The legendary former McFarland "We didn't really train like that.". Diaz was arrested in November following a 17-year career with the Bakersfield Police Department. He recently retired as a California State Correctional officer supervising adult males. Coach White called Thomas over. Athena Sanders left McFarland for college, leaving everyone she knew behind. 'What's going on?' While still being interviewed, Valles said he noticed his teammates hugging and crying. Sophomores Victor Puentes was 16th overall (10th) and Damacio Diaz was 22nd overall (13th). Im from McFarland and Im proud to be from McFarland.". He said he didnt want 2 hire lawyers or have 2 deal with all that. I love it so muchthese are people we need the HARD WORKING MEXICANS in this country! Lightboxes. Teammate updates and McFarland photos courtesy of Thomas Valles. If convicted of the charges in the indictment, Diaz faces a maximum statutorypenalty of life in prison for the conspiracy, 10 years in prison for each count of bribery, 20years in prison to life for possession of methamphetamine with intent to distribute, fiveyears in prison for each count of intentional disclosure of wiretap information, and threeyears in prison for each count of making a false income tax return. Did he ride a pink girls 'Barbie' bike, or was it only Costner? "(That) fixed it where I could never see my parents on Thanksgiving," White said. Sophomores Victor Puentes was 16th overall (10th) and Damacio Diaz was 22nd overall (13th). What you don't see in the film is sixth runner Luis Partida, who was replaced on the team in McFarland USA by David Diaz, who had actually graduated in 1986. This movie is based on the remarkable McFarland High School Cross-Country Team which, until it was recently forced to compete against much larger schools, dominated its division in the sport state-wide for more than 20 years. Its also a testament to parents, dont lower the bar for your kids, always aim higb. Very good moviegringos better stop descriminating the Latinosjust like john Lennon saidthe world should live as one. There he discovers buried potential in several high school boys and slowly turns them into championship runners and brings them closer than even he could ever imagine. That's the legacy I see with that time. He also attended the films premiere in Los Angeles with his daughters and wife earlier this month. Jim White is to Thomas' right and Gary Adams is to White's right. "She was crying and hugging Danny. All seven Diaz When asked about the measure of fame Diaz received due to the film, and his reputation as a hero in McFarland, Williamson responded that sometimes people arent what they seem. U.S. Attorney Benjamin B. Wagner, talks to the media Friday about the indictment for Bakersfield Police detective Damacio Diaz, while Bakersfield Police Chief Greg Williamson and Assistant Chief Lyle Martin, listen. All seven have little hope for their future, specifically Valles, who has hardships with his father and nearly throws himself off a bridge before White stops him. Puentes began experimenting with drugs and battled addiction off and on for many years. We hope that you continue to enjoy our free content. She writes narrative pieces with a strong emphasis on the Latino community and others that make up the diversity of L.A. and California. "Danny, he passed up Jose out there somewhere," White recalled. Badly. [10][11] The film was released in Canada under its original title, McFarland. You just do what you can do. A series of texts shows that under White's guidance, the team becomes outstandingly successful, winning nine state titles over fourteen years. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); A look at the real McFarland USA kids and coach JimWhite, You can't have my job, but I'll tell you a story, Show the world what has happened to my son. Diaz, a 17-year veteran of the department, was arrested at BPD headquarters Friday morning. Thomas Valles. -KGET 17, No. 1. Jim White coaching photo by Kirby Lee/Image of Sport. The film opened in North America on February 20, 2015 and earned $11 million in its opening weekend, finishing 4th at the box office. "Things that Mrs. Diaz did (in the film), that's what Cheryl was doing. "I looked over at the reporter and I said 'We won. If one or two of those boys couldn't make practice at four o'clock 'cause they're just gettin' in from work, then I might practice at 6 or 7 o'clock with those boys. Puentes joined the McFarland cross country team as a freshman, after Coach Jim White showed up at his house and asked if he was interested in joining the team. "That's deeply satisfying to me to - to go in and tell a story that is not only meaningful, but is true and real, and tell it with the real people." McFarland director " Niki Caro " Diaz, Damacio Diaz, David Diaz, Diego Was there hardship that required help from Coach White and his wife Cheryl? The film shows White taking the team to fields for simulated hill training on mounds of raw almonds. At times, Diaz purchased meth from Magallanes for personal use, the indictment states. He takes full responsibility for that now. Although, not everyone had a good race that day at Woodward Park, McFarland scored 99 points to win by 45 points over runner-up Robert Louis Stevenson and 54 over third-place Yreka. The day of the state championships comes and almost the whole McFarland community accompanies the team to the race. Suggest an edit or add missing content . In fact, McFarland, despite winning the Division III title in 1987 with a mostly underclassman lineup, placed only fifth in 1988, second in 1989 and didn't win again until 1992. Only he doesn't know how to speak ASL and couldn't really talk to her. He took us to church once in a while. The indictment states Diazprovided the drug dealer with information on law enforcement