cache valley magazine
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September 2011 issueTRANSCRIPT
1September 2011
Don't Stop at the TopGetting above it all in the Wellsville Mountain Range
$2.95
September 2011
PLUS>> Four decades of rodeo photos with James Fain
>> How not to celebrate the Fourth of July
cacheval leymagazine.com
MADE IN CACHE VALLEY
EK EKCESSORIES KEEPS THE SUCCESS STORY GOING
2 September 2011 Buy Local First
3September 2011
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A PICTORIAL HISTORY OF THE LOGAN TEMPLE
Buy Local First
4 September 2011
326 Editor’s Note
8 In the Valley
10 Calendar of Events
16 Utah State Update
18 Cache Cusine
46 Cache Back
Departments
20 Hiking the Wellsvilles
27 EK Ekcessories
32 James Fain: Photographer
38 Local Firework Fiasco
Features
38
27
5September 2011
SKIP
HOME IMPROVEMENT
6 September 2011
August 27, 2011
Publisher Mike Starn
Editor Jeff Hunter
Advertising Director Kyle Ashby
Sales Manager Debbie Andrew
DesignerAshley Carley
Finance Director Chris Jensen
Cache Valley Magazine is published 10 times annually by Cache Valley Publishing LLC and inserted in The Herald Journal newspaper. Subscriptions are available for $12. Please write to:
Cache Valley magazine P.O. Box 487Logan, UT 84321-0487
or e-mail Jeff Hunter at [email protected]
To advertise, please call Debbie Andrew at (435) 792-7296 or email [email protected]. For photo reprints call (435) 792-7299. Visit us on the Web at cachevalleymagazine.com.
All rights reserved. Reproduction of Cache Valley magazine in whole or part is strictly prohibited without consent of the editor or publisher.
Volume Eight, Number Eight
Cover Photo by Jeff Hunter
Mike and Beverly Wood of Layton head up the Rattlesnake Canyon Trail at the southern end of the Wellsville Mountain Range on a late July day.
Editor’sNote
In early August, I had
the opportunity to attend a
presentation by a former
colleague as part of the
Cache Valley Visitors
Bureau Speaker Series at
the Historic Cache County
Courthouse.
Alan Murray, who
recently resigned as the photo editor at
The Herald Journal in order to pursue
love and a new business venture on
the East Coast, shared his expertise
on the subject of travel photography to
a packed house of primarily summer
citizens seated in the county council
chambers. Perhaps it was because I
was headed north to the Tetons later
that week and had travel photography
on my mind, but I thoroughly enjoyed
listening to the thoughts of a fellow
photographer on how to maximize one's
photo opportunities away from home.
While I had never really considered
several of Murray's suggestions, many
of them were similar to those I would
likely make, particularly his decree of
"go early and stay late." Although it's not
terribly easy to roll out of one's warm
sleeping bag or comfortable hotel bed
before dawn while everyone around you
is still sleeping, I've never regretted it,
particularly when visiting a national park
like Yellowstone or Yosemite. Beyond
the increased chance of seeing wildlife
and capturing some of the best light
of the day, it's simply amazing to have
such a spectacular part of the world vir-
tually to yourself, without all the crowds
and slow-moving RV's.
And that goes right along with my one
word for success in outdoor
and travel photography: anticipation.
Whether it's the personal, motivation-
type of anticipation that drives you to
get up when your alarm first goes off on
a cool morning because you want that
perfect shot, or the kind of anticipation
that helps you forsee the coming of an
amazing sunset or the arrival of a bull
moose at a pond — anticipation is key.
It's what gives the photographer the best
opportunity to be successful as he/she
sets up in the perfect spot with the right
lens at the right time.
Then, of course, it's all about luck.
Unfortunately, the best-laid plans can
still go awry when clouds roll in at the
wrong time or a passing car scares off a
perfectly situated elk. But eventually, the
hard-working, prepared photographer
will win out with some amazing shots,
and that lost hour or two of sleep will be
forgotten in the years to come as you
enjoy the kind of photograph that not
just anyone can get by pulling up to a
scenic overlook in the middle of the day.
Jeff [email protected]
7September 2011
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8 September 2011
InTheValley
Blessed with cloud cover earlier in the day, the mid-
summer sun was burning down on the twin sand
volleyball courts at Willow Park in the afternoon as
the annual King & Queen of the Beach tournament neared
its conclusion.
Suddenly feeling every one of the 88 degrees on his body
and the even hotter sand on the bottom of his feet, Dan Noack
took advantage of a brief break in play to grab a towel and
wipe away sweat and as many gritty granules as possible.
"Geez, it's getting hot," Noack directed towards Mike Siler,
a fellow competitor sitting the current match out in order to
serve as scorekeeper.
Siler simply smiled and gestured towards the Hyrum City
float currently passing by a couple dozen yards away in the
middle of Logan City's annual Pioneer Day parade.
"Well, it could be worse," Siler declared. "You could be on
a float wearing a dress."
Normally, of course, local royalty might be found in just
such a place. But when it comes to these would-be kings and
queens, there's no doubt that they'd rather get down and dirty
on the so-called "beach" than be paraded about in front of
the masses.
"The sand is nice because it's less jarring on your back
and knees," Kindy Peterson said after securing her third
straight Queen of the Beach title.
"But," she quickly added, "you certainly can't jump as
high. The sand just engulfs your feet and you jump like
maybe an inch."
Fortunately for her, Peterson is 5-foot-10 to start with — the
Wyoming native played outside hitter for the Utah State vol-
leyball team in 2004 — giving her a solid advantage over
most of the other women who played in this year's annual
Pioneer Day tournament.
But then, it takes more than height and hitting prowess to
be successful in beach volleyball.
"It's about getting used to the guys you're playing with and
playing smart," said former King of the Beach John Belles.
"Outdoors, it's not really about hitting hard. I mean, that
definitely helps, but you've got to be able to pass well and
serve well because there's only two guys out there and a lot
of court to work with."
Playing in his 14th King of the Beach Tournament at Willow
Park, the 37-year-old Belles finished second. He had a shot
at the title heading into the final match, but a 30-18 loss to
Noack and his partner gave the crown to Noack.
"It was rough today," said Noack, who has won three other
times in nine years. "It seems like it usually comes down to
me and John in that last match. We had to hold him and we
came through."
In order to qualify for the Pioneer Day tournament, players
must finish in the top six in the point standings in three other
tournaments (the women play on grass in the prior events)
hosted by Logan City earlier in the summer. But relatively
Clockwise from above: Andrew Porter comes up with a dig during
the King & Queen of the Beach volleyball tournament at Willow
Park. Dan Noack won the men's tourney, while Kindy Peterson
was crowned queen for the third straight year. Eric Richards' sun-
glasses are a bit askew after hitting the sand for a tough save.
Royalty reigns
ON THE BEACH
9September 2011
unique in the sports world, the King & Queen of the Beach
format has volleyball players changing partners for each and
every match, with the individuals receiving points for every
victory along the way.
"Everyone plays a little differently, so you have to learn how
they play and adjust, especially if you've never played with
them before," Peterson points out. "And we had a couple of
girls who had never played in sand before, so that made it
kind of new."
This year's tournament started just after 8 a.m. and ran
until nearly 2 p.m. Clouds blocked out most of the sun's rays
until the afternoon, which made for near ideal conditions. The
Logan City Fire Department also helped out midway through
the tournament by hosing down the sand to keep it cool.
"We were lucky to have the cloud cover we had today
because the tournament we had a week ago was just brutal,"
said the 32-year-old Noack, who actually grew up in Arizona
playing outside in 115-degree heat. "I ended up with two huge
blisters on both the balls of my feet, and I was so worried
about it that I brought tape to tape my feet up if I had to."
Jodi Coats, who both played in and helped organize this
year's tourney, said things have been far worse in the past.
"Oh my goodness, we've had some very, very, hot, hot
sand," Coats proclaimed. "We've had a couple of guys end
up in the hospital from dehydration, and we've had lot of
blistered feet. It gets hot!"
Coats has played in the Queen of the Beach tournament
about 10 times, missing a couple of years while she was >>
Pho
tos
by J
eff H
unte
r/Cac
he V
alle
y M
agaz
ine
10 September 2011
ToDoin Cache Valley
8/27
9/10
9/9-
10
9/23
-24
9/17
The Utah Scottish Association celebrates the area's Celtic heritage with numerous events at the American West Heritage Center in Wellsville, including a caber toss, bagpipe competition and Scottish and Irish dancing. The festival runs from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. and admission is $8 for adults, $5 for students 12-19 years old and children are free. Call 245-6050 or visit www.awhc.org.
