Local

The world’s most famous cycling race, the Tour de France, is in full gear, but, as usual, with the cloud of some high-profile doping scandals hanging overhead.
Cycling has been dubbed by some as the “world’s dirtiest sport.” Local former professional rider Clay Moseley can appreciate why, but told the Monitor during an interview last month that he doesn’t think the moniker tells the whole story.
Moseley was on the U.S. National team in the mid-1990s and rubbed shoulders with several of the top racers of the time, including seven-time Tour de France champ Lance Armstrong.

Los Alamos County Little League baseball and softball teams had big showings at the District 1 playoffs.
A pair of baseball teams and a pair of softball teams will move on to state competition later this month after winning the District 1 titles.
In all, nine District 1 All-Star titles were on the line.
The White Rock-Los Alamos All-Stars won the ages 9-10 softball title, while the White Rock 11-12s were the district champs in the 11-12 softball division.
In baseball, Los Alamos Little League’s 11-12s defeated Pojoaque Thursday night to claim that district title. Pojoaque led 2-0 after one inning but Los Alamos tied up the game and scored what would be the winning run in the sixth.

The Atomic City Invitational is back on the schedule.
Los Alamos Golf Course head professional Donnie Torres said the event has been rescheduled for Labor Day weekend.
The ACI, the oldest match-play tournament in the state, had originally been scheduled around the Independence Day holiday, but was postponed when Los Alamos was evacuated during the Las Conchas Fire. Since 1950, the tournament has only been canceled once, in 2000 following the Cerro Grande Fire.
The tournament is the biggest golf event of the year and has attracted numerous golfers from around the state.

Rarely is a wildfire good for grass, but in the case of the Los Alamos Golf Course, the Las Conchas Fire could’ve hardly been more beneficial.
The fire, which prompted an evacuation of the town two weeks ago when it threatened to get into the townsite, was just what the doctor ordered for the LAGC vegetation, which was struggling to get into its normal summer condition.
“We were being faced with the worst drought, with the worst wind and with the worst winter. You talk about three strikes,” said LAGC head professional Donnie Torres.
However, because the course’s normal foot traffic was absent, course crews were able to water just about as much as they wanted to and the holes, particularly the greens, healed up quite well.