Don't Become a Cycling Statistic Ride like your life depends on it — because it does. While riding her bike in Big Cottonwood Canyon on a sun-dappled fall morning in September 2004, 25-year-old cyclist Josie Johnson was struck from behind and killed by an SUV driven by 67-year-old Elizabeth Deseelhorst, wife of then Solitude Ski Resort owner, Gary … [Read more...]
Unstoppable Maci Winn: Utah Woman Continues Weightlifting Despite Broken Leg
At 26 years old, Salt Lake City native Maci Winn is one of the state’s up-and-coming weightlifters on a national and international scale. From her involvement in athletics at an early age, to working towards her MD/PhD Degree at the University of Utah, Winn is setting the stage to make a name for herself. Many of Winn’s family members work in the healthcare field, which has … [Read more...]
How to Support Mental Health and Wellbeing during Winter in Utah
How I learned to love Utah Winters I grew up nestled in the foothills of the Wasatch Front. While I enjoyed the snowy winters of my 90s childhood, the bad inversions and lack of sledding days in my early adulthood caused me to really hate winter here. I traveled a lot the past several years, largely driven by the urge to flee winter. Utah winters might seem mild compared … [Read more...]
Elitism in the Outdoors — Ranchers and Western Living vs. Elites Who Want Them Gone
Is Federal Protection of Western Wilderness better than local, economic viability? According to environmentalists on the far left, the best way to protect and preserve the outdoors is to close roads; stop mining, stop drilling, eliminate fertilizer use on farms, and obliterate the energy and farming sectors of rural economies. According to the right-leaning republican … [Read more...]
THE HEALTHY KITCHEN: Tools & Gadgets for Healthier Cooking at Home
As we embark on another new year, many of us have made resolutions that may or may not have already gone by the wayside. Or maybe you put off making any resolutions. If so, I have one for you: How about making your home kitchen a healthier place? That is something pretty much all of us can and should do. I’m not talking here about what to eat, but rather how what we eat is … [Read more...]
Utah’s Heroes: Nurse Saves Man’s Life on the Baseball Field
It was an ordinary day until Danya Topham’s husband, Mike, began to prod her about attending a baseball game at Murray Park. Danya, an R.N. by trade, had just gotten off a long shift at the hospital and was ready for a nice relaxing evening at home. It was out of the norm for her husband to strongly encourage her to attend the ballgame, but this night was different. She didn’t … [Read more...]
Being Gay in Utah : Growing Up in the Shadows of Shame
Growing up gay in Utah County under the shadow of the Mormon church was definitely a unique experience. I was always pretty vocal about the fact that I was attracted to men. When I was 16, all of my friends knew and none of them cared. I generally had a feeling of acceptance and love from my immediate circle of friends. When I was 25, I finally came out to my parents. … [Read more...]
Inclusion of LBGTQ Community in Utah’s Public Schools
“Lowering Utah’s staggering student suicide rate through an inclusive educational environment is not, and should not be considered inherently political.” That was part of a statement from Utah high school student Em Jenkins speaking at a Utah State Board of Education (USBE) meeting in January of this year. Jenkins was advocating for the use of students’ preferred pronouns … [Read more...]
POST-COVID SOCIETY: Reintegrating into Utah’s ‘New Normal’
The COVID-19 Pandemic affected our communities in drastic ways, and many are having trouble reintegrating themselves into this 'new normal' When Russell Aaron began a new job in January 2020, challenges due to his autism spectrum disorder made it difficult for him to go into the office five days per week. “Russell is directionally and visually challenged,” … [Read more...]
Not All Lightshows Are Safe. The Radiation Exposure Compensation Act Benefits Utah’s Downwinders
Utah’s downwinders are finally getting the help they deserve. This past June, Congress extended the Radiation Exposure Compensation Act, a decades-old program that offers payments to people who have suffered health effects as a result of working in the uranium industry, and to “downwinders,” people who have been harmed by the fallout from nuclear weapons … [Read more...]