January 30, 2014, Wayne & Garfield County Insider

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INSIDER

Panguitch • Panguitch Lake • Hatch • Bryce • Tropic • Antimony • Henrieville • Cannonville • Escalante • Boulder • Fremont • Loa • Lyman Bicknell • Teasdale • Torrey • Grover • Fruita • Caineville • Hanksville

Thursday, January 30, 2014 • Issue # 1033

Public Invited to Comment on Bryce Canyon Transportation Plan Open House Scheduled for March 4th

Carol Kracht

From L to R: Blue Bossanova, Gwendolyn Zeta on Brick, Marcie Hoffman on Lucky, Tom Mansell on Abby, and Cate Vining on Rose.

Canyon Country Chapter BCHU 2013 Wrap-Up; Outlook for 2014

ESCALANTE - The Canyon Country Chapter (Escalante) of Back Country Horsemen of Utah held their first meeting of 2014, Friday evening, January 10. It was at least as much a party and potluck as it was a meeting with both old, new and potential members in attendance. Carol Kracht, reelected to be President again, since she did such a great job in 2013, called the meeting to order and welcomed everyone to another fun and interesting year of riding, volunteering and socializing. A re-cap of the volunteer work that the riding club did in 2013 is quite impressive, with a total of over 500 hours our members contributed to various projects. Some of these are: over 38 miles of trails in the Dixie National Forest cleaned and cleared of trash; 450 lbs. of rubbish packed out for the Glen Canyon National Recreation Area in cooperation with the

National Park Service and the BLM; in June, for National Trails Day, in cooperation with the Dixie National Forest, we assisted with the Oak Creek Spur Trail gate installation and bridge construction; in July, in cooperation with the BLM and Escalante River Watershed Project supplies were packed in for trail clearing; over 150 hours of labor were contributed to the building of a yurt at Cowpuncher’s where the old cabin burned down; and the list goes on and on to add up to a very successful and satisfying year for our Chapter. And that is just the work we did----there were group rides and/or moon light rides almost every month, including a big bash on Cinco de Mayo to celebrate our first anniversary as a club. Now, with 2014 underway, new projects are being considered, new members have joined and new rides are being planned. This past Friday,

January 24, several members got together just out of town for a little ride. Spring-like weather and horses with long Winter coats had everyone warmed up and ready for some aprés-ride refreshments when we returned to the trailers, where we were met by Crockett Dumas (our newest member) and his lovely mare, Sara Moniet, who has recently been immortalized as a Breyer model horse. The Canyon Country Chapter of BCHU welcomes anyone interested in joining. You don’t have to own a horse to enjoy the volunteering or the socializing that is a big part of this dynamic group. Please call any member if you’d like to be added to our mailing list to find out about group rides, meeting dates and future projects. Membership is $30 per year for an individual, $40 per year for a family. —Gwendolyn Zeta

Endurance Champion OT Sara Moniet Immortalized as Breyer Horse of 2014 ESCALANTE - The accomplishments of Crockett Dumas and his horse OT Sara’s winning career on the endurance circuit are the stuff of legend. Breyer, the premier model horse company, has taken notice of Sara’s beauty and her athletic accomplishments and bestowed her with the honor of Breyer Horse of 2014. “It was such a surprise,” says Dumas, who was contacted by the company in November 2012 and told they would like to make a model of his horse. “It’s quite an honor to have your horse asked to be a Breyer.” Sara, who will turn ten WGCI years old on January 31, is at the top of her game, and will earn this year, for the fourth year in a row, the Institute of the Desert Arabian Horse’s “Drinkers of the Wind” Challenge Champion honor. As an example of her talents, in 2011 she finished 1,675 competition miles, completing all 31 rides she entered, with 10 overall wins and 9 “best conditions.” Sara and Dumas’ other champion Des- The Real Thing. Above: Crockett Dumas and Sara ert Arabian horses are the result of 25 years enjoy a quiet moment out in the field. Inset: Breyof Dumas’ passion for improving the breed er’s rendition of OT Sara Moniet RSI (her full and for the sport of endurance racing. Sara name) in their Spirit of the Horse collection. represents the 3rd generation of Dumas’ Outlaw Trail line. “It takes a long time to do this,” says Dumas, “An honor like the Breyer Horse is the icing on the cake for a horseman with a 47 year career.” —Insider

