North State Journal - Vol 1, Issue 12

VOLUME 1 ISSUE 12

SUNDAY, MAY 15, 2016

www.NSJONLINE.com

the Sunday News Briefing Court rules Obamacare funding unconstitutional Washington, D.C. A U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. ruled in favor of House Republicans saying the way it is funded is unconstitutional. It’s a win for House Republicans who sued the Obama Administration over the insurer reimbursement provisions of the Affordable Care Act. Funds for the provision were projected to total $175 billion over 10 years, but there was never actually an appropriation from Congress. The judge’s decision prohibited any further distribution of funds under the program until there is a valid appropriation. However, the court issued a stay on the injunction pending appeal.

Krispy Kreme sold for $1.35 billion Winston-Salem The North Carolina-based company best known for its doughnuts is being sold for $1.35 billion. JAB Holding Company — a private investment group that owns Keurig and Caribou Coffee, among other properties — will pay $21 a share to acquire Krispy Kreme, well over the $16.84 it closed at on Friday before the offer.

After news of the purchase got out, Krispy Kreme’s stock price soared over the week’s trading, climbing to $21.11 a share.

Clay Livengood, 13, of Cleveland waits to compete in the last regularseason North Carolina High School Rodeo Association competition on Saturday, May 7 at the Lucky J Arena in Staley.

Christine T. Nguyen | North State Journal

NORTH

STATE

JOURNaL ELEVATE THE CONVERSATION

Bill requires public notice of refugee settlements Raleigh Lawmakers in the North Carolina House filed a bill Tuesday that allows local governments to request a moratorium on the federal government’s settlement of refugees. It also requires local governments to hold a public hearing before volunteering to take in refugees. The issue of refugee resettlement in North Carolina was brought to the fore last year as a result of the confluence of the Syrian refugee crisis and the Paris and Brussels Islamist terrorist attacks.

GM halts sales of SUVs Detroit General Motors Co. said on Friday it was temporarily halting sales of about 60,000 new 2016 U.S. SUVs because the vehicles’ window labels overstated their fuel efficiency. GM discovered an “inadvertent error” on U.S. 2016 GMC Acadia, Buick Enclave and Chevrolet Traverse SUVs that caused the estimated fuel economy to be listed on the window label as 1-2 miles per gallon higher than it should have been.

INSIDE

UNCW’s breakout star helping Seahawks soar B1

working the room

Trump, Republican leaders meet, seek to heal primary rifts

By Donna King North State Journal WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump met with Republican congressional leaders on Thursday, including North Carolina’s Congressman Patrick McHenry (R-10th District).

McHenry sits on the House Republican Conference. The series of meetings were behind closed doors as Trump worked to build support among the party establishment for his insurgent candidacy.

The Speaker of the House, Republican Paul Ryan, indicated the meeting went well but stopped short of endorsing Trump, saying that building the relationship is a process. Ryan, who may harbor aspirations of running for president in 2020 or later, noted he represents a wing of the conservatives and that it is positive that Trump is bringing new voters into the party.

“There’s no secret that Donald Trump and I have had our differences. We talked about those

differences today,” Ryan said at his weekly news conference. “I do believe we are planting the seeds in getting ourselves unified.”

According to sources familiar with the meetings, Trump was cordial in the Capitol Hill meetings. He listened patiently as lawmakers raised concerns about his tone and the need to try to appeal to Hispanic voters.

He avoided strident language, like the frequent criticism he has lobbed from the campaign trail that many lawmakers are awestruck by the corridors of power and forget why they were sent to Washington. For the hour-long meeting, the U.S. budget deficit and debt were among the issues Trump and Ryan discussed.

Trump said he and Ryan largely agree on issues of border security, trade and beefing up the U.S. military.

“This was our first meeting, but it was a very positive step toward unification,” Ryan and Trump said in a joint statement.

See Trump, page A8

Saddle up and head to the High School Rodeo with us for a rollicking good time.

C4 the good life Kevin Lamarque | reuters

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20177 52016 $2.00

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title ix

Fed issues directive for schools on transgender students

By Josh Hyatt North State Journal RALEIGH — A “joint guidance” letter issued to public schools from the U.S. Departments of Justice and Education on Friday outlines what they consider acceptable policies toward transgender students, including that they must be allowed to use the bathroom of their gender identification. The letter offers the agencies’ most recent interpretation of Title IX to include protections for transgender students, and has triggered outcry from conservative leaders around the country.

According to a DOJ statement, the letter sets out to “help provide educators the information they need to ensure that all students,

U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump arrives at the Republican National Committee for a meeting with Speaker of the House Paul Ryan on Capitol Hill on May 12.

including transgender students, can attend school in an environment free from discrimination based on sex.” But opponents like N.C. Senate Leader Phil Berger (R-Rockingham) say it represents an “egregiously unconstitutional overreach of the president’s authority, and North Carolina’s public schools should follow state law which protects our children’s safety and privacy.”

Gov. Pat McCrory, currently embroiled in a legal battle with the DOJ over H.B. 2, issued a statement Friday in response to the letter.

“President Obama’s administration has instituted federally mandated edicts that affect emSee Title IX, page A8

lawyering up

Gov. Pat McCrory discusses the state’s lawsuit at the Executive Mansion on May 9 in Raleigh.

MADELINE GRAY | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

McCrory, DOJ, others file four competing lawsuits over H.B. 2

By Jeff Moore North State Journal RALEIGH — A bevy of public policy statements and lawsuits were filed this week in response to the House Bill 2 controversy. It all started in March with a Charlotte City Council anti-discrimination ordinance that spurred a special session of the North Carolina General Assembly to nullify the local mandate on businesses.

Each lawsuit has been strategically filed in districts whose judges may offer more favorable treatment to the plaintiffs.

Most recently, the Obama Ad-

Durham Bulls bring out the force on Star Wars Night B4 Sports

See more from the competition on C4

ministration issued a Title IX directive through the Department of Education advising all schools of recommended policies to increase transgender access to facilities, sports and other resources. (see Title IX for more) McCrory complaint The complaint by Gov. Pat McCrory seeks a declaratory judgment from the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District Of North Carolina. A declaratory judgment interprets laws that are questioned by plaintiffs. McCrory is See H.B. 2, page A8

New penalties for impaired boaters, new funds for ferry system to end tolls On Murphy to Manteo, page A5

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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BUSINESS & ECONOMY

NS J datebook

the DASHBOARD

9.8%

May 17 and 18, 8am 102 East Union St., Morganton, NC 28655 The Supreme Court of North Carolina will hold its May session of court at the Historic Burke County Courthouse. This is the first time the court will travel to Burke County since the start of the Civil War.

of N.C.’s population are vetarans

35%

served in the Vietnam War

28%

served in one or both Gulf Wars

14%

served post 9/11

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To report an error or a suspected error email corrections@nsjonline.com with “Correction request” in the subject line.

North State Journal ISSN: 2471-1365 Neal Robbins Publisher Donna King Managing Editor Drew Elliot Opinion Editor Will Brinson Sports Editor Jennifer Wood Features Editor Published each Sunday by North State Media, LLC 819 W. Hargett Street, Raleigh, N.C. 27603 Inquiries: 866-458-7184 Annual Subscription Price: $250.00 Periodicals Postage Paid at Raleigh, N.C. and at additional mailing offices.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to North State Journal, 819 W. Hargett St., Raleigh, N.C. 27603.

served in the Korean War

6%

served in World War II

Hurricanes’ practice facility sold to Ammons

By Cory Lavalette North State Journal

we stand corrected

9%

aleigh Center Ice, the ice skating and training facility used by the Carolina Hurricanes, has been sold to locally owned Ammons Ventures for $2.9 million.

Jeff Ammons, president of Ammons Building Corporation, said renovations are already underway on the building, with plans to put on a new roof, replace half of the parking lot with new asphalt, redo the lobby, and make improvements to the ice plant. The improvements should be done by mid-June.

Raleigh Center Ice (RCI) was renovated five years ago after the previous owners of the thenRecZone went bankrupt, and loan holder BB&T was forced to foreclose on the facility.

“2011 was a great start, it needed a lot then,” Ammons said of past renovations. “But we’re just kind of capping off a little bit more.”

Ammons has had other forays into ice rinks. He developed The Factory in Wake Forest, a two-sheet facility that also houses several shops, eateries, indoor sports, a YMCA and other businesses.

Ammons spent 12 years turning the old street-sweeper plant into The Factory before selling his stake for $17.85 million last August. He

Madeline Gray | north state journal

is also in the planning stages of a $14 million Morrisville facility, the Wake Competition Center, that will be a five-building project with two ice rinks and other athletic facilities near Raleigh-Durham International Airport. The project received a $3 million grant from the Wake County Board of Commissioners and figures to eventually replace RCI as the Hurricanes’ practice home.

“We’re proud of things we build and do in Raleigh,” Ammons said.

“I’m from here, we’ve been here.

We like to make things better. I like the Hurricanes, I think they should have a nicer place. So we’ll probably do a little more [at the planned Morrisville facility] that doesn’t make great business sense, but we just want them to be successful here.”

RCI will be managed by American Skating Entertainment

Students participate in an open skate session at Center Ice May 12 in Raleigh.

Centers, the nation’s largest independent owner and operator of indoor sports and ice skating facilities. ASEC runs the Triangle’s three Polar Ice Houses, including the one in The Factory along with the Garner and Cary facilities, and also operated the seasonal Downtown Raleigh Winterfest outdoor rink. ASEC has its biggest presence in North Carolina and New York, but also runs facilities in California and Texas.

Mike Baxter, Triangle regional manager for ASEC, said RCI will become part of the Hurricanes House League program, and programs would be added to continue to grow the game in the Triangle.

“There wasn’t a learn to skate or a learn to play program [at RCI], so we’ll be bringing those here,” Baxter said. “It just gives us another sheet to use [for youth

hockey].”

For now, RCI remains the team’s practice facility, though the eventual transition to Morrisville could be made easier with Ammons and ASEC working together on both.

Shane Willis, a former Hurricanes player and now the team’s youth and amateur hockey coordinator, said both the addition of RCI as a rink for the Hurricanes House League program and the project in Morrisville are positives for growing the game in the area.

“I was excited when I heard [Ammons] was behind those things going on,” Willis said.

Willis said the Morrisville facility could lead to the area hosting large youth hockey tournaments, similar to what has happened in Pittsburgh and Buffalo, N.Y., when they opened state-of-the-art skating complexes.

But the Hurricanes are just a small part of Ammons’ overall plan for his and ASEC’s facilities in the area.

“The Hurricanes, they’re just a piece of the ice business,” Ammons said. “There’s the programs, the learn to skate, the youth hockey, the figure skating; all those things are a much bigger piece of the business. So that makes total sense for us to say, ‘Hey, we have youth hockey and you can check the box.

Do you want to play in Morrisville or Raleigh or Wake Forest?’”

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North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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Community college, bill attempts to increase college graduation rates

By Laura Ashley Lamm North State Journal

Additionally, Edgecombe offers scholarships from its own ECC Foundation, as well as the GoldenLEAF and SECU Foundations.

T

ARBORO, N.C. — A challenge has been issued for North Carolina to begin narrowing the skill gap between education and job requirements over the next several years. In order to help educate adults, one community college in the state has found a way to help relieve the financial burden on students by extending free public education.

“Edgecombe Community College (ECC) is interested in improving the higher education gauge for Edgecombe County by increasing its graduation rate and by helping the state and the nation raise the bar for the required education of its citizenry to beyond the high school diploma,” said Dr. Deborah Lamm, president.

Statewide setback A recent study by the Georgetown University Center on education and the workforce projects that by 2018, 67 percent of jobs in North Carolina will require post-secondary education.

Currently, only 54 percent of North Carolina’s workforce holds a credential beyond a high school diploma.

When Gov. Pat McCrory spoke before the NCWorks Leadership Summit, he said, “I’m setting a goal for North Carolina to have 67 percent of working adults with education and training beyond high school by 2025. If we are going to meet this goal, we must be more efficient in how we educate and train people, and find new ways of doing business.”

First to the line ECC, with campuses in Tarboro and Rocky Mount, has chosen to join the national call to increase the number of college-educated adults. Beginning this fall, the college will completely fund the education of qualified students

Action for lower statewide college costs

Courtesy of Edgecombe Community College

Cathy Dupree and her son, Staton, discuss the impact of the Edge Scholarship at Edgecombe Community College on Thursday, May 12. Staton, a senior at Tarboro High School, will enter ECC this fall with 20 tuition-free college credits earned through the college’s dual enrollment program with high schools.

for up to three years through a new scholarship program called the Edge Scholarship.

Currently, a full-time student spends $1,800 on tuition, fees and books for one semester. With the scholarship, the student will spend $0. Edgecombe is the first of the state’s 58 community colleges to implement a tuition-free option for its students.

“I’m among the first group of scholars without the burden of financial loans,” said Gloria Whitaker.

Whitaker, 43, works two part-time jobs while completing college for an associate’s degree in accounting.

“This allows me to achieve another skill set without having to pay back the loans. I can use the money I earn [working] to support my family, myself and my community,” she added.

High school students and recent graduates are also benefitting from the launch of the scholarship, and their eligibility increases the competition for students among other community colleges and four-year institutions.

“Through the community college, my son, Staton, has received over 20 hours of credit taking the same general education

classes he would at a traditional four-year college. I’ve saved over $20,000 on first-year tuition, fees and housing alone,” said Cathy Dupree.

Dupree’s son completed his 20 hours of tuition-free credit through the college’s duel enrollment program with local high schools.

When he begins full time at the community college in the fall, he is already far ahead in his studies.

To be eligible for the scholarship, students must be U.S. citizens, have a cumulative high school or college grade point average of a 2.6, complete the FAFSA form, enroll in consecutive semesters at the college and maintain their GPA as a student.

ECC has currently processed 72 applications for the Edge Scholarship. More than 62 scholarships have been awarded and the college will continue to take applications through August.

Funding for the scholarship is made up by Federal Pell Grants, Federal Supplemental Education Opportunity Grants, Federal Work Study and aid for military families, among others. North Carolina grants will also be included, such as the NC Community College Grant Program and scholarships from the NC Education Lottery.

The General Assembly filed the Access to Affordable College Education Act Tuesday in hopes to make college more affordable.

The bill would reduce tuition for Elizabeth City State University, Fayetteville State University, UNC at Pembroke, Winston-Salem State University and Western Carolina University beginning for Fall 2018.

The sponsor of the bill, Sen. Tom Apodaca (R-Henderson), said if this bill is passed it would ease the burden for many middle class families and college students.

“College is a significant investment that leads to higher paying jobs, a better-skilled workforce and stronger local economies, but escalating costs and rising student debt are threatening the value of that investment,” Apodaca said.

“That’s why we are committed to making college more accessible and affordable, strengthening our universities to make them more competitive, and encouraging our students to complete their degrees in four years.”

The increasing price of tuition has been a talking point for many years. It has been attributed to delaying degree completion or college students dropping out. A National Center for Education Statistics report stated 59 percent of first-year students at a four-year institution completed within six years.

If passed, the bill would also: guarantee no in-state tuition or fee increases at a public university for an undergraduate college term; lower student fees; and study and modify the cap for out-of-state students at the proposed five universities.

the

BRIEF Uber, Lyft leave Austin after city requires background checks Austin, Texas Uber and Lyft suspended their services in Austin after losing a repeal of a city ordinance requiring the companies to conduct fingerprint background checks for their drivers.

