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Mom, I'm Bored!

By John Flink

Island Kids' Guide to a "Totally Cool" Summer

To most adults, summer is pretty much like every other season except that the weather is nicer, even in Coronado. To kids, however, the not-quite-three months between the end of one school year and the beginning of the next are a joy of mythical proportions, purebred bliss unencumbered by all things mandatory. In summer, a kid only has to do what a kid wants to do.

But what do they want to do? Parental second-guessing aside, the best course of action is to ask them. When they say they want to hang out at the local fast-food joint, put a brochure from Coronado Parks and Recreation or the Coronado Yacht Club or YMCA Camp Surf in front of them and ask again.

And those are only a few of the cool options for kids in and around Coronado every summer. From simply entertaining to positively enriching, there are plenty of ways to keep kids and tweens busy when school’s out.

“I surf and go to the beach and stuff with my friends, and I also do Junior Lifeguards and sometimes take the ferry across the bay to Seaport Village or go to movies on the Star of India,” says 13-year-old Kylie Cusick. Kylie’s brother Jackson, 11, also participates in Junior Lifeguards and looks forward to his second year at YMCA Camp Surf down The Strand in Imperial Beach.

“I go surfing a lot because we live near the beach,” the younger Cusick says. Which is fine with the ’rents. On a typical Saturday or Sunday afternoon there can be eight or 10 bicycles on the Cusick’s front lawn, says dad Tim Cusick. There are organized activities aplenty, but even hanging out has a different feel in Coronado. In some towns, kids hanging out is seen as a source of trouble. Not here.

“It’s almost like Mayberry here,” Jackson and Kylie’s dad says. “We’ve made our backyard kid-friendly with an outdoor shower and a fridge full of drinks, and they come and go, back and forth to the beach. The relative security of Coronado is wonderful for the kids and great for their parents’ peace of mind.”

Security is an issue taken very seriously by the Coronado Parks and Recreation Service Department, explains Stacy Berman, recreation program supervisor. “People tell us they feel comfortable leaving their children at our programs, and we take great pride in that,” Berman says. “We give young people a place to socialize and learn lifelong skills in a safe environment. And we have a very dedicated staff.”

Those staffers include Jeff Nidy, a recreation leader who supervises the department’s skateboard park. Opened in 2001 to a chorus of “huzzahs” from kids and professional skateboarders alike, the top-notch collection of concrete bowls attracts crowds in the summer and a trickle of diehards all year ’round.

“I’m not sure what kids did before this, but this is a lot better than loitering on Orange,” says Nidy, a sometimes skater himself whom the mostly male youngsters at the skate park obviously look up to. Nidy also supervises the department’s summer sports camp of seven, one-week sessions of golf, tennis and swimming. “It’s fun to learn new stuff on your board, even when you fall down,” says Mike Delaney, a 10-year-old Coronadan who uses the skate park as often as he can.

“I can skate all day,” Mike’s friend Kevin Haney, 9, adds. “Well, as long as I can surf, too.”

For young islanders who prefer to be near the water but not actually in it, there’s sailing. And the Coronado Yacht Club maintains its own fleet of small boats just for kids to use in its Junior Program. The Club hosts three, three-week sailing classes every summer for kids aged eight to eighteen. The program is open to everyone, although members’ kids get priority and pay less tuition, $230 versus $275 for the children of non-members. Rules require no more than eight kids per instructor, and the club has 26 boats suitable for the class. Kids who bring their own sabot or laser can allow classes to expand a little, says Christine St. Ives, Junior Program manager, but the classes have been known to spawn a waiting list.

“We’ve watched shy and introverted kids really come out of their shells because sailing is such a great confidence-builder,” St. Ives says, describing sailing’s appeal to kids and their parents. “I remember one girl who started out very shy take her mother for a sail after graduating from the class. I heard her tell her mom ‘I know what I’m doing and you don’t, so you’re going to have to do what I tell you.’ ”

Grace Lancaster participates in the Junior Program every year. Now an old salt at 12, she says she’s looking forward to another summer of sailing in Glorietta Bay. “The instructors are really nice,” she says approvingly.

Grace’s dad, Tom Lancaster, is also a big fan of the Coronado Public Library’s Summer Reading Club. The free program is sponsored by the San Diego Zoo this year, according to Ellenjoy Weber, the library’s head of children’s services. Kids who read 10 books during the summer receive a free zoo ticket and a discount coupon for their parents. To prove they’ve done their reading, kids have to give oral reports to Junior Volunteers. Other kids, that is.

“It’s run by kids and really gets them engaged in reading, which is a great addition to a summer of sports, MooTime and hanging out at Wendy’s,” Lancaster says.

For some spur-of-the-moment fun, Scott Lindquist, 10, suggests painting pottery at Awesome Artist in the Crown Shops. “My favorite things to paint are the dragons. They have some really cool ones,” says Scott.
Or get the whole family to put on bike helmets and bike down The Strand to the pier in Imperial Beach. “We reward ourselves with the fish and chips at the Tin Fish,” says Merrie Mebust, mother of daughters Christy, 13, and Lainey, 10. “There’s nothing as fun as sitting way out on the pier, watching the pelicans flying past in a line and the sun setting behind Point Loma. We have lights on our bikes, so it’s a fun and safe ride back.”

Tin Fish owner Joseph Melluso also noted that the tackle shop on the pier rents fishing poles by the hour, half-day and day and also sells bait, tackle and ice.

This year, Coronado resident Ian McRae plans to celebrate his twelfth birthday with a party at Seaforth Boat Rentals on Glorietta Bay. “It’ll be so cool. We’re going to water ski and have water fights on those big, fat inner tubes and next year, maybe my mom will even let me ride on the back of a jetski.”

No wonder kids like to hang out in Coronado in the summer!


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