NORTH FORK TIMES
SURFACE CREEK NEWS
CLOSER TO REALITY
$426,677 grant awarded to complete ballfields complex, B1
SPORTS
FINAL POINTS TALLIED
TEE TIME
Surface Creek Saddle Club wraps up summer gymkhana series, C3
Delta High golfers open season with a new coach, Jeff Reiher, C4-5
DELTA COUNTY
AUGUST 15, 2018 VOL. 135, NO. 33
75¢
INDEPENDENT
www.deltacountyindependent.com
Demolition Derby, ATV races draw a crowd BY DON BENJAMIN Staff Writer
In Delta County how do you get thousands of people to wait in line to park, linger in another line to buy tickets, and sit on hard bleachers or stand in the dirt for hours? Easy, just fill an arena with mud and throw in lots of clunker cars, whizzing ATVs and fearless drivers. Competition at the 113th annual Delta County Fair
drew to a close last Saturday evening with the popular demolition derby and ATV barrel races. Both events were held at the Hotchkiss fair grounds. And when the evening ended, there were only three things left to do on Sunday to officially draw the 2018 fair to a close: an early morning Future Farmers of America pancake breakfast was served; all exhibits and premium money had to be
Photo by Don Benjamin
Ryan Wells of Delta and his number 6 car survived the night to claim top honors in the 2018 Delta County Fair Demolition Derby last Saturday. His sponsor was Ol’ Red’s Towing.
Marijuana question may be on the ballot BY PAT SUNDERLAND Managing Editor
During the municipal election in April, the issue of marijuana sales in the City of Delta frequently cropped up. Most questions were prompted by two ballot measures concerning the taxation of retail marijuana and retail marijuana products — if in the future those sales were allowed. Both measures passed by about a 60-40 margin. After discussing the issue at length with his constituents, newly-elected council member Nathan Clay suggests it’s time to go back to the voters, this time to ask if marijuana sales should be allowed in the City of Delta. “The sales tax question passed overwhelmingly,” he said. “I think that’s evidence that citizens are not as afraid of marijuana sales as some people think they are.” His comments took some council members by surprise. They were meeting in a work session Aug. 7 to discuss wording for two questions on the November ballot. Their thoughts were focused on the sale or exchange of city property when Clay brought up marijuana. Objections were swift.
INDEX
Accent ........................... A4 Activities ......................A11 Back Page .................... D8 Business .......................A12 Church ........................... D4 Classifieds .................. D1-2 Editorial ......................... A2 Fair Results ............. B5-12 Health & Fitness ...... C6-8 Legals ............................ D3 North Fork Times ........B1-4 Obituaries ....................A10 Sports ..........................C4-5 Surface Creek News ...C1-3 TV Listings ................. D5-6
“I just asked the question I’m being asked, which is why not allow the sale of marijuana and marijuana products in the City of Delta?” he said following the meeting. Clay said he’s done his research and he disagrees with the fear tactics frequently used by the opposition. “I don’t want to make decisions based on fear,” he said. “I agree we need to be responsible about it, but I believe we should explore all sources of revenue. People claim to be very pro-private industry, but only the private industries they approve of. “If it doesn’t pass, it doesn’t pass, but the city needs some income. “The bottom line is, the five people in that room shouldn’t be deciding on anything. It should go to a vote.” Council will meet Tuesday, Aug. 24, to review wording and vote on all the ballot measures to be put to the voters in November. The city is seeking approval to sell the ML&P plant on South Main Street which is no longer operational, and to swap the Riverbend and Cottonwood parks for land on the south side of the Gunnison River with better accessibility and visibility.
picked up by noon; and — of course — what was left of the mangled cars had to be hauled away. But before Sunday morning could roll around, Saturday night had to run its course. As it awaited the start of the derby, the Saturday crowd estimated at over 3,000 cheered for the water truck while it wetted-down the arena. Next they witnessed a parade of derby cars — some occupied by last year’s fair royalty and their successors. Then the crowd applauded the shooting skills demonstrated by girls from the 4-H archery contingent. And finally it was time for mayhem. Two semi-final contests pitted vehicles in similar classes against one another. Old-iron battled old-iron and 1980s or newer took on their counterparts. In between derby matches, while pit crews and drivers labored to repair their injured vehicles to answer the next contest bell, ATV riders entertained the crowd by weaving their way around barrels in solo races to post the best time. After some wild card opportunities were decided, ten derby finalists emerged to fight in the main event of the evening for cash prizes totaling $3,500.
