Crozet Gazette March 2017 by The Crozet Gazette

INSIDE NO, EXPLAINED page 2 THE SQUARE FIRST page 3 SCIENTIFIC IS BEST page 4 TING TIME? page 6 NEW OLD THINGS page 7

MARCH 2017 VOL. 11, NO. 10

WARS Honors Our Heroes

COMEBACK CABIN page 11

By Michael Marshall editor@crozetgazette.com

POWELL’S CREEK page 15

Stalwart volunteer Purcell McCue took special honors at a typically emotional awards dinner for the Western Albemarle Rescue Squad Feb. 4 at King Family Vineyards. WARS president Bill Wood opened the evening remarking, “I’d like to thank 99.9 percent of you not just for being here, but for being at all— because of the job you do. The community appreciates what you do.” Bob and Leann Knox, both pillars of the squad, took the mike to say thank you to their fellow volunteers for emotional support with their family tragedy. Leann was on duty recently when a call to an accident at the I-64 exit ramp came in. She arrived to find it was her son Brendan, age 19, involved in a horrible motorcycle accident. The Knoxes had come to the dinner from U.Va. hospital, where Brendan was in the ICU. Bob told their story and summed it up saying, “The U.Va. slogan of ‘a miracle every day’ is true.” County Fire Rescue Chief Dan Eggleston congratulated WARS for being “known as an organization that

JAMAICAN BBQ page 18 MIKE MARSHALL

THE LONG TRAIL page 24 THE NEXT ABELL? page 27 MAT CHAMPS page 28 BEST IN VA page 29 BEST INDOORS page 31 COUGH CHECK page 32 NO SNOW page 33 SILVER SPARROW page 34 OLD BEATS YOUNG page 35 ROBOT MASTERS page 36 HOT LEGS page 37 PINES V.2 page 38 BE THERE page 41 BEREAVEMENTS page 43

A 111-year-old home on Blue Ridge Avenue was demolished Feb. 8 by the developer of The Vue.

Preserving the Past in Crozet: No Refuge for Historic Homes By Lisa Martin lisamartin@crozetgazette.com The Smith house stood on Blue Ridge Avenue, two blocks west of downtown Crozet, for more than 100 years. Nicknamed for the Smith family who lived there for 23 years beginning in 1984, it was built a century ago on one acre for a man named Bickers, a telegraph operator for the railroad who moved here from Bath County. The Smith house was red

brick with a metal, side-gabled jerkinhead roof and a stone fire pit in the back yard. Walnut floors and high ceilings graced the main floor, along with both a front and back set of stairs and a wide, wraparound porch. The house was listed, along with several outbuildings on the grounds, as a contributing property for the Crozet Historic District entry in the National Register of Historic Places. On February 7, the developer who

Manners Matter: Etiquette Lunch for Local Elementary Students By Clover Carroll clover@crozetgazette.com Forty young men and women, dressed in their Sunday best with red sequins and white lace dresses, long pants, and tucked-in, collared shirts, file quietly into the formal dining room. Silently beholding the beautifully decorated tables, set with the full

continued on page 13

continued on page 8

complement of silver, glass, linen napkins, and place name cards, the guests politely stand behind their chairs until all have arrived, waiting for the gentlemen to pull out chairs to seat the ladies. Once seated, soft, polite conversation ensues. Are we at Downton Abbey? No! We are at the Afton Christian School’s annual Etiquette

continued on page 20

MIKE MARSHALL

FLAGS OUT! page 23

Bob and Leann Knox

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

From the Editor There Ought to Be a Law The Vue, a 126-unit apartment complex about to be built on Blue Ridge Avenue by Pinnacle Construction and Development is now a poster child for exploiting not one but two holes in Albemarle County ordinances. The Gazette has already objected to the project’s collaboration with the Piedmont Housing Alliance, then the owner of the property, to redraw parcel boundaries so that acres of unbuildable floodplain along

Retraction of Source

Due to a reporter’s error, statements in an article in last month’s Gazette (“West Glen Environmental Assessment Shows No Health Risk”) were wrongly attributed to Nicola McGoff, rather than to the site assessment report prepared by her company, Wild Ginger Field Services LLC. In addition, the words “they [arsenic and lead levels] don’t signify any immediate human danger” are a quo-

RN RIDGE

Powells Creek became attached to The Vue, thus allowing it to game county rules about buildable and unbuildable land (the county refers to it as constrained and unconstrained land). That meant a project that was limited to 68 units by existing zoning morphed to 126 units. Current rules consider a whole parcel in calculating allowable density. Instead, unbuildable land— flood plain, steep slopes— should simply be subtracted off the top rather than allowing potential units to be squeezed onto whatever portion of the continued on page 14

tation taken neither in person nor from the written report. Nor did Ms. McGoff offer “advice” on health risks as the story said. The report did inform the developer that the site does not contain arsenic or lead above regulatory thresholds and no action is required. The Gazette deeply regrets the implication that Ms. McGoff was advising on health matters not within her area of expertise and apologizes to her and its readers.

To the Editor Send your letters to the editor to news@crozetgazette.com. Letters will not be printed anonymously. Letters do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Crozet Gazette.

Ann Mallek’s Response to Public Criticism About the Adelaide Decision Criticism has been leveled at the process and decision to deny rezoning of the Adelaide property on Rt. 250 in Crozet. I stand behind my vote to deny Adelaide to uphold important features of the Crozet master plan. I encourage residents to study the facts about this project and the background on zoning and the zoning process. Hopefully this information will provide some answers and a broader understanding of the decision-making factors involved. I welcome questions from constituents. Did we vote “against inclusivity” in Crozet? Assertions have been made that the extra 40+ units being requested for Adelaide (for a total of 80 instead of the approximate 35 by-right) would have been available for use by

people of moderate and low income, starter homes for young families, police and fire staff, and retirees. While fifteen percent (12) of the units to be constructed in Adelaide’s 80 units would have met the guidelines for affordability, with a purchase price near $220,000, the remaining 68 units would not have been “affordable” by county guidelines, as their offering prices would have been $300,000 to $400,000. In addition, there is no affordability requirement beyond the first owner for any of these residential units. There is no county rule which prevents construction of more affordable units. Supervisors who voted to deny the application have been criticized that they “voted against inclusivity and against the recommendations of experts they appointed.” There are different interpretations of the elements of a master plan by different groups involved in the process. The staff makes a recommendation to the planning commission. The planning commission is a hard-working continued on page 12

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Published on the first Thursday of the month by The Crozet Gazette LLC, P.O. Box 863, Crozet, VA 22932

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CONTRIBUTING WRITERS: John Andersen, Clover Carroll, Theresa Curry, Marlene Condon, Elena Day, Phil James, Charles Kidder, Lisa Martin, Dirk Nies, Robert Reiser, Roscoe Shaw, Heidi Sonen, Eric Wallace, Denise Zito.

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By Eric Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com The Crozet Community Advisory Committee met at Crozet Library with Albemarle County principal transportation planner Kevin McDermott and other county officials Feb. 15 to prioritize transportation projects for the coming year and beyond. The discussion opened with Albemarle County Board of Supervisors Rio District representative Brad Sheffield discussing the implementation of bus service from Crozet to Charlottesville in his capacity as the executive director of JAUNT Inc. “The route is going to be limited to around a 45-minute travel window,” Sheffield told CCAC members. “So whatever lines we put on the map, whatever stops we put on the ground, we’re going to keep from the first time a bus picks somebody up to the last time they drop somebody off down to 45 minutes.”

That window will play a key role in determining stop locations as well as routes. “Right now, it takes about 20 minutes to get from here to UVA,” said Sheffield. “You add two more stops and you’re up to 35 or 40 minutes. Add another and there’s a compounding effect.” JAUNT is working with the University of Virginia to determine community interest in Crozet locations for bus stops as well as arrival times in Charlottesville. Both JAUNT and the University conducted citizen surveys to gather data and obtained overlapping results. “The bulk of the feedback for where people would like to see stops came from the west side, with Old Trail followed by the Highlands and Corey Farms areas as favorites,” said Sheffield. The times preferred for departures were 7:45 and 8:15 a.m., with a preferred return around 5 p.m. Route planners want to avoid highly congested areas in the morning, including the intersections at Brownsville

ALLIE PESCH

The Square Tops CCAC Priorities for Transportation Projects

Kevin McDermott, Albemarle County Transportation Planner at the CCAC Meeting

Elementary and Western Albemarle High School on Rt. 250. “Something that surprised us was the amount of public feedback regarding midday service,” said Sheffield. “People indicated there was an interest in going to Charlottesville for leisure or shopping or whatever, so we’re looking into accommodating that as well.” For the line to be successful,

it would be best to secure stop locations that feature convenient parking for commuters and surroundings that make for easier waits—proximity to a coffee shop or a grocery store, for instance. There is currently a 12-spot park and ride area designated behind the Bank of America in downtown Crozet, Sheffield said. But the lot wouldn’t facilicontinued on page 22

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Community Association to Conduct Survey on Growth By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com Led by the Crozet Community Association, efforts to conduct a community survey that will provide information on growth issues for an update of the Crozet Master Plan are well underway. CMP provisions call for a plan update every five years that is now two years overdue. According to CCA president Tim Tolson, that delay is causing Crozet residents problems. “When it came time to do the master plan revision in 2015, the county said it did not have the staff or funding to do it until at least 2018,” said Tolson. “Since several project plans have come through the county’s process for approval where there seems to be a discrepancy between how the community interprets the language in the master plan versus the interpretations of county staff, rather than wait another two years for a revision, the community is undertaking the survey as a first

step in the revision process.” Cited as a prime example of the kind of issues a revision will help to avoid are those that recently played out with the proposed Adelaide development. Looking to the 2009 survey as a precedent, Tolson offered another case study. “One example from the 2009-2010 survey and master plan revision was regarding whether to permit development of the land around the Interstate 64 slash Route 250 interchange at Yancey’s Mill,” he said. “Some saw and advocated for it as an appropriate and prime economic development opportunity. However, the 2009 survey responses made it clear that an overwhelming majority [of Crozetians] did not want that area to be opened to development. Subsequent discussions illuminated why, and master plan revision continued the prohibition of development in what is currently zoned rural.” The survey, which Tolson expects will be conducted in April and completed by May, is

Crozet Master Plan Land Use Map (visit crozetgazette.com to see image full size).

meant to provide county officials and CCA with information they need to make decisions reflecting of the specific desires of Crozet residents. “I found the survey information to be profoundly useful in making decisions,” said former White Hall District Planning Commissioner Tom Loach. “It allowed me to cite specific data regarding how the people I was there to represent felt about a given issue… Being able to point to concrete data certainly

held more sway with the other representatives.” This time around, the CCA will ensure the survey is certifiably scientific.“By saying this will be a ‘scientific’ survey, what we’re really trying to communicate in one word is that it will follow established procedures for conducting a survey in such a way that the results can be generalized to a specific population, within a certain margin of error, such as say 3-5 percent,”

continued on page 19

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Ting Considers Bringing Fiber-optic Internet Service to Crozet By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com After purchasing Charlottesville fiber-optic Internet service provider Blue Ridge Interworks in February 2015, Ting has yet to announce formal plans to run fiber to Crozet, but rumors are circulating. “Ting is planning to pull fiber to Crozet,” wrote Mark McCardell, a member of the Parkside Village Homeowners’ Association, addressing other Crozet residents via neighborhood social networking site Nextdoor.com. “Many in our neighborhood have already paid the $9 to pre-order. The more people that express interest, the greater the incentive for them to pull the fiber out to Crozet.” Ting Internet vice president of networks Adam Eisner said nothing has been decided. “The acquisition of BRI put us into the Charlottesville area and since then the goal has been to cover as much of the city in fiber as we can,” he said. “That said, as we continue to build up

Charlottesville, we’ll be looking at customer interest in surrounding areas, and Crozet checks off a lot of the boxes that are interesting to us in terms of evaluating markets.” Namely, those are rapid population growth, projected business development, and many young and affluent families interested in cutting the cord. “At this point, we haven’t run marketing efforts to look at it more closely, but Crozet is a good size area with a sizable market, so that’s something that will surely happen down the line,” said Eisner. According to Eisner, McCardell’s announcement raised an important point. “On the customer side of things, we’ve worked with a lot of HOA’s in the Charlottesville area that got our attention basically by generating interest on the ground-level,” he said. “While some companies are very specific about the metrics they need to move into a given area—for instance, Google says they need 20 percent in x or y

neighborhood or they’re not coming—we don’t do that. Instead, what we do is take $9 pre-orders, which serves as a barometer to gauge people’s interest.” While Eisner refrained from setting a specific number, he said that a strong level of preorders would indicate it was worthwhile for Ting to invest in the expensive process of running fiber down Route 250 and into Crozet. “We have a unit that’s dedicated to working with HOA’s on bringing service in, so if the interest is there, that would be the place to begin,” he said. With the Barnes Lumberyard development moving forward, Perrone Robotics CEO Paul Perrone said bringing fiber-optic service to the area would be an absolute boon, both for his company and others. “We have many remote workers and customers, so, for us, having competitive highspeed Internet is crucial,” he said. Seeking to offer a ‘virtually

there’ presence during testing and certain demonstrations, as well as collaborations, Perronne said the company needs a lot of bandwidth, and would use the ultra-swift speeds for video chat, white-boarding, remote desktop viewing, telepresence robotics applications, and more. Considering PRI is competing and working with some of the highest high-tech companies in the world, it makes sense that they—and other companies like them—would want the best Internet speeds possible. But for your average Crozetian, what would fiber-optic service do? “So, I’ll start with saying this is the fastest Internet you could possibly get,” said Eisner. “Fiber is essentially a transformative technology—in other words, having a gigabit completely changes what you can do at home or work.” Imagine a future where, despite four kids gaming online, Netflix streaming in the back bedroom, a video conference taking place in continued on page 30

CROZETgazette

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MARCH 2017

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Crozet Antiques Opens in Woman’s Club Building By Theresa Curry theresa@crozetgazette.com In the building where women once hatched schemes to improve the Crozet community, Patty Roberts has opened Crozet Antiques, a carefully-curated collection of rural antiques, decorative and useful items, and clock faces of all shapes and sizes. To pull together the sunny store, which opened February 25, Patty enlisted longtime clock expert Don Goldstein and artist Christine Kennedy, whose scenes of rural buildings and animals are displayed in the rear corner of the shop. “I was one of those people who always loved old things,” Roberts said. “If I didn’t know the story behind a piece, I’d imagine one.” But it’s not just the inherent history of old furniture, or china, or tools that appeal to her: she loves the workmanship of long-ago craftsmen as well as the ingenuity that drove the invention of items that solved a contemporary problem. She has created a “What is it?” display designed to stump shop visitors, and it will change periodically as people guess how the now-unfamiliar tool was used. Roberts credits Kennedy with helping her pull together the shop’s tasteful yet exuberant design. Kennedy has been painting ever since she can remember. As a small child she needed multiple surgeries and her parents bought her a child’s paint set to help her pass the

time needed for recovery. After years of exhibition at shows and as part of a cooperative showroom, she’s glad to have landed a permanent studio and exhibition space in a portion of the shop. Many of her watercolor landscapes will look familiar to area residents. She loves the mountains, farmhouses and domestic animals that surround her home. Of special interest are her paintings of local birds, close-up portraits of inscrutable predators peering out through hooded eyes. Thanks to Goldstein’s knowledge of antique timepieces, Roberts is able to offer a selection of beautiful and functional clocks, from cuckoo to grandfather. One display on the chimney is mounted on a child’s set of mattress springs, allowing the clocks to look as though they’re hung on the stones. Other pieces, large and small, immortalize the daily industry of the rural household: jelly cupboards, hoop skirts, crazy quilts and blanket chests. “All of these things made a real difference in people’s lives,” Roberts said. The larger pieces are characterized by good woods, expert craftsmanship and classic lines. She thinks one of the pieces was probably constructed within the house, as many large old pieces were. Other items, like the collection of blue and white china plates, were passed down through generations. Crozet Antiques is open 11 a.m. to 5 p.m., except Sundays, when it opens at noon, and Wednesdays, when it is closed.

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Susan Spengler, Jennie More, Jean Hiatt and Judy Rasmussen with the Smith House remains.

