Camps offered to youth

     By Damon Hodge
     View staff writer
      Registration is upcoming for a slate of Nike-sponsored sports camps for youth ages 7 to 14.
      Sport Star camps were created to increase youth participation, said Aaron Kelley, a soccer coach with Sport Star. Registration, available up to a week prior to the camp, is $85 and is available at participating schools and community centers. Camps run from 8 to 11 a.m.
      "Our motto is `Let the fun begin'," Kelly said. "We really want to encourage youth to come out and participate."
      Camp officials said approximately 140 youth participated in last year's soccer, baseball, basketball and fundamental skills camps.
      Added this year are indoor and outdoor volleyball camps coached by a former pro beach volleyball player, camp officials said.
      The first volleyball camp will be held from June 26-30 at Desert Breeze Community Center, 8275 Spring Mountain Road. The registration number is 1376.430. Those interested in the Desert Breeze camps can call 455-8334.
      Pecos Legacy Park, 150 Pecos Road, in Henderson will host an outdoor beach volleyball camp June 12-16. A July 24-28 indoor camp is slated for Greenspun Junior High, 140 N. Valle Verde Drive.
      Dennis Krine, a local product and veteran Triple-A player will coach the baseball camps. The first camp is July 24-28 at Henderson's Mountain View Park, 1959 Wigwam Parkway. Those interested can visit the Arroyo Grande Sports Complex, 298 Arroyo Grande Blvd., or call 434-4131. Desert Breeze hosts a second baseball camp July 31-Aug. 4. The camp's registration number 1376.533.
      Kelly will assist Eldorado High boys' and girls' soccer coach Gerald Pentsil in two soccer camps July 31-Aug. 4 at Mountain View Park and a camp Aug. 7-11 at Desert Breeze. The registration number for the camp is 1376.630.
      Desert Breeze will host a basketball camp July 10-14. The registration number is 1376.532. Two hoops camps will be held at White Middle School -- July 24-28 and Aug. 7-11. The school is located at 1661 Galleria Drive in Henderson.
      All camps are open to youth ages 7 to 14.
      Youth ages 6 to 12 can participate in two FUNdamentals camps covering all four sports July 10-14 at Mountain View Park. A second multi-sport camp is slated at Desert Breeze July 24-28. The registration number is 1376.531.
      All camp participants receive a T-shirt, a complimentary ball from the sport they participate in, an evaluation and a certificate of achievement.
      Offered at a lower price than traditional Nike Sport Camps, Sport Star camps feature lower athlete-to-coach ratios. Activities, games and skill drills focus on teamwork, coordination, confidence building, sharpening fundamentals and encouraging life-long participation in sports, according to camp officials.
      Sport Star camps started in the summer of 1995 in Murray, Utah, as Nike Sport Camps. The name was changed to Nike Community Camps in 1996, and 700 youth participated in seven sites around Salt Lake City. Participation has grown each year.