wicked outdoorsy

Endless November, skiing, and the new normal

2012-01-10T05:40:00.011-05:00

** January conditions in Squaw Valley, CA.

The phone is blinking, right now, with that reporter from the City. Yeah, that one. The very same reporter you’ve been trying to ply and squeeze and caress and gestate into some positive ink for more than a year.

But they’re not calling about fluff and white stuff … they want to talk about the rocks and the brown. In fact, they want to film the brown.

They want to bring a camera crew up to your mountain and get some footage of your record-setting craptastic conditions. They want to know how the depressing conditions have depressed skier visitation. And they want someone to go on camera to explain it all … how your ski hill snugly fits into the national story of the weirdest, worst start to a ski season since monoskis and moustaches were normal.

Ignoring that blinking light is not an option, unfortunately.

Editorially speaking, weather is popular. Weather is personal. Weather is relatable, reliable, high-quality water-cooler conversation fodder.

And that reporter is going to keep calling. Not because this story is going to be an award winner, nor because they went to J-school with fantasies of doing standups in empty parking lots, but because their editors are riding them, hard. Get a camera up there, get a quote, and get it done.

The story won’t pin anything to climate change, of course, as there’s no actual proof (just “science”) that the earth is warmed by the sun and not by a giant furnace stoked by evil gremlins at the earth’s core. But they will keep your number on speed dial for when winter goes haywire again in 2014, 2016, 2019 and 2020.

So even if you manage a Jedi mind trick this January, you’re going to be staring down at this very same blinking light, very soon in your very annoyed future.

There is an upside, of course. And not just because there’s a microphone on. This moment could be the opportunity you’ve been waiting for. This could be the chance to reframe the whole damn thing as step one of the transition to a new normal. And that new normal is a place where "ski" and "outdoor" join forces.

"Ski" is great of course. It’s about snow and wind and cold, and transporting souls from the warmth of purring fireplaces to a Martian landscape where they can speed around fueled by gravity and nothing else. “Ski” is exhilarating, transformative, and makes my heart rate jump just typing about it. The downside of “ski,” of course, is the stupid weather.

“Outdoor," on the other hand, is a portal. “Outdoor” is climbing and kayaking and hiking, but it’s also biking and flying and fishing and zorbing and … yeah … skiing. “Outdoor” isn’t limited by weather, it’s enabled by it. Because when January gives you October, you still go outside. And once you get outside, you realize that it's the place you've wanted to be all along.

A lot of American destinations have already begun this transition, of course, with subtle branding tweaks to drop “ski” from their name altogether, replacing it with euphemisms like “mountain resort.” They’ve made some token operational changes as well, allowing things like snowshoeing in the winter, and lift-accessed mountain biking in the summer. But they’re still firmly rooted in the “ski” mindset, looking for ways to draw bodies and to contain those bodies in a few clearly labeled boxes.

An “outdoor” resort would also lure people in, of course, but it would tempt them with the allure of access instead of an implicit guarantee of situationally perfect conditions. Opening a portion of a mountain to uphill traffic only, year-round, for example, would be a simple way to kick things off. Let these “outdoor” people come, give them access, and let them figure out how to use it.

The easiest place to look for proof of the “outdoor” appeal is right in front of you. Your crusty locals are a remarkable resource. These are the people who are so passionate about mountain access that they live across the street from fill-in-the-blank resort’s Dumpsters. Many of them don’t hold a season pass of any kind, and some of them barely ride a chairlift at all anymore. But I guarantee you that they're heading outdoors, every second that they can.

In a down winter, the creativity of local adventuring is all the marketing research you’ll ever need to do. These people are professional fun hogs, and are the driving force of opportunity-driven outdoor adventuring. LINK.

The truth, of course, is that "ski" is already pretty far down the path of transitioning to "outdoor." More initiatives are being put in place. More summer work opportunities are emerging. And a few more bodies are coming on a regular basis. The biggest challenge isn’t getting ski areas to think like outdoor areas … it’s getting the people to recognize it.

Consider for a moment the tradition of America's biggest mountain-driven “outdoor” season … New England's fall foliage blowout. Each autumn, swarms of people flood the region with the obsessive calendar-driven regularity of an OCD salmon run. People eyeball the weather. And then they decide what to do, be it camp or fish or paddle or bike.

That, in a maple-covered nutshell, is the fundamental difference between "ski" and "outdoors," and between the constraints of the current moment and the opportunities of the next.

In yesterday’s world, we were waiting for the weather. In tomorrow’s, the weather is waiting for us.

Eat More Kale is the 99%

2011-12-06T05:46:00.006-05:00

Excerpted from the Chick Fil-A Facebook Page: "Thank you for your responses and questions surrounding the recent media reports about the Eat More Kale slogan. In 2006, we became aware of the Vermont company using the slogan and chose not to contest the continued sale of t-shirts through the company’s website. However, in August 2011, the company submitted its application to trademark the slogan, so it can protect it and use it nationally, ironically like we’re trying to protect ours. Because of this new development, we are required to protect “Eat Mor Chikin®”, our own brand and trademark for 16 years. Unfortunately, when protecting our trademark, the law does not allow us to differentiate between large and small companies. We appreciate your understanding."

