August 2019 . Issue 8.8
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August 2019
Valley Voice
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For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
You must understand the whole of life, not just one little part of it. That is why you must read, that is why you must look at the skies, that is why you must sing and dance, and write poems and suffer and understand, for all that is life. - Jiddu Krishnamurti
Valley Voice
August 2019
Contents Smokey Bear Page 4 By Matt Scharf
What I Did On My Summer Break
Page 5
Trails Are Good: Part II
Page 6
Cranes and Climate Change
Page 8
A Great Western Artist: Part II
Page 10
An Artist Draws on Immigration
Page 11
Lack of Financial Literacy
Page 12
By Gary Suiter By Aryeh Copa
By Robert Woodmansee
By Ellen & Paul Bonnifield By Maggie Smith By Scott L. Ford
Give Me a Home Where the People Roam Page 13 By Bill Martin
Publisher/Art Director: Matt Scharf mattscharf1@gmail.com Accounts Manager:
Scott Ford
Sales:
valleyvoicesales@gmail.com
Event Calendar:
Eric Kemper ericvalleyvoice@gmail.com
Valley Voice is published monthly and distributed on the last Wednesday of each month. Please address letters, questions, comments or concerns to: Valley Voice, LLC, P.O. Box 770743 or come by and see us at 1125 Lincoln Ave, Unit 2C, Steamboat Springs, CO 80477. Or contact Matt Scharf: 970-846-3801. Scott Ford: 970-819-9630. Website www.valleyvoicecolorado.com. Subscription rate is $40 per year (12 issues). All content © 2019 Valley Voice, L.L.C. No portion of the contents of this publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written permission from the Valley Voice.
Official Fine Print Advertisers assume full responsibility for the entire content and subject matter of their ads. In the event of error or omission in the advertisement, the publisher’s sole responsibility shall be to publish the advertisement at a later date. Advertisements and articles are accepted and published upon the representation that the author, agency and/or advertiser is authorized to publish the entire contents and subject matter thereof. The author, agency, and/ or advertiser will indemnify and save Valley Voice, LLC harmless from all claims and legal action resulting from the contents of the articles or advertisements including claims or suits resulting from libel, defamation, plagiarism, rights to privacy and copyright infringements. The views and opinions expressed reflect the views and opinions of the authors and may not necessarily reflect the views and opinion of the editor, staff or advertisers in Steamboat Springs’s Valley Voice. Direct all correspondence, articles, editorials or advertisements to the address below. The author’s signature and phone number must accompany letters to the editor. Names will be withheld upon request (at the discretion of the publisher). Submission is no guarantee of publication. Subscription rate is a donation of 40 measly dollars per year. However, if you wish to send more because you know we desperately need your money, don’t be shy, send us all you can! Advertisers rates vary by size, call 970-846-3801 and we’ll come visit you.
Whatever Page 13 By Joan Remy
County Fair is Going to be Fun By Brodie Farquhar
Page 14
Petronius and Thanks to Farnam Street Page 19 By Wolf Bennett
Woodpeckers Page 20 By Karen Vail
Green Energy Page 22 By Ted Crook
The Credit Card Duel By Aimee Kimmey
Page 23
My Two Lives Page 23 By Francis Conlon
Embracing the Unpredictable
Page 24
Historic Fairways
Page 25
Your Dating App Could be a Robot
Page 26
Calendar of FREE Events
Page 28
By Stuart Handloff
By Gary Popovich/ Steamboat Golf Club By Mr. Helpful M.D. By Eric Kemper
Yampuzzler Page 29 By Bruce "Steamboat Springs" Dean
Yepelloscopes Page 30
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Rants... When the police catch up to you and find your whiskey, pistol, rattlesnake and uranium… Wasting time on our officers with your stupid calls to dispatch… Missing out on an epic motorcycle ride with friends… Pretending you live here… Drinking alcohol on the river… Mo-ski-toes… The end of a good neighborhood…
Raves... Smokey Bear Historical Park… Getting hooked on the Tour de France without buying a road bike… When you get the chance to get away for at least a few days… Old friends who are like family… The Yampa River showing off on who’s boss… Hitting every deadline that you thought might not happen… The people who truly recognize on how to support the arts locally… Indoor and Outdoor theater... Riding a KTM 690...
Say What?... “If you moved to Steamboat without a drinking problem, one will be provided for you free of charge.” “Our Army manned the air, it rammed the ramparts, it took over the airports…and at Fort McHenry…it had nothing but victory?” “I got an A+ in crayon box management!” “Lately it’s starting to look like ‘Tour de Old’ on River Road” “That’s a playground? You’re kidding. In my day, we only had outside and a stick.”
By Chelsea Yepello
Comics Page 31
We go to press August 26th for the September 2019 issue! Send in your submissions by August 15th!
PUTTING CARE INTO HEALTHCARE LEVEL IV TRAUMA CERTIFIED
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It’s like being a bird, maybe, the perspective of flying over the Earth.—Peggy Whitson
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August 2019
Valley Voice
August Valley Voice
Smokey Bear By Matt Scharf In 1950, there was a large fire in the Capitan Mountains, just north of Capitan, New Mexico that injured a bear cub along with a lot of other wildlife in the area. This little cub was found and nursed back to health in Capitan. They named him appropriately, “Smokey.” The idea was to send him to Washington DC to enhance the message of fire prevention. He became the “living symbol” of fire prevention in the U.S. Smokey toured and enlightened the crowds while on furlough from the zoo. As attractive as he was, he was a very grumpy bear all the way to his last day. It could have been the burns he suffered in 1950.
Judy Bell with Smokey Bear in 1950
Photo courtesy of the New Mexico State Forestry
It’s really hard to think of fire season when the weather in Steamboat Springs has been wetter than normal this year. Amazingly enough, Routt County had measurable snowfall on the first day of summer. Regardless, we still cannot forget to be careful when enjoying the outdoors. Campgrounds are at capacity all over the state, so please watch your campfires and other hot things.
Smokey lived for 26 years in the Washington DC Zoo. When he died, the zoo officials in DC called to see if the Smokey Bear Historical Park wanted him back. A resounding vote of yes put Smokey on a plane to Albuquerque, N.M. They picked him up, put him in the back of a station wagon, and drove directly to Capitan. It’s a long, hot three-hour drive south of Albuquerque. They drove at high speeds to get there because Smokey had the “stink.” He was buried quickly in the park’s outdoor plaza at midnight without any fanfare in 1976.
Diorama showing the effects of human and wildfire interface. The first fire prevention campaign started in earnest in 1943. This campaign started off depicting our enemies, Germany and Japan, as causing fires in America. The belief was that wildfires took our soldiers off the battlefield and into the forests to help put out fires here in the United States. In 1944, Smokey Bear made his first illustrated poster appearance advising the public about the importance of careless campfires and its dangers. This message has continued ever since. You still see Smokey Bear imagery everywhere. Did you see the Smokey hot air balloon floating over Steamboat Springs last month?
One of the many exhibits within the museum. Smokey Bear, the living symbol.
Photo courtesy of the New Mexico State Forestry
For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
Bennie Long and myself feeling relieved the last panel is installed.
At that time, the Smokey Bear Historical Park was just a S small outdoor plaza where Smokey was buried and a small f cabin where they sold all the trinkets you would expect. f On the other side of the plaza was the main building. It s was an empty space with a fake fire pit in the middle of e the floor where the Park Rangers would sit around tell- w ing visitors the story of Smokey Bear. In 1998 the Park c received a large grant to upgrade the museum and its message. M a I felt honored geti ting hired to design e this iconic story. It was three years of W fact-finding, spacet planning, exhibit p design and a whole lot h of graphic design to layout the panels. It C included a small the- o ater with a movie on m the history of Smokey s Bear, interactive t displays, sound domes and a large diorama. It S was a huge project! v Twenty-one years later, Bennie Long, the current curator of the Park, contacted me to upgrade some panels, which also included redesigning the front entrance. I had to complete the project in less than a month and had to squeeze it in between the production deadlines of the Valley Voice without any paper cuts! If you ever get that far south in New Mexico, please visit the museum in Capitan and know that there is a small connection to Steamboat Springs, Colorado. It’s worth the visit.
Valley Voice
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August 2019
City Council Voices
What I Did On My Summer Break By Gary Suiter/ City Manager
weighty matters from addressing Fire/EMS funding concerns to digging through bear issues to schussing toward a future vision for Howelsen Hill, that same silence also carries an unnerving uncertainty. Many times, we can get caught up in the heat of discussion, and a much needed pause provides the opportunity to take in new perspectives, reimagine solutions, ask fresh questions or further solidify a position. Councilors can’t operate in a vacuum, and they need to hear from constituents to understand where you stand on a particular item. During this time, council is still approachable and I urge you to share your insights, thoughts and perspectives with them through any of the following avenues:
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• Coffee with Council – second Friday of the month Summer instills thoughts of laid-back days, time with friends and family, and trying to squeeze in every ounce of fun possible. In our mountain community, summer seems shorter than other places and with that carries a heightened importance. We’re packing in as much as possible in ways that reinvigorate us before school starts, the leaves change and the first flakes of winter arrive. Maybe it harkens back to when we were younger and the anticipation of care-free adventures during these cherished summer months propelled new energy back into each of us. While we all take a step back during the next few weeks to soak in the sunshine and reenergize ourselves, it also provides a unique occasion to reflect upon the topics that have been in front of us. Council held its final July meeting before heading out on a much earned four week break from Tuesday night meetings. During the recent session, councilors expressed surprise that they hadn’t heard from constituents on key topics they believe surely would strike a chord with many. Some may say silence from the community could be viewed as agreement; however, when you are dealing with
ay g. 2 d i Fr - Au t s r Fi alk w Art
• Council Booth at Farmers Market – each Saturday from 9-11am through August 31
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• Email – citycouncil@steamboatsprings.net to all seven councilors as well as the city manager, attorney and clerk
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•Online Comment Form – www.steamboatsprings.net/ comment to all councilors. Often a quick, “I agree, I can’t support that," or "This matters to me” carries a lot of weight. While some individuals comment frequently, Council represents the entire community and is interested in hearing from all, especially before it’s time to vote on an important matter. During this hiatus, I ask that you take some time to reflect on what is most important to you about the city, our collective future and direction forward. Take a fresh look at several of the topics the community has been working diligently on and share your thoughts with council.
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August, the summer’s last messenger of misery, is a hollow actor.—Henry Rollins
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August 2019
The “LOCAL’S” choice for Personalized Health Care
Valley Voice
Steamboat Springs Trails Alliance
Trails Are Good: Part II By Aryeh Copa In Part I, I focused on how intentionally planned trails can protect and benefit natural resources and sensitive wildlife habitat.
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The Trails Alliance Proposal was formed with full knowledge that during the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) process, some trails would be realigned or eliminated due to environmental concerns. The Trails Alliance Proposal was created through an open, public process that eventually went to a public vote for funding through the Accommodations Tax. The ballot initiative, dubbed 2A, passed by a whopping 71% of voters. I doubt there has ever been a more comprehensive, responsible, landscape-wide approach to recreational trail development in our forests than the publicly-vetted and voter-approved Trails Alliance proposal. Of the 46 trail projects in the Trails Alliance Proposal, numerous connections and enhanced crosswalks in town have been completed as well as some natural surface trails on Emerald Mountain and Buffalo Pass. Many trails have been scrapped and some are still under consideration through the Mad Rabbit NEPA process. Unless there is an all-halt of building more beds, the population in Routt County will continue to grow. Not building trails will not keep people out of the forest and mountains. It is imperative that we properly plan trails now to protect wildlife and resources from uncontrolled human incursion.
Unreasonable opposition Unfortunately, there has been a concerted effort by a vocal minority to discredit this open, public process. By spreading misinformation and mongering fear in an attempt to vilify certain trail users, and by greatly exaggerating the impacts of trails on the environment, they are trying to fool the public into opposing something that should be in all of our best interests. This vocal, anti-trail minority has formed a non-profit fronting as a conservation organization and has spent enormous amounts of money on Facebook ads, memes and “fake news” posts in an attempt to usurp the will of the voters. Their basic premise is hard to disagree with; we all love wildlife and nature and want to protect it. But look deeper into this organization and you might see their real motivation. As stated in this publication by their spokesperson, the organization “…was formed spontaneously in late 2018 in opposition to the Mad Rabbit trails proposal….” This is not a conservation group the likes of Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation (RMEF) that actually works to conserve the habitat that host the animals their members hunt. If they are truly concerned about the survival of local elk, they should care about urban sprawl and severe winter range, the most critical habitat for elk survival. The elk are not lacking for summer range here. As a matter of fact, according to the local CPW, we have one of the healthiest elk herds in the state. The alarmism and hyperbole pushed by a few has fooled others into jumping on the anti-trails bandwagon and created NIMBYism the likes of which are reserved for communities like ours. This group, consisting mostly of
For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
local hunters, wants to keep you off of public land in Routt County so that they do not have to share the forest with you and so they can hunt Routt’s wildlife easier. The irony of a hunting group claiming mountain bikers are driving all the wildlife out of the county, seems only lost on them.
