EDMONDACTIVE.COM www.edmondactive.com
EDMOND’S COMMUNITY MAGAZINE
JANUARY 2010 EDMONDACTIVE.COM
The Search For The Ultimate Christmas Lights
Return Of The Spy
The Spy 105.3 Hits The Airwaves
Cross Country State Edmond Teams Go For Gold
Holiday Home Tour
A Peek Inside Edmond’s Beautiful Homes
Fashion Conscious
Edmond North Deca Dresses Up For Charity
EDMONDACTIVE.COM
VOLUME 2, ISSUE 1, JAN 10
advertising / editorial / EDMONDACTIVE.COM publishing
sherri hultner
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editorial / layout / photography chris hultner editorial / photography
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trevor hultner photography jeff hultner contributors chris marlatt /
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jennifer hicks / Jessica Miller-Merrell / Bruce Maxwell
We are constantly on the lookout for story ideas featuring interesting people, places and events. If you have an idea for a story that you feel
TABLE OF CONTENTS
would be a good fit with Edmond Active don’t hesitate to call or e-mail us.
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Sherri Hultner 405.315.7325 sherrih@edmondactive.com
Chris Hultner
405.315.6405 chrish@edmondactive.com All photography and editorial in Edmond Active Magazine is copyrighted (2009-10) material and may not be reprinted or used in any way without written permission from the publisher.
4. Around Edmond An Introduction
18. Life in the Fast Lane With the owner of Pole Position
6. Event’s Calendar Edmond entertainment
20. The Client Lawyers are people too
8. Locally Owned 3 Cool Businesses
22. Return of the Spy Radio just got better in Edmond
9. Shopping Suggestions Submitted for your approval
24. Working Out Sweat it out
14. My Home Festive decorating
26. Holiday Home Tour Take a peek inside
15. My Yard Sutting down for winter
28. Best Christmas Light Bright lights
16. Cross Country State Edmond North girls take gold
30. Losing It Bright lights edmondactive.com
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Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you! Christmas is my favorite holiday of the year, as it brings hope, joy and family together, especially during the last week before the big day. We would like to thank each and every one of you for going out to pick up our first issue that was distributed during the third week of November. The reader response was overwhelming and not at all what we expected. Most locations were not able to keep the magazine in stock for longer than an hour, which had us out refilling locations until all of the issues set aside for local distribution were gone in a short 10 days. So instead of randomly mailing most copies, we will set aside more of this issue to get out to local businesses and restaurants. Thank you so very much for your support, our family couldn’t be more grateful! In this issue we are covering the Edmond North Cross Girls Country team, as their dream to win State became a reality. Our old friend, Ken Faught, who is president of Pole Position Raceway, and his dream of building Pole Position Raceway into a nationwide racing facility. A wonderful, hope filled story from attorney Eric Urbach. The new hope brought about from Ferris O’Brien, and his bringing back 105.3 The Spy FM Alternative Radio Station, as well as all of the hope and joy of local Christmas Light displays, of which you can see video of on EdmondActive.com! And last but not least, the wonderful Edmond Women’s Club Annual Holiday Home Tour which kicked of the holiday season here in Edmond at the end of November! As well, we have a guest column from Social Media Expert Jessica Miller-Merrell on Twitter for your Business, Bruce Maxwell gives you the 411 on wrapping your yard up for My Yard, Jennifer Hicks gives you some great holiday decor tips for My Home and Chris Marlatt let’s you know how to stay fit even with a busy schedule in Getting Fit! For me, the holidays used to be about performing my annual Santa
duties to the best of my ability. Including Santa Wish Lists, Daryll the Elf coming to visit (we did this before the Elf Shelf came about!), making sure we had the correct bells to jingle outside windows for effect, just the right Christmas book to read on Christmas Eve, and so much more. My late father instilled all of these neat things within me without my even knowing it. As my turn came to be Santa, I knew just what to do instinctively. My father passed away 4 days before Christmas, in 1989. The last task he performed before this happened was putting up his Christmas lights and making sure they were animated to the Alvin and the Chipmunks Christmas Album, well before animating your lights was even thought of. I have spent many a year fighting off being sad for his loss; however this year it dawned on me that he gave me a special gift of fun and humor that I may have missed the meaning of all of these years. And the cool part of this story is that I have now effectively passed it on to my own children. Last night a local mom was a bit stressed out that the “exact” Santa wish her son was wanting was out of stock and she was worried that he would be upset. I told her about the time our oldest son, Trevor, wanted a Ghostbusters Proton Pack from Santa Clause. He was only 6, so I did everything in my power to grant his sweet wish. Unfortunately these weren’t available on the market yet, until of course the next year. Our explanation to him was that Santa had explained to us that these weren’t in mass production yet because the Ghostbusters were working on Top Secret Formulas. When Christmas came the next year, Santa found a Ghostbusters Proton Pack, and was probably the most loved thing Trevor ever received. Yes, Trevor was disappointed. However, the mystery and hope instilled by this act, for him, was wondrous. He wrote letters to Santa and The Ghostbusters all throughout the next year, and was creative in his playing Ghostbusters, as well. He didn’t let the disappointment of not getting his wish overcome his spirit, he just looked forward. These are gifts that transcend actual physical presents - hope, creativity, and learning to adapt. This year, for our family, our advertisers and you, our readers, have given us the gifts of hope, creativity and joy. We will never be able to thank you enough for the opportunity to bring Edmond Active Magazine to you every month.
Sherri Hultner
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DECEMBER / JANUARY EVENTS CALENDAR DEC 1-31
DEC 21 PADDY DOWNING HUNTER JUMPER CLINIC
Location: Lazy E Arena, Guthrie Extra Info: 405/282-RIDE or www.lazye. com
OC CAMPUS CHRISTMAS LIGHTS
Location: Oklahoma Christian University Campus Extra Info: 405/4215100
DEC 1-18 BARBERSHOP
A CUT AND A SHAVE: THE HISTORY OF THE
The Land Run brough thousands of people to Oklahoma and Edmond from various backgrounds and professions. some of these pioneers were even barbers. As Businesses sprung up throughout Edmond, one of these buildings included a place to bathe and get a haircut and/or a shave. As Edmond has grown through the decades, the barbershop continues to run strong. This exhibit will showcase numberous artifacts covering the history of barbershops in Edmond. From its early traditions as a social hangout for gentlemen to its modern day convenience, barbershops have always been a place to enjoy a conversation while getting a haircut. Stop on in for a “trim” as you view items dating over 100 years old including barber chairs, razors, scissors, and much more. Time: Tues.-Fri. 10a5pm & Sat. 1pm-4pm Price: Free - Donations Appreciated Location: Edmond Historical Society & Museum Extra Info: 405/340-0078 or www. edmondhistory.org
DEC 1-31
UCO CAMPUS HOLIDAY LIGHTS
Bright new LED lights illuminated each evening. University and beyond Extra Info: www.uco.edu
DEC 1-31
Location: 2nd &
FIRST LIGHTS
Taking place during the Christmas season each year, First Lights is Edmond’s First Baptist Church gift to the City of Edmond and her residents. In 2007, Pastor Day presented the lights to the Mayor with the promise that each year the City would see the lights grow. Lights will be illuminated each evening. Location: First Baptist Church at 33rd & Bryant Extra Info: www.FBCedmond.org/ChristmasMedia or 405/301-6005
