Here are a collection of news packages I have produced for SUN News broadcast on KCSG and at www.southernutahnow.com. Thanks again for taking the time to watch.
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This is a news package I put together on a new motocross track in St. George for The Dixie Sun and SUN News. It's an amazing track and was a lot of fun to be out there with the riders for the day.
A kick of the leg and flick of the wrist revs the motor to life, accelerating the heart and increasing adrenaline levels; this is motocross.
For ten years motocross enthusiasts in southern Utah have waited and wished for a local track to quench their thirst for speed, dirt and big air on two wheels. This past October the long wait was over and wishes were granted with the grand opening of the St. George Motocross Track just west of the new municipal airport.
The track owned and operated by Judd Palmer and his family is the fulfillment of a dream fueled by high-octane passion and support from a motorcycle crazy family that rides together every weekend.
Origin of the Track
Palmer, a former professional motocross racer, and owner of his own excavating company, grew tired of travelling to other tracks at long distances to feed his need for speed. Hence the idea was born to design, build and groom his very own racetrack. A track that could not only satisfy the wants and desires of him and his family, but also serve local enthusiasts and be capable of hosting nationally sanctioned races on a regular basis.
“I’ve always loved it [motocross], so when my kids got old enough to do it; their is a place to give them to ride,” Palmer said.
Palmer built most of the track himself and also self-financed the project along with his wife, Michon and kids, who are all avid fans of motocross and ride together every weekend.
“It’s great! Our whole family is out here, we do it Saturdays and Sundays and we’re riding other days; it’s great family time,” Michon Palmer said.
The track sits on a 30-acre site complete with corkscrew turns, jumps, barrel patches and ramps. There is also ample space for trailers and parking for racers and spectators alike.
Response to and Future of the Track
Currently there is at least one major race scheduled per month throughout the year. Palmer and his group estimate each race will bring in approximately 300 to 500 racers with their respective crews as well as spectators.
“On practice days, we have anywhere between 80 to 100 riders and then on a race day we’ll bring in 300 to 500 riders, which means their will be 800 to 1000 spectators and fans in attendance,” Palmer said.
Motocross riders have also welcomed the track with open arms and are excited for the possibilities it brings.
“I really like it. There’s a lot of sand which makes it fun and challenging,” Alec Anderson said.
“They just put in a new section, its either an on/off or you jump the whole thing. I like that a lot, it’s [the track] got a good variety to it, and it’s a real good to ride.”
Palmer explained the track is not exclusively meant or designed for motocross. He envisions and is currently working to bring BMX bicycle races to the track along with remote control car races and three and four-wheeler themed events as well.
Prices to attend races will depend on the race and size and currently Saturdays and Sundays are reserved for practice for anyone who owns a track legal motorcycle or ATV at a cost of $25 per rider. Spectators are welcome to the practices for free so long as they sign a non-rider consent waiver at the entry gate. For more information and an up to date race schedule go to stgeorgemx.com.
Economic Benefits
The new track has also been welcomed by the local community and will contribute to the local economy by bringing visitors to Utah’s Dixie.
Allen Christensen, marketing manager of the track and owner of Moto Zoo Power Sports, (mzpowersports.com) says the economic boost will mostly affect hotels, food establishments and motor sports shops.
Christensen goes on to explain races are staged for two or three days at a time, meaning a potential large number of spectators and racers will be here for extended weekends looking for things to do away from the track.
If estimates by the track operators are correct, St. George and surrounding communities in Washington County could see a significant economic boost come race weekends.
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Here's a news package I was able to put together with Adam Metcalf when Utah Jazz player Jeremy Evans visited the St. George City Recreation Center. This is by far my favorite package that I have had to opportunity to do.
Here are some still shots taken while we were filming.
Getting ready to toss the ally-oop to Jeremy. Funny note...Jeremy told me he can't spin the ball on his finger! When I asked him why, in disbelief, he said he just never could.
Jeremy catching and dunking it. It only took us 7 tries before we got this one.
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A news package covering the performance of Odyssey Dance Theater's Thriller. This was my first time seeing the entire production in addition to reporting on it, it was a lot of fun!
On any given night at the Tuacahn Amphitheater you can see large crowds of people entering the well-known venue to see a Broadway caliber show. However, on this particularly cool, star lit night, there is something strange and even undead making its presence known to the gathering crowd.
Odyssey Dance Theater's musical production of Thriller has risen from the grave once again, to the devilish delight of fans in Southern Utah. Unknown to most fans of the popular Halloween production, though, is the fact that the show has not always been a sure howl of a success. Creator and Odyssey Theater Artistic Director Derryl Yeager admits the show almost suffered the same fate of many-a-Halloween monsters.
“When we first started we had four performances at Kingsbury Hall [in Salt Lake City]. The guy called me in about a week before we opened and said, 'You know, you've only sold like 50 tickets to this thing, maybe you should give up and close, you're gonna lose your shirt on this,” Yeager said.
Yeager's response was nothing short of a dedicated mad scientist.
“Well, I've been in the studio and I know the stuff we've been putting together is pretty cool and if I'm gonna go down, I'm gonna go down in flames,” he said.
Neither the show nor Yeager went down in flames. In fact, just the opposite happened as word of mouth spread faster than flesh eating zombies. The production has grown to two separate companies with over 40 performances a year and still audiences are thirsting for more.
Just like Frankenstein's monster, Thriller has come to life in ways unthinkable by its mad creator. Whether you're a ghost, mummy, or vampire, the secret to Thriller's success is not in necessarily in its tricks, but rather its treats-- which was Yeager's intention all along.