As of this morning, there were 1,224 comments to this Chick Fil-A Facebook post, including the following sample:

"EAT MORE KALE (and to the PR and legal folks @CF, you need to read up on how well this exact strategy turned out for Monster Energy Drinks)."

"Unreal. You're food is not only bad for you physically, IT'S MAKING YOU CRAZY!!!"

"You guys are going down-eat some Kale and fire your lawyers, they are clearly scrounging for work."

"For shame. We're a feisty state and don't mind being vocal; this will not make you look good at all."

"Same canned response I got from your customer service team in response to my email informing CFA of my family's boycott. Required? How?"

"Vermont. We are the Green Mountain State not for the hills but for our hardy KALE. We love it-it's yummy and healthy. I will send you some."

"I will officially never eat at Chick-fil-A for the first time!!!!"

"i dont understand as your slogan is not his slogan."

"You can delete my post here all you want. I am calling for my 700 friends to call for a Boycott of your company by calling on there friends. You cannot stop a grass roots movemnt to support free enterprise. Lets look at my company name cvrfitness I cant stop someone from using crvfitness just because it sounds like mine its different just as yours is totally different from his."

"Furthermore, since CfA is apparently targeting the illiterate demographic, there's technically only one word in common between their slogan and Muller-Moore's."

"I'm wondering how long it will take CFA to realize how damaging this whole mess actually is to its brand. Someone ought to tell the legal department to actually get to work on some real legal work."

"Hire More Lawyers® "

"classic Chick FAIL A - Love it."

"You should have the brand development guys explain to the lawyers that it is ALWAYS bad business to treat your customers like idiots. I've Enjoyed Chick-fil A and I enjoy kale. I don't confuse the two, and it never occurred to me that the to brand statements were anything alike. Your petty lawyers just lost you another customer."

"‎'eat more kale' has nothing to do with chicken. give it up. i do like chicken, but certainly will NOT buy your chicken until you back off!"

"I used to think those cow ads were cute. No need for the trademark over-reach though."

"I'd like to tell you what you could eat, but you'd sue me."

"Vote with your dollar. Quit supporting organizations with backward views."

"WTF, this anti-gay and clearly right wing company needs people to boycott their business. Cook your own chicken--local and organic. Get with it brothers & sisters!"

"You don't even spell the word "more" correctly . .. And kale is so very different from crap chicken .. Wtf, chickfila"

"Kale tastes different than chicken? Man, if I had a dollar for every time I accidentally picked up some kale nuggets by accident... thankfully, the kids never noticed."

"got mor chikin=got more kale??? i don't get it. you can't tell them apart because you can't spell?"

"Eat Mor Chikin vs. Eat MORE KALE. First of all "Chik fil a" what's up with the terrible spelling. Can you please leave a perfectly fine tiny company EAT MORE KALE alone (at least they know how to spell). I don't apprecate your mis-understanding of something healthy and green and your greasy chicken? How do you care for your chickens? Do your farmers keep them in cramped barns. Are they pumped with MOR hormones so you can get more white meat for your kids meals. Fill the kids full of fat, obesity, etc. Kale is a wonderful alternative to greasy fast fat food like yours. Especially hand screened tshirts and stickers. Gimme a break guys - I doubt anyone will be confused by KALE and CHIKIN?... Bugger off with your confused cows and your abused chickens. AND EAT MORE KALE!"

"You are a worthless abomination. May you perish in poverty."

"Thanks for clearing that up--the news media seemed to be making CFA out to be the bad guy in all this! I thought it seemed out of character for Chick-Fil-A."

"You guys are bullies. I will not eat at another Chick fil A until you stand down and call your lawyers off. What idiot at your company came up with this idea? Surely he/she didn't vet it out with PR. You guys look like the school yard bully. And there's a zero tolerance on bullies now."

"I just signed the petition to help EAT MORE KALE."

" In the words of Gov. Shumlin," Kale is a vegetable, Chicken is a bird". Know the difference."

"I can understand their point but the whole thing is a bit silly why cant they both have their own slogans?"

" your have yours, let him have his - no matter what you say, they are not the same, and there is no confusion. Bullies."

"I also know the difference between chicken and kale. I can spell chicken too. Leave the kale-man alone."

"The "substantial likelihood of confusion" test isn't even remotely met here. This is just a big corporation trying to stomp on the little guy. I love Chick-fil-A, but as of now I will no longer eat there."

"The "Eat More Kale" guy is not hurting you anywhere near as much as you are hurting yourselves and your reputation by beating up on this guy. Stop being stupid."

"Eat More Kale®"

"Shame on you. Between this and the donations to anti-gay rights groups, I'm done with you, 100%."

"No more Chick-Fil-A for me!! And I'm in UT and they are fricken everywhere."

"This is just lawyers trying to justify their jobs. Irresponsible, and just plain mean spirited stuff. I don't eat this crap chikn, and certainly never will. There is no reason to pursue this other than, 'because we can'. Pathetic! TEAM KALE!!!"