DEC 3-31
DOWNTOWN EDMOND HOLIDAY LIGHTS
DEC 7-24
DICKENS OF A CHRISTMAS
Visit Edmond’s brightly decorated Downtown area during the Holiday season. Location: 2nd & Broadway & Beyond Extra Info: www. downtownedmondok.com or 405/249-9391 Step back in time for an old fashioned Christmas & Holiday happening where merchants dress in period costumes. Time: Mon-Fri 10am-6pm, Sat 10am-5:30pm, Sun 1pm-5pm Location: Historic Downtown Edmond Extra Info: 405/249-9391 or www.downtownedmondok.com
DEC 17-20 CLASSIC
LAZY E HUNTER JUMPER HOLIDAY
Location: Lazy E Arena, Guthrie Extra Info: 405/282-RIDE or www.lazye. com
DEC 17 MARIE, HER TWIN SISTER KARIE & THE GIANT CHILI STALK
Presented by the Edmond Homeschool Drama Group. Time: 5:30pm Price: Donations Appreciated Location: Downtown Community Center, Rm 118, 28 East Main St. Extra Info: Linda Raiden at 405/330-0361
DEC 18 SHORTT DOGG
Blues & Soul. Doors open one hour prior to show time. Enjoy food and beverages available from Hideaway Pizza. Time: 8pm Price: $7 Location: UCO Jazz Lab Extra Info: 405/359-7989 or www.ucojazzlab.com
DEC 19 SMILIN’ VIC
Blues & Soul. Doors open one hour prior to show time. Enjoy food and beverages available from Hideaway Pizza. Time: 8pm Price: $7 Location: UCO Jazz Lab Extra Info: 405/359-7989 or www.ucojazzlab.com
DEC 20 HORSESHOE ROAD
Doors open one hour prior to show time. Enjoy food and beverages available from Hideaway Pizza. Time: 7pm Price: $20 Cash Only Location: UCO Jazz Lab Extra Info: 405/359-7989 or www.ucojazzlab.com
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DEC 26-27
LAZY E/TRI K BARREL RACING
Location: Lazy E Arena, Guthrie Extra Info: 405/282-RIDE or www.lazye. com
DEC 26 GARRETT “BIG G” JACOBSON
Blues & Soul. Doors open one hour prior to show time. Enjoy food and beverages available from Hideaway Pizza. Time: 8pm Price: $7 Location: UCO Jazz Lab Extra Info: 405/359-7989 or www.ucojazzlab.com
DEC 27 MOUNTAIN SMOKE - ANNUAL CHRISTMAS HOLIDAY SHOW
Blue Grass. Doors open one hour prior to show time. Enjoy food and beverages available from Hideaway Pizza. All seats reserved, so get reservations early. This show sold out early last year. Time: 7pm Price: $20 Location: UCO Jazz Lab Extra Info: 405/818-5591 or hhclifford@ aol.com
DEC 31 - JAN 3 USTRC SUPER BOWL TEAM ROPING Location: Lazy E Arena, Guthrie Extra Info: 405/282-RIDE or www.lazye.com
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SHORTT DOGG
Blues and Soul. Annual New Year’s Eve Show. The Dance Floor will be out. Price: $50 Location: UCO Jazz Lab Extra Info: 405/359-7989 X273 or www.ucojazzlab.com
JANUARY 2010 JAN 2
SMILIN’ VIC
Blues & Soul. Doors open one hour prior to show time. Enjoy food and beverages available from Hideaway Pizza. Time: 8pm Price: $7 Location: UCO Jazz Lab Extra Info: 405/359-7989 or www.ucojazzlab.com
JAN 8-10
EAGLE WATCH
Dress warmly and bring binoculars. Begin your search at the Park office to receive information on where the Eagles can be found. The office will have a video as well as other Eagle information on display. Time: 7:30am - 4:30pm Location: Arcadia Lake Extra Info: 405/216-7471 or www. arcadialakeok.com
JAN 8-9 CCP MONSTER TRUCKS
Location: Lazy E Arena, Guthrie Extra Info: 405/282-RIDE or www.lazye. com
JAN 15-16
CCP ARENACROSS
Location: Lazy E Arena, Guthrie Extra Info: 405/282-RIDE or www.lazye. com
JAN 16-29 FINE ARTS INSTITUTE YOUTH IMPRESSSIONS STATEWIDE JURIED ART SHOW
Open to 1st - 12th grades. Location: Downtown Community Center, 28 East Main St. Extra Info: 405/340-4481 or edmondfinearts.com
JAN 22-24
AMERICAN BICYCLE ASSOCIATION BMX
Location: Lazy E Arena, Guthrie Extra Info: 405/282-RIDE or www.lazye.com
JAN 26-30 A LOOK THROUGH THE LENS: PHOTOGRAPHY THROUGH TIME
Did you know the first photograph was created using a sliding wooden box in 1814? And some of the first cameras were so large a man could fit inside? The history of cameras can be traced back to Greek and Chinese philosophers who mentioned the pinhole camera in the 4th and 5th centuries. Learn about the life and equipment used by shutterbugs over the years and the history of the camera in a time before cell phone cameras were even thought of. Time: Tues.-Fri. 10a-5pm & Sat. 1pm-4pm Price: Free - Donations Appreciated Location: Edmond Historical Society & Museum Extra Info: 405/340-0078 or www.edmondhistory.or
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JANUARY 2010 MUSIC CALENDAR 50 PENN PLACE 3RD FLOOR ATRIUM
FAMILY THEATRE WAREHOUSE
Jan 16
THE NON CD RELEASE SHOW
Dec 31
Jan 08 - Jan 10
Jan 18
Watchout! There’s Ghosts w/
Electric Valentine
OKC FARMERS MARKET
Jan 20
Scary Kids Scaring Kids FINAL Tour
AMERICA’S PUB
Dec 26 - Dec 26
A Christmas to
Jan 22
Dead Rising
Jan 10
Remember Starring The Manhattans
Jan 23
D.R.I
and Denise Lasalle
Jan 27
All The Day Holiday & Kinch
Jan 23
Extreme Midget Wrestling
Jan 28
The Sword + Woodgrain
Jan 31
The Audition
“A New Beginning” Featuring Dave
Oliver Twist
Hollister.....New Years Eve
Dj Magic Mike
BLUE DOOR Dec 19
Red Dirt Rangers
Jan 16 - Aug 21
TARG - 2010 Season
Dec 20
Red Dirt Rangers Kids Christmas
Show
OPOLIS PRODUCTION
THE PERFORMING ARTS STUDIO
Dec 21
Stringents Christmas show
Dec 23
Holiday Toy Drive Show With
Dec 19 - Dec 20
The Sand Plum Fairy Tea Party
Jan 08
Robbie Fulks
Starlight Mints
Jan 09
Monica Taylor CD Release
Apr 21
Quasi
Jan 10
Carter Sampson and John Fullbright
Jan 31
Eliza Gilkyson
PARADISE CITY NIGHT CLUB
Feb 21
Elephant Revival
Jan 16
Feb 28
David Olney with Sergio Webb
Mar 07
Lucy Kaplansky
Jan 10
Ian Moore
Jan 16
Antsy McClain & Edgar Cruz
Jan 17
Ray Wylie Hubbard CD Release
BOURBON STREET CAFE Dec 31
Masquerade New Years Eve Party
BRICKTOWN LIVE
Cage of Rage
PROHIBITION ROOM AT THE GOLD DOME Dec 31
New Years Eve at the Prohibition
Room
Jan 02
HIP HOP
Jan 26
Winds of Plague, Despised Icon,
ROCK THEATER
For Today
Jan 09
A Tribute To The Metal Gods
Jan 20
Vital Remains, Pinhead and Locals
COBBLESTONE CREEK CONCERTS Jan 09
Big Wide Grin
SANTA FE TRAIN DEPOT Dec 31
2010 NYE Extravaganza w/ DJ
COCA COLA BRICKTOWN EVENTS CENTER
Disco DON
Jan 08
SKKY BAR ULTRA LOUNGE
Elvis 75th Birthday Bash
Dec 31
NYE
COX CONVENTION CENTER Dec 31
“The All Inclusive” New Year’s Eve
2010
THE CONSERVATORY Dec 18
Hawthorne Heights
Dec 19
Black Mayonnaise
DIAMOND BALLROOM
Dec 21
Exmortus & Vektor
Jan 21
Reverend Horton Heat & Deadbolt
Dec 23
Attractive And Popular & Hot White
Jan 22
Owl City & Lights And Deas Vail
Dec 26
Tweezer, Bristol Park, Mansion &
Jan 25
Everclear: In A Different Light Tour
Euclid Crash
2010 & Clayton Senne
Jan 02
Mammoth Grinder + Black Gasoline
Jan 29
Parachute / Safetysuit & Graham
Jan 10
This Time Next Year
Colton
Jan 14
METAL AS ART TOUR 2010
Jan 15
THE NON CD RELEASE SHOW
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LOCALLY OWNED Lena Lai Nyguen AQUA NAILS & DAY SPA
Welcome to Chirps and Cheers! One of Edmond’s newest businesses and one of our newest advertisers! Coming from California, we have seen our share of stylish, contemporary and cute shops. A visit into Chirps and Cheers makes me feel like I am in Manhattan Beach or Downtown San Diego and I love how original and stylish this new store is. Chirps and Cheers is located right next to the Summit Co. just off of Broadway, in Downtown Edmond and they carry anything you can imagine that is paper oriented! Susan Kropp, owner of Chirps and Cheers, said that she came up with the idea about a year ago after years of having a love for creative paper products. See below for some fantastic examples of the wonderful products she offers. As well, Susan is all about being modern so it figures you can find her store at Twitter @Chirpsandcheers ~ Be sure to follow her for specials! You can also find her at the Chirps and Cheers website at www.ChirpsandCheers.com. As well, if you are looking for the most unusual gift, this is a terrific store to start with!
