Category Archives: Understanding Utah

Utah’s new flag unfurled despite a ‘Heads, we win. Tails, you lose.’ petition

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Utah's new state flag waves in the breeze next to the U.S. flag and a flag for Real Salt Lake at America First Field in Sandy, Utah, on Wednesday, June 7, 2023.

Utah’s new state flag waves in the breeze next to the U.S. flag and a flag for Real Salt Lake at America First Field in Sandy, Utah, on Wednesday, June 7, 2023.

Utah’s flag officially got an upgrade this month and I couldn’t be happier. The new banner features a large, golden beehive in a blue hexagon over three horizontal stripes representing the state’s red rocks, white mountains and blue skies. It succeeds the old design, which was primarily the state’s seal on a blue background — an approach emulated by about 23 other states. More on that later.

The new design had to survive a challenge from a relatively small group of unhappy residents displeased that the old design was being demoted (but not eliminated). Despite the group’s claims of erasure, the old flag remains the state’s historic flag and people can fly whichever flag they choose. Additionally, the state seal that the old flag is based on remains as-is.

The residents against the new flag twice attempted to gather enough signatures to force a vote, but fell considerably short of their goal both times. While I appreciate their democratic efforts, I felt the proposal would undo a compromise to keep both flags in favor of solely the older design. Hence why I called the proposal from Restore Utah’s Flag as “Heads, we win. Tails, you lose.”

The old flag would have survived as a state symbol no matter what, so they didn’t really have anything to lose:

  • Had the measure succeeded, the old flag would’ve been the sole flag.
  • Had the measure failed, the old flag remains an official flag in addition to the new design.

Truly a win-win for supporters of the old flag. Not so much for everyone else.

Had the proposal passed, the state would’ve lost out on what is arguably a better way to represent the state (in flag form).

With that said, the new flag probably wouldn’t have entirely gone away had the Restore Utah’s Flag effort succeeded and voters had excised the new banner as an official state symbol. Even before the new banner officially became the state flag this month, the design was becoming widely adopted. I’m fairly sure that the design would’ve thrived even without the state’s imprimatur.

My homage to the new Utah state flag depicts a curling stone as a beehive in a blue hexagon. It's part of a variation of the new logo of the Oval Curling Club.

My homage to the new Utah state flag depicts a curling stone as a beehive in a blue hexagon. It’s part of a variation of the new logo of the Oval Curling Club.

After the Utah Legislature approved the new design last year, I began thinking about ways to incorporate the banner in the team attire of the Oval Curling Club. Many sports uniforms feature the flag of the state or province they hail from (think of Baltimore Ravens and their embrace of the Maryland state flag in their logos).

My curling club is undergoing a rebranding and I took the opportunity to design a logo that incorporated the new Utah flag. I also designed a variation that depicted a curling stone as a beehive in the blue hexagon. I’ll be forthright here and note that the club’s members seem to prefer the original beehive version over the curling stone beehive.

I was honored when the club members voted for the designs to be the new logos for the club (more on that in a future blog post).

I wouldn’t have jumped at the opportunity to incorporate the old flag into the club’s logo or uniforms. At most, it could’ve been used as a shoulder patch.

Challenging the new standard

Over the past year or so, it’s been interesting to see the arguments about why the new flag was a harbinger of the end of civilization and the only way to stave off this chaos was to have the old flag be the only official state flag. Every few days, I would search Twitter for “Utah flag” to keep up on the hyperbole.

Defenders of the old flag touted the difficulty in adjusting the design for other purposes as a feature, not a defect. They lamented that people jumped on the opportunity to remix the new flag design for fun or to make a point.

It has been popular since the new design was introduced last year to replace the beehive with another symbol, like a popular whale sculpture on display in a Salt Lake City roundabout. Others changed the flag colors to represent LGBTQ+ identities, which generated ire (although it must be pointed out that people could also put the old flag over a rainbow background or the like, but most never really bothered to before).

Expressing outrage at the possibility of a symbol being embraced and remixed by non-traditional groups was one of the tactics frequently deployed by proponents of the old flag. Other posts on social media asserted that the new flag (approved by the heavily Republican Legislature) was somehow Marxist or an attempt to erase history — which doesn’t make sense when the old flag still has official status.

Another argument was against the $500,000 cost for the new flag proposal (which has already been spent, to the best of my knowledge). It was primarily for outreach efforts — most of the flag replacement costs weren’t included in this figure because groups would simply get a banner with the new design when their old flags needed to be swapped out due to wear and tear.

A half million is a hefty sum for you or me, but it’s 0.0017% of the state’s $29.4 billion annual budget or about 14 cents per Utahn.

Speaking of costs, many heritage flag opponents ignored or justified the cost of running the petition for a public vote. Setting aside all the money and effort that the signature gathered expended, county agencies needed to spend money to verify petitions (which admittedly is part of their jobs).

Had a special election been called as it would’ve been under the original effort, the cost of that would’ve been in the millions (which is more than a half million). Spending millions to fight a half-million dollar expenditure seems like the textbook definition of cutting off one’s nose to spite one’s face.

Ultimately, I don’t have any reason to doubt the sincerity of the heritage flag proponents, but many of the arguments put forward seemed breathlessly disingenuous.

At the same time, some of the critiques of the new flag’s design seemed valid — appreciating design can be largely subjective despite efforts by flag enthusiasts to apply some objective guidelines (which some then try to apply far too rigidly). It’s kind of funny when some call the new flag as being overly corporate — many big corporations are deemphasizing logos in favor of quirky wordmarks.

Even if the new flag isn’t perfect, it certainly seems like an improvement.

The ol’ SOB (seal on a bedsheet)

Find the Utah flag among the state flags displayed in the warm room of the former Southern California Curling Center in Vernon, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2022.

Find the Utah flag among the state flags displayed in the warm room of the former Southern California Curling Center in Vernon, Calif., on Thursday, Jan. 20, 2022.

Prior to the current flag fervor, I didn’t give too much thought to Utah’s flag. It was always a bit ho-hum and I never owned a copy of it. I did buy one once — as part of a fundraiser for the now-defunct Southern California Curling Center in Vernon, California.

The curling center had asked people to buy a flag to represent their state, nation or province in the new facility. I hesitated making the purchase — I didn’t particularly care for the flag, but I ultimately contributed because I wanted to ensure that Utah was represented at the unique sport facility just south of downtown Los Angeles. I was also supposed to get a curling center nametag with my name and the flag, but the facility closed before that came to pass.

At the time I was making the donation in 2021, there was buzz about changing Utah’s flag. There was a flag to commemorate the 125th anniversary of Utah’s statehood, but I was ambivalent about that design too — the banner was divided into red, white and blue quadrants that resembled an “X” underneath a circle featuring the beehive. It just didn’t work for me.