LINK: Plenty more comments at Chick-Fil-A's Facebook Page

LINK: Protect Eat More Kale, Facebook

LINK: Vermont Governor forms "Team Kale" to Raise Legal Funds for Chick-Fil-A fight

Hurricane Irene: It's not over until she says it's over

2011-11-28T09:17:00.006-05:00

The big kicker for me was hearing that the Alchemist would not re-open (LINK).

Unarguably the most successful, always-crowded, always-happening brew pub in arms reach of the Irene flood zone, the Alchemist was hit hard. An iconic establishment on an extremely high-visibility corner, the Alchemist was also a beacon of inspiration in the aftermath of the flood, posting huge “We WILL be back” and "God Bless Waterbury" signs in their window behind an even bigger Dumpster full of soggy drywall and limp insulation. (... A wonderful photo gallery of the damage and recovery efforts at the Alchemist can be found HERE).

A few weeks ago, the owners learned that their basement – home to their offices, their food storage and their on-site brewing facility -- would not be covered by their insurance. So, they made the tough to call to shut things down and move on.

Of course, you can’t blame them. But you can wonder about what’s going on in the less thriving establishments who were also thrashed and impacted by Irene. It's not advanced math. You start with a business that wasn't exactly crushing it anyway, add one part natural disaster, and stir.

There are a few unofficial stats floating around, though. According to one friend involved in regional repair efforts, we have built back only about 25% of the homes and businesses that were destroyed or damaged. Some, like the Alchemist, will clearly be replaced by another business. But many on the bubble will likely never get rebuilt at all.

It’s a tough thing to wrap your head around sometimes, as a few hundred feet can separate a complete trashed and destroyed property from a healthy and vibrant one. Under a blanket of fresh snow, you could easily drive from Burlington to Sugarbush and not notice any damage at all.

For the local businesses, heading into the critical winter tourism season that drives the engine around these parts, it’s a tough message that people are trying to get out there. How do you express the severity of the situation, and the fragility of the business community, while also giving people the confidence that those same businesses are open and ready for business?

Small Vermont towns don't do the national franchise thing. The state capitol is the only one in the nation without a McDonald's. There aren't any Starbucks around here, nor is there a J Crew or an Eddie Bauer that can pay rent through years of economic distress. The restaurants and merchants are almost exclusively one-of-a-kind, purely original enterprises. And they stay afloat almost solely through the support that walks in the front door.

LINK: Mad River Valley Community Fund for hurricane relief

... and now the part where I post a ski flick preview of "Downhill Racer"

2011-11-07T15:48:00.004-05:00

Not currently playing in any theater that I'm aware of, but it still fits the theme of the month.

If you dig this at all, you should pick up the current issue of POWDER, which has a phenomenal retrospective on "Spider" Sabich, the inspiration for Robert Redford's character in the film.

Ski Flick Preview Friday: Attack of La Nina

2011-11-04T16:06:00.003-04:00

Ufa, RU / Date: 11.11.11
Venue: Rodina Cinema Theatre
Time: 19.00 - Doors 18:00

Brunswick, ME / Date: 11.11.11
Venue: Jack Magee's Pub & Grill
Time: 8pm & Midnight

Middlebury, VT / Date: 11.18.11
Venue: Bicentennial Hall
Time: TBD

Stowe, VT / Date: 12.03.11
Venue: Vermont Ski and Snowboard Museum
Time: tbd

West Dover, VT / Date: 12.03.11
Venue: Snow Barn @ Mount Snow
Time: 5:30pm

LINK: Attack of La Nina Tour Schedule

And now, the 2011 Powderwhore preview ...'Breaking Trail'

2011-11-02T08:37:00.002-04:00

Shows to catch:

Munich, Germany-
Fri Nov 11th 8pm Das Josef

Portland, ME-
Wed Nov 16th 8pm Rivalries 21+ $5 donation

Burlington, VT-
Thur Dec 1st 7:30pm Outdoor Gear Exchange $8/$5 students

Jackson, WY-
Fri Dec 2nd 8pm Inversion Yoga Studio $10

Victor, ID-
Sat Dec 3rd 7pm Wildwood Room (411 Lupine Dr.) $10

Once a Meathead ...

2011-10-31T09:36:00.007-04:00

Meathead Films will celebrate their 10 year anniversary this fall with the 'Prime Cut' tour .... rolling through a couple local spots, as well as the Ancient Order of Hibernians Hall. LINK

November 4 / Pittsfield MA / Ski Bousquet Base Lodge
Nov 11 / New York NY / Snow Film Festival NYC / Tribeca Cinemas
Nov 12 / Amherst MA / Hampshire College Main Lecture Hall - Franklin Patterson Rm
Nov 17 / Schenectady NY / Ancient Order of Hibernians Hall
Nov 19 / Waitsfield VT / Big Picture Theater
Nov 25 / Littleton NH / Littleton Opera House
Nov 27 / Whistler BC / Longhorn Saloon
Dec 01 / Meriden CT / AOH Hall
Dec 02 / Glastonbury CT / Glastonbury High School
Dec 03 / Stowe VT / 9th Annual Stowe Mountain Film Festival / Spruce Camp Base Lodge
Jan 14 / Fayston VT / Mad River Glen Base Lodge

It's just a coincidence that tonight's Energy Forum ends right before kickoff

2011-10-24T16:25:00.003-04:00

Tonight's starting lineup:

· Marianne Tyrrell, Esq., Fellow at VT Law School, will provide an overview of financing options for residential energy efficiency improvements. Mrs. Tyrrell co-authored the recently released Financing Residential Energy Efficiency in VT, an investigation of financing tools and procedures that can enable lenders to accelerate the pace of home energy improvements.