Curtis Johnson THE CLUBHOUSE BARBER SHOP
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Lena Lai Nyguen is the owner of locally owned Aqua Nails & Day Spa, located at 12309 N. Rockwell just a few minutes outside of Edmond. Aqua Nails & Day Spa offers a variety of services such as manicures, pedicures, hair removal services, eye lash extensions, make up application services, updo’s and facials as well as offering a full line of pharmaceutical grade mineral makeup from Lena Lai Cosmetics, developed by Lena herself. The spa side offers a variety of professional therapeutic and relaxation massage by Certified Massage Therapists. Aqua Nails opened for business 4 years ago, which expanded into a Day Spa and home to Lena Lai Mineral Cosmetics just one year ago. Lena’s parents came to America with 7 children from Vietnam, and she and her brother made 9 after her family settled here. She has a very inspiring story along with her family’s story. She had her first ever benefit for Ovarian Cancer this last fall to which she is considering heading up a new Oklahoma chapter of the National Ovarian Cancer Coalition. She takes this personally as her mother passed away this year of ovarian cancer. As she gets this organization up and running, we will be providing more information, as to how to be involved. For more information on Aqua Nails & Day Spa, you can contact them for appointments at 405-720-2782, by email at Aquanailsndayspa@ yahoo.com, visit their website at www.Aquanailsndayspa.com or connect at Facebook for daily & weekly specials at www.Facebook.com by looking up Aqua Nails Day Spa.
Susan Kropp CHIRPS AND CHEERS
When you enter The Clubhouse Barbershop on 33rd St., here in Edmond, you can immediately tell this isn’t your grandpa’s barbershop. Curtis Johnson is the owner of an upscale version of the old school barbershop. Curtis is a formaly trained hairstylist at Duncan Bros., and has been living his dream of having a clean, stylish and comfortable barbershop for the past 3 years. He cuts hair for men and boys from 3 to 90, and one of the services he offers in old school fashion are hot lather straight razor neck shaves. But besides the obvious, when you enter The Clubhouse Barbershop, it is a very welcoming place to hang out, get your hair cut, partake in conversation with Curtis and the other customers which is bound to be fun and witty. If there is a wait, you can watch the big screen tv, have a cup of coffee or you can try your hand on the putting green! Yes, he has a putting green. His prices are very affordable and he has rates that fit any budget. During the holidays he is running a Facebook special where if you mention that you saw this on facebook, you can take $3.00 off a $16.00 haircut, and $2.00 off a a senior cut. Another cool deal he offers is a card where after you get 8 haircuts you receive your 9th at 1/2 price!
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SHOP LOCAL BathGasm Christmas Bath Fizzies - Locally Owned Online Etsy Shop Check out these cute bath fizzies that are Oklahoma handmade! They are sure to make a great stocking stuffer and are $13.95 for a set of three! http://www.etsy.com/view_listing.php?listing_id=3440864 Follow Bathgasm at Twitter @Bathgasm! Aqua Nails Day Spa - 122nd & NW Rockwell Don’t forget to stop and take care of yourself, or stop into Aqua Nails Day Spa to pick up some great stocking stuffers or gift certificates for your friends and family! Here are some of the specials going on right now: Fun from Aqua Nails Day Spa ~ Affordable luxury! Time to destress and do something for yourself for once! $40 for one hour Swedish Massage OR European Facial! Booking appointments for this price until the end of the year! Guaranteed to put a smile on your face! $99 for one hour massage, mini facial, manicure and pedicure. More Holiday Specials from Aqua Nails Day Spa ~ Pretty Face & Pretty Feet ~ Mini Facial & Deluxe Pedicure $60 / R&R ~ Mini Massage & Deluxe Pedicure $60 / Just For Me ~ 1 Hour Massage, Mini Facial, Spa Pedicure, Manicure $99. Don’t forget to pick up gift certificates, Lena Lai Minerals for great stocking stuffers and more! Call 720-2782 Chirps and Cheers Downtown Edmond on Broadway Stop into Chirps and Cheers to find some terrific gifts, invitations and thank you notes! This shop is a wonderful resource for all that is unique and creative, stop in to get what you need before the holidays are over! Open till 6 pm! Chirps and Cheers carries gift wrap, cards, thank you notes, pens, pencils, recipe binders, binders for your students, you name it ~ it can be found at Chirps and Cheers! Be sure to follow along at Twitter @ChirpsandCheers and at Facebook at ChirpsandCheers! Which Wich of Edmond on Bryant & 2nd Street While you are out and about doing your last minute shopping or while you are out after Christmas, stop by Which Wich for a great
lunch or dinner and don’t forget the healthy choices they offer! And if it gets too cold out, Hot wiches are the perfect way to warm u up! Don’t forget about our curbside service. Call 471-5363 for details. Broome’s Fried Pies Before you head out to check out the Christmas Lights around Edmond or after a day out shopping or visiting, drive over to Broome’s Fried Pies on Rt 66 1/2 a mile east of Pop’s for some wonderfully fresh & hot pies! If you have large orders, call ahead to have them ready when you arrive at 405.478.9090. The hours are M-F 6 am to 1 pm & 4 pm to 7 pm and Saturdays & Sundays 8 am to 7 pm. Broome’s will be open through Xmas Eve and will reopen the day after (Saturday). We will have our full menu available. Leave the cooking to us. Supper Thyme Supper Thyme gives back to a single mom of 5 who is battling cancer. For every donation or meal donated, Supper Thyme will match your donation to help this mom get through the holidays a little easier. Do what you can! While at Supper Thyme, we saw these wonderful bread mixes and think they would make a terrific gift for your kids Teachers and for your neighbors! These are sure to please and so thoughtful at this time of year. Pole Position Raceway This season Pole Position has the best deal going yet this year! For $99 The Year in Racing Book includes 1 race per week for all 52 weeks in 2010, & it’s only available at Pole Position! Cost is a mere $99 & that’s less than $2 a race. For more information go to www.PolePositionRaceway.com! The Funky Monkey on May Ave. This holiday season, be sure to stop into The Funkey Monkey for the newest in girls, boys and womens fashions! Don’t forget to follow The Funky Monkey on Twitter at @funky__monkey or visit and order from their website at www. TheFunkyMonkey.com for the latest deals on Kingsley, Juicy, Tea, Bailey 44, Twisted Heart & others!
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READER FEEDBACK Here are some of the great things that we have heard from businesses and readers alike about the 1st issue:
“Congrats on the awesome new mag! It’s something the whole town should be proud of! A+ job!”
“I am so impressed with Edmond Active magazine. Big thanks to Chris and Sherri!!!” Susan Kropp
Cody at WhichWich
THE STATE OF EDMOND ADDRESS During a recent Chamber of Commerce luncheon Mayor Patrice Douglas delivered her
“Thanks for being a honest and friendly face. Your premier issue is awesome, my friends love it!”
“Our company president came into my office yesterday with one of you magazines. He asked if I knew you and said that he was impressed with the quality of Edmond Active.”
Jennifer Hicks
Jim Martin
“I love this first edition - what a great new publication for our community - kudos!” Clark Frailey
State of Edmond Address where she touted Edmond’s status as one of America’s safest cities, her improvement plans for the city and the need for a new police station. But what she stressed most were the shortcomings in the cities operating budget. As you may already know, the city of Edmond, like most every other city, is funded by sales tax dollars. Due to the slow down in the economy, revenue from sales tax has gone down and many city projects and programs are suffering because of it. Not to mention the police and fire departments rely on those tax dollars as well. It’s obvious that everyone hasn’t stopped spending money, but your spending habits do have a direct effect on the quality of life here in Edmond. If you are making your major purchases outside city limits you are just helping to fund that city. Here in Edmond we have more than enough big box stores, boutiques, convenience stores and shopping centers to handle every need or want you might have. So next time you are out shopping, please remember that you sales tax dollars go towards keeping Edmond beautiful and safe. And also remember that sales tax rate in Edmond is lower than it is in OKC. So by shopping locally you are also saving money. That’s never a bad thing, right?
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OH CHRISTMAS TREE In case you haven’t been downtown in the last few weeks, here’s a shot of the official Edmond Christmas tree just moments after Mayor Douglas flipped the switch and lit her up. Shortly following the tree lighting ceremony was the Parade of Lights where the thousands of kids who lined the downtown streets got to catch their first glimpse of Santa Claus. It was a very chilly night to say the least, but thankfully Java Dave’s was open late enough to keep everyone warm with their awesome hot chocolate. What a great way to kick off the holiday season.
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What Is Twitter? THE CONSERVATORY Going to a show at the conservatory, on Western Blvd., was a little intimidating at first. The building itself looks a little ominous and scary and not a place you’d let your kids hang out at. But looks can be deceiving. I took our son Trevor there recently to see the Toasters. They’re an old Ska band that’s been around since the early ‘80s (think Reggae at double speed). It was a great show and we both had a good time. They have a pretty cool scene down there and I’m looking forward to going there more often. If you are into Alternative music they have some really good shows coming up. Keep your eye on our music schedule.
