Yesterday morning I opened the sports page of the Salt Lake Tribune and on the front was an article about a U of U women's basketball player. The article focuses on the fact that she is only the second African American to complete 4 years in the U of U basketball program. Do we really have to make this point?
I know my roots run deep into the progressive, hippie, liberal Northeast but I thought we left this sort of racism behind several decades ago. I also know that African Americans are not a large part of the cultural makeup here in Utah, but we do live in the 21st century at least 50 years removed from the days when that's all we saw of people, the color of their skin.
I would have hoped for better, even in Utah. I would have hoped that her individual accomplishments would have meant more than her ethnicity.
Racism comes in many forms, blatant and subtle. If we are to truly grow beyond our forefathers and not discriminate against someone because of their race, creed, color or religious, or other, preferences, we need to stop pointing these differences out. She is a star athlete and an academic success, nothing more, nothing less.
Tuesday, May 3, 2011
Monday, May 2, 2011
More Snow in Utah
Its spring in Utah. This is April 30th in Utah. One minute it is snowing, the next it is 60 degrees. This is what we woke up to Saturday morning. This afternoon the high will top 60 degrees.
Friday, April 29, 2011
An Open Letter to Utah Drivers
This is a letter I wrote to the UHP:
Dear Utah Highway Patrol,
I am writing to express my displeasure with the drivers in Utah. I know this is a generalization and not all Utah drivers are like this but I have spent 30+ years driving in Utah and I have detected a pattern.
This morning two incidences on my 5 mile trip to work again reminded me of this pattern. The first involves getting on the freeway. I was behind several cars entering the freeway at 40 mph. I signed left to enter and sped up. The middle lane was clear for a while and no one was in the left lane. The driver in the right lane sped up to try and prevent me from entering (he or she was at least 3 car lengths away from me). When they got up to me they hit their horn. They could have easily moved left to avoid the whole mess.
The second incident involved merging from one freeway to another. The car ahead of me was in the far left lane. He or she was travelling in the left lane for about a mile. I was behind them in order to pass another car in the middle lane. I had to merge right after I passed the car ahead to get to the other freeway on ramp. I signaled. As I entered the center lane the car in front of me put on their signal and tried to merge right. I was less than a car length from them. They kept coming until they realized I wasn’t going to let them in and after I passed them they got behind me and put on their high beams.
Both of these incidences should not have happened if the other drivers were used to driving in traffic and could anticipate other car’s movements.
I call this “self-involved” driving. I believe the driver is only thinking about their needs on the road and either doesn’t see the other drivers, doesn’t consider them when moving from lane to lane or doesn’t care. They are where they are and they have a right to be there.
It is just common courtesy to try and make the flow of traffic as reasonable as possible for as many people as possible. We all have to share the road and we can do a lot to improve safety if we would just think about someone other than ourselves. With increased traffic in our area this will only get worse.
I find myself so frustrated by this “self-involved” driving that I take on the same attitude just so I can get where I am going. This is counter-productive and sometimes dangerous. I am also concerned it will be seen as “aggressive” driving, the target of a recent UHP campaign, when I am just trying to get away from poor driving habits.
I encourage UHP to put more emphasis into your “share the road” campaign with respect to other drivers. Train people to look out for others, anticipate their moves and work with them rather than against them. UHP should also have an enforcement campaign to ticket those drivers who make unsafe maneuvers in order to maintain their place or not yield the road. I think UHP was successful with this in part with the “move left” campaign for stopped patrol cars on the right side of the road.
UHP officers have a very dangerous and thankless job. I appreciate your work every day. I offer this insight to help, not to complain.
Dear Utah Highway Patrol,
I am writing to express my displeasure with the drivers in Utah. I know this is a generalization and not all Utah drivers are like this but I have spent 30+ years driving in Utah and I have detected a pattern.
This morning two incidences on my 5 mile trip to work again reminded me of this pattern. The first involves getting on the freeway. I was behind several cars entering the freeway at 40 mph. I signed left to enter and sped up. The middle lane was clear for a while and no one was in the left lane. The driver in the right lane sped up to try and prevent me from entering (he or she was at least 3 car lengths away from me). When they got up to me they hit their horn. They could have easily moved left to avoid the whole mess.