LOTOJA Classic
Celtic Festival & Highland Games
Bear Lake Heritage Days
Wrap up the summer along the shores of beautiful Bear Lake with a talent show, Dutch oven dinner, 5K run, parade and
A thousand hearty cyclists head out of downtown Logan in the early morning hours with the goal of reaching the finish line of the longest single-day road race in the country, 206 miles later in Jackson Hole. Fun Ride Class cyclists start at 5:45 a.m., while the competitive classes head out beginning at 6:25 a.m. Call (801) 546-0090 or visit www.lotojaclassic.com.
Aggie FootballUtah State takes on in-state foe Weber State for the first time since 2001 in its first home football game of the season. Kickoff at Romney Stadium against the Wildcats and for-
Top of Utah Marathon
The 2,800 competitors in the 2011 NordicTrack Top of Utah Marathon start at Hardware Ranch in Blacksmith Fork Canyon at 7 a.m. and end up at Merlin Olsen Park in Logan 26.2 miles later. Visit www.topofutahmarathon.com.
Aggies past, present and future converge on the campus of Utah State University for a wide variety of traditional events. On Friday, former Aggie basketball
men's mud pull. Call (435) 946-2901 or visit www.bearlake.org.
mer Utah Utes head coach Ron McBride is slated for 6 p.m. Call 797-0305 or visit www.utahstateaggies.com.
9/10
pregnant but winning the crown in 2000 and ’08. Although she's
a setter when playing indoor, 6-on-6 volleyball, Coats said she
enjoys beach because "it's a totally different game."
"It's nice that you're touching the ball all the time," she noted.
"Playing doubles outdoors,
you're always going to be
involved."
The 28-year-old Peterson
said she feels the same way,
but is mostly just happy to
still be playing the sport she
focused on so much growing
up.
"I'm kind of addicted to
volleyball, and I really miss
the competitiveness of col-
lege," the reigning Queen of
the Beach declared. "I guess
that's why I just try and get in
as much as possible, wher-
ever it is."
Jeff Hunter
Utah State Homecoming
10/8 Boo at the Zoo
Logan City plays host to Hal-loween at the Willow Park Zoo from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Come in costume to play games and go trick-or-treating. Visit www.loga-nutah.org or call 716-9242.
assistant coach and highly suc-cessful LSU head coach Dale Brown will speak in the Taggart Student Center (12:30 p.m.), and the Student Alumni Association will present True Aggie Night in front of Old Main at midnight. Saturday's events include a 5K run (7 a.m.), Homecoming parade (10 a.m.), USU volleyball match vs. Hawaii (2 p.m.), Ag Day BBQ (3:30 p.m.) and USU vs. Colorado State football game at Romney Stadium (6 p.m.). Visit www.usu.edu/homecoming. slated for 6 p.m. Call 797-0305 or visit www.utahstateaggies.com.
Left, Mike Siler goes up for a
swing against Jonathan Ribera.
Below, Deana Skinner sets up an
attack with a perfect pass.
11September 2011
12 September 2011
Originally built to house half of the family of Brigham Pond,
the first mayor of Lewiston, the three-story home came complete
with a widow's walk around the rooftop.
This vantage spot came in handy in the late 1800s whenever
people in Lewiston got word that Federal marshals were on their
way. A polygamist with nine kids living in that house and nine
more with his second wife in a home to the north, Pond would
be given ample warning by one of his children that he needed
to hide out in the apple orchard until after the authorities had left
town.
Less than a 100 years later, the Pond home was in a complete
state of disrepair. It had no kitchen or bathroom; no running wa-
ter; the duct work had rusted out; there were 15 broken windows
and the entire structure was overrun with spiders and mice.
But Rod and Gwyn Hammer still took on the challenge, pur-
chasing the home in 1993 and restoring as close as they could
to its original look.
"It's absolutely beautiful; they did an amazing job," says Ber-
nice McCowin, the chairperson of the 2011 Historic Home Tour.
The Hammers' home will be one of six stops on this year's
tour, which will focus on buildings towards the north end of
Cache County. Held on Sept. 10, the tour will guide people
through visits to the David & Ellen Eccles home in Logan (built
in 1907, it boasts four floors and 24 rooms); the Henry Hayball
home in Logan (also built in 1907, it has two Italian marble fire-
places); the Hattie Merrill Morrison farmstead in Richmond (con-
structed in 1907, it is on the National Register of Historic Places);
the James and Amy Burnham farmstead in Richmond (dating
back to 1895, the farm is now home to Rockhill Creamery); the
Bert Pond home in Lewiston (the Bergeson family moved log
cabins from Clarkston and Whitney to their property); and the
Brigham Pond home (the house's trusses are said to have been
left over from the construction of the Logan LDS Temple).
Tour goers can also stop off at the Richmond Pioneer Relic
HistoricHome Tour
Originally built in the late 1800s to house half of the family of polygamist Brigham Pond, the large home in Lewiston was purchased in 1993 by Rod and Gwyn Hammer and carefully restored. Top right, visitors on the 2011 Historic Home Tour can also stop at the Pioneer Relic Hall and Relief Society building in Richmond.
BeforeAfter
13September 2011
Hall and the Richmond Relief Society building, which was built
by Mormon women around 1880.
"Our goal is to sell 200 tickets," McCowin says. "We've sold
about 100 more than that the last two years because we've had
beautiful days. One of these days we'll get a rainy day."
Tour maps come with the tickets, and visitors can begin any-
where they like.
In addition, a portion of the money raised by the tour goes
towards scholarships for history students studying local history
and to the American West Heritage Center to help fund field
trips by local schools.
The 2011 Historic Home Tour runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on
Sept. 10. Tickets are $10 and are available at the Cache Valley
Visitors Bureau, both Lee's Market Place locations and the
Macey's Food & Drug in Providence. For more information call
755-1890.
Jeff Hunter
Before
Pho
tos
cour
tesy
of B
erni
ce M
cCow
in
14 September 2011
vs.MANIt was only a matter of time. And thanks to David Knight
and Mike Schaefer, we didn't have to wait long.
The newest craze in racing around the country is
taking runners off the boring old asphalt and shepherding them
into mud bogs and other obstacles that make the race more
about fun and the experience than personal-best times.
Enter Man vs. Mud: a potentially very dirty 5K jaunt around
the American West Heritage Center that's slated for its inau-
gural running on Sept. 3.
"We've had a really positive response," Schaefer says.
"People like it and they relate to it."
"It's fun for everyone," Knight seconds. "Who doesn't want
to get muddy, whether you're an athlete or a couch potato?"
Similar to the Dirty Dash, which was first held last fall at
Soldier Hollow near Heber City, the Man vs. Mud race will have
participants "crawlin', jumpin', divin' and slidin' all over the place."
"We're not the first people to think about a mud run," Knight
admits, "but we thought this would be perfect for Cache Val-
ley. There's a lot of active people here, individuals that really
love to get out and be active."
Originally from Central Utah, Knight met Schaefer, a native of
Missouri, while they were both living in Tucson, Ariz. They soon
decided that wasn't where they wanted to be (not enough mud in
the Sonoran Desert, perhaps?) and both moved up to Northern
Utah. After operating several different businesses (including
Cachedailydeals.com, which they launched in February), the duo
decided to become the dirtiest race directors in Cache Valley.
After looking at several different location options, they
joined forces with the American West Heritage Center in
Wellsville. The race will start just off of bluff west of the visi-
tors' center with a slip-and-slide, and proceed in a clockwise
direction around the rest of the property. Runners will attempt
to cross the pond on some floating pads, then will later have
to run through a shallower portion. They'll also be trenches,
tunnel crawls and tire obstacles and a place where spectators
can blast the participants with Super Soaker water guns, all
leading up to the final mud pit just before the finish line.
"It's gonna be good," Knight proclaims with a wicked smile,
Top right, David Knight (left) and Mike Schaefer look over the layout of the Mad vs. Mud race course at the American West Heritage Center. Above, Knight and Schaefer are joined by Knight's wife, Lacie, and her sister, Amory Christensen, during That Famous Preston Night Rodeo parade.
15September 2011
while also pointing out that they'll also be a "Boggy Bayou" for
kids 12 and under to try out.
As of mid-August, runners can sign up for one of 15 different
waves starting between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. There are a maximum of
150 participants in each wave, and between runners and specta-
tors, Knight and Schaefer are figuring that somewhere around
9,000 people will be at the AWHC at some point during the day.
That would certainly help with their fund-raising goal of
$50,000. The pair plans to split that between the American West
Heritage Center and some Cache Valley families in need of seri-
ous financial help.
"It's basically just a really fun community event where we can
really help the Heritage Center as well as some people in the
valley," Schaefer says.
To register for Man vs. Mud, log on to their Web site at www.
manvsmud.com. Registration fees are $45 until Sept. 2; $50 the
day of the race if it's not sold out.
