Opinion Columns – The Durango Herald

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When will Black history become part of American history?

It’s February – the month we celebrate the achievements and history of Black Americans. You can be sure we’ll hear about the brave souls that risked or even gave their lives to achieve right...

DATE: Feb 5, 2022 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Guess who has outsized clout on public lands?

This may be a surprising story. It begins with a working group trying to save the last native bighorn sheep of Idaho’s and Wyoming’s Teton Range. Last fall, it reached agreement after years ...

DATE: Jan 24, 2022 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Utah courts Outdoor Retailer show while destroying public lands

A new video released by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox argues the big, semi-annual trade show called Outdoor Retailer should come back to Salt Lake City. This is despite opposition from leading brand...

DATE: Jan 21, 2022 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Don’t fall for crime fearmongering; focus on supporting law enforcement

It’s a new year with a new election cycle, and predictably we’re seeing crime-rate hyperbole from the political right. It’s an old ploy; don’t fall for it. This fearmongering usually includ...

DATE: Jan 19, 2022 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Native American mascot ban causes needless harm to two small schools

Like a demolition team swinging a sledgehammer, legislators intent on purging Native American mascots from Colorado schools smashed their opposition with little consideration of the wreckage...

DATE: Jan 8, 2022 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Rep. Boebert is wrong on forest management policy

Like Rep. Lauren Boebert and all Coloradans, I want fewer forest fires and cleaner air. But her focus on beetle-killed timber is a smoke screen for what her “Fix our Forests” bill really doe...

DATE: Jan 7, 2022 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Colorado’s 3 big issues in 2022: Public safety, affordability, education

Colorado is at a crossroads. Crime is up, costs are up and there is uncertainty in our education system. How we respond to these challenges will have a long-term impact on the overall trajec...

DATE: Jan 2, 2022 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Are local governments spending wisely?

The city of Durango and La Plata County are concluding their budget processes for 2022 and both governments find themselves with a lot of money. The city is starting 2022 with $79 million i...

DATE: Jan 1, 2022 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

The perplexity of a useless boat ramp at Lake Powell

As the sun slipped behind the canyon wall two weeks ago, I lingered at the bottom of a concrete boat ramp just outside Page, Arizona. I was there to study the disappearing Lake Powell. We ex...

DATE: Dec 31, 2021 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Winter solstice: For millennia, cultures have celebrated the return of the light

The passage tomb at Newgrange in Ireland may be the most impressive winter solstice monument on Earth. Constructed about 5,200 years ago, before the Egyptian pyramids and even Stonehenge, t...

DATE: Dec 27, 2021 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Costa Rica has a law to make men responsible for their children

A chance encounter in a parking lot gave me the idea for this month’s essay. “Why not make a man responsible for the cost of raising any child he fathers?” “That’s a great idea!” I said, the...

DATE: Dec 26, 2021 | CATEGORY: Population Matters

Alternatives to building bigger jails aren’t a partisan issue

If you know someone is a Republican or Democrat, then you might assume you know exactly where they stand on whether local jails need to be expanded. But if recent experience in the rural, so...

DATE: Dec 24, 2021 | CATEGORY: Guest Columns

Fort Lewis College football takes on Arizona ChristianFLC drops first game of 2022, 52-12

FLC drops first game of 2022, 52-12

Pride parade and festival

Photos: Family fun at the La Plata County Fair

La Plata County Fair is off and running

La Plata County Fair schedule of eventsThursday8:30 a.m.: Judging 4-H/FFA breeding swine, market swine. 9 a.m.-8 p.m.: Exhibits open to the public.9 a.m.: Judging open class home economics, horticulture, floriculture, creative arts.9 a.m.: Judging 4-H/FFA and open class fleeces.9 a.m.: 4-H poultry judging followed by open class.1 p.m.: Judging 4-H/FFA goat show, all classes followed by open class goat.5 p.m.: Fair Royalty speeches and modeling.7 p.m.: Talent contest, patio.7 p.m.: Livestock verification swine, poultry, goat, general project cards due.

Friday9 a.m.-8 p.m.: Exhibits open to the public.9 a.m.: Judging 4-H/FFA rabbits.10 a.m.: 4-H/FFA breeding beef, beef showmanship.1 p.m.: 4-H/FFA market beef, grand champion and reserve grand champion market beef, champion selection.2 p.m.: Dairy cattle, all classes.3:15 p.m.: Pee wee showmanship.4 p.m.: 4-H/FFA livestock round robin, all-around showmanship.7 p.m.: Asleep at the Wheel concert.7 p.m.: Livestock sale verification rabbit and beef cards due.