Historic Homes —continued from page 1

owns the property received a demolition permit from the county, and within 24 hours the Smith house was a dusty pile of rubble. Jennie More, whose ancestors were among the first to put down roots in the area and who lives across Blue Ridge Avenue from the Smith house site, wonders why the demolition had to happen. “I think about the Bargamins and Waylands, who believed in, invested in and supported Crozet, and I wonder, would they be happy with what’s happening here?” Happy or not, what happened to the Smith house was allowed under current county rules. The house was sold in 2007 to Piedmont Housing Alliance (PHA), a local developer who provides affordable housing opportunities in area communities. PHA’s original design for the property included 72 units of mixed houses and condos, and the plan incorporated the Smith house, refurbished, as the development’s clubhouse. After the recession and accompanying housing market slowdown, PHA decided to sell the property to focus on other projects. The new owner, Pinnacle Properties, altered the plan to pack 126 units onto the parcel and sited a new clubhouse on the exact spot where the Smith house would be torn down. Local preservation groups swung into action. Members of Preservation Piedmont (PP), a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving historic

resources in the region, set up a meeting last summer with Pinnacle’s owner, William Park. Susan Spengler, former president of PP who is also trained as a landscape architect, went to the meeting armed with alternatives to save the house. “Mr. Park said that due to how they had to grade the slope, they would end up with an accessibility issue reaching the house,” explained Spengler, so that it would sit too high on the lot. “I brought site maps and asked about different ways to grade the site, about the possibility of having two levels in the development, even about other entrance locations that I had discussed with VDOT.” But Park was adamant that the house had to go. Jean Hiatt, past president and current member of PP, was also in attendance and pointed out that Pinnacle had some experience in preserving historic structures. “Mr. Park has done three or four very nice projects involving adaptive reuse, so he COURTESY OF EDUARDO MONTES-BRADLEY

Dr. Jared Loewenstein

CROZETgazette LISA MARTIN

MARCH 2017

The restored Bain House in Bargamin Park

knows how to do that,” she said. Ultimately, Park was not persuaded. “At the end of the meeting he offered to give us the house if we could move it,” said Spengler, “but that just wasn’t possible, financially. And we had no other options.” (Mr. Park did not respond to calls to his office for comment.) In their fight to save historic resources, preservation advocates point to one factor that hamstrings their efforts: Albemarle County has no preservation ordinance on the books. This means that, unlike the City of Charlottesville, the county has no enforceable means to protect buildings or land with historic value. Though the Crozet Historic District is listed in both the National Register of Historic Places and the Virginia Landmarks Register, those designations are honorific only. “A listing on the Register does not offer any protection of any kind, whatsoever,” said Dr. Jared Loewenstein, president of Albemarle County’s Historical Preservation Committee (HPC), a nine-member group appointed by the County Board of Supervisors to document and safeguard the county’s historic and cultural resources. “The only protection with any enforcement power is a local ordinance, and we don’t have one at this point.” It’s not for lack of trying. Dr. Loewenstein and his colleagues have been involved in a halfdozen attempts over the last forty years to convince the county of the need for some form of preservation code. Referred to as an “overlay,” a preservation ordinance is attached to a zoning rule so that

it lies above existing zoning on a parcel or area. It carries with it certain legally enforceable penalties for significantly altering or destroying historic structures. Without an ordinance, the HPC relies on education, financial incentives, and partnerships among interest groups to try to persuade owners to preserve their property. “We’ve had a few very significant losses and it’s been sad, in a county so filled with history as Albemarle is,” said Loewenstein. “Some were demolished before anyone even knew about their importance. It’s really upsetting.” After decades of progress by degrees, the HPC produced a comprehensive Historic Preservation Plan that was adopted by the Board of Supervisors in September of 2000. The framework encourages the creation of an overlay historic district ordinance, as well as programs for providing local incentives, educating property owners, and planning for heritage tourism, among many other specific suggestions. In the ensuing 17 years, most of the plan’s recommendations have been acted upon in one form or another, though not the ordinance. When asked about the current status of the ordinance initiative, county staff are circumspect. Margaret Maliszewski, chief of planning for the county, said the committee is beginning some preliminary research into demolition ordinances and discussing the merits of such an ordinance for the county, with the possibility of making a recommendation to the Board of Supervisors on the topic at some

continued on page 10

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Historic Homes —continued from page 9

point in the future. The City of Charlottesville implemented its own ordinance in 1976, identifying specific structures and neighborhoods that fall under its auspices. City planners set up major “architectural design control districts” in historic areas such as Rugby Road, Ridge Street, and the Corner. A local Board of Architectural Review must approve any construction, alteration, or demolition in those areas. Penalties for tearing down a historic structure without approval can cost the owner up to twice the fair market value of the building. Less-restrictive “historic conservation districts,” such as the Martha Jefferson district, seek to ensure that new construction and additions are in harmony with the scale and character of existing buildings. One obstacle to passing an ordinance in Albemarle for individual owners and developers alike is concern about potential limits on the use or appearance of the property. “People are sometimes concerned about the

marketability of a property that is designated as historic,” said Ross Stevens, longtime real estate broker and member of the HPC, though he noted that the designation can also be a selling point. There can be tax benefits to owning a historic structure in the form of tax deductions on the value of home projects and upgrades, and Stevens thinks these are a key inducement. “Property owners must have the proper incentives to want to preserve their properties, just as the conservation easements on land are fabulous incentives for people to benefit from and preserve their land,” he said. “What people may not realize is that the goal of an ordinance is as much to protect what’s around them as their own property,” said Spengler of Preservation Piedmont. Indeed, education of property owners is an important part of the county’s Historic Preservation Plan. Steven Meeks, president of the Albemarle Charlottesville Historical Society, is well versed in the history of trying to preserve history in the region, and he takes the long view. “I think

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Ross Stevens and Steven Meeks took documentary photos before demolition.

if you are fortunate enough to own one of these historic resources, you ought to be prepared to help maintain it and preserve it,” he said. “It’s your property, but it’s part of our culture, our heritage.” In the absence of an ordinance, what else can be done? One technique is to keep a record of historic houses by surveying the structures before they are torn down. “The National Park Service has guidelines for documenting a historic property, which include creating a

footprint, taking measurements, and taking outside and inside photos,” explained Spengler. “It’s a complete record, so that if someone later would want to understand what it looked like after it’s gone, they could see it.” Requests for demolition permits are routed through the county Planning office so these surveys can be conducted before the structure is gone. The Smith house was documented by local historians Meeks and Stevens several weeks ago, thanks to this

continued on page 17

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CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com The Albemarle County Board of Supervisors approved Matt Lucas’s request to rezone his 1278 Crozet Avenue property Feb. 1, effectively allowing him to finish restoring the historic cabin he dismantled and moved into town last spring. The request came as the result of an effort by White Hall supervisor Ann Mallek to preserve the Yancey Mills cabin, which is thought to date from the American Revolution and was slated to be demolished to make room for a new Froehling & Robertson building. “Ann knew I had a thing for old Virginia buildings, so she came to me and asked if I’d be interested in the Yancey cabin,” said Lucas, who is in the telecommunications software business and is in the last stages of renovating 1278’s historic farmhouse. “I went and looked at it and thought it would really look great as an accompaniment to the farmhouse…. So the owners

ended up giving it to me and we went over and dismantled it log by log—it took quite a lot of work and time to get it moved.” But the existing zoning only allowed for one dwelling on his property, so while he got a building permit for the 25-by-20-foot, two-story cabin’s reconstruction, he couldn’t add plumbing, electricity, or any other amenities. Despite expressing wariness about infringing upon a 50-foot stream buffer and concerns over what may happen to the property in the long-term future— once rezoned, if sold, the site could be redeveloped—county officials cited Lucas’s commitment to preservation as a primary factor in their decision. “When 1278 was up for sale, we had a lot of conversations with potential purchasers who wanted to tear down the farmhouse and put in townhomes or apartments,” said Albemarle County’s principal planner Elaine Echols, addressing the board. “Mr. Lucas didn’t do that and instead renovated the his-

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Supervisors Give the Go-Ahead for Historic Cabin Relocation

Lucas cabin under reconstruction on Crozet Avenue near Green House Coffee

torical property… We’re recommending approval [for this rezoning], mainly to provide the opportunity for a historic house to remain on the site.” Concerning protecting the stream buffer, Lucas presented plans for mitigation that Echols said the county staff deemed satisfactory. As for future development, after looking at the shape of the lot—it’s long and

narrow which, factoring in the stream buffer requirements, would make it tough to build on—and considering that the property fell with the Comprehensive Plan’s development area, the board voted unanimously to grant Lucas the rezoning. “It’s been a ton of work and expense, but I think that the

continued on page 42

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

To the Editor —continued from page 2

and dedicated group of citizens who study the plans and the recommendations of the planning staff and make their own recommendation to the supervisors. Their recommendation may or may not agree with that of staff about emphasis on the elements of the master plan. These combined recommendations come to the Board of Supervisors to help them evaluate the plans and if the expectations of the greater community are met. As staff have said, it is up to the Board to decide the most important elements of the master plan for a particular application. Does this vote “prevent Albemarle from building trails and connections”? Supervisors who voted to deny the application have been criticized that their vote “prevents Albemarle from building trails and connections and it pressures growth in the rural areas. It forces us to build closer to our neighbors and environmental features.” I disagree with these points.

The Crozet Trails Crew members have built miles of trails through older neighborhoods and over easements dedicated by forward-thinking applicants, who understand that amenities such as these are of small cost and great benefit to the sale of their properties. There are no rules that force an applicant to build closer to environmental features on a property. On the contrary, there is plenty of encouragement to be as protective as possible. By-right development provides flexibility to the applicant to make a community a better place, for new residents and current residents. A by-right development can be done using the current density (for example, one unit per acre) without any zoning process if the application meets the applicable zoning and subdivision regulations. Two recent examples in Crozet of by-right neighborhoods are Foothills Crossing 1 and Westlake. These projects have included many features of applications for rezonings because the applicants wished to do an exemplary job, but they were not required to do so

to build their neighborhoods. Some examples of this aboveand-beyond design are: Building connecting roads outside the project to further the long-range road network; Building or dedicating land for trails to connect new residents to their greater community; Protecting established forests and stream greenways to an extent greater than required; Providing sidewalks and vehicular connections to other neighborhoods; and Providing street trees for the enjoyment and increased attractiveness of the neighborhood to residents and prospective buyers. Does this vote “permanently eliminate the opportunity for affordable housing”? Supervisors who voted to deny the application have been criticized that denial of the Adelaide rezoning “permanently eliminates the opportunity for affordable housing.” The fact is that there are already many units of affordable housing in Crozet. An exciting new development is that Habitat for Humanity is building affordable

units in Wickham Pond. The Wickham neighbors are planning to join the construction crews as volunteer builders and are working to assist their new neighbors. Since Habitat will hold the mortgages, these units will be permanently affordable, rather than just to the first owner. Some other examples affordable units are: • Apartments over offices and stores in Old Trail Town Center and Clover Lawn; • A soon-to-break-ground apartment project of 123 units of affordable homes with a range of rental costs at the Vue on Jarmans Gap; • A soon-to-break-ground apartment and town house project of more than 100 units at Old Trail; and • An approved town house project on Orchard Road with fifteen percent of units affordable. In a November 2016 report to the Planning Commission, the housing officer reported results of County affordable housing policy from 2004 to 2016—that more than 1000 continued on page 14

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MIKE MARSHALL

MARCH 2017

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WARS Awards —continued from page 1

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MIKE MARSHALL

gets things done. It’s not just what you do for the community but for the whole county system because of the committees you serve on.” He praised WARS for setting up a water rescue team that gained the respect of the Central Virginia. He singled out WARS Chief Kostis Alibertis, in the job since 2000, for his leadership in the county. “The entire system is better because of what you do. Thank you.” Presentation of the awards was preceded by a slick slideshow of the past year. Pictures of car wrecks flashed by, along with the view from an ambulance cab as it careened toward an emergency down a dark country road. There was the squad using the light package on its heavy rescue truck to illuminate the new downtown plaza’s location. Others showed the quotidian moments of waiting on call in the squad house, wisecracking and comic scenes, water rescue practice at Mint Springs Park, out on the job in heavy snow, staining the squad house’s back deck, touring kids through the vehicle bays and the showing off the trucks, taking care of a bear cub, and in

the Fourth of July parade. All Volunteer, All The Time, the show summed up with the squad’s slogan. The Frances Henry Award for the member who made the most runs in the year went to Taylor Tereskerz. Member of the Year was Jose Larraburu. Rookie of the Year went to Corey Croson. The President’s Award was conferred on Michael Bauer and the Chief ’s Award went to Will Barnhardt, who—our misfortune—is moving to Utah. Donna Burns was called forward for a special award. Recognition of McCue began with another slideshow tribute that retraced his service to the squad. “Thank you for taking us under your wing,” it said. “Thank you for amazing breakfasts. Thank you for making us laugh. Thank you for knowing so many people in Crozet. Thank you for being a role model. Thank you for being a father to us. Thank you for 15 years of service. We love you! WARS family.” McCue got a heartfelt standing ovation. WARS now has 80 members and is answering 1,500 calls a year.

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CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

From the Editor —continued from page 2

parcel actually is buildable. With this cynical move, The Vue went from being a bad plan in the wrong place to a philistine act that obliterates a charming 100-year-old neighborhood. Next the project demolished the so-called Smith house, nicknamed for a family that owned it in recent memory. The house was a rare survivor from the period when Crozet began to enjoy prosperity as the Peach Capital of Virginia. Its origins traced to the Wayland family, notable for introducing orchards to the local economy and an energetic and civic-minded family that did a lot to improve the town, such as persuading the railroad to make it a stop. The house had a wellthought-out design, employed the 1920’s latest developments in home technologies and used high quality materials throughout. Its surviving landscaping shows a desire to leave a deposit

To the Editor —continued from page 12

affordable units were proferred. 387 of those 1000 units are in the Crozet Growth Area. (Including the Vue, Old Trail, and West Glen, the affordable count jumps to more than 500 units in Crozet.) $1.5 M in cash contributions County wide were accepted, most of which occurred prior to 2007. There were more than 4000 residential units approved for Crozet between 2004 and 2008. Development of these units has been slow, with only 20 percent of the affordable units countywide constructed to date. A bit more than 50 percent of the proffered cash has been received. This delay is due to the recession and the large number of approved units that have not yet been constructed. Cash proffer balances are due at intervals as the project is developed. Remember, 4000 units were approved for Crozet between 2004 and 2008. The primary reasons for my vote were stated in the resolution I read as part of my motion to deny. Three supervi-

of beauty for the future. Crozet then was still a village and only a few houses striving for architectural dignity and permanence were erected. Earlier plans for the project incorporated the house, but in the final version it was flattened to be the location of a clubhouse. Could it not have been the clubhouse? This lamentable and unnecessary loss points out the need for a county historic preservation ordinance that gives the rest of us a chance to hold on to the legacies our forefathers passed down to us and to maintain the integrity of established neighborhoods with deep generational roots. The features of this ordinance are already drawn up and are shelved awaiting action. The Supervisors need to address these failings in our rules that result in the subversion of our zoning and planning policies and the needless loss of our heritage. Shame on Pinnacle for exploiting them for the sake of greater profits.

sors thought the density was acceptable at the high end of the range. Three thought the density should be at the low end of the range. A 3-3 tie results in denial of the application. Additional reasons for my vote: New density on the edge of the growth area, surrounded by forest and rural uses, should be at the low end of the range suggested in the comprehensive plan and master plan for Crozet. The site of this application is constrained by slopes, streams, and limited points of visibility for entrance onto Rt. 250. There are hills in both directions that limit the time when a vehicle entering the roadway can be seen by a driver on 250. There were no vehicular and pedestrian connections to other neighborhoods, so every trip for services would need to access Rt 250. VDOT revenue sharing improvements to the area are years away. The highest-density buildings were placed at the highway, further encroaching on the rural nature of the State Scenic byway. Ann Mallek Supervisor, White Hall District

ERIC WALLACE

Cory Farms resident Tim O’Loughlin addresssing the Board of Supervisors Feb. 1

Adelaide Re-Zoning Denied By Eric Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com In a meeting streaked with emotional fireworks, the Albemarle County Board of Supervisors voted Feb. 1 to reject a proposed rezoning of the Adelaide housing project, which would have allowed developer Kyle Redinger to build 80 units on Route 250 next to Cory Farms. The decision came as the culmination of a year-plus process which sought to transform the 20-acre parcel from R1 zoning—which will likely yield around 28 houses by-right—to R6, which would have allowed for the higher numbers. The vote was the result of a request for deferral Redinger made at a meeting Sept. 7 so that he could alter plans for the development, but no changes were subsequently made. Many Crozet residents on hand were incensed by what they viewed as the developer’s disregard of community opinion. In a statement issued via email to board members, Crozet Community Advisory Committee president Dave Stoner wrote: “In short, as before, the CCAC remains opposed to this project as proposed… which [we] feel is contrary to the Crozet Master Plan.” Around 18 Crozetians attended the meeting, with 12 taking to the podium to speak out against the rezoning. While each speaker addressed the board, his or her compatriots stood in a show of support. “When we were here last time we spoke of all the reasons

this project should not go through,” said Ron Pantuck, who sits on the Cory Farms Homeowners Association board. “When it looked like the vote wasn’t going to go in his favor, the developer asked for a deferral, but in the ensuing five months no changes have been made to the request. We would thus find it unconscionable for the board to now vote to approve this rezoning.” Of the concerns cited by Pantuck, two loomed large and were interrelated. The first had to do with traffic strain and the second with the project’s divergence from the Crozet Master Plan, which designates high-density growth should primarily take place downtown. For the board’s part, it was this latter density issue that took precedence. “I think that within the Master Plan there’s a clear desire to keep density and development downtown, which is reflective of what we want to happen here,” said Cory Farms resident Gary Koenig. “The problem I and many people have had with this project from day one is the fact that it’s on the fringe of that area. Every trip in and out is going to require the use of 250, which, with the proposed density, is going to invariably cause traffic issues and safety concerns.” White Hall District supervisor Ann Mallek supported Koenig’s claims, providing board members with a brief overview of the intentions of the Crozet Master Plan, as well as some context for how the zoning discrepancy arose in the first place. “There is a well continued on page 17

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

By Phil James

phil@crozetgazette.com

Powell’s Creek: Crozet History Cool, clear springs emerge from the steep mountainside 1,000 feet above western Albemarle County’s Mint Springs Park to feed the tributaries that join to form Powell’s Creek. Familiar names decorate period maps of that area: Little Yellow Mountain, Buck’s Elbow, Mad Run, Saddle Hollow, and Beaver Creek Mountain. The Powell family was settled in western Albemarle by the 1840s, before there was a railroad or a Wayland’s Crossing, much less a village named Crozet. They operated a water-powered grain mill just south of that soon-to-be village, near where Powell’s Creek enters Lickinghole. Back up on the side of Buck’s Elbow, a tributary named Mad Run was familiar to Rev. David Wayland who grew up in Mint Springs Valley surrounded by apple and peach orchards nurtured by his family and their neighbors. “O’Neill Orchard backed up to Mad Run,” he said, “the creek that seldom is mad, and never runs. It crosses the [Mint Springs] Park road right at the entrance gate.” Prior to the construction of Beaver Creek Reservoir in 1964, Crozet’s filtered water was gathered from the Powell’s Creek watershed surrounding Mint Springs Park. In 1942 the Crozet Sanitary District was created “for the specific purpose of obtaining a safe and sufficient water system [for] domestic and industrial uses, and fire protection.” A modest filter plant constructed where diminutive Mad Run enters Powell’s Creek handled the household needs of the village. Neither its line pressure nor storage reserves

from

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John A. O’Neill’s orchard bordered Mad Run [creek] on the side of Buck’s Elbow Mountain above Mint Springs Park. He was one of Albemarle County’s principal fruit growers in an era when the Albemarle Pippin was hailed far and wide as the “Prince of Apples.” [Vintage fruit label by Crozet Print Shop; courtesy of Phil James Historical Images]. Below: Ben Ficklin (1827–1871), son of Rev. Benjamin F. and Ellen (Slaughter) Ficklin, was born at Pleasant Green, later the home of Abram Wayland at Crozet. Widely recognized as one of the principal figures in the establishment of the short-lived Pony Express, his life’s pursuits were stuff of legend. Powell’s Creek flowed through the backyard of the home of his youth.

were adequate, however, for firefighting, nor for the growing water demands of Acme Visible Records and Morton Frozen Foods. Flowing down Mint Springs Valley past bountiful fruit orchards, and then passing beneath the Chesapeake & Ohio (now CSX) railroad, the steady-running creek entered farmlands of Abram Wayland. In 1909, the Fruit Growers’ Ice and Cold Storage Corporation purchased for $500 from the Wayland family “a parcel of land about one mile west of Crozet Station... traversed by a creek... to erect and maintain a dam for water supply.” The deed also allowed for the placing of an underground water main pipe from the dam to their plant in downtown Crozet. Soon thereafter, the little Powell’s Creek

This building near the entrance to Mint Springs Park was part of the waterworks for the Crozet Sanitary District from the 1940s to early ‘60s. It processed the town’s potable water that was collected from the Powell’s Creek watershed and stored in the two nearby ponds that are now used only for recreational activities. [Photo by Mac Sandridge]

