| The driver’s ed everybody needs
Why am I doing this? Two reasons, actually.
Reason No. 1 A public relations flak e-mailed me out of the blue and asked if I would like to come be a guinea pig at the Aspen Motorsports Parks new winter driving school before it opened to the public. Full disclosure: She promised free breakfast and lunch.
Reason No. 2 The e-mail made it sound as if there might be a chance to do doughnuts on a huge patch of ice in a front-wheel-drive Ford Escort going about 40 miles an hour. The idea of this alone was enough to make me skip a morning of powder turns. While driving around the new winter track set up at the privately-owned Woody Creek club, however, it becomes readily apparent to me that theres another reason Im here.
Reason No. 3 I need this course like Britney needs round-the-clock counseling.
Getting to the bottom of the MTB wheel size brouhaha
What's the best wheel size for an off-road bike? It's not a new question. In the 1980s a couple of manufacturers - notably Cannondale - offered mountain bikes with 24-inch rear wheels, and in the 1990s GT briefly dabbled with an all-purpose, intermediate size called 700D. More recently, some downhillers have used 24-inch wheels to allow fatter tyres in more-or-less conventional frames. But the biggest controversy has come about as a vocal group of bike makers and riders have adopted bikes with 700C-sized rims, and two inch tyres, a combination that has become known as a "29-inch" wheel for the overall diameter of the combination. Two-niners, as they are also known, are currently among the hot topics in the MTB world with riders of all disciplines extolling their claimed virtues over the well-established 26-inch standard.
School District Braces For Big Budget Cuts
A shortage of state money is forcing some school district leaders in Duval County to make some tough decisions about looming budget cuts. Officials said they expect to have to trim as much as $18 million from their budget for the remaining school year. School district spokeswoman Jill Johnson told Channel 4 the district might have to cut $6 million to $7 million when state lawmakers meet next month. .
What's the Newsreader?
A day for politics. The Alaska Legislature swung into gear Tuesday for this year’s regular session and got things going with its first clash: a fight over the timing of Gov. Sarah Palin’s State of the State address. (Click here for the text of her address.) Here’s how some of the Alaska media that were on the scene Tuesday covered the first day: .
Transit funding support in question
In an extreme example, back in the 1800s, along the then-bustling southern Illinois banks of the Ohio River, a group from the village of Chicago asked for a loan from a Shawneetown bank. According to local legend, it was denied on the grounds Chicago was too far away from Shawneetown to amount to anything. Downstate, there are still hard feelings around the Capitol regarding the handling of electric rate relief last year. The plan addressed higher utility bills statewide, but the biggest increases were downstate. Despite tearful testimony and instances of bills tripling, it took lawmakers and the governor nearly nine months to reach an accord and provide relief. Now, Chicago area mass transit has nerves on edge. And it is the increasingly heated tenor of this debate that makes a second approval of a mass transit bailout anything but guaranteed.
Win for Kwanzaa
Kwanzaa is a seven-day cultural event honoring black and African heritage. Evans said that based on the evidence presented, "it has not been shown to be a religious celebration." The Chancery court room was standing room only Wednesday morning, filled with members of the media, curious spectators and a handful of Kwanzaa supporters dressed in colorful African garb. Reaction was mixed. State Rep. G.A. Hardaway, D-Memphis, called it a case of the "Grinch stealing Kwanzaa." Memphis resident Ron Crook, who was in Chancery Court for other business, said the verdict could open doors for other spiritual organizations to come knocking for the right to host events. "It just becomes a big mess." he said. Representing Thomas, attorney Anthony Pietrangelo argued that allowing the celebration would be discriminatory, and in violation of the First Amendment, because the county attorney had denied Thomas the right to host a Christian party yet allowed the Kwanzaa event to take place.
Police log: Home electronics, camera gear taken in break
METHUEN — Thieves broke into a Vincent Avenue home and ransacked it before leaving with assorted home electronics, camera gear and two bicycles, police said. Officers were sent to the home at 5:58 p.m. Wednesday and spoke to the owner who told them he had left for work about 7:45 a.m. and returned about 5:45 p.m. to discover the house had been broken into. Police could find no sign of forced entry but did find two unlocked windows which they said they believe could have been used by the thieves to gain entry. Taken in the break were an Apple Mac Mini Man computer, 20 to 30 DVDs, a Panasonic camcorder, a Fuji digital camera, an Olympus 35 mm camera, and two bicycles. Both bicycles were recovered on Emsley Terrace. The following were taken from area police logs for Wednesday: Methuen Arrest: Richard O'Connor, 34, 6 Anthony Drive, Londonderry, N.H., driving while under the influence of alcohol, 108 Howe St., 2:08 a.m.
Mountain Bike Pioneer Leaves Imprint
CUPERTINO, CAPerhaps no one knew mountain biking pioneer John Finley Scott better than longtime friend Vance Sprock. Sprock, current owner of the Cupertino Bike Shop in Northern California, met its previous owner Scott for the first time in 1974. Scott was serving as chairman of the Davis Double Century. I was a young 16-year-old and soon-to-be budding cyclist, Sprock said. When I registered for that event, I recall reading this beautifully crafted route description. I wondered about who had written this entertaining, witty and insightful guide. Thus was the beginning of a lifelong friendship, cut short last year when convicted felon Charles Kevin Cunningham murdered Scott. Cunningham was sentenced in early December to 31 years, four months to life for Scotts death. Scott was 72 years old.
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