2009 09 17

Sopris Sun THE

VOLUME 1, NUMBER 32 • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

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Peeling off the years Potato Day still luscious after 100 years

The Sopris Sun’s Potato Princess, Gina Guarascio, dressed in the fashion of the day, invites us to take a look back to the beginnings of Potato Day. Photo by Jane Bachrach

t’s been a century since the first Potato Day celebration. The festival has changed over the decades, growing from a harvest celebration that attracted a few hundred familiar faces to a social event that draws thousands. But according to some of the people who know it best, the community spirit that sustains the event has hardly flickered.

“One hundred years: that’s a lot of history in the valley and a lot of change, and [Potato Day] seems to have molded to that change,” said former organizer Toni Cerise. “I’ve seen some Potato Days that did not have the participation of other ones, but I think that probably in the last 10 to 20 years it’s really been improved on. It’s a good event for all ages.”

The festival hasn’t run continuously. It was interrupted during each of the two World Wars, said Cerise, who helped organize the celebration in the 1990s. But Cerise says she is impressed by its long run.

“I think Potato Day is Carbondale,” she said.

“Mountain Fair has its place, too. Mountain Fair certainly has a lot of history with the valley, but Potato Day is just a pure hometown event. It has no motives at all. It’s just there to celebrate food and friendships.”

These days, Potato Day may blend in amongst the many other events in town. But in its early years it was an event to plan for. In fact, it was the event – if you could take time away from the fields, that is.

“It seems like Potato Day was just the big thing in Carbondale for the year. That was about the only thing the kids would look forward to going to. There wasn’t much else,” said Clifford Cerise, Toni’s father.

Clifford Cerise was born to a potato-farming family in 1929. He said that many years, he was still harvesting potatoes when the festival rolled around, but that at the very least he would attend the dance, often held on Saturday night.

“It was hard,” Clifford said. “I know that at times me and my sister and my mom and dad used to pick for 25 to 30 days.”

Clifford said that once the family finished harvesting its own spuds there was usually a neighbor who needed help digging his out of the ground.The rush was generally on to unearth the tubers before the ground froze with the winter.

Over the decades, the festival has grown away from the potato fields. Its schedule now coincides with the high school homecoming festivities instead of the ripening crops.

For the last 15 years, Potato Day has been organized by the women of the local Xi Gamma Tau, and Zeta Epsilon, sororities. In the early days the meat was donated and the spuds, which were baked in household ovens were, too. These days, Potato Day organizers solicit sponsorships to offset the costs of the event.

But Eva Cerise, who currently sits on the Potato Day Committee and has helped organize the event for the past 15 years, asserts that the Potato Day tradition is alive and well.

Eva said she stays involved partly out of respect for Carbondale’s history.

“I’m doing it to keep the tradition going,” she said, and asserted that many of her fellow organizers are involved for that reason as well.

The Sopris Sun’s Potato Day coverage continues on page 5.

Carbondale Commentary Public land, public use

By Jack Albright One might ask, “Who is the White River Forest Alliance?” The White River Forest Alliance is a multiple user group that is an advocate for the responsible use of our public lands.

We feel that we represent all users who are open to multiple uses, whether they be hikers, ranchers, bikers, or motorized users. We also feel that a wilderness designation is, as a tool, simply too restrictive. We are common citizens who live and work in this valley and the surrounding areas. There are no professional speakers or lobbyists in our organization and we are 100 percent volunteer. While the White River Forest Alliance may be new or even late to this discussion, we are not a new organization. The White River Forest Alliance was originally founded during the travel management era of the late 1990s and early 2000s. It has been recently rejuvenated to give an opposing view to the current wilderness proposal.

It is important to understand that our voice is local because the wilderness proposal is local. The White River National Forest is already composed of approximately 33 percent wilderness area. While we appreciate the desire and necessity to preserve the land in its current state, we are reluctant to agree to more restrictions than already proposed by the United States Forest Service in its current proposal. A substantial amount of effort by all parties was put into that proposal. It included numerous studies and public hearings. We would like to see some additional studies done for this Wilderness proposal that would address such topics as the projected local economic impacts, trail maintenance, and the Forest Service budget. Will it cost more to maintain trails in a wilderness?

The White River Forest Alliance feels that the time to act is now. We are encouraging our members to be sure that their voices are heard. Attend as many meetings as you can. Write letters to all of your elected and appointed representatives. It has been pointed out that this is a democratic process, which is exactly correct. The only way to assure that the right decision is made is to get an accurate representation of public opinion – something that we feel has been missing up to this point.

This is a matter that touches each of us in a very personal manner. Whether it is the privilege of viewing what seem to be untrammeled lands in solitude, or seeing the pure joy on a young person’s face when they have successfully navigated a narrow trail on a snowmobile, it is almost certain that we all have special memories of some personal experience in the backcountry. This is why there is so much passion surrounding this proposal.

While we have yet to meet with the Wilderness Workshop, the White River Forest Alliance is willing and eager to have a meeting to discuss the impact of the proposal on all of the user types. The important issue to us is not to be exclusionary toward the available experiences of our treasured lands, but to include all of the appropriate uses.

Jack Albright is the vice president of the White River Forest Alliance. For more information, visit whiteriverforestalliance.com.

Letters

The Sopris Sun welcomes your letters, limited to no more than 400 words. Letters exceeding that length may be edited or returned for revisions. Include your name and residence (for publication) and a contact email and phone number. Submit letters via email to letters@soprissun.com or via snail mail to P.O. Box 399, Carbondale, CO 81623.

Gas drilling: not a sustainable use Editor’s Note: This letter was also sent to Secretary of the Interior, Ken Salazar.

Dear Editor: We are writing to you out of our concern regarding impending gas and oil development in the Thompson Divide area outside of Carbondale, and to request your support in the suspension of the 81 existing leases on federal lands in the Thompson Divide area.

While we understand the need for energy production in the United States we strongly believe that unique and special areas such as Thompson Divide should not be subjected to that kind of defilement. We honor the sustainable uses for which these lands are currently used, such as outfitting, cattle grazing, hunting, fishing, bird watching and recreation, and we decry the thinking that would destroy the lands for these sustainable uses in order to extract a finite amount of a non-renewable resource We are particularly perturbed by the impact that oil and gas development would have on our aquifers and watersheds, thus jeopardizing wildlife, fish, farming and livestock. We have yet to be convinced that once-contaminated aquifers can ever be restored to their original pristine conditions.

The Thompson Divide is too special and unique to be sacrificed. Please lend your support to the suspension of oil and gas leases in the Thompson Divide area.

Ann and Sam Johnson Carbondale

Thanks from The Pour House

Sopris Sun readers Lynn Kirchner (right) and Marti Bauer (left) catch up on a little local news during a recent evening ride in Wyoming, near the Tetons. Photo courtesy of Lynn Kirchner.

Correction In the Sept. 3 issue we stated that Matt Flinkis, lacking opposition, will be automatically elected to the District A seat off the Roaring Fork Re-1 School District Board of Trustees. His last name is actually Flink. The Sopris Sun regrets the error.

2 • THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

Dear Editor: Twenty-five years in the bar and restaurant business in Carbondale; 40 years in the bar and restaurant business in this valley – put that in a million words or less.

It’s the best run a guy could have asked for. The Pour House is the saloon that I always wanted to run. A saloon has traditionally been a place where locals gathered and strangers felt welcome. That’s the kind of place The Pour House is. Good food, a friendly bar and a great jukebox.

When I opened The Pour House in September of 1984 there were three other restaurants: The Village Smithy, The Crystal River Steakhouse, and Nellie LaJoy’s Italian Restaurant out on Highway 133.

Our menu then was as is now – pretty basic, all good and home-cooked from the best available ingredients and priced affordably.

Over the years I’ve been blessed with some pretty great employees. As you can imagine there have been many. In one year we went through 72 employees. But the good ones have far outweighed the bad as far as my appreciation for them goes.

Midge Wampler has been with me now for going on 20 years. Caroline and Linda-Lou, Jackie, Jacob, Timmy O’Rourke, the list

goes on. I can’t even begin to remember all the names but I love you all and I’m grateful for all you’ve done to make The Pour House the really great gathering place that it has become.

I couldn’t even begin to end this without thanking my wife, Kay, for putting up with a saloon-keeper for a husband. “Sorry honey, that call means I have to work tonight.” She’s heard that more than a few times. Thank you, Kay. To all my friends and neighbors in Carbondale and all of the Roaring Fork and Crystal River Valleys, thank you and God bless you all.

