What do Mazama and Gonzaga have in common? Mispronunciation! Think gon·zah·guh rather than the correct pronunciation guhn·zaa·guh — not unlike the familiar muh-zah-muh instead of muh·zaa·muh. To top it off, Gonzaga University is located in the city of Spokane, which is the No. 1 mispronounced place name in the United States, according to more than one source. It’s Spo·can, not Spo·cane.
Mazama has its own attraction to visitors and locals alike with the same name: Spokane Gulch Trail. The hike on the trail receives accolades for its diverse geology, seasonal changes, wildflowers, and vista views of the Upper Methow Valley.
Gonzaga has put Spokane on the map. What used to be a sleepy town on the Spokane River has grown into its own. I’ve had many years of relationship with Spokane. Since the Northern Pacific Railroad ran through Spokane, it was a popular destination for my mom. Hop on the Mainstreeter passenger train with our free pass (my father was a lifelong railroader) and jump off a few hours later in Spokane to stay at the Ridpath Hotel and shop at the Bon Marche.
In 1974, Spokane — the smallest city to ever host a world’s fair — hosted Expo ’74, officially known as the International Exposition on the Environment. It was the first environmentally themed world’s fair, and the second world’s fair I had been to following Seattle in 1962. Here we are almost 50 years later with our fragile environment still struggling to accommodate the world’s population.
Later my high school friend opened The Mustard Seed, a scrumptious Asian restaurant, rails-to-trails built the Spokane River Centennial Trail offering 37 miles of paved bicycling (meeting up with the North Idaho Centennial Trail adding additional mileage), Bloomsday Run attracted thousands every year (I ran it once), and my mom moved there — all good reasons to visit Spokane.
Through the years, there were many bike rides on the trail through Gonzaga’s campus. I didn’t pay much attention then; just knew it was a Jesuit school with a gorgeous campus. Then came Mark Few who by all accounts is a basketball-coaching genius. As head coach for 22 years (himself a star point guard at Creswell High School in Oregon), he has an incredible record of taking his team to March Madness, the Big Dance, every year (except COVID year, obviously) since he took over the job in 1999.
Last Saturday night, Few must have said, “Phew!” With 1.1 seconds on the clock in a Final Four matchup overtime against an indomitable UCLA Bears team, point guard Jalen Suggs connected on a buzzer-beater from just inside mid-court to win the game. Cool as a cucumber, the highest-ranked recruit in Gonzaga history said he knew it was going in the basket from the minute it left his fingertips. Coach said he did, too, and that Jalen hits that long shot in practice regularly. Jalen’s shot is being hailed as one of the most iconic shots in one of the greatest games in college basketball history.
As I write, the outcome of the National Championship is unknown, but by the time this comes to the newsstand, the champion will have been determined between the Zags (not Zogs) and the Baylor Bears. I hope it’s the Zags. Spokane will be bouncing. Is that the Li·lack City or the Li·lock City?