In any case, I donated for the old Utah flag and I told myself I would be happy to buy a new flag to replace it whenever that came to pass.

When I finally made my way to Southern California to visit the curling center in January 2022, I tried to spot Utah’s flag on the giant wall with all the flags. It took me quite a while to locate it, even after I figured out that the state flags were displayed alphabetically.

My inability to find Utah’s flag in the pack of U.S. flags underscored one of the biggest complaints of the historic flag — as a symbol that should clearly identify the state it represents, the Utah seal on a blue background didn’t do a very good job.

There’s so much meaning in the old flag – like HATU and 6981!

The central part of Utah's historic flag is shown backwards.

The central part of Utah’s historic flag is shown backwards.

Defenders of the historic flag often like to point out all of the symbolism in the design, such as a bald eagle, American flags, bees about the beehive and sego lily flowers (which apparently helped stave off hunger during the state’s pioneer era).

All of these symbols are well and good (and survive on the state seal), but it’s extremely hard to appreciate the symbology when you’re looking at a flag a hundred feet away. At such a distance, it’s easy to miss details — such as a mistake on the placement of the year Mormon settlers first arrived.

That error wasn’t officially fixed until 2011, or 89 years after the goof was first committed (basically the year 1847 was supposed to be on the shield, but the original text of the law was easy to misinterpret and the year was placed below the shield to appear as if it were behind it).

Also, writing on a flag is generally considered to be a bad idea (although there are always exceptions to this guidance, like California’s flag). Utah’s historic flag is an excellent example of this, as it will be seen as backwards about 50% of the time when it’s on a flagpole.

As much as one might draw meaning from the words “Utah” and “Industry” and the years 1847 and 1896, what meaning can be gleaned from “Hatu” or “Yrtsudni”?

Some historic flag defenders will point out that it doesn’t matter that people can’t pick out Utah’s blue flag among dozens of other blue flags — in Utah, it will likely be the only blue flag flying. I suppose that consideration may also apply to all the symbolism on the flag — it doesn’t matter if few people can see it well enough to appreciate the intricate details, it’s enough to just know it’s there.

At the same time, is it fair to ask the general public to automatically know, understand and appreciate all the old flag’s intricate symbols when they’re difficult to make out at a distance?

Demanding a flag plebiscite when it had never been done before

Wrapping things up, I found it fascinating to see some demand a public vote on the new flag. I wasn’t necessarily opposed to the idea (despite the format heavily favoring the heritage flag), but insisting that the vote was absolutely necessary for a state symbol seemed to be a bit too much.

Some heritage flag supporters asserted that a public vote had been promised, but that isn’t my recollection of the process.

The state flag has been changed repeatedly over 121 years. (Utah didn’t really have a state flag for the first quarter-century of statehood, and early flags were typically one-offs until around 1921, according to a very thorough Deseret News article on the history of the state flag.)

There was never a public vote on any of the changes.

Also, Utah has 28 or so official state symbols. To the best of my knowledge, there has never been a plebiscite on any of them. As a curler, I demand a recount on making skiing and snowboarding the official state winter sports.

Many of the state’s symbols were adopted by the Legislature when school groups appealed to them to make the change (often as part of a lesson on how laws are passed at the state level).

In that regard, the new state flag has also provided a civics lesson — even if some people weren’t exactly civil about it. Having two state flags that residents can choose to fly was probably the best outcome of this process.

Both will be likely used more often than many of Utah’s other symbols, including the official state tartan.

Hoist with my own petard … on ongoing series

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The karaoke crowd at Paxton Pub in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024.

The karaoke crowd at Paxton Pub in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Feb. 10, 2024.

When I conduct an interview for my job, I generally use courtesy titles such as mister or miss unless the subject tells me it’s OK to use their first name. I don’t want to be overly familiar with people unless I’ve given permission to be less formal. (That said, my stories follow Associated Press style where the courtesy titles are omitted in most situations.)

That sort of came to bite me on the rear about a month ago as I was leaving a karaoke night at Paxton Pub in Salt Lake City. While I was walking outside to my car, I said good night to a younger woman on the patio.

“Good night, sir,” she said, or something like that.

Suddenly, I felt positively ancient.

I’m not used to being called “sir.” That applies in nearly all contexts, but especially in a social situation like a karaoke night. At the same time, I must acknowledge that I’m among the older people at such events these days.

I wondered if this was a feeling that my interview subjects had. After all, I’ve been using courtesy titles while conducting interviews throughout my professional career — including when I was the younger man.

While I’ve always strived to be professional, courteous and respectful, maybe people were put off by my use of courtesy titles.

I don’t think I’m going to change my practice. I just hope that it properly conveys the respect and professionalism that I’m working toward.

And when I’m on the other side of such honorifics, I hope I have the grace to casually wave it off and politely say that it’s totally fine to call me Ryan.

My Spotify Unwrapped for 2023 is a bit odd

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With 2023 rapidly receding in the rearview mirror, it’s time to look back at the previous 12 months — or 11 months, in the case of Spotify’s 2023 Unwrapped. This is the first year that I really started using Spotify for much of my listening (in addition to BBC Sounds and the good old-fashioned over-the-air radio).

My Spotify Unwrapped has always been odd, but in past years, I could usually chalk it up to listening to a handful of songs sporadically over a year. Given that I was in the top 27% of listeners worldwide with 12,978 minutes worth of music in 2023 (and probably 14 hours of ads), I guess that Spotify may have a better finger on my listening tastes today than in years past.

And the verdict is — my listening tastes are still pretty weird. I seem to have settled on a couple of playlists and listened the heck out of them for months at a time.

My most-listened-to artist — a novelty a cappella group called The Blanks — is largely due to the fact that they’re on two separate playlists — a previous Top Songs list and a playlist I’m calling “Songs for the End.” Considering that The Blanks are primarily known for singing versions of TV theme songs and were most prominently featured on the sitcom “Scrubs” (where their most prominent performer, the late Sam Lloyd, was a recurring cast member) it’s an unusual artist to be my No. 1 of 2023. I apparently listened to the group so much, I’m in the top 0.05% of listeners to the artist.

A chart from Spotify 2023 Unwrapped shows when I listened to The Blanks, apparently my No. 1 artist of the year.

This year, Spotify provided charts mapping when I listened to each of my top five artists. While some of the artists were in pretty heavy rotation until the early summer when I switched away from a Top Songs playlist, The Blanks dipped a little in the middle of the year and then came back strong in July through September (when I created the “Songs for the End” playlist and began listening to a Top Songs playlist that didn’t feature the group as much).