Dam became a popular spot for a variety of activities. Then, as now, it was a magnet for area youth testing their adventurous spirits. The Crozet Boy Scouts made its environs one of their regular campgrounds. In 1915, the Union Mission Church of Crozet purchased land for construction of a church building east of the village. The historically AfricanAmerican congregation arranged to use the impounded waters of Powell’s Creek for their baptisms. The Times-Dispatch reported in June 1926: “The Girls’ Auxiliary of the Leigh Street Baptist Church, Richmond, encamped at the cold storage dam near Crozet. The Crozet Boy Scouts furnished the tents and had the camp arranged in admirable condition when the campers arrived Monday afternoon. “The campers expect to be here for ten days, and are spending their time in swimming, wading, games, songs and hikes.” For those readers concerned for the safety of these sojourners in the wilds of Crozet, the reporter added, “The camp is guarded by ‘Boots,’ a fox terrier, of rare intelligence.” The Pleasant Green property and home a short distance downstream from the dam was purchased around 1814 by Rev. continued on page 16

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Powell’s Creek —continued from page 15

Benjamin Franklin Ficklin II and his wife Ellen (Slaughter). They had six children. Their fifth child, son Ben, was born at Pleasant Green in 1827. Young Ben’s earliest frontier adventures took place in his own backyard along the banks of Powell’s Creek, with the Blue Ridge Mountains as backdrop. Rev. Ficklin divested of his 1,300 acres in western Albemarle County and moved to Charlottesville in 1832. Ben, who never married, filled his life with exploits seemingly intertwined with great risk and bravado. One who knew him, the Hon. F. Lawley, published an article in the London Standard in 1895 recalling Ficklin’s exploits in the far west “running stage coaches and pony expresses... including hairbreadth escapes without number... while carrying the first United States mail across the continent to San Francisco, in 1852. He gave you the impression that no moment, either by day or night, would have found him unprepared to go into action right away against any

foe that he could be called upon to meet.” Jeremiah Wayland purchased Ficklin’s Pleasant Green. Several years later, in 1839, Col. Claudius Crozet surveyed for a possible railroad through that area. When Col. Crozet returned to western Albemarle in the early 1850s as principal engineer of the Blue Ridge Railroad, he boarded for a season with the Wayland family. Abram Wayland (1834– 1906) was born at Pleasant Green, and, like young Ficklin, explored the banks of Powell’s Creek. Rightly considered as a founding father of the town of Crozet, Abram gathered signatures from landowners in the region and petitioned the Chesapeake & Ohio Railway to establish a station at that place. He was appointed the first station agent for Crozet in 1877 and became its first postmaster in 1878. As Powell’s Creek flows southward and passes under Jarmans Gap Road near Haden Lane, it passes the site of one of Crozet’s early industries, the Crozet Cider Company, established in 1905. Its plant manufactured “cider, vinegar, preserves, jellies, jams and evapo-

Powell’s Creek (highlighted in blue) rises above Mint Springs Valley west of Crozet, and drains that area to its confluence with Lickinghole Creek, near Rockgate Cemetery, south of the village. Much of Crozet’s early history played out nearby its banks. [1931 topo map courtesy of Phil James Historical Images]

rated and canned fruits.” Operated for 15 years, the business was consumed by a fire in 1922. The disaster was headlined in the Daily Progress as “The Largest Blaze in History of Town”. Owned by Crozet businessmen Russell and E.M. Bargamin, their losses were complete, including business offices, and all manufacturing

Powell’s Creek Dam, constructed in 1909 by the Fruit Growers’ Ice and Cold Storage Corporation, is hidden away alongside Cling Lane in the Crozet Crossing neighborhood. The reservoir’s steady supply of water was piped to the plant in downtown Crozet and used for manufacturing the tons of ice necessary to “ice down” the countless boxcar loads of apples and peaches shipped to distant markets. [Photo by Phil James]

facilities and equipment. Only the large traction engine used to drive the machinery was saved. The business was not rebuilt. At the Powell’s confluence with Lickinghole Creek, west of Rockgate Cemetery, another mill dam and extensive mill pond were found. Sold by Powell family members to Rev. John J. Lafferty in 1890, the mill was rebuilt and enlarged with all new works to produce a nutritionally improved product, revolutionary in its day, that would be recognized today as whole-wheat flour. However, it was Lafferty’s mill pond, backing up Powell’s Creek one last time, where the young people of Crozet reveled in the wintertime. Newspapers in 1895 reported “delightful skating parties on Dr. Lafferty’s Pond” where “happy couples glided like flashes of light over a glassy stretch of at least a quarter of a mile.” Also played on the frozen pond was “the old Scotch game of hocky,” likely that sport’s first introduction to many around old Crozet. The storied little creek called Powell’s, unknown to many, has many tales to tell of a small village that grew up along its banks.

Follow Secrets of the Blue Ridge on Facebook! Phil James invites contact from those who would share recollections and old photographs of life along the Blue Ridge Mountains of Albemarle County. You may respond to him through his website: www.SecretsoftheBlueRidge.com or at P.O. Box 88, White Hall, VA 22987. Secrets of the Blue Ridge © 2003–2017 Phil James

CROZETgazette

Historic Homes —continued from page 10

the planned Brookhill development, and the house will be preserved and protected while awaiting National Register of Historic Places certification. Awaiting the county’s next move, Jean Hiatt tried to find a silver lining in the destruction of the Smith house. “Seeing something like this happen might encourage the citizens of Albemarle to become more involved, to think about asking their Board of Supervisors for a historic preservation ordinance,” she said. She and others working to save historic places hope it won’t be too little, too late.

LISA MARTIN

process. Developers themselves, recognizing the character that a historic structure lends to an area, have provided several recent success stories. Hunter Craig preserved the original farmhouse in the Western Ridge development and renovated it as the community’s clubhouse. The Bain House at Bargamin Park was restored and is now the centerpiece of that neighborhood. In northern Albemarle, a Jefferson-era house was discovered by the owners of

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The preserved Western Ridge clubhouse.

Adelaide

—continued from page 14

adopted and supported Master Plan in Crozet, which is now in its third edition,” said Mallek. “Based on a 2010 review, the plan was to be reviewed again in 2013 and these map issues were meant to be clarified. During the review in 2010, while the colors were not changed on the map, the discussion surrounding this property was that it was to have the same density as Cory Farms... Crozet lives by the Master Plan, which says high density in the center, low density on the edge. And because of that, the CCAC did not approve this proposal.” Other supervisors dissented. “This property falls within the proposed development area,” said Rivanna District supervisor Norman Dill. “And while I understand that people don’t like things to change, I’d advise residents to be aware that, if they’re within the development area, the land is going to be developed. We don’t have that

many square miles of area to develop and what land we have we need to use to its best use.” Also dissenting was Brad Sheffield, who represents the Rio District. “I see this as symptomatic of a larger issue,” he said. “We have this ambiguity between residents and developers that sets false expectations. I really wish we’d do a better job at articulating expectations for an area so that we don’t run into these issues… People like Kyle spend hundreds of thousands of dollars planning stuff like this, and beyond the money he’s wasted, it sucks the energy out of our staff when we could be working on advancing the community in ways we all agree on.” In the end, the board’s vote was a tie, which struck down the rezoning. Voting against the rezoning were Mallek, Scottsville District supervisor Rick Randolph, and Samuel Miller District supervisor Liz Palmer. As a result of the decision, Redinger will pursue plans for by-right development.

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CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

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Virginia has four seasons (maybe not this year, but generally) and they fall nearly directly on the calendar so that come March 21, things begin to warm up. This was both a revelation and a delight to those of us living in the frozen north. We would often visit our Virginia cousins for Easter and would be able to wear our spring coats and patent leather shoes, and no snow boots necessary! Virginia was an exotic place where they cooled the house by closing all the windows…my eight-yearold self would marvel at this because up north, if we wanted the house to cool, we would open the windows. I had no idea about air conditioning and even when it was explained to me, it didn’t make sense to close the windows in order to cool the house. These were the worldly relatives who were in the Navy and traveled the world. It was still quite a big deal to live abroad and we were both curious and envious of their adventures. When they lived stateside in Dahlgren, Virginia, we were

able to visit Uncle Chuck and Aunt Pat and my two cousins fairly often. Six of us added to the four of them meant a lot of cooking. Aunt Pat was an inventive cook and had gathered recipes during their naval travels so there was always something new and delicious. I had two Aunt Pats and both were my favorites. The Virginia Aunt Pat was a true Southerner and very sassy. She would chide us for calling her Aunt (rhymes with pant) instead of Aunt (rhymes with gaunt). This being a tongue twister for us Yankee kids, we would take to calling her Aunt Pot. She was not amused, but it made six kids laugh hysterically. Aunt Pat is now in heaven, so I asked my cousins where she got this recipe. Neither of them could remember. My sister believes Aunt Pat got it from their cook when they lived in Spain. I’m going with that version. Here is a recipe that will feed 10 family members. It’s so easy and really delicious.

Jamaican Barbeque 6 lbs. pork butt roast 1 ¼ cup cider vinegar 1 cup sugar

8 oz. can tomato sauce Salt and pepper to taste 2 T. red pepper flakes

Bake pork in a covered roasting pan for 30 minutes at 500 degrees F. Reduce heat to 225 degrees and continue cooking for 12 hours. Remove from oven, pull the pork apart with two forks. Discard the bone. Drain excess fat. Combine other ingredients in a sauce pan and heat gently until the sugar dissolves. Pour over pork. Serve on sandwich rolls.

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017 MIKEMARSHALL

Scientific Survey —continued from page 4

explained Tolson, who holds a Ph.D. and in his professional life has routinely been tasked with research survey construction and analysis. “To do this, you first have to define the ‘population’ you want to refer to— in this case the Crozet growth area. However, for our purposes, that isn’t sufficient, because Crozet’s growth inside the growth area also impacts those outside the growth area… As a result, we’re presently raising funds to have a professional sample drawn that will include mostly persons inside the growth area and then some from outside the growth area— say, within 2 miles of Crozet or something along those lines.” In addition to Tolson, Loach and current White Hall Planning Commissioner Jennie More, Crozet residents Shawn Bird and Tom Guterbock joined the CCA survey committee. “They are both Ph.D.’s with a ton of survey experience,” said Tolson. “Shawn has worked for many years as vice-president of a political polling firm and Tom serves as the director of the Center for Public Surveys at U.Va. They’re providing their expertise and have looked at and helped revise the questions and are assisting in all aspects of the project.” To obtain the scientific sample, some residents will receive a specific invitation to participate in that group. “This ensures we can generalize the results to a defined Crozet area in a reliable and valid manner” said Tolson. “People identified in the scientific sample will get a postcard in the mail asking them to take the survey and providing a weblink or contact information if they would prefer a paper copy instead… We ask that only the person who was invited use this link, so that our sample will match the population we drew from.” Meanwhile, the same questions will also be made available to anyone to answer via a different website, which will, according to Tolson, allow the CCA to keep the two groups of data separate from one other. Additionally, the survey will be published in the Crozet Gazette, and print copies will be avail-

Tim Tolson

able at the Crozet Library. The group met Feb. 27 to hone the list of questions, which Tolson estimates will take participants around 20 minutes to complete. “We want to make sure we ask about the issues and areas of the current master plan over which there’s been disagreement, as well as topics we know are on the horizon, such as the re-development of the Barnes Lumberyard, plans for Crozet plaza, and so on. At the same time, we’ve been mindful of not making it too long. It’s a balancing act.” Loach and Tolson have high hopes for the usefulness and accuracy of the potential response, “In 2009, we thought we’d get a hundred or so responses but ended up getting around 700,” said Tolson. “Since the population of the Crozet area at the time was around 5,000 people, the 2009 survey’s margin of error was only 4 percent. “If, say, 67 percent of respondents agree that there should not be any additional growth at the Route 250 / I-64 interchange at Yancey’s Mill, generalizing this to the population of 10,000 would mean that there is a 95 percent likelihood that between 62 and 71 percent of the 10,000 people in the Crozet area feel that way,” Tolson explained. “By using scientific sampling, we’ll know the specific area folks have come from. We’ve included the various areas in and around Crozet,” said Loach. “So our confidence in the reliability and representativeness of the survey is much higher approaching it like this.” Once the survey information is compiled, it will be made public through the CCA and used by the community in CMP revision meetings.

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MARCH 2017

Etiquette —continued from page 1

Lunch. Each year on Valentine’s Day, ACS’s students are treated to a formal, five-course luncheon, complete with instruction on the proper table manners and social behavior appropriate for such an occasion. There are two seatings: the 40 kindergarten through sixth graders eat at 11:30, and then everything is cleared and set up a second time for the 7th through 12th graders to dine at 1 p.m. Students are asked to dress nicely, and the room is beautifully decorated with Valentine-themed centerpieces and table confetti. This year, I was lucky enough to be invited! The delicious meal was catered by former ACS parent Amika Salisbury, with seven parent volunteers assisting and four high school students serving the younger group. Headmistress Lori Knight supervised the younger set, and upper school director Andy Shifflett, the high school crowd. “The purpose of learning etiquette is so you will feel com-

fortable at a formal occasion, not uncomfortable,” explained Kimberly Gale, who provides the instruction as well as teaching ACS’s 1st and 2nd grades. “Whether attending a wedding reception, job interview, or dining at the country club, if you know what to do and the correct way to behave, you can relax and enjoy yourself. Etiquette is a visible sign of your upbringing and your manners. And of course, proper behavior is also a courtesy to your hostess and to the other guests.” Gale herself learned etiquette from her mother, who had majored in home economics. Just as proper etiquette is a lost art, so home economics is still a highly practical subject that should be taught in our public schools. So if you’ve ever wondered which fork to use when, or if— like me—your table manners are a bit rusty, hang onto your hats! Here is what I learned. The place setting includes a smaller salad fork outside a fullsized food fork on the left, a knife with the sharp side turned in (toward the plate) on the right, and beyond the knife a beverage spoon and then a soup

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Kimbery Gale presented etiquette instruction to the students of Afton Christian School on Valentine’s Day

spoon on the outside. At the top of the plate, parallel to the table edge, go the dessert spoon and/or fork. The bread plate sits to the left of both forks, and the glasses (water and other) at the tip of the knife on the right. The folded or ringed napkin is placed to the left of the forks, not under them (or if folded to stand up, they may be set on the plate). Within one minute of sitting down (who knew?) neatly unfold your napkin (don’t snap or shake it out) and lay it across

your lap, where it should stay for the rest of the meal. Only use it to wipe your mouth, not to wipe your face, your nose, or clean up spills (that’s the server’s job). Once everyone was seated, we were immediately served with the first course, an hors-d’oeuvre of breaded chicken with a honey-mustard sauce, complete with its own little two-pronged fork. In another situation, I assume this might have been bread. We were admonished not to start eating

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you imagine your plate as a clock, this would be from 4 to 10. This is a signal to the server that you are finished and s/he can take that plate away—so be careful not to place it there before you’re finished! The next spoon in line is used to stir your beverage. Your cup or glass should always be returned to its spot above the tip of the knife after drinking. And now it was time for the fourth, or main course, which was a beautifully presented sliced chicken breast with gravy, a potato skin cup full of mashed potatoes, and fresh green beans. Yum! To cut the meat, pick up the knife with your right hand and your remaining fork with the left. Cut off one or two bites —don’t cut all your meat at same time(another of my bad habits)—then lay down your knife, switch the fork to your right hand, and begin eating. Never eat with your left hand! Also, never lick your knife. As you can see, all of these rules slow down the meal so it, and the company of friends, can be enjoyed at a leisurely pace. Eat with your right hand, and keep your left hand in your lap until needed. (Yet another bad habit for me to break!) Other general rules include never putting your elbows on the table, or raising them to bump your neighbor while cutting your food. Put your food down when you speak, and never talk with your mouth full, even partially. Chew with your mouth closed and don’t wave your fork around while talking. I definitely remember my grandmother, who lived with us until I was 14, admonishing me about these dicta. Never use your cell phone at the table. Put

nd orr M h

until everyone at the table had been served; once that happened, one of the older students was asked to say a heartfelt grace. It was the hostess’ job to lift her fork to let everyone know they could start eating, perhaps with a comment such as, “doesn’t this look delicious?” —more ladylike than “Dig in!” Once the hors-d’oeuvre was consumed and removed, the second course of salad or fruit was served. Food is always served from the left, and taken away from the right. Choosing which utensil to use is simple if you remember the rule: use utensils from the outside in, and never re-use one. So the outermost fork is used for the salad (a lovely concoction of kale and cubes of cooked butternut squash), and when the tomato bisque came next, we used the outermost spoon from the right. Soup should be scooped away from you (surprise!) with no slurping. Never put the whole spoon in your mouth (oops), and don’t bend your head down to meet the food; instead, sit erect and bring the food up to your mouth. So much to think about! It’s a good thing they practice every year. What should you talk about at a nice meal like this one? Pleasant things that keep the mood cheerful. You should talk with a soft voice, and avoid topics that might cause an argument. You can see the shock, at the Downton Abbey table, and Lady Violet’s stern disapproval, when this rule is broken! You don’t have to eat all of any course. When you’ve had enough of a course, simply lay that utensil across the edge of your plate (which may be underneath a bowl) at an angle, from lower right to upper left; if

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CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Transportation —continued from page 3

tate smooth pickups and dropoffs for a bus service. “How about the Methodist church right here in downtown?” asked committee member Phil Best. “They’re busy on Sundays but not on the weekdays and they do the farmers’ market there, so I’d imagine they’d be amenable.” Another suggestion was the Great Valu parking lot. “It offers a good turnaround for a bus, parking and, if you’re coming back from a day at work, you could go right in the store and get your groceries on the way home,” said James King, who serves as the CCAC secretary. A stop near the Barnes Lumber development was also suggested. Sheffield said his “optimistic estimate” for a functioning line is August. “Our next step is to determine possible stop locations and contact property owners for permissions,” he said. “After that, the biggest hurdle is talking with the county and U.Va. about figuring out a budget and securing funding… But

the most important thing here is to make sure we start this right, so that we have the biggest ridership.” Shifting to the prioritization of transportation projects, McDermott offered a briefing about current projects. Topping the list are improvements slated along Rockfish Gap Turnpike. “New sidewalks will be going in on the northside from Corey Farms over to the entrance of the Clover Lawn Village area, and on the southside, one segment will be installed right in front of the Harris Teeter,” he said. “We’re currently in VDOT’s design review phase of things, but I think in the next year we’ll see improvements.” The project was originally intended to include a safe way for pedestrians to cross Rt. 250, but “VDOT said, ‘No way, we’re not having an un-signalized crossing right there,’” explained McDermott. He subsequently applied for a Smart Scale grant that was rejected but yielded an interesting result. “They’d asked for a roundabout, which wasn’t going to get funded, but after we got rejected

for that we were able to go back to VDOT and come up with a better solution that we think we can implement in the near term.” The solution is a mid-block pedestrian crossing situated between Harris Teeter and Blue Ridge Building supply. “The idea is, between the two left turn lanes, there’s space to put a pedestrian refuge which would have a curve so that it’s protected, and as it’s angled you can see vehicles coming from either direction,” said McDermott. “And because it’s a much-lower-cost project, we’ll be able to get it done along with the sidewalk improvements.” The crossing will feature a pressure-activated pad with flashing lights. While the CCAC expressed safety concerns, according to White Hall District Supervisor Ann Mallek the installation will likely affect traffic patterns enough to make the area eligible for additional funding for safety improvements. The CCAC designated three possible transportation projects as having foremost importance. Topping the list were streetscape improvements for the Crozet Square. “I think that if we look at how Piedmont Place is taking off, how busy it is on the weekends, and we extend that thinking to The Square, that’s an example of what we’re looking at having happen,” said CCAC member Dean Eliason. “I think we need to do everything we can to make The Square successful.” Second was a bridge over Lickinghole Creek to link the northern and southern portions of Eastern Avenue from Cory Farms subdivision on Rt. 250 to Rt. 240. Third was a shared-use path along Route 240 to connect the Highlands neighborhood to Starr Hill and Crozet Avenue. McDermott seemed most optimistic about the Eastern Avenue connector. “It’s been discussed for a long time now and I think is arguably the most important project the county has on its plate at the moment, not just for Crozet, but the county as well,” said McDermott. “In one way or another, I think we’re going to see some action on this soon.”

