By Philip Peterson II
Special to the Turnagain Times
Throughout history there have been legends of people with a sixth sense, or an extra sense beyond the standard: sight, smell, taste, touch, and hearing. There is telekinesis, soothsaying, mind reading, or any of the myriad of cool talents out of Marvel Comics. In each story the added sense/talent gives these people a competitive edge in the world. But in these stories the new sense is neither earned nor learned, it simply presents itself. The question arises, “is it possible to gradually develop an extra sense out of necessity because five just can’t get the job done?”
Skiing in the Chugach Mountains can be challenging for many reasons, but in my opinion flat light is at the top of the list. Flat light is caused by light being diffused through the clouds and then being reflected and refracted by the snow crystals eliminating shadow. It gives the sensation of skiing in a glass of milk or being trapped inside a ping pong ball. We’ve all experienced the repercussions of flat light: accidentally turning up-hill into the mountain, arms flailing in vertigo, falling off of cat tracks, launching off of invisible booters, or the classic, skiing directly into a snow bank. New skiers to these mountains are often crippled by the near total lack of contrast. Experienced Chugach skiers will spend major money on special goggle lenses hoping for even a slight improvement in depth perception. It can be difficult but we still go, and over time things begin to change.
For some it happens in weeks, for others in years, but in that time, one’s opinion of the severity of flat light seems to change. Somehow we are able to glean a greater awareness of our surroundings despite the lack of topographical definition. Perhaps it is our eyes becoming more attuned to the poor lighting conditions. Maybe it is some of our other senses compensating. The faint sound of a pint being poured, or the hoppy bouquet of an IPA in the Sitzmark enables you to reorient yourself to the pull of gravity and find the fall line. Or maybe it isn’t an adjustment in your standard senses, but rather a new sense emerging in a time of need. I believe that the Chugach Mountains may tap into our brains and awaken a latent adaptation, the ability to make unconscious calculations of elevation and terrain change. This sixth sense creates an improved awareness of spatial orientation and snow quality… a “Powder-sense.”
The more time one spends skiing and riding in these mountains, the more pronounced the Powder-sense becomes. Soon you are diving into the white room, smiling and laughing, making great powder turns past people vomiting from vertigo. It is easier to carry more speed and move from short, defensive, swing turns to long radius, rock-star turns.
Does the Powder-sense benefit us off the mountain, turning our skiers into super-human vigilantes of justice? The Turnagain area certainly does have a relatively low crime rate, but I haven’t personally run across any costumed figures outside of the bar...I guess time will tell on this one.
To wrap it up I’ll leave you with a different take on extra-sensory perception from Girdwood resident, Matt Wedeking, “E.S.P., yah I love that kind of beer.”
Photo: Phillip Petersen/Turnagain Times
Damon Schmidt works on developing his “Powder-Sense” on the NorFace of Alyeska.
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| By Lana Johnson Special to the Turnagain Times Frances Clark adopted the struggling Alyeska Ski Corp. in 1957 as her special project. When efforts to sell stock in the new corporation proved futile, she made two lengthy trips Outside, traveling coast to coast on her own money to talk with everyone who was anyone in the world of skiing. |
By State Sen. Con Bunde
Special to the Turnagain Times
With the oil tax special session behind us, we have all been busy wrapping up our office duties, attending committee meetings and other functions before heading down to Juneau for the regular session. This past month the Legislative Ethics Committee met (of which I am a member) and took up several issues in response to the many questions being forwarded to the ethics office as a result of our new reform bill passed last session. I suspect that we will be seeing a wave of inquiries into the coming months as we all try and sort out the ramifications of the new guidelines the Legislature has adopted.
I also traveled to Fairbanks with the Committee on Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Task Force where we held public hearings on this important and serious issue facing the state and our families. Alaska still remains number one in the nation as the state with the highest sexual assault rate.
By Dec. 21, for the most part, my office will have been packed up and on its way to Juneau. To contact me in Juneau after Jan. 10, call 1-800-892-4843, or 907-465-4843.
We in the Legislature have many challenges awaiting us as we begin the next session that is 30 days shorter than our previous sessions as a result of the recent initiative. It will definitely be interesting to see how the process will play out within these new parameters. Please keep in touch with me via email with your concerns and comments as we consider the legislation before us. Keep in mind that we will be addressing our budgets early on with the shortened session.
For me, one of my main priorities will be advocating for a fiscal plan that saves some of the expected increase in revenues for future years.
And if you will be visiting Juneau this session, please remember to schedule an appointment in advance so we know when you are coming!
Below, I have included a notice from the Division of Elections regarding its mission to update its voter registration rolls. With an election year just around the corner, it’s a good idea to check your registration data for accuracy.
I wish you all a Happy New Year.
Let me start by wishing all the readers of the Turnagain times a prosperous and healthy New Year. 2007 was a rewarding yet challenging year for me. I took over as acting publisher following the death of my good friend and former publisher, Ken Osuna, on Nov. 30, 2006. It took some time to adapt to the full-time responsibility of running a newspaper. The first few months were a sharp learning curve, but eventually I started to feel comfortable and the transition became smoother.
I must especially thank the advertisers for their patience and commitment to the newspaper. Not one client wavered from their support during that time, and, in fact, many more advertisers have invested their hard earned dollars into the paper.
I have strived to improve newspaper with the help of my Production Director Leslie Adams. Leslie came aboard shortly after Ken Osuna’s passing, and she has brought new ideas to the layout and created a fresh look to the paper. On top of all that, she puts up with me on a weekly basis, not an easy thing to do during deadline, and she does so with a smile.
I would also like to thank my web designer Rick Miller, who has been with the newspaper since its inception 10 years ago. He has worked diligently to make sure the online version of the paper is on time every week and ready to be read. Our latest addition to the website has been a years worth of stories archived and readily available to readers for free. Many people asked for past issues online, so we accommodated their request. We will continue to add to the archives, so you can always find past stories.
And finally, I’d like to acknowledge the work of all the writers who submit their articles and provide a diversity of voices and stories to the paper. I’d especially like to thank Fayrene Sherritt, my Hope Correspondent, who never misses an issue and has written extensively about Hope since we started the paper.
And I’d like to thank my Cooper Landing Correspondent Mona Painter. I approached her this past year to cover news in Cooper Landing because I felt it was a community overlooked by larger newspapers. She agreed and provides a valuable voice to an area that is very similar to the communities we serve along the Turnagain Arm. We are connected not only by the same road system, but economically, and through similar local and regional issues.
So enjoy your paper, and I look forward to serving you in the upcoming year.
Sincerely,
Ken Smith
Publisher Turnagain Times