This unreasonable opposition to trails and non-consumptive access has created an anti-hunting contingent locally. As a hunter and trail user, I now find myself defending hunting and trails. Educated hunters should be pissed at what is being done in their name to disenfranchise other forest users. W The nefarious tactics used by the opposition include cherry picking studies, pushing alternative facts, threatening city council, and flat-out dishonesty. For example, two of their vocal members were at the same Parks and Wildlife meeting that I attended where a senior CPW employee corrected a question about the elk herd reduction in Eagle county being caused by trails, stating that the 50% reduction was an intentional culling of the herd through the sale of additional elk tags. The Eagle county herd management plan states: Since 1988, the elk in E-16 have been managed for a population objective of 5,100 animals. Through the 1990s and early 2000s, the herd numbers increased to over 10,000 elk. To reduce the population toward the 1988 population objective, liberal antlerless licenses were provided to achieve increased cow elk harvest. (https://cpw.state.co.us/Documents/Hunting/ BigGame/DAU/Elk/E16_FryingPanRiver.pdf) This does not fit the opposition’s narrative so they continue to blame that reduction on trails. They also continually reference a CPW study done in Eagle county about flushing elk and claim it to be trails-related. The study they cite was actually a study of simulated, off-trail hiking, more representative of hunting than biking. They even made-up a news post about themselves that touted mad accolades and ridiculous quotes of praise, made it look like a Pilot article and posted it on social media. I encourage you to read the studies being cited by the opposition and investigate their claims. They certainly hope you won’t. If science was on their side, they would not need to use these dishonest tactics.
Routt Recreation Roundtable Because of their last-minute objection, the Mad Rabbit trails project was paused and the USFS and the City of Steamboat Springs formed the Routt Recreation Roundtable (RRR) in an attempt to find compromise and consensus among user groups. The opposition group succeeded in tipping the scale drastically in their direction by attaining a disproportion of the stakeholder seats at the RRR discussions. They refused to compromise in any way and broke the rules of conduct requested by the hired moderator, The Keystone Group. While Trails Alliance Supporters offered up to a 95% reduction in scoping area, that was not enough, the opposition stated that not a single trail in the proposal fit their (vague and elementary) “Development Principles” and that any decision except a “no action” decision would be unacceptable. All stakeholders were asked not to post on social media, not to inundate
Valley Voice
August 2019 Opposition point #3: Bikers do not “pay to play” like hunters and motorized users. Response: Mountain bikers and bike groups are the largest supporters of trail maintenance projects on public lands throughout the United States, securing funding and actually doing the work our land managers are stretched too thin to accomplish. Locally, Routt County Riders is one of the largest donors to the WHILD fund and the TMEF. Opposition point #4: Colorado Roadless areas are not appropriate for trails.
Winter Sports Club Youth Cycling Team enjoying the singletrack on Buff Pass decision makers with letters and not write Pilot letters to the editor during the four Keystone mediated meetings. While the supporters of the Mad Rabbit NEPA abided by the requests of the Keystone Group moderators, the opposition completely ignored them, continuing to inundate: county commissioners, city council, the USFS and the Steamboat Pilot with letters of opposition using misinformation.
Community still supports trails Luckily, scare tactics do not work on everyone, and many are suspect of paid propaganda ads on social media. It appears that even with all their money and nefarious tactics, the loud minority has not succeeded in moving public opinion in their direction. In fact, it appears that the Mad Rabbit Trails proposal has even more local support now than when it went to a vote. In the conclusion of the four RRR meetings, the Keystone Group created a report that included all 80 submitted comments in favor of trail development and all 30 submitted comments in opposition of trail development (showing 73% in favor). Most comments in opposition showed a lack of knowledge of the process, the accommodations tax and for what it can be used, and the 2A ballot initiative. Many used the same false narrative, so rather then respond to each of the 30 comments in opposition, I am going to respond to the main points of local opposition and expose the misinformation that is being used in an attempt to fool YOU. Opposition point #1: That 2A would not pass today. That most people thought it was for the Core Trail only. Response: The level of ignorance required to have voted for 2A believing it was for Core Trail only, seems unlikely given the ballot language. More likely, they did not vote for 2A and are now trying to stop a public benefit project at the last minute for misguided reasons. Opposition point #2: That there is no maintenance plan for new trails. Response: It is true that the 1986 Accommodations Tax ballot language does not allow for operational or maintenance funding, however the Trail Maintenance Endowment Fund (TMEF), that was set up through the Yampa Valley Community Foundation, has proven successful and is already funding maintenance projects throughout Routt County. Modern trail design also requires significantly less maintenance than trails of the past.
Response: Colorado Roadless is not the same as wilderness. It was designed to restrict for-profit extractions like coal, oil, gas or timber, not to restrict human recreational access. In fact, it encourages outdoor recreation and allows for up to 50 inch wide, motorized ATV trails, just not roads. Opposition point #5: Hunting is a huge revenue generator and trails will push wildlife onto private land and out of Routt county. Response: All hunting combined in Colorado does not bring even half as much revenue as mountain biking (see latest CPW endorsed SCORP 2019 data). People that Stay The Trail are not the ones pushing wildlife. Anyone that pays attention knows that elk start moving onto private property in mass when archery season starts. Many hunters, including myself, want and use trails to access the backcountry and assist with harvest removal. Opposition point #6: New trails should only be located on the Ski Area and Emerald mountain where trail development has already driven off wildlife. Response: Even with robust trail systems at both of those areas, there are still lots of deer and elk harvests every year. We should not make those trail systems so dense that there are no islands of refuge left for wildlife. Opposition point #7: Wait for more wildlife studies before building more trails. Response: There is a plethora of wildlife data that can be used during the NEPA process. When the goal is to prevent trails in the forest, there will always be another future wildlife study to wait for. Opposition point #8: Core Trail and beginner trails attract tourists, not advanced trails. Trails should be built for the masses, not experts.
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Planning Trails with Wildlife in Mind The handbook: Planning Trails with Wildlife in Mind, is a collaboration between Colorado State parks and the Trails and Wildlife Taskforce - a group consisting of numerous employees of the Colorado Division of Wildlife as well as representatives of environmental and conservation groups. These are the type of comprehensive principles used during trail planning and the NEPA process. The following points and Rules of Thumb were selected, word for word, from Planning Trails with Wildlife in Mind.
Trails make many positive contributions to conserving nature. They can help: • Restore degraded stream corridors and other habitats in the process of trail building. • Guide recreationists away from sensitive wildlife habitat and into more adaptable settings. • Educate people about wildlife issues and appropriate behavior in the outdoors. • Build broad constituencies for wildlife conservation by putting people in contact with nature. Predictability can be a major factor in how much disturbance a trail user causes. If trail users stay on a trail, they are more likely to be perceived as acting in a predictable fashion and therefore as less of a threat.
Rules of Thumb: • Provide trail experiences that are diverse and interesting enough that recreationists are less inclined to create their own trails and thereby expand the zone of influence. • When possible, leave untouched large, undisturbed areas of wildlife habitat. They are an important— and rapidly vanishing resource. Identify and seek to protect all such areas when aligning a trail. • Either avoid wildlife breeding areas or close trails through them at the times such wildlife are most sensitive to human disturbance. • If there won’t be sufficient resources to enforce a trail closure during wildlife-sensitive seasons, consider rerouting the trail through another area.
Response: Most data shows the opposite to be true. Although tourists will happily use the core trail, few if any are traveling for paved paths or beginner trails alone. The destination trail user wants diversity and will travel for good, intermediate and advanced trails. Beginners do not need a lot of trail, while an expert can ride many miles in a day. Most trails in Routt County are built for the masses, the advanced rider is a very underserved user.
• Design trails with proper drainage and sustainable gradients so users are less likely to trample vegetation along alternate routes.
Opposition point #9: The Development Principles for Routt County Public Lands (created last summer by the opposition) must be followed.
• Don’t depend on management to resolve wildlife conflicts that can be avoided by careful alignment in the first place.
Response: These development principles are obvious, elementary and vague and show ignorance of the complex relationship between trails and wildlife.
• To prevent weed spread, control aggressive weeds along trails, especially at trail-heads.
Source: PLANNING TRAILS WITH WILDLIFE IN MIND TRAILS AND WILDLIFE TASK FORCE • COLORADO STATE PARKS • HELLMUND ASSOCIATES
An arrow may fly through the air and leave no trace; but an ill thought leaves a trail like a serpent.—Charles Mackay
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August 2019
Valley Voice
Craniacs
Cranes and Climate Change By Robert Woodmansee “All Together Now” Photo by Patti Mosbey
• Snow free season is lengthening, spring melt is occurring earlier. • Year to year climate and weather is highly variable and is becoming increasingly capricious. • Droughts are more frequent. • Drought related wildland fires are more frequent and severe. • Extreme storms are more likely and may occur in any season – as an example, our most recent spring 2019. These conditions can be hard on crane chicks as well as human retirees. • Total annual precipitation may or may not change at higher elevations; we may have fewer but larger storms. • New concerns about diseases and pathogens in warming climates are emerging. What do we know about sandhill cranes?
The Colorado Crane Conservation Coalition (CCCC) works to protect Greater Sandhill Cranes and their habitat in NW CO. I have been asked by CCCC to write about the effect of climate change on Greater Sandhill Cranes in NW CO. I am a retired rangeland ecosystem scientist, a retired farmer, and someone who knows more about climate change than I do about sandhill cranes. My affection for the birds goes back to my upbringing on an irrigated farm in the Middle Rio Grande Valley in New Mexico during the great drought of the 1950s. Our farm grew mostly alfalfa and, in the winters, served as grazing “pastures” for hundreds of overwintering sandhill cranes. Ultimately, the family farm was subdivided, grew houses, and the birds presumably moved 75 miles south to the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. The Refuge was then being developed into a major wintering habitat, albeit artificial, for the birds. Today, thousands of sandhill cranes including many of our Yampa Valley cranes winter at this refuge.
Some of what we know about climate in the Yampa River Watershed is that it is changing. • Winters are warmer. • The Audubon Society predicts winter ranges will move northward. • Temperatures are increasing and consequently evaporation is increasing meaning less water is available in nesting and feeding areas and the watershed as a whole.
Photo by Kevin Dietrich
This article is intended to bring attention to: • The relationship between climate change and sandhill cranes; • Influence people to think broadly and consider co-occurring and interacting local changes that are challenging for the cranes; and, • Expand thinking to include other critical locations in the migratory flyways of the birds. Predicting the effects of climate change on sandhill cranes is as difficult as predicting the effects of climate change on our overall environment. Climate changes interacting with water availability, critical habitats, land fragmentation, human encroachment, land management and land use change, and government policies and regulations, are all factors that influence the success of sandhill cranes.
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• Some of the birds seen in NW Colorado in the spring are migrants on their way north to other nesting sites in the Rocky Mountains. • Some will stay in NW Colorado to breed, nest, and rear their young. • They are dependent on suitable local habitat conditions at stopovers and in nesting areas. • Cranes select breeding and nesting habitat on both public and private land. • Cranes need the close proximity of water for nesting habitat and for foraging sites. • Cranes require multi-layered grasses, broadleaf vegetation, willows and similar dense vegetation for food, cover, and security from predators. • Much more information about crane habits and behavior can be found on the Colorado Crane Conservation Coalition website (https://coloradocranes.org/ crane-facts/colorado-greater-sandhill-cranes/) and by going to Wikipedia and searching for “Sandhill cranes”. Predicting local effects of climate change on sandhill cranes in the Yampa River Watershed is difficult because crane populations are significantly influenced by local human-related activities.
Valley Voice
August 2019
Distribution of the Rocky Mountain Population of Sandhill Cranes
Policies and regulations Also important among changes that influence sandhill cranes are government policies and changes therein. Listing status, hunting seasons or not, federal and state land management practices and regulations, energy development, are among the policies and regulations that can have a direct bearing on the success of the sandhill cranes.
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CALLING ALL CRANIACS! 8th annual
These changes, agricultural practices, overcrowding and government regulations and policies, co-occur with changing climate. Good local management must account for all of the interactions, simultaneously. Local changes in the Yampa Basin are only a part of the story Success of local populations depends on specific regional conditions that provide critical habitat at key times of the year, e.g., winter habitat (e.g., Bosque del Apache NWR, NM) and rest stops along migratory flyways (e.g., Monte Vista NWR, CO). Many of the same issues described for the Yampa River Basin such as, climate change, water availability, critical habitats, fragmentation, human encroachment, land use change are all important issues in these locations.
Agricultural Activities Various concurrent agricultural activities affect cranes and are important factors in their long-term survival. Among these practices are: • Ditch burning • Timing of crop harvests – if chicks are not sufficiently developed, they may be killed or injured – and are certainly more vulnerable to predation • Timing and type of crop irrigation • Potential changes in irrigation practices • Crop conversion, especially the reduction of grain crops being grown in the valley • Administration of water rights in the Yampa Basin • Timing of grazing in rangelands Many of these agricultural activities are influenced by day to day weather events during spring and early summer when sandhill cranes are nesting and rearing their young. The timing of these practices and locations can have a profound influence on sandhill crane population success. The effect of climate change on day to day and seasonal agricultural activities is open to speculation. Overcrowding
The southwest U. S., flyways for the Rocky Mountain Population of the Greater Sandhill Cranes, are especially vulnerable to aridification, encroachment by humans, and water transfer to urban areas. Critical habitats are dependent on water rights held by federal and state agencies at important locations. For example, water supplies for the artificial habitats at Monte Vista and the Bosque del Apache are threatened by aridification, over-pumping of aquifers, “buy and dry” policies intended to transport surface waters and groundwaters to fast growing urban areas (https://www.denverpost.com/2014/03/07/ sandhill-cranes-face-shut-off-as-colorado-weighs-who-getsscarce-water/). A related article can be read at https:// www.denverpost.com/2019/06/30/colorado-water-southplatte-river-reservoirs/. Climate change interacting with other changing human activities pose significant challenges for sandhill cranes. As citizens who enjoy observing these majestic birds, we must not assume they are permanent fixtures in our landscapes. They need our help to thrive.