"A lot of people thinks that there is a lot of scary stuff, but there's really not that much scary in the show really. About 80% of the show is very humorous...for me I really enjoy listening to an audience laugh...and enjoy themselves and celebrate Halloween in very fun way.”
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Profile of an 87-year-old racquet ball player in the World Huntsman Senior Games. Needless to say it was a great interview.
Racquetball is one of the more popular events at the World Huntsman Senior Games, and just like the games themselves, athletes come from across the nation and around the globe to the St. George Recreation Center to play the sport. However, very few of those racquetball athletes stand out like this one.
Ghandi once said, “There is more to life than just increasing its speed.” Well, if Ghandi would have known Bill Gencarella from San Clemente, California, he might have thought differently.
“When I first started out I had tremendous speed, they clocked me at 80 to 90 miles an hour. Therefore life was beautiful, but then, as I got older... like right now I doubt if I’m doing 30,” Gencarella said.
Life has been beautiful for the 87-year-old Gencarella, picking up the sport as a young boy and playing throughout his life-- a life filled by raising a family, a career as a research chemist, and finally a successful business man. After all of that Gencarella still plays the sport he loves, despite age or injury.
“I tore both my shoulders, I cannot hit anything shoulder high nor over my head and they know it, the rascals,” he said.
Neither his age nor the injuries keep him from playing against the competition here at the Senior Games to the delight of spectators.
“I think he is amazing, he’s awesome. I don’t plan to live that long and he’s out here playing racquetball competitively, it’s really cool,” said spectator Janiel Anderson.
Gencarella, who still plays multiple times a day, was so anxious to warm up for his next match, he kindly cut our interview short as a nearby court opened up.
“...There’s an empty court, let me go play a little, let me practice a little bit okay, will ya? Will that be okay? Let me practice,” said Gencarella.
Clearly Bill Gencarella’s approach to life has not slowed down and it appears he has no intentions of letting it slow him down.
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Former Olympic Gymnast Shannon Miller was the keynote speaker for the World Huntsman Senior Games Opening Ceremony.
Each year hundreds of athletes from across the country and around the globe travel to St. George for the Huntsman World Senior Games. Each athlete arrives with a desire to compete in events they love, and they play in those respective events with an unbridled passion of competitive spirit and sportsmanship.
This year's opening ceremony featured keynote speaker and former Olympic gymnast Shannon Miller. Miller attests to how important passion is in the field or on the court, but especially when it comes to the game of life.
“Number one, you have to have the passion, you have to enjoy what you do. Certainly set goals for yourself, I’m a big proponent of setting those long-term goals; that’s great you want to compete in the Olympic games. What are the short term goals that you have to look at, write down and achieve every single day in order to get to that goal,” said Miller.
Miller has competed with passion while achieving her goals and becoming the most decorated American Gymnast, male or female in U.S. gymnastics history. One of her most memorable performances came in the 1996 Olympic Games in Atlanta. It was at that time she earned the gold medal for her nearly perfect performance on the balance beam.
She also helped the “Magnificent Seven” to the U.S. Women’s first ever gymnastics team gold. However, more memorable to Miller are not the medals won, but the relationships forged and maintained throughout her illustrious career.
“Once athletics and sports gets in your blood it never leaves, and I think that’s what all of us, all of the athletes that are competing here today and this week. That’s what we can identify with, the friendships that we form, the travel we get to do. 22 different countries are being represented here, all 50 states. So, I think it’s just tremendous to have that support amongst athletes, but also to reap the physical and health benefits of continuing to stay physically active and be such great role models for future generations,” said Miller.
Being physically active and healthy took on new meaning in Miller’s life this year. In January she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, and while going through full rounds of chemotherapy and losing her hair, doctors discovered and removed a baseball size tumor from her ovary.
Now, cancer free and on her way to full recovery, she travels the country sharing the message of good health and believes it is as important as ever for both her and the athletes at this year’s senior games.
“It’s such a great thing to be able to continue to get that message out with all of us. Make your health a priority, put that first in what you do, because if we’re not healthy we can’t take care of everyone else.”
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Story on last years St. George Marathon winner, Aaron Metler and why he is not defending his title in this years race.
Early Saturday morning, over 7,600 hundred runners descended on southern Utah for the 35th Annual St. George Marathon. This year's race would be a little different though, being run without last year's hometown winner, Aaron Metler. Instead of defending his title, Metler has bigger plans and bigger goals to achieve.
“The Olympic trials are something that has been a goal for me. This is really the last chance to qualify for the trials in January, and so I'm going to do the Chicago Marathon this year and give it a shot to qualify for the trials (qualifier),” said Metler.
Since the annual race began in Utah's Dixie in 1977, it has been run 35 times, but has never been won by a local Washington County resident. The highest place for a marathon finisher from Washington County was 2nd place in 2008.
Metler changed that last year, not only winning the race with an impressive time of 2:22:08, but also doing so as a debut runner in his first marathon ever. While he did not participate in this year's marathon as a runner, he was involved with the organization of the event as an employee of the city of St. George--an organization which recently was recognized for their efforts in planning, coordinating, and executing the marathon by a national running publication.
“The St.George Marathon was voted the best organized in Runners World last year, and it's for a reason. The staff that we have here is incredible and the work they put in to put on this event is exceptional,” Metler said.
Runner's World and Metler aren't the only ones praising the annual race in Utah's Dixie. This year's version of the race brought in a record number of participants along with supportive family and friends from across the nation.
Metler, meanwhile, says he'll be pounding the pavement next year in the St. George Marathon.
“I will be back next year for sure, and hopefully every year after that. I won't be able to defend this year, gotta give some else a chance,” Metler said.
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