·Peter Adamczyk, Energy Finance & Development Manager with VT Energy Investment Corporation (VEIC), will explore one financing option for green improvements: Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE). PACE provides energy efficiency and renewable energy improvements for residents funded by taxable municipal bonds and repaid via ones property tax bill. Waitsfield is one of the "quick start" towns in this new and exciting program.

· Elizabeth Miller, Commissioner of VT Department of Public Service, will talk about energy programs at the state level as well as the draft Vermont Comprehensive Energy Plan (CEP). The CEP addresses Vermont’s energy future for electricity, thermal energy, transportation, and land use. This is a great opportunity in advance of the CEP's 11/4 public comment deadline.

And, in case you're wondering, the last two events in the series are Biomass & Hot Water (November 15th) and Energy Conservation, Efficiency, & Weatherization (December 13th).

Every time somebody says "atmospheric carbon" ... drink

2011-10-22T06:06:00.011-04:00

On DinarDaddy.com you can go down the rabbit hole into the world of Iraqi currency speculation.

The shtick is pretty simple … Iraqi currency is worth far less than pennies on the dollar at the moment, but revaluation is imminent, as the US Government clearly sees the nation as too important to fail. And if you just bought some Dinar now, you could turn a few thousand into a few million before you can say “shock and awe.”

Now, you can’t buy the Dinar through traditional channels like “banks.” But you can buy it through online Dinar brokers who will fedex you an envelope full of colorful bills. Of course, there is the slight concern of getting expired, worthless Iraqi currencies which closely resemble the current Dinar, as well as outright counterfeit bills, as well as a litany of other potential scams that surround and infect the concept.

“I don’t care,” admitted a slightly inebriated sales rep at a meeting I attended a few weeks back. “I am in. WAY in.”

As I told the Dinar story to a 20-something friend last night, he smiled in the same patient way that my oncologist used to when I asked him about medical marijuana.

“Maybe it’s a generational thing,” he said. “But it just seems to me that investing shouldn’t be about sending money to some faceless place in hopes of some killer return. It should be about putting money into slow growth ideas in your local community, and knowing that even if you don’t make a ton of money, at least you know you’ve done the right thing …. I just wish there was a way to put my 401k into things like this.”

The Ward farm is a new farm, approximately 90 acres, and just down the road from my house. It’s been an open, uncultivated field for the last few decades, but it’s now the site of about a dozen crops … a diverse mix of berries and herbs and nuts that were carefully selected for high market value. Stuff like echninacea and goldenseal. There are also some sheep kicking around the property, as well as some loaner cows that just showed up a few days ago, there to help take the carbon from the air and insert it back into the soil.

And that small idea -- turning atmospheric carbon into soil organic matter, and moving from the 'age of oil to the age of soil' -- was the topic of the night.

The Soil-Carbon Coalition, a traveling road show based out of a renovated yellow school bus, complete with a working piano, was there at the Ward Farm to do some baseline soil testing for a 10-year challenge known as the Soil-Carbon Challenge. The idea is pretty simple: instead of proposing hypothetical solutions to climate change, why not just start doing things right, start measuring them, and start telling people about it.

As I understand it (and forgive me if I hack this up), the soil in the Challenge will be measured for numerous things, but the big kicker is the carbon. Because if we can show that sustainable use of soils can take the carbon out of the air and create usable healthy soil at the same time, we can not only start backing down from the climate change cliff ... but we can address numerous other challenges at the same time.

According to the SCC guys, the current mindset on addressing elevated carbon in the atmosphere is severely limited. Measuring, forecasting, and prescribing climate treatments based solely on fossil fuel usage is much like a doctor treating a specific symptom without ever considering the cause.

They also got a conversation going about how we’d be facing the same problems with carbon and climate change, even if we’d never used a drop of fossil fuels -- thanks to static land use strategies that allow some soils to harden from disuse and others to suffocate from overuse.

If it’s any consolation, I thought it was going to just be a Friday night kegger, too.

Birders see Big Opportunity in "Big Year"

2011-10-16T07:37:00.009-04:00

They call it ‘the movie.’

And when they say it, they breathe it out with a glowing reverence – almost a whisper, actually -- more suited to a scornful demigod (or former girlfriend) who might appear if you accidentally say the name a bit too loud.

When “A River Runs Through It” came out in 1992, it put fishing for trout with a fly on the radar screen of every guy who wished he had a little bit of Brad Pitt in him, as well as every woman who wished for the same.

In addition to doing wonders for Norman MacLean book sales, the "movie" put fly fishing businesses into a soaring trajectory as well.

Briefly, that is. While fly fishing participation soared in the early 90s, the next 15 years featured a slow and steady decline. A river running downhill, so to speak.