Skip Bell Carbondale

Vote against climate change Dear Editor: Thanks to forward-thinking commissioners in Eagle and Pitkin counties, in midOctober, by mail-in ballot, we’ll be able to vote “yes” on a measure that will enable you and your neighbors to finance home energy efficiency and renewable energy projects with low interest loans.

The beauty of the Energy Smart program is that it’s not a tax, and it’s voluntary – if you want the money, you get the loan and pay the interest. If you don’t participate, there’s no impact to you.

Look for details on this initiative in the coming weeks in this paper, and come October please vote yes on 1A, and make Pitkin and Eagle counties energy smart.

Auden Schendler Basalt

Sopris Sun THE

The Sopris Sun is an LLC organized under the 501c3 nonprofit structure of the Roaring Fork Community Development Corporation, P.O. Box 1582, Carbondale, CO 81623.

Editor: Terray Sylvester • 618-9112 news@soprissun.com Advertising: Barbara Clarke barbarac@soprissun.com Anne Goldberg • 379-5050 anne@soprissun.com Reporters: Trina Ortega • Jeremy Heiman Photographer/Writer: Jane Bachrach Page Production: Terri Ritchie Ad Production: Barbara New Paper Boys: Russ Criswell, Mark Burrows Sopris Sun, LLC • P.O. Box 399 Carbondale, CO 81623 www.soprissun.com

Crowd opposes wilderness at parks & rec. meeting

By Trina Ortega What is normally a “pretty boring” meeting, according to Carbondale Parks & Recreation Commission (P&RC) Chair Chris Harrison, turned into a 3-hour public comment forum. The overwhelming majority of the audience were motorized users of public lands who voiced opposition to the Hidden Gems wilderness proposal.

Nearly 200 citizens from Rifle to Woody Creek showed up at the Sept. 9 P&RC meeting to learn more about the Wilderness Workshop’s Hidden Gems proposal to designate 400,000 more acres in the White River National Forest (WRNF) as wilderness.

The Carbondale-based Wilderness Workshop (WW) has joined forces with the Colorado Environmental Coalition, The Colorado Mountain Club, and The Wilderness Society in hopes of pushing its Hidden Gems proposal on to Washington, D.C., before the end of the year.

The proposal has piqued the interest of Rep. Jared Polis, but Polis’ staff member Lara Cottingham said the congressman’s involvement is in the beginning stages.

“We’re looking at it but there’s no bill.

There’s no definite anything,” Cottingham said. If the proposal comes to Polis, there will be a thorough review, she added, and Polis welcomes input from all members of the public.

The tight time frame is part of what spurred the extraordinary attendance at the parks commission meeting. Snowmobilers, dirt bikers, ATVers, and four-wheelers, along with some mountain bikers and ranchers, expressed frustration over being left out of talks with the Wilderness Workshop.

The campaign also has revived the dormant White River Forest Alliance, originally formed to respond to the WRNF Travel Management Plan earlier this decade.

“We’re not representing any one group; we’re not just motor users. We are a multiuser group going across the range made up of anyone who opposes this proposal,” explained the alliance’s vice president, Jack Albright. “We want public land for public

White River Forest Alliance president Tony Fisher (in driver’s seat) worries that a wilderness designation will exclude too many uses from public lands. Photo by DeeDee Fisher use. We don’t want to be exclusionary.”

At issue is the White River National Forest, which contains eight wilderness areas totaling 750,000 acres that amount to 33 percent of its area. The 2.3 million–acre forest extends into the counties of Garfield, Pitkin, Eagle and Gunnison.

The USDA Forest Service Web site champions the forest with the description: “Nestled in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, the 2.3 million acre White River National Forest is the top recreation Forest in the nation.

Home to world-renowned ski resorts and the birthplace of Wilderness, the White River has something to offer every outdoor enthusiast.”

But members of the White River Forest Alliance feel the proposal is too far-reaching and would exclude a breadth of users.

Stephen Watson of Carbondale said he has been recreating in the area for 32 years.

“I’m one of those people in every group. I

don’t want to lose the ability of diversity in this area,” he said.

If the proposal were to go through, says the Alliance, 46 percent of the WRNF would be wilderness, closing off use to mountain bikes, snowmobiles, dirt bikes, ATVs, chain saws and other motorized and mechanized uses.

However, Wilderness Workshop Executive Director Sloan Shoemaker has said that, aside from preserving the land for future generations, the wilderness system needs to be expanded to incorporate more biologically diverse landscapes.

Shoemaker stressed that the WW wants to hear from the community and is willing to look at specific routes that can be considered for exclusion from the Hidden Gems.

He told The Sun that the proposal originally started at 700,000 acres and has been cut to 400,000 based on negotiations with various user groups.

“We prefer to talk about specific areas,” Shoemaker said. “We’re not simply going to abandon our effort.”

Of big concern at the Sept. 9 meeting was how closing off the land to varied recreational uses would affect the economies of the surrounding communities. Keith Speranza and Nancy Williams, both of Glenwood Springs, were among those who said tourism, restaurants, hotels, motor sports shops, and family businesses would be hurt.

“It’s a ripple effect,” Speranza said.

Speranza quoted a study by the Colorado Off-Highway Vehicle Coalition that claims motorized recreation enthusiasts generated more than $706 million in total direct gross sales for motorized recreation in 2007-2008 in Colorado. The group says motorized recreation produced an additional $243 million in indirect sales as well.

Shoemaker dismissed those figures, saying that other studies could show that nonmechanized uses have a greater economic contribution.

In order to grapple with the public outcry, the Parks & Rec. Commission tabled the discussion until its next meeting in midOctober. Harrison was the sole commission member to express an opinion, saying the proposal is attempting to “use a sledgehammer to kill a fly.”

“I think that the diversity of recreation we have in these [natural] resources is the resource that’s going to continue to be the economic driver not only for this valley but for the state,” Harrison said, adding that, on the other hand, if the land gets polluted and destroyed, there’s no benefit for the state either.

“We need to come together to find common ground. … In our heart of hearts we all have a common interest in preserving lands for future generations,” he said.

The Wilderness Workshop will continue to present its proposal to regional municipalities and counties. Shoemaker welcomed the public to study the maps at whiteriverwild.org and contact the WW with specific comments and concerns about affected roads and trails.

Carbondale economic stimulus gets a nod from council

By Jeremy Heiman A group advocating a fun approach to digging Carbondale out of the economic downturn received enthusiastic feedback from the Town Council Tuesday.

Members of Carbondale’s business community came before the trustees to request financial and philosophical support for a plan that would encourage local shopping.

They asked for $30,000 from the town’s sales tax-funded budget to support a 90-day promotion in which shoppers would receive, with every purchase, a ticket good for chances to win prizes.

The trustees supported the promotion in their work session Tuesday evening, and will formalize their support in a regular meeting next week.

Carbondale Mayor Michael Hassig told the business people, “We appreciate your willingness to take this on. This project helps knit elements of the community together.”

The business representatives hope that

prizes will lure shoppers into Carbondale stores and restaurants. They requested funding from the town to purchase the prizes and to advertise the promotion.

Proposed prizes are to be in keeping with Carbondale’s green ethic and purchased from Carbondale businesses. The suggested grand prize is an electric scooter or car, but the idea of solar panels for the winner has also been floated.

A proposal for about $10,000 worth of advertising in valley media has already been drawn up.

The group convened six weeks ago to dream up an economic stimulus plan to help get Carbondale’s business community through the remainder of the current recession. The effort has been led by Chris Chacos, a retired restaurateur and head of the Downtown Preservation Association.

As of Tuesday, the economic stimulus committee had been meeting weekly for six weeks. A meeting Tuesday morning was attended by eight or nine business people,

Foulkrod observed that the town has a along with Carbondale Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Sherri Harris, lot of businesses in out-of-the-way locations.

Carbondale Town Manager Tom Baker, He suggested that shoppers could get prizes town Finance Director Nancy Barnett, town or recognition for visiting the most busiEnergy Manager Josh Smith, and John nesses, and that perhaps a punch card could Foulkrod, a town trustee and town liaison be used, adding a “scavenger hunt” aspect to the promotion. to the chamber.

As the plan develops, committee members Carol Bruno, of Peppino’s, urged the others to support notifying every Carbondale expect to form subcommittees to organize business about the project, and consensus in prizes, and to contact all Carbondale area the group was that this should be done in businesses and bring them into the program. person, rather than by using a printed flyer.

Carbondale anticipates an overall decline Baker had furnished a list of about 200 busi- of 18 percent in sales tax revenues for 2009, compared with 2008 receipts. Sales tax nesses based in Carbondale.