BRYCE CANYON N.P. The National Park Service has prepared an environmental assessment (EA) for a Multimodal Transportation Plan at Bryce Canyon National Park. This project will enable the park to test, implement and refine current and future transportation solutions in an integrated, flexible context over the next 20 years. With your input, we hope to finalize and start implementing the transportation plan this summer! The desired outcomes of the final transportation plan include: • Reducing traffic congestion and parking shortages; • Increasing safety and improving visitors’ experiences; • Eliminating or minimizing resource conflicts; • Improving connectivity for all modes of transportation, including public transportation, private vehicles, tour buses, pedestrians and bicycles. In order to develop a successful transportation plan, the EA analyzed a range of potential solutions that include expanding parking, increasing

shuttle service, encouraging different visitation patterns, and changing park operations. The NPS preferred alternative includes the best elements from each of the other action alternatives. Using a strong adaptive management approach, the preferred alternative promotes science-based decision-making that provides park managers the flexibility to make adjustments and implement the suite of solutions proposed in the plan, as needed. Under this alternative, the park would encourage alternative transportation options such as the shuttle, tour buses, walking, and cycling. The park would also test the effectiveness of parking expansions, seasonal vehicle restrictions, and parking time limits. Travel information for visitors would also be improved to encourage more sustainable visitation patterns. The public is invited to attend an open house to review the alternatives considered and provide feedback about the agency’s preferred alternative. The open house will be held on

South Central Communications Announces Increase in Scholarship Awards Program Applications Due February 21st

ESCALANTE - South Central Communications will be awarding twenty-two scholarships to graduating high school seniors throughout our service territory. Scholarship applicants must be active South Central Communications landline customers. In 2014, the Board of Directors is proud to announce that the scholarship amount has increased from $500 per scholarship to $1000 per scholarship. South Central Communications is a strong believer in

the importance of education. We strive to support our local schools and encourage students to pursue their dreams. SCC has awarded over $165,000 in scholarships since inception. We encourage all area high school seniors to apply. Historically we have not received many applications so please strongly consider this opportunity. Applications and eligibility requirements have been sent to area high school guidance counselors and are also

Thurs. Jan. 30 - wed. Feb. 5 COOLING. Thursday could be kind of gusty, with winds up to 16mph, high in low 50s. The winds are forecast to bring a slight cooling trend for Friday, with possible snow showers (30% chance) and highs in low 40s. Sat. - Wed. are scheduled for highs in low 40s, with night temps dipping into single digits again; skies partly to mostly cloudy.

available at any South Central Communications office or on www.SoCen.com/Scholarships. Scholarship applications must be postmarked no later than February 21, 2014. Mail applications to: South Central Communications Attn: Scholarships P.O. Box 555 Escalante, UT 84726 —South Central Communications

Op - Ed

Utah Hospital Association and Garfield Memorial Hospital Favor Limited, Balanced Approach on Medicaid Expansion by Alberto Vasquez Garfield Memorial Hospital and the Utah Hospital Association, a trade organization representing Utah’s hospitals and healthcare systems, have spent numerous hours over the past few months deliberating the pros and cons of Medicaid expansion. Providing quality healthcare to our citizens here in Garfield County and surrounding areas is our primary mission. However, Utah’s hospitals, along with Garfield Memorial, are concerned about the long-term effects of expansion on our state’s fiscal health as well as its potential negative influence in our private insurance market. We know that due to mandatory changes in the Medic-

aid program required by the Affordable Care Act (ACA), like the elimination for certain populations of the asset test (a test that provides proof of your financial assets to determine how much you should pay for insurance), more than 51,000 Utahns will now become eligible for Medicaid benefits. This will happen regardless if we choose to expand Medicaid or not. This number includes those that will enroll in Medicaid in order to comply with the individual mandate requirement in the ACA, commonly referred to as the “woodworking” effect. We are also aware that America’s hospitals have taken payment cuts in excess of $155 billion as a part of the ACA.

You can observe a lot just by watching. —Yogi Berra (1925 - )

THE WAYNE & GARFIELD COUNTY INSIDER is owned and operated by Snapshot Multimedia, LLC and is distributed weekly to all of Wayne and Garfield Counties, Utah. Its purpose is to inform residents about local issues and events. Articles submitted from independent writers are not necessarily the opinion of Snapshot Multimedia, LLC. We sincerely hope you enjoy the paper and encourage input on ideas and/or suggestions for the paper.

Alberto Vasquez. That equates to more than $1.5 billion in payment cuts to Utah hospitals. Theoretically, these losses may be somewhat offset with more patients being Medicaid

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Phone: 435-826-4400 Fax 1-888-370-8546 PO BOX 105 Escalante, Utah 84726 snapshot@live.com

REGIONAL Weather forecast for some but not all regions represented in our newspaper coverage area

Tuesday, March 4, 2014 from 5 to 7 p.m. at Bryce Canyon National Park Visitor Center, Conference Room D, on the top floor of the building. An open comment period will begin on Friday, February 14, 2014. Those wishing to provide comments should submit them in writing as soon as possible, but no later than Monday, March 17, 2014. Comments can be submitted online at http://parkplanning.nps.gov/ brca, or sent to brca_information@nps.gov, or to Bryce Canyon National Park, P.O. Box 640201, Bryce, UT 84764. Respondents should include their name, address and email to be added to the mailing list for more information about this project. Remember that unless requested otherwise, a list of all those that comment during public review periods, including their addresses, is available upon request. Thank you in advance and we look forward to seeing you at the Public and Partners Open House! Bryce Canyon National Park. —National Park Service

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