Reno and community partners will host a David Wise Parade of Champions on April 26 starting at 5pm.

Wise, a gold medalist in men’s ski halfpipe at the recent 2014 Winter Olympics and the first person from Reno to win Olympic gold, will be escorted to Aces Ballpark, where the parade will end at approximately 5:40pm.

The parade head west from the corner of Center and Fourth streets, continue south on Virginia Street, continue east on Second Street, then move north on Evans Avenue.

Festivities include a ceremony at the ReTRAC Plaza, a performance of the national anthem by 12-year-old singer Erika Hill of Reno, a Reno police honor guard salute at the Virginia Street Reno Arch, classic cars and other automobiles provided by Hot August Nights and a vintage fire truck. Other parade participants will be the eNVision Drumline & Color Guard and members of the local Sky Tavern Junior Ski Program.

Wise will be signing autographs inside Aces Ballpark and throwing out the first pitch prior to that evening’s Reno Aces game, scheduled for 6:35.

By Jason Blevins, Denver Post

Despite one of the worst winters ever for resorts around Lake Tahoe, Vail Resorts on Wednesday reported that stellar snowfall in Colorado buoyed the company’s performance for the 2013-14 ski season.

“Our performance this year reflects our ability to drive outstanding performance across our business despite varied conditions,” Vail Resorts chief Rob Katz said in a statement.

Lift revenue at the company’s eight destination resorts — four in Colorado, three in California and Canyons in Utah — climbed 7.6 percent over the previous season. Visitor spending climbed 7.5 percent for ski lessons, 3.1 percent on food and drink and 5.1 percent on retail and equipment rentals over the 2012-13.

Ample snow and strong visitation to Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone helped Vail Resorts weather a record decline in snowfall at its Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood ski areas.

Total skier visits across its destination resorts climbed 2.3 percent over the 2012-13 ski season.

Read the whole story

Improvements to Eagle Point Campground at Emerald Bay State Park are expected this summer.

Bids on the three projects at the Lake Tahoe campground are being taken until May 13.

The first project is to update the campground so it meets Americans with Disabilities Act requirements. This includes upgrading existing parking, making paths accessible, and removing and replacing select comfort stations and combination buildings.

Other projects include improving four lift stations, removing existing pump equipment and controllers, extending the potable water treatment building on the south end and installing new equipment, as well making electrical improvements.

All work is estimated to cost up to $2.1 million.

The work should take no more than six months to complete.

— Lake Tahoe News staff report

By Teri Mizuhara

In 2013, 32 percent of all wildfires in the Amador-El Dorado Unit of CalFire were caused by residential debris burning, which is up from 23 percent in 2012.

This amounted to a total of 94 fires and 66 acres burned.

Escaped debris burning continues to be one of our leading causes of wildland fires in the region. However, by following some simple precautions, the number of escapes can be significantly reduced.

Please remember that every debris burn escape is a threat to people, property and natural resources. To reduce your risk of causing a wildland fire, review the steps listed below to safely burn your debris piles.

Safety tips for burning:

· Make sure your pile(s) are no larger than 4 feet by 4 feet in size

· Scrape a 10-foot wide ring around each debris pile down to bare dirt

· Have a shovel and water supply (charged hose) close by to use in the event your fire escapes from the pile

· Make sure an adult is in attendance until the pile is completely extinguished

· You can only burn on “permissive burn days” so make sure to call your local Air Quality Management District immediately prior to lighting your pile(s). For Amador County, call 209.223.6246. For El Dorado County, call 530.621.5897 or 866.621.5897. For the Lake Tahoe area of El Dorado County call 530.621.5842 or 888.332.2876. For Alpine County, call 916.445.0745. Placer County (within 12 miles of Auburn), call 530. 889.6868. Placer County: 800.998.2876, Nevada County: 530.274.7928; Yuba County: 530.741.6299; Truckee area: 530.582.1027; Western Sierra County: 530.289.3662.

It is imperative that landowners follow all requirements listed on the burn permit. If a fire escapes their control, they can be issued a citation and be held liable for suppression costs and damages.

Residential burn permits will be required beginning May 1. These permits are issued to the public free of charge, are valid for three years from the date of issuance and allows for the burning of dry vegetation (not household trash) that originates on the landowners property. You can pick up your free residential burn permit at most of the local staffed fire stations.

Don’t forget that the use of burn barrels is no longer legal in Amador, El Dorado, Nevada, Placer, Sierra or Yuba counties. The only exception allowing the use of burn barrels is for the residents of the community of Iowa Hill in Placer County.

Teri Mizuhara works for CalFire.

The California Department of Fish and Wildlife will be conducting a wildlife checkpoint operation April 28 to promote safety, education and compliance with law and regulations.

CDFW law enforcement division will be conducting the inspection on southbound Hightway 395, south of Bishop on that Monday from 8am-4pm.

The wildlife checkpoint is being conducted to protect and conserve fish and wildlife, and to encourage safety and sportsmanship by promoting voluntary compliance with laws, rules and regulations through education, preventative patrol and enforcement.

