Things to Do in Aloha

A former three-sport standout at the University of Oregon and current Oregon sports commentator, Jordan Kent employs his athletic experience to lead kids' day camps filled with football, basketball, and soccer drills and competitions. Part of the nonprofit Jordan Kent Foundation, Jordan Kent Skill Camps seek to build self-confidence and discipline in young athletes of all ability levels. For one week, campers train under Jordan and his team of coaches comprised of local high-school athletes, former college athletes, and adult volunteers. The camps aim to teach boys and girls ages 7–13 the value of character and hard work as they engage in a series of scrimmages and contests. A nutritious lunch is provided each day to keep energy levels high, and coaches also build nutrition education into the camps to jumpstart healthy eating habits. On the last day, campers leave with a cookbook full of good snack and meal ideas, as well as a SportHill T-shirt, helping kids remember their time at camp without having to create elaborate cave paintings on the walls of their forts.

The outdoor experts of Northwest River Guides lead whitewater-rafting, kayaking, and standup-paddleboarding trips on local waters that range from the Willamette to Klickitat Rivers. They also prepare adventurers for independent outings through kayaking classes, including advanced training in swift-water rescue. For those seeking once-in-a-lifetime experiences or to bolster their strange-and-exotic-water collections, Northwest’s guides organize international expeditions to such destinations as Canada, Costa Rica, and Scandinavia. Members of American Whitewater, the Outdoor Alliance, and Portland-based nonprofit We Love Clean Rivers, guides advocate preservation and stewardship during each trip.

Since 1977, the Historic Motor Sports Association has sped classic racecars toward the limelight, exhibiting their still-speedy maneuvering and encouraging their preservation. Annual races put the steel and chrome beasts through their paces once more, and guests chat with drivers and crew members and slip get-well cards into the upholstery of hundreds of other vintage vehicles no longer in racing condition.

Named one of Parents magazine's Top 10 Birthday Chains in 2010, Color Me Mine's international franchise of DIY ceramics studios cater to an older crowd as well. Hundreds of unadorned ceramic pieces—including vases, flatware, and busts of Elvis—await the attentions of muses of kids and their keepers alike, as do glazes in earthy tones and bright crimsons to frighten bulls away from china cabinets. Guests follow simple step-by-step instructions that leave plenty of room for creative expression. When painters are satisfied with their work, the professional kiln-workers help glaze, fire, and de-genie it for them, and they may retrieve the finished piece after a few days.

Home to the Vancouver Victory, the newly formed Vancouver Vipers, and the Mountain View Speedskating Club, Mountain View Ice Arena’s glassy surface also plays host to public-skate sessions, lessons, ice-exercise classes, and broomball games year-round. Public skate is offered more than 35 hours per week, welcoming placid skaters of all ages to practice spins, lazily loop around the edges, or carve love letters into the frozen surface in hopes of wooing a lonely zamboni operator. Birthday-party packages accommodate groups of varying sizes, treating guests to a quick group skating lesson, food, favors, and other festive essentials, whereas adult and youth hockey leagues give players the space and sticks necessary to scratch their competitive itches.

When Matt Antis was in college, he was introduced to the practice of parkour—an intensely physical sport focused on efficiently navigating obstacles such as walls, bars, and whatever else happens to be nearby. After college, Matt Antis headed off to train for the US Army, then served in Iraq. When he returned in 2010, he married his fiancée, Whitney—and a year later, he took over ownership of Revolution Parkour.

Now, Whitney, who's also a parkour enthusiast, manages the front desk as Matt and his team of instructors teach students the gravity-defying skills of parkour and free running. Within a gym drenched in reds, blues, and spots of graffiti-style artwork, they lead classes ranging from beginner parkour to Parkour Fit, which emphasizes endurance and speed with challenging courses. Students balance on beams, vault over small barriers, and swing across bars, building strength and coordination. The staff emphasizes safety, keeping a watchful eye on students, taking the time to teach proper technique, and positioning cushy pads and magic carpets to break falls.