You don't have to sport a SoCal tan and physique to play at Mitchell's Tavern, but it wouldn't hurt to tune up your skills for the Sand Volleyball Tournament taking place on Sunday. Six-player teams (at least two must be women) will play three regulation games; the four teams with the best records move to the finals. The winning team gets a cooler full of steaks and beer to celebrate its victory. Don't have a team? No sweat. Solo players are welcome aboard too. "Partial teams and free agents make perfect matches," says Jeremy Janszen of Burning River Sports, the tournament's organizer. Between matches, players can hang out at the outside bar to swill a brew or two. The competition takes place from noon to 8 p.m. at Mitchell's Tavern, 24282 Center Ridge Road in Westlake. You can watch for free. Team entry fee is $175; free-agent fee is $30. Call 216-721-8268 for more information. -- Cris Glaser
Party
Let 'Em See You Sweat
SAT 8/9 Severance Athletic Club's
Get Fit With the Pros is all about scoring -- in everything from basketball and volleyball tournaments to limbo dancing and hula-hoop contests. "It's a fun way of exercising, and it gives us a way to regress," says Vicki Dansby of the United Black Fund. Former Cavaliers and Browns players will be there, and 71 North will perform at a Browns-Titans tailgate party in the parking lot. Food, drinks, prizes, and sweat start at 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Tickets are $20, and pre-registration is recommended. The club is at 15 Severance Circle in Cleveland Heights; call 216-566-9263. -- Erich Burnett
The Sky Is Falling
WED 8/13
The big finale of the annual Perseid meteor shower takes place this week, and the Metroparks naturalists at Wednesday's End of a Shower have cleared their calendars for it. Deb Marcinski will help visitors spot the illuminated space junk. "A comet leaves tons of debris, and it just sits there in orbit," she explains. Though they're dazzling to the naked eye, meteors are only the size of a grain of sand. They ignite when they hit the Earth's atmosphere at a white-knuckling 130,000 mph. Ideal meteor-watching time is about 2 a.m., but Marcinski says that past participants typically tire of craning their necks before the big balls of fire come. That's why this year's viewing runs from 9 p.m. to midnight at Squire's Castle Lawn at North Chagrin Reservation (off Chagrin River Road in Willoughby Hills). Admission is free; call 440-473-3370. -- Chris Miller