The companies have background checks, and said the fingerprint checks are unnecessary. Uber and Lyft left the city Monday after the vote.

Facebook to conduct investigation on political investigation Menlo Park, Calif.

Facebook is opening an investigation after a former employee told Gizmodo that workers would sometimes omit conservative political stories from the “trending” list on Facebook. After a response on social media and a U.S. Senate inquiry, Facebook Chairman and Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg said Facebook has “found no evidence that this report is true.”

Staples, Office Depot merger denied Washington Shares of Staples and Office Depot plummeted Wednesday after a U.S. District Court blocked their proposed $6.3 billion merger. The Federal Trade Commission advised the court that the merger would eliminate competition and lead to higher prices for consumers. It is the second time a merger between the two companies has been called off due to antitrust concerns raised by federal regulators.

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North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

Murphy

Summer in North Carolina As summer approaches, NSJ wanted to whet your appetite (literally) with some of the best summer festivals in the state, featuring everything from BBQ to baseball to bagpipes.

Whether you’re looking for some small-town charm, or the big-city bustle, we’ve got you covered with a handful of the best N.C. has to offer — it’s all here, waiting for you to discover!

to

Manteo

May 21 in Durham

May 20 in Raleigh

Yadkin Valley Wine Festival May 21 in Elkin

The 6th Annual

Washington Summer Festival

Beer, Bourbon and BBQ Festival

July 7-10 at Grandfather Mountain in Linville

June 10 in Washington

Aug. 5-6 in Cary

Art, River and Music Festival June 4 in Murphy

Braves Vs. Marlins

Taste of Charlotte Festival

July 3 in Ft. Bragg

June 10 in Charlotte

Crystal Coast Music Festival

June 4 in Atlantic Beach

Beaufort Pirate Invasion Aug. 12-13 in Beaufort Infographic by Cece Pascual

NC 4th of July Festival July 4 in Southport

west Two Georgia men die after falling from waterfall Lake Toxaway, N.C. Two visitors to Raven Rock Falls died this week after falling off the waterfall. One man fell to his death Tuesday after trying to reach a critically injured friend who fell to a ledge below. The friend on the ledge was airlifted to a Greenville, S.C., hospital where he died of his injuries Wednesday. Toxaway Fire and Rescue officials say a man fell to a ledge about a quarter of the way down the falls. Another man tried to reach him and fell 150 feet to the ground. Their names have not been released.

Asheville Citizen-Times

Asheville housing market unhealthy, U.S. sustainable Asheville, N.C. The housing market remains healthy for North Carolina with the exception of Asheville, which had a negative housing market and a decrease in the leading index of healthy housing markets, according to the latest findings in Nationwide’s Health of Housing Markets Report. Asheville ranked negatively at 395 out of 400, which suggests a potential housing slowdown for the remainder of 2016.

Ashe County man dies in lawn mower accident Warrensville, N.C. A man died in a lawn mover accident after being ejected from the mower and hitting his head on pavement Thursday, according to an Ashe County sheriff. Stephen Walton, 39, was mowing his mother’s lawn and riding the mower down a hill. Police say they believe there was no apparent foul play.

Ashe Mountain Times

Missing Caldwell Community College student left note Boone, N.C. James Roberts, a 19-year-old student who went missing April 21, left a note suggesting he wanted to “go off the grid,” according to his father.

The Boone Police Department has searched area trails and wooded areas to locate Roberts, who attended Caldwell Community College and Technical Institute. They have also communicated with law enforcement on the coast, since his family said he was familiar with Ocean Isle Beach.

Watauga Democrat

piedmont Police: Lillington mom, 2 children die in murdersuicide

Gastonia, Maiden students win 10th District 2016 Congressional Art Competition

Lillington, N.C. Police announced Monday a mother and two children died in a murdersuicide shooting May 6. Police identified the deceased as Danielle Biggs, 35, and her two kids, 3-yearold Benjamin Biggs and 21-monthold Gwendolyn Biggs. The Chief Medical Examiner’s Office reported the two children were killed and died of gunshot wounds, and the mother died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound.

Gastonia, N.C. Rep. Patrick McHenry announced two students as the winners of the 10th District 2016 Congressional Art Competition May 4. Lily Reed, a junior at Gaston Day School in Gastonia, and Zong Shia Yang, a senior at Maiden High School in Catawba County Schools, won the competition with their works “Donkey in Lights” and “1976,” respectively.

The competition had 39 entries.

WCNC

Rowan-Salisbury school system removes pepper spray ban from policy Salisbury, N.C. The Rowan-Salisbury School system ruled high school students would be allowed to carry pepper spray for the 2016-17 school year. Board member Chuck Hughes was in support of the policy, referencing House Bill 2, saying pepper spray could be useful. Other board members said the spray could be used for reasons other than defense, like against a teacher.

Salisbury Post

North State Journal

North State Journal

Railhawks to host West Ham & USO match Cary, N.C. The Triangle’s local professional soccer team, the Carolina Railhawks, announced Thursday they will host West Ham United from the English Premier League in July. The team’s WakeMed Soccer Park will also play host to the 103rd Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup in June, where the Railhawks will play the winner of the second round match between the Charlotte Independence (USL) and the Charlotte Eagles (PDL).

North State Journal

Bonner Bridge construction project has first piling installed

east New Bern has new development tool New Bern, N.C. The City of New Bern has a new tool to help with the future of downtown development. The new 1:480-scale, laser-cut model of downtown New Bern streets, buildings and bridges allows the public to see what future development projects in the community will look like when completed. The city spent approximately $13,400 to have the chipboard replica created.

The New Bern Sun Journal

Waste Industry unveils GNG facility and fleet Wilmington, N.C. Waste Industries launched a Compressed Natural Gas facility and fleet Thursday. The $7 million project is the largest facility of its kind in New Hanover County. The truck will begin collection for businesses and homes starting Monday.

North State Journal

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By Jeff Moore North State Journal

Got To Be NC Festival

Highland Games

Jones& Blount H.B. 1002 would end tolls, fund ferry system

Durham Cultural Arts Festival

The 60th Annual

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Oregon Inlet, N.C. The first piling of the new Bonner Bridge was installed this week. The bridge will cross Oregon Inlet on N.C. 12. “This is a great day for the people of the Outer Banks and all of North Carolina as we take a significant step toward better connecting our citizens to jobs, healthcare and recreation,” said Gov. Pat McCrory of the milestone. The bridge will have a total of 673 pilings, ranging in length from 110 feet to 130 feet and made of concrete. The project is part of McCrory’s 25-year Transportation Vision. It is scheduled to be completed in September of 2019.

North State Journal

Vessels sunk to create memorial reef Atlantic Beach, N.C. A 108-foot retired U.S. Army tugboat rests at the bottom of the Howard Chaplain Reef in Atlantic Beach in memory of Jim Francesconi, the former N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries artificial reef coordinator who died in 2014. The tugboat was renamed the James J. Francesconi and, along with a 65-foot retired New York Harbor tugboat, was sunk to form a new artificial reef much like the ones created by Francesconi.

Funding of this project was made possible by several local organizations including the Big Rock Blue Marlin Tournament.

North State Journal

RALEIGH — The House Standing Committee on Transportation issued a favorable report on House Bill 1002, the Ferry System Stabilization Act, on Tuesday.

The bill, introduced by Rep. Paul Tine (U-Dare), would direct approximately $14 million in recurring funds for operations and maintenance of the ferry system, including replacing or refurbishing ferries.

“Over the last couple of years we’ve done a significant amount of investment in transportation.

We’ve put $35 million into the ports; we’ve put, I think it’s $14 million into airports; we’ve put hundreds of millions into Strategic Transportation Investments (STI), which is the new capital projects and maintenance, and the one place we haven’t gotten caught up is our ferry system,” said Tine. “These ferries are just floating bridges.”

The North Carolina Department of Transportation estimates costs for replacing a river-based ferry is $13 million. Replacing a sound-based ferry would cost approximately $18 million.

In addition to replacing or refurbishing antiquated ferries and support vehicles, the legislation would eliminate the need for tolls across all

seven existing ferry routes.

“No other part of our highway system is supported by tolls in regards to existing maintenance,” said Tine. “In order to maintain those existing routes, we shouldn’t toll those either. We’re trying to be consistent with all of the different divisions [of transportation].”

Currently, the ferry system collects an average of $1.8 million in tolls annually, according to the North Carolina Department of Transportation, but operation costs for the entire ferry system are approximately $39 million per year.

“There is no way to make the numbers self-sustaining,” Tine said during the committee meeting Tuesday. “This would put the ferry argument in the legislature to bed.”

Tine said in an interview the Department of Transportation has developed a 20-year capital improvement plan for the existing ferry routes and H.B. 1002 meets those needs, as well as the general transportation needs of the State in a cost effective way.

“One of the things that people don’t realize is the five routes that are reasonable to bridge would cost about a billion dollars. We operate all seven [routes] for $39 million right now,” Tine said.

The bill now heads to the House Appropriations Committee for consideration.

Bill makes death or injury by impaired boater a felony RALEIGH — The North Carolina House of Representatives passed legislation this week that increases the penalty for impaired boating resulting in death or injury to a felony.

House Bill 958 is officially referred to as Sheyenne’s Law. Sheyenne Marshall, 17, was struck and killed by a boat on Lake Norman last Independence Day. The man piloting the boat was later deemed to have been under the inf luence of alcohol and charged with boating while impaired.

Currently, deaths or serious injuries by boat as a result of the boater’s being intoxicated by drugs or alcohol do not warrant the same stiff penalties as accidents caused by intoxicated motor vehicle drivers.

Under current law, boating while impaired is a misdemeanor with a

$250 fine.

Dozens of people have been seriously injured or killed by impaired boaters in North Carolina over the last five years, according to the Wildlife Resources Commission.

Sheyenne’s Law would create new classes of punishment for accidental death, serious injury, and aggravated serious injury by impaired boaters, as well as new penalties for repeat offenders. New penalties range from a Class B2 felony for repeat death offenders, to Class F felonies for impaired boaters who cause serious injury to another person.

The legislation was passed unanimously on the House f loor Thursday. It now heads to the North Carolina Senate for final passage, at which point it would be presented to Gov. Pat McCrory for signature.

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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north STATEment Neal Robbins, publisher | Drew Elliot, opinion editor | Ray Nothstine, deputy opinion editor EDITORIALS | Drew Elliot

North Carolina’s Cash Cowell Cowell has voluntarily taken on duties that restrict her ability to fully perform her job.

North Carolina’s state treasurer, Janet Cowell, is a Democrat who was a lock for re-election. But then late last year, Cowell suddenly announced that she would not run for re-election. Now we may know why.

Cowell has agreed to serve on the boards of two companies with strong North Carolina ties. She will earn six-figure compensation rates for her service while working full time as treasurer. (Cowell cleared the move through the North Carolina State Ethics Commission, and the investment portfolio for the state’s $87 billion retirement system fund currently does not include either of the two companies Cowell helps direct.)

As a Democrat not running against a Republican, Cowell is no longer a protected class in the state news media, and it’s starting to show. Editorials across the state slammed her moves, apparently eager to prove they could go after a Democrat. Recall that the Associated Press and other editorialists in the state were apoplectic when Gov. Pat McCrory wrapped up his service on the board of a publicly traded company within weeks of taking office. But unlike McCrory, Cowell will attempt to do her government and private-sector jobs at the same time.

Cowell told the Ethics Commission that she would recuse herself from any decision that “could reasonably be viewed as directly or indirectly related to my corporate board service.”

Even if she lived by that, is it good for the state official who manages the pension fund to be required to absent herself from decisions involving potential investments?

Cowell gets less leeway in this area than other public officials. On the end of the spectrum opposite the treasurer, state law actually requires some members of the state’s boards and commissions to earn income from the industry they help regulate. Legislators come next: since they are paid next to nothing, they need to earn a living. Then there are full-time employees. First, the elected or appointed officials who had existing business relationships before they took office. Then there’s Cowell.

Cowell should have waited until her public service was over to even engage with the companies, much less take an active seat on their boards. Cowell has not done anything illegal, and she may well abide by the Ethics Commission parameters and her own recusal statement. But that’s the crux of the problem — it necessarily means she has voluntarily taken on duties that restrict her ability to fully perform her job.

It’s a safe bet that the General Assembly will take a hard look at restricting this kind of activity. Even though both the Republican and Democratic candidates to replace Cowell have said they will not serve on corporate boards while in office, this one is a no-brainer and can be dispatched with a quick amendment to the State Ethics Act. General Assembly members should wrap it up so that they can move on to tackling truly pressing fiscal matters — such as getting a handle on the more than $25 billion in unfunded state retiree medical benefits.

Cowell likes to crow about the health of the state’s pension fund, which is sound. But she should have spent more time warning about the balloon payments taxpayers will need to make to past employees of state agencies. Cowell will be gone soon enough, but those promised benefits aren’t going away any time soon, and it’s about time someone started addressing the issue.

visual VOICES

BE IN TOUCH Letters addressed to the editor may be sent to letters@NSJonline.com or 819 Hargett St. Raleigh, N.C. 27603. Letters must be signed; include the writer’s phone number, city and state; and be no longer than 300 words. Letters may be edited for style, length or clarity when necessary. Ideas for op-eds should be sent to opinion@NSJonline.com.

EDITORIALS | Ray Nothstine

The ever-encroaching federal government on North Carolina No federal legislation has ever been passed to equate discrimination based on sex as applying to gender identification.

Why does the federal government need to make demands and issue ultimatums on the issue of bathrooms in North Carolina? Most rational people understand this is an exercise in absurdity and federal overreach. But in the new era of ever-expanding civil rights regulations, the U.S. Department of Justice believes the law requires it. In a Tuesday press conference, Attorney General Loretta Lynch ran through a series of illogical leaps to try to summon North Carolinians and their leadership to its knees. Gov. Pat McCrory was wise not to take the bait.

As for Lynch, comparing a media-manufactured crisis to Jim Crow is demeaning to the federal legacy of action on segregation and civil rights. No federal legislation has ever been passed to equate discrimination based on sex as applying to gender identification, despite any decrees that emanate from the president.

This is why McCrory has filed a

lawsuit to clarify what federal law actually means. “We believe a court, rather than a federal agency, should tell our state, our nation and employers across the country what the law requires,” declared McCrory.

But still, all the federal courts can do is affirm or deny the interpretation of Title IX and Title VII by unelected bureaucrats as it relates to discrimination based on gender identification. It would be helpful if Congress could clarify through actual legislation the interpretation of these laws, but Congress lacks so much moral courage they are unable to even place paltry limits on federal spending.

It’s true that common sense laws concerning privacy and longaccepted norms about sex may well be overturned by activist courts. This is nothing new, but it only points to our perpetual crisis of federal encroachment. And yes, we’ve evolved culturally in many

ways since America’s founding in the 18th century, but the founders will continually be proven right about the principles of federalism and the danger of centralizing power and ceding control to a distant regulatory body.

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 was enacted to increase female participation in sports in schools but has now morphed into previously unimaginable social experiments.

McCrory, not known as a crusader for social conservatism, understands that the power to interpret law does not rest with the Executive Branch.

This issue has divided people across the state, just as it divides people across the country. People who suffer from gender identity disorders are deserving of our compassion. This is a complicated issue that will unfortunately, like most contemporary debates, be harnessed for more federal power and control at the expense of the citizenry.