CROZETgazette

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Roger Gilmer in front of his shop, Simply Flags and Gifts, next to Gateway Market.

Simply Flags and Gifts Now Open on Rt. 250 Mild weather, ample drive-by traffic and curious neighbors have meant a good first month for Simply Flags and Gifts, the new shop in the building next to Gateway Market on Route 250. The shop, owned by Roger and Diane Gilmer, opened February 1, in time for customers searching for Valentine’s Day gifts. By February 15, the heart theme was gone, replaced by a whimsical selection of garden art, bird feeders and accessories for outdoor games. Thousands of flags hang from walls and racks, with a good selection of St. Patrick’s Day banners to honor the upcoming holiday. No flag costs more than $20, Gilmer said. Gilmer’s not only one of the owners, but the creator of many of the shop’s distinctive pieces. He works with metal, fashioning fantastical decorative pieces out of rods joined with teapots, salsa bowls, ladles and plates: whatever strikes his fancy at thrift shops and yard sales. Many have a function besides their good-humored ornamentation, serving as bird feeders or plant stakes.

The shop also uses words as art, with a number of large signs with hopeful messages, and small picture frames enclosing words of wisdom. There’s also a good selection of pieces entirely made out of metal. There are wine racks and drink holders, including an ingenious drink holder designed to stabilize the drinks for a cornhole team, allowing the competitors to sip without having to bend or reach. One sculpture pairs metal with china and clay in a four-compartment birdfeeder fashioned from plates, rods and cascading flower pots. “This is one bird feeder I guarantee,” Gilmer said. “I’ve often seen four birds at the same time feeding at once.” Simply Flags and Gifts is open Wednesday to Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. THERESA CURRY

By Theresa Curry theresa@crozetgazette.com

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Walking On: Crozet’s Adam Geilker Hikes to Maine, Georgia and Home Again

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By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com From February 22 to December 29 of 2016, 23-yearold Crozetian and recent Princeton University graduate Adam Geilker did something rather astounding: Setting out from the peak of Hightop Mountain, just south of Swift Run Gap in the Shenandoah National Park at high noon, he headed north on the Appalachian Trail, hiking to its terminus at Katahdin in Maine, then south to the terminus at Springer Mountain in Georgia, whereupon he turned around and hoofed it right on back to Hightop. During the 45-week hike, he took only 27 days off, eight of those due to a wildfire in North Carolina. The walk totaled over 4,400 miles—over 3,000 of which were completed in a pair of OESH sandals. As that last detail may imply, while the distance is certainly remarkable—on his first major solo thru-hike the man tackled the AT twice in under a year— what’s more interesting is Geilker’s method. Determined to abide by the AT credo to ‘hike your own hike,’ he made much of his gear himself and approached the trail in a manner uniquely his own. We sat down at Mudhouse

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for an interview. Tell us a little bit about yourself. I lived in Charlottesville all my life until I went to college. While I was in college, my folks bought a farm in Crozet, so now I’m sort of from Crozet. My undergraduate degree is in mechanical engineering and I also received a certificate— Princeton’s version of a minor— in materials science. I love designing and building things, and my goal is to use my degree to do that. I’ve also pursued welding as a trade, and I’m doing a bit of that now to make money while I look for a proper engineering job.

Outline your hike. I began in Greene County in the middle of the Shenandoah National Park on Hightop Mountain at noon on February 22, 2016. I chose the location because of its personal significance in my life—I’d spent a lot of time there when I was younger hiking, camping and working with my father, and had even had my first kiss with my high school girlfriend on the rock overlook. Originally, I intended to get started on January 15, but I was a little late getting ready and our area got about two or three feet of snow. I finally got going when the snow melted in the

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CROZETgazette Valley, although there was still around four inches left in the mountains at that point. After hiking around 1,300 miles, I made it to Katahdin on June 15. I turned around and finished my southbound thru-hike on November 3 (4 months and 18 days from Katahdin). I completed my second northbound leg on December 29, when I re-summited Hightop. Going into this trip, how much backpacking experience did you have? I’ve been backpacking and camping since before my earliest memories. I’ve hiked and camped extensively with my family and participated in the Field School of Charlottesville’s Field Camp and Outdoor Leadership School between the ages of 14 and 17. The program included a week of introduction to backpacking and then a week-long hike along the AT. Two years we did from I-64 to the Priest, and one year we hiked from Grayson Highlands to Damascus. Additionally, I spent the whole summer between high school and college camping in the woods. And in college, I led Princeton’s Outdoor Action backpacking orientation program, where we went on three summer-long cross-country bicycling trips, which involved camping every night. How did you prepare for the trip? Other than making a lot of my own hiking equipment, I researched the trail as much as I could. I made my own trail guide, following the minimalist style of my directions sheets for my cross-country cycling trips. I read Internet forums, watched YouTube videos and Googled all the trail slang…. In retrospect, I actually wish I’d planned less. It turns out planning and logistics matter a whole lot more for a shorter trip—say, for a week. Basically, in terms of preparation I think it’s good to keep the popular Trail-saying in mind: “the Trail isn’t a sprint; it’s not even a marathon; it’s a way of life.” For nearly everyone, a thru-hike is three to six months of your life—life happens and planning a day-by-day itinerary from the outset is unlikely to be useful, just as planning today what you’re going to eat on June 14 is kind of ridiculous.

MARCH 2017 How did you deal with being on the trail in winter? At first I wore muck boots and brought along a huge, heavy and incredibly burdensome sleeping bag, basically because I was afraid of freezing. I really didn’t hit anything crazy until I was coming down Mount Moosilauke in New Hampshire. That was the first time I hit trail where technical ice-climbing was required. I was completely unprepared and genuinely thought I might die—although oddly, turning back didn’t occur to me at all… Ultimately, I made do by tying my hammock strap to my bearbag line and used this ersatzrope to belay myself down the steep ice-sheet that was the trail. Then I went into town and spent hundreds of dollars on ice-climbing and winter gear. Another winter shocker was when I took a zero-day in the New Hampshire Whites at Greenleaf Hut after getting caught in a succession of rain, fog, horizontal hail, then a howling snowstorm on Mount Lafayette— instead of the summit forecast, I’d referred to the valley forecast, which was 40 degrees, no chance of rain and sunny. That was the last time making that mistake! What made you want to do the double-thru-hike? My favorite answer to this question goes something like: “The first time I went backpacking on the AT I was threemonths old and riding in my father’s backpack.” That pretty well sums up my relationship to the trail. My father is a Potomac Appalachian Trail Club trail overseer so, in addition to growing up hiking and camping on the AT, I also spent a lot of time doing volunteer trail work with him, and wrote one of my college common-app essays about that experience… In high school I knew I wanted to thruhike the AT someday, but it wasn’t until I was a college senior that I began to seriously plan for the trip. As an environmentalist, it seemed crazy to me to take a plane/bus/train to one end or the other and then again for the trip home—after all, the AT passes right through my backyard! However, by starting out hiking from Virginia to Maine, I wasn’t properly a thru-hiker.

continued on page 26

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Geilker on a summer day in Massachusetts

Hiker

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Technically, that’s just a section-hike. So, if I failed on that first 1,300-mile leg, at least I wouldn’t be a failed thru-hiker. And if I was able to complete those first 1,300 miles? I figured I could probably manage the whole thing. Plus, it’s just plain harder to do it twice. Lots of people told me I couldn’t and doing what people say I can’t do has always been a hobby of mine. Was it lonely? Oh, the loneliness was awful. During the summer season there are plenty of people. I started and finished my hike in the extreme off-season, which made it pretty lonely. The longest I went without seeing a person was five days—and while that isn’t so bad, when you factor in the fact that on the trail when human interaction does occur it’s often pretty limited, it got a little rough… Typically I’d cross paths with someone and just say hi or, at best, chat for five minutes before we went our separate ways. If I stopped at a shelter and someone was there, then maybe we’d interact for longer—or we might both be so exhausted we just crawled into our sleeping bags for the night. Now I’m pretty good at dealing with loneliness—I’ve been rather profoundly alone for the vast majority of my life. It’s there, I’m just used to it. But in the off-season, the loneliness sometimes got to the point where, when I went into town to resupply, I’d fall in love with the cashier at the grocery store when she smiled at me. That’s meant to be funny; it’s also very true…

But being alone wasn’t always lonely. Especially when conditions were hairy. The worse the weather or the more arduous the climb, the happier I was hiking solo. What’s the takeaway? I find the self-reliance of being alone in the woods to be a good antidote to day-to-day suburban American existence. Our post-industrial society is somewhat alienating to the individual for two reasons. First, if you were to suddenly disappear you would just be replaced in many respects, which makes it feel like society doesn’t need you. Also, the basic necessities of life are so readily accessible in the modern world that obtaining them sometimes fails to satisfy. In other words, society can alienate you by giving the impression that it doesn’t need you and the impression that you don’t even need yourself. But on the trail, I need food, water, shelter and other people far more immediately than I do in typical day-to-day suburban existence. Not only do I appreciate these basic necessities far more on the trail, but I can appreciate my own agency in getting them. Fundamentally, I need me far more on the trail— my judgment and my physical ability constantly, directly translate into fulfillment of my needs, and are measured by my daily successes or shortcomings as a hiker. This sense of needing yourself and having greater agency is healthy and deeply satisfying. What was your favorite stretch of trail and why? I don’t have a favorite section of trail. I think someone who’s hiked the AT only once or always at the same times of year is a lot more likely to have a

favorite section. But hiking it twice, I realized that the experience of a location can be totally different in different seasons. A stretch of trail in Vermont that was staggeringly perfect in the winter with snow-cover was just another mile or two when I hiked through it going south in the summer. Mountains where I’d seen great views in the winter were completely obscured by leaves the other time I passed them. Even the time of day that I stood on a particular spot made all the difference. In short, I do have favorite moments on the AT, but not as many favorite places, if that makes sense. What’s next? Eventually, I might do another crazy outdoors adventure, but the next things I intend to accomplish aren’t necessarily what most people think of when they hear the word adventure. I regard getting married and starting a family as constituting a more exhilarating and challenging adventure than hiking the AT. Same with getting a job and designing machines and other complex systems. I don’t view returning to the “three-dimensional world”—where east and west exist in addition to north/south and up/down—as a let-down. Instead, I see it as an opportunity to do many of the things I didn’t have the freedom to do while on the trail. Life is full of opportunities, and all new experiences have a touch of adventure in them… In the end, I’m much more than a hiker. The idea is in a saying I coined on the trail: “The most dangerous thing about thru-hiking the AT is letting it be the coolest thing you ever do.” I don’t intend to let myself down on that one. COURTESY ADAM GEILKER

MARCH 2017 COURTESY ADAM GEILKER

At Katahdin Summit in Maine

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

By Clover Carroll clover@crozetgazette.com A Western Albemarle High School (WAHS) junior has won top awards in a southeastern regional art competition for the second year in a row. Jacob Chang-Rascle, 16, won two Gold Keys and a Silver Key in the Southeast Art Region-atLarge for the 2017 Scholastic Arts and Writing Awards for his photographs Bloom and Misty Rocks. Chang-Rascle’s photographs now advance to the National Scholastic Arts and Writing Awards. National winners will be announced Tuesday, March 14. The Scholastic Art & Writing Awards are presented by the Alliance for Young Artists & Writers, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to identify students with exceptional artistic and literary talent. They are the nation’s longest-running and most prestigious scholar-

ship and recognition initiative for creative teens, and have fostered creativity and talent since 1923, featuring a notable list of alumni recipients including Richard Avedon, Truman Capote, Stephen King, Sylvia Plath, Robert Redford and Andy Warhol. Through the awards, students receive opportunities for recognition, exhibition, publication, and scholarships (www.artandwriting.org). Last year, one of ChangRascle’s Gold Key winners, Hidden Colors, went on to win a National Silver Medal. He has also been chosen as a finalist in Photographer’s Forum magazine’s 2017 Best of College and High School Photography Contest for his phot depicting the Eiffel Tower in Paris lit up by fireworks from a side street with a crowd watching on Bastille Day, July 14, 2016—an especially poignant reminder of the terrorist attacks in Nice on the same day (pfmagazine.com).

COURTESY JACOB CHANG-RASCLE

Rising Photography Star Jacob Chang-Rascle

WAHS junior Jacob Chang-Rascle

Chang-Rascle got his first camera when he was seven years old and has been pursuing his love of photography ever since, with his first award coming in the 7th grade. He now uses a Canon T5I. As part of his independent study in film and photography at WAHS, ChangRascle is working with professional mentors John Grant www.johngrantstudios.com and Andrew Shurtleff, lead photographer for The Daily Progress. His internship with the Progress has resulted in several frontpage photograph credits. Bloom—or as Chang-Rascle

continued on page 45

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calls it, “the smoking flower”— was created in Grant’s studio, while Misty Rocks was taken while travelling in Brittany, France. His Silver Key winning photograph, Falling Star, was made with his friend Shane Matthews, using Matthews’ drone and a burning steel wool technique. Both students have been studying photography with WAHS Photography teacher Kim Powers since their freshman year. Chang-Rascle is also a budding filmmaker, and is currently working on a film with mentor

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MARCH 2017

COURTESY TSS PHOTO

From back row, left to right: Jay Adams, Connor Pearson, Davis Greene, Alex Williamson, Eric Wilson, Ben Montes-Bradley, Jason Stimson, Will Koester, Dylan Moore, Landon Smith, Mitchell Morris, William Campbell, Jackson Smith. Andrew Allen, Jack Tilley, Luke Aminuddin, Matthew Capshaw, Cyrus Rody-Ramazani, Aibek Quirk, Ben Letteri, Mark Barstow, Bennett Nalley, Thomas Gathright. Josh Haws, Corey Sims, Jack Eliason, Will Stalfort, Will Bonner, Stuart Terrill, Joe Hawkes, Joseph Taylor, Joe Barrese. From top row, left to right: Lily Thompson (manager), Elizabeth Fox (manager), Alexa Overstreet (manager), Keegan Riley, Jake Jackson, Asa Shin, Nate Riley, Dre McCullough, assistant coach Fred Anderson, assistant coach Jon Peters, head coach Adam Mulcahy. Max Morrison, Cam Greene, Will Davis, Jabari Gomez, Cy Ward, Adam O’Connor, Sam Duska, Anthony Ramazani, Nathaniel Brawley-Magee, Drew Rakes. Beighley Austin, Matt Gleason, Jack Overstreet, Bryan Bradley, Andrew Dunstan, T.J. Brooks, Zach Swales, Simon Stone, Logan Warlick.