‘Songs for the end’

The “Songs for the End” playlist are tunes that I thought would be nice to play at a memorial or funeral for me. Although I’m a journalist, I never had to do the Kobayashi Maru of journalism school projects — writing your own obituary.

I don’t feel particularly comfortable writing my obit today (despite winning the Nobel Peace Prize AND colonizing the Moon), but I believe that developing a playlist for a funeral is fun — memorial services need more bangers and jams. Another name I came up for the playlist is “Now THAT’S What I Call A Funeral, Vol. 7.” I’m not going to lie — I spent a few minutes trying to find a quick way to generate an album cover with that title.

As I starting adding tunes to this list, I prioritized songs that either speak of endings, would fit a spiritual or solemn moment (or tweaks such expectations), or otherwise speak to me from my past or memory. For example, I would often sing “Africa” or “It’s the End of the World as We Know it (and I Feel Fine)” to finish karaoke nights. The REM song feels a little out of place, but I’m sticking with it for now. I also opted for a cover of “Africa” that’s not as rockin’ as the Toto version.

I eventually started listening to the playlist more at work because the songs are pretty decent tunes to have on in the background while I’m trying to focus. That’s also why I started listening to BBC Radio 1 Relax a lot more over the past year (except some of the white noise programs, which are simply too distracting).

Ultimately, four out of my top five songs are from the “Songs for the End” playlist. The other song is the main theme from the Apple TV+ series “Severance,” which I watched the heck out of this year. One of the episodes is called “Defiant Jazz” — I pretty much _have_ to watch this show.

Odd conclusions

A Spotify Unwrapped graphic describing the author as a "vampire" in 2023 due to a propensity to listen to emotional, atmospheric music more than most.

A Spotify Unwrapped graphic describing the author as a “vampire” in 2023 due to a propensity to listen to emotional, atmospheric music more than most.

While Unwrapped is all in good fun, I’m not sure I agree with some of the conclusions. For example, it described me as a “vampire” because I listen to “emotional, atmospheric music more than most.”

I get that part, but I don’t necessarily make the leap between that and “vampire.” It’s especially odd because Unwrapped identified “My Top Genres” as Rock, Brass Band, Jazz, Jazz Funk and Soul. I listen to so much jazz, it’s on the list three, maybe four, times.

Maybe part of my objection is that I associate vampires musically with emo. It’s probably not fair, but I don’t necessarily feel like I fall in that category (although I also suppose that emo as a genre or vibe could be expanded to encompass many, many things). 

As I listen to music while I work, I definitely tend towards more mellow tunes to set a pleasant foundation for me to get stuff done. Over the years, I’ve been in workplaces that sometimes play rock stations on the radio. I’ve found it incredibly distracting if I’m trying to focus (unless I’m playing marching band covers of rock songs — I’m oddly OK with that).

What’s missing

As I mentioned at the top of the post, this is really the first year that I’ve listened to Spotify with any regularity. At the same time, I still do listen to radio stations — either over the air or streaming.

When I’m driving to work, I bounce between terrestrial stations like X96 or Power 949 because it’s often easier than making sure Spotify launches correctly. I used to listen to podcasts or news on public radio, but I haven’t been in the mood lately.

I sometimes listen to YouTube Music, as that’s where my music archive is saved. However, I’ve found that YouTube Music is a more frustrating experience than its predecessor, Google Play Music, so I don’t linger very long. It’s OK to listen to my own music, but YouTube throws an ad between every song elsewhere on the site. It’s unpleasant.

At work, I bounce between Spotify and BBC Radio 1 Relax because it’s pretty chill. After discovering that I can connect Shazam to Spotify, I’ve (mostly) enjoyed listening to the nearly 5 hours of songs that piqued my curiosity in the wild.

I used to listen to the “Hearts of Space,” but the distributor changed something up on its site and it isn’t easily available to me (unless I want to pay for it).

When I wind down for the night, I often queue up KUVO Jazz from Denver, KSDS Jazz 88 from San Diego, or “NIghtstream” from CBC Music (“Whatever gets you through the night.”). After I turn out the lights, I put KBYU Classical 89 on a sleep timer for the best way to end the day.

While I appreciate Spotify’s access to scads of music, I do find myself often sticking to one or two playlists (which, again, explains how The Blanks is my most listened-to artist of 2023). Many people decry over-the-air radio stations and their narrow playlists, but I find that these stations point me down different paths than I would normally travel. I appreciate the variety, which I guess explains why I bounce from station to station and different services over the course of the day.

I don’t feel as connected to music as I did when I hosted a jazz program on public radio, but it’s heartening to look back at some of the things I’ve listened to in 2023 and realize that music is still very much a part of my life. Here’s to the great songs that will be added to my 2024 playlist.

Missing New Year’s Eve tradition brings down party at Salt Lake City mall

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A view of Olympic Plaza at The Gateway in Salt Lake City on Dec. 31, 2018.

After over a month of Christmas tunes, it’s time to bust out all of those classic New Year’s tunes like …

… um, I can think of one New Year’s song — “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” as performed by Ella Fitzgerald. I’m sure there are more New Year’s songs, but that’s the one that leaps to mind.

”What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” is an apt question. While most people want to be home for Christmas, New Year’s Eve destinations can vary wildly — especially depending on one’s willingness to stay up until midnight.

This year, I may wind up on the couch (or at karaoke at Paxton Pub in South Salt Lake), but I probably won’t go to the Last Hurrah! at The Gateway shopping center in downtown Salt Lake.

I generally had an enjoyable time during my one visit in 2018, but the event skipped a key New Year’s tradition at midnight that disappointed me and will likely dissuade me from returning this year. No, it wasn’t sharing a kiss with a date.

For those that don’t know, The Gateway was originally a bougie and chic outdoor shopping center based around the former Union Pacific Depot train station on the western edge of downtown. It’s been struggling in recent years, especially after a bougie-er and chic-er mostly outdoor shopping center called City Creek opened atop the rubble of the former Crossroads Plaza and ZCMI Center malls a few blocks east (presumably they cleared the rubble).

In recent years, The Gateway operators have tried various ways to encourage crowds to visit, particularly by hosting community events like New Year’s Eve.

Since I didn’t have any plans in 2018, I decided to give the Last Hurrah a shot. I planned a little carefully — starting with bundling up for the cold. I also parked near the Delta Center (then Vivint Smart Home Arena) on city streets a couple blocks away, so I didn’t have to deal too much with traffic after the event.

It was a starkly cold night with no snow, but spirits seemed high among the crowd that started small and grew right up until midnight. There were food and drink vendors set up along the main road through the heart of the shopping center, but I didn’t linger as I was on a fairly tight budget and it was chilly.

