David Matuszak

David Matuszak

David F. Matuszak is an author, teacher, and Westerner. He is best known for authoring The Cowboy's Trail Guide to Westerns and Nelson Point: Portrait of a Northern Gold Rush Town. Other works include writings in the areas of kinesiology, elementary education, philosophy of sports ethics, and performance-enhancing drugs.

Matuszak is also known as an avid outdoorsman, environmentalist, and political activist. He is the founder of the Californio Ranch Roping Club and the president of the Friends of Live Oak Canyon.

A photograph of the author and westerner, David Matuszak.
David Matuszak.

Contents

Early years

Matuszak is the youngest of three sons born to retired school teachers, Frank and Vera Matuszak. His childhood was influenced by Western culture. In The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, he remembers his early years during the golden years of the Hollywood Western. Many afternoons were spent playing cowboys and Indians. “I was 6 years old...and riding with the ‘Ardendale Kids.’ We were a tough bunch. Riding Schwinn ponies with our Mattel ‘Fanner Fifties’ strapped to our side, we roamed the length of Ardendale Avenue in the suburbs of Los Angeles every afternoon from three to five.” [1] Matuszak attended Holy Angels parochial school located directly across from Santa Anita thoroughbred racetrack. The racetrack culture further fostered his love of horses and the West. In the summer of 1960 at the age of six, he began nearly two decades of annual retreats to the backwoods of the Oregon Cascades. There the family operated Moose Creek Boys' Ranch. At “the ranch” he learned to shoot, horseback ride, fish, pan for gold, log, and other frontier skills that would shape his adulthood.[1] At the ranch he became an NRA competition range master at the age of fourteen.

During his eighth grade confirmation at Holy Angles church, Matuszak, born without a middle name, chose Francis as his confirmation name because of his admiration for Saint Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of animals, nature, and the environment. Thereafter, he used the name David F. Matuszak.

The son of a high school coach, Matuszak was exposed to a wide variety of sports at an early age. He excelled in baseball and wrestling. At the age of eighteen he became a southern California (CIF) high school wrestling official. Matuszak earned a bachelor’s and master’s degree in Kinesiology from California State University, Long Beach. Later he earned his doctorate degree in both Western history and exercise science.

In 1977, Matuszak left Long Beach to accept a head wrestling coach and teaching position at Yucaipa High School. In 2010 he began his 34th year on the staff. Matuszak’s teaching position allowed ample vacation time to pursue frontier adventures.

During the 1980s, Matuszak performed with The California Bounty Hunters. The Bounty Hunters were widely recognized throughout the 1960s 70s, and 80s as one of the most authentic Wild West re-enactor shows in the country.[2]

In the mid-1980s, Matuszak completed training at both the San Bernardino and Riverside County Sheriff’s Academies in preparation for his service as a peace officer with the Redlands Mounted Police.[3]

Career

Author

In his The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, Matuszak chronicles the first century of Western filmmaking and compares the real West with the “reel” West.[4] Charlton Heston commented, “[Matuszak] has in hand a remarkable book on a crucial subject…the American Western.” [5] He is a popular speaker at Western film festivals [6][7] and acts as a Western filmmaking consultant.[8][9][10]

In Matuszak’s Nelson Point: Portrait of a Northern Gold Rush Town, he chronicles living conditions during the California Gold Rush. Matuszak allows the miners to tell their own story through their journals, diaries, and other primary source data.[11][12][13]

Educator

Matuszak is a pioneer educator, writer, and researcher in the areas of kinesiology, biomechanics, and curriculum.[14][15][16][17][18] His teachings and books, The Elementary Teacher’s Guide to the Gold Rush and The Physical Educator’s Guide to Portfolios, have guided educators for nearly three decades.[19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29]

During his tenure at Yucaipa High School, Matuszak developed the Kinesiology and Physical Education department into one of California’s model programs.[30] In 1991, he was named California’s co-physical educator of the year.[30] His work with the California Association of Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (CAHPERD) has been instrumental in drafting policy and curriculum for decades.[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38]