Pour House manager Skip Bell suggested makes up about 60 percent of the town’s a poster in the window of each participating general fund. business, and Bruno suggested decorated cardboard boxes to collect the ticket stubs in each store or restaurant.

Next Steps Some suggested a participation fee from The economic stimulus committee businesses, but Terry Kirk, owner of Sopris will meet again at 8:30 a.m. on TuesLiquors, argued that would reduce particiday, Sept. 22, at Town Hall. pation, and a box and poster should be furnished for every business.

THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 • 3

Efficiency project nets substantial energy savings in public schools

By Jeremy Heiman In its first two months, a pilot program to reduce energy consumption in two of Carbondale’s public schools has achieved significant cuts in utility costs.

The project, arranged by the Garfield County New Energy Communities Initiative (G-NECI) and executed by New Energy Technology, a Grand Junction firm, cut energy costs by more than $15,000 in June and July, compared with the same months in 2008.

At Crystal River Elementary School, energy use was down 28 percent in June and 48 percent in July, saving over $9,000 for the two months. At Roaring Fork High School, the reduction was 28 percent in June and 40 percent in July, a saving of more than $6,600.

New Energy Technology uses a seven-step procedure to gain energy savings for a building. For example, the company employs software to track energy use. Then employees gather data on past energy use. In step four

the company changes building operations to use energy more efficiently. The company achieved the savings at the two schools in June and July by using only steps one through four.

Further savings could be anticipated with steps five through seven, which include efficient retrofits for lighting; heating and cooling systems; and installing renewable energy generating equipment.

Charley Haupt, president and chief executive officer of New Energy Technology, said one effective change in building management was moving all summer high school classes into one zone of the school, and then lighting and cooling only that zone rather than the entire building.

New Energy Technology undertook the pilot project at Carbondale schools as a demonstration to indicate what can be achieved in a countywide move to reduce energy use and utility costs.

Haupt, who was speaking at a G-NECI

4 • THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

Skip Bell and Midge Wampler cuttin’ the pavement at The Pour House's 25th Anniversary party last Sunday.

Photo by Jane Bachrach

board meeting last Wednesday, urged representatives of G-NECI members, which include the Garfield County Library District, RFTA, the county government and all the towns in the county, to track every energy bill. He said it’s important to engage building staff, from the custodians on up, in the process of reducing energy use.

Haupt has worked on the pilot project with Carbondale schools at no charge, hoping to spread awareness of the technology he’s using through the publicity from Carbondale.

“We’ll be going back to the school district and asking them to pitch in,” said Alice Laird, director of G-NECI. The Roaring Fork School District could certainly benefit from renewed participation in the project — it spends more than $1 million annually on utility bills.

Laird and consultant Lauren Martindale briefed Carbondale’s Board of Trustees on GNECI’s progress on Sept. 8. They asked for

input from the trustees as to where G-NECI should initiate demonstration projects for renewable energy installation. Some suggested sites are Crystal Meadows Senior Housing, the renovated Third Street Center, and the town’s water treatment plant at the Carbondale Nature Park.

Trustee John Foulkrod pointed out that the town could achieve greater energy savings at the water treatment plant, or at the wastewater plant, both of which are big consumers of energy. Other trustees agreed, but Mayor Michael Hassig, a member of the G-NECI board, asserted that visibility should be considered first in a demonstration project, and that the senior center is best in that respect.

“What we want is not only the absolute metrics of it, but the story you can tell,” Hassig said.

Funding for the projects comes from a $1.6 million grant secured last year by Clean Energy Economy for the Region through the Governor’s Energy Office.

News Briefs After-school funds found The Access Roaring Fork after school program appears to have a temporary source of funding. The program has been touted as an effective tool for keeping kids out of trouble by keeping them occupied with arts, athletics, music and other activities during the late afternoon hours when parents may be working.

The Carbondale Board of Trustees agreed on Sept. 8 to allow town staff to pursue funding for the program from the Victim Assistance Fund, as recommended by Police Chief Gene Schilling and Town Manager Tom Baker.

The funding still must be approved by the Victim and Witness Assistance and Law Enforcement Board, known as the VALE Board.

Steve Kaufman, director of Access Roaring Fork, had requested $16,000 to run the

program in Carbondale until the end of the calendar year. The town will try to find funding in its 2010 budget to cover the program after that. The entire annual cost of the program in Carbondale is estimated at $74,000 to $87,000.

During the past school year, 152 children participated in one or more of the activities provided in an after school pilot program at Carbondale Middle School, out of a total of about 330 enrolled at the school.

Cop Shop Saturday, Sept. 5 At 12 p.m., a man reported that sometime in the past couple weeks a gate had been stolen from his house on Highway 133.

Saturday, Sept. 5 At 11:30 p.m., Carbondale police arrested a man attempting to break into cars near Weant Boulevard.

Saturday, Sept. 5 At 11:11 p.m., a police officer saw two men sitting behind Mi Casita beside two open bottles of Modelo. The men said the beers weren’t theirs, and the officer tipped the bottles over. Then the officer noticed a man holding an open can of Busch beer on Main Street. After a scuffle, the officer took the man into custody, citing him for resisting arrest and violating open container rules.

Sunday, Sept. 6 At 5:15 p.m., police received a report that a man was yelling at the bartender in The Pour House.

Police tracked the alleged perpetrator to the Nugget and told him to steer clear of The Pour House for the rest of the evening.

Wednesday, Sept. 10 At 6:40 p.m., a woman called to report that a carpet installer was demanding more money than he had originally asked for. Police informed her that the disagreement was not a criminal matter.

Gianinettis among those who saved Potato Day Ernie and Carol named Man and Woman of the Year

By Trina Ortega

Ernie and Carol Gianinetti have been through a lot of ups and downs with Carbondale’s Potato Day. They were there in the ’50s during the last of Carbondale’s golden agrarian days. They were there in the ’60s when hippies descended on what was then a free meal and “ate everything that wasn’t red hot or nailed down,” according to the Sept. 18, 1980, Valley Journal. And they were there in the 1970s and 1980s when Potato Day wouldn’t have made it without them.

Numerous community members have stepped forward to help “save” Potato Day over the years, but it was Ernie and Carol Gianinetti who formed a Potato Day Committee and underwrote the event for nearly a dozen years, breathing life into what is now described as Carbondale’s “true local celebration.”

This year, the town of Carbondale and Zeta Epsilon Sorority have named Ernie and Carol Gianinetti Man and Woman of the Year 2009 for their dedication and commitment to the community, including their efforts to keep Potato Day alive.

“We’re both very honored to be named Man and Woman of the Year,” Carol says, “especially on the 100th anniversary.”

“I’ve never missed a Potato Day that I’ve known of,” Ernie says. “Knowing my parents, I probably went in my diapers.”

The two have helped with Potato Days for decades, but Ernie recalls really getting involved one day in 1964. He was walking the ditches near the park and saw the men prepping the barbecue pits. It had rained and they couldn’t get the fire started.

“Smoke was a flyin’ but there was no fire,” he says. So he went home and grabbed a homemade propane “torch,” returned and had the wood ablaze within five minutes. He was known as the fire starter from then on.

The event has struggled over the years and almost died at one point, Carol explained. She remembers the Chamber of Commerce director approaching them stating: “I don’t think there’s going to be

any more Potato Days unless someone takes it over.”

“It’s been important to us that it continues. It’s history; it’s nostalgia of what Carbondale used to be,” Carol says.

In the lean years, you could count on one hand the number of people who helped, but support from various individuals, groups such as the Lions Club, and now the town and the Xi Gamma Tau and Zeta Epsilon sororities have kept it alive.

Plus, the Gianinettis are proud to have had their four children involved (two of whom are still in the area). “We have a new foundation and it feels really good,” Ernie says of all of the younger people and groups now involved in Potato Day. Having spent much of their lives in ranching and agriculture, the two were 4-H leaders (in tractor and horse) for 14 years.

“We’d go to the county fair and take our share of ribbons,” Ernie says.

As they reflect on their service over the years, another highlight is that they helped keep public schools in town. In the 1970s, Carol said the district tried to combine the Basalt and Carbondale high schools but the parents and students fought — and won — to keep them separate. And Ernie, who worked as a real estate agent for a time, clued Roaring Fork Re-1 into purchasing the land for the new high school.

“We’ve loved our community for so long, we couldn’t imagine not having our schools in town,” Carol adds.

A visionary pair, Ernie and Carol also helped the town get the site for the Gus Darien Arena, and were key in getting the facility up and running. They’ve helped brighten Carbondale in other ways, too.

For 20 years, Ernie would put up and decorate a Christmas tree by the swimming pool. And they helped keep the old Valley Journal afloat a time or two.

