Jr. Bulls Hockey Win State Title

The Jr. Bulls Midget U16A ice hockey team, based at the Ice Sports Forum in Brandon, won the State Championship at the Statewide Amateur Hockey of Florida (SAHOF) in Palm Beach on March 5.

Three teens from our New Tampa & Wesley Chapel Neighborhood News coverage area competed on the team.

Goaltender Matthew Garneau and forward Owen Barno from New Tampa (see story on page 34), as well as defenseman Alex Carr from Wesley Chapel, played for the Jr. Bulls.

The Jr. Bulls, coached by Dave Collins and Joe Canfield, were seeded last among the six teams competing for the state championship.

But, the Bulls proved to be the top team, winning four times (against just one loss) and posting a pair of shutouts over the weekend, including a 2-0 whitewash of the Space Coast Rockets in the finale.

Local Business: Models Are Open At New Communities, New Spin Studio

Discovery Village at Tampa Palms (photo above), which touts itself as “Resort Style Senior Living,” is located across Commerce Park Blvd. from Freedom High at 17470 Brookside Trace Ct. The new assisted living and memory care facility won’t be fully open until December of this year, but now has model rooms available for touring.

Discovery Village will offer 10 different floor plans, ranging from 345-sq.-ft. to 944-sq.-ft. There will be three floor plans for memory care — a 345-sq.-ft. studio and two different two bedroom, two bath apartments (804-sq.-ft. and 944-sq.-ft.). Assisted living at Discovery Village will offer four floor plans, with three 1-bedroom, 1-bath apartments  with 541, 595 and 639 square feet, respectively, and a 2-bedroom, 2-bath, 823-sq.-ft. “executive” apartment. There also are two supervised “independent living” suites of 543-sq.-ft. and 595-sq.-ft; both of which are 1-bedroom, 1-bath.

Owner/developer Discovery Senior Living is headquartered in Bonita Springs, FL, and manages twelve other communities in Texas, Alabama, Georgia and Florida.

For more information, see the ad on pg. 23 of this issue, visit DiscoveryVillages.com or call 605-2400.

STAFFORD PLACE MODELS OPEN: Stafford Place, a new community of 118 single-family homes starting from $316,990 and touted as one of the last opportunities to buy a brand new home in Tampa Palms (off Tampa Palms Blvd., behind BJ’s Wholesale Club), now has two model homes open for prospective buyers.

The CalAtlantic Homes community will have houses ranging from 1,866-sq.-ft. to the luxury Bedford model that is 3,644 sq.-ft. and starts at $404,990. There are eight one- and two-story floor plans to choose from.

The models are located at 6209 English Hollow Rd. For more info, call 605-1515 or visit CalAtlanticHomes.com.

NEW SPIN STUDIO NOW OPEN: Avid spin cyclers Steve Woody (of Woody’s Pizza & Wings in the Wesley Chapel Village Market) and business partner Jim Upchurch have opened Cycology, a new “spin” (indoor cycling) studio located in the Shoppes of New Tampa at Wesley Chapel plaza on Bruce B. Downs (BBD) Blvd., just south of  S.R. 56, in Wesley Chapel.

Cycology is in the space previously occupied by Pura Cycling. Woody and Upchurch, who opened Cycology in January, are hoping to transform the indoor cycling studio into a more vigorous exercise space.

Upchurch says Cycology has been able to retain 90-95 percent of Pura Cycling’s former clients, as well as adding 50-60 new spinners since opening. “We’ll have more classes, we will be open more and will have the best of the best spin instructors,’’ says Upchurch, who says he has been a serious spinner himself for the past 4-5 years.

Upchurch also says he is currently going through permitting in the hopes of adding showers in the back, making it more convenient for people getting a spin class in before having to go to work in the morning.

Cycology, which offers 3-, 6- and 12-month agreements, is open until 7 or 8 p.m. on most nights, except for Friday-Sun. It offers spinning classes as early as 5:30 a.m. on Mondays, Wednesdays & Fridays,  and also offers yoga, pilates, Zumba classes and semi-private personal training sessions as well.

Sometimes, Upchurch says, the bikes are even moved out onto the patio in front of Cycology for an outdoor workout.

To check out the class schedule or for more info, visit Cycologyspin.com, or call 907-8710.

Wharton Navy Junior ROTC Cadets Host Sporting Clays Fund Raiser Apr. 1!

At New Tampa’s Wharton High, about 180 students are part of the Navy Junior Reserve Officers Training Corps (NJROTC; photo). According to Gretchen Channell, whose son is a cadet, “It’s a great mix of students, both girls and boys. You don’t have to be military-bound to join. It’s all about leadership, service to the community, and to country.”

Channell and other members of the Wharton NJROTC Booster Club, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, will host the group’s third annual “Sporting Clays Classic” on Saturday, April 1, 8 a.m., at Tampa Bay Sporting Clays & Archery at 10514 Ehren Cutoff in nearby Land O’Lakes.

All proceeds assist cadets with expenses related to activities, competitions and summer leadership camps.

“Our teens compete all over the state in air rifle marksmanship, academic team and drill team,” explains Melissa Hale, another Wharton NJROTC mom and booster member. “Our color guard has performed at dozens of sporting events, memorials and competitions. Our cadets take special trips during the school year and go to several different leadership camps over the summer.”

Cadets will be manning each of the stations, launching the clays that participants will shoot.

The day will start with a light breakfast, followed by the chance to hit 50 clay targets at 15 stations. Golf cart and ammo are provided. Shotguns can even be rented from Tampa Bay Sporting Clays & Archery.

After teams and individuals are done with the course, lunch will be served, followed by raffles and trophies for the top finishers. The booster club can accommodate about 100 participants and is hoping to fill all of those available spots.

To register, please visit SportingClaysClassic3.eventbrite.com. For info about sponsorships or other questions, email wharton.jrotcbooster@gmail.com.