Soar in for daily crane viewings, films, expert speakers, live raptors, bird walks, family activities, bird sketching, flying dancers Carpenter Ranch picnic & talk, & more!
Aug. 29-Sept. 1 Steamboat & Hayden
SPECIAL GUESTS! Keynote by Kerryn Morrison, ICF Africa Crane Expert Author & Artist Julie Zickefoose Walks & Talk with Birding Editor Ted Floyd Viewings with Sandra Noll & Erv Nichols John Azua, Denver Zoo’s Curator of Birds HawkQuest founder Kin Quitugua Schedule & festival details at www.coloradocranes.org
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Photo by Abby Jensen
Overcrowding is relative to the resource or value that individuals or societies want to conserve or protect. Human population growth and land use practices certainly influence crane behavior. Land fragmentation, e.g., ranches to 35-acre parcels with increasing numbers of dogs, cats, and horses and other livestock can have a detrimental effect on cranes. Recreation activities such as biking, hiking, and horseback riding can affect cranes nesting success and survival. Motorized recreation such as ATV’s, motorcycles, and 4-wheel drive vehicles can have disruptive effects on cranes especially when nesting. Even fishing near beaver ponds, wetlands, and crane nesting sites can be a form of overcrowding.
The wise man should restrain his senses like the crane and accomplish his purpose with due knowledge of his place, time and ability.—Chanakya
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August 2019
Valley Voice
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Last issue, we met Frank Tenney Johnson boarding the stagecoach at Wolcott and bound for McCoy, Yampa, Steamboat Springs, and Hayden. Johnson was already recognized as a promising artist when Field and Stream magazine bought him a ticket to Hayden. Frank’s young wife, Vinnie, worked as a secretary and sent him money to cover his many other expenses. A frugal man who abstained from drinking, gambling, and riotous living, Johnson realized western living incurred unexpected costs. From his first glimpse of the Rockies near Kersey, Colorado, he knew he would paint and photograph the West the rest of his life. He wrote to his wife, whom he deeply loved, every day and she kept his letters through which we have a window to see life in the Hayden and Craig area for a few months in the summer of 1904. At Hayden, he prospected for gold, rode on the Cary Ranch roundup, accompanied a herd of beef steers to the Wyoming stock yards, enjoyed a rodeo at Craig, and experienced Cheyenne Frontier Days. On May 18, 1904, the stagecoach driver allowed Frank to sit in the box next to him while other passengers sat inside. Frank’s letters reveal his excitement to ride an oldfashioned leather springs coach. Many short line stagecoaches that year operated in the West connecting regions to railroads. The line branched at Steamboat Springs with one going to Hahns Peak and another route from Steamboat to Hayden and Craig. From Craig, connections were possible south to Meeker and Rifle, or north to Baggs. The coaches were subsidized by mail contracts, thus making them financially profitable. But in 1904, few stagecoach companies used old fashion coaches. Frank marveled at the difficulty of mountain roads. From Wolcott to the top of the divide between Eagle and the Grande Rivers, the road climbed 1,600 feet to over 9,000 feet elevation in nine miles. He had a true artist’s eye for the rock formations, their color, shades, and angles. He told Vinnie the trip to the top was necessarily slow, with two changes of horses, but Frank’s letter expressed his excitement of going downhill. “The way that the coach and four horses goes down hill is really something, and I really enjoyed it thoroughly. The way we went tearing down the rough mountain road with rocky walls on one side and deep chasms on the other was an experience never to be forgotten.” Despite the thrilling ride, he remained an artist at heart, noting the color of the rocks and the “panorama of beauty.” From the top of Divide to State Bridge was a descent of 1400 feet in four miles. Although Frank does not describe it, the narrow one-way road rounded a rock outcropping and plunged down a steep hill onto the wooden planks of “State Bridge.” In May 1904, the Grande River would have been lapping the bottom of the bridge. The stagecoach stopped at McCoy for a hardy lunch and a change of horses. (An aside: the meal may have been prepared by my dad’s Aunt Ivy, who at the time ran the hotel for Charley McCoy. She and her husband “Al” had a homestead just up Rock Creek.) Frank noted the hotel was a spacious log build and the meal was excellent. He also reported that all the ranch houses were log buildings.
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McCoy was not just a stage stop; it served as a stopping p place for freighters. Charley provided livery service and a offered “snap teams.” Travelers needing more horse power r to pull the heavy grades rented additional teams to hook j on (snap on) with the other horses. The hotel later burned d down, but the barn still stands and is in use. w Y With fresh horses, they left McCoy climbing over Red Dirt Divide to Bear River (Yampa River). When day dreaming I along Highway 131 between mile marker 25 - 28, look a down the steep bank. The stage road followed the creek i and, according to all reports, it was hell to travel in all c seasons. That stretch of road was totally rebuilt following F World War II. Frank was mesmerized, especially when the W road crowded into a brief narrow rocky canyon for a short “ distance. Many of his later paintings have elements of this piece of road. J t The stagecoach topped the divide and dropped into Egeria h Park. Frank wrote, “All of the sudden the style of the coun- e try changed and we came into a land of long stretches of w mesas, level on top. They are like massive terraces, one p above the other and extend to snow capped mountains . . b . I think this is the most beautiful country I ever saw. Oh! But this free open country is grand!” Again, while Frank J does not mention it, the stagecoach stopped and changed w horses at a ranch house about a quarter of a mile north of G Egeria Creek. w p Before nightfall the travelers reached Yampa. Frank described the town as, “a nice little town, with a church and T school.” They spent the night at the recently completed S Antler’s Hotel. The next morning, Frank and the other pas- l sengers boarded a different coach for Steamboat Springs. H Apparently the stage company used two coaches, one from t Wolcott to Yampa and another from Yampa to Steamboat. R The Steamboat stage was probably the same one Frank l rode to Hayden. It continued to Craig. t
Shortly after 7:00, three passengers boarded the stage. N Frank got another lesson in western people. “She was a i foxy old lady and no place was good enough for her to ride but up on the front seat with the driver. . . . The old lady, trying to act like a little girl of 16, . . . The road . . . was filled with choking dust and we had our fill.” Some place along the road they stopped and Frank took an excellent photograph of the coach. In the box are a driver, a boy in a white shirt, and a properly dressed lady – not a foxy old woman, and the horses moving right along at either a fast walk or a slow trot. They stopped to change horses at the foot of Yellow Jacket Pass which is now the restored stagecoach station at Stagecoach State Park. According to Johnson, the Old Lady decided to take a seat inside away from the sun and heat. Frank, in his words, “very graciously offered to change seats with her.” Poor Mr. Dunn, who had been riding inside all the way from Wolcott was forced to remain in the dust filled compartment. The driver had trouble with the spirited horses. One of the horses, apparently swatting at flies, got his tail over a rein and clamped down on it. Frank,
Valley Voice
August 2019
Art in the 'Boat
An Artist Draws on Immigration By Maggie Smith
progeny of immigrants. All of our ancestors, even the Native Americans who have the original claim to this land, initially came from another place, to this geographic area we now call the United States of America.
proudly held the lines (reins) while the driver got down and freed the line. According to Johnson, the driver hurriedly climbed into the box and the stage started with a jerk. The horses raced intently a few miles before settling down. They may have started with a jerk and raced a little way, but the road was uphill from the station to the top of Yellow Jacket Pass.
I used this simple premise to build an idea for an art piece. I created a hand drawn silk screen of everyday people and used it as a repetitive image to fill the paper with people of different colors. The first day, I only printed a few pieces on paper and the first framed art piece from that series was titled “We are All Immigrants”.
In time the horses calmed and Frank, being something of a con man, remarked to the driver that his hand could rest if Johnson drove. The driver was concerned that Frank could not correctly swing the team through the curves. Frank told his wife he had watched the old driver from Wolcott to Yampa for 50 miles and knew how to drive “four up.” Johnson took the “lines” and everything was fine until they met another wagon. On passing, the stagecoach horses ran away a short distance. Writing to Vinnie, Frank enthused, “Oh! It was great fun to drive 4 horses that way and I did all right, if I do say so myself.” The road he probably drove is now CR 14 from Sidney to Tree House – before modern improvements. Johnson was unconcerned, but in 1888, Archer J. Stafford was killed when the stagecoach team ran away on Wilson’s Grade north of Phippsburg. A small section of the grade west of Highway 131 and just south of the railroad overpass remains visible today. Toward evening the stagecoach arrived in Steamboat Springs and the enthusiastic traveler found a night’s lodging. The next day, at 7:30, he boarded the stage for Hayden; however, a few miles later he and Mr. Dunn left the coach while mail was delivered to someone up Elk River. On its return, Frank rode to Hayden and found lodging in the Oxford Hotel. The trip from Wolcott required three days, but he was now in the wide-open West. Next issue we will see Frank Tenney Johnson in the real West.
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For the last two years, I have been troubled by the hate speech coming out of our nation’s capital against people seeking to immigrate to our country, as well as the way that immigrants were used as a dog whistle for racism during the Trump campaign. Here in Steamboat we have a diverse workforce of immigrants who fill the many jobs that are needed to keep a vibrant resort, ranching, and mining community going strong. I have noticed that people who do not have interactions with our immigrant community are more likely to be anti-immigration and are more susceptible to the ‘fear’ of the unknown. We are fortunate to have a non-profit in our community, Integrated Community, that assists the immigrant population. I joined Integrated Community to become a language mentor for Ana and while she is learning English, I am learning about what it is like to come to a new country. As an artist, I keep trying to figure out how I can make a difference or how I could represent the problem through art. As I listen and read more on the subject, I try to understand why some people in this country are against immigration, especially when, in fact, we are all the
2019 Tour de Steamboat starting out in style!
I made a second series, with this silk screen over abstract monotypes. As I looked at this next series it reminded me that our Constitution was written to establish the basic rights of all people in our country, and it is the supreme law of our nation. All immigrants have left their place of birth and family and come with the hope of citizenship in a ‘new family.’ Our Constitution does indicate the rights of citizens, and additionally, wherever it refers to the rights of people or persons, those rights are for all, regardless of citizenship. I looked to our Constitution to further understand how we as a country of immigrants have come to this point in this time in this country. The preamble reads, “We the People of the United States.” This gave me the path to create my third series of prints. My exhibition that is opening at Pine Moon Fine Art on Aug 2, 2019 (First Friday Artwalk), is entitled WE THE PEOPLE. It is composed of 14 pieces, each taking its title from one of the phrases in the Preamble to the United States Constitution. I hope this exhibition will encourage people to think about how our ancestors came to this country wanting a better life and we should be considerate for those still seeking that same goal.
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Life is the art of drawing sufficient conclusions from insufficient premises.—Samuel Butler
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August 2019
Valley Voice
Your Money - Your Life
Lack of Financial Literacy – Hazardous to Financial Health By Scott L. Ford
I view myself as a reasonably competent economist who has strong six grade math skills, knows how to find all sorts of data and can tell entertaining stories with numbers and charts. I am best characterized as a data geek with a personality. This combination has been the key to my success. I steer away from complex economic theories and recognize that humans behave in very unpredictable ways that are capable of derailing the very best theories and predictions. When not busy with City Council duties and all things related to fly-fishing, I enjoy helping folks get a grip on their personal finances. To be clear, I am not a financial advisor – I am simply a money coach that helps individuals and families with budgeting and the recognition that getting and staying out of debt helps solve a lot of personal finance issues. Essentially, folks can easily wander into debt, but it is almost impossible to wander out of debt without plan. Total consumer debt reached $4 trillion by the end of 2018, according to an analysis of Federal Reserve data. That’s a number with twelve zeros behind it. It is a mindboggling very big number. Collectively, Americans owe 26 percent of their income to this debt and spend 10 percent of their individual monthly income on non-mortgage debts like auto loans, credit card accounts and student or personal loans. Americans have been amassing more
and more debt since 2013 and disposable income has increased as well. Though income is increasing, American consumers are borrowing more money more often and at a faster rate.
There are typically two types of consumer debt: revolving and non-revolving.
So, what is causing these changes in behavior? Recent studies have shown that Americans are losing their financial literacy at an alarming rate. These studies, which cover topics like basic finance and investment, show that Americans lack fundamental knowledge in these areas. Perhaps that explains the marked uptick in consumer borrowing.
The most common example of this type of consumer debt is credit card debt. This kind of debt is referred to as revolving because it is meant to be paid off frequently, typically within a month. Revolving credit fluctuates with consumer use and usually comes with a variable interest rate.
For the next few months I am going to dive further into consumer debt. First, understand exactly what it is and how it works in our financial systems. Consumer debt is personal debt owed by an individual to another entity, typically a bank, credit union or credit card company. Consumer debt often involves household purchases and transactions independent of a business or government operation. Consumer debt does not include debts owed by a business or corporation to another entity. These purchases are typically consumable and include items that do not depreciate in value. Purchases like this allow consumers to better themselves through a purchase of something they want now without the requirement of paying the full purchase price up front.
REVOLVING CONSUMER DEBT
NON-REVOLVING CONSUMER DEBT Conversely, non-revolving consumer debt is typically on a particular payment schedule. Payments may be seen as “fixed” and are usually active for the life of the underlying asset. This type of consumer debt may include long-term loans for cars and education. These debts typically include a fixed payment plan with few changes to the amount charged. It is possible for consumers to choose between fixed and variable interest rates for these debts in some cases.