As Man and Woman of the Year, the Gianinettis will be sharing their bright smiles and classic parade waves as the grand marshals of the annual parade, which will begin Ernie and Carol Gianinetti are Carbondale’s Man and Woman of the Year for 2009. yet again this Saturday on Main Street at They'll serve as grand marshals of the Potato Day Parade, a fitting role for them, since Potato Day is an event they helped preserve. Photo by Trina Ortega 10:30 a.m.

Town receives windfall mineral leasing and severance revenues

By Terray Sylvester In a giant jump from previous years, Carbondale has received $846,685 from state severance tax and federal mineral lease fee revenues.

Town staff were, understandably, pleased.

“The money we have seen from leasing and severance is going to be very helpful,” said Town Manager Tom Baker last week.

The town received the revenue on Sept.

4, but has not yet decided what to do with it. Those decisions will be made during upcoming budget discussions.

Town Finance Director Nancy Barnett explained that because severance tax and mineral lease revenue tends to fluctuate from year to year, the town does not rely on the income as a regular fixture of its budget.

“It goes into the general fund, and goes

toward street and highway maintenance,” Barnett said. “We don’t have a designated expense line item for that money.”

In the 2008 fiscal year, Carbondale received about $72,000 in mineral leasing revenues and $12,200 from severance taxes. Town Finance Director Nancy Barnett said that’s about how much the town has usually received in the past.

But town staff don’t expect such a large windfall next year. Barnett stated that, at the moment, 2010 revenues are expected to drop from the 2009 amounts, but still end up larger than previous years. Severance tax revenue will likely drop by more than 80 percent, and mineral leasing revenue will decline by half.

Barnett attributed this year’s exceptional pay-off to two factors: a state-wide increase in severance tax and mineral leasing rev-

enues during the 2009 fiscal year, and a revised formula for allocating the revenues, which has sent a larger share of the funds toward Garfield County and the towns within it.

Previously, the Colorado Department of Local Affairs allocated the funds according to the locations of mineral workers’ residences. Now the funds are distributed according to a few other factors as well.

Counties with the most mineral production and greatest number of mineral leases receive more money. Within counties, the funds are divvied among municipalities according to population and the extent of the road system within city limits.

The added revenue comes at an opportune time. With the economic downturn, the town is currently facing a tight budget.

But Barnett said it is too early to tell

whether, and how, the severance tax and mineral leasing revenues might be used to help the situation.

“Whether [the money] would even be used to offset the budget – I’m not sure about that,” Barnett said. “I’m sure there will be a lot of discussion on that point.”

The funds are intended to offset the social and economic impacts of mining and energy development. Baker said that, when energy production is hopping, influxes of workers tend to strain Carbondale’s stock of affordable housing, bleed certain employees – such as heavy equipment operators – from the local workforce, and stress basic infrastructure.

However, he explained that it is difficult to estimate the cost of those impacts, and the extent to which the severance tax and mineral lease revenues offset them.

THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 • 5

Scuttlebutt Sopris Sun wildlife experts step up An email was forwarded to us here at the Sopris Sun, about a woman that needed advice about what to do with a chipmunk that ran into her house. The woman (“R”) said she’s “at a loss what to do,” and she needs help. She said in the email, that maybe “somebody at The Sopris Sun knows.”

Well, R, you’re in luck because we have handled some squirrelly cases similar to this before. We do happen to have a wildlife expert on staff that recommends the following: Get all other animals, domesticated or wild, out of the house. If you don’t have a pouch, purchase one because you’re going to fill it with walnuts. “Chippies” (that’s how our expert refers to chipmunks) love to crack the walnut shells before they go nuts over the nuts inside.

Open your front door and put the nut-filled pouch just inside the door. If you have any small stuffed animals put those in a half circle around the pouch.

Make sure you’re wearing grey clothing and hide behind a piece of furniture so that when the little guy comes out of hiding he’s not aware you’re around. Have a broom with you. When the chippie spots the stuffed animals, two things will happen: He’ll relax, because he’ll think he’s among friends, then he’ll make a beeline for the nuts. While he’s occupied, sneak up behind him with your broom and gently but quickly sweep the chippie out the front door and slam it.

If the chippie doesn’t come out, that means he’s dead. Unfortunately you won’t know where his body is until a foulsmelling odor envelopes the inside of your house. That odor will lead you to his body.

(If any of our readers need wildlife advice, please send us an email. Our staff expert can probably solve your problem).

Guns and burgers proposed Main Street in Carbondale could be seeing two new but very different kinds of businesses opening up sometime in

the near future. According to two of our best sources, a burger joint is moving in next door to Carbondale Animal Hospital, where the desktop publishing place used to be.

We’re relieved it’s probably not going to be a McDonald’s, ’cause the scuttlebutt is that it’s being opened by… Hint: We’re Ellaaaated!

Another source of ours (not as reliable) slipped us a note on deadline, saying the other business will be starting with a big, big bang and that the owners are shooting for an October opening. Hint: It will be a retail store but you might have to have a license to purchase their product. There is a “u” in the name of the product they will sell and there is a well-known band whose name might point you in the right direction. The last word in that band’s name is “Roses.”

Volckhausen, Karen Tafejian, Brenda Bucanhan, Charlie Pace, John Foulkrod and Georgia Chamberlain, Paul and Linda Froning, Jolee Singer, Bob and Kathy Zentmeyer, and various dogs and small children.

When the Lonesome Heroes played “Folsom Prison Blues,” Lynn Burton started dancing with John Foulkrod, however the dancing highpoint came earlier when Jane, Brenda, Ro Linda and Jolee dashed to the empty floor and started dancing wildly.

Later in the night the band complimented the crowd on what a pleasure it was to play for such great people.

That’s Carbondale!

Happy belated birthday to: The Sun’s fantastic Becky Young and Mark Burrows; as well as Laura Kirk, Dave Carpenter, Monica Aleen, Tim Gilcrest and Brad Palmer.

A marriage made in Collbran More than 200 friends and family members gathered for the wedding of Heidi Hendricks and Todd Mathis. The wedding was held at the family compound near Collbran under mostly sunny skies that turned to rain later in the afternoon.

Many attendees camped overnight.

Austin country band the Lonesome Heroes ignited a spark under the wedding guests and family, enticing people to dance on a floor constructed specifically for the occasion

by Brad Hendricks.

Heidi is the daughter of Brad Hendricks and Jane Hendricks.

Carbondale attendees included Bill Jochems, who performed the wedding, Vickie Browne, Peggy DeVilbiss, the DeVilbiss girls, Marge Palmer and Vince, Ro Mead, LuLu

Gabe and Hillary (Hendricks) Preston dance with their youngest son, George, at last Saturday's wedding of Heidi Hendricks to Todd Mathis near Collbran. The music was provided by the Lonesome Heroes of Austin, Texas. Photo

by Lynn Burton

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6 • THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

Spuds, not school books

By Lynn Burton Special to The Sun Well into the 1950s there was an abundance of potatoes in these parts, but not necessarily bumper crops of potato pickers. So, come harvesting time in late September and early October, potato fields filled with all sorts of workers, from farmers themselves to town folks, migrant workers and even school kids.

“There were talented men (working the fields) for $8 or $10 a day,” said Ernie Gianinetti, whose family grew potatoes at what is now Roaring Fork Village east of Highway 133. The pay was higher than the going rate, too. “They weren’t making $8 or $10 a day (at their other jobs) so that was good money.”

Schools even let out for a week or two each season so that students from early grades through high school could help out, plus earn spending money, which was often used on school clothes and supplies. “You’d see whole families in the fields, from six years old on up, getting paid eight to 10 cents a sack.”

Picking potatoes, which grow beneath the soil to a depth of several inches or more, was a labor intensive process that Gianinetti remembers well, right down to the pennies and the pounds. He explained that pickers usually worked in pairs, each with a basket that

held about 60 pounds of potatoes; two baskets made up a “half-sack.” When each basket was filled they’d be dumped into a gunny sack and left in place for the men to “buck” into a wagon later in the day. “Then you’d bend right over and go at it again. You got paid eight cents a half sack, and you’d have to do 400 half sacks a day to be worth your salt,” he said.

Some potato farmers employed school kids more than others for the harvest. Emma Natal and her late husband,Art, usually stuck with adults. “I don’t remember kids picking for us,”she said earlier this week while taking a short break from her volunteer duties at the Near New Store in the old Odd Fellows Hall on Main Street. She remembers school letting out for the harvest in the 1950s after field workers started becoming scarce.

