News & Opinion About Huletts Landing, N.Y.
“Freedom is an indivisible word. If we want to enjoy it and fight for it, we must be prepared to extend it to everyone—whether they are rich or poor, whether they agree with us or not; no matter what their race or the color of their skin.”
Wendell Willkie
I took this picture of a cardinal within the last 10 days and I didn’t think it came out. However, when I was going through my camera, I got an OK shot after all. What caught my eye was how red it was.
The more significant point to consider? Why has it not flown south?
To read more about the northern cardinal, look here.
Here’s to a Happy New Year with some resolution ideas:
To your enemy, forgiveness.
To an opponent, tolerance.
To a friend, your heart.
To a customer, service.
To all, charity.
To every child, a good example.
To yourself, respect.— Oren Arnold
This week I had the great pleasure of interviewing Erin Hamlin, who has pre-qualified for the 2010 Olympic Games in Vancouver by virtue of winning the 2009 World Championship in Luge.
Erin hails from Remsen, N.Y. which is located near the western edge of the Adirondack Park. She is an impressive individual who we’ll be watching and rooting for as she competes in Vancouver in 2010.
Hamlin is headed to her second Winter Olympics after being the Gold medalist at the 41st World Championships in Luge. This will be her second Olympic berth, after finishing 12th in the 2006 Olympics in Torino, Italy.
She was in NY city with the USA luge team appearing on the Today Show after returning from Lillehammer, Norway, site of the 1994 Winter Olympics. Hamlin added a World Cup medal to her collection, winning the bronze on December 13th in Lillehammer.
Erin to begin, congratulations on your selection to the U.S. Olympic team. It is an honor to be able to interview you. The Luge is a not your ordinary sport. Can you tell us how you got interested in it and what it is like to be flying down the track flat on your back?
I didn’t really know much about the sport at all when I first started. USA Luge does a recruitment tour around the US every summer and I attended a clinic in Syracuse New York. From there I was invited to Lake Placid where I learned all the basics of how to slide and got to go down the track for the first time. It was a lot of fun and once they pulled me into the program my competitive side took over and I just wanted to go far in the sport and do well. Going down the track is an adrenaline rush you can’t get from anything else. Like a roller coaster (but faster!) and you are in control. It can be very challenging sometimes, but that makes it more satisfying when you make it down really well, really fast, and you know you have done well.
Erin, the Huletts Current has a number of young readers. Could you tell them what your daily training routine is like and how you managed training while you were in school?
During the off season (April-September) I spend at least 3 days a week in the weight room, focusing mainly on core and upper body strength work along with a variety of Olympic lifting (cleans, dead lift, jerk, snatch). On other days I do agility, medicine ball, and physio ball workouts, focusing mainly on balance, quickness and coordination. At least 2-3 hours a day is spent on strength and agility training with another 2 hours usually spent on sports specific exercises, including training on my start (we have an indoor refrigerated facility with a part of a luge track inside to practice on).
During the sliding season (October-March, roughly) we slide for at least 2 hours every day, sometimes two 2-hour sessions. It varies between training weeks and weeks that I race. I also continue to weight train three days a week, and the team usually plays some sort of game (volleyball, soccer, bandi-a form of floor hockey), or any other type of physical activity we can, often times agility workouts, on the days we are not in the weight room. Sliding and racing really takes the energy out of us, so the level of intensity of weight training sometimes drops a little bit during the racing season.
When I was still in high school I was very lucky to have very understanding and supportive teachers and staff members behind me. I managed to collect as much work as I could ahead of time and bring it along (we usually had a tutor with us on the junior team) and send it back as I finished it. There was always a little catch up to do at the end of the season when I would come back to school, and it was a lot of hard work. Being disciplined enough at 16 years old to do your homework with nobody to tell you to do it is sometimes a huge hurdle to get over!
You’re headed down the track at some very fast speeds. Can you tell our readers a little bit about the protection you wear in the event of a crash?
We don’t wear any extra padding actually. A helmet made out of kevlar (so its pretty light) and a shield over our face is the only real protection. Of course our entire bodies are covered, but with nothing that will help you out when you crash going 90mph! A spandex-like suit, small racing shoes that are actually made to keep your feet in a pointed position, gloves with spikes on the fingertips, and a layer of long underwear are the only things between my skin and the ice.