Shelter was provided in the form of vacant storefronts that had been repurposed as pop-up bars and karaoke lounges. The spaces had been stripped down to the walls, but were gussied up with decorations like balloons and colorful lights.

A crowd gathers in a vacant storefront transformed into a pop-up bar during the Last Hurrah 2018! at The Gateway in Salt Lake City on Dec. 31, 2018.

It was clever to reuse the storefronts, but it was also slightly depressing how many retail spaces were available. There were signs of the struggling mall all around, including a Sur La Table holding a going out of business sale. One of the largest tenants appeared to be WeWork. It’s not there anymore (although the struggling company apparently still has space nearby).

There were also a lot of temporary barriers promising upgrades, but I’ve never really checked to see if the upgrades were finished.

While repurposing closed stores did much to create a lively atmosphere for the event, the fenced-off areas were a bit of a bummer.

A closed-off area at The Gateway featured a large banner promising upgrades during Last Hurrah 2018! at The Gateway on Dec. 31, 2018. It’s unknown if the upgrades were ever completed.

The barriers also got me thinking about what used to be in certain locations. I remember there being a small, slightly depressing food court in 2016 — where did that go? There is a more prominent restaurant row that still offers a decent number of casual eateries, but the disappeared food court featured more fast food options.

Throughout the evening, I tended to gravitate toward the indoor spaces to stay relatively warm. I would normally be a fiend for karaoke, but the lines looked long at many of the spaces and I don’t think I bothered signing up.

The biggest pop-up bar was pretty bustling and I think there was a band. Otherwise, it was an OK communal spot. I also tried an underwhelming beer from Salt Flats Brewing Co. for the first time. I was so unimpressed by the beverage, I haven’t sought it out since.

As midnight neared, I made my way toward Olympic Plaza to find a good viewing position for the live music and the fireworks. Crowds also flocked to some fire pits scattered around the plaza that provided a little relief from the frigid cold.

Event goers gather around one of the large fire pits set up around Olympic Plaza during Last Hurrah! on Dec. 31, 2018, at The Gateway in Salt Lake City.

The music was OK for these types of public events. The band played a mix of classic rock and country tunes, but I don’t recall much of their performance five years later.

The band kept rocking up until midnight when there was the traditional countdown with added fireworks. My heart soared a bit as the crowd counted down in unison and then celebrated the start of 2019.

My heart sank back to earth when I realized that they weren’t going to sing “Auld Lang Syne.” I started singing what I knew of the song at a normal volume, but I gradually lowered my voice to sotto voce when it became obvious that no one else was singing.

I really missed the group singing “Auld Lang Syne.” I guess it’s one of those traditions that you see every year on TV and want to re-create wherever you happen to be at midnight, even if you don’t remember all the words. It’s also a moment of collective celebration and catharsis that seems to be growing increasingly scarce over the years.

At the same time, traditions are often meaningful because we ascribe meaning to them. For the vast majority of people in the Last Hurrah! crowd, perhaps being in downtown Salt Lake City for New Year’s Eve is a tradition or will be in the years to come.

For me, I’d like to keep the tradition of singing “Auld Lang Syne” for the sake of old times. Also, taking a cup of kindness sounds a lot tastier than that Salt Flats beer.

So this year, I’ll probably be skipping Last Hurrah! rather than take the chance of being disappointed that there’s no “Auld Lang Syne.” Staying closer to home may be preferable, especially because I have to work relatively early on New Year’s Day (before going to celebrate the new year with relatives — a family and cultural tradition that reaches back decades).

On the other hand, there’s Laser Taylor Swift at the nearby Clark Planetarium. Maybe I’ve just got to “Shake it Off.”

In any event, I wish everyone a joyous New Year and a glorious 2024!

Curling, Year 3 — Winning my first game as skip

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The scoreboard from my first winning game as a skip on Monday, Feb. 26, 2019, at the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns.

The scoreboard from my first winning game as a skip on Monday, Feb. 25, 2019, at the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns.

The winter season of my third year of curling is winding down. We’re heading into the playoffs today, and I’m happy that I helped get our team on its best possible footing by winning my first game as a skip (or captain, if you prefer).

We’re heading into the playoffs with a 3-4 record, which is one reason why the other teammates were willing to let me hold the broom on Feb. 25. Heading into the last regular-season game at 2-4, we weren’t super effective during our prior game and let a close match turn into a rout.

I have to admit that I contributed to the loss — I strongly questioned some of the shot calling during a key point in the game. I did my best to shake it off and voice my support for the skip’s calls after that, but it was tough and I worried that I wasn’t doing my part to support the team effort.

After that tough end, all of us were off and the rest of the game didn’t end well. Afterward, Robert said I could skip the last game, in part, because it didn’t matter too much. I readily accepted because I was ready to try my hand again at skipping.

Heading into the last game, my all-time record as a skip could only be charitably described as abysmal. IIRC, I was 0 and 3. Two of those losses were relatively close — they came down to the last shot and my team just was on the losing end of those. My third loss was a blowout and I readily took the advice from my acting third/vice Thom to quit the game after it was clearly out of hand.

Although I’ve played around 60 games in my three years curling, I only skipped those four times. I’ve been happy to focus on contributing to the team in other ways, while leaving the skipping to others.

While I was excited to give being skip another shot, I quickly realized what our team strengths were. I agreed to be skip, but I announced that we would be keeping the same playing order — with me as lead, Andrew second, Carl third and Robert playing fourth. Traditionally, skips throw the last stones because those last two shots are generally considered the most important during each end of the game (and there’s a lot of pressure on the skip to make those shots).

As the sport of curling has evolved over the past 20 years, it’s become more common for skips to play out of order, e.g. not throwing fourth. A handful of the top teams in the world play with their skips in different positions.

I wasn’t necessarily thinking of the top teams when I set the playing order for Feb. 25. I was thinking about how our team played all season. Andrew and I had thrown first or second (aka, the front end), while Karl and Robert had thrown third or fourth (aka, the back end).

Each playing position has different roles to play as an end unfolds. While we obviously weren’t playing at our best during the season, I felt that we were in the positions that suited our strengths. Andrew and I could throw draws that would shape into guards in front of the house or settle down in the house. Karl and Robert often threw hits that we might need for takeouts or raises later in the end.

I opted to stay as lead while skipping because I wanted to help quickly get a read on the ice for the rest of the team (and Andrew is using a different delivery method that makes it difficult to get a time that works for the others on the team). I also was reluctant to throw third or fourth because I readily need more work on takeouts (I’ve been playing front end for most of my three years).

