YMCA Idaho Invitational Boise ID - April 24-25, 2009 Donna on the Side by Donna Dye

Spring comes to Boise for the YMCA Team Idaho Invitational

Boise is the capital of Idaho, the largest city in Idaho and the economic, cultural, and transportation center for the area.   The name Boise comes from the french word for "trees or woods."  The naming either came from a French guide who was so excited to see trees after traveling the treeless high desert that upon seeing the Boise river thick with cottonwood trees he yelled:  "le bois."  And the name stuck.  Or another version of the naming attributes the name to mountain men living in the area. 

Boise is one of the the "Gem Cities" (Boise, Nampa, Caldwell, Meridian, Kuna, Eagle) and set in the "Treasure Valley" (southwest Idaho--surrounding the low-lying lands of the Boise, Payette and Snake Rivers). The "Gem" names comes from metal mining in the area. Treasure Valley has its roots in the gold and silver mining done in the Boise Basin and Owyhee Mountains. This treasure hunting lured miners as well as settlers looking for productive farmland. Some of the settlers were dropouts from those heading west on the Oregon trail. With Improvements in transportation and irrigation the area prospered and towns and cities were founded to fill the needs of the growing area. Boise was founded in 1863 and continued to grow with opening of the Oregon Short Line Railroad and the Boise Diversion Dam which heads the New York Canal. A complex irrigation system throughout the Treasure Valley was completed in 1909.

Today, the city is a major regional center for business and industry including engineering, agricultural, building materials and high-tech firms.  The downtown has been rejuvenated complete with many eating and drinking establishments, shopping and  condos.  There are also active cultural and theatre programs, sports and many outdoor recreational facilities including the Boise Greenbelt, which is  a system of walking and biking paths along both banks of the Boise River totalling 25 miles.

The Boise Depot (right) opened in 1925.  Once a stop on the Union Pacific;  now, a museum and meeting place.  Union Pacific stopped service in 1971; from then to 1990 the building fell into disrepair.   But then Morrison-Knudsen Corporation purchased the depot in 1990, and using old plans and photographs, restored much of the depot to its original state.  In January of 1996, the depot became part of the City of Boise parks and it is now used for special events in the evenings.  The depot grounds include gardens, fountain and a pool stocked with koi.)

The meet is held on the Ed Jacoby Track inside  Boise State University's football stadium, the home of the "Broncos."  With an increase in attendance at the football games, there was a demand to expand the stadium.  So, recently, a 3 story addition was completed on the west side of the stadium.  The new complex includes a new press box, luxury suites, club seating and other features.  But this weekend, the focus of the stadium was on the Ed Jacoby Track and the YMCA Invitational.

The Boise State Bronco

The Head Coach for Team Idaho YMCA Track & Field Program is Tim Severa, a YMCA employee of more than 30 years and the co-founder of the Team Idaho Track Club.  Tim is well known and respected in the community for his skill and love of track and field. Runner's World Magazine awarded Tim the Golden Shoe Award in 1982 for his efforts in making running a mainstream sport in the Boise area otherwise known as Treasure Valley. Assisting Tim are more than 40 hand-selected volunteer and staff coaches. Many of the coaches hold at least a level one USAT&F coaching certification and have more than a century of combinedTrack & Field coaching experience. Some of the coaches even participated in Team Idaho when they were young.