The best part, though? Weather — short of perhaps a bliz-
zard — is not a concern.
"We hope it rains," Knight proclaims. "That would be great,
actually."
Jeff HunterPho
tos
by J
eff H
unte
r/Cac
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16 September 2011
U P D A T E
On the plus side, last year's Utah State foot-
ball team matched its highest win total of
the past 10 years. Unfortunately for the
Aggie program, that benchmark is just
four victories.
Picked to finish fifth in the WAC this sea-
son, few people outside of Cache Valley
expect much out of a USU squad
that hasn't finished .500 or better
since 1997. But those closer
to the Aggies still remember
last year's remarkable 31-16
pasting of Brigham Young at
Romney Stadium, and point
with optimism to the pres-
ence of WAC Preseason
Defensive Player of the Year
Bobby Wagner and the
return of a several key
individuals who missed all
or most of last season due to
injury.
"We are going to compete," Rob-
ert Turbin said of the upcoming season. "One
thing I can guarantee is that we will come out
here every single day and battle and work and
work to get better."
A junior running back, the 5-foot-10,
216-pound Turbin is sure to provide the Aggies
with an immediate presence in the backfield. After
rushing for 1,296 yards and totaling a school record
18 touchdowns in 2009 (including an epic, 96-yard
TD run at Utah), Turbin suffered a torn anterior cruci-
ate ligament in his knee during an offseason workout and missed
the entire 2010 campaign.
So far during fall camp, USU head coach Gary Andersen likes
what he has seen from his big back.
"Physically, I think he's as good as he's ever been, if not
better," Andersen declared. "He sure looks
fast, and he's as strong as he's ever been. We
actually had to shut him down in the weight room
because you only need to be so strong.
"At times, he likes to think of himself as the
Incredible Hulk. And I'd buy into that. He
probably is."
The Hulk's return, as well as that
of top receivers Stanley Morrison
and Matt Austin, couldn't come at
a better time considering the un-
proven quarterback the Aggies
are sure to put under center
this year. Diondre Borel is
gone after taking nearly
every snap for three years,
leaving the way for one of
three new QBs: freshman
Alex Hart, junior Adam
Kennedy or fresh-
man Chuckie Keeton.
Andersen had hoped to
name a starter during spring ball,
but a week into fall camp he still didn't know
which way he would go.
Hart has the benefit of redshirting at USU
last year, but Kennedy has the most experi-
ence after a successful junior college career
in California, and Keeton's athletic skills are
similar to those of Borel's. Chances are, Ken-
nedy will get the first shot under center, with
Keeton coming off the bench to give the offense
a different look. Hart is likely out of the run-
ning after being slow to recover from having his
tonsils removed.
But whoever it is, they'll be thrown into the fire
early when the Aggies open the 2011 season in
Alabama on Sept. 3, against the defending na-
O
Photos by Jeff Hunter/Cache Valley Magazine
17September 2011
tional champion Auburn Tigers. From there, Utah State will host
non-conference opponents Weber State (Sept. 10), Colorado
State (Sept. 24) and Wyoming (Oct. 8), while traveling to Provo
to battle Brigham Young (Sept. 30). Utah is not on this year's
schedule, and neither is Boise State, who has officially left the
WAC for the Mountain West, a year before being joined there by
Nevada, Fresno State and Hawaii.
"I expect a lot of wins; a lot of production out of everybody
including myself," Wagner predicted. "I think we'll put up a lot of
wins this year."
A senior inside linebacker, Wagner is garnering plenty of atten-
tion this year after back-to-back, all-WAC seasons. He was sev-
enth in the nation in 2010 after averaging 11.2 tackles per game,
and Andersen, who is also taking over defensive coordinator
duties this season, his third at Utah State, plans to use his top
weapon at outside linebacker as well as on the defensive line.
"Bobby's knowledge of the defense allows him to stay on the
field for almost
every package
we have," Ander-
sen said. "We can
play him in a lot of
spots because he's a
smart kid and he's very
talented. So, we've got to
use him very, very strategically."
The Aggies hope that leads them to "a lot
of wins," but after seventh-place finish in the
WAC last year and 13 straight losing sea-
sons, anything close to a .500 record in
2011 would certainly be something for
they and their fans to feel good about.
Jeff Hunter
Right, freshman quarterback Chuckie Keeton has been turning heads during fall practices. Facing page, the Aggies are counting on big things from running back Robert Turbin, who missed all of 2010 with a knee injury.
18 September 2011
More Visibility. Better Results
Call Debbie at [email protected]
ELEMENTSDustin McKay knows food, and he
knows the restaurant business.
He also knows what Cache Valley
likes to eat. But what else would you expect from
a chef who literally grew up in the kitchen of one
of Logan's most popular restaurants?
"I was about 10 years old when the Copper
Mill opened in 1986, and from the beginning, I
went to work with my dad, so to speak, and my
desire to be a chef just kind of developed from
there," McKay recalls. "I was always involved
in the kitchen and the food aspect of it. There
wasn't much I didn't do there as far as back-of-
the-house kinds of things."
The executive chef of the Elements restau-
rant, McKay is the son of Shirl "Mac" McKay,
one of the co-owners of the Copper Mill, a
Cache Valley institution in downtown Logan the
elder McKay founded with John Booth. Although
Dustin McKay is still involved with the cater-
ing and banquet services at the Copper Mill,
Elements has been his primary focus since the
restaurant first opened its doors in June 2009.
Located along the Logan River, Elements was
built in conjunction with the Riverwoods Confer-
ence Center and the SpringHill Suites hotel at
the south end of Logan. While Elements markets
itself as serving "contemporary American cui-
sine," McKay says he's always been nervous that
19September 2011
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people might think the restaurant
is more "gourmet" than it really is.
"The menu really showcases
my style of food, and all I really
wanted to do was make it ap-
proachable to a wide variety of
people," he explains. "'Contem-
porary American cuisine' makes
it sound a little gourmet, but I
wouldn't consider it as gourmet.
Some people might feel that way
when they walk into the res-
taurant, but I hope it's still very
comfortable for them and the
food tastes good."
Elements' elegant dining room
and river-side patio dining area
also suggest a high-end eating
establishment — "We've had a
lot of people comment as they
came in that they felt like they
were in Salt Lake," McKay says
— but the restaurant actu-
ally boasts a reasonably priced
menu with a large variety of fare.
One of the most popular items,
the kamikaze salmon, comes in
at under $20, while the wood-
fired pizzas are all well less than
$10. There's also nine different
burgers and sandwiches under $10
to choose from on the lunch menu.
Of course, Elements also serves
up steaks and chops, along with
several seafood dishes, including a
blackened ahi tuna that McKay has
flown in fresh from Hawaii.
"We struggled at first with the
perception that we were high-end
and expensive," says McKay, who
has won the prestigious Chef of
the Year award at the Spice on Ice
competition twice in the past six
years. "But I think we've overcome
that as people have realized that we
just make really good food that they
can enjoy in a nice atmosphere."
Elements is located east of
Main Street at 35 E. 640 South.
Closed on Sundays, the restaurant
is open Monday through Thursday
from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m., and Fridays
and Saturdays until 10 p.m. For
reservations, call 750-5171 or
visit their Web site at www.theele-
mentsrestaurant.com.
Jeff Hunter
20 September 2011
Story and photographs by Jeff Hunter
Wild & Wonderful
21September 2011
Figuring that I'm finally near the top, I reach down for some
inspiration and quickly dial through the playlists on my iPod.
While I have several good options to chose from, I decide
the perfect song for reaching the crest of the Wellsville
Mountains has got to be Van Halen's "Top of the World."
Standin' on top of the world
For a little while
Standin' on top of the world
Gonna give it all we got
Unfortunately, my timing is off. Way off. It appears that
Rattlesnake Canyon still has some bite left in it.
Rather than cruise on up the rest of the trail in Rocky-
like fashion in the three minutes or so that I have before
Sammy Hagar's finished, every step becomes a battle.
Sure, the route is steep — no switchbacks to give my legs a
brief respite — but the real problem is the foliage. At times,
the wicked little bushes completely obscure the route, while
their sharp branches continually tear at the flesh of my
lower legs.
For a person of my size and weight, it feels like the
bushes are all but pushing me back down the mountain-
side each time I try and take a step forward. They're also
surprisingly adept at untying the shoelaces on my hiking
boots, which creates a serious problem when there's noth-
ing resembling a clearing where I can sit down to tie them
up again.
If this were a lake, I would simply give up the fight
by holding my breath and diving under the water. And at the
moment, I would definitely be willing to trade my trekking
pole in for a machete.
Now sweaty, dirty and a little bloody, a couple more of >>
F
Jason Turner hikes along the northern end of the Wellsville Ridge Trail.
