Officials at Squaw Valley are not estimating when the Siberia chairlift will be running again.

It remained closed on Tuesday after an electrical issue was reported at 12:48pm March 7. Six people on five chairs had to be roped down by ski patrol on Monday. Everyone was on solid ground by 1:45pm. No injuries were reported.

Amelia Richmond, spokeswoman for Squaw, told Lake Tahoe News on Tuesday the cause of the problem was still not known.

All other lifts resumed normal operations on Tuesday.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

Nearly 7,000 linear feet of 12-inch water line will be installed in the Angora burn area this summer.

The work will be on Lake Tahoe Boulevard, Grizzly Mountain Drive, North Upper Truckee Road, and Mt. Rainier Drive.

Besides the water line, meters, hydrants and vegetation are part of the project.

South Tahoe Public Utility District is using money from the federal stimulus and funds from the Nevada Fire Safe Council to pay for the work.

Bids are being accepted until April 5.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

The Fresh Ketch will be hosting the April 20 mixer for the Lake Tahoe South Shore Chamber of Commerce from 5:30-7:30pm.

Tickets are $10 for members and $20 for non-members. Attendees will receive two drink tickets and two raffle tickets with the price of admission.

TOCCATA  will present selections from J.S. Bach’s St. Matthew Passion in a series of concerts April 17-23.

Concerts are:

April 17 at 5:30pm at Trinity Episcopal Church in Reno;

April 20 at 7:30pm at St. Theresa Catholic Church in South Lake Tahoe;

April 22 at 7:30pm at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church in Incline Village;

April 23 at 3pm at Christ the King Lutheran Church in Tahoe City.

Tickets are available at the door or online for $35 preferred, $25adults, $20 seniors, and $5 students. For information, call (775) 313.9697.

The Heavenly Ski and Snowboard Foundation will host the Shredtacular Rail Jam event at the American Legion on Highway 50 in South Lake Tahoe  on March 11 from 4:30-10pm.

pen to skiers and snowboarders of all ages, the Shredtacular will be on a feature built by Rob Giustina of On Course Events.

Entry is $20 and includes a goodie bag and a raffle ticket for a chance to win tons of prizes.

The Shredtacular Rail Jam is a fundraiser for the Heavenly Snowboard Team’s trip to USASA Nationals in Copper Mountain, Colo., in April. The team expects to send 15 athletes to compete in the national event.

Registration will be at the American Legion beginning at 4:30pm. Practice begins at 5pm. Divisions include female, male skier and snowboarder, 12 and under, 13 to 17, and 18 and over. There will also be a Money Jam open to all participants for an additional $10; winner takes half the pot.

Fat Tuesday has so many meanings today.

Here is the ski report from Curtis Fong, the Guy from Tahoe.

By David G. Crane

The battle in Wisconsin is not over collective bargaining rights generally but rather the appropriateness of those rights in the public sector. Readers may be surprised to learn about the very different histories and consequences of collective bargaining in the private and public sectors.

In the private sector, collective bargaining is used to equalize the power of employees and employers. When empowered by collective bargaining, private-sector workers needn’t fear dismissal just because they seek a higher wage or better conditions. Accordingly, President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Congress enacted the 1935 National Labor Relations Act, which conferred collective bargaining rights on private-sector workers.

However, no such rights were conferred on public-sector workers. In fact, both Roosevelt and later George Meany, the first president of the AFL-CIO, opposed collective bargaining for the public sector. Also, in California public employees already had protection against dismissal as a result of the Civil Service Act of 1913, which endows public employees with property-like rights over their jobs.

Still, in 1962 the federal government gave collective bargaining rights to federal employees, and in 1977 California followed suit. However, because state employees already had civil service protections, collective bargaining wasn’t needed to equalize their power with employers’ power. As a result, collective bargaining for public employees in California changed the balance of power and – most importantly – gave public employees power over their compensation and benefits.

In the private sector, compensation and benefits are determined through negotiations conducted by unions representing employees and management representing shareholders. Neither side has influence over the other, and there is a healthy tension as each side works to increase its share of the pie. If unions don’t deliver enough compensation and benefits, workers can make changes to union leadership. If management delivers too much compensation and benefits, shareholders can make management changes.

David G. Crane, a Democrat, was an adviser to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and now lectures on public policy at Stanford University. He serves on the UC Board of Regents and the California High-Speed Rail Authority.

Read the whole story

By Kirsten Frattini, Cycling News

Levi Leipheimer’s (RadioShack) recent the third place finisher at the Vuelta a Andalucia Ruta Ciclista Del Sol is an indication that he is on schedule to target a fourth win at the Amgen Tour of California held from May 15-22.

The California resident believes that the RadioShack team that will be selected for the marquee event will be strong enough to fight for the golden leader’s jersey. “I think our team will be strong no matter what, and we will try our best to win,” said Leipheimer.

RadioShack scored an early season victory in the Spanish stage race, with Markel Irizar Aranburu winning by a mere one second ahead of Jurgen Van Den Broeck (Omega Pharma-Lotto) and two seconds ahead of Leipheimer.

Leipheimer is no stranger to the international podium having won the Deutschland Tour and the Criterium du Dauphine Libere along with podium places at both the Vuelta a Espana and the Tour de France. However, he ranks his three Amgen Tour of California victories as his biggest career achievements.

Read the whole story

Join the Tahoe Twins baseball team for a fundraiser at the North Tahoe Event Center on March 19 from 7:30-11:30pm.

The Tahoe Twins and the North Tahoe Public Utility District’s Friends of the Park Fund will benefit with all proceeds going to make improvements at the North Tahoe Regional Park’s Ballfield 5, the home field of the Twins. Raffle tickets will be available for $1 each for six for $5 at the event. A beer garden will also be available.

Remley is a five-member band with a versatile style that mixes classic rock sounds with today’s hot rock grooves.

The Tahoe Twins are a semi-pro baseball team in the National Adult Baseball Association League. The Twins play in North Lake Tahoe and Reno. Their season runs from May-September. Approximately 18 home games will be played at the North Tahoe Regional Park this summer and there is no charge to watch the games. They are the reigning NABA World Series Champions and with a record of 52-18.

For information about the fundraiser, call (530) 546.4212.

Tahoe Derby Dames will show off their derby skills at the first Winter Wonderslam on March 25 at Kahle Community Center in Stateline.

This family-friendly event will blend the full-contact roller derby action the Dames are known for with their love of philanthropy. A portion of the event’s proceeds will benefit Steven Rose, a friend of the Tahoe Derby Dames who is battling cancer. In addition, orange ribbon pins will be for sale in honor of Rose at the scrimmage.

For those looking for Tahoe Derby Dames T-shirts, beanies, and stickers to show their support for Lake Tahoe’s only flat-track roller derby league, the Dames will be selling merchandise at the event.

Tickets are $5, and kids under 5 are free with a paid adult. Tickets may be purchased at the event. Doors open at 7pm and the roller derby scrimmage kicks off at 8pm. Refreshments will be available at Kahle, and an after party will be at Brothers Bar & Grill in South Lake Tahoe.

For more information, visit the Dames online.