Going Yard’s Dean aims to make a difference as a coach

Instructor enjoys working with all ages at baseball academy

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Marshall Dean is a popular instructor with Going Yard.

“He cares.”

That is the biggest message Marshall Dean hopes all the baseball players he instructs take with them.

“I like to think my players know I care,” said Dean. “It is not just my job.

“I care about them both on the field and in other aspects of life. I want to teach them how to be men from an early age, not just go through the motions, but work with a purpose. Every day is an opportunity.

“I hope they grow up to just be strong, hard-nosed baseball players. That is what I want is competitive kids that do things the right way and approach the game the right way.”

Having grown up playing minor baseball in Saskatoon and moving on to play at the post-secondary level as a pitcher, Dean reflected that he had a great experience playing baseball. When his playing career wrapped up, Dean wanted to give back to the game by becoming a coach. He aimed to help young players playing the sport in Saskatoon to have similar positive experiences with the game like he had.

After coming on to be an instructor with the Going Yard Baseball Academy in 2016, Dean has developed a reputation for bringing a great joy to training sessions working with players in a wide range of age groups. Some coaches find they work better with either younger players or older players at the post-secondary and professional levels.

As for Dean, the 33-year-old finds he is at his best when he working with players from all different age groups on a weekly basis. He has fun helping players get better, and you would be hard pressed to not see a big smile running across his face during daily practice sessions at the Indoor Training Centre at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex.

“It helps you as a coach,” said Dean, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighed 190 pounds in his playing days. “It helps you learn different aspects of the game and how to approach different players.

“It has been really fun to coach kids at a young age, set that standard and expectation early and watch them grow into the players that they are now. I’d say that is what I’m most proud of as a coach is the guys that I’ve coached from the time they were 10-years-old and now they’re 16 and 17-years-old men ready to go to college.”

Marshall Dean instructs a group of young pitchers.

No matter how different the ages of the players he works with are, Dean said his approach to working with those athletes is pretty consistent.

“It is a lot different, but it is a lot the same,” said Dean. “It is the same standard you set as far as what the expectation is at practice and the right way to approach the game and your work every day.

“Obviously, it is gentler at the younger age groups, but it is really the same. You practice the right way, you play the right way and you approach every day the right way.”

Of course, Dean only envisioned himself being a player, when he started in the sport. When he discovered the game, his motivation to be in the sport was to be like his two older brothers.

“I’m the youngest of three boys from an athletic family,” said Dean. “My brothers played baseball.

“I fell in love with it early going to their games hanging out in foul territory playing around and just stuck with it. I figured I had a pretty good arm, and it’d be a good option for me.”

He took to being a pitcher early on when he began playing the game. A lot of Dean’s love for the game of baseball comes from the competition of pitcher versus batter.

“It is a thinking man’s game,” said Dean. “It is not just straightforward.

“You have to use your mind a little bit. I always enjoyed that. I enjoy the battle inside the game pitcher versus hitter, pitch to pitch.

“I enjoy the thinking part of it.”

Marshall Dean gives a pointer during a fielding drill.

In Saskatoon’s minor baseball ranks, Dean played out of the Blue Jays zone before joining the Saskatoon Cubs 18U AAA team. With the Blue Jays and the Cubs, Dean had Todd Plaxton as a coach through most of those years in the sport.

Dean said Plaxton was his mentor playing the game, while growing up. The hurler credited a lot of his success to his long time minor baseball coach from his Saskatoon playing days.

“He (Plaxton) coached us the right way really early,” said Dean. “He taught you to respect the game, play hard and work hard.

“I think that is a big part of why I do this today is trying to bring some of that back to these boys and making sure they’re viewing the game the right way, practising and playing the right way.”

While suiting up for the Cubs, Dean got his first experience of playing baseball with adults. From 2006 to 2008, Dean played for the now defunct Saskatoon Yellow Jackets in what is now known as the Western Canadian Baseball League.

These days the WCBL is strictly a summer wood bat league for players from the post-secondary ranks. Back in 2006 to 2008, the WCBL was a summer league in an era where teams could use players from all sorts of age groups, if they were good enough to be on the team. Dean did face players in their late 20s and early 30s with the Yellow Jackets.

“It was pretty wild being a teenager in that league,” said Dean. “Todd (Plaxton) always used to say you’re going to grow some whiskers, and I definitely did.