Next Month: The Folly of Credit Card Rewards (Points) The following statistics come from the Federal Reserve’s Consumer Credit Analysis. (May 2019) • Total consumer debt totaled $3.898 trillion in 2018, a 7.6% increase from last year.
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• Average consumer debt per capita is approximately $11,880 (total consumer debt/total US population as of July 4, 2018). • Total revolving consumer debt was $1.039 trillion in 2018. • Total revolving consumer debt rose 11.4% annually in 2018. • Average revolving debt per capita is approximately $3,167 (total revolving consumer debt/total US population as of July 4, 2018). • Credit card debt in May 2018 broke the previous record of $1.02 trillion set in 2008. • Credit card debt was 27% of total consumer debt in 2018, down from 38% in 2008.
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• Total non-revolving consumer debt was $2.858 trillion in 2018.
Percentage of all proceeds goes to benefit local veterans
• Student loans totaled $1.524 trillion in 2018.
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• Two in ten adults say they roll over $2,500 or more a month in credit card debt [Source: NFCC]
• Auto loans totaled $1.113 trillion in 2018. • Average loans per student equal approximately $76,468 (total student loans/total students enrolled in public or private universities in 2018)*
Valley Voice
August 2019
Outdoor Furniture Sale!
Community Vision and Planning
Oh Give Me a Home Where the People May Roam By Bill Martin
Steamboat Springs is blessed with an abundance of parkland and urban open space. These treasures are easily overlooked, but they didn’t happen by chance. Open space was acquired and preserved through the vision and efforts of many people. City Councils decades ago, administering our city during periods of rapid growth and development, recognized that urban open space and recreational amenities were under assault and opportunities to acquire, set aside and protect strategic community parkland areas were closing quickly. Parks and urban wild areas offer a variety of outdoor recreational options. Most obvious is Howelsen Park, which encompasses developed recreation areas featuring the ski area, ball fields, rodeo grounds, ice rink, etc. Less obvious is the wild urban open space where the cross country ski trails are located and, higher up, the Emerald Mountain Quarry overlook. Parks at the west end of downtown feature several natural springs including the Steamboat Spring. Our downtown river core trail connects parks from the west continuing east through Dr. Rich Weiss Park, following the river south traversing Emerald Park and passing the Yampa River Botanic Park. Bob and Audrey Enever created this gem, a living tapestry of color and texture, applied an artist’s eye with love and determination, then donated their vision to our community for all to enjoy.
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nearby destinations. The cacophony of urban noise throughout our community is muted by these pockets of landscape and flora; wildlife flourishes in the natural habitat. Wild urban open space may be as incidental as a utility easement or vacated street between adjoining neighborhoods or as large as multi-acre open space parcels that were required from large development projects. Some parks and open space were gifts to the city by individuals or development groups; others were purchased outright by the city. Our city’s parklands and wild urban open spaces must never be taken for granted. Today and in the future there will be pressure to develop every inch of bare ground in our city. We must stand united and voice support to preserve our community’s natural resources, parks and open space for the enjoyment of generations to come. Rider Julie McNally Photo by Aryeh Copa
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Centrally located is Rita Valentine Park. This wild urban open area would not have been realized without Rita’s resolve, focus and tireless effort. Rita was a visionary Steamboat Springs City Council president and is memorialized here for perpetuity.
Poetry
Whatever By Joan Remy
Wild urban open space preserves undisturbed natural habitat within the city that embraces our nearby forest and valleys. Users may easily access these areas without the need to load up the car and drive to a trail head. Whether it’s a walk alone with the solitude of thoughts, or with children or four legged friends, urban open space provides a connection with nature and its peaceful splendor. Open space buffers neighborhoods from each other. Pathways through these tranquil corridors provide walkers shortcuts to
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Skiing the chutes on Independence Day! This year was one of the rare occasions when the chutes still held snow.
Just listen The candidates will fix it Puppets Do they really understand It’s not in their hands The web controls Nasty Arachnids Good people trying to find answers How do we survive Knowing our weakness and strength Being loving and kind Amidst the chaos Outside the box Standing strong
To be successful in life, what you need is education, not literacy and degrees.—Munshi Premchand
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August 2019
Valley Voice
County Fair is going to be fun! By Brodie Farquhar
August 15 features horse races. Delay said there would be no bull riding events. On August 15, there will be two bonfires, one for adults and the other for teens, said Delay. There’ll be free, live entertainment, featuring Trevor Guire and Kyle Allgood, as well as cowboy poetry by Susie Knight. Kids should bring their sandbox toys to play in a giant sandbox.
Hunter Hachcoat Band The 105th Routt County Fair will be open for business in August, at the county fairgrounds located in Hayden. The fair has attracted generations of attendance and participation from throughout Routt County, for young and old alike. The fair itself runs August 15-18 and is preceded by the Open Horse Show (Aug. 9-11), 4-H/FFA activities (Aug. 1217) and home arts entries are due Aug. 14, 1-8 p.m. Jill Delay, fairgrounds manager and fair coordinator, said the home arts contest is the envy of surrounding counties. “We had 1,900 entries last year,” she said – a record that may rival the state fair itself. “If we don’t have a category for your entry, we’ll create one,” Delay added. The huge number of entries is due not only to talented Routt County citizens, Delay said, but also to a group of volunteers who spend all year recruiting entrants and reminding them to be ready by fair time. Nagging is a loaded word. Suffice to say that fair volunteers are persistent as heck.
August 16 features a Taste of the Fair event. People who enter the home arts contest with food items are encouraged to make extra for the Taste event. Proceeds will be spent on the fair hall. Sponsored by Hill Petroleum, the demolition derby starts at 7:30 pm, Aug. 16 and features warm-up acts such as pig wrestling, a stick horse rodeo, beer garden and fair royalty crowning during intermission. Delay said the county fair has upgraded its website so that tickets can be purchased online. “Last year, the demolition derby was sold-out, and we’ve sold about a quarter of the seats in two days,” she said. Saturday, Aug. 17 at 8:30 is the big barn dance, featuring country music singer and songwriter Hunter Hachcoat. From Ellington, Mo., Hachcoat has a new single, “Try My Best,” which is climbing in the top 40 Texas music scene charts. Delay said the beer gardens will allow patrons to carry their beers back into the stands.
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By Brodie Farquhar
Hayden’s Curbside Laundry has been sold to CER Linen Service of Steamboat Springs. The two linen services serving lodging and restaurants have consolidated at the downtown Hayden location. Pete and Jackie Hauer, who founded and built up Curbside, sold the business to Wilis and Torey Wodnick in mid-May. “Pete and Jackie built a great business,” said Torey Wodnick. “We’re glad we could buy it.” The Wodnicks have owned Colorado Event Rentals in Steamboat for 12 years, and CER Linen for two. They own the restaurant products (bar rags, aprons, napkins) and clean and fold the lodging products (towels, sheets, etc.).
Comprehensive Plan Coming for Hayden Hayden Town Manager Matt Mendisco said a couple of proposals have been received from firms interested in helping the town draft a new, comprehensive plan. The last time a comprehensive plan was created was 2005. The new plan will launch in late fall and will set the stage for the town’s growth for the next 10-15 years.
The Chief Players will present “Blazing Guns at the Hot Springs Hotel, or The Perfumed Badge” at the Hayden High School stage/auditorium, August 8 at 7 p,m. Tickets are $5 for children, $10 for adults. A final decision by the Hayden School District Board has yet to be made, as to whether the stage/auditorium and a nearby gym can be saved from demolition and given to a community group. The elementary school has been gutted of all but a roof and supporting walls. The task now is to create a new, modern elementary school within that shell. Meanwhile, on the middle/high school site, a crane has been brought in to move heavy loads, as well as a concrete pumper that is pouring concrete floors. Hayden school construction continues apace.
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Curbside Linen sold
Hospital Hill water line work continues, to link a new, larger water main from the water tank atop the hill, to a truck line that runs through downtown.
For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
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© 2019 Valley Voice, LLC. All rights reserved. NOT TO SCALE! No portion of this publication may be reproduced in any manner without the written permission of the artist. The publisher does not guarantee the accuracy of this map.
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98°F 20°F
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Maximum Record Single Day Precip Maximum Record Snowfall
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Colorado Statewide Hottest: Joes @ 112°F on August 2, 2008 Coldest: Lizard Head Pass @ 8°F on August 25,1990
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Valley Voice
August 2019
19
Mensan Musings
Petronius and a Huge Thank You to Farnam Street By Wolf Bennett
Solving problems almost always starts with ensuring you’re solving the actual problem. When the actions we should take are not obvious, or the problem is difficult, it’s easy to feel the need to do something…anything. We convince ourselves that motion is better than inaction. The choice, however, isn’t between action and inaction. This is known as a false duality. False dualities are all around us and they are very bad thinking tools. Claiming that two things are the opposite side of the same coin, giving people either/or choices and calling it a choice, asking questions with only one answer and similar statements lead us greatly astray. Be careful of those who make such claims and who push simple solutions to complex problems. Here is one aspect that is interesting to contemplate. Lets go back a couple thousand years… “We trained hard, but it seemed that every time we were beginning to form into teams, we would be reorganized. I was to learn later in life that we tend to meet a new situation by reorganizing, and what a wonderful method it can be for creating confusion, inefficiency, and demoralization.” Petronius Arbiter – Roman satirist There is something almost poetic in the way that Petronius (27 AD – 66 AD) so succinctly captures a phenomenon that most of us have been through. Poorly performing organizations or divisions reorganize all the time. Sometimes the source of the problem is the organization, but more often than not, reorganizations offer little impact on the results. Consider taking charge of a poorly performing division at work. The pressure to deliver is high. You’re told this is your big opportunity. You’re advised to “take charge” and get out there and lead. Doing something is the same as results so it seems, so you naturally mistake movement for results. So it’s only natural that you come up with a plan to move the boxes around and reorganize. Movement offers shelter from failure. When you’re in motion, you feel like you’re doing something. We convince ourselves that as long as we’re in motion, we can’t fail. As long as we’re doing something... anything, failure cannot catch us. I see this all the time. I see coaches endlessly extolling some new exercise instead of simply practicing, and teachers who forget the value of discovering the answers and moving on to the next lesson. We miss so much by just doing something. Movement feeds our egos. Our evolutionary programming craves the validation of others, besides, moving keeps us ahead of the predators and that habit alone keeps us alive longer than those who wait to see if there really is a lion in the grass. We have a world that values action and short soundbites, nuanced conversations are difficult and slow. Others really don’t have time to listen to your nuanced story as they run to their next event. Telling people that you are doing nothing results in disapproving looks and accusations of laziness. Movement offers the drug of validation to the outside world. It is far easier to tell others that we’re doing something rather than doing nothing. And so we do. Perhaps a few examples will illustrate this concept. Consider the person we all know that is always planning to start a business. Planning is doing something.
It’s action. We can tell others about our dreams and as long as we’re planning we never risk failure. Second, consider the person who has been writing that book…. for years. The movement of editing and refining serve a purpose, but when that purpose becomes an end in itself, we never get any results. There is no risk of failure if you don’t publish anything. Consider the person who wants a promotion at work (or perhaps new parents…). They take on so many projects and get so overwhelmed and are so busy that they don’t get the results that would really satisfy them. So an interesting practical application question to the idea is this: is switching from coal to solar a good idea or are we just doing something? The answer is: it really is a good thing as cost parity was achieved over three years ago (solar is lower priced than coal and dropping quickly) and the health benefits, cleaner environment, higher pay, more jobs, lower risks and so much more. Why do we still see so much resistance? Because we’re doing “something” (on a treadmill repeating things endlessly) and we can see that we’re doing something, it just isn’t getting us anywhere. Movement teases us with the illusion of progress. However, action for the sake of action that results in success is nothing more than dumb luck. Confusing movement with results often makes things worse, not better. Motion is easy. Results are hard. I’m not certain about you, but I’d rather make success a little less about luck every day. Luck is a terrible strategy to count on. Luck always favors those who are prepared.
all things, it isn’t all black and white or two sides of the same coin. We have to learn when sitting quietly serves us and when it hurts us. When we are seeing from an introverted or extroverted position or perhaps just enjoying the process in the middle. Recall that other options exist at all times. It doesn’t mean to stop or go, it just means that it is time to become more aware. Doing something isn’t the same as getting results. The problem is that we convince ourselves that our only options are to do something or do nothing. There are many third options: clear your mind, take a walk, get a drink, change the rules, switch perspectives, ask questions, play a game or tell a joke. We forget a powerful one: gathering more information. There will always be pressure to do something immediately with urgency, most of the time that action will be wasted. We’d be much better off if we stop for a moment and gather some information before acting. The next time you feel the urge to do something for the sake of doing something, remember that Thoreau said: “It is not enough to be busy; so are the ants. The question is: What are we busy about?” Enjoy the float, the ride, the laughter, the seasons that change. Change the game, not just the rules. Take life seriously and then watch it dance. Have a great summer, I think I’ll go fishing now.
