Paying homage to Bud Elder Basketball Court

SANDPOINT — For pure scenic beauty, it’s pretty tough to beat Bud Elder Basketball Court.

Nestled a stone’s throw from the crisp blue waters Lake Pend Oreille, the court has been one of the crown jewels of City Beach since it was built more than a quarter century ago. While there are courts on the beaches of California and Hawaii, and at legendary playgrounds in New York City, for my money, nothing touches Bud Elder Court as a hoops venue.

A rock about 15 feet from the court contains a plaque, commemorating the dedication of the court in 1987. Every time I walk by the rock en route to the court I wonder who Bud Elder was, and why the court is named after him? So I decided to find out.

Elder was a Lion’s Club member and involved in a lot of community projects while raising a family in Sandpoint. A skilled cement professional, his final job was pouring the basketball court at City Beach. He passed away a couple months after finishing the job, and his legacy lives on with the bouncing of balls and the squeaking of sneakers.

Elder’s three daughters — Debbie Knowles, Linda Williams and Bobbi Chapman — still live in the Sandpoint area. Williams was fairly young when her father died, but still has fond memories of the man.

“He was just a big teddy bear,” recalls Williams. “I had my dad wrapped around my little finger. He was a great dad.”

Local resident Rick Leader was part of the “Ball on the Beach” committee in 1987, joining Dennis Spring and Vance Conner to help raise $10,000 to build the basketball court. He said everyone involved with the project felt they should recognize Elder by naming the court after him.

“He was a legendary concrete guy. His final job was finishing that court, and not too long after the pour he passed away,” remembers Leader. “Bud always said ‘I’ll help,’ and kind of taught us to do community work. What’s amazing is how solid it (the court) still is.”

The picture in the Daily Bee from the dedication ceremony in May of 1988 featured Randy Harms, Scott Spears and Jason Shankweiler shooting baskets. Not surprisingly considering the era, the young men were sporting short shorts and mullets.

Leader ran a popular summer basketball league for a couple of years after the court was built, but it eventually faded away. The court still gets plenty of use in the summers, with occasional pick up games played by area youth. One of the added perks is a quick swim in the lake after running some ball.

Full disclosure: I’ve been a hoops junkie all my life.

Forty-something knees and ankles that have been sprained too many times to count have pretty much put an end to any competitive run. But damned if I can’t still throw on some headphones, and kill an hour busting jumpers at City Beach.

And I can’t imagine a better place to play than Bud Elder Basketball Court.