“I mean playing against grown men you learn a lot really quick good things and bad things.”

After graduating from high school, Dean played for Colby Community College Trojans in Colby, Kansas, from 2009 to 2011. He moved on to throw for the University of Central Missouri Mules in Warrensburg, Missouri. With the U of Central Missouri, Dean completed his bachelor’s degree in physical education and coaching.

Marshall Dean set to the ball during a fielding drill.

In the summer months, Dean returned to Canada to play in the WCBL for the Moose Jaw Miller Express. During those post-secondary playing days, Dean started thinking seriously about becoming a coach in the sport.

“I realized I wasn’t going to be a professional baseball player,” said Dean. “Around the time I was about 20 or 21, I realized that the dream wasn’t necessarily going to come true.

“I just wanted to help guys from Saskatchewan reach their goals. If you have a goal to play college ball or whatever that goal is in baseball, I just wanted to help out back home.”

Upon returning to Saskatoon, Dean started working as an education assistant as a substitute and later full time at Caroline Robins Community School and Dr. John G. Egnatoff School.

He originally wanted to find a coaching spot with the Cubs, but he joined the staff of the Saskatoon Diamondbacks 18U AAA team after getting a call from Matt Kosteniuk. Kosteniuk brought Dean to Going Yard.

Dean has loved every bit of his time with Going Yard starting with the old training warehouse the academy was originally located at on Alberta Avenue before moving to the Gordie Howe Sports Complex grounds on March 1, 2019.

“It is really cool to work with your buddies that you grew up with,” said Dean. “Obviously, it is really cool to coach with a guy like (MLB alumnus) Andrew (Albers) who you looked up to growing up, and now, he is just your co-worker.

“That has been fantastic. Some of the younger guys that we have coming up that have spent time in professional baseball or very high-level baseball, it is really fun to watch them come back and again just be your co-workers.”

Dean has enjoyed seeing Going Yard grow over the years that included developing the Goats travel team program. Looking to the future, he believes his passion for coaching will always be there.

Marshall Dean gives post-practice talk with a group of players.

“I’ll do this as long as I can,” said Dean. “It is awesome to go to work with your friends every day.

“It is awesome to do what you love. I think a lot of people would look at this job and be jealous of what we get to do every day. We get to have fun with the boys.

“We get to help them grow and watch them grow. I’ll do this for absolutely as long as I can.”

For more information on the Going Yard Baseball Academy, feel free to check out their website at www.gyba.ca.

Forrest gets past surprise medical issues to play final Cubs season

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Ethan Forrest sets to throw a pitch for the Cubs.

Ethan Forrest wants to create one last set of good memories in his final season with the Saskatoon Cubs, but he never foresaw the campaign taking an unexpected turn before it began.

As the 17-year-old second baseman and relief pitcher was training at Inside Pitch Saskatoon over the winter months, he started to notice what he believed was regular pain in his right throwing arm. At first, Forrest thought it was something that was going to go away.

The pain never went away. At a Cubs practice shortly before the under-18 AAA baseball club began playing exhibition games, Forrest asked the team’s coaches about the pain he was experiencing and a pattern that had developed on his arm. The coaches told their veteran player to see a doctor.

“It got really bad in kind of my armpit area, kind of the lat area, and that is when I knew it wasn’t any normal pain,” said Forrest. “I could hardly lift my arm.

“That is when we went into the hospital, and then I was diagnosed with a blood clot. A couple of weeks later, it was removed, but they found I had thoracic outlet syndrome. It is usually a pitcher syndrome.

“Max Scherzer in the MLB is just suffering from it right now. He is just getting off rehab for it. It is just kind of where you get a little bit of kind of build up of scar tissue from overuse and right under your clavicle bone there in your neck, and then it pinches off and kind of just forms a clot or you’ll have nerve damage.”

Scherzer, who is an ace right-handed pitcher who helped the Texas Rangers win the World Series last year, started his MLB season with a lengthy stay on the injured list with neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome in his throwing arm. He saw his first action with the Rangers on June 23.

When Forrest first got his diagnosis, he thought he might miss the Cubs season.

Ethan Forrest was diagnosed with a blood clot.

“When they told me I had a blood clot, it is a pretty scary thing,” said Forrest, who stands 5-foot-10 and weighs 170 pounds. “The pain went away really quickly with the blood thinners, and I was playing almost a week later in pre-season.