WAY TO GO BULLDOGS! Gotta give huge props to the Edmond Memorial Bulldogs for not just winning the City Championship, but for making up to the second round in the State Championship playoffs. In that second round they had to play Jenks over in Tulsa and pretty much all the pundits wrote them off and predicted the game would be a blowout. But the team that plays as a family sure did quiet all the pundits by holding their own in this match up. Going into the fourth quarter the Dogs had Jenks all tied up at 14. But late in the final quarter Jenks scored two touchdowns to win the game 28-14. It was by no means the blowout everyone predicted. The Bulldogs awesome defense held them to their third lowest scoring game of the season. Jenks did end up getting a blowout in their final game when they were demolished by Tulsa Union 19-52.
By Jessica Miller-Merrell
Twitter was a service originally created for friends, family, and co-workers to communicate and stay connected through the exchange of quick, frequent answers to one simple question: What are you doing? It was originally developed for use with SMS text messaging. Twitter users post tweets–– posts written in 140 characters or fewer. Think of Twitter as a virtual cocktail party. It is a place where people come to get to know each other and stay connected and up-to-date on the latest news and information. I use Twitter to promote my blog posts, upcoming seminars, and articles I have written. I also use it to develop new relationships and follow those within my industry or others that interest me. Here are some common uses for Twitter: Twitter users stay connected with friends and family members. Businesses use Twitter as a customer service platform for public relations, brand management, and as a marketing tool. Job seekers use Twitter to find unadvertised jobs. Business professionals and recruiters use Twitter to find leads and candidates. Some use Twitter as a source of breaking news and information. Picture yourself driving on the highway as you make your way on your morning commute. As you weave in and out of traffic, a billboard sign grabs your attention. The Hard Rock Café is coming to your town. You make a mental note to yourself to visit the Hard Rock Café Web site when you arrive at work. Later that morning, you visit the site and casually mention it to several of your co-workers. Word quickly spreads throughout your office and circle of friends, and by the end of the day, the new Hard Rock Café is the talk of the town. Twitter is like word of mouth marketing on steroids among the more than 27 million users. Whether representing a business or as an individual, jump in and join the conversation.
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FASHION CONSCIOUS Edmond North High School’s 20092010 DECA chapter made a record $10,000 during their Civic Consciousness Week for non-profit charity group Water is Life, founded by Edmondite Ken Surritte. The flagship event of the week was the November 23 fashion show. Six marketing classes spent almost three months collecting advertising, negotiating with clothing stores, recruiting models and making posters in preparation for Civic Consciousness Week and the fashion show. On the Sunday before the show, the student models and crew met in the North auditorium to do final run-throughs of everything, in order to make sure everything went smoothly. On Monday, DECA performed two fashion shows for the benefit of the students and one at night, and everything ran perfectly.
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FAT DADDY SWEETS Have you heard of Fat Daddy Sweets? Martha Stewart has! Alicia Helsley started her Chocolatier business in December 2008. She makes hand made truffles, chocolates and candy, whose taste and flavor cannot be described in words. Really. Alicia’s new business was highlighted in Martha Stewart’s Weddings 2009 Magazine this summer! Alicia is licensed and ready to take it to the next level by getting into local retail shops, taking on some corporate and personal holiday party orders. Her website is www.FatDaddySweets.com, where you can order directly. If you are looking for beautiful and delicious favors or gifts that will wow your friends, family or party goers... Fat Daddy Sweets Chocolate is it. If you’d like more information on how to carry Fat Daddy Sweets or would like to order for a Corporate or Personal gift, party or just because... go to www. FatDaddySweets.com
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FESTIVE DECOR
By Jennifer Hicks CID / Designing Diva Interiors, LLC / www.DecorateOKC.net/blog
Many of my clients call me around this time of year with one of two problems: 1) They want a pretty and put-together home for Christmas but have no budget for new items. 2) They have no time and need a guest-ready home ASAP (i.e. the in-laws called and will be coming into town tonight)! Below are my solutions for both sets of people. Which group are you? TIPS FOR DECORATING WITH WHAT YOU HAVE When used properly and with a steady hand spray paint can breath life into tired holiday décor. Many seasonal accessories are metal or tin which makes them ideal candidates for a fresh coat of color. Stick with basic and classic colors as bright or trendy shades could end up looking childish. Enjoy your old reindeer, stars, candleholders, etc once again and spend next to nothing doing it! Another trick for skipping the stores: Move the garland from its traditional home (the mantle, staircase, etc) and drape instead over pot racks and chandeliers. Pine needle garland without the pinecones works best for most fixtures because it isn’t too dense to fit in the tight spaces. Need an eyecatching centerpiece without the eye-popping price tag? Use existing glass vases and bowls by gathering a few of varying heights on one
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surface (such as the entry table) and filling with glass ornaments or cranberries. If using the latter, put berries in first then pour in sparkling water (such as Perrier) to get a bubbly effect. The centerpiece will also last longer if done this way. And lastly, your silk flowers don’t need to just sit around gathering dust. Pull out your favorite and most attractive blooms and use them in your tree! This not only adds texture and color but covers up bare spots between branches and light cords as well. TIPS FOR LAST-MINUTE HOLIDAY DECORATING When the guests are pulling into the drive it’s a bit late for a recreation of the North Pole. Relax! Here are a few of my favorite quick and easy solutions for decorating on the fly. White votives and lots of them. Place everywhere, especially in the center of the dining room table and in front of mirrors for double the effect. Time: 5 min. Fresh flowers in main rooms. I don’t just mean poinsettias, feel free to step outside of the box and go with whatever you’re first drawn to. A small bunch of trimmed red or white roses looks elegant on the entry table while a simple arrangement of hydrangeas suits just about every style. For a more natural or rustic style
bring in some dogwood branches from outside and place in tall vases or in the tree. Time: 10 min. Glass ornaments in two or three colors. Fill vases, trays and bowls in each room with these colorful little helpers and no one will notice the lack of décor on other surfaces. Time: 15 min. Hosting a dinner party? Use pinecones as place card holders—quick to collect and free of charge if you’re lucky enough to have a pine tree on your property! Your name cards will sit nicely in the grooves. Have a little more time? Using a broad-tipped brush glaze the edges of the cones in a gold or silver metallic paint for added drama! Time: 30 min. Replace your year-round family photos with DIY holiday art. Use a search engine to find stock photos of your favorite holiday objects (trees, ornaments, stars, crosses, snow, etc) and print close-up versions in black and white. Have a little more time? Be the artist and photograph things around the house that have personal meaning to your family or frame a family recipe card that you use each Christmas. No one will guess that those artsy black and whites on the wall have a personal touch!
my YARD
PREPARE YOUR YARD FOR WINTER By Bruce Maxwell With the Holidays quickly approaching and winter creeping closer, it’s sometimes easier to forget some last minute chores that we have neglected to tend to in our landscapes. I know that it’s more enjoyable to go Christmas shopping for our family and friends or cuddle up in front of our fireplaces with a good book and cup of hot cocoa, but if we’re going to be the envy of our neighborhoods next spring, we must bundle up and brave the cold winter’s breeze and get busy. • First of all, if you haven’t cleaned up your leaves from the cool season grasses, it’s time. • Clean out gutters so water can flow freely and drain properly. • Unhook water hoses from hydrants to prevent water lines from freezing and busting. Bring hoses indoors. • Mulch all planted bed areas with a hardwood mulch or a compost material made up of oak leaves. • Apply a pre-emergent weed control to all warm season grasses to prevent a weed infestation next spring. • Water all newly planted trees and shrubbery one time a month through out the winter months, if moisture levels are not adequate. • Prune all ornamental grasses back to a 1foot height to encourage vigorous growth next spring. • Prune Crepe Myrtles to desired height. Trim up and off the ground if a tree form is desired. • Continue mowing cool season lawns on a regular basis. There should be just a couple more mowings. • And, last but not least, winterize your lawn mowers by draining the gasoline from the tank and storing in a sheltered place. Again, these are the most important things we can do now to prepare our gardens and landscapes for a hard, cold winter. If you’re unable to achieve these things on your own, I would suggest hiring a professional to assist you. Let’s all strive to be the envy of our neighborhoods next spring. Happy Holidays to everyone and have a prosperous New Year.