22 September 2011
Van Halen's greatest hits come and go and I'm still short of level-
ing off astride the mountain range that separates Cache Valley
from the Bear River Valley. Then I suddenly become even more
annoyed when a couple of hummingbirds zip around off to my
right, seemingly mocking me with their incredible speed, agility
and energy.
But finally I manage to break through — briefly — into a small
clearing about the size of a bathroom. When I sit down on the
ground to tie up my boots, I look up and can see only sky and
clouds. The thick foliage blocks my view of U.S. 89-91 and "The
Big Curve" in Wellsville (or Sardine) Canyon far below, as well
anything to the east or west.
I know I'm close, though, to having a great view of at least one
valley or the other, so I get back on what I can see of the trail
and continue battling my way up to the top of the Wellsvilles. I
also can't help but wonder what it's going to be like to come back
down in a few hours.
The Wellsville Mountain Range has the ability to make you feel
like you're not only getting away from it all, but that you're also
Above, Coldwater Lake is less than a mile from the Coldwater East/Stewart Pass trailhead, Top right, the Wellsville Ridge Trail runs along the length of the Wellsvilles. Above right, the view of Wellsville and Hyrum from the Rattlesnake Canyon Trail.
23September 2011
right in the middle of things at the same time.
Go to the top of Naomi Peak or Logan Peak in the Bear River
Range, and you've got a great view of Cache Valley spread out
before you to the west, but nothing more than mountains and val-
leys and trees everywhere else.
On the Wellsvilles, there's not a soul around ... but civilization
on either side of you just a couple of miles away.
The Wellsville Mountains also make for a remarkable back-
drop. Can you imagine Cache Valley without them? Many of
us who live around Logan find great comfort in being nestled
between two mountain ranges, and those of us who take pho-
tographs for a living find them popping up
in our shots again and again whether we
mean for them to be there or not.
The Wellsvilles are also kind of like
our Great Wall; they seemingly separate
us from the madness and chaos of the
Wasatch Front,
like if they weren't
there, thousands
of people and cars
would overwhelm us
and turn Logan into
something closer to
Ogden.
How many homes
have been con-
structed in Cache
Valley with a porch
facing the Wells-
villes in order to
obtain what's believed to be the optimal
view of the area? And why are people
flocking to build new homes around Wells-
ville and Mendon, even though they know
the shade of the mighty mountains will cut
a couple hours of sunshine off their normal
day?
The Wellsvilles are also simply one of
those things that are so close, but so far
away.
People talk about climbing them all
the time, but most never do, even though
there's three different excellent access points at the north end,
the south end and in the middle. Declared a wilderness area
in 1984, the ultimate Wellsville experience is to head up either
Rattlesnake Canyon in the south or Deep Canyon in the north
and traverse the entire mountain range along the Wellsville
Ridge Trail either on foot or horseback.
That would be around 15 hard — but extremely rewarding —
miles worthy of putting on one's bucket list.
I eventually got to Box Elder Peak.
After finally reaching the top of Rattlesnake Canyon, I was >>
24 September 2011
immediately distracted by the gorgeous view of the Bear River
Valley to the west and soon got off of the trail, requiring a rather
brutal bushwhack over to the east side of the top of the Wells-
villes. As it turns out, the Wellsville Ridge Trail (most of which
was covered by vegetation) started at the top of that "T" intersec-
tion and immediately headed right, climbing up a steep slope
until it reached the very top of the ridge.
That's where an unforgettable view of Cache Valley suddenly
opens up beneath you, and no matter how tired you are, you
can't help but be energized.
Unfortunately, the skies above were also starting to get
energized as a storm started to move in from the west across
the upper end of the Great Salt Lake. Having taken numerous
photographs of lightning hitting the Wellsville Mountains, I knew
that wasn't where I wanted to be in a thunderstorm — never mind
that it was rolling in about four hours earlier than the weatherman
had predicted.
While I had hoped to hit the summit of Wellsville Cone, as well
as Box Elder Peak, I decided to cut my losses. I pulled my cam-
era body and one len out of my backpack, stashed the bigger
pack under a tree and started to jog up the trail.
I wasn't sure of the mileage, but I knew I didn't have much
Deep
Canyon
“Hawk Watch”
Peak8585 ft.
Wellsville Ridge Trail
Mendon Peak8766 ft
Stewart PassStewart Pass
Wellsville Cone
Box Elder Peak9372 ft
Bob Stewart Peak8615 ft
Coldwater Lake
Hogsback Mountain
Maple Bench
Rattlesnake Canyon Trail
HWY 91
Wild
ern
ess
Bo
und
ary
Forest Service Road
1800 South
Mendon
300 North
N
Scout Peak 8687 ft
Wild
ern
ess
Bo
und
ary
1
2
3
DEEP CANYON TRAIL
Length: 2.9 milesElevation gain: 2,720 feetTrailhead access: Turn west off of Utah
Hwy. 30 onto 300 North in Mendon; the trailhead is at the end of the road, which starts out paved but ends up in gravel. Normally well maintained and accessible by just about any type of vehicle, the latter portion of the road crosses private land.
The hike: The most gentle route to the top, and therefore, probably the most traveled, the Deep Canyon Trail is still considered strenuous, particularly once one reaches the switchbacks late in the hike. The trail leads up to a saddle atop the Wellsvilles, where it intersects with the Wellsville Ridge Trail. Turn left (south) to access the Wellsville Cone and Box Elder Peak, or head north towards Hawkwatch Peak.
Normally staffed in September and October by a couple of dedicated birdwatchers count-ing raptors, Hawkwatch International recently announced there won't be an official watch in the Wellsvilles again this fall due to budget constraints. Still, with thick groves of maple, ash and aspen, it's a an amazing hike in the autumn, and a cooler route in the summer due to the tree cover and the canyon surrounding the trail.
COLDWATER EAST/STEWART PASS TRAIL
Length: 3 milesElevation gain: 2,500 feetTrailhead access: At the south end of
Mendon, watch for a gravel road head-ing west with a U.S. Forest Service sign. The road immediately climbs towards the Wellsvilles, heading south and west through farmland and groves of trees until reaching the trailhead at Maple Bench after about four miles. Once the road enters the forest, its condition normally deteriorates, particularly in spring and early summer. A four-wheel drive vehicle is recommended, particularly in wet conditions.
The hike: After winding through the for-est for less than a mile, the trail runs into Coldwater Lake — a small body of water most would consider a pond. Another half mile after that, the route begins to climb, heading back towards the north as it crosses a couple of drainages. The most direct and quickest route to the top of the Wellsvilles if you're in good hiking shape, the Coldwater East Trail leads hikers to Stewart Pass, which sits in between Mendon Peak to the north and Bob Stewart Peak and Wellsville Cone to the south.
1 2
Editor's Note: Mileage & elevation are from the 2004 edition of "Cache Trails" by Jim Sinclair.
Don't Stop at the TopThere are three primary routes available that access the Wellsville Mountain Ridge Trail:
25September 2011
time, so I traveled hard and fast along
the Wellsville Ridge Trail, only stopping
to take the occasional photograph. As
the wind started to pick up and the skies
get darker, I finally spotted the huge cairn
built atop Box Elder Peak, accessible by
a short spur running to the west off the of
the main trail.
After confirming my location via the
U.S. Geological Survey marker, I fired off
a few more shots and then headed >>
RATTLESNAKE TRAIL
Length: 4.2 miles to Box Elder Peak 4.9 miles to Wellsville ConeElevation gain: 3,975 feetTrailhead access: Located just off of Hwy.
89-91 at "The Big Curve" in Wellsville (Sardine) Canyon, the small parking lot sits on the north side of the road adjacent to two large gates. Hik-ers can open the first gate, which keeps people off the road to a radio tower, and then simply walk around the second gate to access the trail.
The hike: The first half mile of the trail fol-lows a primitive road before turning off to the left at the bottom of a heavily forested drainage and heading up towards the Wellsvilles. The route stays in the trees for about another mile before you finally break out and have a view of Wellsville (Sardine) Canyon and the southern portion of Cache Valley. The trail gets steeper, with the exception of crossing over a drainage to the west, then heads directly up Rattlesnake Canyon.
At the top of the canyon, one can turn left towards the Bear River Valley, or veer right (east) where a large ridge must be climbed to get the optimum view of Cache Valley. Follow the Wellsville Ridge Trail along the top to reach 9,372-foot Box Elder Peak (accessible by a short spur heading directly west and marked by a large jumble of rocks) or go another 0.7 mile to reach the summit of 9,356-foot Wellsville Cone.