The second incident involved merging from one freeway to another. The car ahead of me was in the far left lane. He or she was travelling in the left lane for about a mile. I was behind them in order to pass another car in the middle lane. I had to merge right after I passed the car ahead to get to the other freeway on ramp. I signaled. As I entered the center lane the car in front of me put on their signal and tried to merge right. I was less than a car length from them. They kept coming until they realized I wasn’t going to let them in and after I passed them they got behind me and put on their high beams.
Both of these incidences should not have happened if the other drivers were used to driving in traffic and could anticipate other car’s movements.
I call this “self-involved” driving. I believe the driver is only thinking about their needs on the road and either doesn’t see the other drivers, doesn’t consider them when moving from lane to lane or doesn’t care. They are where they are and they have a right to be there.
It is just common courtesy to try and make the flow of traffic as reasonable as possible for as many people as possible. We all have to share the road and we can do a lot to improve safety if we would just think about someone other than ourselves. With increased traffic in our area this will only get worse.
I find myself so frustrated by this “self-involved” driving that I take on the same attitude just so I can get where I am going. This is counter-productive and sometimes dangerous. I am also concerned it will be seen as “aggressive” driving, the target of a recent UHP campaign, when I am just trying to get away from poor driving habits.
I encourage UHP to put more emphasis into your “share the road” campaign with respect to other drivers. Train people to look out for others, anticipate their moves and work with them rather than against them. UHP should also have an enforcement campaign to ticket those drivers who make unsafe maneuvers in order to maintain their place or not yield the road. I think UHP was successful with this in part with the “move left” campaign for stopped patrol cars on the right side of the road.
UHP officers have a very dangerous and thankless job. I appreciate your work every day. I offer this insight to help, not to complain.
Wednesday, April 27, 2011
Mineral Bottom Road Revisited
On our trip to save a German (see my last post) we rode down the Mineral Bottom Road. It is completely repaired and as good as it was before the washout, if not better.
Grand County has done a wonderful job of getting this road back up and operational in time for the spring tourist season. They have also put in diversion canals at the top of the canyon and cement pads along the road where they believe water could run in heavy rains.
Grand County has done a wonderful job of getting this road back up and operational in time for the spring tourist season. They have also put in diversion canals at the top of the canyon and cement pads along the road where they believe water could run in heavy rains.
It is possible to get a 2 wheel drive car down the road but I wouldn't advise it. You can't go any further than the bottom of the switchbacks in a 2WD and in anything but ideal conditions this road will still provide challenges to the un-initiated.
Tuesday, April 19, 2011
Saving a German
Last weekend we were in Canyonlands. We had a permit to camp at one of the campsites along the White Rim trail. The White Rim is a 100 mile long 4x4 road isloated from civilization that is popular with mountain bikers. Once in you are on your own.
We camped at Murphy Hogback. That is 50 miles in, just halfway. At 8:00 pm, just as we are about to retire, we hear a voice. "Can you help me?".
Usually this area has some traffic at this time of year. The weather is typically spectacular, not to hot, not too cold and usually sunny. This weekend it was forcast for a rainy, dreary onslaught of several storms. In addition the US government threatened to close the Park on Friday night - budget cuts.
Friday's weather turned out a lot better than we expected. The storms went north and we didn't get much rain, just a sprinkle or so. On our way in on the White Rim we commented on how few people we saw. At our camp area there were 3 other sites, all empty. There was no one else around for at least 20 or 30 miles, most likely 50 or so.
The voice belonged to a German tourist who rented a mountain bike in Moab and wanted to bike the White Rim. He was alone, out of water and very lightly clothed. The temperature was predicted to be 27 degrees F that night. He wanted to know the fastest way to get out of the White Rim. We told him it was the way he came in, 50 miles of rough road.
You know that look you see in people's eyes when they realize they are in much deeper than they expected? He had that exact look. We didn't have spare sleeping provisions but we did have some food, water and a blanket we shared with him. He slept in the outhouse - his name was Klaus so we called it the Klaus house. It wasn't very pleasent but it kept him warm. In the morning we fed him a hot breakfast and sent him back on his way. He was very greatful to find us.