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local SPORTS
Edmond North Cross Country Storms City at State By Trevor Hultner They came, they saw, and they conquered. And at the end of the day, Edmond North’s Husky cross country boys and girls were at the very top of the Edmond dogpile. The girl’s varsity team took home a shiny new 6a championship, crossing the finish line with the least amount of points, and to top it off, made academic state champs as well. On the boys’ side of things, the Huskies took home a very respectable second-place team finish behind powerhouse Broken Arrow. Memorial and Santa Fe made it into the top 10 in both divisions. Individually, Edmond runners made up 40 percent of the top 20 competitors in the girls’ race and 30 percent in the men’s event. Edmond Lady Bulldog Tara Lewis took the highest overall position out of the Edmond teams with a hard-fought fourth, followed by Edmond
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North’s Meredith Farley in sixth, Anna Kimsey in eighth and Ashley Webb in 11th. Adam Godwin took top Edmond honors for the boys with his fifth place finish, ending his high school cross country career with a time of 16:28:18. The only other Edmondite in the top 10 was Memorial’s Alex Shook, who closed the bottom out with a 16:49:96 time. North runner PJ Osborn came close with an 11th place. Godwin, a senior, had this to say about his performance: “I felt great throughout my race, I felt like I accomplished a good finishing time for the year. I think what I could’ve improved was how I arrived at my third mile, and I should’ve stayed strong and not fallen behind. Otherwise I think I had a great season.”
local SPORTS
Edmond Team & Individual Results 6A GIRLS 3200 METER CROSS COUNTRY STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS OVERALL FINISH 1st Overall EDMOND NORTH (State Champs) 6. Meredith Farley 6:06.7 12:09.16 6 8. Anna Kimsey 6:08.3 12:12.26 8 11. Ashley Webb 6:11.7 12:19.05 11 12. Hannah Helker 6:12.1 12:19.76 12 20. Megan Watson 6:24.5 12:44.37 19 24. Martha Blaess 6:28.4 12:52.27 23 45. Taylor Rolfs 6:38.1 13:11.41 40
6A BOYS 5K CROSS COUNTRY STATE CHAMPIONSHIPS OVERALL FINISH 1st Overall BROKEN ARROW (State Champs) 2nd Overall EDMOND NORTH 5. Adam Godwin 5:18.1 16:28.18 5 11. Pj Osborn 5:25.7 16:51.81 11 15. Dylan Crawford 5:27.4 16:57.02 15 44. Austin Mayer 5:43.7 17:47.67 38 49. Matt Hobbs 5:44.8 17:51.01 43 59. Justin Smith 5:47.8 18:00.41 51 99. Hayes Maddox 6:10.5 19:10.82 86
4th Overall EDMOND MEMORIAL 4. Tara Lewis 6:04.0 12:03.74 4 17. Christina Wright 6:23.4 12:42.18 16 18. Raechel Brown 6:23.5 12:42.47 17 42. Lauren Talbert 6:37.0 13:09.31 37 54. Hannah Robinson 6:45.2 13:25.70 46 61. Carley Ellis 6:48.4 13:32.06 53 80. Jacqueline Visina 6:59.5 13:54.03 67
4th Overall EDMOND MEMORIAL 10. Alex Shook 5:25.1 16:49.96 10 17. Eric Talbert 5:29.5 17:03.50 17 30. Garrett Horn 5:36.9 17:26.45 27 53. Geofferey Johnson 5:45.7 17:53.95 46 58. Hayden Fox 5:47.7 18:00.17 50 86. Tyler Gruenbacher 6:02.2 18:45.31 73
7th Overall EDMOND SANTA FE 25. Lexie Crist 6:29.1 39. Kelsea Wertzberger 6:35.5 43. Hannah Weiss 6:37.1 53. Alyssa Nale 6:44.8 69. Rachel Davis 6:51.8 82. Julissa Tamez 7:00.4 92. Lindsay Weiss 7:07.6
7th Overall EDMOND SANTA FE 14. Arya Bahreini 5:27.2 36. Alex Skinner 5:38.6 46. Brad Cameron 5:44.4 54. Tanner Bailey 5:46.2 56. Lance Russell 5:47.2 70. Matt Giudice 5:53.0 101. Charlie Flowers 6:11.8
12:53.61 13:06.40 13:09.59 13:24.82 13:38.75 13:55.82 14:10.22
24 38 45 60 69 78
16:56.50 17:31.90 17:49.76 17:55.53 17:58.57 18:16.51 19:14.96
14 33 40 47 48 58 88
10 Years In The Record Books GIRLS CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPION 2009 6A Edmond North 56 2008 6A Westmoore 52 2007 5A Edmond North 67 2006 5A Jenks 102 2005 5A Tulsa Union74 2004 5A Mustang 55 2003 5A Mustang 76 2002 5A Jenks 44 2001 5A Jenks 32 2000 5A Jenks 51
RUNNER-UP Westmoore 77 Edmond North 60 Westmoore 91 Edmond North 133 Jenks 84 Edmond North 70 Broken Arrow 81 Tulsa Union 117 Westmoore 78 Norman 109
BOYS CROSS COUNTRY CHAMPION 2009 6A Broken Arrows 86 2008 6A Tulsa Union 81 2007 5A Tulsa Union 39 2006 5A Mustang 90 2005 5A Mustang 83 2004 5A Edmond Memorial 53 2003 5A Jenks 64 2002 5A Edmond Memorial 41 2001 5A Edmond Memorial 57 2000 5A Edmond Memorial 44
RUNNER-UP Edmond North 112 Moore 99 Jenks 105 Jenks 94 Jenks 95 Jenks 76 Edmond Memorial 78 Jenks 51 Jenks 60 Jenks 44
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LIFE IN THE FAST LANE An Interview With Ken Faught, Owner Of Pole Position Raceway By Chris Hultner
Ken Faught and I came up through the ranks in the motorcycle magazine world together and we literally got jobs with competing magazines at the same time. I was hired on at Motocross Action and he landed a job with Dirt Rider. Even though we were competitors we always remained friends. Ken has since moved on from the magazine world and has joined forces with some very high profile action sports athletes to start Pole Position Raceway— a chain of indoor go kart racing facilities. We sat down with our old friend to pick his brain on what it takes to operate and manage such a massive endeavor. Edmond Active: How did Pole Position get started? Ken Faught: I wanted to do something different with my career. I had been working for Dirt Rider Magazine for 12 years and I wanted to do something fun, but not have to travel so much. So we started bouncing around a lot of ideas and Jason William’s and I came up with something that would involve a lot of celebrates from the motorcycle industry. We wanted to do something that would make us look forward to going to work every day. EA: Who was involved initially, and who have you brought on since? Ken: Initially we had Jeremy McGrath, Mike Metzger, Greg Albertyn, Dick Burleson and Steve Hatch. Since then we’ve also brought in Grant Langston, Kenny Bartram, Jamie Little, Kurt Bush—the 2004 NASCAR Champ—and Randy Hawkins, Barry Hawk plus a lot of other people that work in the motorcycle industry. EA: What is the advantage of bringing in so many partners? Ken: The neat thing is when we are doing something like this, having those key guys involved gives us a higher profile. So when we’re able to do a lot of fun media events. It’s also nice to not have to owe anybody money when you’re doing a variety of projects like this. Unfortunately these go kart facilities aren’t cheap to put together. EA: Is the business totally funded through the partnership, or is there bank funding as well? Ken: We pay cash for everything.
EA: How did the Oklahoma City location come about? Ken: I met my partner, Jason William’s, about 20 years ago at Jeremy McGrath’s house and he grew up here in Oklahoma. When we were looking to expand after the Carona, California location became more successful than we expected, Jason suggested we look at Oklahoma. There’s a few months during the year here where there’s not a lot to do. There’s also a lot of racing enthusiasts here. EA: So far, how has it worked out? Ken: It’s working very well. We have a good location that’s close to downtown and the state fairgrounds is also nearby and we’re right off a couple really busy freeways. On nights and weekends it’s worked out really good. Like most people, we can’t wait for the economy to turn around, but it’s definitely something that we want to continue growing. We’re looking, right now, into expanding into Dallas and Orlando and Sydney Australia. EA: How has your involvement in the motorcycle industry helped you new business? Ken: The motorcycle industry has really kept a close eye on what we’ve done. One of the coolest compliments I’ve had was from Geoff Fox, owner of Parts Unlimited,. He said ‘I can’t think of the last time a guy left the motorcycle industry and didn’t go work for a competitor or start a competing product, and yet still wound up being in the motorcycle industry and being successful.’ We don’t compete with any motorcycle companies. We’re neutral like Switzerland and we’ve actually managed to bring a lot of the industry together. We never planed it that way, but one of the biggest breakthroughs we had was when Jeremy McGrath called up and said he wanted to be involved. It was great from that point on. It got more celebrates involved. Now we have people like Chad Reed calling us, asking to be involved. Instead of us going to him. That’s been a lot of fun for us and it’s made our tracks in California and Las Vegas a hub for the motocross industry. A few weeks ago we had Travis Pastrana and all the Nitro Circus guys there. Anytime Travis is in Vegas, he’s at our track. EA: Is the building still standing? Ken: We actually turned them down to do an episode of Nitro Circus there.