COLDWATER EAST/STEWART PASS TRAIL
Length: 3 milesElevation gain: 2,500 feetTrailhead access: At the south end of
Mendon, watch for a gravel road head-ing west with a U.S. Forest Service sign. The road immediately climbs towards the Wellsvilles, heading south and west through farmland and groves of trees until reaching the trailhead at Maple Bench after about four miles. Once the road enters the forest, its condition normally deteriorates, particularly in spring and early summer. A four-wheel drive vehicle is recommended, particularly in wet conditions.
The hike: After winding through the for-est for less than a mile, the trail runs into Coldwater Lake — a small body of water most would consider a pond. Another half mile after that, the route begins to climb, heading back towards the north as it crosses a couple of drainages. The most direct and quickest route to the top of the Wellsvilles if you're in good hiking shape, the Coldwater East Trail leads hikers to Stewart Pass, which sits in between Mendon Peak to the north and Bob Stewart Peak and Wellsville Cone to the south.
3
Editor's Note: Mileage & elevation are from the 2004 edition of "Cache Trails" by Jim Sinclair.
Don't Stop at the TopThere are three primary routes available that access the Wellsville Mountain Ridge Trail:
26 September 2011
back. Fortunately, although the clouds made
for some lousy photographs, it rained only
for about 30 seconds on my return trip to
my backpack and the cloud cover made the
temperature quite pleasant.
Although I wasn't looking forward to the
trip back down Rattlesnake (I predicted I'd
trip and go down at least twice, but somehow
made it down with only about a dozen more
bloody gouges in my shins), it still felt good
to know that I hadn't been denied the highest
point in the Wellsville Mountain Range.
So, I put my earphones in, turned my iPod
on "shuffle" and headed for my car about
three-and-a-half miles away.
I could only laugh when, starting back
down Rattlesnake Canyon about 10 minutes
later, my iPod elected to taunt me by choos-
ing "Top of the World" over 2,000 other songs
as I began my descent.
Wildflowers have been abundant in the Wellsville Mountain Range this summer.
27September 2011
d Kalbach was in second grade when he first came
West.
His father loaded up the family in Pennsylvania
and spent the next two months driving around the country,
leaving young Ed with the impression that he had "saw every-
thing."
After graduating from high school and kicking around the
Keystone State for a couple of years while learning how to fix
motorcycles, Kalbach didn't remember all the details of that
trip, but he knew where the big mountains were. And he knew
that he developed a passion for skiing.
"I really didn't know where I was going," Kalbach admits. "I
just had some friends out here, so I got in my truck and came
out West.
"I don't even remember what they were doing here, but
they left the next day."
"They just split," he adds with a rapid-fire laugh.
That was 32 years ago.
Speaking now with the 54-year-old version of Ed Kalbach,
it's not hard to see a little bit of "ski bum" remaining in him.
Trim, fit and tanned, he scarcely looks his age and brings a
healthy dose of energy to a large meeting room on the upper
floor of EK Ekcessories Inc. in Nibley.
"After I got here, I went off to Jackson Hole and Vail and
Aspen and every place," Kalbach says. "But some reason, I
liked Cache Valley. So, I ended up staying here and skiing at
Beaver."
At the time, Kalbach says
most people assumed he was
attending Utah State Univer-
sity. But he wasn't. He also
wasn't working.
"I just hung out in Millville," he
declares. "Yeah. I was hanging out in
Millville and taking in unemployment.
A whole 125 bucks a week."
Eventually, Kalbach did get a job —
working nights, of course, so he could
still ski during the day. In time, that
grew into actual day-time employment
when he opened a small motorcycle
service shop in Logan. And when that
started to dry up in the winter, he
dedicated a portion of the shop to
selling ski equipment on consign-
ment.
"That turned into a little ski
shop, and then that turned
into a sunglass shop,"
Kalbach recalls. "I
started selling
a lot of sun-
glasses, so that's
when I started >>
Cat Strap
feverEK EKcessories retains its remarkable success
Story and photos by Jeff Hunter
E
28 September 2011
to see a need for sunglass products like the side shield that
I invented. I didn't have any money; it took every cent that I
had to make a mold.
"It failed."
Billed as "the ultimate windguard for cat-eye style glases,"
Cat Flaps looked pretty cool on sunglasses of the mid-’80s
and helped keep the glare out of the corner of one's eye. But
Kalbach was unable to find the right market for his invention.
"I didn't know what I was doing," admits Kalbach, who
never attended college. "When I came out with the product, it
failed."
So did Cat Crap, the anti-fog and lens cleaner he later
designed to smear inside of sunglasses and ski goggles. And
initially, Kalbach's third attempt at entrepreneurship, the Cat
Strap, also bombed. Composed of a small piece of climbing
rope and rubber tubing stripped from the gas line of a motor-
cycle, Kalbach showed off the Cat Strap for a couple of years
until "all of a sudden, one day it just took off."
Of course, that "one day" in 1986 involved a lucrative deal
at a national trade show with sunglasses manufacturer Oak-
ley, who eventually purchased $60,000 worth of Cat Straps.
"I had always been a mechanic: motorcycles and snow-
mobiles, those sorts of things," Kalbach says. "But that was
really, really hard work, so I just decided I wanted to start
inventing some products.
"So, everything is pretty much hands-on, with me. I con-
sider myself self-taught."
And certainly self-made.
Kalbach has parlayed that initial success story with Cat
Straps into a highly successful company that now em-
ploys more than 100 people and is housed in a nearly
60,000-square-foot facility a couple miles south of Logan.
EK Ekcessories — the name comes from Kalbach's initials
— has proven to be virtually recession-proof, as well. The
company already sells products across at least seven dif-
ferent industries (outdoors, pet supply, motor sports, private
label, government security, optical and electronics), and EK
is close to unveiling another new line of products, as well as
a couple of mega-deals with national retail outlets.
"In the future, I could see this facility running around the
clock," Kalbach proclaims. "We could crank out so much
more than what we're doing right now. We have the infra-
structure in place to do it. It's mostly just about marketing:
more sales, more clients, more doors for us to go through."
Named Utah's Small Business Person of the Year in 1997,
Kalbach clearly enjoys the fact that he continues to be suc-
cessful despite his lack of a formal business education.
"If you go to a trade show, you can see all of these people
selling stuff, but it's just an idea; it's a prototype," he ex-
plains. "But what I did was the opposite. I built the factory. I
built the items. I delivered 'em and then took 'em to market.
That's kind of the opposite of what you're supposed to do, I
guess, but it seems like it's worked for us."
Kalbach goes on to say that another reason he didn't fail,
29September 2011
even after three years of frustration,
is that he "put all of his eggs in one
basket."
"I knew it was going to work, and I
had to make it to work, where as I think
a lot of people almost have a feeling
that it's not going to work," he notes.
"And that's why they do it the way that
they do it. They make a prototype and
they go to a show, and the second they
don't sell a bunch, they're done. If I had
done that, I would be done. For three
years, people told me 'No.' I traveled all
around the country to trade shows and
just heard, 'No,' 'No,' 'No.'
Kalbach then adds with a little smirk:
"And the next thing I know, I turn around
and I'm suing everybody because
everybody didn't just not say 'Yes.' They
ripped me off!
"What is it they say? That the best
form of flattery is to be knocked off?
Well, uh uh. Not me. I want the cash! I
don't wanna be knocked off."
Currently the owner of more than two
dozen patents with about five more >>
A native of Pennsylvania, Ed Kalbach moved out West to ski 32 years ago and never left.
30 September 2011
pending, Kalbach says he's sued numerous people for trying
to steal his ideas, but he has almost always been able to
reach a settlement before the case went to trial.
At the moment, EK Ekcessories is probably best known for
items like the Cat Straps, along with key rings, dog collars
and leashes, and lanyard pass holders, most of which are
available online at www.ekusa.com. EK currently manufac-
tures tie-downs for Harley-Davidson, pass holders and other
items for the U.S. National Park Service, and a wide variety
of things for national companies such as Honda, FedEx and
Boeing.
And on any given morning, Kalbach's likely to show up at
the office with another idea that came to him just as he was
waking up.
"I'll come in here Monday morning, and these poor guys
will have all of this work to do," he says while gesturing
across the table towards EK COO Randall Anderson. "But I'll
have been working on something all weekend, and I want to
get to work on it.
"But it's usually something that I'll have recognized a need
for, or something I need myself. Like I invented a roof-rack
sensor that you can put on your bike that reminds you it's
there when you're pulling into the garage.
"I needed that because of my wife," he says with a chuckle.
When asked how he'd quickly sum up his company to
someone unfamiliar with EK's line of products, Kalbach says:
"What we do is function and fashion. I guess you'd have to
call me a retainer company. Almost everything we do retains
something. Whether it's your dog, your pants, you eyeglasses
or whatever."