Coach

Matuszak was the head wrestling coach in 1976 at Mayfair High School in Lakewood, California, before becoming the head wrestling coach at Yucaipa High School in 1977.[39][40][41][42][43] At Yucaipa High School he was also head girl’s gymnastics coach, head girl’s volleyball coach, and currently assists with the baseball program.[44][45]

Businessman

Matuszak is the CEO of Pacific Sunset Enterprises. He oversees the daily operation of Pacific Sunset Publishing, Pacific Sunset Livestock, and Pacific Sunset Surf and Snowboarding Apparel. [46]

Political Activism

Environmental

The housing boom and indiscriminate development of Riverside and San Bernardino County wild lands in the early 1980s alarmed Matuszak. When urban sprawl and pollution threatened Matuszak’s ranch lands and hunting grounds, he became politically active. By 1988, he joined a new grass roots environmental organization, the Friends of Live Oak Canyon.[47] In 1990, he was elected president and has served in that capacity ever since.[48][49] His work to fight pollution and large-scale track home developments by corporate building interests is credited with preserving significant portions of southern California wild lands.[50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60][61][62][63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70][71][72][73][74][75]

In 2006, Matuszak filed a San Bernardino County Grand Jury Complaint accusing the City of Redlands of misappropriation of Environmental Mitigation Funds.[76]

Heath & Safety

Matuszak is a consumer and political activist focusing on health and safety issues.[77][78][79][80][81][82]

Sports doping

In the early 1980s, Matuszak became concerned about the use of steroids in professional sports. By the late 1980s, he became alarmed by the growing use of steroids in high school sports and began to campaign against them. By 2009, he witnessed clear evidence of an epidemic of steroid use by high school athletes. In 2010, Matuszak concluded his sports doping research and released his public awareness anti-doping program, PEDs: High Sports’ Dirty Little Secret.[83]

Frontiersman

“Matuszak’s fascination with frontier life has taken him all over the West. During each experience he duplicated wherever possible an authentic frontier adventure. Breaking and training horses then packing them across the West. Whether it was riding in a modern Old West show, training and riding horses with Mexican charros, riding with the mounted posse, competing in shooting competitions with Old West weapons, bowhunting or just stretching barbed wire in the desert southwest, nearly every aspect of his life has contributed to his understanding of frontier life.” [84] Matuszak drew from these experiences when he wrote The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns. “He explores the unique relationship between the myth and spirit of the Old West by comparing the real West with Hollywood’s myth.”[85]

During the summer of 1981, while packing across the Cascades on horseback, he encountered a gold prospector dredging in a mountain stream where he learned to pan as a child. The following summer he filed mining claims in both the Cascades and Sierra Nevada Mountains. Matuszak partook in the modern gold rush of the early 1980s. During that time he began the research for his doctoral dissertation about the California Gold Rush. That research led to his classic gold rush history, Nelson Point: Portrait of a Northern Gold Rush Town.[86]

Wishing to experience the last two frontiers remaining in North America before they disappeared, Matuszak planned expeditions to Baja California, and Alaska. Soon after learning to surf in the early 1970s at Huntington Beach, California, Matuszak grew fond of the Baja frontier. He made regular surfing safaris there for decades. In the1990s, he became one of the earliest participants in the building of an American surfer’s colony at Punta San Jacinto where today he regularly surfs and visits his Mexican vaquero friends.[87][88][89][90]

In the summer of 1991, Matuszak made a solo prospecting expedition to the Brooks Range in Alaska. Legendary bush pilot, John Hankee, flew him from Bettles to the Glacier River. Hankee left Matuszak and his German Shepherd dog on the banks of the Glacier River. Midway through the expedition, Matuszak was burned out by wildfires. He packed nearly 30 miles to safety at a remote mining site where he hitched a ride to an oil pipeline truck stop. It was there when the smoke cleared that Hankee landed his Piper Cub plane and retrieved Matuszak.[91]

During the bicentennial years (2004–2006) of the Lewis and Clark Expedition, Matuszak and his teenage son, Christopher, followed the Lewis and Clark trail. They re-enacted portions of the expedition and utilized period supplies, tools, weapons, and provisions.[92]