WAHS Wrestling Takes Conference Championship By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com Building on the momentum of their record-breaking 2015– 2016 season, the WAHS wrestling team finished the year with a dual record of 25-5, placed second in the Jefferson District behind Louisa County, and won the Conference 29 championship. “We also finished the season with our highest-ever regional placing, coming in third out of 25 teams competing in the Region 3A West tournaments, including perineal powerhouses Cave Springs and Christiansburg, which has won the team state title 14 times in a row,” said head coach Adam Mulcahy. Despite the strong finish, Mulcahy said the team got off to a bumpy start, splitting a pair of official duels in the Waynesboro season opener. “It was a reality check for us and the program, with guys coming in off the fall lifting but not doing much wrestling,” he said. “We were stronger, but it showed who’d worked in the offseason and who hadn’t.” Also hindering the team was the fact that fewer athletes tried out than expected and only one football player, Dre

McCullough, joined the squad. “That severely limited our upper weight classes in numbers and continued to be a challenge for us,” said Mulcahy. “We didn’t fill the 220-pound weight class again this year and only had one kid in our program over 200 pounds. Most of the really good programs have a natural partnership where football players go into the winter and wrestle for agility, conditioning and body control, and then lift and train for football in the spring and summer. There’s so much evidence and research showing how wrestling benefits football and vice versa but, right now, we don’t have that connection [at WAHS], and it continues to be very difficult to overcome.” In fact, according to Mulcahy, the problem is the absence of a wrestling culture beyond the high school environment. “We get one or two kids a year that have wrestled at Cavalier Wrestling Club, but that’s not enough to sustain a program, which is one of the reasons why the school has struggled to be successful in wrestling in the past,” he said. Compared to sports where WAHS tends to dominate the field year in and year out—like swimming, continued on page 45

WAHS Boys Indoor Track Building for Future By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com For Western Albemarle High School boys indoor track coach Lindy Bain, his expectations going into the season were a tossup between hopeful optimism and resignation toward a year of team-building. “I knew we were young, though I felt we could compete well on the conference level and qualify some relays and individuals for the state meet,” he said. “Regardless, I knew we would work hard and grow both as individual runners and as a team.” In addition to featuring representatives from across all four grade levels, Bain said the team was more wellrounded than it had been in the past few years, which should leave them more competitive as they move into the future. When asked about the season’s high points, Bain ticked off a long list. “Probably the biggest moment of the season for me was when Corey Sims qualified for the state meet in two events,” he said. “Other achievements I’d like to highlight were our junior pole-vaulters consistently competing well; our junior Will Koester running so well in all of the middle-distance running events; our sophomore jumper, Connor Pearson, improving very quickly in the triple jump; and the freshman distance-runners, all of whom stuck with it and ran incredibly tough throughout the season.” On a whole, Bain said that,

above all else, he was proud of the effort his team put forth to get better, with many team members showing huge improvements over the course of the winter. “It’s great to see these kids put in the hard work and achieve results,” he said. “That’s always the thing that makes me proudest, seeing them grow as athletes and achieve results they maybe didn’t think were possible going into the season…Also, I’m very happy that we had runners qualifying to compete at the state level.” Athletes qualifying to run in individual competitions at the Feb. 25 state meet were Jackson Smith, Landon Smith and Cooper Saunders in the pole vault, Sims in the 55 and 300 meter hurdles, Koester in the 500 and 1,000 meter races, as well as Joe Hawkes and Stuart Terrill, who both qualified to run in the 3,200-meter event. Additionally, the team qualified runners for the 4x400 and 4x800 meter relays. At the state meet, the team took eighth place overall. “The 4 x 800 relay team of Koester, Dylan Moore, Hawkes, and Cyrus Rody-Ramazani finished fifth,” said Bain. “Pole-vaulters Jackson Smith and Saunders finished fifth and sixth. And individually, Koester finished third in the 1,000, with Hawkes and Terrill placing fourth and eighth in the 3,200 respectively.” As far as team leadership continued on page 30

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com Coming off what coach Dan Bledsoe described as “an incredible turnout for preseason conditioning,” the WAHS boys and girls varsity swimming and diving teams were poised for a repeat of last year’s winning performances. “Last year the boys’ team won its first-ever state championship, while the girls won their sixth straight,” said Bledsoe. “But we didn’t let that success go to our heads. We wanted to make sure we put in the hard work and effort necessary to perform at our best, regardless of what we may have done before.” Toward that end, the team began training back in early September—a full month before tryouts. The workouts were well-attended, with more than 50 boys and girls showing up regularly. “We emphasized aerobic conditioning to prepare our swimmers for their in-pool development and worked on core strength to help minimize injuries due to weak cores,” explained Bledsoe, describing the offseason regimen. “More than anything, we wanted to be sure we were in tiptop shape going into the season.” Despite graduating last year’s Virginia High School League 50-meter freestyle state record-breaking champion, Aaron James, the WAHS boys squad featured an exceptional group of returning seniors. Of these, Bledsoe said AJ Donovan, Matt Mandell and Kevin O’Shea were the core of the team’s leadership. “These are three hard-working and talented

young men, both in and out of the pool,” said Bledsoe. “None are year-round swimmers, but all three are competitive on the state level with their year-round counterparts. They are incredible leaders and role models for their teammates, and their leadership and conduct both in the pool and out sets the tone for practices and competitions, and pushes their teammates to be better swimmers.” Of the above three, over the course of the winter season, Donovan proved to be the standout. At last year’s state championship meet he competed on the 200-meter freestyle relay team that, anchored by James, won gold and set a state record. This year, according to Bledsoe, Donovan performed well and proved to be a team leader throughout the season. Spearheaded by that leadership, the boys had an incredible season. “During the holiday break they competed in the Hanover Invitational Meet in Richmond, which included 13 private and public schools, and they took first place,” said Bledsoe. After that, the team won the local Ben Hair Invitational, which also serves as the Jefferson District Championship meet, and “added to their success by winning the Conference 29 championship in convincing fashion,” continued Bledsoe. “On Feb. 7, we finished second behind Hidden Valley High School in the Region 3A Championship.” At the regional meet, 18 boys qualified to participate in the state championship, which was held on Feb. 16 and 18.

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COURTESY TSS PHOTO

Western’s Swimming and Diving Teams Defend State Titles

From top row, left to right: Josiah Walcott, Liam Dunn, Evan Sposato, Benton Turner, Max Tracey, Ben Kunkel, Jason Heilman, Jack Vaughn. Coach Sophie Hyman, Joey Paulson, William Lambert, William Peritz, Tyce Winter, Zach Bowen, Andrew Holzwarth, Noah Hargrove, Stephane Karp, Claudia James. Sydney Dutton, Merdith Martin, Sophie O’Donnell, Kayleigh Jumper, Katie Herndon, Clare O’Connell, Amie Benson, Ashna Nitzsche, Julia Perrone, Anna Livermon, Lauren O’Donnell, Aislyn Bozcek, Anjali Nitzsche. Bevin Lexa, Sara Beth Manning, Carey D’Atre, Elle Graham, Sarah Gemeny, Morgan James, Teryn Ratcliffe, Nell Fountain, Talley Johnston. August Lamb, Matt Mandell, Kevin O’Shea, Trevor Phelps, AJ Donovan, Johnny Riordan, AJ Given, Coach Dan Bledsoe.

Of the 18 WAHS swimmers who participated in the state competition, 16 scored points—with many logging

team record-setting performances—netting the Warriors a runner-up finish overall.

continued on page 42

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

COURTESY TSS PHOTO

Etiquette

—continued from page 21

Top row, from left to right: Assistant coach Ryan Hughes, Chris McGahren, Mitch Larkin, Daniel Thomas, Austin Cress, Jed Strickland, Garrett Payne, Teo Rampini, coach Darren Maynard. Patrick Bodnarick, Josh Coffman, Ryan Ingram, Gabe Nafziger.

WAHS Boys Varsity Basketball Runner-up in Conference Finals By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com The Western Albemarle boys’ varsity basketball team had a strong year, finishing second in both the Jefferson District and Conference 29 playoffs. Going into the conference title game against Spotswood—a regional powerhouse they’ve met and lost to in the final for four straight seasons—the team had a record of 20-5. They led by as many as 10 points in the third quarter, but wound up losing by a narrow five points. “I’m very proud of my guys,” said coach Darren Maynard after the game. “We played well enough to win tonight, but we weren’t allowed to do that. I can’t find any fault in them; what a heck of an effort.” The loss came as the end of a season featuring a tough schedule and unanticipated obstacles. “We had 5A Albemarle at 22-2 overall, 5A Mills E. Godwin at 19-4 overall, Charlottesville at 19-8, and Louisa County, which is always a battle,” said assistant coach Jonathan Faulconer. “Additionally, we had to play through a series of injuries which, while they were hard to cope with at the time, ended up helping us develop some good depth in all positions. That made the team stronger overall and will definitely play a factor in the years to come.” Leading the team throughout

the season was senior captain and state standout point guard, Ryan Ingram. “Ryan led the team in scoring throughout the season and had a record-breaking year, surpassing Billy Baber to become WAHS’s all-time leading scorer, with over 1,350 career points,” said Faulconer. A strong all-around player, Ingram also led the team in assists and steals, tallying enough of both to earn second place standing in WAHS record-books. Both Maynard and Faulconer say Ingram’s scoring feats were achieved in a system that isn’t geared to produce individual high-scorers. “Our offensive system is fine-tuned for balance,” said Faulconer. “It isn’t designed to feed one player; rather, it’s set up to take advantage of wherever the open look is, exploiting whatever the defense gives us. What Ryan’s achieved in his career, he’s done working within that system.” “[Ingram] has great speed, vision, athletic ability and can really shoot the ball and score in different ways,” Maynard added, piling on the praise. “He’s such a great teammate. Where does it ever happen in high school basketball that your all-time leading scorer has a chance to be your all-time assist man too? I’ve said this before, but Ryan conducts himself around his teammates like he’s the twelfth man on the team. He really is one-of-a-kind.” continued on page 39

it on silent at the beginning of the meal, and if it vibrates, ignore it. In the case of an emergency, excuse yourself from the table and go to another room to take the call. The fifth course, dessert, was worth waiting for—a key lime bar on a crumb crust with a dollop of whipped cream and lime sauce zig-zagged across the plate. I’m sure the students felt as pampered as I did! At the end of the meal, the napkin should be loosely folded and replaced on the table to the left of the plate, never wadded up and left on the plate or the chair. By the end of the meal, I felt that the barbarian within me had been tamed. So the next time you are invited to dine with the Queen, you’ll be ready!

Ting

—continued from page 6

mom’s home office, high-resolution photos uploading, dad in the kitchen making a Google Home grocery list—so on and etc.—there’s never any lag-time or buffering, ever, with uploads next to instantaneous. “Fiber allows the possibility for increasing connectivity between devices in the home, because data is no longer an issue,” added Eisner. “You could have 20 or 30 devices all running at once and no matter how many you have everything happens immediately… Like autonomous cars in the realm of transportation, this technology is going to absolutely revolutionize what’s possible in a household.” If Ting does come to Crozet,

Boys Track —continued from page 28

went, while Sims was designated as the obvious frontrunner, Bain chose to focus on the future, naming juniors Koester and Max Fueurlein, as well as sophomores Rody-Ramazani and Pearson, and freshmen Jack Eliason, Hawkes and Terrill as go-to guys for their various age-

I was most impressed with the ladylike and gentlemanly behavior of the elementary students with whom I enjoyed a fabulous lunch. They spoke softly, were polite throughout the meal, and asked relevant—not silly— questions. “I find that when we set high expectations,” said Ms. Gale, “students will rise to the occasion.” Afton Christian School, which meets in the Church of the Blue Ridge on Rt. 151, has welcomed students in grades K-12 since 2001 with its mission to achieve, cultivate, and serve. The 80-plus students, who hail from Afton, Nellysford, Crozet, Lovingston, and Waynesboro, study an academic curriculum with a Christian worldview, including weekly student-led chapel and a robust sports program. Students in the upper grades read the classics.

the residential gigabit package will run $89 per month, with installation costing “below $200,” and a purchasable ($200) or rentable ($9 per month) modem needed as well. A Century Link representative said custom fiber-optic service could be provided to a business or individual were they willing to invest in it—cost figures were not forthcoming. The only other readymade fiber option for Crozetians comes through Comcast. “We offer a Gigabit Pro [package, which is] a professional residential-grade fiber-to-the-home solution that delivers 2 Gbps upload and download speeds,” said Eliza Findlay, a Comcast public relations manager for the southeast U.S. “And we’re currently running a promo for customers in Albemarle County: $149.99 for 24 months with free activation.”

groups. “Corey is an amazing runner and, if he decides he wants to do it, can definitely compete at the college level,” said Bain. “Moving into the spring season, we’re going to continue to work individually and at the leadership level. We have so many great young runners, I think next year we’re going to see some really amazing things happen.”

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

By Eric J. Wallace eric@crozetgazette.com

From left to right: Zoe Clay, Caroline Koester, Faith Reid, Madison Masloff, Val Hajek, Katrine Berg, Nichole Heon, Averi Witt (holding the Region 3A-West trophy), Julia Berg, Claudia Giortz-Jorgensen, Leah Ackerman, Sarina Cooper, and Arianna Ballas.

move her patella tendon over with screws, then use a piece of hamstring to recreate her medial patella tendon,” said coach Witt. “It took almost two years to get her back to full strength and yet, all the while, she never looked back and stayed positive.” Considering that Witt will sign with James Madison University in April, the dedication has paid off. “She’s one of their top recruits this year and is eager to make an impact right away for them,” said coach Witt. While the team will lose many seniors, Witt isn’t worried in the least. “We have some impressive young performers that are more than capable of filling the big shoes our seniors will leave behind them,” she said. “The list is long and includes de Jong in the 55 hurdles and high jump, Katrine Berg in the jumps and 300, Katia Amos in the jumps, Julia Berg and Claudia GiortzJorgensen in the 1,000, Clay and Hill in the 3,200, and Ackerman in the shot put.” CHERIE WITT

and state accolades. “Two of our relay teams have qualified for national competition as well as one individual,” she said. At the New York City event, which will be held from March 10-12, Witt will compete in the 1,600 and 3,200 meter individual races, and run with teammates Clay, Reid and Julia Berg in both the 4 x 800 meter event and the distance medley relay. On the season, Witt was a definitive standout and, despite suffering a major knee injury as a sophomore, has bounced back to have one of the most amazing careers in WAHS history. “After placing second in the freshman mile at nationals, the following fall she had to undergo three surgical procedures to correct a genetic defect in her knee,” said coach Witt. What’d happened was, during the prior season, due to a shallow groove, Witt’s kneecap had slipped out of place 15 times. And the measures necessary to correct it were extensive. “The doctors had to create a deeper groove for Averi’s kneecap,

CHERIE WITT

As the recently crowned Region 3A West champions, the Western Albemarle High School girls track team is riding high. But the excitement goes beyond simply winning the event—fact is, the girls dominated the podium. “At the regional meet, Madison Masloff was crowned champion pole vaulter and Averi Witt won both the 1,000 and the 1,600,” said coach Cherie Witt. “In relay competitions, we had the 4-by-800 team of Julia Berg, Claudia Giortz-Jorgensen, Zoe Clay and Witt take first-place, as well as the 4 x 400 team of Faith Reid, Val Hajek, Katrine Berg and Masloff.” The team placed numerous runners-up, including Sarah Tolman in the pole vault, Kate de Jong in the 55-meter hurdles and Clay in the 3,200. Thirdplace finishers were Nichole Heon in the long jump, Katrine Berg in the triple jump and the 4 x 200 quartet of Val Hajek, Katrine Berg, Masloff, and Nichole Heon. Reid took fourth in the 500 and Claudia Gioertz-Joergensen fifth in the 1,000. Finishing in sixth place was Leah Ackerman in the shotput, Masloff in the 500, and Emma Ratcliffe in the 1,000. While Jenna Hill, Anna Harris and Melina Punsalan didn’t place, their performances were strong enough to win them slots at the state tournament where, after scoring 95.4 points, the Warriors took the state title. At the state competition, the team was led by Witt, who won

both the 1,600 and 1,000 and anchored the winning 4 x 800 relay team. “The 4 x 800 relay team set a 3A state meet record, a school record and qualified for the elite division at nationals,” said Witt. Western had one more individual champion, Masloff, who took first place in the pole vault. Clay finished second in the 1,600 and the 3,200. Third place finishers were Julia Berg in the 1,000, Tolman in the pole vault, and the 4 x 400 relay team of Reid, Hajek, Berg, and Madison Masloff. And the 4 x 200 relay team of Anna Harris, Katrine Berg, Masloff, and Heon placed fourth with a school record time of 1:49.42. “The greatest thing about this team was we were so well rounded and able to pick up points in so many areas,” said Witt. “Everyone on the team played an important role and each meet was a total team effort. We had 26 of our 40 team members compete at the regional level and, with 18 qualifying for the state meet, this was the largest group of girls we’d ever brought to the competition.” Beyond their depth across the field, the team’s success had much to do with its strong core of senior runners. “Four years ago, as freshmen, the seniors on this team made an impact right away,” Witt explained. “Throughout this indoor season they’ve led this team in a big way. These girls have worked hard for four years and it’s great to see it paying off in their senior year.” And by paying off, Witt means more than just regional

COURTESY CHERIE WITT

Girls Indoor Track Wins States

The new school-record holders, state champions, national meet qualifying 4 x 800 relay squad of Averi Witt, Claudia Giortz-Jorgensen, Julia Berg, Zoe Clay

School-record holding 4 x 200 relay team: Katrine Berg, Madison Masloff, Nichole Heon and Anna Harris.

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

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Patches is an 18-year old cat that has been alive about five years longer than she should be. I can recall when she came into the office about five years ago because she wasn’t eating well and started having some difficulty breathing. Because they don’t really exercise, cats can have significant heart and/or lung disease with very little obvious clinical signs to their owners—until they just can’t compensate any longer. This was the case for Patches. Her owners actually told me that for several months she was having some wheezing when she was breathing, but they thought it was just her purring. She was eating fine and social, so really how could she be sick? But there is nothing like a car ride to the vet to really make a cat with difficulty breathing decompensate. When I came into the exam room, here was Patches, open-mouth breathing, in critical condition. I almost had to convince her mom that she was critical because she had seemed so normal just hours before. Despite her labored breathing, I heard very little noise when I listened to her lungs. Not good. We took some quick chest X-rays and then put her in the oxygen cage so she could breathe more easily. I was fairly shocked to see on the X-ray that she had only about 25 percent of her lung function because her chest was so full of fluid. Working up a cat with difficulty breathing poses a challenging for veterinarians. Cats are actually very similar to humans in that the lungs are a very reactive organ system, and are referred to as the “shock” organ—i.e., sometimes when there is a lot of inflammation or trauma elsewhere in the body, the lungs can start to suffer

from “inflammatory lung disease” and start filling up with fluid. Thus, when we see cats with fluid in their lungs or in their chest, we have to consider the whole cat. Heart disease is an obvious cause of difficulty breathing and fluid buildup in the lungs. Dogs and cats don’t get coronary artery disease (aka, heart attacks) like people—they tend to get congestive heart failure due to chronic heart disease. Dogs are pretty predictable— they almost always have an audible heart murmur for a long period of time before the heart muscle actually starts to fail. Cats, however, can surprise the heck out of us because they can often have significant heart disease without a hint of a murmur or arrhythmia (abnormal heart rhythm). When cats like Patches present to us with fluid in their chest, heart failure is always possible, even without a murmur or history of heart disease. Chronic allergic bronchitis, also known as “feline asthma,” is one of the most common causes of lung disease in cats. Cats are very prone to allergic lung disease. These cats almost always have a history of coughing, whereas cats with heart disease usually never cough. Many people initially blow off the significance of their cat’s coughing spells because they assume they are just “coughing up a hairball.” I have no idea where the term “coughing of a hairball” came from because that is simply not possible. Hairballs come from undigested hair in the stomach; they are never coughed up, they are puked up! Okay, sometimes it can be hard to tell a cat that is puking from a cat that is coughing—but puking cats produce puke, while a coughing cat may crouch down in the puking position, but will cough, just like a smoker, and never produce any vomit (or hairballs).

continued on page 38

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

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February was so warm that it not only produced flowers way ahead of schedule, but also a blizzard of statistics from your Crozet weather geeks. The average temperature for the month was 49 degrees, which is a full 10 degrees above normal. To put it another way, the February average was more like a normal March 20, meaning that spring has been a full five weeks ahead of schedule. Snow was completely absent. We average 6.3 inches a year for snow in February, so we wondered how often we get through February without any. It turns out that a snowless February is

not that unusual. We have good snowfall records back to about 1950 and February has been skunked 13 times in 67 years. That’s almost 20 percent of the time. The last time it happened was 2002 and 1999 before that. The snowiest February of all time was 1979 with 23.5”. Honorable mention goes to 1983, 2003, 1961, and 1964 with each month getting over 20 inches. If you have been watering your new-found flowers, you aren’t alone. Rainfall in February was a scant 0.61”, well below the average of 3.32”. We started the year with a normal water table so long-term drought is not a concern at this time.surgical We provide medical, Of and course, an early spring Dental care for your family pet with a loving touch. means frost problems. March temperatures as We are nowhave takingdropped new patients. low as 3 degrees and we Call us to(2014) set up an get belowappointment 20 enoughtoday! to make that a real possibility. We drop to freezing a full 37 percent of the time, so we are definitely going to freeze this month. The fewest freeze days ever in March was two, in 1945 and 1903. In 1960, we dropped below freezing 26 times in March. The question is not “if ” but rather “when.” Heidi is armed with old blankets and is ready to try to save the plants she can.