They still talk about the “movie” in the fly fishing world. Some wistful, some snarky. And every time another film that features the sport in it comes along, they push a few chips out onto the green felt, hoping that big wheel stops on them once again. (Last year’s “The River Why” was frothed up as the second coming, but apparently even Amber Heard's lovely form wasn’t enough to save it. Link: Review)

This month, another outdoorsy community is clasping hands in anticipation of a bump. Enter the birdwatchers.

“The Big Year” – starring Jack Black, Steve Martin and Owen Wilson – is being heralded by the birding community as the big opportunity they’ve been waiting for. The tale of three hyper competitive bird watchers trying to set a record for the most birds in a single year has seen more advertising support in the last 30 days the entire fly fishing industry spends in a year, combined.

That might help. But plenty of other movies spend buckets of cash to no avail. And the hope here is about more than just supporting gross box office sales, it's about increasing the number of people heading outside for a glimpse of a wild bird ("conversion") and it's about hooking those people on the activity in such a way that they keep coming back year after year ("retention").

At this point, conversion is primary focus. And, blissfully, the birding community isn't just sitting around waiting for the bump to lift them up. They're actually doing something.

This week, Audubon launched “Birding the Net” a month-long Facebook campaign that aspires to draft off "The Big Year" and its massive marketing support ... and hopefully convert a few people to the birding cause.

An inspired and well thought-out program, “Birding the Net” has recruited hundreds of brands -- from USA Today to the New York Times to our friends at Woolrich -- to incorporate a variety of birds into their websites. Live birds, actually, that will fly across the screen as you're reading the news or shopping for a new merino wool sweater.

Every time you see one of those birds flying around your computer monitor, if you click on the bird in time, you’ll “collect it” and a badge will be added to your birding portfolio on Facebook.

Lots of other twists to the campaign exist as well ... like html "birdhouses" that can be added to any site ... as well as a boost of competitiveness in which your roster of birds will be measured against other friends on Facebook. The 'net birders with the most in their portfolio by the end of the month will be entered to win numerous prizes, including a Lindblad trip to the Galapagos. Pretty damn sweet.

The beauty of "Birding the Net" is that it doesn't hinge on "The Big Year" being good, bad or sideways. Instead, it takes the initiative.

And for right now, that's exactly what it's gonna take.

LINK: Audubon's 'Birding the Net' on Facebook

The Oregon fairy dust rush

2011-10-04T04:50:00.003-04:00

Four hundred and fifty people are headed to Portland, Oregon today for the Outdoor Industry Rendezvous. That's right.... 4 5 0.

To be sure, the Rendezvous has more than it's share of top flight, high-draw speakers -- including Washington Governor Christine Gregoire, para-climber Chris Waddell, numerous cool kid CEOs and a record-setting list of future-predicting marketing & design consultants. It's also got the traditional trail service day at the end of the two-day agenda, when the group slaps on their Mtn. Khakis and rebuilds a few bridges and trails in the local area.

With such a broad diversity of speakers and sessions and activities, the "official" reason that most people attend the Rendezvous can be tough to pin down.

But when you look at the sobering economic conditions happening outside of the outdoor bubble, and compare it to the remarkable recession-defying growth that's continuing to fuel outdoor industry expansion .... the reason for attending this year's outdoor mega-player gathering is simpler than ever.

It has to do with a year-round business cycle that's tied to leisure time, personal health and environmental stewardship. It has to do with a competitive marketplace anchored by brands of integrity. And it has to do with designs that are both aspirational and inspirational, continually bringing the best out of both designers and end users.

In other words, people just want a little of that outdoor industry fairy dust.

Gravel dredging in Vermont rivers .... today's WTF FAQ

2011-09-30T07:58:00.009-04:00

It is, unquestionably, the biggest hot button topic in the state today.

If you want to fire up the coffee shop, stir up things at work, or get an earful from a bar full of locals, just start digging in to the topic of gravel dredging in Vermont's rivers.

In case you've been in the Red Sox dugout for the last 30 days, here’s how it went down. Vermont got hit by a hurricane. Vermont roads/homes/businesses got hammered. And so, Vermont Governor Peter Shumlin “lifted the ban” on gravel dredging in the state’s rivers as way to speed and ease the cost of recovery.

I was there at one of the Governor's stumping stops, a week after the storm, covered with mud and sweat and fiberglass insulation like everybody else. Shumlin hopped up into the back of a flatbed in miked-up and neatly pressed shirt, and encouraged the crowd to “dig deep” in the river.

At the time, a few eyebrows went up. But people were busy doing the work that needed to be done, and the thought of a little digging in the river didn't freak anybody out, so things moved on.

Today, however, it’s a different story. Excavators and large-haul dump trucks are parked in riverbeds around the state. Gravel is being scooped out by the ton, banks are getting reinforced, and in many cases it’s happening in places which were totally unaffected by flooding during Hurricane Irene.

"It'd be one thing if this was going to prevent future flooding, but it's only going to make things worse," said one observer. "They're building gravel walls between the rivers and their natural floodplains, and that's only going to force the river to find new places to jump the bank."

The Burlington Free Press was the first to shine a spotlight on the issue (LINK), detailing a public meeting in Middlebury when a group of anglers stormed the session, demanding an immediate halt to things. Nothing did happen, of course, other than a stream of flaming comments that followed the BFP story … blasting the “treehuggers” for “putting the needs of fish ahead of people.”

