday at 12:34 p.m. near the 18000 block of Highway 1, Cal Fire reported.
Cal Fire said there were approximately 300 firefighters working the wildland incident, including personnel from Cal Fire and Sonoma County Fire Services including the volunteer companies of Bodega, Bloomfield, Cazadero, Camp Meeker, Valley Ford and Wilmar, and local fire departments from Bodega Bay, Forestville, Goldridge, Marin County, Monte Rio, Rancho Adobe, US Coast Guard FD and Windsor.
The wildland fire was 89 acres 90 percent contained Saturday night, according to the Cal Fire report.
One firefighter injury was been reported, with the firefighter transported to a Bay Area hospital for medical treatment. Cal Fire reported that the firefighter was in critical but stable condition.
The wildland fire threatened homes and the town of Bodega. Cal Fire reported that one outbuilding and two vehicles were destroyed by the wildland fire. Firefighting crews were committed overnight and will continue mop up through Sunday.
There are two road closures at this time – Highway 1 and Bodega Highway, and Highway 1 and Estero Road, according to Cal Fire.
As a result of the fire, the 911 emergency call system was down for the residents in Bodega Bay, although the Bodega Bay Fire District is currently staffed and available to response to local emergencies, Cal Fire said.
Officials urged Bodega Bay residents to call 707-875-3001 to report emergencies until the 911 emergency call system is restored.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
At the end of what defense attorney Patrick Clancy said was an emotional five-and-a-half-day-long trial, the jury found Dr. Corey Warner not guilty of sexual battery by fraudulent representation and a second count of sexual battery under a different section of the penal code.
Prosecutor Ed Borg said jury selection took place Sept. 14 and the presentation of evidence began the next day. The jury went into deliberations on Thursday and returned a short time later with the not guilty verdict.
Warner, 41, was arrested June 10 following the conclusion of an investigation into allegations made by a female patient, according to the Lake County Sheriff's Office's June report.
The patient alleged that on July 7, 2009, she visited Warner's practice at Hidden Valley Medical Services in Hidden Valley for an examination following a fall from a horse, according to Clancy.
Clancy said the patient alleged that Warner gave her a breast exam she didn't request. “He claimed, and his records showed, that no such exam was ever given,” Clancy said.
Borg said the woman also alleged that Warner thrust his pelvis against her while having her bend over to do a range of motion exercise.
The woman, whose name was not released by the defense or prosecution, reported the alleged incident on the same day that she said it occurred, Borg said.
Clancy alleged that while the sheriff's office said the investigation had been going on close to a year before Warner was arrested, there actually had been large delays in the investigation, which he said amounted to more than 11 months.
“It's the worst case in terms of an investigation that I've ever seen,” Clancy said.
Clancy suggested that it should have taken a week to wrap up the inquiry into the case's facts. “The delays were just totally unconscionable, totally inexcusable.”
While he didn't blame the initial lag on sheriff's Det. Mike Curran, Clancy said Curran didn't speak to witnesses in the case, including doctor's office staff, for many months afterward. That's an issue, he said, because, “Everyone knows that memories fade with time.”
Borg disputed Clancy's claims about the delays. There were timing issues – which were a concern for the jury – but he said they weren't as serious as Clancy portrayed them to be.
While it should have taken just a few days for the deputy who took the report to pass it on to Curran, Borg said for some reason it wasn't routed to Curran immediately. Curran got the case late in November and had completed most of the investigation within a month.
The defense theorized that the female patient was angry with Warner after she received a steroid shot for poison oak in January 2009, with the shot resulting in a 5 centimeter by 4 centimeter by 2 centimeter depression on her buttocks, Clancy said.
During the trial Clancy called a number of witnesses to testify to Warner's moral character and exceptional professional reputation.
Those witnesses included other local doctors and some of Warner's own patients, one of them a man whose young wife died unexpectedly last year and who broke down on the stand, saying he could never have made it without Warner's support.
“They love him. They absolutely love him,” Clancy said of Warner's patients.
Clancy said the backbone of the defense included the office procedures and standards of practice used to ensure client protection, which they went over in detail during the trial.
Borg said Clancy gave “an excellent closing argument” in which he highlighted what he considered the flaws in the case. Clancy in turn noted that Borg was both professional and ethical in his approach to the prosecution, and he felt Judge Andrew Blum was very fair in his handling of the case.
The jury came back with its verdict at about 4:30 p.m. Thursday, Borg said.
After speaking with jurors, “Essentially, it came down to they didn't feel we had proven the case,” Borg said. The jury also had problems with inconsistencies in the alleged victim's testimony and the testimony of office staff.
In his conversations with jurors, Clancy said they noted they didn't find the patient a reliable witness.
With the verdict decided, “What happened afterwards is what is utterly amazing,” said Clancy.
Warner and his wife were hugging and crying, and as the jurors walked out, each patted him on the back, according to Clancy.
The jurors waited outside to talk, and the female jurors later approached Warner and asked him to be their doctor, Clancy said.
He said the female jurors also got together with Warner's wife to let her know that they didn't just vote not guilty, but that they voted him innocent. Some of the jurors also reportedly confronted Curran after the trial, Clancy said.
While the Warners never doubted he would be acquitted, the prosecution has taken a toll on them. At the same time, Dr. Warner has continued his practice, Clancy said.
Dr. Warner is taking a few days off to be with his wife before getting back to his patients on Monday, according to Clancy.
However, while he loves his patients and is being asked to say, Clancy said Warner is having to give considerable thought to whether he will stay in Lake County.
Sheriff Rod Mitchell said Friday that once Curran got the case, he brought the shortfalls in its handling to the attention of both Mitchell and Capt. Rob Howe.
Mitchell said review steps have been put in place to avoid such delays in investigations going forward.
E-mail Elizabeth Larson at