“I didn’t know if it was going to be months or a few days. I was scared to miss the season for sure.”

Forrest has been thankful that everything that has been done to treat his blood clot and manage his thoracic outlet syndrome has worked. It allowed him to return to action with the Cubs in quick order.

Having just graduated Grade 12 from Holy Cross High School, Forrest has committed to joining the Miles Community College Pioneers Baseball Team in Miles City, Montana. He will play second base and third base for the Pioneers, who are part of the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II ranks.

At the moment, Forrest is still taking blood thinners every day, and that has allowed him to play for the Cubs. He is considering options to further deal with his thoracic outlet syndrome after the Cubs season comes to an end.

“I just kind of have to be careful now,” said Forrest, who will turn 18-years-old on July 29. “Now, I play and lift weights with no pain anymore.

“The next step we are doing is just deciding with surgery and stuff before I head to college and what that is going to look like. We have to decide if we’re going to go with surgery now or not. We don’t really know yet.”

Once Forrest’s medical diagnosis was clear, Cubs co-head coach Jordan Frey said the team’s focus was to help the veteran standout get healed up.

“Obviously, it wasn’t something we wanted to deal with or foresaw coming, but it was something we did have to deal with,” said Frey. “We talked with him lots and wanted to make sure that he had our support as a coaching staff and as a team.

Ethan Forrest is dealing with thoracic outlet syndrome.

“Whatever decision he wanted to go down whether it was getting surgery or not being able to finish the rest of the year, we supported that decision. His health came first and foremost. Just to see him back on the field just shows how much he cares about the game and wants to be on our team and be a leader.”

Frey said the Cubs coaches weren’t worried if Forrest had to miss a few games or a lengthy amount of time to possibly the whole season. The team’s coaches were pumped, when Forrest made a quick return.

With that noted, Forrest’s workload on the pitching mound has been managed as he comes back from his medical challenges. When Forrest has come in to play relief, the Cubs coaches at first tried to limit him to an inning or two.

On June 30 at Cairns Field, the Cubs brain trust allowed Forrest to go a little longer. Forrest pitched an efficient three scoreless innings with one strikeout leaving the mound with the Cubs holding a 4-1 lead over the Saskatoon Diamondbacks after six innings. The Diamondbacks rallied scoring four runs in the top of the seventh to pull out a 5-4 victory after Forrest left the game.

Frey said the Cubs coaches were pretty inspired to get the superb three innings from Forrest.

“We know what we are getting with him on the mound,” said Frey. “He is going to be consistent.

“He is going to throw strikes. Thirty-three pitches in three innings is nothing we’re ever going to complain about. It is just one of those things we have to get him ramped back up again to a higher pitch count.”

Forrest has been a regular when it comes to playing second base, and Frey said his graduating veteran has been outstanding at that position.

Ethan Forrest has played regularly for the Cubs this season.

“Infielding wasn’t something he needed to take a step back on,” said Frey. “The throwing part he did a little bit.

“Obviously playing second base, it helps with a little bit of a shorter throw. Just being able to have him out there and being a third-year kid, it helps our team. You can see when he is in the lineup.

“The boys absolutely love having him around. Even when he was hurt, he was just on the bench trying to help out anyway he could.”

On offence, Forrest has gone 19-for-67 at the plate for a .284 average with 16 runs batted in as the Cubs have built a 18-8 record to battle for first place in the Saskatchewan Premier Baseball League. Looking at everything he has dealt with, Forrest is pleased with his season so far.

“I feel like it is going pretty good,” said Forrest. “We’re first in the league team wise, and we’re all having a good time this year.

“The team is performing really well. Personally, I think I am having a decent year. I always have stuff to improve on obviously on the offensive side.

“I’m happy with how my pitching is going right now for sure. It has been a fun year overall for sure.”

In 2022, Forrest took part in as many Cubs practices as he could as an affiliate player. He played that campaign full time with the Saskatoon Cardinal Sluggers Under-18 AA team, and he was around Cubs when they won their Saskatchewan title in that campaign.

He moved up to the Cubs on a full-time basis in 2023 as they had another stellar year but were unable to make it to the provincial final. Forrest believes the Cubs have all the pieces to win another provincial title and qualify for nationals, or make the provincial final and earn a spot to Westerns.