Saturday9 a.m.-6:30 p.m.: Exhibits open to the public. 9 a.m.: 4-H dog show.9 a.m.: Judging open class beef all classes.10 a.m.: Rooster crowing contest.10 a.m.: FFA showmanship.11 a.m.: Open class dairy cattle, all classes.12 p.m.: Demolition Derby.12-4 p.m.: Community 4-H barbecue cook off (senior center lawn).2 p.m.: Rabbit costume contest.2 p.m.: Poultry costume contest.5 p.m.: Silver steaks, silver loin and silver chop award presentation.5:45 p.m.: Fair Royalty crowning.6 p.m.: Junior livestock sale pavilion.9 p.m.-midnight: Fair family dance.

Sunday8 a.m.: Cowboy church. 8 a.m.: Carcass animals loaded.9 a.m.- 2 p.m.: Exhibits open to the public.1:30 p.m.: 4-H/FFA Catch-It contest.2-3 p.m.: Payment of premiums. 2-3 p.m.: Exhibits released in all departments. 2-5 p.m.: Booths taken down.2-5 p.m.: Poultry and rabbit exhibits released.2 p.m.: Animals released.Beer garden is open Thursday through Saturday.

La Plata County Fair schedule of events Thursday 8:30 a.m.: Judging 4-H/FFA breeding s...

Patriotic drone show unfolds above Durango’s night skyAbout 1,200 people watched production from city Transit Center

One hundred forty drones took to the skies above Greenmount Cemetery at 10 p.m. sharp Saturday in a glowing and patriotic spectacle featuring vibrant images colored red, white and blue against the black backdrop of night.About 1,200 people gathered Saturday at the Durango Transit Center to watch the city’s premiere drone show produced by Verge Aero after a street dance and band performance by McCurry Trio and Desert Child for Independence Day celebrations.Spectators were treated to drone depictions of the American flag, star patterns, a soaring bald eagle and a homage to the city with drones flying in formation to spell out “Durango” to close out the street dance that started at 6 p.m. Across the valley from Greenmount Cemetery, the headlights of cars shined from Rim Drive near Fort Lewis College where more spectators watched.

Ellen Babers, Durango community events administrator, said the show went well. She heard “Ooh’s” and “ah’s” from the crowd when the drones transitioned from one image to another.She said a segment that consisted of stars rotating at various intervals, shrinking into smaller stars before expanding into the shape of a larger star, appeared to be a crowd favorite.“People really liked the Durango part,” she said. “When it spelled out Durango, people seemed surprised. Like, ‘Oh, this isn’t just a generic show, this is about us.’”Other images included an outline of the continental United States, the letters “USA,” and a spinning globe shape that gave the drone show a 3D feel.

The drones were laid out earlier in the evening in a square grid, with each drone placed 4 feet apart. Peter Smiatek, pilot and designer of the drone show, worked with a crew of about six people, including volunteers. Saturday evening at Greenmount Cemetery where the drones launched and landed, Peter Smiatek, pilot and designer with Verge Aero, and his crew of about six people, including volunteers, had laid all the drones out on the grass in a square grid. Each drone was placed four feet apart. Smiatek synced the drones to a GPS and radio tower in preparation for the evening’s show. Six minutes before takeoff, a deer wandered straight past the drone grid, narrowly avoiding stepping on them.“That could have been a disaster,” Smiatek said as his crew scanned the nearby area with flashlights. No other deer were visible.Two minutes before takeoff, the crew’s portable generator shut off – out of gas.

“We have double secure power,” he said. “The generator fell off two minutes before the show started. It’s like Murphy’s law, anything that could happen will happen. So it’s best to be prepared.”During prep, the crew ran several tests with the drones. The drones shot up 3 to 4 meters, hovered for about one second and then dropped back to their designated grid space on the grass.

Smiatek worked from a makeshift command station where his laptop and transmission tower were perched.“The base station is the heart of the show,” he said. “It’s a computer and it’s a distribution system connected to radios and an antenna. And that’s it, basically. Very flexible and a good system.”Chris Lutts, vice president of sales at Verge Aero, said he thinks Durangoans enjoyed the performance. From Greenmount Cemetery, he could hear the cheers and whistles of the audience at the Durango Transit Center.“The people we’ve been working with have been great,” he said. “Clearly, the city enjoyed it, so that’s awesome. That’s why we do this. It’s no different than any other entertainment, man. You love that feedback. It’s validation that what you’re doing is something that people really like.”cburney@durangoherald.com