Preparation is necessary but not sufficient for achieving results. The actions we take are often just preparations for what we really want to accomplish. We read a diet book instead of dieting (on a side note, Garfield has pointed out that the first three letters of diet describe the action). We learn how to use Shopify or Woo commerce instead of starting a store. When we confuse preparations with the end instead of the means, we really fool ourselves. Maybe Pascal was right when he said, “The sole cause of man’s unhappiness is that he does not know how to stay quietly in his room.” And yet this inability to sit quietly serves us as well. You wouldn’t be reading this if the people who printed the paper sat quietly in a room. As with
We have all your camping and fishing supplies! Downtown Yampa 970.638.4531
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Gateway to the Flat Tops
We try, we fail, we posture, we aspire, we pontificate – and then we age, shrink, die and vanish.—George Saunders
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August 2019
Valley Voice
'Boat Almanac
Woodpeckers
By Karen Vail
Northern Flicker Photo by David Moulton Rat a tat tat tat. Rat a tat tat tat tat. It was 4:30 in the morning and the metallic staccato of a Romeo woodpecker on a stovepipe next door woke up the morning! This percussively loud noise is the best mate attractor around in urban areas, and woodpeckers definitely utilize metal and other loud resonating surfaces to woo their mates. Lying in bed thinking of woodpeckers got me thinking of why they don’t get headaches with all that pounding, which led to many other questions. According to David Allen Sibley (the birding world guru), woodpeckers “are arboreal birds known for creeping up tree trunks and drilling into the wood to find food and excavate nest sites.” (“The Sibley Guide to Bird Life and Behavior”) Three generalized groups are noted: woodpeckers, flickers, and sapsuckers. EBird lists 13 species found in (or occasionally moving through) Colorado, and 7 in Routt County (you go Tresa Moulton!!). All the woodpeckers are adapted to feeding on trees by excavating food from on or under the bark. But many species enjoy the sap from excavated holes (especially sapsuckers like our rednaped sapsucker (Sphyrapicus nuchalis)). All woodpeckers have a vertical stance as they forage on tree trunks with stiff tails for support and also brace itself while a nesting cavity is created. Most woodpeckers have zygodactyl feet (now that is a fun word!); they have two toes pointing forward and two pointing back which aids in balance while climbing. They have a chisel-shaped bill and a unique tongue, which will be described in a bit. Their flight pattern is a unique undulating flap, flap dip and glide, flap, flap dip and glide. On to the juicy facts! Let’s start with all that pounding. Go ahead, bang your head against a wall all day. Hurts, doesn’t it?
Woodpeckers do this all day, moving their heads up to 20 feet per second, with each peck ending with a deceleration more than 1,000 times that of gravity. (“How Woodpeckers avoid head injury” Jason Palmer , BBC News, October 2011). If you were riding a rollercoaster you could possibly encounter forces up to 5 G. And tests done by the Air Force in the 1950s found that humans can survive impacts around 46 times that of gravity. Wow, how do woodpeckers take the pressure? Humans incur brain damage because our brains move around in our skull. Woodpeckers have narrow space between their skull and brain, and very little fluid in that space so their brain does not bump around much. Their brains are also longer top-to-bottom than front-to-back. This maximizes the contact area between the brain and the skull and spreads the force against the skull over a larger area. The brain is also surrounded by thick sponge-like bone at different points in the skull that distributes the force of the peck. This distribution of energy is a critical factor. According to “How a Woodpecker Bangs without Brain Damage” by Chelsea Harvey (Audubon blog August 13, 2014), the impact energy (the energy released during a collision) as the birds’ beak hits the tree is converted to strain energy in the body. Simply put, all those marvelous physiological adaptations allow the bird to redirect 99.7 percent of the strain energy to its body, leaving only .3 percent to the head. This minimal amount of strain is quickly dispersed from the head as heat, so all that pecking requires frequent breaks to cool down. At a microscopic level, the sponge-like bone is formed of many trabeculae, tiny beamlike projections of bone forming a mineral mesh believed to help reduce strain on the brain. These are found in higher numbers in the forehead and back of the head. After viewing slow motion videos of woodpeckers in action, researchers noted the extremely short duration of impact, and also that the upper and lower beaks were uneven, providing an asymmetry that lowers the strain on the brain. One of the coolest protective structures is the brain safety belt; the hyoid apparatus, also called the hyoid bone or the tongue bone. All vertebrates have a hyoid in some form. If you pinch the uppermost part of your throat between your thumb and forefinger, you can feel the “horns” of the U-shaped hyoid bone. For us, this is an area where muscle and tissue of the throat and tongue are attached. For the woodpecker, this is a much stronger and more flexible bone covered in muscle attached to the tongue, allowing the bird to extend its tongue out of its beak to grab food. This structure begins in the nostril of the upper beak, where it divides into two parts between the eyes, then goes over the top of the skull and around the back. At the base of the skull in the back, the two pieces rejoin and attach to the muscle of the tongue. As the woodpecker pecks, the muscles surrounding the relaxed hyoid bone contract, pushing the tongue forward inside the beak (and much farther out when collecting food). This action acts like a safety belt, tightening the hyoid bone around the brain and stabilizing the spine. The hyoid bone also diverts vi-
For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
brations away from the skull. Because of the longer upper beak, more force is absorbed here, then travels up the beak to the hyoid bone in the nostril before hitting the spongy bone in the skull. The stress forces travel along the hyoid bone rather than continuing to the skull. After all this drilling, our woodpecker has located a juicy tidbit. How to get that little guy out of the hole? The tongue is wrapped around the skull and can extend to quite a length to get into holes, ant mounds, under leaf litter, etc. When not extended, it is coiled around the back of the head between the skull and skin. The tongue varies according to the woodpecker's diet. Downy (Dryobates pubescens), Hairy (Dryobates villosus), Red-bellied (Melanerpes carolinus)and Red-headed (Melanerpes erythrocephalus) woodpeckers all feed on insects and other organisms, as well as fruit. These birds’ tongues are intermediate in length and have varying numbers of barbs. It was originally thought their tongue stabbed the prey to pull it out, but after slow-motion filming, researchers found they wrapped their barbed tongues around the prey. Northern flickers (Colaptes auratus), whose favorite food seems to be ants among other foods, have a flattened tongue with few barbs and rely on sticky saliva to capture insects. Flickers have the longest tongue and are often seen on anthills where they move their tongue snake-like over the surface. Sapsuckers (Sphyrapicus spp.) have the most unusual tongue because of their diet of sap and insects.
Downy Woodpecker
Photo by Tresa Moulton
Valley Voice
August 2019
21
Red-naped Sapsucker
Pet Vaccination Awareness Month Photo by Tresa Moulton Their tongue is short and is tipped with brush-like bristles that absorb sap through capillary action. I am sure you are also wondering how their eyes don’t pop out of their skulls with each high impact peck, right? Ewww! All birds have a third eyelid, the nictitating membrane, which sweeps sideways across the eye to clean and moisturize the cornea. Woodpeckers have unusually thick nictitating membranes, which they close just before impact, that guard their eyes from flying debris and helps keep their eyeballs in their sockets and the retina from tearing. (birdnote.org “Nictitating Membranes – Nature’s Goggles”). Woodpeckers often have slit-like nostrils with special bristle-like feathers to cover them. Most birds produce beautiful songs. Woodpeckers are not among them! That rat a tat tat on metal objects, and other highly resonating objects, is called drumming. Drumming by both male and female birds conveys a lot of information to the broader woodpecker population. Researchers found that downy woodpeckers producing shorter drums were kind of wimpy and easy to beat in a fight. Longer drums often come from a stronger, tougher bird. After playing recordings of the strong guys in an area, the researchers noted that pairs of birds began to coordinate the defense of their territory, but they don’t do this with the wimpy guys recordings. They think because woodpeckers invest so much time and energy carving out their nest in a tree, the presence of a stronger bird might alter how the pairs respond to the threat. (“Woodpecker Head Bangs Com-
municate Info” Jason Goldman, Scientific American, April 2016). Woodpeckers also have a wide variety of calls including alarm calls to defending their territory, chatting with their mates, and nestlings making a loud buzzing noise when dinner is arriving at the nest. Just a couple of ending fun facts. Because woodpecker beaks are used to chisel away wood and hard materials, the cells in the tips of their beaks are constantly replaced, preventing the beaks from being worn into a useless stub. Who made that hole? The shape and size of woodpecker holes can often lead you to the hole creator. Our hairy woodpeckers feeding holes are usually no more than ½ inch wide. As these birds search for insects they tear off bark in a wavy pattern as they move back and forth along the trunk. Downy woodpeckers, a smaller bird, prefer smaller trunks and often stems of reeds. Sapsuckers make very characteristic horizontal rows of small holes while looking for sap and the insects attracted to, or often in, the sugary liquid. If looking at a nesting hole, the diameter of the hole will help you figure out which bird created, and is using it. Woodpeckers create holes just large enough for them to come and go to keep out big predators. So the entrance hole is the size of their body. These amazing and diverse birds are a joy to observe throughout our area, even though it might be 4:30 in the morning! See you on the trails!
- My dog doesn’t need Bordetella if he doesn’t board, right? - Rabies vaccination is required by law??? - My cat doesn’t need a rabies vaccine if she’s indoors only, right? - My dog can’t get parvo she is ALWAYS in the yard, right? Leptospiros-wha?
Dinosaurs didn’t go to the vet... look what happened to them!
www.petkareclinic.com 102 Anglers Drive
970-879-5273
Birds sing after a storm; why shouldn’t people feel as free to delight in whatever sunlight remains to them?—Rose Kennedy
22
August 2019
Valley Voice
An Old Coal Miner Looks at...
Green Energy By Ted Crook
A few other random points: No one (except in Turkey and China) wants to see any new hydroelectric plants. Power from space: collect it where the sun really shines, beam it to earth somehow. In 2006, I wrote an almost completely unread novel about remote controlled lunar mines and huge mirrors beaming light to collectors on Earth at night. I still think the concepts are possible. Carbon sequestering technology is probably something we really need in the long run. Suck the carbon out of the air now, pump it back later when an ice age threatens. It would be possible to regulate climate within narrow limits with proper systems ( and probably a lot of energy). I still think sequestering carbon from coal fired power plants could make them the green darlings--essentially no pollution at all.
Nuclear (can you pronounce nucular?) Dreams Since Fukushima, the world has felt that nuclear power is terrible. Though this is undoubtedly distasteful to all environmental types, I would diffidently submit the thesis that nuclear power is probably the best hope for the planet. The problems with nuclear power are almost entirely the result of poor designs and inept political decisions. The better designs are available. The current water reactors, for example, require power and instrumentation for safety. Other designs do not. Early reactors were dangerous, dirty, and often despicable. Manual procedures abounded: pulling control rods by hand, pouring fuel out of buckets, pushing fuel packets with sticks. Physicists and engineers could calculate the consequences of a design, but were often overruled by ignorant workers, managers and politicians.
The Current Miasma Here are a few rough calculations: The average size of a power plant is probably about one gigawatt (one billion watts). It takes 500 2 megawatt windmills to obtain a gigawatt when they are spinning at rated RPM. To get a reliable gigawatt might take a thousand windmills, since windmill power varies as the cube of the velocity--a barely perceptible drop in wind speed can cut the power in half. At the standard 15 watts per square foot, it takes at least a couple square miles of solar panels to produce a gigawatt--when the sun is shining. A gigawatt of electric train storage ( the current darling) will require some 40 to 50 5 or 6 engine trains (assuming 6000 horsepower electric motors). 100 million 50 hp automobiles would use somewhere between 100 and 1000 gigawatts of power, depending on the use cycle. That’s somewhere between 50,000 and 500,000 windmills. A properly designed rail system could use a tenth of that to move more people.
There have been three serious accidents in the 80 years of nuclear power reactors: Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima. While there have been deaths, the disasters have been mild in comparison to earthquakes, explosions, genocide, firearm accidents, drunk drivers, or suicide. In all three cases, the water in the reactor turned to explosive hydrogen and oxygen. In Chernobyl and Fukushima, there were actual explosions. Three Mile Island and Chernobyl were much the same type of accident: operator and instrumentation failure. No one died at Three Mile Island because the reactor was designed with good containment. The deaths at Chernobyl were the result of the (stupidly) removable lid being blown off the reactor and the desire of officials to downplay the disaster. The world of instrumentation has changed drastically since the eighties. It is possible to do more now with a 20 dollar Arduino than could be done with the whole control room at Three Mile Island or Chernobyl. In the old days, everything relied on the skill of an often bored (or even ignorant) operator. Current reactors use water as coolant and neutron moderator. If the reactor overheats, steam voids remove the moderator effect and the reaction slows down. If the reactor heats up too much, of course, the steam separates into hydrogen and oxygen and becomes explosive. At Three Mile Island and Chernobyl, the flow of water stopped.
For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
Fukushima was a failure of seawall design. The Japanese plant closest to the Earthquake, the Onagawa power plant, had a much higher wall and shut down with no problem. The Fukushima wall was designed for average tsunamis-even though it was known that a medieval quake’s tsunami had exceeded that height. The Onagawa wall had been made higher over the objections of tsunami experts by one stubborn engineering hero. It has been raised again since the accident.
A “New” idea: The most interesting “new” reactor design is the molten salt reactor. The fuel is mixed with salt. Meltdown of the reactor is impossible because the salt is already molten. Instead of water coolant, helium can be used. Helium is never explosive and forms no radioactive isotopes from fission. A coolant leak would be harmless--just helium floating away into space. The temperature of the reactor is largely regulated by the expansion and contraction of the mixture. Heated up, the mean free path of the neutrons increases and the reaction slows down. The Oak Ridge molten salt reactor ran for 6 years in the sixties without incident. All control, monitoring and safety instrumentation systems add more safety on top of this stable design. The control rods can still SCRAM (slam into the reactor to provide an emergency stop), but the reactor is easier to control and doesn’t need steam and hydrogen forming (explosive) water inside the reactor. If--despite every precaution--the salt reactor does overheat, a metal plug in the bottom of the reactor melts, allowing the salt to flow into some storage tanks of less than critical mass. The reaction stops, and all is well. Salt reactors can use a large variety of fuels and can even be used to “burn” spent fuel rods from other plants. Siting such a reactor beside an existing plant could permanently solve the waste problem. China is going full tilt toward construction of salt reactors.
