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SoCalHoops High School & Tournament News

Desert B-Rat: Desert Valley Summer
Tournaments & More--(April 20, 1999)

This guys' stuff (whoever he is. . . we're not exactly sure, but we have a pretty good idea who it is) is getting better and better all the time. The Desert B-Rat posts stuff on our message board from time to time, but as most everyone who frequents the SoCalHoops Message Forum has figured out by now, every couple of days, as new messages are posted, the older ones drop down the page, until finally, they fall into oblivion (i.e., we delete the oldest messages after a while). Which means that all of the previous posts from the B-Rat are gone. So, as long as the B-Rat will keep posting, we'll keep the best ones (hey, this is our site, and we'll decide what's "best" and what's not) and include them among the Daily Articles which, as you also may know get saved for posterity in our Archives (although why anyone would want to look at articles from 1997 is something we're still trying to figure out). Anyway, the point of this article is to present Desert B-Rat's post on the Desert Valley Summer stuff going on in the Greater Palm Springs area. Here's what's happening:

Desert Valley Hoops, Basketball news from the Greater Palm Springs area, including Palm Springs -- Cathedral City -- Desert Hot Springs -- Palm Desert -- La Quinta -- Indio -- Coachella Valley High Schools.

Wow! You take a breather and everything starts to happen at once. First of all, if you've been keeping abreast of the internet, then you know that there are lots of J.V. and Varsity summer tournaments coming up for both boys and girls in the Greater Palm Springs area. For those of you who are confused by all the bits and pieces floating around, here are the tournaments in a nutshell:

DESERT CITY TOURNAMENT

June 18,19 & 20, 1999.

Co-hosted by Cathedral City and Palm Desert High Schools. Teams are guaranteed four games but most play five or six games. Paid entry fees as of April 18 included: Artesia, Ayala, Riverside Poly, Coachella Valley, Big Bear, Burroughs of Ridgecrest, Yucca Valley, El Segundo, Fullerton, Bishop Diego, Perris, Desert Christian and of course, co-hosts Cathedral City and Palm Desert High Schools. For more info e-mail: cclionhoop@aol.com

PALM SPRINGS HIGH SCHOOL & 'OPEN' SUMMER TOURNAMENTS

Boys Tournaments -- June 25-27, July 9-11, July 16-18 (high school & "open"), July 23-25 and July 30-Aug. 1.
Girls Tournaments -- June 18-20 and July 2-4.

The "Open" tournament on June 16-18 is for traveling, club and AAU type teams. All games will be played at Palm Springs High School's newly refurbished gymnasium (it's big and beautiful) with a new air conditioning system guaranteed to keep you cool. Great hotel packages are available along with incentives for the top 4 teams. For info, contact Sy Lenes at (760) 323-2849.

CATHEDRAL CITY HIGH JULY J.V. & VARSITY TOURNAMENTS

July 9-11 and July 30-31, 1999.

As of April 18, they still needed two more programs for each of the tournaments to complete the round robin brackets. Each program is guaranteed five J.V. and Varsity OR seven J.V. and Varsity games. The coach can choose how many game they want to play. For more information e-mail: cclionhoop@aol.com

WHERE TO STAY & THINGS TO DO

The contacts for each tournament can, most likely, offer hotel/motel packages or offer advice on where to stay and things to do.

The new IMAX Theatre just opened in Cathedral City, the Oasis Water Park is a good place, The Camelot Park Entertainment Center offers video games, miniature golf, mini-car racers and more, the Palm Springs Aerial Tram ride to the top of Mt. San Jacinto above Palm Springs is always a must do, the Palm Desert Town Center indoor regional mall is a good place to keep the family busy and cool, and there are lots of theaters (with new ones being built as we write). The Desert Hills Factory stores are 15 minutes right up I-10 and for you adults, there are now 3 Indian Casinos. The new state of the art bowling alley at the Fantasy Springs Casino in Indio should be up and running. Golf courses will be offering summer rates and if you get out early or late afternoon you can beat the heat. If you can't get a hotel/motel or if you need more info on things to do, check out these visitors bureaus:

Palm Springs Visitor Center -- a free reservation booking service for accommodations at more than 85 sites in the city of Palm Springs. You can choose from centrally located historic inns, villa resorts, full-service hotels and golf course condominiums. For a free full-color, 40-page Visitors Guide to Palm Springs call (800) 347-7746 or visit their website at www.palm-springs.org/08

Palm Springs Desert Resorts Convention & Visitors Bureau -- Visitors can save 15%-50% off standard rates and receive other extra values with the free R&R Club discount brochure that lists over 150 offers from resorts, restaurants, retailers and attractions in eight resort cities. For reservations or a free copy of the brochure and a vacation planner call (800) 417-3529 or write: Palm Springs Desert Resorts Convention & Visitors Bureau, 69-930 Highway 111, Suite 201, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270. Or visit their website: www.desert-resorts.com

Palm Desert Visitor Information Center -- offers visitors hotel recommendations based on price, location and amenities. The center also provides info on events, activities and attractions as well as maps, brochures and souvenirs. A free vacation planner is also available. For more information call (800) 873-2428 or visit on-line at: www.palm-desert.org

Whew! I told you there was a lot going on. And this is just the summer high school stuff. There's lots more between now and summer but I thought this info would give all you HS coaches the heads up.

Stay tuned and stay active.