The order was set, but as game night neared, I began worrying more about the strategy — the other big component of being a skip. Throughout the season, I had been helping with reading the ice and occasionally offering some possible shot calls to the skip, but I hadn’t called an entire game, continuously thought about the ice or how my teammates were making shots.

I had been watching a decent amount of curling on TV this year. It’s been helpful to guess what shots the teams will take, see what shots they took and if it was effective. However, those are elite teams — they’ll be able to take shots that would be extremely difficult for less-experienced teams on less-than-perfect ice.

I went back through curling books on my Kindle for some curling strategy pointers heading into the game. There’s a lot of useful info in the books, but my eyes started to gloss over when the books started delving into shot strategy for specific setups (it’s useful, but I would require far more time than a couple days to really absorb such focused discussions).

Also, as Monday neared, it dawned on me that this game wouldn’t be as insignificant as we thought. Sure, we had a 2-4 record heading into the game, but most of the teams in the league were bunched together. Only one team had a 5-1 record — the rest had done a good job of beating up on each other. We were ranked seventh out of nine, but we could improve our postseason placement with a win.

I also saw the team we were playing — it was one that we nearly beat last season, but they won on a superb angle-raise to the button by Stefan. We had a chance of beating this team, but they weren’t going to be pushovers.

The basic strategies set forth in the curling books helped me formulate a straightforward plan that I thought we could follow to help score points when we had the hammer (the last-shot advantage) and to minimize giving up a big end when the opposing team had hammer.

When we gathered for the Monday game, I made sure we got together for a quick team meeting so that we would all be on the same page. The strategy would be pretty simple (it’s also fairly common, so I don’t feel I’m spilling secrets listing them here):

  • Try to get a read on the ice as quickly as possible. Use my lead stones to determine how the ice was acting.
  • Control the front of the house and stay above the tee line. It’s not the end of the world if a guard slips into the house, especially if it stays above the tee.
  • Let the ice work for us, especially for takeouts. Instead of throwing heat when it’s not necessary, ease up a bit and let the ice and the sweepers help the stone out.
  • Focus on draws, instead of takeouts.
  • Communicate. Make sure everyone is on the same page before each stone is delivered.
  • I also resolved to be very positive and encouraging with my teammates. While winning is nice, curling is a sport that is supposed to be fun.
  • How we deliver the first stones depended on if we had the hammer or not. I decided that we would start off with an aggressive style of play.

While that was our game plan, the outcome depended on execution. Things weren’t perfect, but we got off to a fast start.

We took advantage of starting with the hammer and put a decent number of rocks in the house. I did my best to split the house to set up multiple points and used guards to our advantage. In the first end, there was a port in front of the house that someone could use to put a rock into the house. We tried to block it, but our stone went a little deep to the tee line. The opposition team wasn’t able to get into the house and we took three to start.

In the second, we didn’t have the hammer, so we worked to force the opposing team to just one point. I got more aggressive when we were able to get several rocks in the house and ended up stealing two.

The opposition team held onto the hammer for the third end, which turned out to be fairly similar to the second.  At the end, we had three in scoring position and the opposition had to take out one for a single point.

We had the hammer for the fourth end, which was probably the messiest end. After setting up a couple guards on the left side of the sheet, a stone went a little deep behind the button. I didn’t want to take it out right away, instead trying to stay in front of it. That started a series of draws to the button. We found the right line and did a decent job of freezing or coming close.

The opposing team tried to clean things up, but there were still a couple of rocks near the lid. The opposing team’s last shot was solid, but we could get out of trouble with another draw near the button. It was a little heavy, but it was close. We gave up one (after measuring to see who had the second shot).

Execution wasn’t perfect early in the game. I got a little frustrated (and loud) when the sweepers didn’t stop sweeping when I called “off.” Thankfully, it didn’t affect the outcome of the game and they got better on listening to the call. Communication was important — I wanted the sweepers to give me more clues about the speed of the rock and the sweepers wanted me to communicate more about if the shot was on line.

Making sure everyone was on the same page helped secure the win. In the fifth end, we had the hammer. I was happy to keep on drawing to the button, but the other teammates (particularly the third) wanted to do takeouts on two opposition rocks near the center of the house. It was a sound strategy — taking out opposition stones reduces their chances of stealing more than one point (although we would want to score with hammer).

Although I was worried that takeouts aren’t a strong suit for our team, my teammates were confident they could make the shots — especially because it was on ice that we were familiar with. I reminded them to throw with just a little less weight and use the ice and we were able to get several takeouts.

Once a skip makes a call, the rest of the team is supposed to go along. During what would turn out to be our last shot of the game, I could see that we weren’t settled on what the plan was so I held up my arms to stop everything. After hearing that Carl was confident he could make the takeout, I was convinced and set up for the takeout. We took out one of opposition stones (and we were sitting shot, IIRC). It left one of theirs near the button but it would be difficult for them to score more than one (and they needed three to tie and force a tiebreaker).

At that point, the opposition had two or three stones remaining, but they had seen enough and conceded. We were in the fifth end, but the scoreboard reflected the score through four ends.

After the game was won, I reflected that it was my first win skipping. It was something that didn’t cross my mind when we were playing the game. Afterward, I was happy for the accomplishment.

It may be a short-lived feeling, especially because we will need to win our last two games to finish with a winning record on the season. We’re heading into the playoffs tonight and our first opponent is a familiar one — the same team we faced  on Feb. 25. It will be interesting to see how this game unfolds.

Curling season 3 starts with ups and downs

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We started the fall season with a win, finishing with a score of 5-3.

We started the fall season with a win, finishing with a score of 5-3.

Tonight is the fourth week of the new curling season at the Utah Olympic Oval. Things for my team on Monday have been going OK, although we’re struggling a bit during games. The first game went rather well (as evidenced by the scoreboard at the top of this post), but we didn’t fare well during weeks 2 and 3.

It was great to be back on the ice. I usually take the summer off because my schedule doesn’t fit with the league night during the spring and summer sessions. However, there was no curling at all because the ice had to be taken out of the Oval last spring for scheduled repairs to the ice equipment. The last event on the ice before the maintenance was USA Curling’s 2018 Arena National Championships.

There was an open curling practice the Thursday before the start of league. I usually wouldn’t be able to go, but I had the night off because of the Labor Day holiday. There were seven other people and it was wonderful just to get used to all things curling.

On the first Monday, I got to meet my new team. For whatever reason, I don’t particularly mind not sticking with a team from season to season. As a result, my team’s lineup changes often, although myself and Joe have been the most consistent elements over the past two years.