EA: Why? Were you afraid they were going to burn the place down? Ken: They wanted to drive shopping carts around and they wanted to build a lot of jumps. Our go karts cost a little over ten grand a piece. It was the producers who called us up, and this was before we’d seen the show. I talked to Travis afterwards and he said he was glad we didn’t do it. He was pretty sure they would have ruined 8 or 10 of our karts. EA: All the Pole Position’s that I’ve been to have a lot of racing memorabilia. Where does all that stuff come from? Ken: It all comes from the athletes. I got three calls from Travis Pastrana, one day, asking
LIFE IN THE edmondactive.com
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if I was going to Vegas that Saturday. I told him I was and he asked me to go to the Hard Rock to pick something up for him. I asked him where he wanted it delivered and he said, ‘no where, it’s for you.’ He left me a full rally suit, helmets and motocross jerseys. Paul Tracy brought in two driving suits for us to display at the Las Vegas track. Kurt Bush brings in stuff. We even have one of his race cars. Roger Penske loaned us an Indy Car. Stanton Barret loaned us a Nationwide Truck. All the stuff has been loaned to us or donated to us. When you walk into the Las Vegas facility, you walk under the bike Mike Metzger used to back flip the fountains at Ceaser’s Palace. We want that authentic racing
experience and we really believe that this is the closest to racing that regular people will ever get to experience. Doing it indoors, in a climate controlled environment is a lot of fun. EA: As journalists in the motorcycle industry, we always got to go do cool things like go karting whenever we traveled. How far did those outings go to inspire you to start Pole Position? Ken: It definitely encouraged it. We realized that anyone who is into motocross, also likes to go go karting. No matter what background you come from, go karting is fun. With go karting you don’t have to be a talented racer, or know how to do a triple jump. Guys like you and me, wanting to
go out on a supercross track and go riding with them is no fun. But at a place like this you can bring your whole team out and have fun. James Stewart rented one of our facilities for all the people at Kawasaki. But on the magazine side, it definitely helped me experience all the different tracks. When I was doing PR stuff for Suzuki I wound up going to 20 kart tracks around the US, just to do some research to make sure we were going to do it right. It took us 20 months of planning to do this, because we couldn’t fail. Our houses were on the line, or kids futures were on the line. It had to work out really good, and it worked out better than we ever expected.
FAST LANE
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guest SPOT
The
Client
When I walked into my conference room to meet “Larry” for the first time, I was a bit nervous. He was a big, African-American man with a bit of a twinkle in his eye that made him look a bit mischievous. “Larry” had a buddy with him that day, who I don’t remember much about, but I can remember being a bit uncomfortable. As “Larry” began to describe the reason for his visit, I could barely concentrate because I was drawn in by “Larry’s” voice. It was a deep, rattling voice that was very unique (I can imitate it very well). Larry had been injured in a local store and had developed a hernia, which he lifted up his shirt and showed me. As I looked at his bellybutton on his then big belly, I could hardly believe what was happening.
I reluctantly signed “Larry” up and began work on his case. Little did I know, I would talk to him almost daily. He would call and harass my staff, drop by unannounced to make inappropriate comments to my receptionist and call me to ask “what’s going on with my case.” Of course, when I would get on the phone with him, he would apologize for the comments he made to the staff and basically become a big teddy bear. He became someone I could talk “hard” to and he would listen. He would explain (in the deep, rattling voice) that his “baby-mama mad at me” and he’s “got bills.” The conversations with “Larry” would always end with him saying, “goodlookin out.” I began to feel that “Larry” was someone I
With childlike anticipation in his eyes, he opened a small white jewelry box and showed me a small lead ball. He said, (in that deep, rattling voice) “That’s a .45, that’s a .45!” He explained that the slug had been lodged in his throat and the surgeons told him it couldn’t be removed. Amazingly, he just coughed it up one day. One Lawyer’s story of compassion and friendship. By Eric Urbach
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may could do something with. I put $20.00 in an envelope for cab fare with a letter inviting “Larry” to my church and I mailed it to his sister’s house because that was the only address I had. It turns out he didn’t receive it until many weeks later. After he received it, he called, thanked me and told me he had recently been to a local church that he enjoyed. During one of “Larry’s” unexpected visits, I told him I had to go downstairs and get something out of my car, so I would walk him out. We got to the parking lot and “Larry” got into the back seat of his buddy’s old car. There were three other men piled into the car. They began to drive away. As I opened the back door of my car, I noticed a small Bible I had recently bought in the back seat floorboard (yeah, I know). Something told me, “Give that to “Larry.” I was stirred enough to shout as loud as I could, “STOP!” With all of the courage I could muster, I approached the car and “Larry” accepted the Bible through a cracked window. He was as surprised as I was nervous. I eventually got “Larry’s” case settled. He got his money and I didn’t hear from him for a few months. My assistant came in my office one day and told me “Larry” had been by. He had lost a lot of weight and was recovering from being shot in the face with a .45 pistol. “Larry” dropped by later that afternoon. As I walked into the foyer of the office, I hardly recognized him. With childlike anticipation in his
eyes, he opened a small white jewelry box and showed me a small lead ball. He said, (in that deep, rattling voice) “That’s a .45, that’s a .45!” He explained that the slug had been lodged in his throat and the surgeons told him it couldn’t be removed. Amazingly, he just coughed it up one day. “Larry” felt like he had been the recipient of a miracle. He and I walked out in the hall and with tears in his eyes, he thanked me for what I had done and the big guy and I hugged (and I’m not a man hugger). I was very humbled that day. I’ll never forget it. “Larry” has spent the last few years in prison because of a mean drug addiction. He is now serving out the last months of his sentence in a halfway house in Oklahoma City. He and I shared a meal recently and it was good to catch up. He is working and I know he is going to live a different life than what is now, his past. I have made the decision to be a lawyer who chooses not to represent big companies and corporations, but rather one who represents people I can literally “get my arms around,” so I can have experiences like I have shared with “Larry.” I’ve learned that when my clients have become my “business,” I’ve missed it. Oddly enough, “Larry” called me yesterday to “check on” ME. I can’t wait to see what’s next.
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THE RETURN OF THE SPY FM
ONE MANS QUEST TO BRING TRUE ALTERNATIVE RADIO BACK TO OKC
By Chris Hultner
To be perfectly honest I have only missed one thing about California since moving to Edmond—a good alternative radio station. In fact, in the five years I’ve lived here I have stopped listening to music on the radio alltogether, because I didn’t really like what the stations here were playing. So imagine my surprise a few weeks ago while driving down Santa Fe and scanning airwaves for talk radio when I happened upon a song by the Smiths. That’s a fluke I thought. But the Smiths were followed by The Clash, then The Cure! I was stoked and I didn’t want to stop driving. The station tag was The Spy 105.3. Once I got home I did a little digging and got a hold of Ferris O’Brien, the new owner of The Spy and set up an interview. Here’s what Ferris had to say about bringing The Spy back to life.
EA: Alright, Ferris. Tell me a little bit about the history of The Spy. Ferris: It was on KSBI-FM, licensed out of Stillwater. KSBI has been a licensed FM signal since 1947. A common misconception is that KSBI was somehow connected to, owned by or partnered with OSU. There’s never been any kind of deal other than students just working there. In the late 70s, early 80s, it kind of adopted a rock format, as opposed to what it was before. In the late 80s, early 90s, they dropped The Spy “Rock” and just became The Spy, and it kind of started this whole thing. I became associated with it in late 97 and the name has followed me around since. It was a chaotic free-form radio station when I got there, and I was brought in to try and bring order to the chaos. I didn’t really change a whole lot; I took what I learned from The Edge in Dallas and applied it to a format that had already been around, was already a brand, and just kind of gave it a little bit of form and structure.