practices and activities, disclosed the names and identities of police informants and tipped the dealer off to police investigations, including information on a wiretap probe. He rebuilt both the boys' and girls' cross-country teams, despite only the boys' team being featured in the film. "We did have hills," White said. Send me an email at johnharte@att.net. - It wasn't my fault. Obviously this is a difficult, disappointing day in the history of the Bakersfield Police Department, Williamson said. What about this one? Seneca School, Sure, Ill help as best I can. Warning The movie pushes up his arrival and coaching position at McFarland to 1987, the first year his cross country team attended and won the state championship (1987 was also the very first year that California had a state championship). Yes. The film was previously slated for a November 21, 2014 release, under the title McFarland,[9] but was pushed back to February 20, 2015 and given a new title. SAC and everywhere we could find competition that could make us better. Based on the true story of a 1987 cross country team from a mainly Latino high school in McFarland, California, the film stars Kevin Costner as Jim White, the school's coach, who leads the team to win a state championship. All three girls graduated with degrees in education from Lubbock Christian University in Lubbock, Texas; Tami in 1985, Julie in 1988, and Jami in 1991. The real McFarland Cougars who won the 1987 cross-country state championship in California are shown from left: Thomas Valles, Victor Puentes, Damacio Diaz, Johnny Samaniego, Jose Cardenas,. Q: Whats the latest on Bakersfield Police Department Detective Damacio Diaz, who is facing multiple federal charges after FBI investigators a, Positive Cases Among Kern Residents: 304,028, Recovered and Presumed Recovered Residents: 297,089, Percentage of all cases that are unvaccinated:71.26, Percentage of all hospitalizations that are unvaccinated:83.16, Source: Kern County Public Health Services Department. Another blast is on the way. They're not going to let kids run all over them. Now he has nothing but the highest regard for White. It took all of us to make thisevery runner who won a state championship from McFarland made this happen, not just myself or the seven runners. She knew that some of us needed a little bit more. Im not cocky. His team's won nine CIF-State cross country titles, five in a row between 1992-96 and three in a row between 1999-01. Its not about me, its not about the other runners. It made me rethink the choices that Ive made in the past, because I had a bad past. Brittny Mejia is a Metro reporter who joined the Los Angeles Times in 2014. Im a better person because of this movie and because of my wife, family, and everybody else. "[13] On Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating, the film has a score of 60 out of 100, based on 32 critics, indicating "mixed or average reviews". We all have opportunities to inspire every person we meet every day. Today, Valles coaches girls cross country coach at McFarland and travels around to speak and share his story. The reality is much less dramatic: he started teaching in the McFarland school district in 1964 -and only middle school- after graduating from Pepperdine University. This page was last edited on 1 September 2022, at 05:39. This is part of a series of articles looking back at the 1987 CIF-State Cross Country Championships, the first in California. He was there to attend the world premiere of Disney's "McFarland, USA, " which chronicled the 1987 McFarland High School cross-country team, on which Diaz and two of his brothers competed. He remains on paid leave. Slowly we became better and better at it, Puentes says. Coach White took the orders and delivered them. She wrote Victor every chance she could get. Our family has watched it three nights in a row. He remains on paid leave. White has lived in McFarland ever since. We treated them just like our kids. " When I say Mr. White became my father figure and Mrs. White became my mother figure. Im not like, Hey, Im Victor from the movie. I just feel a little bit better about myself because something good finally happened in my life, besides my children being born. We knew we had the potential coming into '87. When you run long distance, you just lose yourself. Like in the movie, Thomas Valles went to an overpass above Highway 99 one night after his parents got into a horrible fight. Youre just thinking about your life or whatever is going on around you at the time., Puentes former McFarland cross country teammate Danny Diaz recently told 23ABC News, He made some bad choices and hes the first to tell you, You know what? But he did say there was a "low-rider" bike with his nickname "Blanco" on it. The sports drama was written by Christopher Cleveland, Bettina Gilois and Grant Thompson. Puentes grew up in Clay City and am a proud Powell County Pirate. [12], Stephen Farber of The Hollywood Reporter gave a positive review, writing that "While the beats of the story are often stock, the picture benefits from sensitive direction by New Zealander Niki Caro and from a most appealing performance by Kevin Costner. I received a nice surprise today when my pal, longtime Bakersfield Californian photographer Felix Adamo, found these photos I shot of the 1987 McFarland boys cross country team. After a few regional competitions, the team wins its first race. On occasion, he said, the boys would have to work in the fields on a Saturday morning before going off to a meet that afternoon. I guarantee I wouldn't have missed. All right, guys. McFarland, USA. In actuality, Thomas was the number one runner for the 1987 State Championship Cross Country team for McFarland. Julie White has moved to small town McFarland with her family. The information captured will be shared