Kalbach, who graced the cover of Kiplinger's business
magazine in January 1998, says he long ago envisioned an
"urban guy" with one of his key chains who felt more out-
doorsy thanks to the short piece of climbing rope in his pock-
et. He's extremely proud to say that his products are made
in this country — "We'll have 'Made in the USA' all over 'em,
and people will still go, 'Where did you make this? China?'
It's like, duh! Here's the factory!" — and Kalbach also says
he's getting "more philanthropic" the older he gets. The long
list of local and normal organizations that EK has donated
to includes the Best Friends Animal Society in Kanab, the
Cache Community Food Pantry, Common Ground, the Petco
Foundation for Hurricane Katrina and Junior Aggie Athletics,
and the company also shipped $10,000 worth of credential
holders to the NYPD following Sept. 11.
"I think a lot of people aren't doing so well in this economy
because they've given up," Kalbach says. "But we're super-
diversified — we're in all of these different industries — and
I don't give up. ... There's just so much to do, you've just got
to be willing to change with the times and do it. You can't just
stay in the same old rut and whine about it."
What about that old ski bum that first came out West at
age 21? He's not really around anymore. Kalbach says, "I'm
getting pretty old. I've been in a lot of accidents, and I'm
Right, EK Ekcesso-ries Chief Operat-ing Officer Randall Anderson looks over the inventory in the company's warehouse. Below, EK Ekcessories provides several products for Harley-Davidson Motor Company. Below right, Cat Crap anti-fog lens cleaner was one of the first products offered by Kalbach.
31September 2011
pretty beat up."
Although he
still skis a little
bit, Kalbach in-
sists he'd rather be
out playing in the snow
in his snowcat — he actu-
ally owns a so-called "Snow-burban"
which boasts four independent tracks
rather than tires — or riding a mountain
bike or dirt bike.
"If you'd known Ed before — he was
really pushing the edge a lot," says An-
derson, who started working at EK on a
production line when he was in college
and is now Kalbach's right-hand man.
"He's slowed down a bit, but he's still
pretty aggressive on a mountain bike or
whatever. And he can definitely keep up
with all of us ... or probably beat us."
With his financial status secure, it's
easy to imagine Kalbach walking away
from the day-to-day grind of a small
business and just taking it easy, but
the man clearly still has a passion for
innovation.
"I've never even been to Europe or
anywhere like that," he insists. "I've
been pretty much just dedicated to
working. I was talking to some guys at
a car show this week, and they kept
saying, 'You've got to stop and smell the
roses, man. You've got to go have some
fun. Go take a vacation.'
"And I was like, 'Guess what? I do
whatever I want ... and I'm doing it. I en-
joy what I do. ... People wonder why I'm
not out on a yacht somewhere soaking
up the sun. Well, that's boring.
"I want to go and meet people and
learn stuff," Kalbach adds with another
little smirk and a smile.
32 September 2011
After more than 40 years of shooting rodeos, James Fain's favorite photograph is of a spirited horse and a high-flying cowboy at a rodeo in Logan in 1971.
33September 2011
If you have attended a rodeo in Cache Valley — or the
Intermountain West, for that matter — over the last 50 years,
then surely you’ve seen him.
He likes to blend in, but that is a little hard when the job requires
you to be close to the action. That, of course, means being in the
arena with ornery bulls, bucking horses, fast-moving steers, calves
and horses and everything else that comes with a rodeo.
But hey, that is just part of the thrill. And being able to make
a living while being close to rodeo action continues to fascinate
this cowboy.
Once a competitor, James Fain — who usually goes by "Jim"
— is a rodeo photographer. That’s right, the guy wearing the
cowboy hat with a big camera lens and flash that you see in the
arena at local Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association (PRCA)
rodeos like That Famous Preston Night Rodeo and the Cache
County Rodeo is Fain.
The 69-year-old Logan resident had his first photo reproduced
in the ProRodeo Sports News more than 50 years ago. Fain has
made a living at shooting rodeos since 1965, and he has received
some awards along the way, including being named the Pho-
tographer of the Year in 2006 by the PRCA. Fain shrugs that off,
however, saying some awards are based on longevity.
But he certainly has established himself in a profession that as
a college student he was not really thinking of. Born in Iowa and
raised in Phoenix, Fain was attending Arizona State University and
majoring in agriculture. During the summers, he worked for the
U.S. National Park Service at the Grand Canyon. That is where he
met his wife, Karen. They have been married since 1964.
Before they were married, Karen was attending Utah State
University.
“I went up there to see her, and, gee, they had a photo depart-
ment, and it was brand new,” Fain says. “Ralph Clark had just come
in and set up the program, so I transferred up there and majored in
photography. I graduated with a BFA in ‘67 and MFA in ‘69, with the
North Rim of the Grand Canyon as my project. In the mean time, I
was shooting rodeo and it evolved into making a living at it.
“Whether having a masters helped in this business, I doubt it. It
looked impressive. Here is this rodeo bum with a college degree.”
Before packing a camera full time, Fain was in the rodeo arena
as a competitor. His interest had been sparked in grade school in
Phoenix. A friend was competing in junior rodeo, and the city kid
was talked into giving it a try at age 13. After graduating from high
school, he took off to rodeo in Colorado.
“I went broke and came back (to Phoenix),” Fain quips.
He competed in the bareback riding, bull riding and steer wres-
tling. While attending USU a few years later, Fain was a member
of the Aggie rodeo team. As he got more and more involved in
photography, he came across DeVere Helfrich.
“DeVere Helfrich photographed at the RCA rodeos, the forerun-
ner to the PRCA,” Fain says. “The Western Horseman magazine
reproduced his images and in the ProRodeo Sports News. It
seemed like a neat thing to do at the time. It just evolved into full
time and making a living at it.”
The father of three certainly has turned it into a full-time job.
During his career, Fain has shot the PRCA's National Finals
Rodeo (NFR) 15 times, the Indian National Finals 25 times, the
College National Finals 18 times and the High School National
Finals 24 times.
“Once I got my foot in the door, I stayed there,” Fain says.
Which is the same when it comes to the rodeos he is at each
year.
“We’ve been coming to Preston for more than 30 years,”
Fain says. “We missed a few years because of the High School
National Finals being at the same time. Evanston, Wyoming, this
will be our 47th consecutive year at that rodeo. That’s got to be a
record of some kind.” >>
Story by Shawn Harrison, Photos courtesy of James Fain
Logan photographer James Fain is the man in the arena at rodeos throughout the West
34 September 2011
In 2010, the Preston rodeo committee honored Fain, which took
him by total surprise. He was touched and was wearing the belt
buckle this year when taking photographs during the three-night
rodeo at the end of July.
“I’ve just wanted to be invisible and do my thing, then all of the
sudden last year on the first night of the (Preston) rodeo, (rodeo
announcer) Zeb (Bell) starts going on about somebody,” Fain
says. “Zeb was talking about all these years here, thought some
local guy was going to get something, then they announced me
and I about fell over. I couldn’t believe it. I didn’t even know they
knew I was around. They have kept track of us over the years. I
was very flattered that they came up with that.”
To be a PRCA photographer, there are certain criteria. Fain is
one of more than 50 PRCA photographers listed, but he is in a
class of his own.
“There are not that many of us that make a living at it,” Fain
says. “Most have jobs and photograph weekends.”
That certainly does not describe him.
The Fains — it definitely takes two to run the business, he
says — begin the rodeo season in February by heading south to
Tucson, Ariz., for two weeks. Then it’s back to Ogden for an indoor
college rodeo, then up to Pocatello, Idaho, for what used to be the
Dodge Circuit Finals, but is now a Pro Rodeo tour stop. Two more
college rodeos follow, then come some high events in Utah, in-
cluding the state junior high and high school finals. Fain continues
to list the rodeos he shoots each year.
“I think it adds up to 25 or 26 events,” Fain says. “Our open
times are pretty much October, November and December.”
During the winter, he is a ski instructor at Beaver Mountain.
When asked to list some of his favorite events, Fain pauses
for a moment. Despite working 18-hour days, he names the high
school state finals in Utah. As far as a PRCA rodeo, he likes the
one in Evanston in September.
“It’s an outdoor rodeo and it’s cooling off,” Fain says. “It’s a
throwback to the older days. It doesn’t have the glitz. It’s got
sponsors like other pro rodeos, but not as refined, still got some
raggedy edges. It’s a fun rodeo.”
It’s been since the early ’90s that Fain shot the NFR, which used
to be in Oklahoma City, Okla., but now takes place in Las Vegas.
He was first chosen in 1976.
“There were a couple of years I wasn’t picked to go, which at
the time I thought that was pretty serious,” Fain says. “As the years
have gone on, it became another glitzy deal in Las Vegas.”