Ethan Forrest believes his Cubs can win a provincial title.

Forrest said a lot of the best memories he has have been made with the Cubs. Due to the challenges he has faced on the medical front this season, Forrest believes he is cherishing his final campaign with the team in a good new way, because he hasn’t had to spend large portions of the season out of the lineup.

“As a third year especially, it is my last kind of summer season here in Saskatoon,” said Forrest. “It is going to be tough one.

“With the clot as well, I’m fortunate enough to be healthy right now and playing with no pain. Definitely, I am very appreciative to be playing right now.”

Cubs’ Stromberg packs a punch with small size

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Osher Stromberg works behind the plate as the Cubs catcher.

Osher Stromberg said being small has its advantages when it comes to playing baseball.

“Really how I see it, I get a lot of walks because of it,” said Stromberg with a chuckle. “It really helps me, if anything.”

The 16-year-old second-year catcher with the Saskatoon Cubs baseball team stands 5-foot-4 and weighs 130 pounds. He is the smallest player in the Saskatchewan Premier Baseball League’s under-18 AAA level. Due to standing only 5-foot-4, opposing pitchers have a harder time hitting the strike zone when Stromberg is at the plate helping his on base percentage.

With that noted, Cubs assistant coach Jordan Frey said people who see the Cubs play quickly find out Stromberg is a good player and one of the top catchers at the under-18 AAA level in Saskatchewan.

“I think his game calling is probably one of the best in the league,” said Frey. “Obviously, he is not the biggest guy behind the plate, but he has a really good arm.

“He is able to get outs for us. He is a leader. He blocks the balls back there no matter what.

“We can play him at catcher when it is plus-35 out for two games, and he doesn’t complain. He puts the gear on, and he gives it 110 per cent every day.”

Frey said the Cubs coaches were always excited about bringing Stromberg to the Cubs believing they were going to get a good player. The bench boss added the squad had to use some misdirection in order to bring him to the team.

Osher Stromberg, left, chats with pitcher Jared Tameling.

In the Saskatoon Zone for minor baseball, players entering their 15-year-old seasons going to the under-18 AAA level are divided between the city’s three teams in the Cubs, Diamondbacks and Giants via a draft. Players go though a tryout process including skill session evaluations and playing in exhibition games amongst the group trying out.

The tryout process usually occurs in September for the upcoming season in the next calendar year. After the September tryout process is held, the teams conduct a draft to distribute players.

Frey said Stromberg stood out, but the Cubs coaches put up a façade about being worried about Stromberg’s small size when they crossed paths with the coaches of the Diamondbacks and Giants. The Cubs coaches hoped that might create some doubt among the Diamondbacks and Giants coaches when it came to picking Stromberg, which would allow the Cubs to land him.

“That was kind of way we got him,” said Frey. “We had to fib a little bit and tell other teams he was a little small, and we were not sure how he will be.

“That was the way we got him was by making sure that other teams didn’t want him height wise. I think it has paid off for us.”

Stromberg said he became interested in playing baseball around age nine after his grandpa took him to a fastpitch softball tournament. He wanted to play the type of game where you used a bat to hit the ball, and it stuck with him how players in both sports were pumped to play.

“I just liked how everyone was so excited about it and really got amped up in the game,” said Stromberg.

Stromberg added there was another softball influence that drew him into becoming a catcher in baseball.

Osher Stromberg sets up for an at bat with the Cubs.

“At first, I was scared of the ball,” said Stromberg. “My mom told me she was a catcher when she played softball, so that is kind of what got me into that.”

Last season, Stromberg lived through a dream rookie campaign with the Cubs. The Cubs finished first overall in the SPBL standings with a 24-6 record and won the SPBL championship tournament hosted at Cairns and Leakos Fields.

In the tournament’s championship game played on July 24, 2022 at Cairns Field, the Cubs downed the Muenster-based East Central Red Sox 12-6 in front of about 1,000 spectators.

“That was pretty cool having everyone cheering for us, because we were the hometown team,” said Stromberg. “It was fun.”

The Cubs advanced to Baseball Canada’s Under-18 Nationals that were held in Grande Prairie, Alta., from August 18 to 21, 2022. They finished with a 4-2 overall record falling in the event’s bronze medal game 5-4 in extra innings to the Nanaimo, B.C., based Mid Island Pirates.