This season, we added Karl and Robert to the lineup, both players I hadn’t really interacted with before. Our game started with myself, Joe and Karl. Robert was a little late because he was coming from the dentist. I admired his dedication — I don’t know if I would try to get on the ice right after something like that (which was more than a routine visit). We started out with the three-person rotation with me throwing the first three rocks, Karl taking the second set of three stones and Joe taking the last two. When Robert arrived, he played the second pair while Karl, acting as vice skip, delivered rocks 5 and 6.

We, playing the yellow stones, got off to a slow start, as evidenced by the scoreboard above. I believe we started with the hammer, but wasn’t able to get on the board until the third end. It was nice that things were still close until the fifth end, when we were able to leap ahead with three points.

The fifth end was a lot of fun, especially because I threw a double takeout (removing two of the opposition’s stones from play). After the match, my old teammate Travis said the double takeout was a little cheap — the opposing stones were right next to each other in the back of the house, making it an easy target. I responded that I got the double while playing lead — it takes an extraordinary set of circumstances for me to be able to take out two rocks.

Adapting to the ice

As usual, we struggled with the ice. We play on a rink that primarily dedicated to figure skating and speedskating (there’s another sheet dedicated to hockey and both rinks are surrounded by a long oval used for public skating and speedskating).

In curling, it’s ideal that the ice is level. Unfortunately, in general arenas, that is difficult to accomplish unless there is a lot of dedicated work to make the ice level. There are some weeks where the ice plays pretty level, but we often have to deal with the ice “falling” a certain way. In these situations, the stones will drift toward a certain area regardless of the direction that we want the stones to go in.

Uneven ice makes the game challenging and the team that best adapts to it has a significant advantage. Also, it’s not an unfair situation — both teams have to play on the same ice and face the same conditions.

Because both teams play under the same conditions, observant players can watch how each team delivers their shots. Although every player is different, it provides important information on how the ice is reacting and offers insight on which shot to select.

In that fifth end, being observant helped us get that three points. We had been sitting three with two stones toward the outside of the rings under cover and one near the button. The red team took out the shot rock near the button and stayed to count shot.

Having the hammer, we had one last shot. As Joe got into the hack to take his shot, I noticed that our vice skip had positioned the broom differently than the red vice had (the broom is used to provide a target for the player delivering the stone). I called out an audible — if we positioned our broom identically to the red team, we had the best shot of duplicating their result and scoring three. The vice moved the broom and we easily landed the hit and stay for three.

Preparing the ice

During the first week, I was partly responsible for the ice conditions. For the first time, I helped “pebble” the surface by spraying water over the ice to create the running surface for the stones to slide over. I had learned how to pebble during the arena nationals, but it was my first time covering a full field of play.

If you ever see video of someone pebbling, it looks fairly effortless. I can tell you that that there are some challenges — you’re walking backward the entire time with a large water tank strapped on your back while waving a wand back and forth repeatedly. When you’re pebbling, you want to apply the water as consistently as possible so you’re trying to keep a steady walking pace while moving your arm at a steady, but brisk tempo.

I think I did an OK job, although there are several things I’d like to work to improve on. It was definitely a lot of work to do just before a match and I was pretty winded. My right arm was sore for days afterward.

Missing the right way

Our first week ended on a high note. Moving into the final end of the night, we were up by one, but the red team had the hammer and shot last. If they scored one and tied, we would go to a draw-to-the-button tiebreaker. Ecstatic after we scored three, I told my teammates that we should “steal away home” and win the match.

As the end developed, it appeared it was going to be challenge to get a steal. The red team had a rock sitting on the button, but there were two stones in the back of the 4-foot ring that could act as a backstop.

We tried various shots and couldn’t get near the button. In our last shot, Joe threw an inturn stone toward the left side of the sheet hoping it would drift around a yellow guard and hit the button.

Unfortunately, the line wasn’t wide enough and it started moving toward the guard. Robert and I were sweeping, but it was clear that the stone could crash on the guard. Seeing an opportunity, I shouted to Robert that we should play off the guard stone and I swept to hopefully get the best angle between the two stones.

The shot struck the guard and Robert swept the second yellow stone right toward the button, where it pushed the red stone into the backstop and we were sitting shot rock. The red team still had one stone, but they faced an incredibly difficult shot to try to push ours out of the way.

It was close, but we prevailed and escaped with the win.

We all congratulated Joe on his shot, and he replied that that wasn’t his shot. I didn’t mind — one thing that many expert curlers emphasize, including Russ Howard in his book “Curl to Win,” is missing the right way. That basically means to consider contingencies that will either help you or at least not hurt you.

Weeks 2 and 3

Our next two games didn’t go so well (which may be why I don’t have any photos of them). I missed our second match because of a work emergency (but got to sub on Thursday and had a lot of fun). Joe also curls on Thursday and told me that we got on the board early, but couldn’t slow down the team Game of Stones (which won Monday league last winter).

Last Monday, I was back but Karl wasn’t there. Joe, Robert and I faced off against Team Mischo. Mischo is skipped by Keith Mischo, who won bronze at the World Deaf Curling Championships in 2017. We had our work cut out for ourselves and it was a struggle all night.

We got on the board near the end, but Team Mischo pretty much romped over us.

I again threw lead and I realized that I needed to be doing a better job — most of my stones were short of the house, even when I was asked to throw draws closer to the button. When I tried to increase my delivery weight, I pushed a couple of stones through the house entirely and out of play. Thankfully, I haven’t yet thrown a stone this season that was so short it was out of play (called hogging). It’s been a silver lining so far and I hope that keeps up.

Our match ended a little early, so I had some extra time to practice my delivery. That is something that is very much a work in progress and another thing I would like to improve this season.

On to the next episode…

Back in the hack for year 3 of curling

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That was the conclusion of the final end of my second year of curling (it's not my shot). We were playing yellow, but an attempt to use the dial tool dislodged a stone so we called it a tie. Our skip, Joe, won the sudden-death draw to the button.

That was the conclusion of the final end of my second year of curling (it’s not my shot). We were playing yellow, but an attempt to use the dial tool dislodged a stone so we called it a tie. Our skip, Joe, won the sudden-death draw to the button.

I started my third full year in curling two weeks ago at the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns. It was great to get back to a sport that I’ve come to enjoy over the past two years.

Considering that my involvement in the sport has ramped up in the past few years (including attending the World Men’s Curling Championship in Las Vegas and volunteering for a national event in Salt Lake City), I thought it would be fun to share some of my experiences on the ice. I’m not a competitive curler by any stretch of the imagination, but I definitely hope to continue getting better and make a positive contribution to whatever team I’m playing on.