In 2009, Matuszak founded the Californio Ranch Roping Club in order to revive the traditions of the Californio vaquero. “Californio Ranch Roping Club is dedicated to preserving the art of the Californio vaquero ranch-style roping. It is our intention to practice the traditional roping techniques of the Californio and to utilize their traditional reatas, bits, spurs, saddles, tack, gear, attire, and customs.”[93][94]

Bibliography

The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns ISBN 0-9633582-5-1
Nelson Point: Portrait of a Northern Gold Rush Town ISBN 0-9633582-0-0
The Elementary Teacher’s Guide to the Gold Rush
The Physical Educator’s Guide to Portfolios
A Philosophical Study of Ethics in Athletics (1980: Unpublished master’s thesis)
PEDs: High School Sports: Dirty Little Secret. (2010: Public awareness Power Point production)
The Baja Journals (1972-2010: Unpublished)
Alaskan Expedition Journal (1991: Unpublished)
The Lewis & Clark Expedition Diary (2004–2006: Unpublished)

References

  1. ^ a b Matuszak, David F. Centennial Edition: The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, 2003, p. vii. ISBN 0-9633582-5-1
  2. ^ Matuszak, David F. Centennial Edition: The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, 2003, p. 45. ISBN 0-9633582-5-1
  3. ^ Matuszak, David F. The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, 1998, p. rear dust flap.
  4. ^ Matuszak, David F. Centennial Edition: The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, 2003, p. front dust flap. ISBN 0-9633582-5-1
  5. ^ Matuszak, David F. Centennial Edition: The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, 2003, p. rear cover.
  6. ^ Lone Pine Film Festival (2002-2010), Festival Programs.
  7. ^ Festival of the West (2006-2010), Festival Programs.
  8. ^ Engeron, Charlene S. (November 7, 1998), “Westerns Are His Game” Press-Enterprise: p. F1.
  9. ^ Nolan, Michael (November 5, 1998), “Teacher, Author Trails Westerns” San Bernardino County Sun: p. H1.
  10. ^ Metcalf, Victoria (August 25, 1999) “A Passion for Things Western” Feather River Bulletin: p. 14B.
  11. ^ Matuszak, David F. Nelson Point: Portrait of a Northern Gold Rush Town, 1993. ISBN 0-9633582-0-0
  12. ^ Keller, Rhonda (November 18, 1992), “Author Writes About Plumas Town of the Past” Feather River Bulletin: p. 12B.
  13. ^ Estrada, Julie (June 2, 1994), “Author Hopes to Strike Gold With Book on Prospecting” San Gabriel Valley Tribune: p. H3.
  14. ^ American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) (January, 1997), Journal of Physical Education, Recreation and Dance 68 (1): p. 71.
  15. ^ American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) (April, 1998), AAHPERD National Convention Program: p. 41.
  16. ^ California League of High Schools (April, 1996) CLHS State Conference Program: p. 36.
  17. ^ American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD) (October, 2001), Journal of Physical Education, Recreation and Dance 72 (8): p. 55.
  18. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (December, 1995), CAHPERD Journal/Times 58 (3): p. 13.
  19. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (November, 1997), CAHPERD Journal/Times 60 (2): p. 14.
  20. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (October, 2001), CAHPERD Journal/Times 64 (1): p. 9.
  21. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (October, 2003), CAHPERD Journal/Times 66 (1): p. 14.
  22. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (December, 1990), CAHPERD Journal/Times 53 (3): p. 4.
  23. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (April, 1990), CAHPERD Journal/Times 52 (7): p. 2.