It’s a funny day in Vermont when the hippies and the hook-and-bullet crowd are united around a common theme. But it’s happening.

From a common sense perspective, digging gravel out of Vermont rivers makes a lot of sense to a lot of people. There’s no doubt that a metric shit-ton of gravel made it’s way into local riverbeds following the big storm. So much so, in fact, that our local waterway -- the Mad River -- seemed practically motionless after the storm: it looked more like a big string lake than a meandering river.

And so, to prevent Vermont rivers from choosing new paths in the wrong places, a little digging seemed like a good idea. Plus, roads and foundations needed fill, and getting gravel in the state is already a bit of a pain in the ass, according to some. And that same pro-digging contingent often maintains that the fishing might even get better if Vermont digs deep in their rivers. It used to fish better, they say, back in the day when gravel dredging was allowed. So why not open things up again?

But there’s a distinct difference between spot dredging and a widespread free-for-all. And that line has clearly been crossed.

There is no statewide strategy for the digging, no oversight, and no end in sight. One letter circulating calls for the State to "get things under control" by providing strategy and statewide expertise from the Agency of Natural Resources River Management team.

Others, however, are less kind. One agency I spoke with said that the opportunity for a legal challenge is severely complicated by the fact that the whole thing appears to be illegal already .... and it's tough to get a law changed when the legalese you're looking for is already in place.

The path to a solution runs through the Governor's office. The opportunity for the digging was created when the Governor opened the door …. and only he can close it.

To email Vermont Gov. Peter Shumlin .... send a note to GovernorVT@state.vt.us

'What Phish Sounds Like to People Who Don't Like Phish"

2011-09-20T14:22:00.001-04:00

LINK: Live Music Blog

Irene's hangover .... the video

2011-09-17T06:00:00.001-04:00

Vermont: Still open, still awesome

2011-09-14T14:13:00.002-04:00

There's a line in the river mud. On one side is the importance of spreading the word about "ravaged Vermont," hopefully inspiring people to help out.

On the other side, though, it's critical to remind people that Vermont is still here, still awesome, and still worth the trip.

Irene, day 8 ... Hancock

2011-09-06T09:17:00.005-04:00

From the road in Hancock, in many places it looks like Hurricane Irene just happened.

Trees and shattered branches still line Rt. 100, and the massive chunks of road that have been eaten away are, at best, sparingly marked by cones.

In Granville and Hancock, there was one Dumpster available for flood debris. And it was overflowing. There was word at the Town Hall that another container was coming, but no one there at the time knew when it might get there or where it would be coming from.

A few people I spoke with were under the impression that putting debris in bags was the way to go. Their understanding was that large garbage bags would cost $4 each to remove, which had them nervous about throwing too much out.

Irene, day 7 ... the Street Party

2011-09-04T08:57:00.009-04:00

On Saturday night, there was a party. A big one.

Hosted on Bridge Street, the symbolic epicenter of relief efforts in the Mad River Valley, the party ran from 3 pm till who knows when. There was free barbecue, unlimited cookies and ice cream, adult beverages and all the music you could ever want. Dancing, smiling, laughing. What a great thing to see.

It was a free event, made with the volunteers in mind. Thanking them for their hard work. But there was also a flavor of New Orleans in there. It's just mud, after all. And after a week of shoveling and hauling crap and making piles, why not take advantage of a closed road to host a big throwdown?

At one point, driving around, looking at the devastation, I wondered about the future of the Mad River Valley. Would people still want to come here after all that had happened? Would they still keep it on the short list of their favorite places in the world?

But then, when I saw the weekenders mixing with the dusty and dirty locals at the Bridge Street community party ... the shirtless rescue workers, muddy chainsaw volunteers, and broadly smiling local families who'd spent the last week reeling ... I realized that this is exactly the place that people want to be.

Irene, day 6 ... Moretown

2011-09-03T07:26:00.000-04:00

MORETOWN - By itself, the mud can come in waves of five feet. It looks like the riverbed of the Snake River, or the Gunnison, but it's right in people's front yards. The river has abandoned it, though, and as it dries it's just full of riverstones and specks of e coli and who-knows-what-else (which is why facemasks have become standard gear for all the work crews, all the time).

Down with the chainsaw crews, the mud isn't just an obstacle, it's also a wicked dulling agent. It's not lack of gas, chainsaws or operators that slows things down, it's the thin layer of river mud that dulls the blades within minutes. On the thick logs and the thin ones, the dried mud takes a blade from sharp to almost useless long before the muscles wear out.

The house work itself has become pretty straightforward. Because in the race against mildew, everything that was below waterline must be removed, the houses all have a similar look. All the drywall lower than four feet has been removed, including all the insulation that was behind it -- a nasty blend of dusty dry and wet oatmeal that has to be scraped out by hand before it gets shoveled into buckets and wheelbarrows.

You're also seeing floorboards ripped up, and basement walls too. Gotta get that mud and mildew out of there, whatever it takes.