My team in Monday curling league (Team 20/20) ended the winter season on a high note. We fought from behind to tie the opposing team in the B bracket playoffs on March 26.

In the final end, I inadvertently set in motion what would eventually result in a tie (that’s the photo at the top of this post). The tie led to a sudden-death draw to the button that our skip, Joe, won.

In that final end, I was playing second on a three-person team (that means I threw the 4, 5 and 6 red stones out of eight). Thanks to the shooting of our lead, Andrew, we were sitting shot but there was a gap that someone could shoot to get closer to the button (as the team with the stone closest to the button scores).

My task was to put up a guard in that gap to prevent the opposing team (The Icemen) from taking advantage of the opening. My first couple attempts didn’t pan out.

My third and final shot also missed as a guard — it drew into the gap (or port, in curling lingo) and rested near the button. It was a nice shot that didn’t immediately hurt us, but it created an opening for the opposing yellow team (which had the advantage of throwing the final stone of the end).

The opposing vice skip (who shoots third out of four) threw a shot similar to mine and pushed my last rock out of the way.

From there, it was a back-and-forth effort between the two teams. Our skip, Joe, followed the same line and knocked the yellow stone out of the way. The yellow team skip delivered the same shot and pushed our red stone back slightly.

That led to a crucial moment in the end and the game — who has the shot? If it’s us on the red team, it would be prudent to put up a guard and end this bit of shooting practice. From my perspective as the vice skip, I thought it was close but the advantage was ours.

(As an aside, it didn’t make sense to try the draw shot again because our red stone was behind the tee line — it could’ve been used by the yellow team as a backstop, allowing them to sit fully on the center of the button and claim the win.)

Joe successfully put up a guard, clogging the port that we had all found success through. It forced the yellow team to make a difficult shot that they couldn’t convert. They would’ve basically had to run into two of their stones for a chance to push their stone closest to the button just a centimeter forward.

Here’s what team yellow faced:

In the last shot of the final end of the winter 2018 Monday league, the yellow team faced a difficult shot to try to get their stone closest to the button on March 26, 2018, at the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns.

In the last shot of the final end of the winter 2018 Monday league, the yellow team faced a difficult shot to try to get their stone closest to the button on March 26, 2018, at the Utah Olympic Oval in Kearns.

The photo doesn’t show the red stone sitting in the outer green circle (called the 12-foot) at roughly the 10 o’clock position.

After each team has thrown their eight stones, it’s up to the vice skips to agree on who actually scored. If it’s not possible from visual observation, there’s a measuring device that can be used. It was the star of the Winter Olympics whenever it was used on TV and it came into play that night in March.

Unfortunately, there was a bit of mixup in the measurement. Because the stones were so close to each other, the measurer tried to measure the outside of the stones. That doesn’t work for many reasons, particularly because the sensor doesn’t bend in that direction.

Trying to sweep the measuring dial past our red stone simply pushed the rock out of the way slightly. We were given the opportunity to reset our stone, but I noted that there was really no way to do it in a way that was fair especially because we were trying to measure its original position and that was no longer possible.

With measuring out of the question, both teams concluded that it was easiest to declare that it was a tie and that no team scored that end (called a blank).

(Another aside: We were uncertain about the rules when it came to measurements and it led to a Reddit discussion on the matter. The curling rules do address the situation, which will be helpful moving forward. We didn’t know it at the time and I was happy both teams agreed to call it a tie.)

The tie set up the draw to the button, where each team’s skip throws one stone to try to get closest to the center of the house.

Joe made the shot and we won our playoff. It was an exhilarating end to a great night of curling. Even before the yellow team took their last shot in the final full end, it was exciting that we had to come back from being down 3-0 after the first end and stole a point in the fifth end to tie everything up heading into that crucial sixth end.

Here’s the box score:

Our match was for the B bracket championship which was set up for the teams in the middle of the pack in our league. We entered the playoffs seeded eighth and I was more than happy to emerge as the “best of the rest” of our league night.

The members of Team 20/20 — from the left, Joe, Andrew and Ryan — pose after receiving medals for winning the "B" bracket during the winter 2018 Monday curling league at the Utah Olympic Oval.

The members of Team 20/20 — from the left, Joe, Andrew and Ryan — pose after receiving medals for winning the “B” bracket during the winter 2018 Monday curling league at the Utah Olympic Oval.

This season, I’m on a changed up team. We started off with a win, but have since run into some trouble. Next time, I’ll recap how the year has started.

A map of Provo and Hobble Creek Canyon

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On Thursday, law enforcement officials disclosed that the body of Elizabeth Elena Laguna-Salgado was found in Hobble Creek Canyon on May 18 — about 10 to 15 miles from where she was last seen in downtown Provo on April 16, 2015.

As part of the Daily Herald’s coverage of Salgado’s disappearance, I created a map showing both Provo and Hobble Creek canyon. The print version of the map includes additional detail.

Tasting notes from my first Pie and Beer Day

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Monday was the first Pioneer Day that I’ve been able to celebrate in Utah for many years. I started the day in a traditional way — by attending the Days of ’47 Parade in Salt Lake City. After a break, I ambled over to Beer Bar for a tradition that sprung up in the years when I was outside of Utah — Pie and Beer Day.

It’s a bit silly but Beer Bar was hosting a fundraiser for the Utah Brewers Guild that featured pairings of pie with local craft beer. The offer was five pairings for $25. It was a little pricy, but it allowed me to try a lot of different pies and beers that I wouldn’t ordinarily seek out.

It was a big draw as the establishment was packed with people, both inside the building and outside on the rear parking lot.

As I fought the crowds, I took notes on the beverages and desserts that I ate.

First — Copper Onion & 2Row Brewing

Lamb sausage pie with goat cheese from Copper Onion & hIPAcryte, an IPA, from 2Row Brewing

Lamb sausage pie with goat cheese from Copper Onion & hIPAcryte, an IPA, from 2Row Brewing

The pie: Lamb sausage pie with goat cheese, pickled peppers, caramelized fennel, herbs and park fat crust.

The beer: HIPAcryte – an IPA

Tasting notes: The beer is relatively light for an IPA. The hops come through, but the pine accent is primary note. The pie is savory as expected, but the herbs and fennel make themselves known. The crest by itself is flaky, and is serviceable as a pie delivery system. It’s a bit greasy (which is understandable given that it’s a pork fat crust) but the crest ultimately holds up. Combining bites with the beer, they go well together – the body of the beer stands up to the boldness of the pie without conflicting with each other.

Second — Garage on Beck & Moab Brewing

Mormon Funeral Potato Pie from Garage on Beck & amber steam lager from Moab Brewing.