All anglers and hunters will be required to stop and submit to an inspection. CDFW officers will also be providing informative literature about the invasive quagga mussel and New Zealand mudsnail.

Korbel has a cork popping competition at the celebrity golf tournament in Tahoe. Photo/LTN file

By Bill Pennington, New York Times

GREENSBORO, Ga. — Golf holes the size of pizzas. Soccer balls on the back nine. A mulligan on every hole.

These are some of the measures — some would say gimmicks — that golf courses across the country have experimented with to stop people from quitting the game.

Golf has always reveled in its standards and rich tradition. But increasingly a victim of its own image and hidebound ways, golf has lost five million players in the last decade, according to the National Golf Foundation, with 20 percent of the existing 25 million golfers apt to quit in the next few years.

People under 35 have especially spurned the game, saying it takes too long to play, is too difficult to learn and has too many tiresome rules.

Read the whole story

By Kathryn Reed

Flying critters may become problematic sooner this year in the Lake Tahoe Basin.

With temps being in the 60s for much of last week and the basin coming off a relatively dry winter, it means yellowjackets could be in abundance.

And despite the lack of water, it’s impossible to completely skip mosquito season.

Vector control is already suggesting people get their traps out for the yellowjackets.

“We are expecting a little more activity this year. Because of the dry winter a queen can survive the winter,” Karen Bender with El Dorado County Department of Environmental Health told Lake Tahoe News.

Each queen can have a colony of 5,000 wasps. (Yellowjackets are a wasp, not a bee.)

This area had a huge influx of the insects late last summer. Getting rid of the queen now can help prevent problems later on.

Trapping the bees is the easiest way to rid them from a residence or business. Traps, though, need to be set away from any entrances to a structure so the yellowjackets don’t fly in.

If people have a hive, vector control will come spray. Vector control does not necessarily get rid of the hive, nor do employees do anything with nests that are indoors. El Dorado County residents pay $6 a year via property taxes for vector control, so home visits are free.

Most often hives are underground, under a deck or in the eaves. The underground ones are the most difficult to see because they could be under leaves or dirt. Step on one, though, and the stings will let you know you hit the jackpot.

When it comes to mosquitoes, Bender said her offices wants to know if people are getting bit. That way they can locate the standing water and treat it.

“There’s not a lot of water, but what we’re seeing right now is a higher concentration of (mosquito) larvae that we are treating,” Bender said. “We haven’t seen any flying mosquitoes.”

—–

Notes:

• People who have yellowjacket issues or concerns, should call 530.573.3197 or 530.573.3450.

• People who find dead birds should call 877.968.2473 or go online to find more info about West Nile virus.

Western Nevada College Specialty Crop Institute offers a Native Plant and Seed Production workshop May 17 from 9am-3pm at the Carson campus, 2201 W. College Parkway. The workshop includes a tour of Comstock Seed farm and seed cleaning operation in Gardnerville.

The introductory workshop provides an overview of the native plant and seed industry for producers interested in farm diversification. Topics include an overview of the market; challenges of native seed propagation; seeding techniques including transplanting, collection, cleaning and testing; state and federal seed laws, and more.

Cost is $35 afterward. Lunch is included. Register online.

For more info, contact Ann Louhela at 775.423.7565, ext. 2260 or ann.louhela@wnc.edu.

William Kent Campground on the West Shore will be closed for construction this summer.

The William Kent beach/day use site will be closed for portions of the season.

Work in the campground includes the installation of erosion control measures to reduce stormwater runoff, reduce peak flow levels, and reduce the amount of sediment reaching Lake Tahoe. Upgrades to the campground include reconfiguring the campground entrance road, relocation of the check-in kiosk, and moving camp spurs away from the stream environment zone.

All relocated campsites will meet universal accessibility standards. The SEZ will be restored and upgrades provided to some utilities within the campground.

At the beach/day use area, the stormwater drain will be redesigned to reduce the volume and rate of stormwater flowing into Lake Tahoe. The existing storm water drain pipe will be cut and a new stream channel constructed in its place.

Work on the campground is expected to be finished in 2014 and work on the beach/day use area may extend into 2015, depending on weather and water levels. Work in either location generally will not occur on weekends.

For more info, call Katie Kuchenbecker at 530.543.2620.

NFL hall of famers, former Major League Baseball players and other sports celebrities, including Olympic freestyle skiing gold medalist Jonny Moseley, will gather July 13-14 to pay tribute to the former Oakland Raider Gene Upshaw.

They will be raising funds for cancer programs and traumatic brain injury research during the 6th annual Gene Upshaw Memorial Golf Classic at the Golf Club at Gray’s Crossing in Truckee.

This is the signature fundraiser for the Gene Upshaw Memorial Fund at the Tahoe Forest Health System Foundation.

Upshaw died in August 2008 of pancreatic cancer at the age of 63.

For more info, go online.