For our readers who are unfamiliar with the Luge, can you tell us what goes through your mind as you prepare for your run and what you are trying to do as you steer through the course? I know the idea is to get to the bottom in the fastest time but can you explain the strategy of accomplishing that?
On every track there is an idea ‘line’ to get down the smoothest and fastest. Our goal is to drive our sleds within one inch of that line the whole way down, at speeds around 90+ mph, while being completely relaxed at the same time. We have complete control over the sled the entire time, steering with our feet/legs, shoulders/body weight, and hands, which most people don’t know at first glance. So really when preparing for a run, it is best to focus on exactly what you have to do, but not think too hard. You have to be able to react quickly, because you are going so fast, but being relaxed is very important as well so I always try to not think too much in order to avoid psyching myself out, or making myself nervous. The sport is so much fun, so it’s always important to just chill and have a good time.
You train at the Olympic training center in Lake Placid. This may be a funny question but can people witness the Luge training there during the summer? If so, does the track have ice on it in the summer also? If not, how does it work?
We do most of our training at the training center yes, but most of it is not actual sliding. Because there is no ice, we spend our summers in the weight room, gymnasium, and an indoor facility we have in Lake Placid where we can practice our start. It is the very beginning piece of a track that is refrigerated year round. Our start is very important; it’s the only time during a luge run where we can propel ourselves down the track so it is crucial to our success. We do put wheels on our sleds and train on the track when is concrete just to have the feeling of sliding, even though it a little bit different. That you can probably come watch, since they have tours and wheeled bobsled rides at the track all summer. You can also tour both the Olympic Training Center and the Luge facility.
Finally, the readers of the Huletts Current will be rooting for you to accomplish your Olympic dreams in Vancouver in 2010. Please know that you have lots of friends in the Adirondacks who will be following your quest.
(Big Smile) I’ll be giving it my all!
To see a slideshow of Erin in action, check out the USA Luge site.
The Lake Champlain Bridge between Crown Point, NY and Addison, Vermont was demolished this morning. Here is the video.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=URYzzGlcSKU
With so many media outlets declaring their top new stories for 2009, the Huletts Current continues the practice by naming the top story for Huletts Landing during the past year.
The Huletts Current pick for the top story of 2009 was the dredging and removal of the delta that had formed at the mouth of Foster Brook over many years. This major project, which was years in the making, was not only a significant investment in the environment, but was also a commitment to life and the enjoyment of Lake George. We name it “Top Story of Huletts 2009” and congratulate all those who were part of this great undertaking.
Contractor Don Kingsley (red shirt, second from left) stands with his son-in-law, Jeff (far left), son, Don (with yellow shirt), and Randy Rath, Project Manager for the Lake George Association (far right). The Lake George Association, the Town of Dresden and countless concerned citizens worked for many years to make the dredging of Foster Brook a reality.
Huletts had a few big stories this past year. The grand opening of the new and improved Huletts Casino and the Dresden town election were two of the biggest news items in our community. There were other newsworthy items that could be included also. However, the single biggest story was the completion of the dredging of Foster Brook. This project was years in the making, but in 2009 it finally happened.
For many years, erosion and severe storms had formed a delta at the mouth of Foster Brook as it entered Lake George. The project needed numerous permits from various state agencies not only for the work to be done in Lake George but also alongside the banks of Foster Brook. Approximately 3 years ago, work was completed by the Town of Dresden and the Lake George Association on a catch basin in Foster Brook and alongside the stream’s banks. However, the clogged mouth prevented the situation from improving.
Many obstacles were encountered along the way to finally completing the project this year, but they were overcome by the hard-work of many who were also sensitive to preserving and protecting the environment. So to the many true stewards of the environment, including the Lake George Association, the Town of Dresden, and the countless citizens and community members who worked to bring this project to completion in 2009, the Huletts Current recognizes your contribution to the “Landing” by naming the dredging and removal of the delta at the mouth of Foster Brook as the “Top Story of Huletts 2009”. Teamwork and citizen participation won out!