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434-823-4300 www.crozetvet.com

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

The Big Read: Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones by Clover Carroll | clover@crozetgazette.com Various societies, both past and present, have accepted polygamy—a man’s right to marry more than one wife—as legal, including 19th century Mormons in the U.S. and many Muslim countries currently (some with restrictions). But illegal or not, many Western societies have turned a blind eye to men’s habit of maintaining the household of a secret mistress and her children—sometimes involving a second marriage—while also enjoying a respectable home life with a “legitimate” wife. Although it has become increasingly unacceptable in recent years, the practice of having two families is still more common than we think, with “the other grieving widow” often showing up at a man’s funeral. This year’s Big Read selection, Silver Sparrow by Tayari Jones, exposes this long-hidden practice and explores its negative consequences. Set in the suburbs of Atlanta in the 1980s, Silver Sparrow (2011) is narrated in turn by the two high-school-aged daughters of marriages—conducted in different states—to two women by the same man, one open, the other secret. Dana Yarboro, the “secret sister,” opens the book with “My father, James Witherspoon, is a bigamist.” Chaurisse Witherspoon, who lives a relatively normal life with two parents and is completely unaware of her father’s second family’s existence, narrates the second half of the book. James, the stuttering owner of a successful limousine service, is portrayed as loving both women and both daughters—but he spends only one night a week with Gwen, Dana’s mother, living primarily with Chaurisse and first wife Laverne. Similar in age, the two girls live in different neighborhoods in Atlanta and attend different schools, but often inhabit the same social circles. Dana, yearning to be

part of her father’s “real” family, stalks Chaurisse—which inevitably leads to the two girls’ meeting. Chaurisse is strangely attracted to Dana and pursues a friendship with her, but this is bound to put an end to Chaurisse’s innocence as the two families collide. The narrative is driven by the hope that the sisters will truly connect and come to support each other, but you’ll need to read the book to discover whether they eventually do. The book highlights the plight of women, both mothers and daughters, caught in the web of secrets resulting from such a man’s selfish desires. While James is portrayed as earnest in his effort to care for both families, he is also remarkably unconcerned with the longterm consequences of his actions. Although both mothers work to support their daughters—Gwen as a nurse and Laverne as a beauty shop owner—Gwen and Dana live a much more reduced life than their counterparts, in an apartment rather than a house; Gwen has to cajole James into every major expense, such as Dana’s impending college education. “People don’t go around thinking how lucky they are that their dad claims them,” Jones points out in “A Conversation with the Author” (Algonquin Books edition). “[Chaurisse] has no idea that the life she enjoys is on someone else’s back.” Jones describes the many calls and emails she has received from other ‘silver sparrows,” i.e. victims of similar situations. “Secret children are much more prevalent than we know.” The title combines two threads in the book, echoing James’ double life as well as the two-sided nature of the narrative. Chaurisse views Dana as a “silver girl,” one of the beautiful, popular girls with naturally straight hair and a cool boyfriend. The sparrow is a more lowly allusion to the gospel classic ”His Eye is on the Sparrow,” which is mentioned by Chaurisse’s first boyfriend, the

preacher’s son Jamal, when he tells her the troubling tale of his alcoholic mother. Jamal expresses doubt that “God is looking in on each and every one of us. He said he had some questions about the whole dynamic with the sparrow.” The sentimental hymn reassures us that since “[God’s] eye is on the sparrow…I know He watches over me.” But the entire plot of this novel raises questions about such a belief. As Jones explains, “... although Chaurisse thinks of Dana as her ‘silver girl,’ in many ways Dana is the tiniest sparrow in the story. She is flawed, of course...but she is also ‘the least of these.’” Thus the title is an ironic reference to Dana, the more neglected daughter, whose beauty cannot replace the love and attention she craves from her largely absent father. Ultimately both girls, and their mothers, suffer from James’ behavior. “There are no real winners or losers in this story,” Jones admits. Born in Atlanta in 1970, Tayari Jones has received “best book” recognition for her third novel from several sources, including the American Booksellers Association, the NAACP, O Magazine, Slate, and a 2011 interview on NPR’s All Things Considered. She teaches in the MFA program at Rutgers and is active in Girls Write Now, a writing and mentoring organization for girls. You can hear Jones discuss her book at Northside Library on Friday, March 17, at 6 p.m. as part of the Big Read. The NEA Big Read is a program of the National Endowment for the Arts designed to encourage

citizens to read and discuss a single book within their community. JMRL receives an annual grant to provide the Big Read throughout central Virginia during March, with related programs at all branch libraries (jmrl.org/bigread.htm). The Crozet Library will host its Monday Night Book Club discussion of the book on Monday, March 7. (Other library events include Women’s Life Writing Workshop every Tuesday from March 7 through April 4, a Lost and Found Upcycled Book workshop on March 8, a showing of the film Barbershop: the Next Cut on March 20, and a Finding Your Roots Genealogy Workshop on March 27.) Although it was refreshing to read a novel about African Americans in the South who were business owners and led comfortable, middle-class suburban lives, overall I found this book disappointing. It feels more like a young adult novel, with teenaged protagonists and concerns and lackluster vocabulary and prose style, than an appealing adult, Big Read choice. The characters were not well-developed, and I found the voices of the two narrators indistinguishable, with Chaurisse’s voice only slightly less caustic and more innocent than Dana’s. As the book builds too slowly to the final confrontation between the two wives— one unknowing, the other enabling—it becomes unrealistic and anticlimactic. Gwen is not developed enough for us to understand her motivation in finally coming out of the shadows. The one exception might be the heart-rending story of Chaurisse’s mother, who gets pregnant at 14 and has to drop out of school to become James’ stay-at-home wife (and then loses the baby). That said, the book is worth reading, as it opens a window on a little-known phenomenon and portrays it from the oft-ignored women’s perspective. “I hope that readers will come away from the book with a sort of tolerance for people who find themselves in complicated and messy situations,” Jones said. In that, she has definitely succeeded.

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Attention Back Pain and Sciatica Sufferers! Back By Request…

Back Pain and Sciatica Workshop Reveals How to Naturally Heal Back Pain and Sciatica For Good. Do you suffer with back pain or leg pain when you stand or walk? Do you have pain when you sit for long periods or drive? Do you experience pain, numbness or tingling into your butt, groin or down your leg?

by John Andersen

Does your back ever “go out” if you move the wrong way? Are you afraid your pain will get worse if you don’t do anything about it?

On Getting Old We don’t have to age…not yet anyway. Sadly, I have seen a lot of people who look at themselves at 40 or 50 years old and see an “old” person. They seem resigned to thinking that the window for getting fit and changing to an active, healthy lifestyle has passed. Perhaps some extra weight makes them feel sluggish and they find exercise to be a negative experience that does not motivate them to continue. Perhaps there are some joint or muscle problems that seem to throw bumps in their road to fitness and they simply stop. Or perhaps it’s just a case of having a closed mindset: “This is just the way I am and nothing can change that.” There is a fantastic study in a 2010 German publication that I think all of these people should read. Get out your computer and Google this study: Leyk, Dieter et al. “Physical Performance in Middle Age and Old Age – Good News for our Sedentary and Aging Society” from Deutsches Ärzteblatt International, 2010 Nov; 107(46): 809-816. In this study, the author starts by pointing out the well-known fact that, generally, physical performance seems to decline with age. The question he poses, however, is are these age-related declines in physical performance due to biologic aging, or are they possibly related to the fact that we often live a more sedentary life as we age. Prior studies have suggested that aerobic endurance decreases by 15 percent per decade after the age of 30. However, these studies were simply cross-sectional studies of the general population. Thus, most 60-year-

olds were less fit than most 50-year-olds. However, this is where the author of our study poses the question. Is this because they are 10 years older, or because they have become more sedentary. To look at this question from a different perspective, the authors of the German study decided to do a cross-sectional examination of people who ran marathons and half-marathons. Their reasoning was that whereas a relatively untrained runner can participate in a 5k or even 10k running event, people who participate in marathons and half marathons are going to be much more committed to training and living a more active lifestyle. These events require more commitment and thus, in general, we can assume that regardless of age, the typical participant in a marathon or half marathon is living a more active lifestyle vs. a cross section of the non-running population. They analyzed over 500,000 marathon times and almost 400,000 half-marathon times from runners ages 20-79 and stratified this data based upon age and gender. By looking at the finishing times by age, they could start to make some conclusions on how older runners performed versus younger counterparts. The results, as the subtitle of the study suggests, was surprisingly good news for our sedentary society. First, there was no age-related change in performance noted in men or women until 55 years of age! That’s right, the 50-yearolds were performing just as well as the 20-year-olds! Second, 25 percent of the continued on page 40

If you have answered YES to any of the above questions (or have a stubborn spouse who is in denial) – the Lower Back and Sciatica Workshop may be a life changing event for you… “My back had almost immediate positive results. All the folks at PT Plus were professional and helpful. I hope not to be injured again, but if it happens I will gladly return to PT Plus.” Back pain and sciatica can completely ruin your life…I’ve seen it many times.  It can make you lean on the shopping cart when walking through the grocery store (how embarrassing)…  It can take your focus away on enjoying your life…like spending time with your children or grandchildren…  It can mess up your work or force you to do a job you don’t want to do…  It can ruin your travel plans…  And it can take away your ability to live life…having to rely on others…or to wait for you to sit down for a minute. And less movement and enjoying of life can lead to depression, increased stress and a sedentary lifestyle (mostly sitting…not moving much) which leads to bigger health problems…and life problems. Here at the Sciatica and Lower Back Specialists at PT Plus, we’ve helped 100’s of people from right here in Crozet…and the rest of Albemarle County…who have suffered needlessly with lower back pain and sciatica…it’s our specialty.

So by request, I’m hosting a Sciatica and Lower Back Pain Workshop here at PT Plus March 18, 2017 at 10:00am. We are located at 5690 Three Notch’d Rd Suite 107 Crozet, VA 22932. If you’re confused about what to do and looking for answers, here’s some of what you’ll learn:  The Single Biggest #1 Mistake back pain and sciatica sufferers make which actually stops them from healing…  The 3 Most Common Causes of Lower Back Pain and Sciatica…  A Sure-Fire Way to Pick the Right Treatment for the Cause of Your Pain (and save you a ton of time and money)  How a problem in your back can cause pain, numbness or tingling in your leg…  What successful treatment and permanent relief looks like without the side effects of medications, injections or surgery.

How Do I Register for the Lower Back Pain and Sciatica Workshop? Call our office to register at (434) 823-7613. When you register, we will mail you The Lower Back Pain and Sciatica Worksheet which you will bring with you to the event. We only have 30 seats available for the event…and this will be going out to all of Western Albemarle County. So if you would like to attend, be sure to register now… Call (434) 8237613.

How Much Is It to Attend?

FREE

As a Special Bonus…the first 10 people to call and register for the event will receive a special gift.

All 30 attendees for the Sciatica and Lower Back Pain Workshop will receive a Special Report: “The Top 10 Burning Questions for Sciatica”. Looking forward to seeing you there, Laura Coleman, PT, Owner PT Plus Health and Wellness Centers PS – The first 10 People to call and register at (434) 823-7613 will receive a special gift. PPS – This event is limited to the first 30 people to register. When you register, you can bring a guest (we do this because many people request to bring their spouse or other family member).

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Auto Pilot “These are not things that I wish will happen. These are simply things that I think probably will happen.” — Elon Musk. Two famous fictional robots of my childhood in the early 1960s were Rosie the Robot in the animated sitcom The Jetsons; and the Class M-3, Model B9, General Utility Non-Theorizing Environmental Robot (The Robot) of the science fiction television series Lost in Space. By 1968, HAL 9000—the Heuristically Programmed Algorithmic Computer—startled and chilled my teenage imagination when it wrested control of the Discovery One spacecraft from the American astronauts in Stanley Kubrick’s epic science-fiction film 2001: A Space Odyssey. Today, we possess sufficient computing power, sensor technology, material science, and software sophistication to turn robot fiction into reality. Here in Crozet, we see exciting manifestations of this reality in the Western Albemarle High School varsity robotics team, squads of students from Henley Middle School, and in the arrival of business ventures such as Perrone Robotics. On a national scale, the Robotics Institute at Carnegie Mellon University, MIT’s Media Lab, Watson (IBM), and Deep Mind (Google) are just a few examples of the amazing cutting-edge research and product development going on in this field. A new era is sweeping in. Sophisticated neural networks and software algorithms allow machines to learn from example and experience, and in doing so, gain cognitive skills and analytical capabilities far surpassing their original programming. This is historic, unprecedented; a game changer. Are we ready? Robots and artificial intelligence (A.I.) machines are coming at us at warp speed. Are governmental

laws and policies in place to cope with major economic, social and legal changes they will bring? I think not. And neither does high-tech, visionary entrepreneur extraordinaire, Elon Musk (a founder of SpaceX, Tesla, SolarCity, and PayPal). The World Governmental Summit – convened to revolutionize how governments operate and how policies are made – was held 12-14 February in Dubai, United Arab Emirates. At this summit, Musk warned that self-driving, autonomous cars and trucks will displace human driven vehicles over the next 20 years or so. Increased efficiency, convenience and road safety will be achieved. But 12 to 15 percent of the global workforce currently employed as drivers will be out on the street, looking elsewhere for work. Musk feels the efficiencies of robots and artificial general intelligence will lead to unprecedented abundance of low-cost goods and services. And during the phase-in period, robots and A.I. will create new jobs and help many of us to do our present jobs better. Yet, within decades, he believes “there will be fewer and fewer jobs that a robot cannot do better (than a human).” The need for human labor will diminish dramatically. (In his automated, push-button world, George Jetson worked at Spacely’s Sprockets one hour a day, two days a week!) When widespread, non-employment of humans becomes the norm, Musk says, “we will need to have some kind of universal basic income—I don’t think there will be a choice.” Universal basic income is potentially doable during periods of material prosperity. But there are deeper, more intractable problems than money. Musk fears the day when artificial general intelligence becomes “smarter than the smartest human on earth,” calling this a “dangerous situation.” Furthermore, he wonders “If you are not needed, if there is

not a need for your labor. What’s the meaning (of life)?” These are not new fears. The word robot was introduced to the English language in 1920 by Czech writer Karel Čapek in his science fiction play R.U.R. (Rossum’s Universal Robots). Derived from the Slavic word robota, robot means corvée, that is, coerced, unpaid labor. In the play, robots are artificial, humanoid, biological entities. They are inexpensive to make, and within 10 years of their initial development, they have been deployed in factories worldwide. The global, robotbased economy they create allows products to be made at a fraction of their previous cost. Tragically, the robots revolt and kill off the human race. At the end of the play, only one human is left alive. In response to the dystopian future portended by R.U.R., science fiction author Isaac Asimov devised “The Three Laws of Robotics.” He first expounded them in his short story Runaround, published in 1942. Compiled in the fictional “Handbook of Robotics, 56th Edition, 2058 A.D.” these laws are: (1) a robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to come to harm; (2) a robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders would conflict with the First Law; and (3) a robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not conflict with the First or Second Laws. Later, Asimov added a fourth, or zeroth law, to precede the others: (0) a robot may not harm humanity, or, by inaction, allow humanity to come to harm. As nice as they sound, Asimov’s Laws are unachievable. It is not possible for robots to act and never do harm. All activity involves some risk of harm, whether performed by humans or machines. Autonomous cars, trucks, trains, airplanes, rockets and drones

will be involved in accidents that result in damage, injury and death. Medical diagnoses generated by A.I. and treatments performed by robots will not always be correct or appropriate. But the potential for harm goes deeper than this. Robotics and A.I. poses risks to human integrity, dignity, and autonomy, striking at the very heart and soul of what it means to be human. For example, a committee on legal affairs of the European Parliament (the E.U.’s law-making body) is considering affording legal rights and obligations to robots. When robots cause damage, the greater the robot’s autonomy, the greater the blame assigned to the machine. Placing blame on non-conscious, lifeless entities blurs the line between persons and machines, diminishing the moral status of humankind. But it doesn’t stop there. Bill Gates suggests we tax robotic workers; to compensate for losses in income and payroll taxes formerly paid by human workers. Will robots (like corporations) be allowed to own property, open bank accounts, and be responsible for paying taxes? More questions pop into my mind. Can robots enter into civil or commercial partnerships, own other robots, bequeath and inherit property? Perhaps most disturbing of all, Musk believes we are going to have to merge with these machines. For humans to remain economically useful and retain control of society, we will have to communicate with electronic entities in ways more rapid than our fingers can type, our mouths can speak, or our thumbs can swipe across an iPhone. “Some high bandwidth interface to the brain will be something that helps achieve a symbiosis between human and machine intelligence and maybe solves the control problem and the usefulness problem,” said Musk. Personally, I don’t want a high bandwidth interface between my brain and technology. At least, I wish to retain a choice about it. To protect our freedom, we must exercise the uniquely human quality of empathy. We must actively affirm the value and worth of

continued on page 38

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

BY DR. ROBERT C. REISER

crozetannals@crozetgazette.com

Hot Legs Spring on a college campus is a beautiful riot of life-affirming re-emergence. The trees softly bud and the daffodils burst into vibrant colors. Frisbees drift over the newly green grass and the long pale limbs of the students reappear after a winter spent hibernating under the cover of warm clothes. The change of wardrobe is the most rapid and reliable sign of warm weatherâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s return, overnight the shorts, skirts, and sandals come out, as do the masses of students, previously huddled studying in libraries and dorms. Along with the sudden reveal of the daffodils and crocuses springing from the bare earth, the sudden reveal of so many studentsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; legs can surprise and even bewilder. I am speaking medically of course. The rash on this one leg in particular was as bewildering to my patient as it was to me. The young woman had just discovered it on the first really warm day when she cast off her sweatpants and donned a short skirt. She was otherwise in good health, although the past winter had been hard for her with frequent seasonal illnesses. A bout with the flu was followed by strep throat, which was followed by a G.I. bug. She had been housebound for much of the semester with these ailments. She was feeling better now but was worried about this new rash. The rash was mostly on her left thigh, with a faint suggestion of a similar rash on her right thigh but it was subtle on the right and I wasnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t sure if I was truly seeing something or not. On the left thigh, the rash had rather straight borders, which is kind of unusual and seemed to be a clue. The rash had a lacey red-purple pattern to it, â&#x20AC;&#x153;reticulatedâ&#x20AC;? we call it in medicine after the Latin word