The trouble with the vast country that is Canyonlands National Park is that first time visitors can't appreciate it's enormity. It is the wild. It will swallow you up if you aren't prepared. I guess that is part of the reason I like going there.
We camped at Murphy Hogback. That is 50 miles in, just halfway. At 8:00 pm, just as we are about to retire, we hear a voice. "Can you help me?".
Usually this area has some traffic at this time of year. The weather is typically spectacular, not to hot, not too cold and usually sunny. This weekend it was forcast for a rainy, dreary onslaught of several storms. In addition the US government threatened to close the Park on Friday night - budget cuts.
Friday's weather turned out a lot better than we expected. The storms went north and we didn't get much rain, just a sprinkle or so. On our way in on the White Rim we commented on how few people we saw. At our camp area there were 3 other sites, all empty. There was no one else around for at least 20 or 30 miles, most likely 50 or so.
The voice belonged to a German tourist who rented a mountain bike in Moab and wanted to bike the White Rim. He was alone, out of water and very lightly clothed. The temperature was predicted to be 27 degrees F that night. He wanted to know the fastest way to get out of the White Rim. We told him it was the way he came in, 50 miles of rough road.
You know that look you see in people's eyes when they realize they are in much deeper than they expected? He had that exact look. We didn't have spare sleeping provisions but we did have some food, water and a blanket we shared with him. He slept in the outhouse - his name was Klaus so we called it the Klaus house. It wasn't very pleasent but it kept him warm. In the morning we fed him a hot breakfast and sent him back on his way. He was very greatful to find us.
The trouble with the vast country that is Canyonlands National Park is that first time visitors can't appreciate it's enormity. It is the wild. It will swallow you up if you aren't prepared. I guess that is part of the reason I like going there.
Tuesday, April 5, 2011
Unlimited Runs Update
My Dad had a great response to the "unlimited runs" comments last weekend.
We were coaching kids baseball (7 and 8 year olds) and the other coaches were assertive. The league rule is each team can score only 5 runs each inning even if the other team doesn't have 3 runs. This team was up 20 to nothing. Before the last inning the other coach announces "remember, we get unlimited runs in the last inning".
Dad said I should have responded "How about I give you 100 runs now and we go home?". No wonder I have such a sarcastic sense of humor.
We were coaching kids baseball (7 and 8 year olds) and the other coaches were assertive. The league rule is each team can score only 5 runs each inning even if the other team doesn't have 3 runs. This team was up 20 to nothing. Before the last inning the other coach announces "remember, we get unlimited runs in the last inning".
Dad said I should have responded "How about I give you 100 runs now and we go home?". No wonder I have such a sarcastic sense of humor.
Monday, April 4, 2011
Snow in April
It snowed yesterday. We got about 6 inches.
The strange thing was that the power was out for more than 12 hours. At first it was cool. I liked the quiet without the heater blasting. We snuggled under the covers and didn't get up until about 11 am.
Then it got weird. We didn't know what to do. I kept looking for things to do without power. I finally ended up reading the whole Sunday paper.
We kept calling RMP. They kept saying, in a recorded message, that they knew about the outage and we would have our power on in a couple of hours. Finally I went through to the complaint voice message and inserted our address. They recorded it and said they were working on it. I was uncharacteristically patient with the person less voice on the other end. After all, it was Sunday and we had nowhere we needed to be.
Just as we decided to leave for dinner out, after I had struggled getting the garage door open and closed manually, we noticed the outside lights were on. The power had finally been restored. Of course I attribute the ultimate power restoration to my persistent phone calls.
Then it got weird. We didn't know what to do. I kept looking for things to do without power. I finally ended up reading the whole Sunday paper.
We kept calling RMP. They kept saying, in a recorded message, that they knew about the outage and we would have our power on in a couple of hours. Finally I went through to the complaint voice message and inserted our address. They recorded it and said they were working on it. I was uncharacteristically patient with the person less voice on the other end. After all, it was Sunday and we had nowhere we needed to be.
Just as we decided to leave for dinner out, after I had struggled getting the garage door open and closed manually, we noticed the outside lights were on. The power had finally been restored. Of course I attribute the ultimate power restoration to my persistent phone calls.
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