  24. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (March, 1991), CAHPERD Journal/Times 53 (6): p. 22.
  25. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (October, 1992), CAHPERD Journal/Times 55 (1): p. 4.
  26. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (March 1992) CAHPERD State Conference Program: p. 15.
  27. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (November, 1993), CAHPERD Journal/Times 56 (2): p. 14.
  28. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (May, 1994), CAHPERD Journal/Times 56 (8): p. 23.
  29. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (December, 1994), CAHPERD Journal/Times 57 (3): p. 17.
  30. ^ a b Huard, Paul R. (June 12, 1991), “Coach Works to Make P.E. More Than Sweat and Toil” Yucaipa & Calimesa News-Mirror: p. A5.
  31. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (March, 1995) CAHPERD State Conference Program: p. 40.
  32. ^ California Department of Education (1996), “Report on California Interscholastic Federation Exhibit 20: p. 2.
  33. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (December, 1997), CAHPERD Journal/Times 60 (3): p. 12.
  34. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (May, 1998), CAHPERD Journal/Times 60 (6): p. 9.
  35. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (March, 1998) CAHPERD State Conference Program: p. 19.
  36. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (March, 2006) CAHPERD State Conference Prospectus: p. 29.
  37. ^ California Association for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (March, 2006) CAHPERD State Conference Program: p. 33.
  38. ^ Matuszak, David (March 27, 2009), “Stick with Standard PE” Press-Enterprise: p. C6b.
  39. ^ Walker, Dan (November 23, 1977), Rigorous Conditioning Drills Set Pace for YHS Wrestlers” Yucaipa News-Mirror: p. A-7.
  40. ^ Walker, Dan (December 21, 1977), “Wrestlers Defeat Cougars Allow Beaumont 3 Points” Yucaipa News-Mirror: p. A-6.
  41. ^ Stephens, David (December 28, 1977), “T-Birds Ready for SAL” Yucaipa News-Mirror: p. A-6.
  42. ^ Stephens, Dave (January 10, 1979), “T-Birds Cruise by Lions” Yucaipa & Calimesa News Mirror: p. A-6.
  43. ^ Sports Editor (February 23, 1983), “Tripp Wins CIF 3A Championship” Yucaipa & Calimesa News-Mirror: p. A-6.
  44. ^ Helms, Paul (September 12, 1984), “YHS Shoots for Enthusiastic Ride to Playoffs” Yucaipa & Calimesa News-Mirror: p. A-8.
  45. ^ Oldendorf, Sherry (May 15, 1996), “Best Record in SKL” News-Mirror: p. C-2.
  46. ^ Pacific Sunset Enterprises website, http://www.pacificsunset.com/
  47. ^ Friends of Live Oak Canyon Newsletter, Vol.1, No 1, May 1, 1988.
  48. ^ Levy, Ken (April 10, 1991), “Canyon Residents Battle to Keep Rural Atmosphere” Yucaipa News-Mirror.
  49. ^ Runyan, Tasha S. (July 27, 1998). “Tunnel Threatens Water Supplies”. San Bernardino County Sun: p. B1.
  50. ^ Redlands City Council Meeting video, December 3, 2002.
  51. ^ Friends of Live Oak Canyon (1988-2010), “Meeting Minutes”.
  52. ^ Hernandez, Roberto (May 13, 2004). “Litter Woes Stack Up” The Press-Enterprise (Riverside): p. B12.
  53. ^ Matuszak, David (November 22, 1989), Letters to the Editor: Fighting Back” Yucaipa News-Mirror: p. A-4.
  54. ^ Editor (April 24, 1991), “The Friends of Live Oak Canyon Meet Monday” Yucaipa News-Mirror: p. 1.
  55. ^ Levy, Ken (April 3, 1991), “Mixed Zoning Worries Canyon Residents” Yucaipa News-Mirror: P. 1.
  56. ^ Brennan, Jack (January 11, 1991), “Yucaipa Community Notes, Friends Invitation” Press-Enterprise.
  57. ^ Matuszak, David (September 7, 1991), “Voice of the People: Live Oak Canyon” San Bernardino Sun.
  58. ^ Matuszak, David (September 2, 1991), “Opinion: Concern Over Live Oak Canyon” Redlands Daily Facts.