Emma, who was born “above the Black Nugget” in the Dinkel Building 89 years ago, rented land with Art up Prince Creek Road south of Carbondale and later at the present day Aspen Glen on Highway 82. To harvest their Burbank and Red McClure potatoes, they used a horse-drawn mechanical“digger” to churn up the potatoes and bring them to the surface. Then, stooped over pickers came along, put the potatoes into their baskets and later poured them into the sacks.

Potato harvesting was once common and hard work for Carbondale locals – even school kids. Photo courtesy of Mount Sopris Historical Society “It was a back-breaking job,” Emma said.

When asked how long it took to harvest her fields, she quickly replied, “Two or three days,” then paused, smiled and said, “But it seemed like forever.” When asked if potato pickers were pretty tired at the end of the day, she smiled again and said, “Oh God, that’s a silly question.”

Emma and Art got out of the potato business and moved “into town” in 1954, along with their son Augie.

Emma seems a bit wistful for a time when Carbondale had an actual cash drop that helped fuel the local economy. When asked if she wishes potatoes were still grown commercially she said, “In a way,” but brightens and says, “a lot of people still grow them in their gardens. I grew them until this year.”

Emma also smiles at the thought that 2009 marks the 100th year for Potato Days.

“And I’ve been to most of them.”

e Red McClure Potato: Carbondale’s former cash crop sprouts again Marie Louise Ryan Special to The Sun In the late 1800s Thomas McClure left

his family against their wishes. He did so with a single motivation: to strike out on his own in the New World. He sold a prize

KDNK Community Radio

Membership Drive Events KDNK’s membership drive is on Wednesday, September 23 through October 2.

An Evening with Craig Childs at the Wheeler Opera House, 8pm, Wednesday, September 23.

Tickets 920-5770 or wheeleroperahouse.com.

(VIP Meet and Greet Dinner - call 963-0139).

Women’s Arm ‘Rasslin at Phat Thai, 10pm, Saturday, September 26. $10.

National Public Radio & High Country News Western Regional News Panel and Live Broadcast, Village Smithy, 6-8:30 pm, Monday, September 28. FREE. Youth Diversity Panel & Live Broadcast moderated by John Bennett, Roaring Fork High School Auditeria, 7pm, Wednesday, September 30. FREE. Town Hall Meeting with Jim Hightower & Live Broadcast, CRMS Barn, 7pm, Thursday, October 1. FREE. (VIP Meet and Greet Reception at Flying Dog Ranch).

PLEDGE AT KDNK.ORG OR CALL 963-0139 KDNK provides public access radio that connects community members to one another and the world. 88.1, 88.3, 88.5 FM • www.KDNK.org

brood sow to buy passage from Little Kenny, Ireland, and landed in Philadelphia at the age of 21. Upon hearing of the gold strikes out west he moved to Colorado and ended up in Leadville in 1876.

Escaping his Irish heritage, however, was not as easy as leaving his family. From Leadville, he moved to Catherine – the current site of Catherine Store – and purchased a piece of land where he began cultivating that well-known Irish staple: the potato.

McClure joined the throngs who were beginning to recognize that the climate and soil of the area were ideal for potatoes. E.H. Grubb, one of the foremost American potato experts of the time, and author of the 1909 book, “The Potato,” hailed from Carbondale. He claimed that one day, the area would be recognized the world over for its potatoes.

The intensity, dedication, and scientific effort of the potato growers of the early 1900s near Carbondale shaped both the landscape and the culture of the area. By the 1930s, 400 railcars filled with thousands of tons of spuds left the valley each year destined for market, and new potato varieties were growing in Carbondale fields.

Thomas McClure, like others in the valley, grew an Irish red potato cultivar known as a “Peachblow.”While selectively breeding this potato he noticed a naturally occurring mutation, and developed the oddity into a new potato that became known as the Red McClure. By 1910 the Red McClure had been released to the public and, along with the Russet Burbank, which was also devel-

oped in Carbondale, it became a commodity potato of the day. Specifically suited to the growing conditions of the Roaring Fork and Crystal River Valleys, the Red McClure thrived in the Carbondale soil.

But despite the reputation and quality of the potatoes produced in Carbondale, this food tradition has disappeared from our local culture. The labor shortages of the 1940’s coupled with falling prices and small, rolling fields not suitable to larger, modern mechanized equipment contributed to the potato’s disappearance from commercial cultivation in the valley. In the process, we almost lost the Red McClure. The subtle pink of its skin and the deep eyes that can make it difficult to peel have been replaced in the market by “typier” potatoes such as the Red Pontiac, smooth tubers of a robust red color.

Now, through the concerted efforts of Slow Food Roaring Fork, both growers in the valley and those who market their produce here, are working to reintroduce the Red McClure back into cultivation. One thousand pounds of seed were sourced for the 2009 growing season. That was the entire known harvest of last year’s Red McClure – all from a single quarter acre plot. The importance of preserving this variety stems not only from its role in the history of Carbondale; we should also preserve it for its contribution to the genetic diversity of our food.

With the homogenization of supermarket produce, the cultivation and consumption of lost foods such as the Red McClure is imperative to the preservation of America’s diverse food lineages.

Meet the Red McClure

Keep an eye out for the Red McClure at Potato Day on Saturday in Sopris Park. The folks from Slow Food Roaring Fork will be offering the public a chance to rediscover it.

THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 • 7

Celebrate Carbondale’s Potato Days Centennial 1909-2009

Ride on in to see us!

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AJAX BIKE & SPORTS 571 Highway 133 • Carbondale • 963-0128

8 • THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

NOW LOCATED IN GLENWOOD SPRINGS!

Moonbeam Candles & Gifts

HANDMADE SOY VOTIVE AND JAR CANDLES Fall Scents: Granny's Kitchen • Pumpkin Spice • Pear & Redwood Saffron & Cedar • Ginger Fig • Verbena Berry

LOCAL SOAPS AND LOTIONS • INCENSE AFFORDABLE GIFTS 727 Grand Ave • 945-9479 • Next to Sacred Grounds Coffee and Unity Star

Join the Mt. Sopris Historical Society for a stroll through the liveries, smithies, saloons and grocers of Carbondale at the time of the early Potato Days.

Potato Day 1961. Photo courtesy of Mt. Sopris Historical Society

THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 • 9

Community Calendar THURSDAY Sept. 17 AMERICORP MEETING • An Americorp/VISTA informational meeting will be held from 10 a.m. to noon Sept. 17 at US Bank Community Room in Glenwood Springs. For more information, call 947-8462 or 625-6110, ext. 7001.

LIVE POETRY • Hosts live music with Obadiah Jones and an open mic for poets from 7:30-10 p.m at the Hotel Lenado, 200 South Street, in Aspen. All poets and listeners are welcome. Markham’s Bar offers special prices. For more information, call (970) 3094828 or (970) 379-2136.

FRIDAY Sept. 18 PARENTING CLASS • A Parenting Through Divorce Class will be offered from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.The class is designed to equip parents with the skills to raise healthy, welladjusted children despite the challenges of divorce. It is required to finalize divorces in many jurisdictions. To register, call Tammy Perry at 963-1010.

MOVIES • The Crystal Theatre shows “500 Days of Summer ” (PG-13) at 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 18 through Thursday, Sept. 24.

REDSTONE CASTLE TOURS • Guided tours of the Historic Redstone Castle are at 1:30 p.m. Fridays through Mondays. For group tours or more information, call 9639656 or visit redstonecastle.us.

POTATO DAYS COMMUNITY DANCE AND SLIDE SHOW • “Heart of the Rockies” (Twirp Anderson, John Sommers, and Randy Utterback) will play country rock and bluegrass from 7-11 p.m. at the free Potato Days community dance and picnic at the Carbondale Recreation and Community Center. For more information, call: 963-0161.

DANCE CLUB • Deejay Deeogee spins for the under 21 crowd from 10 p.m. to 1 a.m. every Friday at The Lift on Main St. in Carbondale.

SATURDAY Sept. 19 POTATO DAYS EVENTS • Tater Trot 5K and 1-mile run to benefit the Carbondale Soccer Club. Registration: 7:15-7:45 a.m.

Race begins 8 a.m. on Holland Drive between Hendrick Ranch Park and the Carbondale Community Garden. Farmers Market in Sopris Park 8 a.m. Parade on Main Street 10:30 a.m. Music by “Redtones” in Sopris Park 11:30 a.m.-2:30 p.m. Barbe-

To list your event, email information to news@soprissun.com. Deadline is 5 p.m. Friday. Events take place in Carbondale unless noted.

cue at Sopris Park and horseshoe contest at Glassier Park at Noon.