In an interview with Judy Woodruff on the PBS NewsHour Tuesday, McCrory called for more federal action on the matter. He is leading the charge for national clarification on the transgender issue. While his political reasoning is sound, the states have already yielded too much federal power to the national government. It’s time to reaffirm the basic tenets of federalism and the 10th Amendment.

As the governor noted, this is now a national issue, and the Department of Justice could potentially sue every business that employs more than 15 people for having normative bathroom policies. But it is far better to once again affirm constitutional republicanism than to selectively enforce laws based on the ideology of those in power.

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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Guest Opinion | LEAH HUGHES

Outdoor adventure heads to the farm with WNC agritourism Western North Carolina’s varied commodities provide yearround attractions.

A

vacation spent picking apples or watching dairymen make cheese might not seem like a popular option.

But in a world where sitting in an office chair is a health risk and children’s screen time is a contentious issue, spending leisurely hours in a field, barn, or pasture is increasingly appealing.

Nowhere is that desire to connect with the land more apparent than in Western North Carolina. The Blue Ridge Mountains have long been a refuge for weary travelers. These days, an afternoon on a farm is becoming as common as a ride along the parkway.

In a way, the combination of two strong industries in the state is a natural progression.

Agriculture contributes $78 billion to the state’s economy. In 2015, North Carolina tourism hit a record high with $21.9 billion in visitor spending. In a state that’s suffered major economic losses as manufacturing jobs have been outsourced and automated, it’s encouraging to see the joining of agriculture and tourism to create a growing niche market.

Western North Carolina’s varied commodities provide year-round attractions. The WNC Farmers Market in Asheville, operated by the N.C. Department of Agriculture, is open seven days a week throughout the year. The cooler months bring greens and pumpkins, while warmer weather produces tomatoes and sweet corn. Promotions, such as the Herb Festival in May and days devoted to strawberries, watermelons and tomatoes, encourage people to make the market part of their visit.

You-pick farms create a mutually beneficial situation.

The farmer’s crop is harvested, and visitors see where their food grows. The Orchard at Altapass, located off the Blue Ridge Parkway just south of Spruce Pine, invites people to pick heirloom apples in the fall. The destination also offers hiking trails, music jams and storytelling hayrides from April through October. In Flat Rock, Sky Top Orchard is a hub of activity from August to December. In addition to apple picking, visitors can see barnyard animals, have a picnic and sample apple cider

North Carolina fights back tanding on principle, not to mention common sense, is so rare these days S that when someone does it they make

courtesy Henderson county TDA

An employee of the Henderson County Tourism Development Authority picks apples. doughnuts. Sky Top is one of many orchards in Henderson County, which is home to the annual N.C. Apple Festival that attracts 250,000 people.

Some Western North Carolina farms host adult classes to encourage lifelong learning.

Wellspring Mountain in Lowgap presents classes on topics such as cooking with whole foods and using herbs for medicinal purposes.

Networking is a key strategy for agritourism. Organized trails, such as the WNC Cheese Trail, create actionable guides for tourists. The Cheese Trail map designates the location and hours of each producer, and the website allows people to make informed decisions about which ones they’ll visit.

Agritourism is also a way for agricultural organizations to connect with the community and gain support. For example,

TRACTOR — a nonprofit that works with more than 50 local farms in the Toe River Valley — will hold a dinner on the square in downtown Burnsville this September. The social event will bring attention to the town center and increase awareness of local agriculture.

The versatility of agritourism appeals to a variety of visitors.

For people who want fresh produce, picked and washed, they can spend a few minutes at the farmers market. Or if they want to get their hands dirty learning the trade, they can earn that experience in the field. No matter how brief the stay or how small the purchase, local farmers feel that direct impact. And that’s a vacation we can all feel good about.

Leah Hughes lives on a farm in Randolph County. She is a writer with Distl Public Relations.

Columnist | Michael munger

Discriminating against privacy e discriminate all the time. Track meets W discriminate based on speed and

The point is that the Charlotte “solution” is even worse than H.B. 2.

Tactically, the General Assembly made a mistake passing H.B. 2.

endurance; a “discriminating palate” allows a person to appreciate fine food and drink.

Physicians discriminate: gynecologists specialize in the treatment of women; prostate surgeons see only men.

Is the public policy of dividing access to public facilities (bathrooms in public places, shower facilities for gym class in high school) based on sex discriminatory? Let’s start with having separate bathrooms for men and women in the first place. One reason to do that is that the physics of urination is different depending on how one is equipped. This makes for long lines at the ladies’ room. At a baseball game in San Francisco, I saw a young woman sprint in, back up to a urinal, hike up her skirt, and then scamper back out when she was finished.

Few women would do that.

They prefer privacy when they disrobe, and women must disrobe more than men to urinate.

So separating bathrooms by sex is a difference that is not discriminatory. Prudish or not, men and women (including many gay men and lesbian women) don’t want to use the “other” bathroom.

What about transgender folks?

It’s tempting to say, “People can

CAL THOMAS

use whatever bathroom they want.” But (some) men might want to see women disrobe. So the solution has either been to say “People can use the bathroom of the sex they identify with” (the Charlotte solution) or “People must use the bathroom that matches their plumbing” (the H.B. 2 solution).

Given the pre-emptive power of state law (North Carolina cities depend on central authority, by statute), H.B. 2 wins. And that’s a dumb solution. It seems discriminatory: people who appear, and for all practical purposes live, as one gender must use the other bathroom.

But H.B. 2 was a reaction to what we might call “The Charlotte solution.” On Feb. 22, 2016, Charlotte amended its anti-discrimination statute, in ordinance 7056 (Book 59, p.

743). Have you actually seen that ordinance? It’s pretty long (nine pages) but the key provision was actually a deletion. Section 12-59 of the old ordinance had allowed separate (by gender) bathrooms, public showers, dormitories, and other facilities that are “in their nature distinctly private.”

Let’s make sure that’s clear: that section was deleted. That means that, under the Charlotte statute, “discrimination” by gender would no longer be allowed. Of course, that is in itself

discriminatory: If people can choose which public bathroom— or high school gym shower — to use then the privacy rights of people who want to be segregated by gender are being trampled.

It has been estimated that there are between 20,000 and 25,000 thousand transgender folks in North Carolina, and many of them appear to match their chosen, rather than biological, sex. It makes sense for them to use the bathroom their appearance dictates; that’s why H.B. 2 is dumb. But the Charlotte law would allow anyone to use bathrooms or showers of either gender. The price of admission would simply be to claim (presumably, though the Charlotte ordinance did not say, with a straight face) that one “identifies” with the gender of the chosen bathroom.

The point is that the Charlotte “solution” is even worse than H.B. 2. Tactically, the General Assembly made a mistake passing H.B. 2. If they had simply pointed out the flaws in Charlotte’s Ordinance 7056, the City Council would be in the hot seat, defending their choice to discriminate against privacy.

Michael Munger is a professor and director of the Philosophy, Politics, and Economic Program at Duke University.

headlines. That’s because you can quickly be labeled a “bigot” if you oppose a lot of the sludge dumped on us by the secular left, and few can withstand the onslaught.

North Carolina’s Republican governor, Pat McCrory, is unafraid.

On Friday, the Department of Justice sent him a letter warning that North Carolina’s House Bill 2, also known as the bathroom bill, violated the Civil Rights Act. The bill, which requires that transgender people use public bathrooms that match their birth certificates, was swiftly labeled anti-LGBT, which was all the DOJ needed to hear. The government gave McCrory until Monday to confirm that North Carolina would not comply with or implement H.B. 2. McCrory pushed back.

On Monday, he filed a lawsuit against the DOJ, targeting Attorney General Loretta Lynch and Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Vanita Gupta. The suit, according to ABC News, “accused the DOJ of a ‘radical reinterpretation’ of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act and wrote that the federal government’s position was ‘a baseless and blatant overreach.’”

The government’s letter, according to North Carolina Public Radio-WUNC’s Jeff Tiberii, who obtained a copy, warned that “The State is engaging in a pattern or practice of discrimination against transgender state employees and both you, in your official capacity, and the state are engaging in a pattern or practice of resistance.”

In a statement following the announcement of the lawsuit, Gov. McCrory said, “The Obama administration is bypassing Congress by attempting to rewrite the law and set restroom policies for public and private employers across the country, not just North Carolina. This is now a national issue that applies to every state and it needs to be resolved at the federal level,” meaning Congress and the courts.

McCrory added that Washington is “telling every government agency and every company that employs more than 15 people that men should be allowed to use a women’s locker room, restroom or shower facility.”

The push and pull continues.

Are morals and ethics now up for grabs, depending on which group makes the most noise and promises the most votes?

If you are a woman reading this, how would you feel about showering with a naked man? If you are a man who has daughters, would you be OK with allowing them to use a women’s restroom knowing that a man could be in there? Target is fine with it, apparently. In a blog last week, the company stated that it welcomes “transgender team members and guests to use the restroom or fitting room facility that corresponds with their gender identity.”

Target stores are now the target of a boycott.

What about school gyms? Are you fine with having your daughter changing and showering with a boy who believes he’s a girl? What happened to the right to privacy, so revered by the progressive left?

Does the fact that we are even having this debate say something about the state of our culture and the attempts by secularists to undermine what remains of its creaking foundations, traditions and what used to be known as common sense? Who gets to decide? And on what is that decision based?

Are morals and ethics now up for grabs, depending on which group makes the most noise and promises the most votes? Perhaps Loretta Lynch and her deputy should lead by example and shower with a transgender male. Even better, how about first lady Michelle Obama? Media coverage could be discreet. I’m betting that neither Lynch nor the first lady would go that far. In fact, I suspect that very few on the left would want to live under many of the laws and dictates they like to impose on the rest of us.

Have we gone mad? The question all but answers itself.

Gov. McCrory has already directed state agencies to make reasonable accommodations to transgender people by installing single-occupancy restrooms.

North Carolina also allows private companies to set their own bathroom policies, but that is not what the Obama administration wants. It wants to “fundamentally transform the United States of America.” It’s one of the few promises the president has managed to keep.

Cal Thomas is a nationally syndicated columnist. His latest book is “What Works: Common Sense Solutions for a Stronger America.” Readers may email Cal Thomas at tcaeditors@tribpub.com.

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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NATION& WORLD Brazil sets impeachment of President Rousseff in motion

NEWS IN IMAGES

By Jeff Moore North State Journal

CARLO ALLEGRI | REUTERS

A wounded warrior with an image of Wonder Woman on her prosthetic leg walks off the stage during the medal presentation ceremonies for indoor rowing during the Invictus Games in Orlando, Fla., on May 9.

DAMIR SAGOLJ | REUTERS

People react as they see North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during a mass rally and parade in the capital’s main ceremonial square, a day after the ruling party wrapped up its first congress in 36 years by elevating him to party chairman on May 10.

amir cohen | REUTERS

Israelis watch a fireworks show during celebrations marking Israel’s 68th Independence Day in the southern city of Ashkelon on May 11.

H.B. 2 from page A1 seeking two responses from the court. The first is that the state of North Carolina is not in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The second is North Carolina is not in violation of the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013.

The complaint was filed in the Eastern District of North Carolina’s Western Division, which handles cases in the eastern 44 counties of the state.

“We believe a court, rather than a federal agency, should tell our state, the nation, and employers what the law requires,” McCrory said at his press conference. “I think it’s time for the U.S. Congress to bring clarity to our national anti-discrimination provisions under Title VII and Title IX.” A separate, but nearly identical, lawsuit was filed the same day by Senate leader Phil Berger (R-Eden) and House Speaker Rep. Tim Moore (R-Kings Mountain).

DOJ complaint The DOJ complaint alleges H.B. 2, and those implementing the law, violates Title VII and Title IV of the Civil Rights Act, as well as the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2013.

“We are seeking a court order declaring House Bill 2’s restroom restriction impermissibly discriminatory, as well as a statewide bar on its enforcement. While the lawsuit currently seeks declaratory relief, I want to note that we retain the option of curtailing federal funding to the North Carolina Department of Public Safety and the University of North Carolina as this case proceeds,” Lynch said in the late Monday press conference announcing the suit.

The federal complaint was filed in North Carolina’s middle, encompassing 24 counties in the central part of the state.

North Carolinians for Privacy complaint North Carolinians for Priva-

BRASILIA, BRAZIL — The Brazilian Senate deliberated for 20 hours before voting 55-22 early Thursday to put President Dilma Rousseff on trial over charges that she disguised the size of the budget deficit to make the economy look healthier in the run up to her 2014 re-election.

Rousseff said she would keep fighting the impeachment charges stemming from hearings launched last December, and was confident she would be declared innocent. The Senate voted on Thursday to put her on trial for breaking budgetary rules, its historic decision fueled by deep recession and a sprawling corruption scandal.

“I may have made mistakes but I did not commit any crime,” a stern-faced Rousseff said in a defiant address before leaving the Planalto presidential palace flanked by dozens of supporters.

She called the impeachment process “fraudulent” and “a coup.”

In a dramatic changing of the guard that signaled a political shift in Brazil, Rousseff, a leftist who has been in office since 2011, departed Brasilia’s presidential residence just hours after the vote.

Centrist Vice President Michel Temer took over as interim president for the duration of a Senate trial that could take up to six months.

Temer, a constitutional scholar who spent decades in Brazil’s Congress and had a bitter falling out with Rousseff last year, faces the daunting task of hauling the world’s No. 9 economy its worst downturn since the Great Depression while cutting bloated public spending.

Temer, 75, quickly named respected former central bank governor Henrique Meirelles as his finance minister, as part of a scaled-back cabinet, with a mandate to overhaul the costly pension system.

Rousseff, 68, was flanked by dozens of outgoing ministers. Even as many wept, Rousseff remained stolid.

cy, a nonprofit, files a complaint for declaratory judgment and injunctive relief based upon the DOJ’s redefining of ‘sex’ for the purposes of Title IX of the Civil Rights Act. The complaint asks that “this Court declare that the Department of Education’s new rule, that redefines the word ‘sex’ in Title IX to mean, or include, gender identity, and upon which the Department of Justice relies in issuing its Ultimatum to the State and University, violates the provisions and requirements of the Administrative Procedure Act and so is unlawful and unenforceable, by the Department of Education as well as the Department of Justice; and, that this Court declare that the Department of Justice and the Department of Education cannot rely upon an unlawful rule for purposes of determining the requirements of Title IX.” Like McCrory’s, this complaint was filed in the western division of North Carolina’s Eastern District.

Lambda legal/ACLU/Equality NC complaint The first lawsuit concerning H.B. 2, filed in March, alleges the law violates the constitution and mandates discrimination on the basis of sex.

“We’re asking the court to overturn House Bill 2, because it is unconstitutional, because it violates the equal protection and due process clauses of the 14th Amendment, because it discriminates on the basis of sex and sexual orientation, and because it is an invasion of privacy for transgender men and transgender women,” said Chris Brook, ACLU of NC’s legal director. “The law also violates Title IX by discriminating against students on the basis of sex.”

As with the DOJ complaint, the first legal action over H.B. 2 was filed in the North Carolina’s Middle District.

Ueslei marcelino | REUTERS

Brazil’s President Dilma Rousseff reacts during a launch ceremony of Agricultural and Livestock Plan for 2016/2017, at the Planalto Palace in Brasilia, Brazil May 4.