Saturday’s heat of ten finalists included last year’s champion and the only woman to ever win the derby, Hotchkiss resident Madison Milner, who had her own cheering section in the stands. Milner had a
good run as she faced the other finalists but she couldn’t pull off a repeat victory. After the dust — or rather the mud and radiator steam — settled, the top three finishers DEMOLITION DERBY TO A3
Photo by Pat Sunderland
After 35 years of announcing fair events and urging junior livestock buyers to dip a little deeper into their pockets, Les Mergelman is retiring. He and his wife, Dorothy Jean, were recognized for their tireless support of the youth of Delta County at the Delta County Junior Market Livestock Sale.
Junior Market Livestock Sale rings in at $274,300 A total of 185 market animals and pens and three cheese baskets were offered for sale by 4-H and FFA members at the 2018 Junior Market Livestock Sale, held Aug. 11 in Hotchkiss, during the Delta County Fair. The sale, totaling $274,300 included $97,940 for 30 beef
animals; $6,250 for 13 chicken pens; $39,075 for 48 goats; $30,690 for 29 lambs; $1,400 for three rabbit pens; $96,195 for 56 swine; $1,100 for two pens of ducks; and $1,650 for three pens of turkeys. Total for the cheese basket sale was $700 for three baskets. The Delta County 4-H and
PLACING
FFA members again thank all the supporters of the Junior Market Livestock Sale, as well as the volunteers, the Junior Market Livestock Sale Committee, sponsors and buyers for their support of Delta County youth. See all the exhibitor results on pages B5-12.
EXHIBITOR
BUYER
Tawny Roberts
JC Propane - Flower Motor Master & Doyle Petroleum
$7,400
Reserve grand champion market beef Erica Anderson Reserve champion - Delta County Bred & Fed
Delta Hardware Hellman Motor Company
$5,300
Grand champion pen of chickens
Jesse Miller
Hotchkiss Automotive
$625
Reserve grand champion chickens
Jesse Miller
Shaffer Real Estate
$950
Grand champion goat
Lola Mitchell
JC Propane - Flower Motor
$1,500
Reserve grand champion goat
Jessica Black
CropWorx
$1,300
Grand champion lamb
Erica Anderson
LC Landscaping
$2,000
Reserve grand champion lamb
Bronson Hall
US Tractor
$1,500
Grand champion pen of rabbits
Rorie Nicholson
Shaffer Real Estate
$425
Reserve grand champion pen of rabbits
Ivary Lorimor
West Slope Ag
$475
Grand champion swine
Lola Mitchell
Jennmar Sanshell - Jennmar Jennchem - Compliance Staffing
$3,200
Reserve grand champion swine
Tawny Roberts
Dr. Jennifer Craig
$4,250
Grand champion duck
Lance McCollum
First Colorado National Bank
$600
Reserve grand champion duck
Lance McCollum
Bolinger & Queen
$500
Grand champion turkey
Jeanene Williams
Kwiki Tire
$700
Reserve grand champion turkey
Brayden Lorimor
Farm Bureau
$575
Grand champion market beef Champion - Delta County Bred & Fed
PRICE
Photos of the grand champion and reserve grand champion animals and their exhibitors can be found on page B12 of this week’s issue of the Delta County Independent.
Food For Thought needs your votes!
School starts Monday
Food For Thought/Vision Charter Academy has been selected as a State Farm Neighborhood Assist® Top 200 finalist and needs your help by voting for them to receive a $25,000 grant from State Farm®. From now until Aug. 24 at 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time, U.S. residents who are 18 and older with a valid email address can vote for their favorite cause at https://www.neighborhoodassist.com/entry/2012962. Anyone voting is allowed up to 10 votes per day. On Sept. 25, the top 40 vote-receiving causes will be announced at www.neigh borhoodassist.com and a $25,000 grant will be awarded to each of the affiliated nonprofits. Food For Thought/Vision Charter Academy provides weekend food bags to kids in need through a service learning program operated by K-12 kids. State Farm Neighborhood Assist is a crowd-sourced philanthropic initiative that empowers communities to identify issues in their neighborhoods. A State Farm review committee selected the top 200 finalists from 2,000 submissions.
Motorists are reminded that the first day of school is Monday, Aug. 20. Extra caution should be exercised in school zones and around bus stops, particularly in the mornings before school starts and in the afternoons when students start to head home. Be alert for reduced speeds and changes to student dropoff zones used by parents and school buses. A reminder from the Colorado State Patrol: upon meeting or overtaking a school bus from either direction, motorists must stop their vehicles at least 20 feet before reaching the bus if the bus’s signal lights and retractable stop signs have been activated.