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It became easier to listen to, whereas before it would be Muddy Waters into The Smiths into Eric Clapton, and DJ to DJ it would change which is the old college way of doing it. I basically just developed a playlist, a skeleton if you will, and then let the DJs kind of put the meat on the bones. That’s what made me fall in love with radio in the late 70s and early 80s, because I could pull a Rip Van Winkle and fall asleep for however long, and when I’d wake up all I would have to do is turn on the radio, listen to about three songs and pretty much tell you what day it was, what time of day it was and who was on the radio. When deregulation happened in the mid90s, that just totally got pushed under the rug. EA: It’s obvious that radio has become much more formulaic, but do you really think that syndication on that level is really possible? It would be really lame if radio went that way. Ferris: They don’t care. They really don’t. It’s
not about the music, it’s about the ad dollars. The bigger they become, the more they have to chop away at the roots and eventually the tree is going to die. It doesn’t have to be that way. EA: Working in radio seems to be a pretty nomadic career. Where have you worked during your career in radio? Ferris: I’ve worked all over the place—in big markets and small ones. I’ve never been overly concerned with the market ladder. I think I’m one of the very few DJ’s out there that can say that I’ve actually worked at two of my favorite radio stations—The Edge and The Spy. I used to be one of the radio nerds back in middle school and in the back of Rolling Stone Magazine you could order Air Checks from radio stations all over the country. I used to order a bunch of them and was just blown away. Since then I have spent some time in San Diego, Carlsbad, Seattle, Anchorage, Phoenix, Houston, Dallas, Austin, OKC, Norman and Stillwater. I started in radio back in 1989, so I remember
feature STORY how awesome radio used to be—back when every radio station in Oklahoma was like The Spy. Not that they played the same music, but the Rock station played deeper cuts and there were DJ’s that were actually excited about the new music they were playing. The same goes for the Country stations or the Top 40 stations. Nowadays it’s just not like that. It’s prerecorded, the majority of people behind the mic don’t have any experience. There’s one station around here that doesn’t have one live DJ and they’re considered a radio station here. It’s just beyond me how you can have a not even one live DJ on a big hundred thousand watt station in the market. This is not unique to just OKC, it’s happening all over the place. I would venture to guess that in places like LA or New York, there are a lot of stations like that. EA: I grew up on good radio stations, like 91-X in San Diego, and to me it’s important for a station to connect with it’s listeners by having personalities behind the mic that know the city and love the music they are playing. Is that the direction you want to take The Spy? Ferris: Yes. I’d like to be the catalyst to push it that way. The goal here is to be live 24/7 with a DJ behind the mic at all times. EA: Do you have any plans for different programs? What can listeners expect in the coming months? Ferris: My vision, that we will hopefully get at over the next 12 months, is a lot of specialty shows. With radio, growing up, I liked all the specialty shows that expose you to different things. We have a Rockabilly show in the works as well as a local music show. Tyson Mead, who is Spy family and former lead singer of the Chainsaw Kittens, now teaches english in Shanghai, China. He’s going to do a show live from China. It’s already been approved by the government and the university where he works has granted him access to the students and the studio to record the show and it’s going to have Chinese alternative music. Honestly, I don’t really know what to expect, but I know if Tyson has something to do with it, it’s going to be fun regardless. The Lost Ogle guys are going to do some kind of Lost Ogle-ness here. We’re going to be doing different things—just getting back to re-localizing radio and making Oklahoma City cooler. When we are talking about something on the air, we’re going to be there—if we’re paid to be there or not. EA: How did you come to acquire The Spy? Ferris: I continued Spy radio for the past five years on the KATT. I kept the name alive and kept it going as a specialty show. It was always my intention, at some point, to do this. It’s extremely expensive to do this. It’s not something you can just go and get a bank loan for. FM stations in a market like Oklahoma City can go for 20 million dollars. And that’s without studio’s, mic’s, software and hardware. You’re buying air or whatever frequency it is and then you have to build everything around it. This one is a smaller
wattage FM signal, but the price tag is still quite a bit. But it came with the studio’s and the mic’s— it was kind of a package deal. It was like buying a house that already has furniture in it. I guess it all started back in January of 2009. Just being an employee of Citadel and knowing how radio works—when they made a change at 105.3—I had a feeling that it was on the market and they were definitely trying to move it. I took the next two and a half months getting everything together like a business plan and talking to family about my intentions. Sometime in March I walked into the office of Citadel OKC’s general manager, Larry Bastida. When I walked in he just shook his head. He knew I was going ask him for a raise or something. I told him I had a super crazy idea. I told him what I wanted to do. He’s like a father figure, in some aspects. He’s helped tremendously to push this deal through. These are not usually friendly deals. Big corporations don’t accumulate things just to start selling them off. The idea is to keep accumulating EA: Let’s talk about your format. Oklahoma City seems more like a Classic Rock and Country market than it does and Alternative market. Ferris: I’m not so sure it is. Yeah they’re here, but they’re everywhere—those listeners that appreciate that, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I think there are a lot more Spy listeners than people realize. It’s been pounded into their heads for ten years that people who listen to alternative are 14 years old, they have green hair and they ride skateboards. And they do listen, but they’re not the only ones. This is a female driven format. I hate to break anybody’s egg of understanding, but it’s true. Look at our Facebook page for instance. For every one male posting something, there are five females. At the Indie Craft show I had everyone from politicians coming up to congratulate me, to moms with three kids, to a dad and two teenagers who all three listened to Spy. I had a 59 year old guy call me the other day and request some Kinks. I had a 15 year old from Norman call me because he wanted to hear some Doves. Someone even posted on our Facebook page that we played too much Placebo. And what I’m getting at is that this person even knows who Placebo is, they know that we’re playing a lot of them. How do they know that? None of the other stations around here play them. The perception about the people who listen to this kind of music is strangely wrong. I encourage anybody, regardless of what your favorite genre of music is, to give the Spy a listen. There’s a little bit of something for everybody. I hope once we do get all the specialty shows lined up, there will be something for everybody. EA: What about getting some good bands to come to OKC? In the five years we’ve lived here there haven’t been any good alternative shows to go to. Ferris: When the Spy went off the air five years ago, the shows dried up with it. That’s completely ridiculous—we’re almost in the middle of the United States. Everything goes to Dallas or Tulsa. How does Tulsa beat Oklahoma City?
We’re bigger. That’s always amazed me. Their venues aren’t any better. It seems like OKC is a logical place for touring bands to stop. But there hasn’t been any radio support and that is a very important thing that they look at. Especially nowadays that it costs so much money to move everything around. The fact that we got a U2 show, without something like this, was testament more to the band wanting to come here more than the viability of having a show. EA: It seems like you’re running the Spy all by yourself. Who else helps you with the day-to-day stuff? Ferris: I have an engineer that keeps me on the air. Kenny’s done a great job. He’s worked tireless hours and this isn’t his full time gig. Most of the stuff he does for me is on his own free time. He’s been a godsend. Chris has helped me set up the office part of it. I’m doing all the DJ’ing. I have two sales people. My wife Brandee is trying handle some of the smaller businesses. David was the sales manager and GM for the old KSPI in Stillwater. He’s like my uncle and extended family. He’s my big gun as far as sales go. And there have been countless volunteers coming out of the woodworks to just lend a hand. Scott Booker at ACM has offered up some of his students to do some stuff down here. I really have more help than I know what to do with. EA: How many hours do you spend here each day? Ferris: My wife would say that I never come home. The first two weeks was pretty trying. Probably about 21 hours a day. I’m still trying to figure out what a normal day is.
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working OUT
I MEAN BUSINESS!
“In todays business environment, separating yourself from your competition and wisely managing your time are critical to your success. By using Chris Marlatt’s time efficient training I have been able to increase my energy level and have more stamina then my competitor.” -Darren Webb I
“When you look good, you feel good, you play good.”
SQUAT AND PRESS Hold a dumbbell in each hard shoulder level. Keep your chest up and squat down so your legs are parallel to the floor. Then, push through your heels back to the top shoulder pressing the weight up above your head, repeat. The weight is going to be pulling down on your upper body so keep your core tight and back straight. LUNGE TO BICEP CURLS Hold two dumbbells with your arms hanging at your side. Step out with one leg and lunge forward so that your leg is parallel to the floor. Pause, then push through your heel and curl the weight by squeezing your bicep and pulling the weight to your shoulders, repeat. By Chris Marlatt In the business world you’re always competing against the other person, company or business. Set yourself apart form everyone else by looking better, having more energy and stamina than your competitor. Its been proven that Business men and women who workout regularly get paid more and are more successful in what they do. It’s not always easy squeezing in a workout with such busy lifestyles and long work days. If your bound for time try consolidating your workout by super-setting compound exercises with your cardio for a total body routine. By doing so you will increase the intensity of the workout and half the time. Less time in the gym means more time making sales, adding production and growing your business.
THE WORKOUT.... This workout shouldn’t take longer than 30-45 mins. Run through each exercise once before repeating. For faster sessions its best to leave the treadmill running—jumping on and off it by straddling the sides. Complete 2-5 sets of 15-25 repetitions of each exercise 2-3 times a week.
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WEIGHTED BALL CRUNCHES Lie your back on the stability ball. While holding a dumbbell behind your head, raise your shoulders and crunch your rib cage toward your pelvis. Pause, then slowly return to the starting position.
working OUT
DUMBBELL PRESS ON STABILITY BALL Lie your back on the stability ball while holding two dumbbells over your chest. Lower dumbbells down to your chest, pause, and puush back to the starting position. Repeat. SPRINT 60SEC. BENT-OVER DUMBBELL ROWS Hold two dumbbells with your palms facing in. Slightly bend your knees and keep your back straight. Now, only bending at your hips, come forward so your back is parallel to the floor. Pull both dumbbells in towards your chest, squeezing your shoulder blades together, pause, and repeat the row.
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JUMP ROPE 60 SEC.
REVERSE CRUNCHES Lie down flat on the floor with your hands down by your side. Using your hips and abs, lift your legs up to the ceiling and then back down to the floor. Make sure your feet don’t touch or rest on the floor when you go down.