Rousseff’s mentor, former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who now faces corruption charges, stood behind her and looked on dejectedly as 13 years of rule by their Workers Party came to an abrupt end.

“I never imagined that it would be necessary to fight once again against a coup in this country,” Rousseff said, in a reference to her youth fighting Brazil’s military dictatorship.

Shortly afterward, she addressed hundreds of supporters outside, many of them dressed in Workers Party red, and already shouting “Temer out!”

“This is a tragic hour for our country,” Rousseff said, calling her suspension an effort by conservatives to roll back the social and economic gains made by the Workers Party.

The party rose from Brazil’s labor movement and, in the heady days of Lula’s presidency from 2003, helped pull millions of people out of poverty before running into recession and scandal, with many of its leaders tainted by corruption investigations

Title IX from page A1 ployees as well as every parent and child within a public school system,” McCrory said. “This national bathroom, locker room and shower policy for almost every business, university and now K-12 school in our country changes generations of gender etiquette and privacy norms which parents, children and employees have expected in the most personal and private settings of their everyday lives.”

The DOJ letter covers several areas, including the departments’ updated interpretation of Title IX as well as their “significant guidance” on restrooms and locker rooms, athletics, single-sex classes, single-sex schools, social fraternities and sororities, housing and overnight accommodations, among other school-environment issues. The nine-page letter was signed by Catherine Lhamon, the U.S. Department of Education’s assistant secretary for civil rights, and Vanita Gupta, the U.S. Department of Justice’s principal deputy assistant attorney general for civil rights. Gupta

Trump from page A1 Despite his problems in winning over senior Republicans, Trump received a boost on Wednesday when a Reuters/Ipsos national poll showed him pulling even with likely Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton. The online survey found 41 percent of likely voters supporting Clinton and 40 percent backing Trump.

After his meeting with leadership, Trump made the rounds by meeting with other lawmakers, including Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) who endorsed him.

North Carolina Congresswoman Virginia Foxx (R-5th District) did not meet with Trump but said the goal of the Republican Party should be to beat Clinton.

“We can’t afford four more

and Rousseff herself increasingly unpopular.

Rousseff, an economist and former Marxist guerrilla who became Brazil’s first woman president, has steadfastly denied any wrongdoing and has called the charges politically motivated.

Despite her vows to fight, she is unlikely to be acquitted in her trial.

The size of the vote to try her showed the opposition already has the support it will need to reach the two-thirds majority required to convict Rousseff and remove her definitively from office.

“It is a bitter, though necessary, medicine,” opposition Senator Jose Serra, named on Thursday as the new foreign minister under Temer, said during the marathon Senate debate.

“Having the Rousseff government continue would be a bigger tragedy.”

As suspended head of state, Rousseff can continue to live in her official residence, and is entitled to a staff and use of an Air Force plane.

Reuters contributed to this report.

was named in McCrory’s recently filed lawsuit against the Department of Justice.

“There is no room in our schools for discrimination of any kind, including discrimination against transgender students on the basis of their sex,” said Attorney General Loretta Lynch in a statement. “This guidance gives administrators, teachers and parents the tools they need to protect transgender students from peer harassment and to identify and address unjust school policies. I look forward to continuing our work with the Department of Education — and with schools across the country — to create classroom environments that are safe, nurturing and inclusive for all of our young people.”

Accompanying the letter is a separate document titled “Examples of Policies and Emerging Practices for Supporting Transgender Students” that provides a list of school policies from around the country that the agencies believe support transgender students.

“The guidance explains that

when students or their parents, as appropriate, notify a school that a student is transgender, the school must treat the student consistent with the student’s gender identity,” read a statement from the Department of Justice.

“A school may not require transgender students to have a medical diagnosis, undergo any medical treatment, or produce a birth certificate or other identification document before treating them consistent with their gender identity.”

Vanessa Jeter, the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction’s director of communications and information division, provided this statement: “The Department of Public Instruction is aware of the federal communication sent to public schools regarding transgender students’ use of bathrooms and locker rooms consistent with their chosen gender identity. We also fully acknowledge the courts are being asked to address this issue. Until then, as always, we support the legal protections afforded to all public school students and the safety of each child.”

years of the flawed policies of the Obama administration, and that’s what a Clinton presidency would entail,” Foxx said.

“It would be devastating to our country.”

In a meeting at a Washington law firm, Trump sat down with James Baker, who served as secretary of state for Republican President George H.W. Bush.

Earlier in the day, Baker had testified to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Under questioning from Sen. Marco Rubio, a former Republican presidential candidate, Baker said the world “would be far less stable” without a strong NATO, a reference to Trump’s stance on reconfiguring the Western alliance and getting European nations to foot more of the bill.

“The whole discussion was very solid, reasonable and a warm and winning discussion,” said Hatch. “I think you’re going to find he’s going to be better and better all the time.”

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), who dropped out of the presidential race earlier this year and once said the choice between Trump and rival Ted Cruz was like trying to decide between being “shot or poisoned,” said he had a cordial phone call with Trump.

“I know Mr. Trump is reaching out to many people, throughout the party and the country, to solicit their advice and opinions.

I believe this is a wise move on his part,” said Graham.

Reuters contributed to this report.

the Sunday Sideline report

UNCW baseball

1. Stephen Curry named NBA MVP, first unanimous winner in league history.

2. Kemba Walker had surgery on left knee to repair torn meniscus, will return in July.

3. MLB suspended Bryce Harper one game for yelling obscenity at umpire, will appeal.

4. Max Scherzer strikes out 20 batters against Tigers, tying MLB record for most ever in nine innings.

@StephCurry30: Lock in! #DubNation @CraigCalcaterra: I like Bryce Harper and his game. But you can’t return to the field after an ejection and cuss out Blue and not expect a little blowback. @KerryWood: Congratulations to @Max_Scherzer on an impressive and dominant performance tonight.

Welcome to the club! #Filthy

Madeline Gray | North State Journal

UNCW catcher Nick Feight, right, high-fives his teammates after hitting a home run in the first inning against North Carolina on May 10 in Wilmington. The Seahawks defeated the Tar Heels, 6-2.

SPORTS best of the best

By R. Cory Smith North State Journal

Baseball

Nats ink Strasburg to monster extension

ILMINGTON, N.C. — Nick Feight stood off to the side of the coaches’ room while UNCW head coach Mark Scalf W took questions, patiently waiting. Then came the question

The Washington Nationals inked pitcher Stephen Strasburg to a mammoth extension, giving the longhyped star a seven-year, $175 million deal that will keep him in a Nats uniform for a long time. It was the rare case of a Scott Boras client taking a before-market contract.

NFL

Las Vegas looking realistic for Raiders Las Vegas mayor Carolyn Goodman said she is confident the Raiders will come to Sin City if a stadium is approved.

The league has all kinds of concerns with gambling issues in Vegas, but the Raiders are a perfect and legitimate candidate for the move to the desert.

NBA

Courtesy of Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton

Skiles steps down as Magic head coach

Soldiers at Fort Bragg carry huge packs as part of the Best Warrior Competition, a three-day physical and mental grind.

Orlando Magic head coach Scott Skiles stepped down from his position on Thursday, opening up another potential domino in the NBA coaching search world. Orlando isn’t a top-flight job option, but there are several nice young pieces on the roster to attract a quality coach.

Best Warrior battle takes elite soldiers to brink

NHL

Hurricanes pick twice in 2016 first round With the NHL’s conference finalists decided, the top 26 selections in this summer’s draft are set. The Hurricanes will pick 13th and 21st, the latter coming from a 2015 trade with the Kings.

COLLEGE BASEBALL

Avent missing first series after snakebite Coach Elliott Avent will miss the first series of his 20-year career after being bit by a snake while walking his dog.

The Wolfpack baseball coach was bitten by a copperhead on the ankle Wednesday and was not cleared by doctors to join the team when they left for Louisville on Thursday.

Feight fueling Seahawks’ strong run

By Shawn Krest North State Journal drill sergeant paced in front of the line of rifleA toting soldiers, barking out the same question over and over.

“What makes the grass grow?”

Each time, the soldiers responded, in unison: “Blood, sir!”

The sergeant met each of them as they received their clip of 18 rounds from the ammo table.

He gazed into their eye pro (short for protection) and asked them again if they knew what made the grass grow.

Despite wearing ear pro, each soldier heard his question and answered correctly.

The RSO (Range Safety Officer) stepped up to give a quick briefing before the shooting started.

“I want to personally welcome you all to the center of the universe,” he announced. “Fort Bragg, North Carolina.”

The soldiers came to Fort Bragg from units around the country to compete in the Army

Reserve’s Best Warrior competition. The ultimate test of mental and physical skill and endurance has been held in Fort Bragg twice.

Each of the contestants won a similar competition in their own unit to earn the trip to Fort Bragg. The top-scoring NCO (officer) and enlisted soldier moves on to the Army-wide competition — against full-time soldiers from the various commands — Sept. 26 to Oct. 3 at Fort A.P. Hill, Va. One might think the reservists would be at a disadvantage compared to career soldiers from other commands, but the Army Reserve is actually the defending champion in the NCO, with Staff Sgt. Andrew Fink of Reserve Command winning 2015 Officer of the Year.

The three-day competition featured a total of about six hours of sleep over a 48-hour period, as the candidates were pushed to their limits.

See best warrior, page B8

about the sophomore catcher — Feight quickly blushed, his face turning red as he twisted away from the room to hide his face.

In the midst of his breakout season with the Seahawks, Feight is almost des- “It’s like coming perate to downplay his own success on the diamond. But get Feight rolling about to hang out his team and it’s nearly impossible to stop with friends and him.

The Seahawks deserve the accolades, getting to do racking up huge wins this season, includ- something we all ing a knocking off top-20 North Carolina love. They make on Wednesday. Wilmington outslugged the Tar Heels in a 6-2 victory, the pro- it feel like a game gram’s first home win over UNC since again for me.”

1999. It also marked the team’s final regular season game at Brooks Field, giving Nick Feight, the Seahawks a studly 29-3 home record UNCW catcher for the year.

“This team is easily the best one I’ve ever been around,” Feight said. “It’s like coming to hang out with friends and getting to do something we all love. They make it feel like a game again for me, which is something I struggled with last year.”

Those struggles as a freshman included a meager 11 appearances and nine starts for Feight. He finished with a .231 average in 26 at-bats with more strikeouts (7) than hits (6) on the season.

“I definitely had my rough points here,” Feight explained.

“There were times where I wondered, ‘What the heck am I doing?’ I just let the game speed up on me too fast.”

Let’s just say the game has slowed down this year. Feight is hitting .385/.439/.804, leads the nation in RBI (78) and is tied for second in the NCAA in home runs (17) following the win over the Tar Heels.

See seahawks, page B6

inside

R. Cory smith | North state journal

The biggest stretch of the NASCAR season in North Carolina is about to kick off, with “10 Days of Thunder,” featuring the All-Star Race and the Coca-Cola 600 at Charlotte Motor Speedway set to begin. To prepare race fans for the thrill of the track and the race to Victory Lane, R. Cory Smith previews the two races (B7) and spoke with CMS’ Marcus Smith (B3).

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

B2

NS J beyond the box score

05.15.16

POTENT QUOTABLES

Dave Joerger: Hired as the new coach of the Sacramento Kings just days after he was surprisingly fired by the Memphis Grizzlies.

Melvin Gordon: Chargers running back reportedly underwent microfracture surgery on his knee — creating lingering concerns about his health after a disappointing rookie season.

Noah Syndergaard: The superhero-like Mets pitcher cranked a pair of home runs against the Dodgers on Wednesday night, flashing his strength at the plate and on the mound.

Tom Brady: The Patriots quarterback released a $200 cookbook titled the “TB12 Nutrition Manual” with various recipes (including avocado ice cream!) and immediately sold out of copies online.

Tracy McGrady: Former NBA star claimed Stephen Curry winning backto-back NBA MVP awards shows the league is “watered down.”

Danny Amendola: Patriots wide receiver took a whopping $4.4 million paycut in order to stay with New England.

Kyle Busch: Joe Gibbs Racing driver’s crew chief Adam Stevens suspended for one race, fined $20k after violating NASCAR’s lug nut rule during Kansas win.

NC state basketball

The “Cardiac Pack” NC State basketball team never got an opportunity to visit the White House following their improbable title run in 1983. But they made up for it more than 30 years later with a visit to see Barack Obama and Joe Biden this past week.

amie Rhodes | USA TODAY Sports

“This is such a special horse.

You can see it in his eye on a daily basis and he’s such a professional. Any human sport, he’d be the top-notch athlete. He’s just first class.”

Trainer Doug O’Neill on Derby winner Nyquist

Carlos Barria | reuters

Kentucky Derby

pga tour

NBA

0

People who didn’t vote for Stephen Curry as the NBA MVP this year, making Curry the first-ever unanimous NBA MVP in league history. Tom Brady is the only member of the NFL club.

Jim Dedmon | USA TODAY Sports Brian Spurlock | USA TODAY Sports

Undefeated Nyquist made it 8-0 with an impressive run at the 2016 Kentucky Derby, storming down the field to capture the roses at Churchill Downs. The horse remains a huge favorite (3‑5) for the 2016 Preakness Stakes.

James Hahn made his first cut in eight tournaments and earned his first PGA tournament dollar since Super Bowl weekend with an out-of-nowhere Wells Fargo Tournament win at Quail Hollow in Charlotte.

UNCW Baseball

2,814

Fans who showed up to see the UNC Wilmington baseball team take down the North Carolina Tar Heels on Wednesday in a 6-2 victory for the Seahawks at home in front of their biggest crowd this season.

boxing

Canelo Alvarez dropped one of the more devastating knockouts in recent boxing history with his KO of Amir Khan on Saturday night in the sixth round of the WBC middleweight fight. Khan looked ripe for an upset but eventually ended up on the canvas.

Joshua Dahl | USA TODAY Sports

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

B3

NASCAR

Rusty Jarrett for the north state journal

Joey Logano, right, poses with Marcus Smith in Victory Lane after winning the Bank of America 500 at Charlotte Motor Speedway in Concord, N.C.

Marcus Smith ready to unveil

a new, improved ‘10 Days of Thunder’

By R. Cory Smith North State Journal HARLOTTE — Marcus Smith knows a thing or two C about entertaining thousands

of fans. Whether it’s hosting Grammy-winning talent like Little Big Town at the track or the longest NASCAR race of the year, the Charlotte Motor Speedway general manager has a knack for making events thrilling.

The son of NASCAR Hall of Famer Bruton Smith, Marcus has carved out his own place in the NASCAR community. After learning through trial by fire after taking over as GM in 2009, Smith has seen the ups and downs of NASCAR and helped guide Speedway Motorsports Inc. through the recession.

During an event with Carolina Panthers kicker Graham Gano kicking off — get it? — Motorsports Month in North Carolina with driver Austin Dillon, Smith talked to the North State Journal about the upcoming “10 Days of Thunder” in Charlotte.

North State Journal: How important are these races on the NASCAR schedule?

Marcus Smith: For us it’s huge!

In NASCAR you have major races. You’ve got the Daytona 500 and the Coca-Cola 600. To me, those are the two biggest races on the NASCAR calendar. Charlotte Motor Speedway is proud to have the two biggest back-to-back weekends in the sport.

It’s also a $450 million economic impact to our region.

