Howdy, howdy

Did you each have a lovely 4th of July? I still anxious to hear the stories of y’alls summers when I return. As for my 4th, it was spent climbing on a glacier and witnessing the absolute madness of Mount Marathon. Most 3 mile races aren’t anything to write home about, unless it includes a 3000 ft ascent, followed by a suicidal 3000 ft descent, aka death fall. Crazy, crazy Alaskans. No wonder they talk so much about forming their own country, even more than you Texas!

The Short

• I climbed a glacier this 4th of July.
• Alaskan are learning how to play true football, Texan style
• I’ll be in Fairbanks for a week helping with T3 Leadership Training

Alaska Facts – Howitzers, Baseball, and Combat fishing

• Every winter the government strategically shoots down the mountain snow at various sections along the highways in Alaska. The weapon? A Howitzer.
• In town boasts an Alaska League baseball team called the Peninsula Oiler. On Sunday we watched the Oilers beat the Anchorage Glacier Pilots 7-6, but the Glacier Pilots won the award fo 2nd best team name ever, barely losing to the Springfield/Ozark Mountain Ducks.
• The Oilers are much more than Alaksa’s version of the Sandlot. Former players include World Series MVP Dave Winfield, John Olerud, Rich Aurillea, JT Snow, JD Drew, and Jeff Cirilo. Not bad, especially considering the season runs from June – August.
• Tourism has been down significantly this year because of the rise in gas prices. Usually the town is filled RVs and it’s not even appropriate to call fishing on the Kenai river recreational. Combat fishing is more apt. Now, it makes sense why they count those fish hooks in the hospital.

Related posts:

1. The Last Frontier #1
2. The Last Frontier #8
3. The Last Frontier #3
4. The Last Frontier #2
5. The Last Frontier #7