I recently received a form letter by e-mail from Congressman Heath Shuler regarding HR 1646 – the Hearing Aid Assistance Tax Credit Act. I sent an e-mail response, and the answer I got was typical of our government: unable to deliver to shuler@mail.house.gov. This is what I wanted the congressman to know: HR 1646, the […]
Year: 2009
Showing 1618-1638 of 2958 results
"Have a nice night."
In the past two months, I have been pulled over four times in the Haywood Road vicinity in West Asheville, and I'm wondering: What is the deal?! I drive a Nissan Sentra – no weird bumper stickers (not that that should be probable cause, but we all know that it sometimes is), tail and brake […]
Carolinas’ Nature Photographers Association
Left to right: CNPA member Bob Pazden joins Asheville coordinators Linda Deaton and Everette Robinson on Hawksbill Mountain. Photo by Bob Pazden Western North Carolina contains some of the most breathtaking scenery in the United States. With such a backdrop, the area is a magnet for nature photographers. These photographers have an outlet with the […]
Clinics & Demos
What it feels like… To mess up a river-rescue rope toss: Photo courtesy of All Terrain Images “A fellow guide was trying to throw the rope bag to [someone who’d fallen out of their boat] on the French Broad. He had the bag in one hand and the rope in the other, like you’re supposed […]
Kids play hard at MSF
Kids adore adventures, and this year’s Mountain Sports Festival will deliver a variety of kid-centric outdoor adventures and activities. “Every kid should go, because it’s fun and you get to be outdoors.” So says 8-year-old Flat Rock resident Samuel Ray-Alverson, a first-time participant in several events at last year’s MSF. He grooved on the dirt […]
Soundtrack
There is a lot to recommend singer/songwriter Zach Blew: He plays guitar with a nimble, jazzy fluidity; he sings with the sultry ease of John Mayer (back when Mayer was earnestly "Waiting for the World to Change"). Blew also has the wherewithal to back himself with a stellar band — guitarist Tom Leiner (Kellin Watson's […]
Fighting familiar hazards
The stark contrast between our frenzied reaction to unfamiliar hazards and our reckless tolerance of familiar ones never ceases to amaze me. The current incidence of swine flu – which has killed five Americans – has captured the headlines, canceled public events and closed dozens of schools. At the same time, we have blithely continued […]
Get out now
America is lessening the chance for peace in the Middle East by killing even one more Moslem. Only by withdrawing all our troops and arms from Iraq and Afghanistan now can we increase chances for peace. There's no good reason to wait a day longer. Every new news nuance is diversion from these facts. The […]
Smoking ban
Weekly Asheville Disclaimer Page: 05/27/09
• Briefs
• Kid Care with Arnold
• The dirt
• Naked jogging
Twin Rivers Media Festival 2009
The annual Twin Rivers Media Festival runs this weekend at Courtyard Gallery. As usual, the winning feature takes the place of the 8 p.m. Friday weekly World Cinema screening. And, as usual, the festival offers some high-quality works, including the winning feature.
The loophole
Running
What it feels like… Friday, May 29 Rock2Rock Trail Run, 5 p.m., Camp Rockmont Saturday, May 30 Kids Stampede 1K Fun Run, 8:15 a.m., Martin Luther King Park Sunset Stampede 10 Mile and 5K, 9 a.m., Martin Luther King Park To take the wrong turn in a trail race: “A running buddy of mine followed […]
Dodgeball
What it feels like… To get hit playing dodge ball: Photo by Jonathan Welch “Mentally or physically? Physically it’s not bad. You can get hit in sensitive areas that sting for a couple of minutes. But all in all, the balls are like foam balls. Some of the guys who throw it harder, it feels […]
Paddling
What it feels like… Saturday, May 30 Knots for Whitewater Clinic, 10 a.m., Festival Village Ducky Trip on the French Broad, 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., Festival Village Whitewater-Rescue Rigging Clinic, 11 a.m., Festival Village Intro to Kayaking, 2:30 p.m., Asheville Outdoor Center Throw Ropes for Whitewater Clinic, 5 p.m., Festival Village A History of […]
Disc
What it feels like… To hit a hole-in-one in disc golf: “I was playing a tournament in Austin, Texas, where I used to live. I’m getting ready to throw, and there’s a big tree near our tee. A squirrel runs down the tree, stops right by me, plants a nut behind the rope [that marks […]
Cycling
What it feels like… Friday, May 29 Road Racing, 5 p.m., Festival Village Saturday, May 30 Wheel Ride for Food, Metric Century Bike Ride, 8 a.m., Festival Village Bicycle Commuter Clinic, 10:30 a.m., Festival Village Road Racing, 5 p.m., Festival Village Bicycle Maintenance Clinic, 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m., Festival Village Sunday, May 31 Mountain […]
Bands
Teen quintet Jazz The Ripper plays with a savvy beyond their years. Check their MySpace page for a playlist that reads more like a fast-food menu (“Java Chiller,” Paco’s Taco,” “No Pickle”), but the tongue-in-cheek stops with the songs’ titles. Each piece is a serious composition displaying skilled musicianship, layered textures, complex rhythms and tasteful […]
Map and directions to the Mountain Sports Festival
1) Festival Village Carrier Park, Amboy Road, West Asheville. From downtown Asheville: Go south on Biltmore Avenue for about two miles; at light, turn right on Meadow Road. At the second light (at bridge), turn left onto Amboy Road. Travel 1.5 miles; Carrier Park will be on the left. From I-26: Take I-240 east to […]
Fun is a three-letter word: MSF
Talk to past Mountain Sports Festival participants, and they stress one word: fun.
Many also point to the event’s evolution since its first run in 2001. Early editions featured teams of adventure racers converging on the lawn at City/County Plaza, map in hand, planning the best way to navigate mountains, rivers and roads during rigorous cross-country hikes, frantic cycling and frenzied kayaking. Those who weren’t into such extreme sports could practice rolling a kayak in a big portable pool, climb a wall in the shadow of Asheville City Hall, or watch a variety of demonstrations.
The core of MSF: Asheville’s Carrier Park becomes Festival Village during Mountain Sports Festival weekend. Photo by Margaret Williams
The adventure racing is no more, and the festival moved to Carrier Park on Amboy Road several years ago. But the heart of the event beats strong.
In part, that’s due to the other F-word behind most festival components: free. “We’ve expanded the clinics and demonstrations this year,” says organizer Jeff Makey, who owns River Right Instruction. Demos and clinics will get their own space at the Festival Village (aka Carrier Park), he mentions. Sessions will cover everything from knot tying for white-water sports to bicycle maintenance to backpacking equipment and skills. Among the more esoteric offerings are nonwinch recovery systems for off-road adventures and even a Hula-Hoop clinic.
“One of the keys to the festival mission is increasing awareness and participation in mountain sports. The festival is a chance to talk to the pros, check out equipment and learn something,” Makey explains.
Weekly Reeler: Movie Palaver for May 27-June 2
It’s an interesting week at the movies with Pixar’s new film Up and Sam Raimi’s “return to horror” Drag Me to Hell (wait, didn’t Night at the Museum 2 do that to me last week?) vying for our moviegoing attention. I don’t think there’s much doubt as to who is going to win this contest.