The pie: Mormon Funeral Potato Pie

The beer: Steam lager

Tasting notes: Despite spending a few years in Utah, I really don’t have much experience with “funeral potatoes” — a common fare for gatherings around funerals. I am more familiar with the steam lager style of beer — an older brewing style kept alive in part because Anchor Brewing of San Francisco continued brewing it during the dark ages between the Prohibition and the beginning of the craft brewing era.

The beer is a bit sweet with a tinge of bitter hoppiness. It’s got an amber color and definitely tastes like an amber (actually, it may be an amber — I’ll have to double check [Edited to add: It was amber and a steam lager.]).

The top of the pie doesn’t look like I would expect it to — it’s got a dry, crumbly look with bread crumbs and what looks and sort of tastes like dried shredded cheese. The inner part of the pie looks more like a potato casserole should. The crust is very crisp and has good flavor, although it’s not as golden brown as it could be.

The pie is spicy, which compliments the creaminess of the potatoes. Digging into the pie is a bit of an ordeal because the dry toppings go flying to and fro but there’s some sort of chewy middle layer that doesn’t let go easily.

As far as a pairing, it’s another winner in my book.

Third — Tulie Bakery & Epic Brewing

Blueberry Lemon Hand Pie from Tulie Bakery & Tart and Juicy from Epic Brewing.

The pie: Blueberry Lemon Hand Pie

The beer: Tart and Juicy

Tasting notes: There are a lot of cute little pies at this event. I skipped all of them and went for the monster hand pie by Tulie. It looks like a triangle of folded puff pastry topped with sugar and toasted golden brown. Given the size, I’m a little worried that the balance between pastry and filling may be off, but we’ll have to see.

The beer isn’t one that I would seek out on my own, except to maybe try once or twice. It’s got a ruddy orange look and definitely has a tart scent. On tasting, it’s lighter than my first two samples. It starts off with a bitter fruit taste but then it opens to a more balanced sweet and tartness.

The pasty is slightly overbaked, with an overly dark underside but it isn’t burnt. The crust is flaky, buttery and falls all over the place (likely because it’s dry). The fruit is there, but the flavor of the pasty is dominant (especially on the edges and this hand pie has a lot of edge). The blueberries are present, but I’m not getting much lemon. There’s also a flowery accent which is pleasant.

As a pairing, the sourness of the beer doesn’t fully match up with the pie as the beer underscores the pie’s lack of sour or tart bite. Unfortunately, I’m going to have to score this as a miss.

Fourth – Beltex Meats & Bohemian Brewery

Apocalypse Now Pie from Beltex Meats & “mystery beer” from Bohemian Brewery.

The pie: Apocalypse Now Pie (with wagyu beef, hash browns, American cheese, pork confit and kimchee)

The beer: Mystery beer (some sort of lager – must double check. LATER: It’s a kolsch)

Tasting notes: This entry had the most intrigue, given that the pie had a vague description and the beer was unspecified. However, Beltex has garnered a reputation for being good with meat, so I had high hopes — something that was borne out by others who had previously sampled the establishment’s offering. Many had high praise, although one noted that it was a little dry.

The beer is slightly sweet with just a hint of a hop profile. It tastes like a competent lager, but I worry about it being overwhelmed by the pie, which features rich beef, pork confit, kimchee and cheese — all savory elements.

The pie is a round handpie, with fork-crimp edges and a shiny golden brown finish. There’s no indication of what’s inside, but the initial appearance makes you want to dive in. Working in the from the tough edges, my first impression was mostly American cheese, which was just OK.

The second and third bites were better. The pork confit is definitely present as there was a hunk of shredded meat in my pie. I don’t think the kimchee entirely worked — it adds a bit of color and spice, but it gets lost in everything else. The hashbrowns are stringy, but that’s probably for the best because it allows it to spread through the pie without being overwhelming.

The cheese was odd — part of it backed to the upper crest and turned an unpleasantly dark brown. The crust itself is dry when it’s thick — which may have prompted the comment about dryness. When the crust is acting as the envelope for the pie filling, it seems to be just right.

Overall, I would say this is a solid hit, but not a home run. The beer actually works with the pie, to my surprise, as the lager lost none of its flavor potency.

I joked with one of the Beltex people about what they’re going to do next year. I suggested Apocalypse Now Redux or Heart of Darkness. Now, that I’ve had time to think, I would be in favor of Tart of Darkness.

Bonus tasting – Stein Eriksen Lodge & Park City Brew

Pecan pie made with Breakthrough wort from Stein Eriksen Lodge.

I had saved the pecan pie from Stein Eriksen Lodge for last, which turned out to be a bittersweet decision. The pie was supposed to be paired with Park City Brew’s Breaking Trail Pale Ale, but they ran out. The good news is that the pie didn’t count as a pairing (essentially a bonus). As an aside, Beltex also appeared to be out of beer and their pies weren’t visible, so it was good when I grabbed the pie when I did.

The pie: Pecan pie made with Breakthrough wort.

The beer: None 🙁 (although the pie people noted that the sweet barley wort created as part of the brewing process was used in the pie).

Tasting notes: The pie looks great, with chopped pecans throughout the filling. Some pecan pies have just a handful of nuts. This is the total opposite. The crust looks like it’s in good balance to the rest of the pie — not overly thick, with a light golden touch.

On first bite, the flavor of the pecans comes to the fore. There’s a little sweetness to it, but it’s not overwhelming as some pecan pies can be. The pie is a little on the drier side, without as much of the cohesive filling but it holds up well. I’m not getting much crust on my bites, but that’s not the worst thing in the world (and it may be balancing out the nuttiness of the pecans).

This is definitely a good pie.

Fifth – Pat’s BBQ & Squatters Beers

Rhubarb pie from Pat’s BBQ & Blueberry Hefeweizen from Squatters Beers.

The pie: Rhubarb pie

The beer: Blueberry Hefeweizen

Tasting notes: My phone battery is dying, so I’ll keep this one short. The hefe has the blueberry notes. It smells fairly tart but the delivery is entirely smooth and sweet. There’s almost a cream taste to it.

The rhubarb is a mix of rhubarb and blueberries. They go great together — tart and sweet. The crust has absorbed some of the moisture of the filling, but that’s not bad for pie. The crust is still firm.

Tasted together, the pie and beer are fruit whammy. Not a bad way to finish my first Pie and Beer Day.

10+1 images from my first year back in Utah

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At the end of May, I marked the first anniversary of my returning to Utah. To celebrate the occasion, I reviewed the photos I took from the past 365 days and picked ten that highlighted some of the fun activities from 2016-17. There’s also a bonus picture — the first photo I took upon my return.

Click any photo to embiggen…