for net. The rash resembled a fishing net. Here was another clue. Rashes with linear borders are often caused by particular exposures to allergens or irritants. This is called contact dermatitis. I frequently see rashes that follow the pattern of a gold necklace or a belt buckle. Gold is extremely non-allergenic; in fact, along with platinum it is referred to as a noble metal due to its lack of reactivity with other substances and its non-corroding properties. Gold does not rust. And yet patients get rashes from this non-allergenic metal. The allergy is actually caused by nickel, a common metal additive to gold jewelry and a common allergen. Eighteen-karat gold is only 75 percent gold. The other 25 percent is other metals, especially nickel. I only know this factoid because it is often difficult to convince patients that their cherished gift is in fact not pure gold. I temper this news with the fact that pure gold, while noble, is far too soft to work into durable jewelry. Another linear rash is from irritants like the urushiol oil in poison ivy, which tends to have tiny blisters in linear patterns where the plant was brushed along the skin or where the oil was spread by fingers and hands. Soap and water will remove urushiol oil and can prevent a poison ivy reaction if done quickly after the exposure. The fluid in the blisters is made by your body and cannot spread

continued on page 39

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CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Gazette Vet —continued from page 32

inthegarden@crozetgazette.com

Still Pining Away In February we looked at the most common native pines that you could either plant in your landscape, or perhaps just enjoy for the character they lend to our local forests. This month we’ll consider a couple of less common natives, as well as the numerous exotic pines that might deserve a place in your garden. Pitch Pine (Pinus rigida) commonly grows in poor conditions—the New Jersey Pine Barrens, for example—as well as other sandy or rocky soils from New England down the Appalachians. In Virginia it’s found primarily in the mountains, as well as in a few rocky areas of the upper Piedmont. It can grow to almost a hundred feet in ideal conditions, but in the snow, ice and wind of the Blue Ridge’s rocky outcrops, it’s typically a shorter, somewhat scraggly-picturesque tree. And therein lies the rub. If you planted a pitch pine in ordinary “good garden soil,” it could end up as a rather undistinguished specimen. The solution: aesthetic pruning, i.e. employing creative cuts in order to transform your tree into “sculpture.” (You hope...) As an aid to your pruning, Pitch pine is one of the few pines that can sprout needles directly from the trunk, or even from the base of a cut tree. As for cultivars, if you search diligently you might be able to find a few varieties of pitch pine. ‘Sherman Eddy’ grows to only fifteen feet; ‘Winter Time’ has golden needles. Found only on dry, rocky slopes in the Appalachians from Pennsylvania to Georgia, Table Mountain Pine (Pinus pungens)

is a relatively small species, with a rounded, open shape. A distinguishing feature of this pine is its stout cones armed with sharp spines. In some cases, Table Mountain Pines are serotinous, meaning that their cones won’t open and shed seeds without the heat of a fire. Although the native pines are worthy plants for our landscapes, many of the pines grown as ornamentals in the East are exotic species. Several pines from Europe and Asia, particularly the latter continent, do well in Virginia. And a bit of good news: to my knowledge, none of them are invasive in our area. (Conversely, some of our American species can be quite troublesome when planted abroad.) The Mugo Pine (Pinus mugo) is very commonly grown north of here, but is somewhat iffy in Zone 7 and southward. Regardless of its survivability, it’s widely sold, so be on the lookout for it. Mugo pine is almost always sold as one of approximately forty dwarf cultivars, shrubs that grow to only a few feet in height. Due to some “confusion” in the nursery industry, at times these shrubs can reach 10’-15’ in height, so they’re not always suitable as foundation plants. The real caveat with Mugo pines is the pests that affect them, notably scale and sawfly caterpillars. The latter are insidious creatures that can quickly consume a pine’s needles. About an inch long and light yellow-green with black dots, they can be very difficult to spot. If you see them on any pine, pick them off and smoosh them. Pines typically have easily recognizable scaly, blocky bark, but a notable exception is

continued on page 40

Cats with chronic allergic bronchitis usually start with just occasional coughing, but over time this coughing becomes more and more frequent until the cats are actually starting to leak some fluid into their lungs and airways from the allergic inflammation. There are certainly other causes of difficulty breathing in cats, but most cases will fall under the categories of heart disease or lung disease. Ideally, we would love to get a chest CT scan and an echocardiogram by a board-certified cardiologist. However, the majority of cat owners are not going to take their cat to a specialist for these tests. I don’t think it’s that they don’t love their cats, but it just seems like people generally are a bit more limited in what they will do for their cats vs. their dogs. Sorry cats, but it’s a real thing. So, the burden of figuring it all out usually comes to us, the general practitioner, trying to get the diagnosis without any of the expensive and referral-only tests. So here in my oxygen cage is Patches, tons of fluid both in and around her lungs, looking like she wants to die. What to do? These cases come down to judgment. Based upon the history, I thought that Patches probably had some pretty bad allergic lung disease that had recently just gotten a lot worse. However, I knew that I couldn’t rule out heart failure either as she is an older cat. So I empirically treated for both. We started a healthy dose of steroids to address allergic/inflammatory lung disease and also started her on a diuretic in case she did

Robots

—continued from page 36

human beings above and beyond their economic utility. We live at the cusp of an era that offers great promise of prosperity. And yet, we cannot blithely glide into the future on auto pilot. If we do, we will encounter things we do not wish to happen. Leaving it up

indeed have heart failure. Patches worried me sick for about 12 hours, but then she made a pretty stunning recovery. In two days, she was back to breathing normally and eating just fine. Was it the steroids or the heart medication? Five years later, I still don’t know! We experimented with stopping both drugs at separate times, and she really seems to need both or she starts getting worse again. I wish we could get the cardiologist work up, but since she’s been doing so well for the past five years, why the heck would the owners want to drag their stressed-out cat to the specialist? I can’t blame them. Many times in veterinary medicine, we are struggling to give owners a specific diagnosis. Even if our treatments have made the pet’s illness disappear, we are usually still “guessing” by using our power of deduction and clinical reasoning skills. Patches is one who I just could never quite figure out, however the fact that she is still alive at the ripe age of 18 tells me we are doing something right. So, if you ever see your cat coughing a lot, or having difficulty breathing, don’t delay, take him/her to the vet for a checkup. Normally, cats take about 15-25 breaths per minute, but you have to count this while they are sleeping. If they have a respiratory rate within this range, their heart and lungs are probably working just fine. However, if they have a respiratory rate of close to 40 or more, there is likely a problem with their heart or lungs and I would get them checked out asap. Sometimes the answer may elude us, but with some critical thinking, we are usually able to get them better and hopefully give them many more years of good spoiled life. to ‘Silicon Valley’ market forces is a recipe for disaster. We need diverse, lively public discourse about the purpose and deployment of robots and A.I. We need bright ideas for coping with the income disparity, social disruption and legal ambiguity they are instigating. Reactionary defense is not a winning strategy. We must play offence, if we are to shape a future we want to live and flourish in.

CROZETgazette

Medicine —continued from page 37

poison ivy further to you or others. Allergic or irritant contact dermatitis is sometimes painful but is essentially always itchy. It also usually is slightly raised from the surrounding normal skin. My patient’s rash was neither itchy nor painful, nor was it raised. It was not a typical contact dermatitis but it was so similar. It was so linear, it had to be an exposure to something. I was pondering this and trying to put it together with her ailments of the winter. I went back to see her again and found her in the classic pose of the undergraduate, sitting on the stretcher with her laptop computer open on her lap. Do these kids ever go anywhere without their devices? Wait, her laptop was exactly over her rash. But laptops are not allergenic. But they are hot. A quick Google search of laptop rashes revealed the source of her rash. She had “erythema ab igne,” a dermatologic condition caused

Basketball —continued from page 30

Ingram will continue his athletic career at Swarthmore College in Pennsylvania next fall. He was named to the AllConference 29 first team, and was designated the conference’s Player of the Year. Beyond Ingram, a core group of strong starters rounded out the Warriors lineup. “Our 6-foot-9-inch senior center, Austin Cress, led the team in rebounds, was a huge defensive presence around the basket, and a good low-post scorer,” said Faulconer. Then there was senior guard Josh Coffman, who also received All-Conference 29 first team honors. “He was our most valuable defensive player, shadowing and oftentimes completely shutting down our opponent’s top guard,” Faulconer continued. “He contributed on offense as well, developing into a scorer this year by working his double-threat ability to drive or shoot from behind the arc.” Additional standouts

MARCH 2017 by long-term exposure to low grade heat such as heating pads or laptops. The phrase is Latin for “redness from fire.” It is also commonly referred to in the modern era as toasted skin syndrome. Chronic exposure to heat can cause changes in the blood vessels in the surface of the skin. They dilate and eventually pigment the skin, likely due to iron deposition from ruptured red blood cells. Over the long housebound winter my patient had been doing all her schoolwork on her bed with her laptop on her lap. The heat from the processor was concentrated mostly on the left side of her computer hence the rash predominantly on her left thigh. Fortunately the rash had not progressed to the point of hyperpigmentation and with the advice to work with her laptop on a desk her erythema ab igne would resolve over the next few weeks. As to why spring came so early this year, I will leave that to the climate scientists. I am enjoying it, though, as you can probably tell.

included juniors Jed Strickland, Tao Rampini and Chris McGharen. According to Maynard, the former two started nearly every game and, over the course of the season, developed into solid varsity players adept at working either in the post or on the wing as shooters. Meanwhile, McGharen, who was out for most of the season due to a facial injury sustained in an early-January game, slipped back into the fold in the post season, bolstering the team’s offensive firepower with his keen-eyed marksmanship from behind the line, sinking five three-pointers in his debut against Fluvanna. With these starters returning next season, Maynard expects it will be a great year. “In addition to three starting players, we’ll be returning rising senior roleplayer Daniel Thomas, as well as rising tenth grader and parttime starter Garrett Payne,” said Faulconer. “Also, we have two promising rising tenth graders in Tommy Mangrum and Charlie Weyher, as well as strong juniors in Caleb Perez and Gabe Nafziger.”

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MARCH 2017

Fitness

—continued from page 35

65-69-year-olds were faster than 50 percent of the 20-54-year olds! One in four of the senior citizens 65-69 were smoking half of the 20-54-year-olds at these races! Third, more than 25 percent of the 50-69-year-olds had started their marathon training within the past five years. They went from no running to running a marathon as late as their 60s. This study did have some limitations that any cross-sectional study can have, however there is no escaping the encouragement it brings to the middle aged or older person. I can certainly say personally, that as a 41-year old, it takes a LOT of commitment to keep up with regular exercise. I often think “what in the world did I do with all my free time in my 20s?!” Making exercise happen means getting up really early in the morning, often not getting as much sleep as I need, and often making my mornings rushed or feeling like I’m squeezing time away from my family or my work and home duties. I can see how it is easy to become sedentary as we get older. We get busier! Jobs, responsibilities, families…there are endless things on the “to do” list and exercise is often not seen

as a priority. But, what about your health? I recently read another great article, written by David Epstein for Propublica.org, titled “When Evidence Says No, But Doctors Say Yes.” It was an eye-opening, lengthy article discussing how there are so many practices in human medicine based upon research that has been either disproven or that is non-replicable. Many of the drugs and procedures that are routinely prescribed for people simply don’t have the evidence-based backing that you think they would. With example after example, Epstein concludes the article by focusing on things that we do know help our health: a healthy diet, exercise, and not smoking or excessively consuming alcohol. We are all getting older, but perhaps it’s time we throw away our notion of what getting old looks like. For me, I hope that getting old involves continued activity, a sharp mind, good health, and minimal medications. Some of this may be out of my control, but I know that right now I am purposefully stacking the chips in my favor. The German study shows us that it’s never too late to stack them in your favor as well, thus improving your quality of life, your longevity, and your contributions to your family and your community. Choose a healthy lifestyle, and start now!

In the Garden —continued from page 38

Lacebark Pine, Pinus bungeana. With exfoliating bark that reveals patches of cream, gray and brown against a greenish background—think hunter’s camouflage—Lacebark Pine makes a distinctive specimen tree. Often multi-stemmed, it can ultimately grow to about 50’ with a spread of 35’. ‘Silver Ghost’ is a cultivar with a silvery sheen to the bark. If the native Eastern White Pine would be too large for your garden, you might consider a few alternatives. Limber Pine (P. flexilis) grows slowly and only to 50” by 35” in cultivation. Its bluish-green needles resemble those of our white pine; the cultivar ‘Glauca’ has needles that are even bluer, and ‘Glauca Pendula’ is a bluish weeping variety. ‘Vanderwolf ’s Pyramid’ is an upright form with twisted needles, but watch out; it can grow up to two feet per year. The Japanese White Pine (P. parviflora) grows slowly to about fifty feet and almost as wide, but if that size is too much for your taste, many of the available cultivars stay much more compact. A very graceful tree, the Himalayan Pine (P. wallichiana) has needles that curve downwards, lending a semi-weeping aspect, even though the branches themselves

don’t droop. A variety with a gold band on the leaf may be sold either as ‘Oculis Draconis’ (Dragon’s Eye) or as ‘Zebrina’. Finally, there’s a pine that you should probably avoid putting in your garden, unless you happen to be a horticultural gambler. The Japanese Black Pine (P. thunbergii) is very commonly planted on East Coast beaches owning to its salt tolerance, although it will grow inland and is often used in Japanese-style gardens. A couple of serious problems with this species commonly lead to branch dieback and early death, however, so caveat emptor. If you’ve gone totally crazy for pines, as well as other conifers, try visiting the website of the American Conifer Society. *** Weed Warning: it may be almost too late for the spring of 2017, but watch out for Hairy Bittercress, Cardamine hirsuta in your yard. Along with its cousin Pennyslvania Bittercress (C. pensylvanica), these winter weeds start to grow in the fall and really take off in the spring. They will quickly flower and set seed, so deal with them immediately if you don’t want them everywhere. As a cress and a member of the Brassicaceae (mustard) family, they are reportedly edible, but as always, I make no representations.

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MARCH 2017

community events MARCH 3

Art Fest Fundraiser

The 5th annual ArtFest in the West will be held on Friday, March 3, from 6 to 9 p.m. in the Western Albemarle High School cafeteria. “A Magical Medieval Fundraiser” will showcase the talented youth of Western Albemarle with orchestra and jazz band performances, student art showcase, silent auction, a juggling lesson, kids’ activities, food & drink for sale, and presentation of a scene from “Once Upon a Mattress”! Visit www.artsinwesterned.org for more information.

MARCH 11

Crozet Artisan Depot Bird Walk

To accompany the March focus on bird-related artwork at the Crozet Artisan Depot, Park Ranger Mark Spears will lead a morning bird walk Saturday, March 11, at 8:30 a.m., leaving from the Depot. Refreshments at the Depot will follow the walk at about 10:30. Spears will also present a talk and slide show, “The Birdscape: Birds Through the Eyes of a Park Ranger,” that will put birds in the context of their surroundings. “Working outside for many years gives you a new perspective on life in the wild,” Spears said. “You learn quickly that animals and plants are not just actors in the play of life, but an integral part of the stage as well.” Spears called this new way of thinking about birds the “birdscape.” “Birds don’t just use the environment, they are the makers and shapers of it,” he said. “Once we view birds in this way, we can begin to understand and protect them.” His talk, which will include stories from his own experience, will begin about 11:30. Later that afternoon, the Artisan Depot will present its regular Second Saturday Reception from 3 to 5 p.m., again providing light refreshments and the opportunity to meet some of the artists. The Crozet Artisan Depot is at 5791 Three Notch’d Road in Crozet.

MARCH 16, 23, 30

Piedmont Master Gardeners Lecture Series

Piedmont Master Gardeners, in cooperation with the Virginia Cooperative Extension, will host four lectures for home gardeners, starting in mid-March: March 16 — Cathy Clary: Into the Shade March 23 — Kathy Jentz: Small-Space Garden Design — Squeezing it All into Your Garden March 30 — Erin Clark: Grow Your Own Three-Season Victory Garden with Smithsonian Gardens April 13 — Kirk Brown: No Watering Required: Water-wise Garden Design Lectures are from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in Room A at the Albemarle County Office Building on 5th Street Extended in Charlottesville. Lectures are open to the public and cost $8 per lecture. For more details, reservations, and online payment, go to http://piedmontmastergardeners.org/events/ or pay at the VCE office or at the door.

MARCH 26

NCCO Concert

The Nelson County Community Orchestra, under the direction of guest conductor Michael Tyree of Harrisonburg, will perform a concert Sunday, March 26, at 4 p.m. at the Rockfish Valley Community Center. The performance will be a mix of classical music from Mozart, Bach and Holst and popular pieces: Stravinsky’s Firebird, 007 Themes, and Salute to the Big Apple. Also featured will be the McGaheysville United Methodist Church Chancel Choir with soloist Sydney Wilkins performing Handel’s “O Thou That Tellest” Messiah, and Battle Hymn of the Republic with the orchestra and featuring Nelson County String Education Program youth. A reception will follow to greet the choir and guest conductor. Admission is free, donations accepted.

New players are always welcome to join NCCO—all instruments, ages and levels. Trombone & timpani players especially needed. Weekly rehearsals are Mondays at 7 p.m. at the Rockfish Presbyterian Church in Nellysford. For more information visit More info. at www. nelsoncco.org or contact: Ellen Neal 434-263-4745 or info@ nelsoncco.org. The RVCC is located at 190 Rockfish School Lane in Afton.

APRIL 1

Starr Hill to Benefit Trails Crew Throughout April, one dollar for every pint of beer sold in the Starr Hill Brewery Tap Room will be donated to the Crozet Trails Crew. Join the Crozet Trails Crew on April 1 at 2 p.m. for a special kickoff event at the Tap Room. “‘Cheers for Charity’ is a great opportunity to bring awareness and support that is essential to these organizations that do so much for our community,” said Allie Hochman, Starr Hill Brewery’s Tap Room manager. “We are privileged to be the recipient of Starr Hill’s ‘Cheers for Charity’ and excited to partner with them by offering events at the Brewery throughout the month,” said Crozet Trails Crew president Terri Miyamoto. “The money raised will help build a pedestrian bridge over Lickinghole Creek, place benches and other amenities throughout the trail system, and continue our efforts to maintain and expand the network of trails in and around Crozet for the benefit and enjoyment of all the community,” Learn more about the work of the Crozet Trails Crew, get information about the Crozet trails system and compete for prizes playing a round of “Trails Trivia.” The Starr Hill Brewery Tap Room is located at 5391 Three Notch’d Road in Crozet. Go to www.StarrHill.com/Tap-Room for hours, events and more information.

APRIL 9

Four Kings 4K Register now for the Four Kings 4K trail run, to be held at

Starr Hill on Sunday, April 9, at 1:00 pm to benefit the Crozet Trails Crew http://starrhill.com/ events/four-kings-4k. As the beneficiary of Starr Hill’s Cheers for Charity program, $1 of every pint sold throughout April will benefit the CTC.