Fain is not a big fan of that city. Give him Preston or Evanston or
any other rodeo that he annually visits, although he did shoot the
Presidential Command Performance Rodeo in Washington, D.C.,
that was put on in the early ’80s for President Ronald Reagan.
Another milestone among many for him.
Is there an event harder than others to photograph?
“People think bull riding is the worst, but I think bull riding is the
easiest to photograph, because you have a lot of action in close,”
Fain says. “You don’t have to track them for the action like you do
with the horses.
“People wonder if I’m afraid of the bulls getting me? No, the bulls
are the least of my worries. They are pretty predictable. If he bucks
somebody off, his head comes up and is looking down the fence,
then yeah, you get out of the way. Bucking horses are harder to
predict, you don’t which way they are going to duck. I’ve had closer
Pho
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35September 2011
calls with horses than with bulls.”
Fain has had some close calls in the
arena, but he's only been “totally run over”
twice. It has happened in Evanston and
Pocatello. He has had some close calls,
but has a motto: “If they don’t touch you, it
ain’t close.”
He did joke a little about his age.
“They say the older photographer, the
longer the lens, which there is a lot of truth
in that,” Fain says. “I used to photograph
with a twin-lens Rollei. I was within 30 to
60 feet away. Now with the zoom lenses,
I’m, oh 100 feet away. ... With a telephoto
lens, you can cover a larger amount of
area and let them move to you. It makes it
a lot easier.”
After thinking a little, Fain says saddle
bronc riding may be the hardest event to
shoot.
“You want to shoot the horse and the
rider when they are in the so-called cham-
pionship form, a ride that is such that they
are going to win some money. There are
some unusual things that happen. A horse
may take a weird, wild, high jump or a
horse falls or like a case the other night, >>
Left, Fain normally travels to more than two-dozen rodeos a year. Above, Fain in action during the saddle-bronc event at That Famous Preston Night Rodeo.
36 September 2011
one of the judges about got run over.
That made for an interesting shot with
him getting out of the way. I don’t know
any one event that gives me trouble.”
Learning new technology has been
another headache at times. He used to
shoot black-and-white film, then went to
color, and six years ago, he made the
big move to digital, which involves some
computer knowledge.
“I’ve never been one to jump on the
trends or the fads,” Fain says. “It took
me quite a while before I even went to
auto focus. That finally became neces-
sary because I couldn’t see to focus as
quick as I used too. I’ve gone all the way
from twin-lens reflex to digital, from wet
processing to ink jet. I had to learn digital
ink jet in a hurry.”
His wife and a nephew have been
a big help with the computer, he says.
However, Fain still uses similar methods
that he has for decades in providing
37September 2011
photographs for cowboys and cowgirls to
view his work.
“I shoot the rodeo, make contact sheets,
post on boards at rodeo, then they go into
books for the next rodeo,” Fain explains.
“The guys come around and look through
the notebooks. A guy (recently) ordered five
prints from ’09. It’s a vicious circle. You got
to keep shooting to have the merchandise.”
Fain uses Canon and has three digital
camera bodies: a 20D, a 40D and a 50D.
He also uses flash a lot, as many rodeos
are at night under lights that are not so
conducive to good photographs.
“I’ve been complimented by other photog-
raphers for my flash work,” Fain says. “Flash
is difficult. ... It really messes me up if it’s a
dusty environment. Flash won’t penetrate
dust.”
One of his all-time favorite photos is in a
book he put out in 1976.
“The last photo at the back of the book is
a saddle bronc rearing way high,” Fain says.
“The rider knew the horse, talked to me
and said, 'Get out there a ways, because
this horse is going to go out and rear.' Sure
enough, total clean background, no fences
or poles, kind of a classic shot. That’s one of
my favorites.”
Fain, who lives (where else?) just a
couple of blocks away from the rodeo arena
at the Logan-Cache Fairgrounds — admits
it’s got to be something really outstanding
to catch his attention these days. He also
says he would like to do some more work in
black-and-white.
But since the first 50 years have been a
good ride, the cowboy photographer plans
on continuing what he does for as long as
he can.
Above, one of Fain's favorite feature photographs is of a cowboy working on a fence on a rainy day. Top left, a barrel racer goes down at this year's Utah High School Finals Rodeo. Middle left, a bullfighter at a rodeo in Prescott, Ariz., has a dangerous view. Bottom left, a steer wrestler gets dirty at the National Finals Rodeo in Las Vegas in 1986.
38 September 2011
Story by Bryan Denson
In case you haven’t heard — and I would guess most
of you have, unless you happen to live outside of Utah
— the governor of our fine state recently lifted a ban on
certain types of fireworks.
"Cake" fireworks, as they are known, shoot up to 150 feet in
the air and burst into remarkable displays with a huge explo-
sion. I viewed this as absolutely spectacular news when I first
heard. Now I could legally terrorize the neighborhood with
controlled explosions, showing off my patriotism without fear
of repercussion.
In reality, of course, the legal status of one firework com-
pared to another never stopped me when I was an adoles-
cent, and you might say I went a little primal when explosives
or fire were involved.
My brain was hard-wired to destroy everything I touched for
some reason, and to make matters worse (or more conve-
nient, depends how you look at it), I had options. I possessed
limited knowledge of homemade explosives, and this fueled
my negative tenancies to no end. Also, living in close proxim-
ity to Wyoming, where all fireworks were pretty much legal,
helped out as well.
The information of how to harness the power of match-tips
into making homemade bombs came with basic training that
was gleaned from my older brother. Ten packs of matches,
some black tape, a bit of waterproof cannon fuse ...
Voilá! And presto-destructo!
Once that tutelage took root in my enthusiastic mind, it grew
to proportions that my older sibling never thought possible. I
often wonder if he ever questioned the morals of empowering
me with that type of expertise, but I’ve never asked.
After an unfortunate incident in my father’s workshop that
centered around 200 books of matches and a science les-
son in friction (a story for another day), I graduated to black
powder. After the smoke cleared, my flesh healed, and my
parent’s nerves settled, I sat down and rethought the process.
After a while I came to the realization that black powder was
Story by Bryan Denson, Photos by Ashley Carley
UNDER FIREA small Fourth of July celebration turns into a real big problem for Providence father
39September 2011
much more stable and less susceptible
to the law of thermodynamics. A match
tip’s ignition point is 392 degrees; this
is relatively low and catches fire quite
easily. On the other hand, black powder
ignites at 867 degrees; that’s over twice
as stable compared to regular old sulfur
in the grand scheme of things.
I continued down this new avenue for
some time, brazen and fearless.
Some of you must admit there’s
something enthralling about the burst of
flame, the concussion of an explosion
thumping your chest, the rain of debris
around a freshly torn blast site. And the
biggest rush of all? Is it perhaps hearing
the footfalls of a county sheriff entering
your garage while threatening federal
prosecution?
Yes, indeed.
If caught engaged in that sort of activ-
ity now days, I’d probably be writing this
from the State Pen with my "girlfriend"
Bubba doing all my proofreading. So,
it’s probably for the best I was born in
the ’70s and not the ’90s.
It was different back then. You were
yelled at, threatened, and rapped across
the knuckles. The smart ones stopped
when reprimanded; the ones with a less
dense packaging of gray matter would
just suck their throbbing fingers and
continue their illicit work with the other
hand. I was the former, not the later.
So with the help of my local law
enforcement, I got clean. But like most
junkies, I never forgot what drove
me there: the rush of adrenaline, the
feeling of excitement, all my senses
tingling with terror as pieces of shrapnel
whizzed overhead, the neighborhood
lights flicking on down the street one by
one.
I looked back on those adventures
a little wistfully from time to time, but I
never relapsed.
I got older and supposedly wiser. And
as the saying goes, time marched on.
My priorities changed, my friends cycled
a few times, my responsibilities pro-
gressed. My love of fire and destruction
gave way to love of wife and children.
Recklessness and immaturity gave way
to obligation and devotion.
But you know ... sometimes … long-
lost loves remain … just beneath the
surface.
So as I sat and read about cake
fireworks being legalized, I was ecstatic.
At long last, here was something I could
dabble in without the law knocking down
my door. This was a piece of history
that my kids and I could enjoy together,
a legacy of sorts. I might be able to
actually pass a little piece of my passion
on. You know, teach my kids about the
kind of fun I used to experiment with.
My mind filled with visions of exploding
light high in the night sky while my kids
danced with glee.
I ran to my wife with the exciting news
and was immediately crushed when she
didn’t meet my enthusiasm with equal
delight.
Her response was flat and almost
heartbreaking: “Fireworks are your deal,
not mine.”
