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3-on-3 tournament highlights the hazards of vaping

by JOEL MARTIN
Staff Writer | July 8, 2024 12:55 AM

SOAP LAKE — The Soap Lake Suds ‘N Sun festival Saturday had a new element this year: a 3-on-3 basketball tournament sponsored by the Soap Lake Prevention Coalition.

“I thought about putting the … tournament together three years ago, said C.W. Forrest, who was refereeing. “We just didn't have the ability to make it happen. And then this year, (coalition president Ryan Boldman) said, ‘Let's put it together.’ … So now we’re moving forward and trying to make this a yearly event.”

The basketball tournament was conceived as a way to call attention to the dangers of vaping, Forrest said. 

“Vaping is one of the biggest problems with our youth right now,” Forrest said. “We’ve got the logos and some stuff on the balls, and the winner gets a shirt that'll have some statistics about vaping on it.”

Four teams were pre-registered and two more signed up Saturday morning, including one team of girls.

“I'm cool with that for the first year,” Forrest said.