Y’ART SALE • The Carbondale Clay Center’s annual Y’Art Sale will be from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at 135 Main St. All proceeds from this fun, funky flea market support CCC’s yearround programming. Donations of new and gently-used art supplies, pottery “seconds,” garden sculptures, framed artwork, scrapbooking paraphernalia, and more are being accepted through Sept. 18. Call 963-CLAY for more information.

MAKE A CUP • The Carbondale Clay Center hosts a Make Your Own Cup workshop from 10-11:30 a.m. Build and paint the same day. All ages welcome; children under 5 must be accompanied by an adult. Cost is $25. Call 963-2529 for information.

YOGA WORKSHOP • Julie Nemiroff will host a Kundalini workshop from 4-6 p.m. at True Nature Healing Arts at 549 Main Street.

Kundalini is a discipline associated with hatha yoga. For more information, visit truenature.us.

EQUINOX PARTY • Eco-Goddess at 335 Main St. will host a God and Goddess Equinox Party from 9:30 p.m. to 2 a.m. Dress up and dance to music by Sara P. There will be prizes for the best costumes. $10 cover. For more information, call 963-7316, or visit ecogoddess.com.

TRAIL DAY • The Mount Sopris Nordic Council will hold a trail workday starting at 2 p.m. at the Spring Gulch parking lot. Bring tools. A potluck and Nordic council meeting will follow. For more information, email springgulch@sopris.net.

SUNDAY Sept. 20 LEAD KING RACE • The sixth annual Lead King Loop Charity races, to benefit the Marble Charter School, will be held.The run/hike races were voted both “Most Scenic in Colorado” and “Best Weekend Getaway” by Colorado Runner magazine. Get more info at www.leadkingloop25k.com or call Craig at 704-1275.

PA

DANCE CLASS • Learn African and Caribbean dances with live drummers and fun rhythms. All ages and abilities welcome. $10. Mondays from 7-8:30 p.m. at the Carbondale Community School, 1505 Satank Road. Call Steve at 379-8422 with questions.

TUESDAY Sept. 22 TRUSTEES MEET • The Carbondale Board of Trustees will hold a regular meeting at 6:30 p.m. at Town Hall.

AARP DRIVER SAFETY • RSVP and Colorado Mountain College will be sponsoring two AARP Driver Safety classes from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Sept. 22-23 at the CMC Blake Center, 1402 Blake Ave., Glenwood Springs. Small registration fee includes course materials. Call 384-8747 and leave your name, phone number, which class you would like to take and any questions.

FLY FISHING CLINIC • Crystal Fly Shop offers free beginner's fly fishing clinics every Tuesday evening at 5:30 p.m. in September at 208 Main St. Classes consist of detailed casting lessons and other instruction. Equipment provided. Call 963-5741 to reserve a space.

TEACH ENGLISH • Literacy Outreach will hold a volunteer information session at 5:30 p.m. at the library. Volunteers must be fluent in English and wish to teach adults. For more information, call 945-5282.

WEDNESDAY Sept. 23 FARMER’S MARKET • The Carbondale Farmer’s Market runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. every Wednesday through Sept. 30 at the corner of Fourth and Main streets. Fruits, vegetables, meats, cheese, bread, coffee, wine, flowers, prepared foods, crafts and more. Free entertainment.

PARENTING CLASS • Roaring Fork Family Resource Centers will offer part one of a weekly, six-session parenting class from 6-8 p.m. at Glenwood Springs Elementary School. Concurrent classes will be offered in English and Spanish. For more information and to register, call (970) 384-5689 or email kjmarshall@rfsd.k12.co.us.

PIZZA TUNES • White House Pizza at 801 Main Ct. presents Gustavo Brett from 7-10 p.m.A Paonia resident, Brett plays folk, blues, roots, originals and covers. For more information, visit whitehousepizza.com, or call 704-9400.

POTATO DAYS Celebrating 100 Years of in Carbondale

POTATO DAYS RODEO • The Carbondale Rodeo Club and Senior Matters will host the Last Days of Summer Rodeo & Bareback Bonanza starting at 2 p.m. at the Carbondale rodeo grounds. Festivities include a barbecue, live entertainment, and a horse auction. For more information, call 963-2379.

Take-out Available All Day Appetizers, Salads, Sandwiches Prime Rib Dinners

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10 • THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009

DON’T MISS… The Mt. Sopris Historical Society’s Slide Show Friday Night, September 18 8 p.m. at the Carbondale Rec Center

Community Briefs Harvard psychiatrist to talk Acclaimed writer, psychiatrist and instructor Susan Linn of Harvard School of Medicine will give a talk about childhood, consumerism and the impact of advertising on young children at 7 p.m. Sept. 25. The Wall Street Journal calls Linn’s book “Consuming Kids: The Hostile Takeover of Childhood “a cri de coeur on behalf of people too young to suspect how their ‘share of mind’ is being jealously divided.”

Linn also will lead roundtable discussions on the topic the next day from 9:3011:30 a.m. Both the talk and the roundtable will take place at the Waldorf School on the Roaring Fork located mid-valley between El Jebel and Carbondale on the Highway 82 frontage road 1/2 mile east of Catherine Store.

The Friday night lecture is $10 or you can attend both events for $15. For more information, visit www.waldorfcarbondale.org.

Discuss school diversity Roaring Fork Schools now host roughly equal numbers of students of Latino and Anglo descent. The Andy Zanca Youth Empowerment Program and KDNK have created a youth diversity panel to explore what that means for students and the greater community. The idea is to create schools and communities where meaningful cross-cultural relationships are made and all people feel themselves to be a part of the greater community.

At 7 p.m., on Sept. 30, at the Roaring Fork

High School Auditeria, representatives from six area high schools will explore what works, what doesn’t and where we should go from here. All are invited. The event is free.

The panel will be broadcast live on KDNK. Visit kdnk.org for more information.

Toss your toxic waste The town of Carbondale will hold a Household Hazardous Waste Day on Saturday, Sept. 26, in the parking lot across Fourth Street from Town Hall. Appointments are available from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Batteries, oilbased paint, cleaning supplies, anti-freeze, oil, solvents, aerosols and tires will be accepted; radioactive materials, explosives, ammunition, biohazards, propane tanks, electronic waste and fire extinguishers will not. Carbondale residents will not be charged, but must pay $3 to dispose of rimless auto tires.

Others will pay $25 for disposal. For more information and to schedule an appointment, call Town Hall at 963-2733.

KDNK seeks community voices KDNK is launching an effort to record testimonials from listeners of the public radio station. During the Fall Membership Drive, Sept. 23 to Oct. 2, KDNK will be playing back these recorded pieces. Listeners who have a story, a desire to be heard, or a passion for KDNK are encouraged to participate. The deadline to record a testimonial is Sept. 18.

KDNK is also seeking volunteers to answer phones and take pledges during the Fall Membership Drive. Morning, afternoon and

evening shifts available.

To sign up for either, contact Cindy at 963-0139 or via email cindy@kdnk.org.

Discuss the West From land use to the environment to politics, the West – and Western Colorado – are shifting fast. To help you make sense of it, KDNK has enlisted some of the best journalists in the business. Join KDNK at the Village Smithy on Sept. 28 from 5:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. as they host National Public Radio, High Country News and others. For more information, call 963-0139.

Literacy tutors needed Literacy Outreach is looking for volunteers to tutor adults who are eager to improve their reading, writing, math or English speaking skills. Volunteers will be asked to work one-on-one with an adult for at least two hours per week, and must be able to read and speak English.

To learn more, attend a volunteer information sessions. They are informal and brief and will be held on Sept. 22 at noon and 5:30 p.m. at the Glenwood Springs Library. Another will also be held Sept. 23 at 5:30 p.m. at Gordon Cooper Library in Carbondale. For more information, call Literacy Outreach at 945-5282.

Parenting classes offered The Roaring Fork Family Resource Centers will offer a six-week parenting class from 6-8 p.m. on Wednesdays, starting Sept. 23 at

Glenwood Springs Elementary School.

Concurrent classes will be offered in English and Spanish.

Love and Logic is a parenting education program that provides simple and practical techniques to help parents experience less stress and more fun while raising kids. The classes offer many useful techniques parents can begin using immediately.

The fee for the series of six classes is $50 per couple or $30 per individual for Roaring Fork School District families. Some scholarships are available. Child care will be offered for $5 per child per night. Parents should plan to attend all six classes.

To register and for more information, call (970) 384-5689, or email kjmarshall@rfsd.k12.co.us.

Hospice volunteer training Hospice of the Valley will offer a volunteer training course beginning Sept. 21.