I had to cock my head a little to the
right for her response. Ever since that
fateful day in my old man’s shop almost
25 years ago, I often have to put my
good (left) ear forward. I lost 30 percent
of the hearing in my right ear that day,
and unlike the well-done flesh of my
hand and knees, my auditory capabili-
ties never recovered. >>
40 September 2011
I poke fun at the whole experience now, as does the
rest of my family. It’s a humorous topic that crops up at
nearly every get-together we have to this day: “Remember
when you blew up dad’s garage? Remember all the holes
that your bomb made in the dresser drawers that dad was
refinishing? Remember all the smoke in the workshop and
how you stumbled out, your eyes wide with shock?”
Yeah, I remember.
As I listen to my wife’s indifferent response I’m a little
disappointed, but I know not all is lost.
Why you ask?
She didn’t say "No."
She didn’t openly sanction my newly legalized form of
entertainment, but she didn’t meet it with disagreement
either. It was more like, “Don’t bother me."
So, like an alcoholic moth to a vodka-fueled flame, I
rushed to a fireworks tent that did business several blocks
from our house.
Ohhhh Boy! Christmas in July!
There were countless rows and stacks of bins filled
with bright packages. Containers nearly burst from every
corner of the makeshift store. Packages, flashy boxes and
cones labeled with cheesy names like "Desert Flower,"
"Winter Sunset," "Purple Passion" and — I’m not making this
up — "Ohhh, Sooo, Pretty!"
The newly legalized fireworks were roped off in a special
section behind the cash register where large white signs with
oversized red letters proclaimed: "Danger! No Smoking!"
"Adult Supervision Required!"
"Keep away from children!"
"Must be 16 to purchase!"
Hah! Don’t they know that I’m a retired expert? Admittedly
I was forced to take an early pension, but that was not a con-
cern. Warnings be damned.
My kids and I browsed around for 20 minutes, eventually fill-
ing two sacks with booty before spying a formidable package
41September 2011
in the corner that advertised itself as "The Party Pack."
The Party Pack? Who was I to argue?
Party time!
With the Party Pack under my arm and bulging bags in
either hand, I headed for home.
That night I ate dinner with my family, then I lit a few
smoke bombs while my kids did some “poppers” — little
albino tadpoles that create miniature explosions on im-
pact, spraying microscopic gravel in all directions — very
messy. I then drove the family to my brother-in-law’s house
and hung out. After a couple of hours we headed home.
At about 10:30 p.m., I decided it was time for a couple
of fireworks. It was only July 3, but in Utah it’s legal to
celebrate with fireworks three days before and three days
after the Fourth of July.
To start, I lit a small, shower-type firework that shot
sparks five feet in the air for two-and-a-half minutes
while my two older kids looked on with utter boredom.
My 3-year-old son was a little more enthusiastic, but not
much.
Wooptie doo.
Then I broke out the bad boy my 8-year-old daughter >>
42 September 2011
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had picked out and gave it the once
over. Housed in a pleasantly colored,
bright blue package, its label pro-
claimed it to be "Sky Candy."
Sounds sweet. My three kids still sat
on the porch, disinterested.
I placed the firework in the middle of
the street, lit the fuse and high-tailed
it back to stand by the garage door,
almost giddy.
The first shot was pretty impressive
if I do say so myself. The streamer of
fire traveled about 50 feet into the air
and exploded with a huge rumble. It
sprayed white light in all directions and
was really quite beautiful. The kids
perked up, showing sudden interest.
That’s when things went horribly
wrong, and I was utterly confused
about what happened next.
The ensuing shot didn’t go upwards
into the atmosphere as anticipated.
The next shot came straight at
me doing Mach 10 with a huge
WHUMP!
It hit the house about two feet to
the right of my head and exploded
on impact.
BOOM!
The ear I injured years ago
suffered new internal damage
as white fire splintered the night
behind me, spraying the garage
with burning debris. WHUMP! The
next round went to the right, into
the neighbor’s yard.
BOOM!
More fire and light! WHUMP!
The next shot blasted across the
street into the other neighbor’s
yard.
KABOOM!
By then I realized what had hap-
pened. The first shot had tipped
Bryan Denson, his wife Brooke, and their children Kyra (left), Garrett and Zak are planning to take a more sub-dued approach to next year's Fourth of July celebration.
43September 2011
the firework over, and it was now
spinning on the street with each
shot, a Russian roulette of epic pro-
portion with every cylinder loaded.
While cursing the Chinese for
their faulty engineering, I quickly
started for the porch with a very
important thought in mind: I must
protect the kids.
Just then, another shot hit the
window and exploded in front of me,
leaving me a small sense of what it
would have felt like to be in a World
War II battle.
The two older kids are gone.
Evidently they had sought refuge in
the back yard from the shelling that
now pounded the area. It appeared
that after the first impact they
abandoned their 3-year-old sibling
to fend for himself. There he sat, all
alone, crying inconsolably amid the
showers of exploding sparks.
I never saw where the final shot went.
I scooped up my boy, opened the front
door, rushed inside and was immediately
met by my scowling spouse.
“WHAT’S GOING ON OUT THERE!?”
Clearly she was not happy.
“Just celebrating our independence
dear.”
I gave my boy the quick once over,
checking for wounds. None were evi-
dent, so I handed the wailing package
off to my wife.
I then ran around the side of the
house to retrieve the other two that were
cowering in the safety of the back yard.
They both raced from the darkness,
their eyes big as saucers, shell-shocked
faces twisted with terror.
I checked them for injuries. Fortunate-
ly, nobody is hurt.
My next-door neighbor and her >>
Bryan Denson, his wife Brooke, and their children Kyra (left), Garrett and Zak are planning to take a more sub-dued approach to next year's Fourth of July celebration.
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44 September 2011
daughter then ventured out on their lawn, looking for answers
as to what just occurred. I just shrugged at her and pointed to
the house behind hers. Those people had been lighting stuff
off earlier that night; no sense drawing any more attention to
myself.
The next day, a whining sound continually pierced my right
ear as I wandered outside to survey the damage caused by
my unruly pinwheel of death.
Talk about a war zone.
Beauty bark had been blown out of the flower beds and lay
scattered everywhere.
There was a huge scorch mark on one of the windows.
There were burn marks on the garage door, driveway, and
sidewalk.
The best part? A sooty hole the size of a fifty cent piece
had been punched in the stucco on the front of the house, two
feet from where my head had been the night before.
Nice.
Later that night I proceeded to light off the rest of the
homicidal containers of horror. I fashioned a contraption out of
a large piece of particle board and a bunch of wood screws.
It held the fireworks securely so they wouldn’t fall over and
throw fiery excitement at the house and kids again.
This was little consolation to my offspring. My 3-year-old
wouldn’t even come out of the house. My 8-year-old watched
from the safety of the window until she lost interest.
My 13-year-old stood on the front porch, his hand poised on
the door knob, ready to sprint inside if history repeated itselt.
So …
Great Fourth of July this year. By the time I pay for coun-
seling to get my children’s Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder
treated and get my stucco patched, I will be over my Indepen-
dence Day budget by more than a little.
This really doesn't need to be said, but I’ll say it anyway: I
now know there is a reason that we grow out of certain things
— dangerous fireworks and explosives being one of them. I’ll
45September 2011
also say this: I don’t think I am to blame
for all the problems that were caused
this last weekend. I read the instructions
completely, and I followed all the safety
precautions that were listed on the
packaging.
So who’s guilty?
I’ll tell you where I think the fault lies. I
blame the governor of Utah for legaliz-
ing those new aerial-type fireworks and
re-kindling my passion for things that
explode. His intentions may have been
noble, but the outcome was dreadful.
I also blame the Chinese for improper
design and deceptive firework labels.
Some sort of stabilizing platform should
be required on things that exert more
than 600 foot-pounds of force, and the
fireworks should be named more realis-
tically. I think “Take Cover!” or “Run Like
Hell!” are better descriptions and should
replace deceptive titles like “Sky Candy”
or "Winter Sunset."
The peaceful pictures of warm desert
landscapes and calm starry skies
should be swapped for images of burn-
ing houses or crying children.
Just a thought there.
I realize that none of my opinions
matter at this point. I’m certain that my
wife blames me for our pock-marked
house and traumatized kids. My re-
acquaintance with childhood “fun” was
undoubtedly short-lived, and next year’s
celebration will be nothing more than
smoke bombs and poppers conducted
with full blown fire-retardant clothing and
safety glasses.
Was the brief touch with my juvenile
pastime worth it?
Maybe.
At least now my kids have something
to laugh about each Fourth of July in the
years to come.
46 September 2011
Photo by Jeff HunterThe Benson area is bathed in a golden glow as the sun sets on Gunsight Peak and the Bear River following a stormy summer evening.
Hit us with your best shot! In each Issue we feature a new photo from you, so send your most impressive photograph, of any sort, to [email protected].
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47September 2011
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48 September 2011