The big dream--our own personal sun. As everyone should know, the ultimate power source is fusion. All the power we need forever--pollution free. The reactor would take in a small amount of water (probably less than a gallon) and the end product would be inert and safe helium. The problem is plasma containment. The one reactor we use, the sun, is a gravity containment fusion reactor. It takes a lot of gravity to make that happen. The Chinese have gotten a plasma to stay around for 100 seconds in their superconducting (thank you again, CERN) Tokamak reactor. That’s thousands of times better than the old days, but not likely to power a city anytime soon (who wants lights for only 100 seconds, anyway?). Other labs have announced fusion breakthroughs as well-no plant on the horizon yet (if ever), of course. I think with good new designs, intelligent instrumentation, and good political support, nuclear power can be the solution to most of our problems. The main impediment is ignorance and misplaced fear. It would be easier to build good nuclear plants than to build tens of thousands of bird killing windmills.
Valley Voice
August 2019
Tales from the Front Desk
The Credit Card Duel By Aimee Kimmey
Poetry
She tried to smile; it wasn't exactly welcoming. "H-hi..." She cleared her throat and tried again. "Ahem, can I help you?" They squared off in front of her, she waited breathlessly. Slowly Shiny Head pulled his sunglasses off, folding them with deadly calm into the top pocket of his leather jacket. Long Hair followed his lead. The clerk worked to gather saliva, any saliva. Her stomach fluttering like a drunken dragonfly. The riders stared the clerk down. Then abruptly, they grinned? The clerk hesitated; they didn't have fangs, they weren't breathing fire. In fact, they seemed... friendly.
The story you are about to read is true... More or less.
"We need a couple of rooms." Shiny Head said.
Saturday. High Noon. Main Lobby.
"We've been riding since seven o'clock this morning, man I can't wait to shower!" Long Hair chimed in.
The sun teetered at its zenith, dusty heat rolled across the parking lot. Shimmering mirages transformed the pavement into a world of mirrors and illusion. Although the clerk hadn't noticed it at first, things had gone eerily still. Birds had stopped chattering, bees were silent, even the bustle of humanity had vanished. It was as if the world was holding its breath. A terrible rumble tore through the air. Something monstrous was coming. It was the kind of noise that dove straight to the center of your rib cage, wrapped a boney claw around your heart and shook. Hard. The clerk struggled to swallow. Whatever it was, it was nearly here. A tiny voice in the back of her head screamed for her to run, escape while she could. But that was silly. She couldn't leave the front desk. The rumbling clawed at her skeleton, she felt it in her teeth. In her skull. In her spine. She peered out the front door, desperate to catch a glimpse of the approaching evil. Two riders burst through the white hot rays of sunlight. Ominous and dark, they rolled toward the hotel. The clerk's glass of water quivered as they turned into the parking lot. Just as the sound was about to shatter her, the riders killed the engines. The sudden silence hit her like a ton of bricks. The clerk let out a gasp of air she hadn't realized she'd been holding. They dismounted, moving in unison, duplicate reflections of a single demon. With deadly purpose they strolled toward her. A chill rolled down her spine. Cloaked in road dust, their heavy black leathers were gritty and abused. Broad sunglasses obscured whatever sinister purpose their eyes held. Their long beards were wildly unkempt, ravaged by torrents of wind. Light gleamed off one's head while the other's salt and pepper hair raged half way down his back. Their boots echoed heavily in the silence as they strolled into the lobby. Thick chains dangled from their belts, clinking loudly, the riders approached the front desk. The clerk stared at her reflection in their sunglasses. She looked scared and wide eyed, like a bunny in the headlights of an oncoming semi.
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The clerk couldn't help but return their smiles, "Oh. Well, let's see what we've got..." Long hair leaned on the counter, "So, which one of us gets the better room?" He lifted his eyebrows in a maneuver that reminded her of Groucho Marx. Smiling the clerk shrugged, "Who ever gets me their card faster." In a flurry of movement, the jangle of chains screamed through the lobby. The riders leapt toward her, elbowing for position. A credit card smacked onto the counter. Another landed just past the first. Then a third card hit the stone. A third?
My Two Lives By Francis Conlon
Are my two lives like a mask, Different aspects of being alive, Each suited to a special task? One face is private; I must survive, The daily bread I do secure, Breathe afresh and life can thrive. A public persona lets me be demure, For life does have a social face, And its echoes will endure. Between two lives is no real race, 'Tho it might see life's odd twists, And journey at its own pace. A monastic spirit I do not resist, The cosmos and view that's true, Good o'er evil, perhaps, can persist.
Then a wallet sailed toward her head! "Yaaah!" The clerk slapped the wallet down just before it slammed her in the face. For a long moment the three stared at one another, jaws hanging open. No one moved. The clerk grasped at her composure; the the riders looked like guilty kids, busted playing ball in the store. A giggle slipped out of her. In an instant all three were laughing, tears squeezed from the corner of their eyes.
Tension 'tween lives I might review, A transcendental reunion can renew. (Two schizo faces will not do, I agree: Me, too. Me, too.)
Several belly aching minutes later, the clerk took a deep breath. "Okay, okay... you guys are in 216 and 217, they're both nice rooms!" "Well thank God!" Shiny Head said, "I wouldn't be able to sleep if he was in a nicer room!" The clerk slid them their room keys. And their credit cards. And their wallet. "Here you go, enjoy your stay." Stowing his things, Shiny Head grinned, "You bet we will!" Long Hair waved back at her as they walked away, "Thank you, you have yourself a good night!" The clerk shook her head as they left the lobby. Sometimes first impressions couldn't be further from the truth!
879.5929 905 Weiss Drive - across HWY 40 from the Holiday Inn
I will love the light for it shows me the way, yet I will endure the darkness because it shows me the stars.—Og Mandino
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August 2019
Valley Voice
Outdoor Theatre
Embracing the Unpredictable By Stuart Handloff
upright piano that had been trucked in (but that’s a whole other story).
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At that point, the actors figured they couldn’t get any wetter so why not finish the end of the play, a comic scene where Pyrmus and Thisbe - two ill fated lovers - melodramatically and unconvincingly take their own lives. The rain came down, the audience crammed in cheek by jowl, and the sopping actors slipped and thrashed comically about outside on the wet grass. It was a hysterical moment that those in attendance will never forget; the remaining audience members roared. The physical comedy of the scene was unlike any that could have been rehearsed thanks to the magic of the natural environment.
William Shakespeare's
Hamlet Auditions August 11 . 5pm -7pm
St. Paul's Episcopal Church, 9th and Oak Streets . Steamboat Springs
William Shakespeare's
The Tempest The Paper Bag Princess
(An Acrobatic Fairy Tale)
July 28 -August 8 Sunday - Thursday evenings, 6pm Bud Werner Library/Yampa River Botanic Park
The first actors were likely storytellers gathered around a campfire, recounting tales of the hunt, or the battle with the neighbors, or a comedy making fun of the tribal leader (who, hopefully, had a thick skin and a sense of humor). All this happened in the outdoors, or the occasional cave or teepee, with the natural environment playing a key role. Playing outdoors was not much of a choice when there was only natural light to see the performers and perhaps a natural amphitheater for a stage. Electricity and exotic performing arts centers give us much more flexibility these days. Performance spaces can be completely controlled with masterfully designed sets, like the giant puppet model of King Kong that recently won a Tony Award at the annual event. Voice amplification can protect delicate vocal chords and insure perfect sound quality even to the cheap seats. Theatre lighting is able to create a vast array of nuanced moods to support any stage or technical director’s dream. It’s hard to imagine The Phantom of the Opera, for example, without the lighting effects that created the magic of subterranean canals. So why would a theatre troupe choose to return to the primeval outdoors to tell their story when technology is so much more sophisticated and available? I recently attended an outdoor production at the Colorado Shakespeare Festival in Boulder of Twelfth Night. It was drizzling at the beginning of the beginning of the show and off and on throughout the first act. There were thunderstorms in the area and the lightning and thunder cut loose just as an actor finished a key speech. The audience gasped. It was as if the heavens had reinforced their approval of the performance. Years ago a Piknik Theatre Festival production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream playing in the Yampa River Botanic Park was racing to finish ahead of a summer storm moving in from the west. The clouds kept gathering, getting darker, while the actors kept telling the story with increasing speed and intensity. We had just arrived at the final scene when the skies opened and the rain poured down. Some of the audience members ran for their cars but many others huddled under the large umbrella that graces the middle of The Green area of the park. They were a bit wet and crammed together while the actors raced around in the driving rain covering props and an
For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
The dramatic thunderclaps, the pouring rainstorms, the nesting osprey crying out overhead, all underscore how nature becomes an important and unrehearsed character in any outdoor performance. This collision of human drama, reimagined for telling a story, with the reality of the natural world create a performance that is totally improvised and unrepeatable. All theater is ephemeral and that’s the beauty of the art: a performance happens - even for Broadway shows that run for years - just for a particular moment in time and then is gone. No two are ever the same. But add the unpredictability of the environment into the storytelling process and the uniqueness of T each performance is heightened, creating memories that C last a lifetime. b a The ancient Greeks, Romans, and Mesoamericans all recognized this almost supernatural connection and timedP performative and cultural activities to align with astro- c nomical events to add divine legitimacy to the ceremonies. t Theatre is all about creating magic. Linking environmen- S tal “magic” with the power of storytelling magnified the a impact on the imagination. m p Playing on the imagination is, of course, what live theatre s does best. We rationally know, as an audience, that these c are pretend characters who are telling us a made up story. Romeo and Juliet do not really die. But when those unpre- L dictable moments of environmental improvisation occur, p we more easily suspend our disbelief and our imaginaT tions take flight. The story suddenly becomes more real g thanks to the intervention of the natural world. Indoor p performance rarely matches the flights of fancy that so t often occur in the outdoors. w b King Henry V of England speaking of the battle about to R take place, in Shakespeare’s Henry V, understands well the connection between a natural event - “Saint Crispin’s Day R - and human drama: i M "We few, we happy few, we band of brothers; d For he to-day that sheds his blood with me o Shall be my brother; be he ne'er so vile, b This day shall gentle his condition: K And gentlemen in England now a-bed Shall think themselves accursed they were not here.” O # Audience members who attend one of our outdoor perG formances and feel the connection between those happy w unpredictable collisions of the natural and the rehearsed, w become brothers with the actors, sharing the same air. r And those who miss out, shall think themselves accursed o that they were not there.
Valley Voice
August 2019
Golfing in Routt County
Historic Fairways By Gary Popovich/ Steamboat Golf Club
25
Come by for Couples Golfing! 2019 Rates
5 miles west of Steamboat Springs.
Monday-Thursday 9-Holes: $30 Additional 9-Holes: $16 Friday-Sunday 9-Holes: $35 Additional 9-Holes: $18 Junior Golfers (17 & Under) Monday - Thursday 9 Holes: $15 Additional 9-Holes: $5 Friday - Sunday 9-Holes $18 Additional 9-Holes: $5
970-879-4295 866-479-4295
Family and Individual Memberships Available. Prices Subject to Change.
Early Season Hours: 10:00 am – 6:00 pm The Steamboat Golf Club is the oldest golf facility in Routt County, and remains a vibrant component of the Steamboat Springs golf scene. How the course came into being is a fascinating story. Prior to its construction, golf had been first played on a course featuring sand greens located on Crawford Hill in the 1920s, and then later in the Fairview neighborhood of Steamboat Springs. The course was never officially given a name; in old editions of the Steamboat Pilot, it is simply mentioned as “the local golf course." Among its regular players was one Charles Harwig, whose blacksmith and ski shop was a local institution (he is also for whom the current Steamboat Springs restaurant is named). Local golfers traveled to Grand Lake, Rifle, and other outposts to play golf on more suitable (i.e., grassy) surfaces. The clamor for a suitable course in Steamboat Springs gradually grew, so when the town fathers formulated their plan to encourage tourism in the early 1960s, construction of a new course was included along with improved winter sports facilities. Several sites were considered before the town approved the acquisition of the current Riverbend site, near Mile Marker 127 west of downtown. Rather than accepting a proposed government grant, it was decided that a non-profit club would be formed. Memberships were sold at $125 a piece. Dick Bonderson designed the course and oversaw its construction, which officially was approved in 1965 and was performed mostly by those first few members and volunteers from the local Kiwanis and Lions clubs. One of those members, Kirk Mahaffey (“Original member #8”, he proudly states), still plays regularly at Steamboat Golf Club and was one of those members who regularly worked on the construction team. “Clearing all those trees was our first job, and it was a son of a gun,” Mahaffey recalls. “Can’t tell you how many truckloads we took out of there.”
As work progressed, Pilot Editor Charles J. Leckenby made the following observations in a June 10, 1965 Pilot editorial:
Daily: Course may be closed due to weather at anytime during the season.
