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The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot

The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot

The student news site of Portola High School

Portola Pilot

Although rock climbing continues to become increasingly mainstream, misconceptions about the sport itself continue. Climbing can often come off as being heavily strength-based, despite the fact that both juniors Rhea Sheth and Jacob Yun cite an athlete’s mentality as imperative to success. “You really have to be able to take one loss or fall and really maximize the amount of information you're getting from it and being able to improve on that information the most you can,” Yun said. “Although it's a lot of strength, a lot of it when it comes down to it is being the smarter climber and being able to adapt quicker than the other people.”

Rock Stars of Portola (Quite Literally)

Tyler Kim and Tara Vatandoust | May 18, 2022

Igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic. After fifth grade science, rocks just no longer rock. Unless you are among the few at Portola High who have dedicated their time and effort to mastering the skill...

Portola High’s ASB class is fully finalized for the 2022-2023 school year, comprising students from all grade levels and providing representation for many groups on campus.

New 2022-2023 ASB Members Appointed & Announced

Tara Vatandoust | May 16, 2022

ASB officially announced appointed position results on May 9 after a two-step application process and interview panel with ASB adviser Emily Sheridan and the current ASB executive board.  Appointed...

Sophomore Zain Alzobiedie receives the football during a varsity game against University High on Oct. 8, 2021. Having picked up football as a second sport in his freshman year, Alzobiedie said he still has quite a bit to learn. “When I first joined football, I wasn’t going to prioritize it,” Alzobiedie said. “But then I realized that I wasn’t really good enough, so I put in a lot of extra work: lifted every day, worked every day. I always tried to be the best I could be.”

The Art of Inspiration: A Look Inside How Athlete Zain Alzobiedie Finds Motivation

Shaina Taebi and Justin Tang | May 10, 2022

Multi-sport athlete and sophomore Zain Alzobiedie does not have to look far to find figures in his life who motivate him to improve. Alzobiedie has drawn inspiration from a variety of sources - from people...

Senior Mia Zappala’s painting titled “Parasocial'' was one of six art pieces selected to receive recognition at the Irvine Fine Arts Center Gallery. “It's about how a lot of teens these days use parasocial relationships with people online or influencers to cope with their own relationships in real life and how that can be very unhealthy,” Zappala said

Bulldog-made Art Receives Spotlight in City of Irvine Art Gallery

Sidra Asif, Back Page Editor | May 9, 2022

The Irvine Fine Arts Center is open to the public to view high school student-made art displayed at Irvine City Hall. Paintings, drawings, photographs, graphic design and mixed media are featured in the...

Physical education and health teacher Brittany Frymire walks her students through a jump-roping drill during class. According to Frymire, the most important part of her daily workouts is music, ranging from relaxing country music for longer running sessions to lively hip-hop on more intense weight lifting days.

Physical Education Teacher Brittany Frymire Puts Her Heart and Sole into Running

Cara Chan and Arnav Chandan | May 7, 2022

The human body is capable of many things: lifting over 6,000 pounds, jumping over eight feet and running 27.5 miles per hour. One person on campus harnesses these capabilities to compete in a special type...

Over the 2021-22 season, boys’ golf has managed to remain consistent since the start. “I would say we’ve stayed pretty flatline, which is kind of just golf,” coach Wind Ralston said. “Golf is really up and down; you can get hot for a couple games and then cool down.”

Boys’ Golf Defeats Irvine High 206-241 in Final PCL Match of Season: Portola Proceeds to CIF

Tyler Kim, News Editor | May 6, 2022

Boys’ golf (7-5) triumphed against Irvine High with a final score of 206-241 on April 28. The game, held at Portola High’s home course, Rancho San Joaquin, was the final league match this year prior...

Since the “Keeping up with the Kardashains” debut nearly 15 years ago, a new series will continue the legacy to feed the anticipation from impatient fans: “The Kardashians” airs every Thursday on Hulu.

The Kardashians Return in Stylish New Series

Sidra Asif and Kayla Moshayedi | May 6, 2022

*This article contains spoilers for the first two episodes of “The Kardashians.”  Almost 14 years after its debut, reality show “Keeping up with the Kardashians” aired its final episode in...

Junior Jesulayomi Bello, acting as Glory in Act 1, stretches her hand up to the sky, saying “Goodbye Wes!” A few seconds later, mystical, relieving music sets the closing scene with northern lights.

Love is in the Air with ‘Almost, Maine’

Arshia Sista and Martin Yoon | May 5, 2022

It is May, which marks the end — perhaps the beginning — of turbulent high school romantic relationships. Performing Arts presented “Almost, Maine,” a romantic comedy with nine short plays of one...

Freshman Ananya Vuppula and her group perform a Bollywood dance at the SASA cultural show on April 16. They danced to “Pinga,” “Prem Ratan Dhan Payo” and “Ghagra.” She said her favorite part was dancing with her friends and getting to know them better.

Freshman Ananya Vuppula Lives the Bollywood Dream through Cultural Dancing

Bia Shok, Co-News Editor | May 5, 2022

Flashing lights, fancy attire and dramatic plot might be some of the things that first come to mind when thinking of Bollywood. Within the genre of film that incorporates different aspects of Indian culture...

Juniors Alex Richmond and Janice Kim compete at the prelims 100m race. Kim finished at 14.05 seconds, and  Richmond finished at 12.45 seconds, D1 timing, according to live.athletic.net

Track and Field Athletes Stride to Success at Pacific Coast League Preliminary Meet

Sidra Asif and Michelle Kim | May 5, 2022

Track and field dominated the Pacific Coast League Preliminary meet held at the Portola High track on April 22. A majority of athletes from frosh/soph, junior varsity and varsity teams advanced on to League...

Reviewing Three Local Vegan Restaurants

Lauren Hsu, Celine Lee, and Nate Taylor | May 4, 2022

Ratings out of five stars Mitasie Cafe Curry soy chicken with white rice: ★★★ | 3 / 5 Mixed vegetables with soy chicken and white rice: ★★★.5 | 3.5 / 5 Garlic rice: ★★★★.5...

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