That means thousands and thousands of jobs for people in North Carolina. People come here from all over the world to make memories that are priceless. They’ve been doing it for 56 years and we’re really proud to give them those memories.

In what ways do you feel Charlotte and SMI have changed under your leadership?

I think a lot of things have changed since 2009. A lot of businesses have learned how to do things differently and better. We’ve really focused on our customers to provide them something they won’t get anywhere else. You realize after the recession we went through how important existing customers are.

Today, as a result of those challenges, it’s never been better to be a race fan. You get so much

Courtesy of Charlotte motor speedway

more for your money than you did years ago. Tickets cost less and you get more access. A pit pass gives you a behind-the-scenes look that, quite frankly, you won’t get with any other major sport.

Are you excited to see what the new aero package will bring back to intermediate tracks like Charlotte?

Oh, I can’t wait. I think it’s going to be really, really cool.

The racing itself has improved so much at nearly every course, and Charlotte has a unique track surface that differentiates it from others. I can’t wait to see what the new package brings and the excitement over 600 miles.

What do you think fans should expect?

An All-Star Race that might be one of the best ever. I’m really excited about the changes we’re making for that race. And the Coca-Cola 600 always tests the driver, car and the entire team like no other race. It’s going to be a challenge for everyone to just finish out the 600 miles, so adding a new package to the mix should keep fans excited all race long.

they come visit us for a race weekend. We’ve let them know that, operationally speaking, it’s going to be just the same as it always has been.

Have you heard anything from NASCAR about moving the race?

No. Not at all.

Anything on the food front that fans might not see anywhere else?

We’ve got bacon. We’ve got milkshakes. We’ve got funnel cakes. And a lot of those things may be combined in unfamiliar ways. (Laughs) I can’t say much on that yet, but it’ll be really good.

How much do fans’ reactions feed into what SMI does as an organization?

Oh, a lot! I love to get feedback from fans and their ideas on how to improve things. We absolutely want to hear any ways we can take actions to upgrade the experience. It’s really up to us as promoters to innovate and bring new, fun ways for our fans to enjoy coming out.

With all of the national reaction from House Bill 2, have you heard any drawback from fans?

Last season, you honored Jeff Gordon during the Bank of America 500. Will you be doing the same for Tony Stewart this fall?

A lot of fans have called and asked us if anything is going to be different. And it seems like 100 percent of them don’t want anything to change. They want it to be like it’s always been when

We’re definitely planning to celebrate some Tony Stewart memories and it will be a unique experience for fans when they’re at the races. … It was really special to be able to honor Jeff

Marcus Smith Age: 41 Hometown: Charlotte Title: General Manager of Charlotte Motor Speedway; President and COO of Speedway Motorsports Inc. Education: UNC-Chapel Hill First Job: Intern at CMS mowing grass and picking up trash Twitter: @MarcusSMI

last year during his last run. It’ll be awesome to do that with Tony this year after a great season he’s put together.

What do you see for the future of Charlotte Motor Speedway?

I expect Charlotte will continue to be an innovating force in NASCAR and the sports world as a whole. We are going to continue to host everything from NASCAR to concerts to drag racing and everything in between. We’ll also welcome new events like motocross, which is coming this September.

We have potential to really shake things up with some of the plans we have for the coming years. Charlotte Motor Speedway has always been known as the Taj Mahal of Motorsports and we plan to push the envelope. If we have support from our community like we always have, we can continue to do that.

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

B4

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

B5

may the fourth be with you Durham Bulls Star Wars night Photos by Eamon Queeney | North State Journal

Kids crowd around R2-D2 as they try to figure out how it works during Star Wars night at the baseball game between the Durham Bulls and the Norfolk Tides. The droid took Derek Collier, of Durham, about five years, off and on, to build. He takes it to events like Star Wars night for the fun of it and is always looking to upgrade the creation.

Fans pack the stadium on Star Wars night in the first inning of the baseball game between the Durham Bulls and the Norfolk Tides at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. The Durham Bulls defeated the Norfolk Tides 2-1 in extra innings.

Not long ago in a galaxy very close to home, the Durham Bulls managed to pull off one of the coolest nights in Minor League Baseball. The Bulls put on their annual Star Wars Night at the ballpark, encouraging fans to dress up as Star Wars characters and players wearing special uniforms on Saturday, May 7. The Bulls aren’t unique in their appreciation of the cinematic masterpiece, but very few baseball organizations get the fan support and level of appreciation for Star Wars as the Bulls do.

Fans, some dressed up for Star Wars night, stream into the Durham Bulls Athletic Park before the baseball game between the Durham Bulls and the Norfolk Tides.

Wearing special uniforms in tribute of Han Solo, the Durham Bulls line up for the national anthem before the baseball game against the Norfolk Tides at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park.

Dressed as a tiny Stormtrooper for Star Wars night, Drew Ford, 4, of Fuquay-Varina, N.C., waits with his family on the concourse before the baseball game between the Durham Bulls and the Norfolk Tides at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park.

Darth Vader storms the concourse during Star Wars night at the baseball game between the Durham Bulls and the Norfolk Tides at the Durham Bulls Athletic Park. Dun dun dun dah dah dah dun dah dah.

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

B6 UNC women’s lacrosse

Levy preps UNC women’s lacrosse for another title run

By Brooke Pryor North State Journal

Levy has taken the Tar Heels to the NCAA tournament semifinals a ridiculous eight times, including an even more impressive five trips in the last seven years.

HAPEL HILL, N.C. — The UNC women’s lacrosse team C checked off one season-long

goal with a wild overtime win in the ACC Championship game against Syracuse two weeks ago.

Syracuse led for 37 minutes and 42 seconds of the 60-minute regulation period. But as senior Aly Messinger capped a hat trick with a game-winning goal with 3:45 left overtime, UNC escaped with the crown and the momentum entering the next phase of the postseason.

But with No. 3 seed UNC kicking off NCAA tournament play Sunday at Fetzer Field, the conference title game and that goal are temporarily shrugged aside as the Tar Heels (16-2) embark on an even bigger title mission.

“It was a great accomplishment but right now that doesn’t matter,” said ACC tournament MVP Marie McCool. “What matters is the NCAA championship game, so I think we’re just focused on that. What happened in the past happened and now I think we’re just focused on what’s going to happen in the future.”

That immediate future begins with the second-round game against either familiar foe Duke or Loyola (Md.) at 1 p.m. But in a few weeks, the future could hold UNC’s third national title appearance in the last four years.

Heading up the run is a familiar face: coach Jenny Levy, who, in 21 seasons at the helm of UNC women’s lacrosse, has groomed the program into perennial title contenders.

Levy has taken the Tar Heels to the NCAA tournament semifinals eight times, including an even more impressive five trips in the last seven years.

The Tar Heels finally broke through in 2013, winning the school’s first NCAA title in a triple-overtime win over Maryland,

Seahawks from page B1 His hot-hitting season put him in contention for USA Baseball’s Golden Spikes Award.

Listed among 59 other players including Kyle Lewis of Mercer and Will Craig of Wake Forest, Feight has a chance to join previous winners — and big-league superstars — Kris Bryant, Bryce Harper and Buster Posey.

“It would be awesome, but it’s not exactly my priority,” Feight said. “I don’t really care that much. As long as our team is winning and I can help in some way every game, that’s all that matters.”

Remember, Feight doesn’t like to talk about himself. But Scalf had no issue opining about what his humble catcher means to the team. The only issue for Scalf?

Deciding whether he’s better at the plate or behind it.

“That’s hard to say,” Scalf said with a smile. “When you look at the numbers, a lot of people would say at the plate.

But you don’t see numbers with everything he does for us behind the plate. He’s worked hard to keep balls in front and has a great demeanor behind the plate.

“He’s had a tremendous year and put in the work, so he deserves it.”

Scalf and Feight have the Seahawks ready for another run to a second-straight CAA Tournament title as a potential No. 1 seed. With a 40-win season in sight — which would be Scalf’s seventh in 25 years in Wilmington — UNCW has huge goals for the season that include hosting a regional and a long NCAA run.

Despite being in a state where other teams like NC State, East Carolina and UNC Chapel Hill often steal the college baseball headlines, UNCW is staking its claim as one of the best programs this season. Feight, as you can guess, had no issue articulating his thoughts on where the Seahawks rank in the state.

“I honestly don’t think we get the proper amount of respect,” Feight said. “I believe we’re the best team in North Carolina. Up and down, our lineup is explosive with speed and power. We’ve got guys who can throw it hard and slow it down. We’ve got the mix, man. I think we’ve proved that.”

Courtesy of Jeffrey Camarati for UNC Athletic

and they returned to the title game last season before falling to the Terrapins by a goal.

“I think it’s been a progression,” Levy said. “You kind of look at first five years, second five years, and I work in five-year increments and really try to put together a strategic plan and vision of what’s gone well, what needs work and how we are going to get there. Obviously the individual accolades in a reflection of the team performance and also a great coaching staff and support network behind the scenes. And I think it’s been consistency really. I think we’ve done a great job recruiting great kids who want to work.”

Levy, who won her fourth ACC coach of the year award earlier this season, sees similar characteristics in this year’s team that she saw in 2013 and 2015,

but with the nature of the tournaments, that doesn’t mean her squad is guaranteed to reach the title game in Chester, Pennsylvania.

“If you’d asked me that same question in 2013 and 2015, I would say that we’re one of several teams that have a good makeup, that have the right talent and have the right mindset,” said Levy, who has 25 NCAA tournament wins at UNC. “I absolutely think this team is similar in that they have that makeup. Now whether that happens, that’s decided on game day. Again, you kind of wipe the slate clean. It’s 12 people out on the field for 60 minutes and that decides the game.”

With a tough schedule that included back-to-back games against No. 1 seed Maryland and No. 2 seed Florida, her team

Marie McCool (4) prepares to pass the ball during a University of North Carolina women’s lacrosse game against Louisville at Fetzer Field in Chapel Hill, N.C., on April 9.

is plenty battled tested in tight games. Though the Tar Heels lost to the Terrapins and the Gators by a goal, they haven’t lost a single game since, winning the final six games of the season by a onegoal margin.

“Obviously every team’s goal should be to have an undefeated season, but whether you win or lose those one-goal games, it does help you maybe get a little hungrier to find a way to win those next ones that come around,” Levy said. “I think we’ve been in eight one-goal games this year.

We’re 6-2 in that, so we have some experience in those games, which is great.

“Going into the NCAAs, the field is very competitive. Everyone is at 0-0 again, and it’s a new season, so hopefully our challenging schedule will help prepare us for what’s to come.”

UNC baseball

Brian Miller took an off-the-radar journey to becoming one of UNC baseball’s best players

By Brooke Pryor North State Journal HAPEL HILL, N.C. — When Brian Miller walked into his C first summer school class at UNC

two years ago, he saw a familiar face.

Not a friend or a future teammate, but someone he spent time idolizing, someone whose face he’d seen on posters covering the walls of his childhood room in Raleigh.

It was Marvin Williams, a oneyear wonder on North Carolina’s 2009 national championship basketball team, infamous for flashy athleticism and unlimited upside, back on campus to take classes and finish the degree he put on hold when he entered the NBA draft after his freshman year.

Starstruck, Miller walked up to him and asked for a photo.

“I was like, ‘Dude. I’ve got to get a picture with you. I’m also an athlete here,’” Miller said. “And he said yes! It was really cool.”

Only a few days earlier, Miller, who describes himself as “the annoying kid in middle school with the trash talk,” wasn’t in a position to meet Williams, much less share the bond of being athletes at UNC. Now the leadoff hitter with a the best batting average on UNC’s baseball team, Miller wasn’t even a blip on the Tar Heels’ radar during his high school career. Miller’s exposure was limited because he played football and basketball in addition to spring baseball. He also wasn’t involved in the complex travel baseball circuits that helps push players’ profiles.

No one questioned his talent — Miller finished his career as the Millbrook (Raleigh) all-time hits leader with a .400 average, but without playing year-round baseball, the big programs weren’t calling him. Miller committed to UNC-Asheville before his senior year, but when the Bulldogs’ head coach announced his retirement before Miller’s senior season, Mill-

Madeline Gray | North State Journal

er decommitted.

Miller was without a college team until a couple weeks before his high school graduation despite putting together a strong senior season. That’s when he got an unexpected phone call from his almost-school.

“I kept getting bigger, stronger my senior year so I wanted to explore other options,” Miller said. “Some stuff was falling through, some other ACC teams and just no real offer, but a lot of talk of ‘oh we can add you to our roster late,’ that kind of talk.

“Then about a week before I graduated, Asheville’s assistant coach, who I became good friends with and wasn’t coming back to Asheville the next year, called me and said, ‘Hey, I’ve been talking to the UNC coaches about you.’”

The next week, he worked out for UNC associate head coach

North Carolina infielder Brian Miller (5) hits the ball during the game against East Carolina on May 10 in Chapel Hill, N.C. The Tar Heels defeated the ECU Pirates 9-1.

Scott Forbes at Harris High School, and when Miller visited the baseball offices the next day, he was offered a spot on the team.

There wasn’t any scholarship money available, so Miller was given the opportunity to earn a walk on spot through summer workouts and fall practice.

“He wasn’t under the radar — he wasn’t on the radar,” UNC coach Mike Fox said. “I guess that’s what that means. There weren’t too many people who knew about him. We got lucky with him. That’s what recruiting is sometimes, you catch a break.

“I remember watching him the first week and going, ‘Wow, this kid’s got a chance to be pretty good.’ And of course he can really, really run, and he really wants to be good. That kid is driven, and he works hard and has very high character.”

In the span of about 24 hours,

Miller went from “completely uncertain future” to “enrolling at his dream school” with an opportunity to walk on and parlay it all into something he could never imagine happening.

“The official offer came and suddenly I was getting started at summer school,” Miller said. “All the other guys were getting their physicals that day and moving into dorms. I just got thrown into the mix right away. I didn’t know anyone, and it was the craziest 24 hours of my life. It was the biggest blessing from God, honestly.”

The sophomore went from clawing to earn his spot at UNC to one of the most important players on this year’s Tar Heels team.

Over the last month, he’s provided an offensive spark for an offense that’s desperately searching to find consistency. In last week’s win against East Carolina, Miller got things going with a leadoff double to set up the first score of the game in the first inning.

“I started out hot during the year, and I was getting pitched backwards a little bit, kind of struggled and got a lot of offspeed pitches and just not swinging at the balls I wanted to swing at,” he said. “I just kept with it, kept working hard and the past month, I’ve just been seeing the ball well and just trying to be aggressive and seeing what pitch I wanted to hit and what pitch I shouldn’t.”

Miller’s not as recognizable as a guy like Marvin around campus, but he still gets asked for pictures, something that still feels surreal for someone who grew up as a lifelong UNC fan.

“I never would have imagined it, Miller said. “I try to put myself when I was a kid and what I was feeling and how I was thinking to be talking to UNC athletes.

“I’m trying to give the same respect that I give kids and everyone else that looks up to me that those other guys did me when I was young.”

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

B7

NASCAR

Charlotte Motor Speedway readying for NASCAR’s ‘10 Days of Thunder’ “Our goal is to win a championship, and Charlotte is a crucial testing ground for everyone in the sport.”

Carl Edwards

By R. Cory Smith North State Journal HARLOTTE — A whopping 36 races adorn the Sprint Cup C schedule, but only a handful serve

as part of an unofficial NASCAR “Grand Slam.” The Coca-Cola 600 is one of the crown jewels of the sport and the longest race on the Sprint Cup calendar.

