By Breven Honda
The 2024 Mesquite Senior Games have reached the halfway mark on the schedule. 
After having nine events in March, the Senior Games have another eight events remaining in the month of April to conclude the spring slate.
Mesquite Senior Games President Sandy Tudor said the events that took place in March, such as track and field and pickleball, went well, despite a few obstacles.
“We’ve had obviously a couple of weather-related issues,” Tudor said. “We had to postpone two days of pickleball because of the high winds a week ago.
“We had track and field on (March 23). It was a little hectic because Virgin Valley High School was having a softball tournament, and we were having track and field at the high school. So, parking was a bit of a challenge on Saturday, but other than that, it went really well.”
However, during the track and field event, Virgin Valley High School girls track and field coach,Gary Hartman recruited his players to come out and volunteer.
“We have track and field athletes out there working with us and helping with the scores,” Tudor said of the Bulldog student athletes. “There was one older woman who was struggling a little bit to finish her first running event. All the kids, there must have been 10 kids, ran with her and paced her. They ran at her pace and kept encouraging her so that was nice to see and fun to watch.”
From table tennis to bowling, the first two events were a great way to kick off this year’s spring games.
Tudor said the bowling event was nearly full for both days of singles and doubles action at the Virgin River Lanes.
“Bowling is bowling. We sell out every year. We had 88 people for doubles and 79 for singles. 88 (players) is the most we can have, so that was good,” she said.
About a week after the bowling event, the tennis senior challenge made its return for the first time in five years.
Led by Duane Catania, the tennis event went smoothly as play commenced for nearly 20 competitors, lasting more than four straight days of two-hour sessions in the morning and the afternoon.
Furthermore, Tudor said one of the positive reactions she received came from a tennis player, named Howard, who was fascinated by the amount of time he got on the courts.
“I left Mesquite Wednesday afternoon and had no chance to say goodbye to all of you,” Tudor said on behalf of Howard’s letter. “I was most impressed with the way everybody got along, and you treat tennis as a gentleman and gentle lady sport. Also amazed how many diehard fans there are. My tennis friends in Vegas can’t believe I played 120 games in two and a half days.”
Tudor added that playing that much tennis was the highlight of getting in a lot of action but does not take as much time while ensuring everyone enjoys themselves, like Howard admired.
“120 games in two and a half days,” she said. “That’s a lot of tennis for these people. I think we’ll continue with the event next year. We brought it back this year for the first time (since 2019) and everybody who was there had a great time. The weather cooperated for the most part because it wasn’t really hot in the afternoon.”
Looking ahead, there are eight events that will round out the 2024 spring games this month that began with the golf events of long drive, closest to the pin and the putting contest on April 2 and will conclude with the bocce event from April 22-25.
Some of those events also include the women’s softball and gun sporting events.
Tudor, who is coordinating the softball event, said it will reach capacity as the event is separated over a two-week span, depending on the age divisions.
“It’ll be 34 (teams) because I had a commitment from a team that’s playing and they were playing in Bullhead City over the weekend,” Tudor said. “And they said, ‘Of course we’re coming. Well, I didn’t know that.’ So, I guess I have 34 teams. That’s pretty much all I can take.”
Taking place one day before the start of the softball event is the shotgun sports and the target pistol events, led by Jim Armstrong, at the Redcliffs Rifle and Pistol Range in Hurricane, Utah, near St. George and about one hour east of Mesquite.
The Redcliffs Rifle and Pistol Range is a new location for the shotgun sports and target pistol events after the Smoking Gun Club closed last year, resulting in these events being canceled during last year’s fall schedule.
Armstrong, along with Marge Mongolo and Krista Kilpatrick, are part of the newest board members who will or have hosted an event during the spring games.
Kilpatrick hosted the basketball skills event and Mongolo hosted the table tennis and the tennis skills challenge events.
Tudor said her newer board members have stepped up and filled in both within and outside of the events they host.
“It’s been awesome,” she said. “Marge and Krista have both have each taken on an event. Marge is our tennis queen and then Krista was the one who handled all of the track and field registration, forms and formats. So, it’s been great seeing them take these events on and run with them and they’re both very, very organized, which is obviously what these events need. So, it’s been perfect.”
For some of the events later in April such as bocce, cornhole and the second fitness hike, there is still some time for you to submit your name to participate.
As the final events to this year’s spring schedule come, Tudor is hoping all the events go well.
“I think our expectation is that all of our events succeed, and the participants stay healthy,” Tudor said. “We’re trying to make sure everybody stays healthy and has a good time. Our goal is for these participants to enjoy it, to have a good time, to have fun and get some exercise and activity.”