by the South Carolina Office of Regulatory Staff (ORS), with all known ISP's conducting business in the State. Shortly after, the Diaz brothers are taken off the team by their father, who wants them to work for his team of field pickers instead. He got into the truck and began to talk with Coach White about his difficulties at home. "I can't speak for everybody, I can speak for myself," Valles said. He said no other arrests are anticipated in connection with the case. The indictment states the government will seize the following if its proven it was obtained through Diazs alleged criminal activities: a 2011 Toyota Sequoia SR5; about $49,000 from a Valley Republic Bank account held in Diazs name; property at 157 Famoso Hills Road in McFarland; and a sum of money equal to the total amount of proceeds obtained as a result of the alleged crimes. Eventually sophomore Danny Diaz crossed in 91st (68th) to close out the scoring. They are portrayed to be 15 and 10, a few years younger than they actually were at the time of the first state title in 1987 (the girls were in college at the time). I was lucky enough to get one of the best looking guyshes the best looking guy of all of them, so Im proud that he played me, Puentes says. However, he had been a teacher in the McFarland School District since 1964, following his graduation from Pepperdine University. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information, Im afraid for her life: Riverside CC womens coach harassed after Title IX suit, Want to solve climate change? But when Coach discovers the boys' exceptional . Eventually, the McFarland team competes in and qualifies for the State Tournament, and White takes them to the beach to celebrate. The family feel like they don't fit into their new community, but White has an epiphany one day when he sees his students running from their early-morning farming jobs to school: Why not channel their talents into running cross-country track? I do not own "McFarland USA" or any of the characters. [14] In CinemaScore polls conducted during the opening weekend, cinema audiences gave the film an average grade of "A" on an A+ to F scale. Diaz turned his back on those opportunities and broke the trust his community placed in him, violating the very laws he was sworn to enforce.. What we are reminded of is that McFarland USA is based on a true story but it is not a documentary. Save up to 30% when you upgrade to an image pack. Because Thomas Valles, McFarlands top runner in 1987, is the focal point of all these photos, this was most likely a profile I was assigned to shoot of him in advance of the state championship meet. Based on the 1987 true story, McFarland USA movie follows the lives of athletes from McFarland, a predominately Latino community in California Central Valley as they build a cross-country team under the direction of Coach Jim White (Kevin Costner). "That's how we developed that. He was happy, however, to have Sergio Avelar, a former McFarland High School cross country runner himself, play him. As the boys manage to reach one goal after another on the march to the state championships, their newfound support as a collective may be threatened by the realities of McFarland and Jim catching the attention of other, more prestigious schools in predominantly white, upper middle class communities. In the least, such scenes seem to have been exaggerated by the filmmakers. There will b She was an Orisha sent to earth to be the protector all. Its not part of the movie, but the team was, obviously, grieving and impacted deeply. White's wife Cheryl organizes a tamale and car wash sale with the rest of the neighborhood to raise money for new uniforms, where the family and the neighborhood become better acquainted. I walk with my head up high. He, his wife Cheryl White, and their daughters, mid-teen Julie White and preteen Jamie White, have only lived in largely white homogeneous environments, so when Jim accepts the only job he can get as life sciences and phys ed teacher and assistant football coach at McFarland High School in Central California, they are somewhat ill-prepared mentally for the relatively poor conditions and the largely homogeneous Hispanic population in the town, most of their neighbors Mexican immigrants who work as pickers in the surrounding agricultural fields. There is much excitement and anticipation in McFarland about the film, which stars Kevin Costner as coach Jim White, and as I mentioned in my previous posts that dealt with the enormous heartache this town endured in the 1980s Show the world what has happened to my son, Prom night, a crash and six teens lost and McFarlands never-ending heartache this close-knit town deserves some good will and national love. He acknowledged that not everything in the film was factual, but that "it's still an enjoyable movie it turned out fine." It reminds me of another good one, Glory Road. This finally gave me the strength to say, You know what? Though the film portrays Puentes as a ladies man, he says he was actually the shyest person on the team. [7][8], In an interview, Jim White noted that while the film was based on a true story, it was not a documentary. Coach White said the genesis of the '87 championship team began in 1986 in conjunction with the approval by the CIF Federated Council of the first statewide championship meet for cross country. Likely not. He offers the kids a chance While a course at Griffith Park has been used for meets in the past -- meets White said that included McFarland -- it was never used for the CIF-State Meet. The 16-count indictment against Damacio Diaz, 43, was unsealed Thursday. Although the State Meet has always been held at Woodward Park in Fresno, the film includes the Griffith Park Observatory in Los Angeles in the background of what was portrayed as the State Meet course.