Hole-In-One

A Valley woman did two things last week I have never done, one of which will never happen and the other highly unlikely, but still possible.

But pholks, what makes the two accomplishments so noteworthy is that she did them both on the same day. In fact it was only hours apart.

The fact that 28-year-old Allyson McCandless made a hole-in-one on a Ceres golf course which I have played several times, is in itself interesting. She's been a golfer for about five years and played a heck of a lot more recently than I have.

Luck has a lot to do with making a hole-in-one, but skill is important too. You gotta be able to hit the ball far and straight enough to make the green and give luck a real boost. I've come close a couple of times over the 45 or so years I've hacked away at the game but I've never scored an ace. I've never been pregnant. Even on par-3 courses where a lot of holes-in-one are made, I've been shutout. I only witnessed one and the woman, playing in my group, who scored the ace, was not much of a golfer but she got lucky on the Exeter course. She jumped up and down and smiled a lot but wasn't pregnant.

This Stanislaus County woman, an elementary school teacher, playing with her husband and his parents, had her ball marked “Belly Babe,” fired a 5-iron drive on the 125-yard eighth hole tee shot. Her husband, Michael, said he is pretty sure the jumping up and down in celebration prompted the early birth which came only hours after the foursome finished nine hours, and she headed to Memorial Medical Center in Modesto.

Of course, the baby girl, 7-pound, 13-ounce Gabrielle, the McCandlesses first child, will always be referred to as the Hole-In-One baby. I'm sure suggested nicknames include “Ace,” “Lucky,” “Single-Shot,” “Belly-Babe,” “Cupper,” and assorted combinations.

Some pholks have suggested that my home-grown belly might provide a swing adjustment which could enhance my chances for a golf ace. If I get to play a little more often than I have lately, I will see what happens. Instead of a one-in-a-million chance for the hole-in-one, my chances might zoom up to two in a million. Then you can call me “Lucky” or “Ace.”

I DO FEEL LUCKY to have landed a ride on the famed B-17 Flying Fortress, the Aluminum Overcast, which cruised into Visalia this week, sending hundreds and hundreds of eyes skyward as it made dozens of passes over the city and surrounding countryside.

I was accompanied on the media flight by nine other people, including special guest 91-year-old Col. David Turner, a World War II pilot who was shot down behind enemy lines on his ninth bombing mission. After the crash landing, seven crewmen were captured and became POWs for the rest of the war. Turner and two others were rescued by the French underground and eventually returned to London. Turner later became a bomber pilot instructor back in the states.

My flight was another experience which has been etched into my memory, especially when I ventured down into the glass bubble bombardier's nest, complete with 50 caliber machine gun. Talk about a bird's eye view. I'd be lying if I said I didn't daydream just a couple of minutes about shooting at swarming Messerschmidts or dropping bombs on key Nazi targets.

At the same time, it was impossible not to think about how many lives were lost and about the many brave American airmen, soldiers, sailors, Marines, Coast Guard and merchant marines who saved the world. The Greatest Generation is not just a nickname.

Even though I got a tinge of motion sickness just prior to landing as I took a seat, and I was a little wobbly when I deplaned, it was a thrilling afternoon.

I would do it again.

Miles can be reached at mshuper@valleyvoicenewspaper.com