Oak Park boy jumping for joy

LEAP, FROG-Jihad Hamade spurs his frog named "Winner" into action during the recent frog-jumping contest at the recent Calaveras County Jumping Frog Jubilee. Winner took second place.

There’s a 9-year-old boy from Oak Park who placed second in this year’s world famous Calaveras County Jumping Frog Jubilee.

No bull-it’s true.

Jihad Hamade, a third-grader at Red Oak Elementary School in Oak Park, attended the frog-jumping contest at Angels Camp, Calif., with his family and uncle, Bob Fasano, a frog-jumping aficionado who won the contest in 1998.

Held the third weekend of May, the frog jump is open around the world to participants of all ages. In fact, the 1994 Grand Finals Frog Jump winner was Cody Shilts, a 3-year-old from Sacramento.

Jihad earned second place in the junior division when his bullfrog, "Winner," put together jumps totaling 18 feet two inches.

Jihad’s no flash in the pan. He took second in 1998, too.

As the jumping was about to begin, Jihad said he tickled the frog on its leg, gave it a little nudge on its side and in less than three seconds, bloop,bloop; Winner was off to the races in a scene that looked like green popcorn popping.

"There was a lot of tough opponents," said Jihad, a bright young student who also enjoys soccer, rollerblading and drawing. "I just like frogs. They’re one of my favorite animals. I used to have small frogs and some tadpoles, but they died."

Well, long live "Winner."

The contest measures how far a frog can jump in three leaps. Once frogs leave the starting line owners can shout and cajole, even pound the stage to get them to jump farther, but can’t touch their amphibious friends.

This year’s winning jump of 20 feet 9 1/4 inches belonged to "O’Please," a beefy, bouncy bullfrog entered by Mary Hand of Sweet Home, Ore. Names of the other top finishers include "Horizontal Mambo," "Mr. Fast Frog" and "Rhoda Croaker."

"Winner" didn’t fare so well in the finals, but Jihad didn’t hold it against him. The boy and his frog remained good friends after their riveting performance in the junior division.

Fasano, Jihad’s 38-year-old uncle, enters the contest each year with the Gustine Frog Team, a group of family jumpers that’s been competing for over four decades. After winning the nationals two years ago, Fasano appeared on the ‘‘Tonight Show’’ with Jay Leno and gave a rousing demonstration with his frogs that drew laughs and applause.

Jihad’s cousins from Northern California are fine frog jumpers as well.

The world record frog jump was set in 1986 by "Rosie the Ribiter," jockeyed by Lee Giudici of Santa Clara, Calif.

"Rosie" jumped an impressive 21 feet 5 3/4 inches and beat the old record by almost five inches.

The four-day fair begins with qualifying trials on Thursday followed by finals on Sunday. "It’s just a fun thing," said Maggie Hamade, Jihad’s mother. "It’s hilarious to me because I used to hear about it all the time. My sister’s been jumping for years and it’s like, ‘You’re kidding, you’ve got to be kidding.’ But they take it very seriously."

How’d all the fun begin?

As a struggling journalist in California, Mark Twain often made trips between San Francisco and Angels Camp, a mining town in the Sierra foothills where he liked to write.

In 1865 Twain published the story, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County," which later became part of his first book, "The Celebrated Jumping Frog of Calaveras County and Other Sketches."

The Angels Booster Club began a main street celebration in 1928 based on Twain’s story. The event grew into a county fair and frog-jumping event that attracted thousands each year.

People and frogs.

That’s the lowdown on Frogtown.

As for Jihad, look for him back at the starting line next year. A jump from second to first is a goal he’d like to accomplish-his frog willing, of course.