Hospice of the Valley serves patients at end of life throughout the Roaring Fork and Grand River valleys. The free 15-hour course is recommended for anyone who wants to learn more about what the hospice does, or who wants to get involved.

There is no obligation or expectation beyond the 15-hour course itself. The classes will meet on Sept. 21, 22, 24, 28 and 29 from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Health and Human Services building on Castle Creek Road in Aspen. Call 544-1568 for more information and to reserve a space in the class.

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THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 • 11

Sports Briefs One last rodeo Enjoy one last piece of summer and support the Carbondale Rodeo Club and Senior Matters at the Bareback Bonanza, on Sunday, Sept. 20, at the Gus Darien Arena outside of Carbondale. Rodeo registration and BBQ begin at 2 p.m. Live entertainment is at 2:30 p.m. and the Bareback Bonanza is at 3:30 p.m. The horse auction will start at 4:15 p.m.

The Bareback Bonanza will feature rodeo events, live entertainment with Anita Witt, barbecued meat from local ranchers and a live auction featuring a 10-year old quarter horse mare. The mare, named Laramie, is green-broke. A press release states that she prefers a hackamore, loads easily, likes to travel, has a wonderful disposition and likes people. Proceeds will benefit Senior Matters.

The Bareback Bonanza entry fee is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors and children. Children under 10 attend free. For more information, call 963-2379.

pin, and poker round contests will be held as well. Entry fees are $125 per person and $500 for a team, and contestants will receive box lunches and $5 Mulligans. Contestants will also be eligible for a variety of prizes and

Scenic Lead King race returns The sixth annual Lead King Loop Charity races will be held Sept. 20. Voted both “Most Scenic in Colorado” and “Best Weekend Getaway” by Colorado Runner magazine, the all-inclusive run/hike races benefit the Marble Charter School. There is also a kids’ race.

Participants receive a T-shirt, pint glass, poster, barbecue lunch, and breakfast, and are entered into a raffle for prizes. To register and for more information, visit leadkingloop25k.com, or call 704-1275.

Tee off for school sports An important fundraiser for Roaring Fork High School athletic programs will be held Sept. 25 at the River Valley Ranch golf course. The 18-hole, 2009 Ram Classic Golf Tournament will tee off with a shotgun start at 9 a.m.

Hole-in-one, longest drive, straightest drive, closest to the

“Masher-of-ceremonies” For the past 14 years, Bob Olenick has, almost singlehandedly, organized the Tater Trot race at each Potato Day. He has helped design the T-shirts, pounded the pavement for sponsors, fired the starting gun, manned the raffle table, rounded up friends to help set up the course, sign in racers, and time and marshal the course.

Through it all he has always taken the time to personally thank those involved with the event’s success.

But after this year’s running, Olenick will step back and pass the baton to the Carbondale Soccer Club, which, for the past 14 years, has benefited from the money raised at the event.

This year the Tater Trot will be held on Saturday, Sept. 19, at 8 a.m. on Holland Drive between Hendrick Ranch Park and the Carbondale Community Garden.

The 1-mile and 5-kilometer events offer Potato Day revelers a chance to get some morning exercise and work up an appetite before heading off to the parade, the music in Sopris Park and, of course, the barbecue.

Registration will be from 7:15-7:45 a.m. at the start line. But contestants can also stop by the Red Rock Diner to register prior to race day. Don’t forget to say “thank you” to Bob Olenick, a man who has supported the youth in Carbondale for many years.

Bob Olenick sporting his signature insect eye glasses at a past Tater Trot. Photo by Jane Bachrach

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awards. Several options are available for those who wish to sponsor the tournament.

To register, call Larry at (970) 355-4554, or email rfbball@yahoo.com.

Extraneous ‘hurdles’ didn’t take fun out of annual Colorado Relay

By Terray Sylvester and Trina Ortega They had to dodge an economic recession, rock fall on the route, and the H1N1 bug, but the race went on.

On Sept. 11-12, more than 1,000 runners made the 174mile trek from Georgetown to Carbondale in the 12th annual Colorado Relay, a 24-hour team race that was created in the ’90s to support the Colorado Outward Bound School and its mission.

This year’s race course was re-routed at the last minute to avoid potential rock slides. Additionally, about 20 teams dropped out just before the event as a result of swine flu, other illnesses, and injuries. Race organizers also blamed the down economy for the relatively low turn out – 1,150 instead of the usual 1,500.

The relay faced its fair share of hurdles this year, but if anything, Peter Mason, one of the race organizers, seemed to think the event turned out quite well. The low numbers resulted in less congestion on the course, he said.

Mason might be putting an optimistic spin on things because that’s his job with the relay. After all, his title is “director of fun and operations,”but his attitude does seem to reflect the character of the race as a whole.

“A few teams are pretty competitive, but it’s mostly about having a good time and a cool run in the mountains when the aspens are changing,” Mason said.

As for those competitive teams? One of them was the fiveman Independence Run and Hike Whipper Snappers team out of Carbondale. They finished third in the ultra division

with a time of 24:26:59. Team members included Brion After, Jennifer Gee, Alan Feder, Jennifer Barry, and Hadley Hentschel. Each member ran between 30 and 40 miles.

“It ended up being so much more difficult than we expected,” After said. “But we were really proud of finishing with good form.”

The Old Fartleks were another local team, also sponsored

by Independence Run and Hike. That team of over 40s men came in second in the master’s division with a time of 23:06:59. The team included Carbondalians Dave Clarke, John Stroud, Brad Palmer, Mark Fiensinger and other Roaring Fork residents.

Carbondalians also ran on other teams, including the nonconformist division team Homeward Bound and the Go Go Girls, also in the non-conformist division.

For many years the relay finished near the recreation center in Glenwood Springs, but for the last two years exhausted racers have staggered into Carbondale. Mason said that he and other organizers have no plans to change that any time soon. In fact, they hope to form a stronger partnership with the town in the future.

“Carbondale is a great place to finish,” he said.“It’s a very inviting town and I think people on the Front Range have a very fond association with Carbondale.”

After said he hopes the race stays in Carbondale as well.

But said he doesn’t think the town is aware of the event yet.

“I’m hoping that we can keep it here,”After said.“We’ve got 2,000 people spilling into our little town. If we could continue to get some energy around it, I think it will really become a Carbondale thing that people look forward to.”

SAvING THE BEST FOR LAST. This was the final exchange point before the finish of the Colorado Relay on Sept. 12. Located at Dry Park Road and County Road 108, runners were greeted by two women in chef’s hats with hot chai and goodies for runners. Photo by Jane Bachrach

LAST CHANCE TO BE THE 2009 POTATO DAYS PHAT QUEEN It’s time: The Potato Days Parade is this Saturday This week try a:

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Carbondale’s Historic “Mainline” Church Where we take the Bible seriously but not literally THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 • 13

Homecoming roundup

By C.C. Handy Get ready, sports fans, Roaring Fork High School homecoming is upon us. What has long been a Carbondale tradition is filled with a renewed sense of enthusiasm this year because the Rams are strong on several fronts. Fans and alumni will all return to the football field Friday night for the Homecoming game, where the Rams will be fighting for a victory against visiting Meeker. But there is a new feeling in the air these days and a fresh sense of community spirit, what with a large freshman class, a talented first year cheerleading squad, and a rambunctious upper class cheering section.

The cheering will kick off on Thursday night when the boys soccer team takes on Basalt. John Ackerman and the team started the year with a bang, shocking the defending state champs – Hotchkiss – with a 5-2 win in the season opener on Sept. 8.

Last Thursday, Sept. 10, they surprised the skiers in Aspen with a hard fought 3-2 victory in overtime. On Tuesday, the Rams dominated a game against Vail Mountain School, with more shots on goal and more time in possession of the ball than their rival, but ended up losing 3-2. Marco Aguilar scored both goals.

The matchup during Homecoming will likely be fierce. Basalt has been dominating the league for years, but Colorado Rocky Mountain School beat them last week. So they’re beatable this year.

Come Friday night, under the lights, fan

favorite football will take center stage. The young Ram team has only two starting seniors, and is still getting its legs under it.

The team went 0-2 in the first two games of the season against Hotchkiss and Hayden. But a talented coaching staff and tough young players such as juniors promise a bright future. At the game on Friday, the Homecoming King and Queen will be crowned, along with their attending court.

The whole retinue will parade around the field at half time, and then head off to the big Potato Day Parade on Main Street on Saturday morning.