Unlike other tracks, Charlotte Motor Speedway also gets two straight weekends on the schedule. Before the “10 Days of Thunder” set to fire up next week — with everything from a ZZ Top performance to each level of racing at the track — here’s a look at what you need to know for Motorsports Month in North Carolina.

Drivers looking for a breakthrough

Racing was once a sport dominated by drivers from the Old North State, but big-time North Carolina drivers are now few and far between. Only three drivers from N.C. remain on the full-time NASCAR circuit: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Austin Dillon and rookie Ryan Blaney.

Earnhardt has seven combined wins over the last two seasons, nearly twice as many as the four he had in his previous nine years. His success with Hendrick Motorsports launched a late-career surge, but Junior still does not have a win at Charlotte outside of his All-Star Race triumph as a rookie in 2000.

“Of all that I’ve accomplished in racing, winning the 2000 Winston All-Star race was by far the greatest,” Earnhardt said years later. “It was a great night made perfect by [Dale Earnhardt Sr.’s] presence. It will never be topped.”

Along with Earnhardt, both Dillon and Blaney are still in search of their first Sprint Cup win this season — and their careers. Blaney is coming off his first top-five finish of the season at Kansas and has the Wood Brothers competing for their first Chase berth.

Meanwhile, Dillon has thrived this year in his third season with Richard Childress Racing at the Cup level. He has three top fives, six top 10s and an average finish of 12.4 in 2016. A win at Charlotte would still easily be the biggest accomplishment of his young career.

“Charlotte is one of our gems and has a lot of prestige,” Dillon said. “I love it because it’s my home track. … Only having a few guys left from North Carolina in the Cup Series, this is one place that I love to come to.”

Amber Searls | USA TODAY Sports

Carl Edwards celebrates in Victory Lane after winning the Toyota Owners 400 at Richmond International Raceway on April 24.

Joe Gibbs dominance Joe Gibbs Racing won 21 of the last 47 races, with defending Sprint Cup champion Kyle Busch claiming eight of those checkered flags.

That dominance doesn’t stop during the 10 Days of Thunder.

Denny Hamlin and Carl Edwards swept the All-Star Race and Coca-Cola 600, respectively, last year. There are three wins between the four teammates at Charlotte, with Hamlin and Busch still searching for their first points win at the track.

After scuffling out the gate to start his first season with JGR last year, Edwards earned a win in the Coca-Cola 600 that served as a massive leap for the team.

He now returns, eyeing a repeat in NASCAR’s backyard with two wins under his belt already this season.

“That was huge for us,” Edwards said. “We were struggling and just looking for something to get us over the hump. We took some risks to get to Victory Lane and knew we were in the Chase. … Winning that race again would be equally as special for this team given the importance of it on the schedule.

“Our goal is to win a championship, and Charlotte is a crucial testing ground for everyone in the sport.”

While Hamlin and Busch don’t

have wins in the 600-mile race, look for both to be near the front.

Hamlin already has a win in the Daytona 500 while Busch won at Kansas — another track where he had never previously driven to Victory Lane — along with two other checkered flags.

New tires format Charlotte Motor Speedway president and general manager Marcus Smith said earlier this week that “people can expect controversial changes” to the Sprint All-Star Race. He wasn’t lying.

The All-Star Race will feature drastic changes to the format, with only nine, 10 or 11 cars allowed to pit for four tires on the final pit stop. Thirteen laps will decide the winner of the $1 million prize, with the drivers in the back having fresh tires and those in the front fighting them off to win the event.

“We worked with NASCAR and talked to several drivers to gather feedback for what they thought would make the very best race for the fans,” Smith said. “The drivers don’t all agree on the perfect strategy, which means some drivers will be fighting on race-worn tires to stay up front at the end, while others will be charging through the field on new tires after the final pit stop.

“At the end of the final shootout, one driver will have a million rea-

sons why ‘13’ is a lucky number.”

Smith said the rule change was approved by CMS after having the Driver’s Council involved in discussions. Brad Keselowski, a member of the council, shared his satisfaction with the updated format.

“The format was put together to be the must-watch race of the year if I was a fan in the stands,” Keselowski said. “It’ll come down to what driver can run the hardest with a million dollars on the line.”

Predictions Thanks to the updated AllStar format, the exhibition race is a bit of a crapshoot. However, it works out well for aggressive drivers who have top-line equipment like Team Penske or Hendrick Motorsports.

Given the new format and Keselowski’s emphasis on making this race important again, we’ll take the Blue Deuce to win the $1 million check. Keselowski not only has an aggressive style, but also has two victories this season and motivation to pull out an AllStar win.

But don’t expect much change at the top of the leaderboard in the Coca-Cola 600. Edwards has competed for wins in nearly every race this season and is our pick to clinch his third win of the season.

UNC Charlotte’s Dominique Van Wieringen chases NASCAR glory

By Shawn Krest North State Journal ominique Van Wier­ ingen balances a mechanical D engineering course load and her

rookie year on the NASCAR K&N series Ask her about her daily routine or class workload and Van Wieringen, a junior at UNC Charlotte, sounds like any other college student-athlete.

“There’s so much going on that you need to be able to manage your time properly,” Van Wiringen, currently in her third year at UNC Charlotte, said. “If you’re taking too many classes, one or more is going to suffer. I’ve had to make sure I plan it properly.”

But Van Wieiringen isn’t quite like other college athletes. She isn’t competing for the 49ers in an NCAA sport. Instead, she’s juggling her studies with a burgeoning career in auto racing.

Van Wieringen is in her first year on the NASCAR K&N series. In previous stops on racing’s developmental stepladder, she became the first female driver to win an outlaw super late model championship (in 2012) and the first to win an All-Stars tour event (2013).

Now, a handful of races into her rookie K&N season, Van Wierin-

“I’d like to be up there and show the rest of the world that, hey, us females can do it too. It’s not just one person.”

— Dominique Van Wieringen

gen already has a top-10 finish under her belt, all while balancing the requirements of her UNCC degree in mechanical engineering, with a focus on motorsports engineering.

“I can’t take Friday classes,” she said. “Because that’s normally when we practice [before a Saturday race].”

Still, the requirements of her student life do interfere with her racing career. She was only able to make one of the two practice sessions in Bristol in mid-April, but still managed to qualify second.

“That was just amazing,” she

said. “We only had 30 minutes to practice, and we qualified second!”

Van Wieringen chose K&N because she wanted to make sure the big names in racing saw her.

“It’s so directly related to NASCAR,” she said. “Their name’s in our event names, and we race at some of their tracks, which gives you exposure. We were in Bristol, and the Xfinity guys and the Cup guys don’t leave the track. They watch, and everybody can see how well you do. Then they’re saying, ‘Yeah, this person can drive,’ as opposed to, ‘I’ve heard they can drive.’”

That exposure is of particular importance to Van Wieringen, because she wants to join Danica Patrick as one of the few female faces of her sport.

“I think I could be competitive week in and week out for a spot in the top 10,” she said. “I’d like to be up there and show the rest of the world that, hey, us females can do it too. It’s not just one person. I’d like to bring more females into the sport, not just Danica. The percentage of the population is 50/50.

I’d like to see it closer to that in our sport.”

Van Wieringen is part of a racing family. Her parents met when her father was racing a variety of

circuits in Canada. She and her younger brother Tristan raced just about anything with wheels and a motor since they could walk. When explaining how she planned to face the road course at VIR (she ended up finishing 18th there in late April) she said, “I’m going to take all my knowledge from go-karting. You just need to understand where exactly you’ve got to turn, and then it’s like instinct and rhythm. You don’t need to see.”

Her younger brother races on the CRA late models series and plans to join her at UNC Charlotte next year. The entire family relocated from Canada to Mooresville, N.C., to be close to the kids’ base of operations for the next few years.

It’s understandable the Van Wieringen parents may want to keep close to their children. At age 7, Tristan suffered a crash during practice for a motorcycle race and went into cardiac arrest on the track. He was revived and intubated on the track, then airlifted to a hospital, where he spent two months.

“He should have died twice that day,” mom Janine said.

That close call caused her to lay down the law.

“That’s when we decided we’re

going to stick to racing cars,” she said. Janine interrupted one of Dominique’s interviews to put the kibosh on her daughter’s plans to consider racing Indy cars in the future.

The idea of drawing the line at racing stock cars, after suffering such a life-changing close call, sounds inconceivable, but not for someone who grew up in the racing culture.

“I’m not so worried about them getting hurt,” Janine said. “It’s them going out like Dominique did in Bristol.”

After qualifying second, officials discovered that Dominque used the wrong tires, and she had to start at the rear of the pack.

“It broke my heart,” Janine continued. “She worked so hard, and having all the things that went wrong — she had the pole until the last second, I swear! Then to have to start in the rear. Those are the things I worry about.

“There’s risk in everything,” Janine concluded. “There’s risk in walking down the highway, but you can walk down the middle line, or you can walk on the shoulder.”

Or, like a certain UNCC engineering student, you can speed down the middle line, chasing history.

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North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

redskins

panthers

Redskins’ smart offseason continues with Jordan Reed contract

By Sean Labar North State Journal he Redskins signed Jordan Reed to a contract recently T and it was a brilliant move.

Washington’s tight end is a happy man. Rich too: The Skins inked Reed to a five-year deal worth $50 million, making the former Gator the second highest-paid tight end in NFL history. $22 million is fully guaranteed, with the bulk of the cash hitting his hands in the final three years of the contract.

There were rumblings the Washington brass wanted to get something done, but most believed they would hold off until after the upcoming season, the final year of Reed’s rookie contract.

And then there are the obvious worries. The Skins just signed Pro Bowl cornerback Josh Norman, a major hit to the cap. Quarterback Kirk Cousins will be slinging the rock under the franchise tag this fall. Washington will inevitably pay him big money if he plays well. Injury concerns have trailed Reed throughout his tenure as a Redskin.

So was the deal needed? And was it needed at this time? Absolutely.

When healthy, Reed is a matchup nightmare for opposing defenses. He’s impossible to contain with a linebacker. If cornerbacks are forced to cover him, the Skins’ offense can exploit matchups on the outside with Desean Jackson, Pierre Garcon and newly drafted Josh Doct-

son. A few teams have thrown a safety in the mix, but he smokes them, too.

Pro Football Focus deemed Reed the third highest-rated tight end in 2015 in terms of receiving. He hauled in 87 passes for 952 yards and 11 touchdowns in 14 games.

“His 2.45 yards per route run was not only the best for all tight ends in 2015, but the third best for a tight end in our nine years of grading,” wrote Nathan Jahnke of Pro Football Focus.

There’s no denying Reed is on the rise. The injuries throughout the early part of his career are a major concern. But if he can stay on the field, Washington hit gold.

Redskins second-year general manger Scot McCloughan is slowly but surely crafting a sustainable long-term roster, and he inked Reed at the right time.

McCloughan structured the deal so Reed will only eat $5.8 million in 2017, the same year Norman is slated to earn $20 million. If Cousins lights it up in 2016 and the team signs him to a big contract, he will chew up a nice portion of the cap as well.

Reed developed a serious rapport with Cousins, especially down the stretch, catching 38 passes for 498 yards and six touchdowns in the Redskins’ final five games, including the playoffs. He has the talent and ability to be the best at his craft.

Solidifying his status as a topfive tight end in the NFL next year will go a long way toward justifying the contract Washington handed him this offseason.

Geoff Burke | USA TODAY Sports

Washington Redskins tight end Jordan Reed (86) celebrates with teammates after scoring a touchdown against the Green Bay Packers during the first half in a NFC Wild Card playoff football game at FedEx Field.

Best Warrior from page B1 The first day consisted of a series of tests and interviews, as well as several “mystery events” in the evening. Among the surprise tasks sprung on the group were questions about parade and ceremony dress protocol, a timed rifle disassembly and assembly, and vehicle repair.

“It was definitely something I thought I was prepared for,” said specialist Michael Ringer, of Beaver, Pa. “But they threw a couple things at us.

“One thing I didn’t expect was the drilling ceremony.”

The group got a 2:30 a.m. wake-up call on Day Two. “We do more before 9 a.m. than most people do all day,” was a common boast in Army commercials — it was certainly true for the Best Warrior competitors. By the time most folks were sidling up to the water cooler, the competitors already had a six-mile march in full gear, including body armor and a ruck sack full of gear, under their belt.

“It varies based on the person, but they’re carrying about 90 pounds of gear, on average,” said Major Jacqueline Wren, the public affairs officer for the event.

The forced march included treks through water as well.

“We cleared out the snakes before the march began,” a major-sergeant told the group later in the day.

“Thank you, major-sergeant,” came the reply.

The ruck drained the competitors more than anything else.

One contestant’s post-march reaction left the Army public affairs office debating whether they could use the phrase “embrace the suck” in a press release.

“The ruck was a little harder than I thought,” said Specialist Sarah Preston of Ohio, one of four females in the competition. “I wasn’t planning for the full battle rattle. I knew it would be heavy and that we’d be going through the water but…” She caught herself sounding a little too negative. “It was a good time,” she concluded.

Immediately after the ruck march, and with 9 a.m. still far in the future, the warriors reported to the obstacle course. The timed run included several climbs, belly crawls, and balancing challenges.

Soldiers had to swing on a rope and land on a narrow log, keeping their balance to avoid a time penalty.

Then, after a brief 10:30 a.m. “lunch,” they headed to the ranges to prepare for tests with three different weapons — the M4 assault rifle, M9 pistol and M249 machine gun.

While waiting for the range to be prepared, an officer addressed the group, encouraging them to “utilize shade.” As the candidates collapsed to the ground, leaning against trees, a few fiddled with their weapons system.

“In the reserves, we don’t usually get our hands on the M4 too much,” said Ringer. “We still have the M16, which was the predecessor to the M4. It’s a little bit of a change.”

Drill instructors gave last-

Jerry Lai | USA TODAY Sports

Carolina Panthers defensive tackle Kawann Short (99) and defensive end Charles Johnson (95) are introduced during Super Bowl 50 Opening Night media day at SAP Center.

Why Kawann Short, Panthers must get contract signed this summer

By R. Cory Smith North State Journal

K

awann Short had a breakout season for the Panthers in 2015. With the offseason moves made already, emphasis should be placed on re-signing him immediately Short is a beast. After getting his feet wet with the Panthers during his first two seasons, he finally unleashed his full talent in 2015 as a full-time defensive tackle.

The results were terrifying for opposing offenses, particularly quarterbacks. “KK” Short finished with 11 sacks in the regular season, tying him with Aaron Donald and Geno Atkins for the most among tackles and giving him the most on the Panthers team. He also wreaked havoc with 18 total tackles for loss, three forced fumbles and four passes defensed.

Doing this at just 27 years old and on the final year of his rookie contract means big money for the defensive tackle. And it puts locking up the two-time NFC Defensive Player of the Month pretty high on the Panthers’ priority list.

According to NFL Network, those contract discussions are already underway. Carolina general manager Dave Gettleman made it clear earlier this year what the makeup of a strong defense looked like.

“You look historically at the Super Bowl champions, and you show me one that’s had a bad defensive front,” Gettleman said.

“Doesn’t happen — I’m telling you.”