The damage in Moretown hit the main street residential district very hard. Numerous homes were hammered, cars were washed away, and some dramatic stories have emerged. Some friends were hit by a flash flood while driving and had to climb through their sun roof to escape. Others tales of barefoot evacuation included leaving homes for the nearby emergency shelter (ie, the Moretown School), but then the shelter itself was cutoff and evacuated with the vague goal of "just go to higher ground." Good thing for that mountain bike trail behind the school.

Moretown volunteer organization was excellent today. Which is a theme for the week. As eager and good natured and seemingly untiring as volunteers have been, it's the structure of the relief effort that has makes all the difference. All done by friends and neighbors, pitching in to help out.

How big was the Mad River during Hurricane Irene?

2011-08-31T10:15:00.004-04:00

The day before Irene hit, the Mad River was trickling through the Moretown measuring station at a little less than 100 cfs, at a river height of 3 feet.

At the peak of the storm, however, the Mad hit a peak of 22,900 cfs and a height of 18.64 feet ... breaking the previous record of 18,400 cfs and 16.34 feet from 1938.

LINK: USGS

Irene Recovery in Vermont, day 3

2011-08-31T09:45:00.008-04:00

DONATE TIME: Volunteer Coordination Page

DONATE MONEY: Mad River Community Fund

It's dirty around here. The drying river mud has blanketed the green playing fields and farmlands of the lower part of the valley. With a little bit of wind, the fine silt starts blowing around and gets in your eyes and teeth.

The short-term reality is still quite stark. The Dumpsters are full at Bridge Street, which has slowed work progress down considerably. It's unclear whether the issue has to do with who's paying for the things, whether there are not enough trucks to haul the containers away, or whether they can't find a place to put the stuff.

But, oh, the piles are still there .... neatly segmented piles of shattered drywall, soggy insulation, windows and glass, nail-filled lumber, and mud and other unidentifiable substances.

Crews are still at it though, as the race against mildew has begun. Ripping up floorboards and pulling down walls is just part of the game. Giant dehumidifiers is the other part, if you're lucky enough to have gotten your hands on one before they got scooped up.

Locally, the organization is hitting its stride. The desk outside the library has blossomed into a Facebook Events page that points people where to go on a daily basis (ie, today it's Simple Steps Farm and the Church of the Crucified One.)

A bit further away, though, the towns of Granville and Rochester are apparently in dire straits. Both towns are cut off from vehicle traffic, and still have no power or water. Apparently, someone hiked out of Rochester yesterday until they found a cell phone signal and called for help. Somehow they got patched through to the guys at the Fish & Wildlife Dept, who sent a team on ATVs down immediately to assess the situation.

Volunteers this morning were gathering groceries to bring down to the Rochester/Granville area, and a clothing drive has also been started to gather up wearables (all sizes) for those who've lost everything.

Cleaning up after Irene

2011-08-30T11:01:00.008-04:00

DONATE: The Mad River Community Fund

Turns out, a Shop Vac doesn't really do the trick.

Standing in a retail showroom ... probably as big as half a tennis court ... with an inch of slick and slippery river mud everywhere, the only thing you could really do was start shoveling the stuff into buckets. Sort of like trying to get that last spoonful of milk out of the bottom of your cereal bowl. The bucket would then go to a wheelbarrow, which would then get dumped on the far side of the street. That was the mud pile.

There were other piles, too: the electronics pile, the carpet pile, the furniture pile, the tree and branches pile. There were piles at the front of buildings, at the back of the buildings, on the decks, and in the road. And when the mega Dumpsters got there, the piles were moved in there, handful by wet handful.

That was yesterday. A day all about wetness. Volunteers were abundant, and organization was really quite strong. At the entrance to the Bridge Street area, a table was set up giving people ideas where to go ("People needed at: Flatbread, Ch. 44 ...etc".

Today, on the other hand, the cleanup battle is more about the (relatively) dry stuff. Peeling off drywall down to the studs, jerking out handfuls of wet fiberglass insulation, and racing against the clock to keep the mildew from setting. The mud is now caked-on dirt, like a low-grade cement jammed into every crevice.

There are still plenty of volunteers, but it's far far less than yesterday. And undoubtedly, tomorrow's roster of free laborers will be even smaller. By later this week, volunteers will have returned to their day jobs, and people will likely be on their own.

One of the houses we worked at yesterday had four feet of water in the downstairs kids' rooms. "Just get the pictures," said Susie Lowe to the guys who were handing out the mattresses, clothing and toys. "That's really all I care about."

Five noteworthy restaurants in the area were knocked on their asses by the storm. The Green Cup and Mint in Waitsfield are very likely a total loss. Warren's Pitcher Inn basement was severely flooded, and the iconic American Flatbread is a giant mess at the moment (though I have heard the eating area itself is generally OK). Up in Waterbury, the word is that the Alchemist and their brewing facility is completely destroyed.

Lower on the list from the homes and farms and businesses affected by the storm are the other things, like Couples Field in Waitsfield. The home of the local Little League and soccer fields, Couples Field is under three or four feet of river mud, the baseball backstops have been folded like an accordion, and the new dugouts from a few years ago are now far downstream as part of the Lake Champlain watershed.