But maybe the best will come last this weekend. Carrie Schulz and the Lady Rams volleyball team have started out the season with six straight victories against – count them – Coal Ridge, Hotchkiss, Basalt, Gunnison, Meeker and Paonia. It seems likely that they will contend for a league title. The girls will play Saturday at 2 p.m. against visiting Cedaredge. If you haven't yet caught them in action, this is your chance.

Many thanks go out to Carol Farris, who has put together a well-practiced cheerleading squad, the likes of which of even the old locals can't remember seeing.

The squad is attracting lots of parents to the games.

There has never been a better time to get out and support your community. What better way than to cheer on the hard working and dedicated young athletes. It brings out the best in all of us.

A Roaring Fork Ram runner shrugs off a Hayden defender during the game on Sept. 11.

Photo by Mark Burrows/RFvPhoto.com

Roaring Fork Rams Homecoming Matchups Soccer vs. Basalt: 4 p.m., Thursday, Sept. 17 Football vs. Meeker: 7 p.m., Friday, Sept. 18 Volleyball vs. Cedaredge: 2 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 19

Upcoming Games

Soccer vs. Coal Ridge: Sept. 24; vs. Aspen: Sept. 29 Volleyball vs. Grand Valley: Sept. 22; vs. Aspen: Sept. 24, at Aspen; vs. Olathe: Sept. 25; vs. Hotchkiss: Sept. 29 Football vs. Olathe: Sept. 25; vs. Gunnison: Oct. 3, at Gunnison Golf Regionals: Sept. 22, Steamboat Springs

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Cool weather is coming; how about some warm mushroom soup?

Summer has passed too quickly, as always, and we look forward to foods that warm rather than cool us. Hot soups will be welcome for the next several months.

It’s interesting how some things appeal to nearly everyone. Steak, pizza, soufes, and apple pie are rarely without takers, while many people can live happily without caviar, snails, sushi and beets. Mushroom soup falls into the category of fairly universal appeal.

Like just about any dish, mushroom soup can be made many different ways. The most common is a creamy soup with ďŹ nely chopped mushrooms. A delicious version I had in a famous Manhattan restaurant had thinly sliced mushrooms in an intensely avored but watery broth.

Perhaps the best-known creamy mushroom soup

By Chef George Bohmfalk comes in a familiar red and white can. That condensed soup found its way into many cookbook recipes at about the same time as green bean casseroles and roasts wrapped in aluminum foil came to dominate home cuisine. Campbell’s magical soup is little more than chopped mushrooms in a thick our and cream bechamel sauce. However, it also contains an array of unpronounceable preservatives, extracts, modiďŹ ed this and hydrogenated that – plus MSG. You can make your own creamy mushroom soup, free of all those commercial additives, in minutes.

Any edible mushroom will make good soup. If you have a reliable source of wild mushrooms, they generally offer deeper avor. Absent a wild bunch, I usually mix regular white mushrooms with a portabella, which is just a grownup crimini mushroom. Porcinis, shiitakes, and other cultivated varieties add even more interest.

Much is made of cleaning methods for mushrooms, with emphasis on not washing them because they may absorb water. I quickly rinse them, rub away any little attached bits of dirt, and shake the water off. I've never noticed any problem with water absorption.

In the interest of greater avor, if you’re willing, make an exception to the healthier canola or olive oil and fry a few diced strips of bacon in a deep skillet or large pot. Remove and reserve the nearly crisp bacon bits.

The Fork

that Roared

Chop about a pound of mushrooms roughly into quarters and sautÊ them in the bacon grease with a diced onion at medium-high heat, adding a little canola or olive oil if needed. Mushrooms do absorb oil; but don’t panic if your pan suddenly looks bone dry – as their cells break down, the mushrooms give up their water, and you’ll have plenty of moisture. For a little bolder avor, add a minced garlic clove near the end of the mushroom browning.

Reduce the heat and sprinkle a tablespoon or so of our around the mushrooms until most of the moisture is absorbed. Stir in and cook the our a few minutes, then add about a pint of chicken stock, beef stock or water, enough to cover the mushrooms and onions. Stir as this comes to a gentle simmer and the our dissolves into and thickens the liquid.

If you have some herbs handy, add them and the bacon bits now, so their avors can infuse into the soup. I usually toss in a bay leaf or two and some chopped parsley and thyme. Season with salt and pepper.

The soup can cook for as little as ďŹ ve minutes, but longer simmering will more thoroughly blend the avors. Skim off any foam and grease that accumulate.

Now decide whether you want your soup chunky, smooth, or somewhere in between. After removing the bay leaves, use a regular or immersion blender, or a food processor, to puree the soup to the texture you prefer. If you really like it completely smooth, puree thoroughly and strain it back into the pan.

Your next decision is how creamy to make it. Add about a cup of cream, or two cups of half and half or milk, depending on how you feel about fat and how thick you want it. Many recipes include a shot of sherry and/or some ground nutmeg, which add interesting avor complements.

Like most soups, mushroom soup freezes well. I often make a big batch and freeze half for a future cold night.

With a loaf of bread, a glass of wine, and thou – mmmm...

Recipe Notes

Essential ingredients: mushrooms, onions; garlic; flour; cream, half and half or milk; chicken stock, beef stock or water; and oil.

Optional ingredients: bacon, garlic, herbs.

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MASSAGE AND MUSIC Sound good? Come to Pixie Byrne CMT for a massage at the Carbondale Acupuncture Center and receive a FREE piano or guitar lesson from Jimmy Byrne. Schedule for September with Pixie: (970) 948-6971.

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THE SOPRIS SUN • SEPTEMBER 17, 2009 • 15

Ca

w

ay, Today an d r e t s e dT Y : om le a d or n ro o b r

Celebrating

100 Spudtacular Years

POTATO DAY • 1909-2009 SEPTEMBER 18, 2009

7-11 pm Free Community dance and slide show

At Carbondale Recreation & Community Center featuring “Heart of the Rockies”. Kids welcome. Dance Sponsors: Ernie and Carol Gianinetti, Danciger TYBAR Ranch, Carbondale Wild West Rodeo, Roaring Fork Cabinets, & Crystal Springs Builders. Slide show presented by Carbondale Historical Society.

SEPTEMBER 19, 2009

8:00 am – Farmers Market in Sopris Park • 8:00 am – Tater Trot 10:30 am – Parade on Main Street 11:30-2:30 – Music by “Redtones” in Sopris Park Noon – Barbeque at Sopris Park and Horseshoe contest at Glassier Park

SEPTEMBER 20, 2009

Bareback Bonanza at Gus Darien Arena (2:00 pm Registration 2-6 pm – Barbeque by Senior Matters

3:00 pm Events)

SPECIAL THANKS TO ALL OUR SPONSORS

Town of Carbondale • Alpine Bank • 99.1 KMTS • The Sopris Sun Town of Carbondale Recreation Department A4 Architects, LLC • Ace Hardware • Ackerman Log & Timber • Alpine Animal Hospital American Tree and Landscape • Amore/Sotheby's Int'l Realty • Artists' Collective • B&H Contractors Bank of Colorado • Buggy Works II, LLC dba Sunburst Car Care • Carbondale Car Care • Carbondale Family Dental Carbondale Insurance Service • Cheney Plumbing and Heating • Clifford Cerise Ranch Company Colorado Sled Style DBA Welch Racing • Crystal River Spas • Crystal River Liquor/Laundromat Distinguished Boards & Beams • Dr Dave's Herbal Medicine LLC • Earthworks Construction • Edward Jones El Horizonte • Energy Wise • First Choice Properties & Management • Fleisher Land & Homes • Floral Boutique General Services • Gloria's • Grana Bread • Grand Junction Pipe and Supply • Heritige Park Care Center Impressions - Xerox • LeClarann’s Sew Shop • M R Maintenance & Repair LLC • Main Street Gallery and Framer Main Street Spirits • Mason & Morse Real Estate • MG Landscaping & Sports • Mid-Valley Electric, Inc Miser's Mercantile NAPA Auto Parts/Your Parts Haus • Near New Shop • Orrison Distributing • Pacific Sheet Metal Peak Party Rentals • Peggy Divillbiss • Peppino's Pizza • Pour House • Red Hill Animal Health Center Roaring Fork Family Physicians • Red Rock Diner • Roaring Fork Valley Co-Op • Rudd Associates Construction Inc Russets • Salon Sublime • Shear Happenings • The Shirt Stop • State Farm Insurance • TJ Concrete Construction, Inc Toni Cerise Real Estate • Village Smithy Restaurant • Welch Excavating/Valley Equipment Sales • Welch Interiors Western Slope Aggregates, Inc • White House Pizza • Whitsitt & Gross • Wood Doctor Construction • Your Name Here