MARCH 16 - 18

WAHS Drama Presents “Once Upon a Mattress”

The Western Albemarle High School Theatre Ensemble will present the fun and family friendly musical “Once Upon a Mattress” Thursday, March 16, through Saturday, March 18, at 7:30 p.m., plus a Saturday matinee at 2 p.m. Prince Dauntless must find a wife, but his mother, the Queen, tests and rejects every princess who applies. When Princess Winnifred arrives, she charms and inspires everyone around her with her unique, down-toearth ways. The show, featuring a live orchestra, is directed by Caitlin Pitts with music direction by Joel Hartshorn and vocal direction by Amber Blakovich. The roughly 100-member cast and crew is led by Cutter Mendenhall, Lauren Rider, Indigo Witt, and Ryann Sheehy. All performances will be held in the WAHS auditorium, 5941 Rockfish Gap Turnpike. Tickets are $12 for adults in advance or $14 at the door, and $6 for students, children, and seniors in advance or $8 at the door.

MAY 6

Batesville Day 10K

The Batesville Ruritans will host the 42nd annual Batesville Day and 10K race Saturday, May 6. The race will start at 8 a.m. with registration beginning at 7. The parade featuring the Henley Middle School Band and the Charlottesville Municipal Band will march at 11 a.m. Field activities following the parade include music by the Central Virginia Blues Society. This year will also feature a tug-of-war rematch of the Crozet and North Garden Volunteer Fire Departments and the grand reopening of the Batesville Market. For more information, visit batesvilleva.org.

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Kids’ Crossword 1

6 8

by Louise Dudley

10 12

13 15

16 18

19 21

24 26

27 22

Solution on page 46

Fruit Salad ACROSS 4 Sour yellow fruit used to make a sweet summer drink 5 Wear this color on March 17 7 Worker who digs for coal 8 Egg-shaped fruit with brown fuzzy skin & green inside 11 “March ________ “ (nickname of the NCAA basketball tournaments) 13 Literary work with rhymes 16 Turn the clocks forward on March 12 17 Instrument usually played in church 18 Nickname for Theodore 20 Fruit on Jack Horner’s thumb 22 These grow in Chiles and Henley’s orchards 24 Opposite of far 25 It’s often on top of a sundae 27 Egg dish for brunch

DOWN 1 Sound made by chickens 2 Fruit whose name is the same as its color 3 “A partridge in a _____ tree” 6 Green citrus fruit 7 4th U.S. President; his home was Montpelier (born 3/16/1751) 9 Fluid for permanent writing 10 Tree where dates grow 12 Where to buy things 13 Saint celebrated on March 17 14 Whirlpool 15 A long fictional story 16 Jack Sprat couldn’t eat this 19 Bob for these in water at a fall festival 20 Writing implement 21 The third month 23 A very hard metal 26 Slang way to say hello

Swim & Dive —continued from page 29

“In individual events, we had Morgan James in the 50 freestyle, August Lamb in the 200 individual medley, Noah Hargrove in the 500 freestyle and Mandell in the 100 breaststroke,” said Bledsoe. “Meanwhile, in the relays, we had Hargrove, Mandell, Jason Heilman, and Donovan breaking the Medley Relay team record, and Lamb, Stefan Karp, Johnny Riordan and Hargrove working together to break the 400 freestyle relay team record.” Earning all-state honors were Morgan James, Noah Hargrove, Matt Mandell, Jason Heilman, AJ Donovan, August Lamb, William Peritz, Johnny Riordan and Stefan Karp. While Bledsoe says the boys team had depth to spare, going into the season he was worried the girls squad might prove lacking, having graduated 10 key seniors last year. “No matter what sport it is, if you lose that many players it’s a hard blow,” he said. “Last year, we did a great job of mixing year-round swimmers with non- year-round swimmers, and we had greater depth than most teams—we’d created this culture where every person on the team felt like they could step in for someone else at any moment. However, this year, while our girls’ team was still very talented, we weren’t as deep. Which meant everyone really had to contribute and step up, and they did.”

Lucas Cabin —continued from page 11

result is really amazing, and I don’t think I’m alone in that,” Lucas told the board. “I get tremendous positive feedback from the community, and I think that it’s really cool we could save this structure in Crozet, because it wasn’t going to make it. It was teetering as it was, but we got it back and now it’s alive again, and hopefully it will be for hundreds of years to come. I think that’s not only good for Crozet, that’s good for Albemarle and the state of Virginia as well.” Citing the fact that a photo of the cabin is displayed on the

Crucial to the girls effort was exemplary junior Amie Benson, who, last year, was a key member of the squad’s star 100meter relay team. Known for her killer instinct, according to Bledsoe, Benson is the kind of swimmer that, once she hits the water, will stop at nothing until her hand touches the wall and the race is over. Led by Benson, the girls also took first place at Richmond’s Hanover Invitational which, in their case, included 15 private and public schools. After that, competing in what is effectively the Jefferson District Championship meet, they placed a close second to Albemarle High School in the Ben Hair Invitational. However, bouncing back from the disappointment in true Warrior fashion, they responded by winning both the Conference 29 and Region 3A championships respectively, with 11 swimmers qualifying for state championship competition. At the state meet, the girls team had 9 different athletes score points where, led by Charlotte Norris, Carey D’Atre, Mia Donaldson and Sarah Gemeny, they finished fourth. Overall, Bledsoe says he couldn’t be more proud of his teams’ achievements. “It’s like I always tell them, ‘Great moments are born from great opportunity,’” he said. “This season, we had another opportunity to do great things and these kids seized that opportunity and ran with it.” webpage of the Virginia Department of Historic Resources as an example of the kind of canonical structures the state is seeking to preserve, the board expressed pride in being able to lend their support to the project. MIKE MARSHALL

The cabin before deconstruction

CROZETgazette

MARCH 2017

Barry Miller Farr, 1951-2017 Barry Miller Farr was born in Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri, on November 15, 1951, and died in Charlottesville on February 15, 2017. Raised in Greenville, Mississippi, Barry never stopped loving Southern food, culture, or people. Inspired to attend medical school by the autobiography of William Carlos Williams, Barry majored in chemistry at Ole Miss and received an MD from Washington University in St. Louis and a Master of Science in epidemiology from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. He received training in internal medicine and infectious diseases at the University of Virginia. He served as Hospital Epidemiologist at UVA for 18 years and directed a Master of Science program in epidemiology for 11 years. He retired as the William S Jordan, Jr., Professor of Medicine and Epidemiology at UVA at 52 because of physical disability due to the paralytic effects of multiple sclerosis. He co-authored 167 medical publications, 137 research abstracts for national or international scientific meetings, co-edited 2 books on catheter infections, and mentored 18 postdoctoral fellows. He was widely known for epidemiologic studies about control of healthcare related infections, particularly antibiotic-resistant infections and catheter infections. He served as President of the Society for Hospital Epidemiology of America (SHEA) in 2002 and Editor of the SHEA scientific journal Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology from 2001 to 2004. As passionate as he was about his work, Barry was strongly committed to his family. He enjoyed coaching his sons’ teams in T-ball, baseball, and basketball for 10 years, and was on the sidelines as a cheering fan at their soccer games. He loved hunting, fishing, training his Labrador retrievers, photography, the St. Louis Cardinals, all UVA sports and spending time with his wife and sons. Barry was an avid reader and writer of prose and poetry,

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BEREAVEMENTS

and was known to supply an appropriate quotation for any given situation. As a medical intern, the floor nurses would say they always knew where he was because they could hear his infectious laughter. Barry loved a good story and often regaled his friends and family with long, and sometimes circuitous, tales. He devoted his final years to writing and publishing a book entitled Multiple Sclerosis: Coping with Complications as a way to help other patients cope with the many challenges of MS and to share the knowledge and strategies he developed. Barry is survived by his wife, Ann Henry; three sons and daughter-in-law, Eric Farr and Erin Bradley of Seattle, Ryan Farr of New York City, and Jason Farr of Washington D.C.; sister, Celia Farr Wood and husband, Frank of Los Angeles; brother, Brian Farr and wife, Beth of Charlotte, N.C., and nieces and nephews. A celebration of his life is being planned for the spring so that it can be held outdoors where Barry loved to spend his time. Anyone wishing notification of the final details is asked to email their contact information to barryfarrmd@ gmail.com. In lieu of flowers, please send donations in Barry’s memory to a cause that is close to your heart. www.teaguefuneralhome.com Editor’s note: Dr. Farr was the subject of a feature story in the July 2016 issue of The Crozet Gazette titled “Lessons in How to Cope with Multiple Sclerosis.”

Sandra Seal, —

January 12, 2017

Richard Berman, 89

January 27, 2017

John R. Williams, —

January 27, 2017

Aubrey Lee Blakey Jr., 73

January 31, 2017

Ray C. Fisher III, 65

February, 2017

Marvin H. Vess, —

February, 2017

Martha Gray Shirley Bates, 78

February 1, 2017

Ronald Meade Ashley, 54

February 2, 2017

Katherine Lavenia Mosley Baker, 74

February 2, 2017

Catherine Elizabeth Crawford, 86

February 2, 2017

Steppe Sr., Louis Roy Steppe Sr., 81

February 2, 2017

Roger D. Lamb, 72

February 4, 2017

Virgie Allen Simpson, 97

February 5, 2017

Ruby Seale Watts, 61

February 6, 2017

Mary L. Barbour, 98

February 8, 2017

Jeri H. Campbell, 65

February 8, 2017

Theodore Lebert Morris, 80

February 8, 2017

Clyde Eugene Arnette Jr., 71

February 9, 2017

James Francis Copps, 97

February 10, 2017

Nelda Scott Spaur, 87

February 10, 2017

Nancy Jean Martin-Perdue, 82

February 14, 2017

William Edward Shifflett, 77

February 14, 2017

Barry Miller Farr, 65

February 15, 2017

Dorothy Sandridge Floyd, 91

February 16, 2017

Frederick D. Walker Sr., 74

February 17, 2017

Brenda June Taylor, 67

February 20, 2017

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MARCH 2017 MARLENE A. CONDON

Seasonal Advice to Help Wildlife This Spring Many people who feed birds are tempted to stop putting out food when nice weather arrives. Plants that had gone dormant and many kinds of arthropods that had hibernated become active, making it seem as if folks no longer need to lend a hand to our feathered guests. But in our modern world where houses and other buildings, built-in swimming pools, and lawns have usurped space that would have otherwise provided for wildlife, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s imperative to continue feeding until summer is almost here, especially if you live in a city or suburban area where nature-friendly landscaping is scarce. (Note: If you live in an area where bears may show up to dine on your seeds, you may need to stop all feeding for a few days. Such extenuating circumstances make a case for growing a variety of plants in your yard that can provide birds with food when you cannot.) By late spring, some new seeds (such as Red Maple) will have developed for seed-eating birds. Also, a variety of insects, spiders, and other arthropods will have become active for those avian creatures migrating through the area and local birds (such as Carolina Wrens) that nest early and have chicks to feed. However, it is crucial to pay attention to the weather in late spring because cold spells can hamper insect activity, making it very hard for birds to survive. One year it was so chilly for several days in May that a Scarlet Tanager, a migratory bird not known for eating seeds, clung to my feeder to get sunflower bits. Not possessing a beak designed to break open seed

shells, it was able to eat the nutritious hearts of shelled sunflower seeds. Those seeds (sold as sunflower bits, hearts, or chips) undoubtedly assisted that insectivorous bird to survive the unusually late cold spell. Another time I was hosting a Carolina Wren family on a shelf (put up especially for them) in my carport when we had a spring cold snap. With five chicks to feed, the adults were in desperate straits trying to locate enough insects and spiders to feed their young. But the enterprising parents fed the chicks the peanut butter mixture I still had out to provide fat, protein, and calories to birds that seek out arthropods for such nutrients throughout the winter. You might want to use my recipe to mix up a batch that you can supply until the weather warms. I smear it on tree stumps or fill drilled holes in a stick that I hang from my birdfeeder pole. I melt one part shortening, then I stir in an equal volume of PB (chunky or smooth) until it is well mixed. To stiffen up the mixture to make it easier to handle, I add about three parts (also by volume) cornmeal. You can use all-purpose flour instead, but the resulting mixture is drier and more difficult to spread. I have not noticed any preference indicated by the birds. I recommend that you do not add seeds to this mixture. If birds feed it to chicks in the nest, anything other than sunflower bits could possibly present a problem. Birds are not the only animals in need of human consideration at this time of the year. Many kinds of amphibians are coming out of hibernation and crossing our roadways to get to ponds, streams, and seeps in order to mate and produce the

A Dark-eyed Junco, a bird more often seen feeding at ground level, joins a Carolina Wren at a peanut butter stick during a winter snowstorm.

next generation of their kind. Vehicular traffic takes a huge toll on these critters. If I walk very early in the morning before crows and other kinds of birds have gotten up and started feeding, I witness the carnage that occurred throughout the night. American Toads tend to be the most numerous victims, but Wood Frogs can make up a good proportion of casualties as well. The roads I walk are rural ones upon which people are not supposed to be zooming, oblivious to the wildlife that they have chosen to live among. If folks would just drive more slowly and watch for amphibians making their annual spring migration to mating sites, drivers could probably avoid running over many of these animals. It does not take long to learn to recognize the pyramidal shape of frogs and toads sitting on the roadway so that you can steer around them (assuming it is safe to do so). Frogs often jump high and far as a vehicle approaches, but toads, unfortunately, tend to sit there like a lump of clay. If they do jump, they can make only short hops. Another human activity that kills immense numbers of wildlife is rototilling. Many people perform this activity year after year after year, even though it is not necessary and is, in fact, harmful to their gardening efforts. Once you have improved your soil to the point that it has

good friability (it is easy to work), there is absolutely no need to till that soil every year. You can simply hand-pull or use a hoe to remove spent plants from the previous growing season. (I am hoping you keep plants in place. They prevent soil erosion, provide natural reseeding of wildflower areas, shelter insects and spiders overwintering, and provide food for birds and mammals that are active throughout the year.) Loosen the soil only where you will plant seeds or transplants. In this way, you limit killing the soil critters that literally make your garden grow well. You probably know that earthworms provide nutrients to plants by breaking down organic matter. What most folks do not know is that numerous other soil organisms also help with this important task. Grubs (immature beetles) of many kinds (including Japanese Beetles), ants, millipedes, slugs, snails, bacteria, and fungi exist to help recycle organic material. Earthworms and ants do extra duty by incorporating it into the soil so that the roots of plants can access it. Additionally, when ants, earthworms, and grubs make openings at the soil surface and underground tunnels or burrows, they create air spaces by which water and oxygen can reach the roots of your plants. Lastly (but just as importantly), you should limit rototilling to areas where it is truly needed because this activity can destroy the structure of the soil. Soil structure determines how well rainwater gets absorbed, and what you want is for the water to disappear quickly into the ground. If individual clayey soil particles get reduced too much in size, water cannot easily move through. It puddles on the surface and ultimately can result in run-off that could take soil and fertilizer with it. For some reason, horticultural practices have been developed without regard to the natural world in which they are employed. Gardeners who learn about nature will experience better growing outcomes and be much happier gardeners as a result.

CROZETgazette

—continued from page 28

lacrosse, tennis and cross country, which all have booming youth and middle school programs as well as an active support network present within the community—wrestling lags wildly behind. “Currently our recruitment model is to bring in kids with no experience and hope to catch them as freshmen and retain them for four years to develop them into successful wresters,” said Mulcahy. That lack of experience presents a steep learning curve, which not everyone can weather. “It’s hard to go out there and lose a bunch early on in your career and stick with it,” explained Mulcahy. “It takes an incredible amount of discipline, humility, dedication, hard work and character.” But for those who put in the time the transformation is an amazing thing to behold. “This year we started a middle school club team so that we could try and get more of our younger kids involved a few nights a week and hope that it grows in numbers and begins to feed our program,” he said. “That’s probably what I’m most proud of this season: As a staff, we had our first group of wrestlers that have completely come through our program and system—kids that began as eighth or ninth graders with us.” Second on the coach’s list of season accomplishments was the team’s qualifying eight wrestlers to compete in the state championship. “The most we’d ever sent before was two,” he said. “These young men have worked so hard and have taken several years to reach that level and are being rewarded for it.” Just five years ago, the team had no representatives at the state tournament. Of the eight WAHS wrestlers competing, Nate Riley and Will Davis were standouts. “Nate has become the all-time WAHS win-leader with a career record of 154-33 in VHSL-sanctioned

events,” said Mulcahy. Prior to competing at states, Riley was 47-0 for the season, had 33 pins, led the team in team points scored, and was crowned the Region champion in the 182-pound weight class, becoming one of two wrestlers in school history to earn the distinction. And the performance did not go unnoticed. Riley earned offers from American University, George Mason University and Old Dominion University to compete at the NCAA Division 1 level. Meanwhile, Davis recorded a 50-win single season, making him the second athlete in the program’s history to do so. Going into state competition, Davis was 50-6. “Will went 5-1 on the weekend at regionals to achieve the 50-win milestone,” said Mulcahy. “Even more incredible is the fact that he received just three forfeits on the season, meaning that his record reflects 47 actual wins in matches wrestled—a truly remarkable feat for any high school wrestler. “These young men have exemplified what it takes to be successful. They led the team in summer workouts and fall sessions attended both in the weight room and actual on-themat sessions. In five years of coaching them, I’ve never heard a single complaint—they never missed a practice, match or tournament for any reason, even when injured. They have a level of unquestioned work ethic that epitomizes what it takes to be successful in this sport and for that reason they will forever have my respect. “Asa [Shin] and Nate have been with me for 5 years, Anthony [Ramazani], Will, and Jabari [Gomez] for 4, and Dre for 2—you just cannot replace that kind of commitment and loyalty,” he said. “This program could never have been turned around without them and I know I’m going to really miss them. It’s due to their efforts that WAHS wrestling has become successful, not mine.”

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45 COURTESY CHANG-RASCLE

Wrestling

MARCH 2017

Bastille Day, Photographer’s Forum finalist, by Jacob Chang-Rascle

Chang-Rascle —continued from page 27

Eric Hurt. His 2015 film Incubus and 2016 film Override have been recognized by the Virginia Film Festival. He has films showing at both the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, Rhode Island, and at William & Mary College in Williamsburg this month. He is receiving an Arthur C. Greene Rising Star Award from the Piedmont Council for the Arts March 3.

“What I enjoy most about photography is showing different perspectives, things you don’t normally see,” says ChangRascle. “I like to work with high speed, long exposures, and infrared at night.” ChangRascle’s future goals include going to film school and becoming a director of photography for films. But right now, he is saving for a trip to Iceland for his gap year, where he plans to shoot lots of photographs! You can learn more about this true rising star at www.jacobchangrascle.com.

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CROZETgazette

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