And, of course, that's just the start of the list. Places like Moretown are completely cut off, with bridges to the north and south completely gone. Granville and Rochester are now islands as well, without power and groceries. I don't know what's up in Bristol, Lincoln, Richmond and Huntington, but I'm sure it's similar.

A local musicfest slated for October 8 has changed their theme from general fun-hogging to a benefit for local businesses. The upcoming ultimate tournament is doing the same. Many others are looking at community fundraising events, and the agency that's likely to be the grant giving agency is the Mad River Community Fund.

As a 501(c)(3) organization, all donations to the Community Fund are tax deductible. Much like the Conservation Alliance, they operate with almost zero overhead so the money can go right where it needs to go. They're good folks, and they take PayPal.

If you feel the urge to help out, this would be a great place to start.

DONATE: Mad River Community Fund

Irene's Romp in Vermont

2011-08-28T21:25:00.001-04:00

10 Wicked Things You Missed @ Outdoor Retailer .... #7, Wondering if the 'Show' will Stay in SLC

2011-08-12T12:25:00.008-04:00

The facts are pretty simple.

At 455,000 sq ft, Outdoor Retailer Summer Market is 32nd largest trade show in the country, bringing in about 18,000 people twice a year to a city that houses only 185,000 people. The show is vibrant and crowded to the tune of $40 million in local spending a year, allegedly recession proof, and apparently more fertile than the OctoMom for standup paddleboard companies.

The attendees are, for the most part, generally pleased by SLC as venue because of its small city feel and access to outdoor recreation. And Outdoor Retailer -- or, rather, their parent company at Nielsen -- has signed a contract with Salt Lake City to host the show in Utah through 2014.

But beyond that? The crystal ball is getting fuzzy.

OR director Kenji Haroutunian was strikingly direct in the show's daily newspaper (LINK, p17), serving notice to the Beehive State that a contract beyond 2014 was certainly not a sure thing. "We're pushing the envelope with what Salt Lake City can provide as a venue, as far as hotels, taxis and restaurants," said Kenji in the interview. " Salt Lake City has arguably a tier-one size of a hall, but it is a tier-two or even tier-three size city to accomodate the show."

It's difficult to say whether it's all just saber rattling in advance of budget negotiations, or if the show is indeed placing pressure on SLC to build a publicly financed convention center hotel that can house attendees closer to the event, instead of relegating overflow to rooms at the airport Comfort Inn and beloved oddities like the Carlton.

Of course, as SLC and OR head to the bargaining table, the additional spice of politics is poised to flavor those talks as well.

Too much pepper? You be the judge.

OIA director Frank Hugelmeyer took a few body shots at Utah Gov. Gary Herbert (R) earlier in the summer for trying to claim extractive rights on Utah's national parks and monuments, and for shutting down historic stream access to fishing and paddling. Franks' June 6 editorial ("Herbert, Utah leaders betraying recreation industry") contained this gem:

"The governor has made it clear that extractive industries are a critical economic industry in Utah. However, tourists do not fly to Utah from all over the world to visit the American equivalent of the Saudi Arabia oil fields. They come to Utah to ski, hike, camp, paddle, hunt and fish in pristine and inviting waters and landscapes. And while they play, they fill hotels, lodges, restaurants and souvenir shops."

Utah is also ground zero for the Tim DeChristopher saga ... the emerging national story of an environmental advocate who was sentenced last month to two years in prison for a peaceful but disruptive protest.

And apparently people are taking notice of that as well.

10 Wicked Things You Missed @ Outdoor Retailer .... #8, Poler

2011-08-11T11:39:00.005-04:00

Jammed into a log cabiny 10x10 in the New Product Pavilion ... the crew at Poler drew the eyes of merino wool hipsters, noteworthy outdoor product designers and the usual shwag trollers like myself.

Based in Portland, Oregon, Poler's outdoor equation seems to be one part heritage, one part skate, and one part shaggy Oregon bearded dudes. If you're looking for a snowsports parallel, Poler might be the Spacecraft of the outdoor world.

New items in their booth (that aren't on their website yet) included reusable handwarmers, canvas daypacks, and a sleeveless sleeping bag that looks ideal for lingering around a Deschutes River campfire.

LINK: POLER

10 Wicked Things You Missed @ Outdoor Retailer .... #9, Stainless Steel Keg Cups

2011-08-10T10:25:00.006-04:00

Two epic lines wound around the Patagonia booth for the giveaway, with a $5 donation going to Yvon's cause du jour. All for a relatively simple thing: stainless steel keg cups, tagged with the phrase of "Ditch Single Use Plastic & Protect Habitat for All Species."

The things were clearly the red hot shwag of the show, as texts and phone calls were being made from the line ("yes, the Patagonia booth, NOW"), and there was a pure and unadulterated sense of stoke from folks as they made it to the front of the line before supplies ran out.

I walked away with two of my own cups.

Getting conventioneers (and frat boys) to ditch plastic cups for a $19.95 steel pint glass isn't exactly going to put and end to malnourishment and water pollution in developing countries. It's not going to permanently shift our over-consuming culture into a lower more sustainable gear. And it's certainly not going to halt the onslaught of climate change, and preserve critical habitat areas.

But hey, it's a start.