  59. ^ Matuszak, David (August 7, 1992), “Voice of the People: Live Oak Canyon Survey” The San Bernardino Sun.
  60. ^ Matuszak, David (July 31, 1992) Opinion: What’s the Canyon’s Future?”, Redlands Daily Facts: p. A-6.
  61. ^ Knickerbocker, Ann (December 14, 1998), “Community Takes Sides on Project” San Bernardino County Sun: p. B1.
  62. ^ Armstrong, Jennifer (July 29, 1998), “Residents Fear New Pipeline Will Suck Their Groundwater” The Press-Enterprise: p. B1.
  63. ^ Andrews, John (October 29, 2000), “Trash Haulers Cited by Dump” The Press-Enterprise: p. B1.
  64. ^ Andrews, John (November 17, 2000), “Litter Angers Canyon Dwellers” The Press-Enterprise: p. B1.
  65. ^ Leedy, Matt (October 29, 2000), “Trash Haulers Are Told to Use Restraint” The Sun: p. 1.
  66. ^ Wall, Stephen (February 27, 2001), “Group Might Sue Over Garbage” The Sun: p. B1.
  67. ^ Wall, Stephen (July 8, 2001), “Redlands Averts Suit Over Roadside Debris Pickup” The Sun: p. B1.
  68. ^ Diaz, Amy (July 10, 2001), “Redlands to Remove Landfill Debris” The Press-Enterprise: p. B1.
  69. ^ Johnson, Jamie L. (July 11, 2001), “City Agrees to Canyon Cleanup” Redlands Daily Facts: p.1.
  70. ^ Millar, Bettye Wells (March 24, 2002), “Inland Canyons at a Crossroads” Riverside Press-Enterprise: p. 1.
  71. ^ Jamescourie, Rebecca (October 23, 2002), “Commission OKs Canyon Trail Map” Redlands Daily Facts: p.1.
  72. ^ Hernandez, Roberto (November 30, 2002) “Proposed Trails Extension Worries Some” The Press-Enterprise: p. B3.
  73. ^ Rochester, Teresa (December 2, 2002). “Views Split on Redlands Plan” The Sun: p. B1.
  74. ^ Hernandez, Roberto (April 20, 2005). “Homes Project Still Not Settled” The Press-Enterprise: p. B1.
  75. ^ Matuszak, David (June 13, 2005). Opinion: Voice of the People, “Against Canyon Project” The Sun (San Bernardino)
  76. ^ San Bernardino County Grand Jury Final Report (2006-2007), p. 20.
  77. ^ Maharaj, Davan (November 7, 2000), “Goodyear Replaced Tires in ‘Silent Recall,’ Critics Allege” Los Angeles Times: p.1.
  78. ^ Marriott, Karin (October 2, 2002), “Teacher Urges Trustees to Ban Campus Soda Sales” Press-Enterprise.
  79. ^ Matuszak, David (October 10, 2002) “Campus Soda Sales Should Be Banned” Yucaipa & Calimesa News Mirror: p. Opinion.
  80. ^ Forman, Aileen (December 19, 2002), “Sodas Stay in Schools” Yucaipa & Calimesa News Mirror: p. A3.
  81. ^ Matuszak, David (June 3, 1999), “Bicycle Lanes Still Remain a Mere Plan” Yucaipa & Calimesa News-Mirror: p. A-4.
  82. ^ Johnson, Melanie C. (October 28, 1999), “City Slow to Make Bike Lanes Surface” San Bernardino County Sun: p. H1.
  83. ^ Matuszak, David (2010), PEDs: High Sports’ Dirty Little Secret.
  84. ^ Matuszak, David F. The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, 1998, p. rear dust flap. ISBN 0-9633582-2-7
  85. ^ Matuszak, David F. Centennial Edition: The Cowboy’s Trail Guide to Westerns, 2003, p. front dust flap.
  86. ^ Matuszak, David F. Nelson Point: Portrait of a Northern Gold Rush Town, 1993, p. IX. ISBN 0-9633582-0-0
  87. ^ Rhodes, Cindy (July 19, 2001) “Surfing 101” Press Enterprise: p. D12.
  88. ^ Rhodes, Cindy (July 19, 2001) “Yucaipa Beach Class A-OK” Press-Enterprise: p. D12.
  89. ^ Matuszak, David F. (1972-2010) “The Baja Journals” Unpublished.
  90. ^ San Onofre Surfing Club (2002), 50th Anniversary Yearbook, p. 172.
  91. ^ Matuszak, David F. (1991) “Alaskan Expedition Journal” Unpublished.
  92. ^ Matuszak, David F. (2004-2006) “The Lewis & Clark Expedition Diary” Unpublished.
  93. ^ Perrault, Michael (April 7, 2009), “Lassoing the Past” Press-Enterprise: p. C1.
  94. ^ Californio Ranch Roping Club website: http://californioranchroping.wordpress.com/contact/

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