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A Home For The Holidays
The EWC Holiday Home Tour
By Sherri Hultner / Photos By Chris Hultner This year’s Edmond Women’s Club Holiday Home Tour was nothing less than spectacular. It gave everyone a glimpse into some of the most beautiful homes in Edmond at the beginning of the holiday season. The tickets to this highly anticipated annual event are sold at local retailers and online and benefit the local community through grants to businesses, charities and scholarships. As well, local shops, boutique’s, designers and businesses all help with the setup, décor and design of the homes for 2 weeks before the event. Along with the Holiday Home Tour, there is the Winter Market that consists and highlights local businesses, publications and artisans. It is a fantastic way for visitors to get their holiday gift and décor shopping started. The decorated homes we have pictured within these pages are some of the best this event had to offer this year, which I have to say all of them were absolutely beautiful. This year’s designers did a fantastic job! The most unique tree of the event was decorated by David Spannagel, co-owner of Sterling’s Home Décor & Gifts, located at 105 S. Broadway in Downtown Edmond. As you can see from the photo, David’s main tree was unusually displayed in a sleigh and as well, it displayed a 4 foot metallic buck’s head, with antlers throughout the tree along with metallic ornaments and pheasant feathers. This tree took approximately 2 hours to construct and was absolutely wonderful! The second most unique tree of the event was also designed by David and featured china plates, which was also just absolutely beautiful, as well as most unique. Camden Maxwell, manager of The Paper Lion on 33rd and Boulevard, decorated a home this year for the Holiday Home Tour and it was a very cute, clean and it included very unique pairings of some Christmas décor favorites. If you get the chance to visit the 2010 EWC Holiday Homes Tour and Winter Market, definitely do! It’s a fantastic place to see some of Edmond’s best designers and local shop owners highlight their best holiday wares and you get a chance to purchase the décor toward the end of the event! Mark your calendar’s for next year! About the Edmond Women’s Club Edmond Women’s Club is a volunteer organization composed of community- spirited women who have combined their talents to promote the cultural, civic, educational, and community efforts of the City of Edmond. EWC provides unique opportunities for its membership: to assist their community in financial and voluntary ways; to expand their abilities to best serve their community; and to experience fellowship with one another. The purpose of the Edmond Women’s Club The purpose of Edmond Women’s Club is to promote the social, cultural, civic, and educational enrichment of the greater Edmond community and to foster the development of leadership and volunteerism among its members.
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light IT up
1 2009s BEST CHRISTMAS LIGHTS IN AND AROUND EDMOND
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THE UNOFFICIAL, OFFICIAL CLARK GRISWALD AWARD FOR BEST LIGHTS...EVER After numerous nights and evenings, scouring Edmond and nearby cities for the best overall Christmas light set up, we can confidently say we’ve found it. This house in the Thornebrook addition of Edmond, off Bryant and 33rd Street, is a sight to behold. Thousands of colored led lights set to music made for an awesome display of Christmas cheer. Well done indeed. BEST CORPORATE LIGHT SHOW The Chesapeake energy company gets huge props for intricately decking out hundreds of trees on the Chesapeake campus with led lights. The even went a step further by dressing up the trees that line Western Blvd next to the campus. It made for a blindingly beautiful drive. MOST CHARMING HOUSE This turn of the century house, just off Boulevard in downtown Edmond just screamed old school Christmas charm. From the archway decorated tree trimmings, ribbon and lights, to the icicle lights dangling from the porch and the wreath hanging on the door, it just captured the Christmas spirit. BEST LIGHTS SET TO MUSIC One of our favorite places to check out each Christmas is Heritage Hills. It seems like a lot of the home owners down there really get into decorating for Christmas and the light displays never disappoint. Thanks to a tip on Facebook, we’ve found the Holy Grail of Heritage Hills Christmas lights on the corner of 19th and Ollie. All the lights on this house are meticulously set to music. It’s an awesome, traffic-stopping display and not to be missed. RUNNER UP IN THE CLARK GRISWALD CATEGORY Another favorite neighborhood driving tour of ours, at Christmas time is Nichols Hills. That’s where we found this blinding display of lights. The location is Grand Avenue and the light are so bright that this house has to be visible from space. I’m not exaggerating...well maybe just a little. You have to make this house part of your driving tour. Wow!
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light IT up
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EDMOND’S MOST FESTIVE NEIGHBORHOODS For the past month we have been hitting the streets in search of the best Christmas light displays in Edmond. We’ve seen some really great light displays in many neighborhoods and thought we’d prepare this map to some of the bests ones we came across. Our only real criteria for neighborhoods being highlighted on this map was creativity of the lighting display and number of decorated houses on each street. It’s a “more bang for the buck“ kind of map, if you will. So, if you have family in town and you want to take them for a little drive to see Christmas light, we have hopefully removed the guess work on where to find the best ones. If there’s a neighborhood you think we’ve missed just shoot us an e-mail (chrish@edmondactive.com) and we’ll make sure to update the list on our website.
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losing IT
Getting Started
By Chris Hultner
Thanks to years of sitting on my butt at a computer, paying no mind to what I ate or drank and barely moving for days on end, I’m now fat. There I said it, I’m fat. I can’t make any excuses or blame it on a medical condition—I did this to myself. I ate what I wanted, when I wanted and how much I wanted, without a thought for the consequences. When you’re fat it’s obvious to everyone around you, but not necessarily to yourself. I guess the realization that I needed to lose weight came when I was going through the closet looking for something to wear and nothing fit. My XL shirts were too tight and I could barely button my size 38 jeans. That’s about the time that I started making those promises to myself that I would start dieting on Monday. Then Monday came and went, and it turned into next Monday, and then next Monday, and so on. Admitting you’re fat is a big step towards taking your life back. But then you encounter the first big wall. How do I lose the weight? Do I go on a diet? Should I join a gym? Is there a magic pill I can take that will melt the pounds away? What should I do? Figuring out a plan of action isn’t easy if you have no idea where to start. Dieting is a good first step, but what diet should you use? There are so many to choose from. Joining a gym is a good idea too, but what do you do when you get there? Going to a gym when you’re fat is a very
intimidating thing. There are all those machines that you don’t know how to use. Not to mention all those fit and muscular people in there that will surely laugh at the fat guy who doesn’t have a clue. These are all the same fears and problems I faced when I set out on my path to losing weight and getting fit. So, what do you do? You get help. If you join a gym, talk to the trainers there, pick one you like and hire him or her. Luckily for me, I have a friend who happens to be a trainer. His name is Chris Marlatt and he owns his own training facility called Body Language. So I met with Chris and we made up a plan of action. The first thing I had to do was give up all my food vices. That seemed like it was going to be hard. I love to cook things like spaghetti, lasagne, enchilada’s, burrito’s and I’m no slouch with the grill, either. I love rib eye’s and burgers on the grill. My kids love it when it’s my night to cook, because they know it’s going to be good. Too bad for them, that’s all gone now. Sorry Sherri! I’m also hooked on ice cream, Starbucks Vanilla Frappuccino’s and Taco Bell. Gone, gone and gone. They also had to be eliminated from my food routine. The plan with Chris included working out three days a week for an hour each session. On the first day he took all my measurements and weight to calculate my Body Mass Index or BMI.
I weighed in at 264. Yikes! I definitely had a lot of work to do. From that moment on my life totally changed. No more making food a priority in my life. The Frappuccino’s were replaced with water. My diet went from, well...whatever I wanted to eat to one egg and toast for breakfast. A turkey sandwich without all the fixins for lunch. And a small piece of meat, small baked potato and veggies for dinner. Yum. In all honesty the diet isn’t the hard part in all this. It was actually pretty easy to give up the food. The hard part, and I’m not going to lie, is the working out. The first couple weeks are especially hard if you’re not used to working out or have never worked out before. Chris and I started out with a pretty simple routine. The basic workout we did for the first couple weeks consisted of 10 minutes on the treadmill running / walking. Three sets of 20 sit-ups combined with three sets of 20 weighted squats and three sets of 1 minute bridges. All that was done in the first half hour. The second half hour was devoted to lifting weights and crunches. Check out Chris’ Working Out feature on page 24. It goes into detail on the exercises we’re doing. After the first few days of working out I was beat, sore and hungry. And if I had been doing this all on my own I would have made excuses to avoid going to the gym—I’m too busy, I’m too tired, I’m too sore or I just want to take the day off. Once you start making those excuses, it’s all over. You might as well quit. That’s why it’s a good idea to hook up with a trainer. A good trainer will motivate you and teach you the proper way to work out and they will coach you through the hard parts. Hiring a trainer has made all the difference in the world. After you get through the first couple weeks of your new routine, the workouts don’t get easier, but your ability to handle them does and pretty soon you start looking forward to going to the gym, because afterwards, when you’ve had while to recover, you feel great for the rest of the day. Welcome to my new monthly column. I hope you enjoy it and read along as I continue my weight loss journey. But more than that, I hope you join along. There’s a lot more to come.
Remember to always consult with your doctor before engaging in any new fitness routine.
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