Top current 4-3 Defensive Tackle contracts Player

Team

Total Contract Value

Avg Annual Value

Ndamukong Suh

Dolphins

$114.3 M

$19.06 M

Marcell Dareus

Bills

$95.1 M

$15.85 M

Gerald McCoy

Buccaneers

$95.2 M

$13.60 M

Geno Atkins

Bengals

$53.3 M

$10.66 M

Damon Harrison

Giants

$46.2 M

$9.25 M info via OverTheCap.com

When Gettleman let Josh Norman walk after contract negotiations failed, he made it clear yet again. He wants the strength of the defense to be his front seven and the secondary to be competitive. By investing in three young corners in the 2016 NFL Draft, Gettleman showed he’s happy rebuilding at the position.

So what does this all mean for Short? By cutting Norman lose, it all but confirms a huge contract is on the way this offseason. The Panthers are about $31.2 million under the salary cap, so there’s more than enough room to do a massive deal.

Honestly, though, Short was about to get paid regardless of the situation with Norman.

It just makes spending big on Short a painless process for the Panthers.

Now it all comes down to where Carolina feels he stacks up to the rest of the league. His contract likely won’t touch that of Ndamukong Suh, who was given a staggering $19 mil-

lion a year by the Dolphins last year, but should be somewhere in the ballpark of another NFC East tackle.

Gerald McCoy was given a seven-year contract worth up to $98 million by the Buccaneers two years ago. Currently the No. 3 tackle in terms of pay, Short should come close or exceed those numbers with the cash Gettleman has at his disposal.

The franchise tag remains an option for Carolina next year as well, but the Panthers’ luck with tagging players has not been great.

Currently the No. 30 player on Pro Football Focus’ list of the Top 101 NFL players, Short’s success has only just begun. Already having Star Lotulelei locked in for next season, the Panthers priority will be placed on Short this summer.

And with the moves that have been made this offseason, Short can reasonably expect a substantial contract before traveling to Denver on Sept. 8.

Courtesy of Sgt. 1st Class Brian Hamilton

Soldiers deal with rope courses and other obstacles during the three-day Best Warrior Competition at Fort Bragg. minute tips to the warriors before setting them loose on the range. “Your trigger pull should be like how I would sneak a taste of mashed potatoes from my grandmother’s kitchen,” said a sergeant, scooping his crooked finger through the air. “Slow and steady, no jerking.”

After ending Day Two at close to midnight, the warriors were roused a half-hour earlier, soaking in the delight of a 2 a.m. wake-up call. They were sent for “daybreak

land navigation,” followed by a 10-station combat skills training lasting most of the day.

The weather grew progressively worse as the competition continued, forcing the exhausted competitors to deal with cold and rain as they struggled to finish strong.

“I knew I had to be in top physical condition,” said Ringer.

When the scores were tabulated, Sgt. 1st Class Joshua Moeller was named the Best Warrior

among officers, and Specialist Micahel Orozco won Soldier of the Year.

The other competitors took pride in competing and finishing the test, however.

“It meant the world to me, just to represent my hometown, my high school and college, as well as my company,” said Ringer.

“I just wanted to be a part of elite soldiers giving it their all,” said Preston. “Morally strong, physically fit.”

gather “It’s a great sport to raise your kids in, great community, really safe — if you call strapping your kids on a bull or a horse safe,” said Kate Scott, North Carolina High School Rodeo Association national director. See page C4

the good life IN A NORTH STATE OF MIND

NS J SUNDAY

5.15.16

playlist May 17-22 2nd Annual Bogue Banks Kiteboarding Festival Atlantic Beach The Bogue Banks Kiteboarding Festival takes place along Bogue Banks on the Crystal Coast of North Carolina, offering beginners and experts alike the opportunity to win cash prizes. Are you a kiteboarder with a day job?

This event is for you. kiteboardfest.com

techknow

May 19 Downtown Hickory Art Crawl Hickory Local artists showcase their talents as more than 20 businesses will host artists.

A map is provided and participants are welcome to browse and purchase the artwork, enjoy refreshments, and meet with the artists. downtownhickory.com

May 20-21 Mayberry Farm Fest and Tractor Parade Mount Airy

PHOTOS BY EAMON QUEENEY | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Arthur Herzog does a final quality control check on a Sub Phatty analog synthesizer at the Moog Music Factory in Asheville, Tuesday, May 10.

Started by the American pioneer in electronic music Robert “Bob” Moog, Moog Music is looking forward to the the annual Moogfest May 19 - 22 that will be hosted in Durham for the first time this year.

From the factory to the festival Moogfest, best known in recent years for hosting its multi-day celebration of technology-based art, music and ideas in Asheville, will make its return to North Carolina this week.

F

See MOOGFEST, page C6

Inside

May 20-22 Artsplosure Raleigh For the 37th year, Artsplosure – The Raleigh Arts Festival will be bringing art, music, and entertainment to downtown Raleigh. This year’s festival will take place along Fayetteville Street and in Moore Square, with over 170 artists featured.

Peruse art and crafts during the day and stick around for performances by both local and nationally-acclaimed artists and entertainers! artsplosure.org

By Josh Hyatt North State Journal OR THE FIRST TIME, from May 19-22, Durham will play host to the event built around the spirit of Bob Moog, the inventor of the Moog synthesizer who called Asheville home for the final three decades of his life.

The Moog Music company, which Bob Moog started in Asheville as Big Briar in the ‘70s before regaining rights to the Moog Music name in 2002, carries on to this day the tradition of crafting the variety of devices that Bob made famous during his lifetime, including old school Moog modular synthesizers, Minimoogs, theremins, and others.

In addition to their daily job of crafting devices to satiate the creative desires of tech-savvy music makers, Moog Music also puts on Moogfest, which became a biennial event in 2014. We caught up with Emmy Parker, the creative director for Moogfest and the brand director for Moog Music, to see what the event is all about.

“Moogfest is about building a platform for people to

Farm Fest is a family-friendly festival that celebrates agriculture with food, farm demonstrations, crafts, children’s activities, music, blacksmithing, heritage and cultural displays, tractors, antique farm equipment, raffles, interactive fun, and more. On the Friday evening before the Saturday festival is a Tractor Parade through Downtown Mount Airy at 6 p.m., followed by a chance for kids to ride their bikes and toy vehicles on Main Street. mountairydowntown.org

Nick Colquitt hand solders inductors on a 907 Fixed Filter Bank at the Moog Music Factory in Asheville, Tuesday, May 10.

TO MARKET, TO MARKET

Farmers market days are scheduled throughout the summer, this week we take you to Strawberry Day at the State Farmers Market in Raleigh.

See page C3

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

C2

necessities thrive!

history marked

3 exercises to tone

May 18, 1947

ummer is right around the corner and time for S many of us to head out to

the Crystal Coast to enjoy some sun, sand, and surf.

This workout will help get rid of some of the winter weight before soaking up the Carolina sunshine.

Kettlebell workouts in nature build strength, burn calories, and trigger the afterburn effect, and this 20-minute workout is no exception. Researchers at the University of WisconsinLa Crosse found that the average person can burn 400 calories in just 20 minutes by performing a high-intensity kettlebell workout.

Perform 12 repetitions of each exercise back to back.

Complete the circuit rest 45 seconds and repeat. This is a whole body workout that will lift your bottom, tighten your arms, plus shrink your stomach and hips. Beginners do one set, intermediate should do two to three sets, and advanced can do three to four sets.

Step-Out Swing Stand with your feet together, holding the kettlebell in front of your thighs. Step out with your right foot, push your hips back, and lower into a squat.

Maintain the natural arch in your spine as you swing the kettlebell between your legs. Swing the bell up in front of your chest (arms stay extended) and quickly step your right foot back into your left.

The North Wilkesboro Speedway opened its doors to a crowd of more than 10,000 spectators who watched Truman Fontello “Fonty” Flock win the first official race held there. The 5/8-mile oval dirt track was well-known for challenging the best of drivers. Stock car racing fans and scholars have long acknowledged that the roots of the National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR) are closely tied to the tradition of illegal moonshine production. The North Wilkesboro Speedway was among the first tracks recognized by NASCAR during its inaugural year of 1949.

NASCAR’s first finale took place there with the crowning of the first points champion Robert “Red” Byron in October 1949.

Spider Drags Start in an elbow plank position, with the bell just behind your right elbow. Step one hand in at a time to press up into full push-up position.

Reach your right hand under, grab the bell, and drag it to the other side. Lower back down into modified plank one arm at a time. Now repeat.

Alton Skinner is a health and fitness expert with over two decades of experience training athletes and author of The Golfer’s Stroke Saver Workout.

Voices Contributors to this section this week include: Samantha Gratton Josh Hyatt Cory Lavalette Alison Miller Brooke Pryor Alton Skinner Shelby Stephenson

Tell us Know a North Carolina story that needs telling?

Drop us a line at features@nsjonline.com.

pull when wet, hoe when It’s an old saying that’s tried and true because it works.

We’ve all gotten plenty of rain across North Carolina as of late, and although the chore of weeding is not one any of us relish, we must address it. Grab your gloves, a pad to sit upon, and an old table fork — because there is nothing better for twisting out little bits of henbit and chickweed than that household tool.

You and your garden will be grateful later.

May 20, 1861

North Carolina delegates unanimously voted to approve an Ordinance of Secession from the United States. Only three months earlier, in February 1861, North Carolinians by popular vote refused to call a convention to consider a Secession Ordinance. The vote in May made North Carolina’s action the last legislative vote to secede.

May 21, 1940

The Hiwassee Dam in Cherokee County generated power for the first time. The dam was built by the Tennessee Valley Authority and was one of the largest construction projects in the state at that time.

High Pull Burpee Hold the kettlebell in your right hand and stand with your feet slightly wider than hip-width apart. To perform a basic high pull, lower into a squat, swinging the bell through your legs, and as you stand, pull the bell back, bending your elbow.

Immediately lower into a squat and perform a burpee.

Return to start and repeat.

just a pinch

turn the page Fictional stories grab our attention and allow our imagination to soar. Here are a few new fictional reads thanks to Sunrise Books in High Point, so be sure to look for them at your local bookstore.

aware Kidznotes, a Durham-based music teaching program for local elementary school children, announced this past week that it was nearing its $1 million fundraising goal, along with Band Together, heading into Saturday’s main event at the Red Hat Amphitheater.

As of Monday, Band Together and Kidznotes had raised roughly $960,000 of its $1 million goal, which Kidznotes says will allow them to double the number of impoverished children they serve in the Durham and Raleigh area, bringing them up to 600 students for the 2016-17 school year.

Kidznotes, which currently provides free classical music lessons to approximately 330 public school students in Pre-K through 12th grade at nine Raleigh and Durham schools, aims to confront the poverty-based reality of neighborhoods in the area.

The main event at the Red Hat Amphitheater on Saturday planned to feature bands such as Trampled By Turtles,

The Devil Makes Three, and Dr. Bacon.

Members of the Kidznotes All Stars were slated to perform before the final band.

In addition to the $20 tickets at the door, funds were also raised via a silent auction featuring alluring items such as travel and vacations, jewelry, sports memorabilia, dining, food, wine, and other worthwhile options. In the past year, Band Together hosted a number of concerts and events to raise money on behalf of Kidznotes as a part of their oneyear collaboration. Every dollar raised went toward the $1 million fundraising goal.

The Kidznotes system was inspired

by El Sistema, a free program based in Venezuela that also provides classical music instruction for youths from highly impoverished backgrounds. The Venezuelan program, after 35 years, has helped roughly 800,000 students.

For more information, or to find out how to contribute to the cause, visit the Kidznotes website at: kidznotes.org.

“Everyone Brave is Forgiven”

by Chris Cleave

released May 3, 2016

“Mothering Sunday: A Romance”

by Fredrik Backman released May 3, 2016

“Britt-Marie Was Here”

by Fredrik Backman released May 3, 2016

“The Last Mile”

by David Baldacci released April 19, 2016

“Over the Plain Houses”

by Julia Franks

released May 1, 2016

KIDZNOTES

the plate “I really love the combination of spice and berries. It’s a great way to take a local ingredient that’s usually confined to desserts and put it on a dinner plate as a component of a savory dish. I serve this jam with pan-seared scallops and Anson Mills sea island red peas cooked in country ham broth.

The jam is this bright, sweet and spicy note against a salty, earthy bed, and it brings out the natural flavors of the scallops, too.”

— Chelsi Hogue, Chef

Spicy Strawberry & Thyme Jam The Hen & The Hog, Halifax Start to finish: 20 minutes Yields: Approximately 2 cups 1 quart local strawberries, hulled and sliced 2 heaping tablespoons fresh thyme or lemon thyme zest of 2 lemons ½ cup sugar 1 tablespoon cornstarch 1 tablespoon Sriracha sauce

Combine all ingredients in a medium saucepot and stir well. Cook on medium-low heat until a sticky and thick jam-like consistency forms, about 10 minutes.

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

C3

to market, to market State Farmers Market | Raleigh Mackenzie Cornell sells strawberries for Langdon Farms of Dunn during Strawberry Day at the State Farmers Market in Raleigh, Thursday, May 12. The Strawberry Day event was complete with free strawberries and strawberry ice cream as well as visits with mascot Suzy the Strawberry and a strawberry recipe contest.

PHOTOS BY EAMON QUEENEY | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

By Jennifer Wood North State Journal

E

verybody from the coast to the mountains should have strawberries right now,” said Dexter Hill, marketing specialist with the North Carolina Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

The strawberry, a delectable heart-shaped fruit, is North Carolina’s state red berry. The tastiest strawberries are the ones you pick yourself or gather from your local farmers market, nothing beats their flavor and fragrance.

“Even with the rain this year and the earlier season, it’s been a pretty good year,” said Katie Lee, a strawberry farmer from Meadow.

The agriculture promotional day celebrations at the State Farmers Market feature dessert competitions, free ice cream, and on this day, a life-size strawberry to pose with for pictures.

The minute this treat begins to ripen you may find yourself racing over for a basket larger than your family can consume in a month given nothing else to do and an appetite for only strawberries. What now?

Storing Strawberries are best when prepared and eaten in the same day, but if you must keep them longer, store them in your refrigerator. Arrange the berries in a shallow container, separating out any damaged berries.

Cover them loosely, and keep at 35 degrees for best results. Do not remove the caps or wash the berries until you are ready to use them. When caps are removed before use, the berries lose some of their moisture. Washing early tends to bruise them and the berries lose their freshness.

Preparing When preparing (for whatever use), place the berries in a strainer and rinse with cool water. To remove the caps, give them a gentle twist or use the point of a sharp knife, trying not to remove any of the berry. The tip of an ordinary vegetable peeler makes a good tool for capping berries.

Families of all sizes chow down on free ice cream and strawberries during Strawberry Day at the State Farmers Market.

Megan Bruce, of Raleigh, feeds her 16-month-old daughter Nora a strawberry during Strawberry Day at the State Farmers Market.

Pick away and store up for later, they don’t last long, and when they’re gone you’ll be glad you’ve got that jam, jelly, and frozen bag come November.

JUNE 7-12, 2016 Hurry for best seats!

Seats start at $25 +& taxes fees

Groups of 12 or more: Groups@DPACnc.com

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North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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gather N.C. High School Rodeo | Staley

Left, Megan Yankee of Albemarle uses a goat tying dummy to practice. Right, Bruce Adams of Boiling Springs gets ready before the 13th annual Jeff Hinson Memorial N.C. High School Rodeo on Saturday, May 7. Adams has been a rodeo clown for more than 30 years.