"Golf Course Making Headway If some of you think that a golf course is not possible, then just drive out to Riverbend and see the results of a few days’ labor. Trees have been cleared from the fairways and piled for burning. The Kiwanis and Lions clubs have work crews clearing brush and dead trees. Memberships are being sold to raise the needed money for construction, grass seed and equipment. Many of the foresighted businessmen have donated enough money to buy the land. This is a community project in which everyone should help either financially or by donating his time. There are always those who say a project of this nature cannot be done and will sit around and think of all the things that are wrong. Fortunately, these people are few since the golf course is being built by doers—not talkers. Directly or indirectly, the golf course will be an important addition to this area. It will stop people who would otherwise drive right through without spending a dime. People who stop will stay more than just overnight if they like to play golf. They will spend money for lodging, food, clothes and gifts. The golf course is making headway because enough of us believe in the future." The final major construction effort took place in 1966, when, after receiving an FHA loan of $40,000, an irrigation system was installed, again utilizing the work efforts of members and volunteers. The course grew in nicely after that work was completed, and finally in November of that year, charter members Randy Bowman and Bob Swinehart tested the course for the first time. On May 28th, 1967, Steamboat Golf Club officially opened.
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Brewery of the Month:
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Enjoy the journey and try to get better every day. And don’t lose the passion and the love for what you do.—Nadia Comaneci
26
August 2019
Valley Voice
Mister Helpful’s Dating Guide Located at Neste Auto Glass
Great Prices, Services & Parts
Your Dating Phone App Could be a Robot By Mr. Helpful, MD No kidding – and how do I know this? Because for the good of science and for you dear readers, I went down that rabbit hole. As deep as I could go. Here’s my story:
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Since I have been banned from using Tinder, I use the Bumble dating app. Yuppers, “banned” is the word used by the folks at Tinder. For reasons undisclosed to our hero, my presence is no longer welcome to find the love of my life using their highly popular phone dating app. Bummer for myself and my future long term significant other. I’ll have to find them the old fashion way – by using match. com, POF, OK Cupid, Bumble, Farmersonly.com, Christian mingle, Grinder, meetmindful.com, fetlife.com, women from home depot calendars, asiansallday.net, redheadsneedlove2.net and the 14 other sites that might be of a far better quality then Zoosk (it's just horrible). So there I am, minding my own business, thumbing through the several dozen smiling faces that appear daily on the Bumble dating app. My search ranges are within reason; 7 up and 11 down from my own. I’m far more interested in “actually dating” someone who is within a year or three of my age, but it's fun to see who is out there no matter the age. And there she is – mid 30’s, two pictures, within 10 miles of my current location. Very attractive indeed. Minutes later, we match and I get a message. “Hello handsome. How is your day going?”
970-879-2725
Zing! My mind wakes up and I am focused on this new event unfolding. HOPE, I tell you sends endorphins racing through my veins. Yippie, fun is at hand. I calmly plot my reply.
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Here’s the exchange: Katie: I just got on here an hour ago. I’m trying to figure it all out. How is your day? Mr. H: It’s my day off, so I’m being lazy. I’m over here by the Natural Grocers in Lakewood. You? Katie: I don’t understand. As we were doing this exchange, I was looking her profile. The most minimal thing on Bumble possible. Most everyone posts several pics, a bio, likes, preferences and 80% of the women will say No Hook Ups. This profile only had two pictures, name and age. THAT was it. Hmm, strange. So, with only the pictures to go on I looked deeper into them and something didn’t look right. Both were studio shots, like glamour pictures someone pays for because they want to be a model. Nothing wrong with that, except that these were showing signs of photoshopping and not in a good way. Looking at these pics, something was… off. And now to explain The Uncanny Valley. Game developers, roboticists and animators alike have been working on making their creations as human looking as possible. In the beginning of these endeavors, we viewers thought nothing of it. What we were looking at was so far from anything enjoyable or passable for an actual human, we didn’t care. As with all things, with each attempt improvements were made. These can be charted into successes and failures. Each success goes higher up the chart; getting closer to looking like a real person.
Experience the wonder
Let Us Assess Your Crack!
970-879-2725
Don’t want to seem too eager or boyishly stupid. Want to convey the worldly-man-about-town I am. “Bonjour, bonjour my Bumble friend. How goes the search for fun and happiness on this site?” Classic Mr. Helpful.
Awemaker’s Adventure ATV Giveaway July 1 - Sept. 2 Be a part of something bigger than yourself this summer and you could win some new wheels to experience the wonder of the outdoors year-round. All presenting donors at Vitalant donation centers in Colorado, Wyoming and Rapid City, South Dakota and blood drives dispatched from those areas will be automatically entered to win one of four CFMOTO CFORCE 5000 all-terrain vehicles. Learn more: vitalant.org
For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
However, there comes a point where those attempts utterly fail. Dropping the graph into a steep dip; the uncanny valley. Please find a Youtube video on this topic that will explain it far better than I did here. Humans are able to see/perceive things that hit our gut and say “something isn’t right.” Always trust yer gut my friends.
And there I was, staring at computer generated images of a woman and chatting with a bot programmed to get me talking to it as if it were a real person. The eyes were just slightly
Valley Voice
August 2019
Recurring Weekly Events: It’s all about your Happiness
too big. The jaw structure was askew. Both pix were using a soft filter. There were other things that my gut told me, "Don’t Trust This." Mr. H: "Funny, you live in Colorado and using a dating app. But WHERE are the outdoor pix? Hiking, biking, headstand on a paddle board?" Katie: "I’ve only been on here for a short time. What do you like about it?" At this point I have my suspicions and want to see what would happen if I ask both predictable and my own fun Q's. I share a picture of me and my cat looking very cuddly. Katie: "Tell me about yourself. What do you like to do?" WHAT? I just posted a picture of a cat and this supposed 36 yr old woman had ZERO reaction to a cat picture! Mr. H: "You are really attractive. Are you a robot? I’m hoping we can be friends." Katie: "Thank you. You are funny." Mr. H: "Do you want to have children or get married?" Katie: "I’m not sure yet. What about you?" Mr. H: "I want to marry a robot. Are you a robot?" Katie: "Why would you say that?" Mr. H: "Well, I just shared a picture of a cat and you had NO response whatsoever. That’s not normal. There is something “off” about your pictures. Your replies to me are super generic. Either you are boring or a robot." From here I would normally get a "F@#K OFF A*#HOLE," or any number of human replies. But this profile just disappeared. You can be as judgmental as you want and bitch at me about being a dumbass for thinking this story actually happened this way. It’s possible that I WAS chatting with a real person and that my imagination and ego ran away with each other.
SUNDAY Yampatika Naturalist on Site at Fish Creek Falls 10AM-1:30PM @ Fish Creek Falls. FREE www.yampatika.org Swinging Sunday 7-10PM/ Latin Night 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. FREE. West Coast Swing Dance Lessons 7-8PM Late Night Latin Dance Night 10PM www.schmiggitys.com MONDAY
Dart League 6:30PM @ The V Karaoke Night 9PM @ Schmiggity’s. FREE www.schmiggitys.com THURSDAY Downtown Historical Walking Tour 9AM @ Tread of Pioneers Museum. FREE www.treadofpioneers.org Steamboat Springs Writers Group Noon @ Art Depot. FREE www.steamboatwriters.com
Naturalist Walk 9:30-11AM. Locations Vary. Live Band Karaoke/ FREE. Register Online Schmiggity Jam www.yampatika.org 9PM @ Schmiggity’s. FREE www.schmiggitys.com Yampatika Naturalist on Site at Fish Creek Falls FRIDAY 10AM-1:30PM @ Fish Creek Falls. FREE Yampatika Naturalist on www.yampatika.org Site at Fish Creek Falls 10AM-1:30PM @ Fish Piano Bar Night Creek Falls. FREE 8:30PM @ Schmiggity’s. www.yampatika.org FREE. www.schmiggitys.com Brown Bag Summer Storytelling Series TUESDAY Noon @ Tread of Pioneers Museum. FREE Olympic Heritage Tour www.treadofpioneers.org 9AM @ Howelsen Hill Lodge. FREE SATURDAY www.treadofpioneers.org Farmer’s Market Pool League 9AM-2PM @ 7th& Yampa 6:30PM @ The V Live Performances Each Week Two-Step Tuesday mainstreetsteamboat.com 7PM @ Schmiggity’s (Country Dance Lessons). City Council Booth FREE. 9AM-11AM @ www.schmiggitys.com Farmers Market steamboatsprings.net WEDNESDAY Yampatika Naturalist on Mineral Springs Tour Site at Fish Creek Falls 9-11AM @ Arts Depot. 10AM-1:30PM @ Fish FREE Creek Falls. FREE www.yampatika.org www.yampatika.org
Meet one of the best dogs in Routt County: Ann
27
Friendly and knowledgeable staff.
A Steamboat original since 2009.
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Giant brains in the private sectors as well as in governments all want to be first in the race to fooling us. AI programs are testing us hourly. And everyday they get better and better at it. Some folks are already falling for these fake profiles. Not scammers mind you, fake AI profiles. Big difference.
Next month – Dating 20 or more years younger – WTF is wrong with you and 7 other phrases everyone will say or think about you to your face.
Cheapest Drinks in Town! Photo by Crash Sterne
116 9th Street 970-870-9980
Oh the summer night, Has a smile of light, And she sits on a sapphire throne.—Bryan Procter
28
August 2019
Valley Voice
Calendar of Free Events To submit your free events or calendar information e-mail to: ericvalleyvoice@gmail.com Events may be edited for length or content. Calendar entries must be received by the 15th of each month. THURSDAY AUGUST 1
TUESDAY AUGUST 6
MONDAY AUGUST 12
FRIDAY AUGUST 23
Colorado Day
Steamboat Community Blood Drive. 12:30 – 6 p.m. At UCHealth/Yampa Valley Medical Center (1024 Central Park Drive)
Seminars at Steamboat presents: "State of Play— The 2020 Election" 5:30 PM @ Strings Pavilion. Free tickets distributed @ 4:45 PM www.seminarsatsteamboat.org
Freedom Conference
TUESDAY AUGUST 13
Freedom Conference
Mad Creek Geology and History Hike 9AM @ Mad Creek Trail Head. $25 www.treadofpioneers.org
Live Music @ Farmers’ Market 9-10:45 AM Mountain Harmony 11:30AM-1:30PM Trevor G Potter
FRIDAY AUGUST 2 Exhibition by Maggie Smith: We the People Pine Moon Fine Art, 117 9th Street Lulie Crawford's Wildflowers and Watercolors 9AM @ Yampa River Botanic Park. FREE www.treadofpioneers.org Author Event: Eirliana Abdul Rahman “Survivors: Breaking the Silence on Child Sexual Abuse” 2PM @ Off The Beaten Path. FREE. First Friday Art Walk 5PM @ Downtown Steamboat. Self-guided tour of local art galleries, museums and alternative venues. FREE.
City Council Election Nomination Petitions Available 7:30AM @ City Hall. steamboatsprings.net/election WEDNESDAY AUGUST 7 Tour the Historic Mesa Schoolhouse 3PM @ FREE www.treadofpioneers.org
WEDNESDAY AUGUST 14
THURSDAY AUGUST 8
V-J Day
Planning Commission 5PM @ Centennial Hall steamboatsprings.net/agendas
Historic Preservation Commission 5PM @ Centennial Hall steamboatsprings.net/agendas
Second Annual Art Show Opening Night 5PM @ Hayden Public Library. 276-3777
Traveling Film Festival: Lunafest plus Young Bloods Collective’s unveiling of the 2020 theme for SPEAK! 7PM @ Library Hall. $10 at the door supports SPEAK www.steamboatlibrary.org/ events
Whitewater Ramble 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. $10. www.schmiggitys.com
The Mammoths 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. FREE. www.schmiggitys.com
Mersiv 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. $15. www.schmiggitys.com
SATURDAY AUGUST 3
FRIDAY AUGUST 9
SATURDAY AUGUST 17
Live Music @ Farmers’ Market 9-10:45 AM Adia Clark Lay 11:30 AM-1:30 PM Herding Cats mainstreetsteamboat.com
Coffee with Council 7:30AM @ Centennial Hall steamboatsprings.net
West Side Creatives Free Community Studio Tour Featuring live demos by creatives in the Copper Ridge area. 1 - 5 PM 2570 S Copper Frontage Road
Andrew Cates 8PM @ Steamoat Whiskey Company. FREE Wish You Were Pink 9PM @ Schmiggity’s. $5 ADV/$10 DOS. www.schmiggitys.com SUNDAY AUGUST 4 Piknik Theatre: “The Paper Bag Princess” 6PM @ Library Lawn. FREE www.steamboatlibrary.org/ events MONDAY AUGUST 5 Seminars at Steamboat presents: "How Do You Get to Mt. Rushmore: Can Presidential Character be Set in Stone?" 5:30PM @ Strings Pavilion. Free tickets distributed @ 4:45PM www.seminarsatsteamboat. org
Wake Up and Live 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. $5. www.schmiggitys.com SATURDAY AUGUST 10 Live Music @ Farmers’ Market 9-10:45 AM Mountain Harmony. 11:30AM-1:30PM Todd Musselman. Victory Service Dog Fundraiser 1PM @ Steamboat Whiskey Company. $20ADV/$25DOS steamboatwhiskeyco.com Universal Sigh 9:30PM @ Schmiggity’s. FREE. www.schmiggitys.com SUNDAY AUGUST 11 Book Club Event: Books & Brews 5PM @ Yampa Valley Brewing Company in Hayden, CO 20% Off Books, $1 Off Brews
Parks & Recreation Commission 5:30PM @ Centennial Hall steamboatsprings.net/agendas FRIDAY AUGUST 16
Live Music @ Farmers’ Market. 9-10:45 AM Mountain Harmony 11:30AM-1:30PM John Fogerty Diggin Dirt 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. FREE. www.schmiggitys.com THURSDAY AUGUST 22 Freedom Conference Planning Commission 5PM @ Centennial Hall steamboatsprings.net/agendas Bud Werner Memorial Library’s Foreign Film Series at the Chief “The Sower” 7:00PM @ Chief Theater. FREE www.steamboatlibrary. org/events Mo Lowda & The Humble w/ Pierce Edens 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. $5.