Before
After
“The Christian story is precisely the story of one grand miracle, the Christian assertion being that what is beyond all space and time, what is uncreated, eternal came into nature, into human nature, descended into His own universe, and rose again, brining nature up with Him. It is precisely one great miracle.”
from C.S. Lewis’ God in the Dock,
“The Grand Miracle”.
Madonna & Child hanging over the entrance of the Chapel of the Assumption.
Bolton’s fire/rescue boat at dock this past summer. Many fire departments around the lake have fire/rescue boats in the event of an emergency.
While it may be winter, here is something to think about. Huletts Landing has numerous miles of shoreline on Lake George, with many waterfront homes difficult to get to. One piece of equipment that would be helpful in the event of a fire on the lake would be our own fire/rescue boat. The number of homes along town’s lakeshore, and the growing needs for water protection for recreational boaters, are the essential reasons why a fire/rescue boat should be considered.
Some of the homes in Huletts are quite difficult to reach by land and in many cases it would be quicker to bring a boat around the lakeside of a house in the event of a fire.
Additionally, unlike the ability for victims to run from a burning building, those fleeing a burning boat can quickly fall victim to drowning and fatigue until they are safely on board a vessel.
The town of Hague purchased a fire/rescue boat last year and while it is certainly an extra precaution, in a town such as ours, it is certainly something worth considering.
Here is a video of a fireboat in action that I found on YouTube.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bZsW3IPeQA
Who Are The Most Influential People in Adirondack History?
John Warren at the Adirondack Almanack has a great idea for a list.
End of Stimulus Means Schools Must Cut
See how much funding may be lost by the Whitehall school with an end to stimulus funding in the Capitol Confidential blog.
Bolton to Get Started on Wastewater Upgrade
The Post Star reports on how technological advances can clean the environment without taking people’s property rights away.
The Winter Solstice occurs exactly when the earth’s axial tilt is farthest away from the sun at its maximum of 23° 26′. Though the Winter Solstice lasts an instant in time, the term is also used colloquially to refer to the day on which it occurs. For most people in the high latitudes this is commonly known as the shortest day and the sun’s daily maximum position in the sky is the lowest. The seasonal significance of the Winter Solstice is in the reversal of the gradual lengthening of nights and shortening of days.
In other words, it only gets warmer and lighter from this point forward!
Ground Broken on Bolton Pier
Even though it’s a bit cold outside, work started this week on improving the pier in Bolton Landing. The renovation will include 10 more dock spaces. Read about it in the Post Star.
Why Can’t The Cell Phone Companies All Get Along? (and share a tower)
The Capitol Confidential Blog has a great picture of a cell phone tower that looks like a tree and some great commentary on cell phone towers in the Adirondacks. I agree with the Adirondack Council on this one. There’s no reason why numerous carriers can’t share one pole.
Meeting Matters: Washington County Board of Supervisors
The Post Star reports on garbage stickers, tourism and the Sheriff from the Washington County Board of Supervisors.
“The poulterers’ shops were still half open, and the fruiterers’ were radiant in their glory. There were great, round, pot-bellied baskets of chestnuts, shaped like the waistcoats of jolly old gentlemen, lolling at the doors, and tumbling out into the street in their apoplectic opulence. There were ruddy, brown-faced, broad-girthed Spanish Onions, shining in the fatness of their growth like Spanish Friars, and winking from their shelves in wanton slyness at the girls as they went by, and glanced demurely at the hung-up mistletoe. There were pears and apples, clustered high in blooming pyramids; there were bunches of grapes, made, in the shopkeepers’ benevolence to dangle from conspicuous hooks, that people’s mouths might water gratis as they passed; there were piles of filberts, mossy and brown, recalling, in their fragrance, ancient walks among the woods, and pleasant shufflings ankle deep through withered leaves; there were Norfolk Biffins, squab and swarthy, setting off the yellow of the oranges and lemons, and, in the great compactness of their juicy persons, urgently entreating and beseeching to be carried home in paper bags and eaten after dinner.”
Charles Dickens
A Christmas Carol
Things have be quiet lately, which made me think of this clip from the 1966 Batman movie.
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HoUpF7rvfnk
The funny thing is when I was young, I took this show so seriously but when you watch it as an adult you get such a different perspective.
At least Batman was looking out for the people in the bar!