From right, Bailey Williams of Albemarle, Sarah Scott of Chatham County, and Grace Hunneycutt of New London prepare to enter the Lucky J Arena on Saturday, May 7 in Staley.

By Brooke Pryor North State Journal

A

PHOTOS BY CHRISTINE T. NGUYEN | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

Jacob Heath and Dylan Ray, both of Yadkin County, practice roping before competing in the 13th annual Jeff Hinson Memorial N.C. High School Rodeo on Saturday, May 7, 2016 at the Lucky J Arena in Staley.

Left, Clay Livengood of Cleveland pulls down a steer during the junior high chute dogging event on Saturday, May 7 at the Lucky J Arena in Staley. Chute dogging is an event similar to steer wrestling. Right, from left, Reagan Fogleman, 13, Jet Soberer, 13, and Levi Fugleman, 13, practice roping on Saturday, May 7, at the Lucky J Arena in Staley.

s fans trickled into Lucky J Arena for the last regular-season North Carolina High School Rodeo Association competition on May 7, Bruce Adams sat in a small space in his trailer, expertly smearing face paint on to his wrinkled, tanned skin while his shaggy dog, Mac, lay at his feet. He was already wearing his signature American flag suspenders and blue, yellow, and red striped shirt embellished with white fringe.

When the look was completed, Adams had morphed into Chico, his rodeo clown alter ego for the last 30 years. Some years he’s done as many as 40 rodeos, but this year, his last before he retires, Adams is doing just 10.

Adams, of Boiling Springs, N.C., is one of the last remaining pillars of tradition in the sport. Before he was a clown, he was a bullfighter, fully dressed in eccentric clothing to distract and corral the bull after he bucked off a rider.

Now the American matadors dress in more muted outfits, occasionally wearing a boldly patterned shirt or purposefully tattered jean shorts.

“It’s time for someone else to take over,” he said. “The people I used to do it with are out here with their kids now. It’s all changing. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s changing.”

At the same time Adams was preparing for the night’s show, girls and boys from all over the state prepared for their events in the field behind Lucky J, practicing techniques they’d soon show off in front of hundreds of people in an event that exists at an intersection of southern values and Wild West traditions.

Faith Toberer stood in a rodeo layup line between two horse trailers, waiting for her turn to rope a plastic calf with a borrowed lasso. She’s just five years old, but wearing miniature boots and a pink shirt embellished with a ‘cowgirls rule’ glitter logo, she’s already firmly indoctrinated in the sport. Her older brother Zack leads the high school division in steer wrestling and tie down while her brother Jake is the top chute dogger, goat-tier, and bull rider in the junior high school division.

Her sister Grace, 10, isn’t old enough to compete yet either, but she’s practicing roping calves, too.

“We’re set up for rodeo and nothing else,” said their father, Mike Toberer. “If she wants to play softball, we’re in trouble.”

With the schedule set by the rodeo producer of the host arena, rodeo setups vary by location. The producer at the Lucky J Arena wanted to have two-anda-half hour evening shows Friday and Saturday. But with more than 50 kids entered in the various events, there wasn’t enough time for everyone to go in that timeframe.

A random lottery pulled a few competitors for each event to perform during the actual spectator rodeo, and afterwards, the rest of the field ran through their events in another rodeo called “slack,” that ran until nearly 2 a.m. both nights.

It’s crucial that everyone entered gets to compete in their events because they earn points for their performances, and at the end of the season, the top four point totals in each event qualify for either high school nationals in Gillette, Wyoming or junior high nationals in Lebanon, Tennessee.

For the nearly 95 kids in the NCHSRA involved in daily individual practices, midweek races, and about 16 regular season rodeos all over North Carolina leading up to the state finals in Yadkinville during Memorial Day weekend, the sport can be incredibly grueling and expensive. Many families have their own farms and build their own practice corrals. But even with obvious obstacles, the sport rooted in ranch duels of the late 1800s is growing, ushering in as many as 20 new participants in the NCHSRA this season alone.

Each rodeo has cash prizes for top winners in each event. It isn’t always a lot of money, but it can help cover the entry fees, ranging from $30-35 per event, and upkeep for their horses. Some kids even enter professional events where there’s a chance to win trucks and trailers.

The rodeo also offers an opportunity to get some of their education paid for with colleges like Tennessee-Martin and Black Hills State offering spots and scholarships on their rodeo teams.

“It’s a great sport to raise your kids in, great community, really safe—if you call strapping your kids on a bull or a horse safe,” NCHSRA national director Kate Scott said with a laugh. “But then again, it’s safer than what some of those kids are doing out on the football field.”

But of course, there are inherent dangers that come with riding giant animals, ones that Casey Lemmons knows all too well. Three weeks ago, Lemmons was minutes away from being airlifted out of the arena.

A day after being thrown from her horse in competition, Lemmons tried to get back in the arena during the second day of a rodeo. But when her horse got spooked by the cracking of a whip and jolted forward, Lemmons’ neck snapped back, and she blacked out. Immediately, bystanders knew something was wrong and rushed to pull her off the horse.

“I was down on the ground and I heard them say, ‘She might be paralyzed. We need to get her in a helicopter,’” Lemmons said. “That’s when I started hearing again. I could see everything, but I couldn’t do anything. I couldn’t move my body.”

But after fearing the worst, Lemmons left the hospital 11 hours after arriving by ambulance, diagnosed with a cervical sprain, torn neck ligament, and a concussion.

Lemmons, who’s been riding horses since she was six months old, has one more week left in a cervical collar, and she hopes to be ready to compete again by the state rodeo. But by then, her leads in barrels and poles racing will have evaporated, making her odds at nationals incredibly slim.

“I think it’s the most dangerous because you never know what a horse or a cow or anything is going to do,” she said. “You never know when they’re going to decide that they don’t want you on their back anymore.”

But even with her recent injury, Lemmons isn’t scared about getting back in the saddle. Much like everyone else on the circuit, rodeo is in her blood, and she can’t imagine doing anything else.

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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A picture of Robert Moog and a quote grace the wall at the Moog Music Store in Asheville, Tuesday, May 10. Started by the American pioneer in electronic music, Robert “Bob” Moog, Moog Music is looking forward to the the annual Moogfest May 19 - 22 that will be hosted in Durham for the first time this year. The festival is all about conversation and experimentation between musicians, scientists, inventors, designers, and many more.

EAMON QUEENEY | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

MOOGFEST from page C1 participate in the free exchange and collaboration between some of the brightest technologists and the most creative artists in the world,” Parker said.

The event started as a simple gathering of like-minded friends and musician fans of Moog and his musical inventions in New York City in 2004. The nature and tone of the festival changed drastically after Moog’s sudden passing in 2005.

“It was a shock to lose Bob, and the festival becomes more of a celebration of Bob and his achievements and all the people that were inspired by his work,” Parker said. “A way to celebrate his spirit and to honor him.”

After hosting Moogfest in New York City through 2008 and taking a break in 2009, the festival found its way home to Asheville in 2010, where it became what Parker characterized as “more of an electropop festival.”

Then, in 2014, the event stepped up to the next level and started hosting forward-thinkers from around the world.

Daytime sessions were added to focus on discussing the technology behind not only music but also creative outlets in general.

“People are used to seeing the synthesizers being played in a live performance setting,” Parker said. “But there’s so much that happens for the five years before an instrument is released. So many different folks that work on those instruments. So we decided to tell that part of the story, as well, and celebrate that aspect of Bob.” With the heart of Moog Music rooted in Asheville, where the company is based and has hosted Moogfest since 2010, the natural question that floats to the surface is why move the event to Durham? Parker says it has everything to do with Moogfest’s shift in focus from not just music but also technology in general, pointing to the city’s wealth of tech

startups and proximity to an international airport.

“Once we made that change, when we were talking about technology in the state of North Carolina, the Research Triangle area, and Durham in particular, is really the beating heart of the tech scene in North Carolina,” she said. “For that reason, it was a really natural fit for us to move the festival from Asheville, which is our home … but when you’re talking about a festival that is focusing on technology and the role that it plays in art and music, it really makes sense for it to be in Durham.”

While the spirit of Bob Moog lives on through innovation at Moogfest, a different kind of reverence is focused on back home in Asheville, where Moog Music still manufacturers the same types of devices that Moog engineered and crafted throughout his career.

“Everyone knows that technology is all about forward progression, things being easier and faster and smaller and cheaper and more accessible and more affordable,” Parker said. “Modular synthesizers are the opposite of that. For us at Moog, it’s very important for us, we place a lot of value in the things that have come before us. We’re very sensitive to trying to learn from the successes of the past and making sure that we don’t overlook the things that were meaningful and the intellectual property that was meaningful that this company has had for so many decades.”

This year, Moogfest and the city of Durham will host just as many daytime conference programs as nighttime music performers. Folks that attend the daytime events will experience a focus on very specific themes, including art and artificial intelligence, as well as an additional focus on transhumanism, Afrofuturism, and virtual reality.

A full listing of Moogfest’s expansive schedule of events, including a number of free events, can be found on sched.moogfest.com.

take note

“Sekret Machines” | Charlotte

By Cory Lavalette North State Journal

D

r. Andrew Hartley has written countless books: mysteries and thrillers, academic books, children’s and young adult fantasy, and even novelizations of some of William Shakespeare’s bestknown works.

His latest, “Sekret Machines Book 1: Chasing Shadows,” is a collaboration with former Blink-182 frontman Tom DeLonge — and another notch in Hartley’s varied writing career.

“I never do anything that I don’t particularly enjoy, which is why my yard always looks a mess,” Hartley said.

Hartley is a professor of Shakespeare Studies at UNC Charlotte on top of being a New York Times bestselling author. A native of England, Hartley taught in the United States for two decades after first coming to Boston University for his master’s degree.

From there, his path to North Carolina was pretty typical of those who once lived in New England.

“I’d been in Boston for seven years, and I remember putting my Christmas tree out the last year that I was there, and it was still there in April because the snow had never gone down,” Hartley said. “I was just like, ‘I don’t want to do this anymore.’ So I was happy to leave.”

The 51-year-old — who uses A.J. Hartley in his published works — taught in Georgia for nine years before coming to Charlotte 11 years ago.

Hartley’s most recent project is perhaps the most unique in his personal and professional trek. DeLonge’s interest in UFOs — a fascination, even obsession, some believe led to him being replaced in Blink-182 — led to working with Hartley on the the new series.

DeLonge spends much of his time poring over information on UFOs and meeting with people in aerospace, engineering, the military and politics.

Hartley then writes what the duo considers historical, not science, fiction.

“Initially I thought this was going to be an aliens and UFOs book, and it’s really not,” Hartley said. “A lot of it is about a conspiracy of silence. And a lot of it is about human capacity and human technological capacity. It’s not about little green men.”

After talking and meeting, Hartley and DeLonge agreed to work on the first book. DeLonge presented Hartley with the latest information he gleaned in his research and meetings, and Hartley did the writing.

“A lot of my focus became about credible, plausible characters who people feel like are regular people. They’re not Indiana Joneses,” Hartley said.

DeLonge was so pleased with the early results that two more books in the series with Hartley are planned, along with a separate three-book series

by Hartley that DeLonge’s media company will market.

Has working with DeLonge swayed Hartley at all on the phenomenon?

“Sekret Machines: Book 1 Chasing Shadows” by Tom DeLonge and A.J. Hartley.

CHRISTINE T. NGUYEN | NORTH STATE JOURNAL

“I think it’s easy to come into this kind of thing thinking, ‘Oh, this is all crazy, tinfoil hat stuff,’” he said.

But Hartley said some of the evidence DeLonge has unearthed, including people on their deathbeds coming clean about their work in Area 51 and other places, has certainly made him think.

“One of the things you constantly run up against is the fact that people lie to us,” Hartley said. “They’ve been lying to us about a lot of things for a long time.

And they only stop lying when they get called out.”

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

№12

Sunday Poem C7

Shub & the Guitar

By Shelby Stephenson EDITOR’s NOTE

In a poem, the words take center stage. The rhythmic quality of language, the break of a stanza — each are chosen by the poet to illustrate the story. For the month of May we invite you to enjoy this verbal music provided by North Carolina’s poet laureate, Shelby Stephenson, in a series of poems for the North State Journal.

The singer-poet, Shub, his song taught His own lonesome self to lose any thought That his guitar as instrument be muse.

Instead — lyrics as settlement he used To let his hearers sense and feel what tree Might have been felled as makings of his three: The Triple-aught Martin, folk-model Goya, The D-45 — oh what Gloria — He knew, for it was not the lively strings He played that brought him lovely things, That made him wonder, but the woody feel Somewhere way inside the Guitar — a real Language he heard and replied to form again, Over oracles of love, sorrow, and pain, With his pen, starting out, a lonely child, Then turning straight to singing poets wild With desire bordering on addiction: Hank Williams, Marty Robbins, Don Gibson, The boy — call him Shub — singing their words And the poems of numerous bards Of country music, the varied subjects Ranging from novelty tunes to heartaches And pain to harmonies of the plains, The melodies of birds and pouring rains, The spirit wide inside each melody His way of communing with seldomly Expressed worlds everyone’s felt before, Where mysteries stay forever more As dammed-up blocks, attributes, inside will, But freed up, in time, as if perfect skill Were living Humors inside each and all Without Surfeit rolling off Interval, Every world in kind blinking kindled thrills True to pleasurably, rippling rills

illustration for the north state journal | amy richards

The Man alone tunes into the Guitar — Hymns inspired by Sunday morning’s star, At church in sermons too long to atone, For he could not make the music his own, Yet sat benched in those fidgeting cells To imagine his being far from prayers Filled with flowers and colors wild in wind Right outside his sanctuary’s window-pane.

Maybe that’s where the artist’s main self wrought His flair for longing for permanent thought Without trying to wrest the harmonies Left to others whose voices sonorous Arias worship in the-never past The present stays to make the future last.

Shelby Stephenson grew up on “Paul’s Hill,” a farm named after his father in Johnston County. Stephenson is a lifelong poet, musician, and teacher. He resides on his family farm with his wife and serves North Carolina as poet laureate.

COMING UP in the good life Yum, Yum

We go inside the kitchen with Matthew Register of Southern Smoke BBQ for a profile on this North Carolina family barbecue business using the old ways while incorporating fresh ideas.

Up in arms

We visit the Alamance Battleground as they reenact the 245th clash between the Regulators and royal governor William Tryon’s militia.

The buzz

Richard Joyner of Conetoe Family Life Center has gone from growing young minds by digging in the dirt to adding beehives to the mix. We’ll share about the local businesses using their honey and all the goodness they’re spreading around.

North State Journal for Sunday, May 15, 2016

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pen & Paper pursuits I reckon . . .

Your guide to what’s what, where, why, and how to say it.

Corolla

color AWAY!

Preserve your fresh picked North Carolina strawberries with us this week by coloring a jar of berry goodness. Nothing says summertime like a jar of jam — remember to share your work with us using #coloraway.

Located in Currituck County along the Northern Outer Banks is Corolla. This coastal community is home to the Outer Banks Center for Wildlife Education, the Currituck Beach Lighthouse, the Whalehead Club, and about 119 feral Banker horses. If you want to sound like a local don’t pronounce this place like the car — it’s ka-RAW-la.

Janric classic sudoku

Solutions to puzzles from 5.8.16

illustration for the north state journal | AMY RICHARDS