For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
40 Oz to Freedom 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. $10. www.schmiggitys.com SATURDAY AUGUST 24
Author Event: Diana Curran “Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da” 2PM @ Off The Beaten Path. FREE. Mikey Thunder 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. $10. www.schmiggitys.com SUNDAY AUGUST 25 Book Club Event: Books & Brews 5PM @ Yampa Valley Brewing Company in Hayden, CO 20% Off Books, $1 Off Brews MONDAY AUGUST 26 City Council Election Nomination Petition Deadline 5:30PM @ City Hall steamboatsprings.net/election TUESDAY AUGUST 27 City Council Meeting 5PM @ Centennial Hall steamboatsprings.net Free Film: “Grit” 7PM @ Library Hall. FREE www.steamboatlibrary.org/ events WEDNESDAY AUGUST 28 Parks & Recreation Commission 5:30PM @ Centennial Hall steamboatsprings.net/agendas THURSDAY AUGUST 29 Workshop: Sandhill Crane Basics 4PM @ Library Hall. FREE. www.steamboatlibrary. org/events Spellbinders Storytime: Crane Tales 4PM @ Bud Werner Library Storytime Room. FREE. www.steamboatlibrary.org/ events
Spirit Wind Aerial Arts 5PM @ Library Lawn. FREE. www.coloradocranes.org “Saving Jemima,” author and artist Julie Zickefoose 6PM @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org “How to Know the Birds,” author and Birding magazine editor Ted Floyd 7:15PM @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org FRIDAY AUGUST 30
SATURDAY AUGUST 31 Live Music @ Farmers’ Market 9-10:45 AM Adia Clark Lay 11:30 AM-1:30 PM Joe Ghilia Sketch a Bird workshop with artist and author Julie Zickefoose and feathered models from HawkQuest’s live raptors 9AM @ Library Hall and Library Lawn. FREE www.coloradocranes.org
Crane Yoga with Liz Leipold 9:30AM @ Little Toots Park. FREE www.coloradocranes.org
HawkQuest’s live raptors at the library 10AM-4PM @ Library Lawn. FREE. www.steamboatlibrary. org/events
“Optics 101: Choosing the right binocular for you.” Chip Clouse 11AM @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org
Children and Family Activities with Yampatika and Colorado Parks & Wildlife 10AM @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org
“Symbolic Expressions of Birds by Different Groups in Africa at Different Times” A talk by artist, landscape architect/ecologist, educator and crane enthusiast Pam Liu Noon @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org
Free Film: “Journey of the Whooping Crane” 11AM @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org
“Fast, Feisty, Flamboyant – Hummingbirds of the Yampa Valley” presented by Sandra Noll and Erv Nichols 2PM @ Trillium House. FREE www.coloradocranes.org Hummingbirds and Hummingbird Moth Walk led by young birder, Andrew Floyd and Andrew’s dad, Ted Floyd, editor of Birding Magazine 3PM @ Trillium House. FREE www.coloradocranes.org Yampa Valley Crane Festival Crane Yard Art Display & Silent Auction, including live music by Yer State Birds @ 4PM FREE www.coloradocranes.org Wine, (Sandhill Crane Red) beer & cheese reception and Gallery Show 5PM @ Pine Moon Fine Art. FREE but donations accepted at the door www.coloradocranes.org “The Great Migration, How the Crane Trust Manages and Saves Habitat for Sandhill Cranes” Nebraska Crane Trust CEO Chuck Cooper 7PM @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org The Unlikely Candidates w/ Good Strangers 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. $10 www.schmiggitys.com
Yampa Valley Crane Festival Crane Yard Art Display & Silent Auction. Noon-3:30PM @ Library Lawn. FREE www.coloradocranes.org Yampa Valley Crane Festival Photo Contest & Creative Arts Awards Noon @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org Free Film: “Lost Bird Project” 12:30PM @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes. org Yampa Valley Crane Festival Keynote Speaker: Kerryn Morrison "Africa’s Cranes, Wetlands and Communities: An Exciting Story of Hope and Success" 1:30PM @ Library Hall. FREE www.coloradocranes.org Yampa Valley Crane Festival picnic dinner and a talks. BYO picnic. 4:30-6:45PM @ The Nature Conservancy’s Carpenter Ranch in Hayden. FREE www.coloradocranes.org Free Film: “Grit” 7PM @ Library Hall. FREE www.steamboatlibrary.org/ events The Aquaducks 10PM @ Schmiggity’s. FREE. www.schmiggitys.com
Schmac and Cheese
Valley Voice
August 2019
29
Local Fun
The Yampuzzler
Answers on page 31
By Bruce "Steamboat Springs" Dean
821 Lincoln Ave - schmiggitys.com ver m $10 Co Dancegrass) p 0 1 : d n e gust 2 Octan Friday, Auter Ramble (HighOS DV/$10 D nd) A Whitewa 5 $ m p te Ba rd: 9 , August 3k (Pink Floyd Tribu y a d r u t a S Were Pin ! Wish You pm FREE ) 0 1 : h t 8 es/ Rock , August Thursday moths (Psych/ Blu ver The Mam pm $5 Co Tribute Band) 0 1 : h t 9 gust arley Friday, Auand Live (A Bob M ! Wake Up pm FREE 0 :3 9 : h t 0 ic Rock) , August 1 Saturday l Sigh (Metamorph Universa $15 Cover m p 0 1 : gust 16th Friday, Aulectronic) over Mersiv (E 0 pm $5 C Edens 1 : h t 7 1 t Augus / Pierce Saturday,a & The Humble w Mo Lowd ive Rock) E! (Alternat 0 pm FREove Music) 1 : d n 2 2 gae Gro , August Thursday t (Funk/Rock/Reg ver Diggin Dir m $10 Co Band) p 0 1 : d r gust 23 Tribute Friday, Aureedom (Sublime 40 Oz to F $10 Cover m p 0 1 : 4th August 2 arty) Saturday,under (DJ Dance P ver Mikey Th m $10 Co p 0 1 : h t gust 30 Friday, Auely Candidates w/ The Unlik ngers (Rock) REE! Good Stra : 10 pm F t s 1 3 t s u Aug Saturday, ducks (Funk/Soul) REE The Aqua dhart -10 pm/ F
y" 7 t Goo ing SundaLessons with Scot g in w S " : Sunday st Swing Dance ancing 10 pm West Coaate Night Latin D time long good a g 7-8 pm L in -S 8:30 pm ongs!) Bar Nightk from over 1000 s o n ia P : y Monda e Martinez (pic sson Dance Le y r t n with Mik u o C FREE Step 7 pm7:30 pm o w T : y a Tuesd anda Leftwich with Am pm e Night 9 k o a r a K : ! n ay Wednesd, Costumes and Fu 0 pm e k o ity Jam 9:3 a g r ig Ka m h c raoke/S e Band Kah a live band! iv L : y a d s r it Thu y along w Sing or pla
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7 Stone used in marbles 8 The Centennial State 9 Camera glass 10 Get rid of 11 Alternative to FedEx 12 Former Chicorita provider, ___ Amigos 14 Park in the Rockies 19 Mountain biking capital 22 Loved, loved, loved 24 Texter's "bye for now" 26 Cable alternative 27 Beatles label, once 28 Buffoon 31 "Tell me!" 33 Affluent, in Acapulco 35 Transfixed 37 ICU hooku
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40 Summer cooler 41 Fountain pen fillers 42 March Madness network 43 Right off the stove 46 Capable of being stretched 47 Train pullers 49 Simple Lionel layout 51 Snorkeling destinations 55 Hogwarts motto language 57 ___-Whirl 58 Fog 59 Look after 61 Disorderly group 62 Reverse card game 63 Earl Grey or pekoe 65 Suffix with bombard
Bald Eagle Lake/ Photo by: Kelly Koehler
Oh Schmiggity!
Tickets online at schmiggitys.com or at All That.
Schmappy Hour 7-9 Daily
I'm patient with crossword puzzles and the most impatient golfer. ‑ Brett Hull
30
August 2019
Valley Voice
Yepelloscopes
Your Monthly Message By Chelsea Yepello Aries
March 21 - April 19
MATCH
ANY PRICE
IN STEAMBOAT * * Excludes flower. Not to be combined with any other discounts.
You will happen upon some money when your friends bet you that the line; “What kind of waffles do you want in the morning?” is not an effective way to pick people up. Luckily for you, your next one-night stand really likes waffles.
Taurus
April 20 - May 20
Scorpio
Gemini
May 20 - June 20
A devastating misunderstanding will leave you slightly embarrassed when you realize that the manly hunting trip you were invited to with your buddies consisted of REAL guns, not the kind with the orange tips on the barrel.
Cancer
June 21 - July 22
That burning question will finally be answered when your neighbor, your doctor, the life guard and your second-cousin’s-best friend all say that it’s not a rash.
Leo
July 23 - August 23
Although you attempt to hide from your problems by burying your head in the sand like on ostrich, you soon realize that you are beginning to suffocate and are creating an entirely new set of problems for yourself.
Virgo
August 23 - September 22
You might find someone that fits your weird little vision of perfection. You may convince yourself that you are happy and they are the best thing you’ve ever had, but you know better. When it really comes down to it, they are just trying to survive just like you are and they need to cling to you just as much as you cling to them. ROAD DAWG
CAKE DANCE
OPEN DAILY Recreational & Medical
1755 Lincoln Avenue Steamboat Springs, CO On the Free Bus Route
970-870-2941
www.GoldenLeaf.co For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
September 23 - October 23
It’s a bit unclear, but you will either drive a little old woman across the street, or a little old woman will run you over while you are crossing the street. Either way you will be noted in the newspaper… so live up the fame while you can.
By this time next year, you will be a multimillionaire with a fleet of beautiful yachts that sail you to private tropical islands. Too bad the world is going to end before then.
GOLDEN LEAF WILL
Libra
October 24 - November 21
You are a wild child caught in the mind of a scholar. You are tired of the daily routine but the routine finds you no matter where you go. You’re cynically hopeful and always seeking for the next big adventure without actually looking.
Sagittarius
November 22 - December 21
During a nap, you dream of creating a world where there was no war, famine, greed, selfishness, sadness, jealously or pain. Everyone was Happy, Happy, Happy All The Time. You wake up to realize that your roommate left their cellphone on their self-confidence and empowerment podcast again and you promptly throw it in the toilet. Take that, happy.
Capricorn
December 22 - January 19
At this point, there really is no saying. You might as well take a deep breath and see what happens.
Aquarius
January 20 - February 18
Your attempts to pursue a career as an underwear model will be recognized when you are noted as the face of a new line of super hero undies with the days of the week embroidered in the elastic band.
Pisces
February 19 - March 20
Maybe the reason that you and the co-workers you like never seem to get off of your shifts at the same time is because your bosses know that you would develop a successful mutiny… or become drunks.
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R A N T S S A C L A U D 13 14 15 16 E N A B L E E G O E X P O 17 18 19 V I S O R S C A L M N E S S 20 21 22 I M A N T A T T O O S 25
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V A L E T E D E R A S E A 29 30 31 32 33 E T C T S O S A B R A M S 34 35 36 37 38 D E A R Y R A I D I T I S 39
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C H I P E D I T N O L T E 48 49 50 51 52 B O T T O M T U R K L E N 53 54 55 56 57 S T Y V O L B E S T I N G 58
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M A N A T E 61 62 63 M U T I L A T E 67 O N E S D I N 66 69
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I T S I 65 I L E I N E T T L E 71
R A V E
S
Valley Voice
31
August 2019
August 2019
Valley Voice 138 137 136
E3 Chophouse
MUSIC on the STAGE! Aug 3 Aug 10
Herding Cats Mtn. Harmony Todd Musselman Aug 17 Mtn. Harmony John Fogerty Aug 24 Mtn. Harmony Trevor G Potter Aug 31 Joe Ghilia Sept 7 Trevor G Potter Sept 14 Better Half Sept 21 Not confirmed Sept 28 Chili Challenge-
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OHANA
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7th Street
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STAGE
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YAMPA RIVER
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Questions? 970-367-7060 or lisa@mainstreetsteamboat.com
Mainstreetsteamboat.com For those who live here and for those who wish they did.
95 94 93 92 91 90
YAMPA STREET
Sake2U
99
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Saturdays from June 15 - September 21 9:00 AM to 2:00 pm. 7th and Yampa Streets
33
M ms roo t s Re
84
ALLEY
109
100
1
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105
Come down to Farmers Market and vegetate with the rest of us. Have some lunch, listen to music, talk to your neighbors and have a great time. Then stick around to explore the rest of downtown.
Carl’s M
120
not confirmed yet
Vendor Parking : Howelsen Park Ice Arena Patron parking : Steamboat Rodeo Grounds across the bridge at 5th St and Yampa
For a complete list of vendors, go to mainstreetsteamboat.com
134
ALLEY
Taco Cabo
YAMPA STREET
32
85 86 87 88 89 139 140 141 142
6th Street