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About Applegater. (Jacksonville, OR) 2008-current | View Entire Issue (July 1, 2017)
Applegater Summer 2017 Applegate Valley Community Newspaper, Inc. PO Box 14 Jacksonville, OR 97530 Photo by Teya Jacobi applegater.org Celebrating Applegate Valley Community Newsmagazine SUMMER 2017 Volume 10, No. 2 ~24~ Serving Jackson and Josephine Counties — Circulation: 11,000 Think embers and continuous fuels BY SANDY SHAFFER Another March, another drive over the Siskiyous and Sierras down to Reno for the annual WUI (Wildland Urban Interface) Conference. This year our Applegate Fire District’s new office manager, Tallie Jackson, joined me for the trip. Reno is a good, well-rounded conference for her to learn more about the WUI and the wildfire 1 issues that we all face here in the Applegate. I’ve attended this conference the past dozen or so years and looked forward to seeing some old friends, learning new concepts, and hearing how the coming summer wildfire season was sizing up. The wet winter was definitely discussed. Not much new science-wise, but there was a lot BENEFIT FOR Applegater NEWSMAGAZINE Family BBQ! Years was honored in Reno by receiving the 2017 Wildfire Mitigation Legacy Award— the first time anyone has received this honor. In past Applegater articles I’ve discussed the Home Ignition Zone (HIZ) course I took from Dr. Cohen. I’ve used his photos to help explain the HIZ, I’ve discussed how to define your particular HIZ, I’ve This home ignited due to fine fuels around it quoted Dr. Cohen on during the 2002 Missionary Ridge Fire in Colorado. “discontinuous fuels,” I’ve called him “the HIZ guru,” of talk about both the safety of firefighters and I’ve shared his work with you, my and the motivation of WUI residents to Applegate neighbors. When I looked up those old articles on make their homes firesafe. However, the recent retirement of the HIZ, how it differs from “defensible someone I’ve admired and learned from space,” and why homes burn in wildfires, for many years came as a surprise. Jack I found that it’s been over ten years since I D. Cohen, PhD, had been the US Forest wrote them! Time sure does fly (or maybe Service’s post-fire investigator and WUI I’m just getting old?)! But, considering how mitigation specialist for decades. Dr. Cohen See THINK EMBERS, page 24 Paragliders to add color to the sky soon! BY DAVID DOBBS SUNDAY JULY 23 LIVE MUSIC “STILL LOOKING” BAND 2-6 PM fishing booth • CORNHOLE GAME FOOD & BEVERAGES BBQ Chicken Cowboy Beans Green Salad and Bread Complimentary Lemonade Wine and Hard Cider available for purchase SILENT AUCTION Art Wine and Food Spa Treatments and more Each June I get a quick glimpse of the paragliding event called Rat Race - Sprint Paragliding Competition and Super Clinic as I drive past Woodrat Mountain on Highway 238. How many paragliders can cluster suspended in midair? Who can stay afloat the longest? Who can spot the target on land first and race to retrieve it? Does the first one down have to pay for a round of wine? Regardless, they are probably enjoying themselves while I’m attempting to drive responsibly while (not) heeding the posted warning signs not to look up. The 2017 Rat Race competition runs from June 18 through 24. Practice day is June 17. For those of you who want to enjoy the paragliding event with your feet on the ground and your eyes safely following the action in the sky, the event coordinators recommend visiting Fiasco, Longsword, or Red Lily wineries. They all have ample parking and viewing spots. “Longsword is probably the best seat in the house,” claims paraglider Norm Young. “It has plenty of See RAT RACE, page 3 RAFFLE PRIZE TICKETS AVAILABLE JUNE 15 • PURCHASE BY JULY 16 • NO TICKETS AT DOOR LOCATION APPLEGATE RIVER LODGE 15100 HIGHWAY 238 APPLEGATE KIDS $5 6 - 12* ADULTS $15 / 2 FOR $25 *KIDS 5 & under ARE FREE Local Postal Customer TICKETS APPLEGATER.ORG evENTBRite.com RUCH COUNTRY STORE Nonprofit Org US Postage PAID Permit #125 Medford OR ECRWSSEDDM Rat Race paragliding competitors will add color to the sky and a temptation for you to look up while driving (don’t do it). Photo: Julie Gever, flickr.com.