Overall, Stromberg couldn’t ask for a better experience for his first season with the Cubs.

“It is awesome,” said Stromberg. “I love all the players.

“We all blend really well together. The coaches are really into it. It is just all-around fun times.

“That was pretty cool being a part of the team that goes to nationals. Everyone was talking about it. To be able to be a part of that was pretty cool.”

This season Stromberg has called games well for his pitchers, made the throw to second base consistently to get base stealers out, stroked the ball well at the plate and run the base paths with conviction. He said it is more serious being a catcher at the under-18 AAA level compared to being a catcher in younger age groups.

Osher Stromberg looks for an opening to get a steal.

“At younger levels, they say anyone can be a catcher, but at this level, you really can’t,” said Stromberg, who will be going into his Grade 12 school year in the fall at Evan Hardy Collegiate. “You have to be able to focus and just really know what you are doing back there.”

When it comes calling games behind the plate, Stromberg said one of the big keys is communicating with the pitchers who take the mound to get a sense of where they are at that day.

“It is just seeing how the pitcher is feeling and what they can throw and what is good,” said Stromberg, who trains with Going Yard Training Centre at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex during the off-season. “(It is seeing) the hitters and how they hit certain pitches and what the count is.

“There are lots of factors that go into that.”

This season the Cubs have built a 16-5 record and are one of five teams in a dogfight for first place. The SPBL Under-18 AAA championship tournament will be held once again at Cairns and Leakos Fields from July 28 to 30. The winner of that event advances to Baseball Canada’s Under-18 Nationals, which will be held August 17 to 20 in Fort McMurray, Alta. 

As the season hits its stretch run, Frey said Stromberg will play a big part in how the Cubs finish out.

“It is going to be huge just the part with Osher catching,” said Frey, who added the Cubs will also use Jared Tameling at catcher too in provincials. “It is tough going down the stretch when it gets hot, and you’re catching day in and day out.

“It is nice that we have two catchers that we can use. You usually need two or three to get through a provincial weekend. He (Stromberg) works with all our pitchers.

“He is great with them. He is just a natural born leader. It is something that if he didn’t have it would put us behind the eight-ball a little bit.”

Osher Stromberg, centre, and the Cubs celebrate a win.

Stromberg is looking forward to playing out the stretch run and the SPBL championship tournament at home. He believes a few more good memories can be made.

“As a team, we’ve been playing good,” said Stromberg. “We’ve had a little less on the bats than last year, but defensively we’ve been great.

“Pitching wise, we’ve been great. We’re looking forward to the rest of it. I’m so excited.

“I’m ready to play in that provincial ball and having the fans in it and being really just into games. There is lots of tension in those games (last year). It is going to be great.”

ZONE homecoming happy one for Jahnke

By Darren Steinke
Gordie Howe Sports Complex

Dan Jahnke started at ZONE Sports Physiotherapy in March.

Dan Jahnke likes homecomings so much he did it twice.

Back in 2018, Jahnke finished up a four-year career playing baseball for the Newman University Jets, which is an NCAA Division II program in the United States in Wichita, Kansas. He completed his bachelor of science in biology at Newman University and moved back to Saskatoon to pursue his master of physical therapy at the University of Saskatchewan.

In December of 2020, Jahnke completed his master of physical therapy degree. At the start of this year, he began working as a physiotherapist in Cold Lake, Alta.

Jahnke saw a job posting for ZONE Sports Physiotherapy back home in Saskatoon. He applied for it, and at the end of this past March, he was back home working at the ZONE location inside the Gordie Howe Sports Complex.

“It was really nice to be able to come back,” said Jahnke. “This is where lots of my family is.

“I have lots of friends here obviously growing up here. It is home. It is just where I like being.”

The 25-year-old is a recognizable face not just in Saskatoon’s baseball community but in the city’s much larger sports community.

Jahnke played hockey along with baseball growing up. As a goalie in hockey, Jahnke suited up for the Saskatoon Blazers under-18 AAA for two seasons from 2010 to 2012 before joining the now defunct Beardy’s Blackhawks under-18 AAA squad for the 2012-13 campaign.

In his Grade 12 year in high school, Jahnke became a member of the Aden Bowman Collegiate Bears football team. On top of enjoying rounds of golf, Jahnke said his senior year in high school was the time he tried to soak in playing as many sports as he could.

“I just liked doing anything where I could move around and hit things and throw things – just have fun playing around and competing,” said Jahnke, who stands 6-feet and weighs 190 pounds. “It got me involved in a lot of different sports growing up.

Dan Jahnke playing for Newman University. (Photo Courtesy Dan Jahnke)

“Throughout high school, I was playing hockey and baseball mostly with the (under-18) AAA level there. I decided hockey wasn’t in my future competitively at least. I had a Grade 12 year after that.

“I figured I would try out everything I missed out on for the rest of high school. In that high school year, I did football, badminton, wrestling and track and field. I was just trying to do everything I could.”

During his high school years, Jahnke played for the Saskatoon Diamondback under-18 AAA baseball team. He credited his Diamondbacks coach, Matt Kosteniuk, as being a big influence on helping him enjoy baseball to the point he wanted to play it at the post-secondary level.

“I had really good experiences in baseball,” said Jahnke. “I had always been part of good teams growing up.

“We were good on the field and good off the field. In (under-18 AAA), I was lucky enough to have Matt Kosteniuk as my coach. He is a great guy. I still really enjoy hockey, but the competitive hockey I just decided wasn’t for me in the future.

“I wanted to keep playing something, and I loved baseball. I had a lot of fun with it. I figured it was a good way to keep competing and keep pushing myself while getting an education.”

At Newman University from 2014 to 2018, Jahnke played numerous positions with the Jets. He mainly played at first base and third base, spent a season in the outfield and was a backup catcher at one point in time.

Jahnke had such a good experience at Newman University that it did feel tough leaving the people he knew in Wichita to come home.

“Kansas is so similar to here in a lot of ways,” said Jahnke. “It is definitely different in some ways too.

“It is very similar in quite a few. I made a lot of good friends down there, so that kind of sucked leaving the friends behind. Coming back, I just got thrown right into the fire with physio school.

Dan Jahnke’s Jets promo picture.

“When you’re busy, it kind of helps you transition back into things. It forces you to get back in pretty quick.”

Once he returned to Saskatoon, Jahnke found it was a smooth transition to resume life where he grew up.

“I guess it was relatively easy,” said Jahnke. “I had been back every summer.

“I still knew everybody around here. I didn’t have any real issues.”

Jahnke said one of the obvious perks to becoming a physiotherapist is it allows you to stay involved in sports. That was just part of the reason he became a physiotherapist.

He had a larger interest in helping people function better physically.

“I obviously love sports,” said Jahnke. “I’ve played a lot of sport in my life.

“I’ve always been really interested in how people perform better and what makes people perform better from a physical perspective. That led me kind of into the biomechanics of things. Physio just seemed to fit that really well like combining biomechanics.

“You have the sport aspect of it. I thought if I was lucky enough to get to that area it would be great and here we are. It just kind of ticked all the boxes.”

Jahnke has enjoyed working alongside Mitch Dahl and Brad Spokes at the ZONE clinic at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex. Jahnke had been one of Dahl’s clients for years when it came to rehabbing from various sports injuries.

“Mitch (Dahl) and Brad (Spokes) are both awesome,” said Jahnke. “I have a lot to learn from both of them.

“It is interesting. I think back even two years ago I was coming into this clinic for physio to see Mitch as a client. It is kind of cool to be able to hang out and say ‘hi’ to somebody that helped you through that much when you were growing up and helped you keep playing and do what you want to do.

“I feel like I am getting to learn from one of the best crews around.”

This year, Jahnke began helping the Saskatoon Valkyries of the Western Women’s Canadian Football League as a trainer. He would like to be involved with more teams in the future and wants to learn and grow as a physiotherapist at ZONE.

Dan Jahnke enjoys being at the Gordie Howe Sports Complex.

When he sees clients, Jahnke believes the fact that he took part in numerous sports growing up aids in his career now.

“I think it helps,” said Jahnke. “It is nice to know when somebody comes in that I can say I was doing something in this sport.

“It is nice to know what they mean. It is good for talking points. It is easy to make conversation with people, especially with a few of the people from (The Going Yard Training Centre) that we might say high too and people over at Ignite (Athletics).

“We are all into sports and performance and just general fitness. It is kind of what we are doing here. The variety of sport definitely adds to that for sure.”