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Show Page B3 'QHte tEtmcg-fttftcpenh- Thursday, August 19, 2004 mt On Two Wheels A pedaling periodical of bicycle-relate- d by Ron Georg Always and Forever With our sustainable models, we feel we can sustain the sustainable economy with sustainable recreation for a sustained period of sustainable growth, sustaining the sustainO and it goes on from there, ad infinitum. I am paraphrasing, of course, but thats more or less what Peter Metcalf, the CEO of Black Diamond Equipment in Salt Lake, had to say on the topic of why Utah should genuflect and kiss the ring of the Outdoor Retailer trade show. He was speaking on Radio West, a show on KUER, Salt Lakes National Public Radio call-i- n affiliate. The program was a little love-fefor the OR show, folclose on the heels of lowing Outdoor the Industry Association board of directors decision to keep the show in st Utah despite the states abysmal record of environmental protection. The board had threatened to pull the show out of the would have which state, semi-annu- al news and views boon to ended the twice-a-yedowntown Salt Lakes hospitality industry. The radio show was also a prime example of how media bias could be misconstrued as ar liberal. A conservative tener, hearing Metcalf pound on the virtues of a ation-based lisexrecre- economy over the tries, might mistakenly vices of extractive indusbe- lieve this was an argument for liberal values. While this may be how we tend to categorize the issues, the truth is Metcalfs points were just business as usual in a free market economy. A truly liberal radio host would have interrupted Metcalf, as well as the representatives of the Outdoor Industry Association and Salt Lakes Downtown Alliance who were interviewed, and asked them to explain how they define sustainability. Theyd correctly cite low-impa- ct forms of recreation, pointing out that you can run a river or ride a trail endlessly, with little or no damage to the resource. But theyd conve niently forget how we get all these tourists to places like Moab, and how they get around once theyre here. They would be ignoring the simple fact that tourism may as well be an extractive industry, since it wouldnt exist without cheap oil. We are in the middle of an economic bubble here in Moab, and it will burst if we dont actively pursue alternative fuel sources and transportation means. While we squander money on roads and airports, Continued from Page B1 American families, said Pain Rhode, president of Myvesta. People are still looking to dolmake their lars go farther. The Myvesta Survey was conducted 30 July through August 1 in a random telephone poll of 1,000 adult Americans. Each respondent was asked about their purchases for themselves, family members and others. The largest increases in shopping include spending on electronics, dorm room supplies and transportation. Consumers plan on spending 20 percent more on electronics, 33 percent more on dorm room supplies and 19.5 percent more on transportation related expenses. The only decrease in spending was a 16 percent drop in clothing purchases. The survey showed that 58.5 percent of American adults will head to the mall for term industry loosely, because there is no word for back-to-scho- ol Back-to-Scho- back-to-scho- ol ol rental car. Its just a few miles from here, I observe, implying the obvious, that they can ride. Yeah, but its uphill, they inevitably answer. some ol back-to-scho- ol shopping. Many people dont realize the true expenses of back-to-scho- ol shopping, Rhode said. On top of the usual pencils and notebooks, students today are required to pay for electronics such as graphing calculators and computers. And as many school systems are facing tight budgets of their own, costs for sports and ex- AUGUST 22, 2004 activities are being passed along to parents. According to Rhode, is the most expensive time of year and part of the trifecta of debt which also ol includes vacation spending and holiday shopping. In comparison, the average American spent $2,252 on their summer vacation this year and $835 on their holiday purchases in 2003. If this years average back-to-scho- ol expenses of $3,389 are charged on a credit card and only the minimum monthly payment is made, it will take 39.5 years to pay off and cost an additional $9,098 in interest payments. That calculation uses an 18 percent interest rate and a monthly minimum payment of 2 percent. While back-to-scho- ol can be a very expensive time of year, it doesnt mean you have to go in debt to send your kids to school, Rhode said. Have your children make up lists of everything they want, then go through the list with them to determine what the child actually needs. Shop at discount stores and check your paper for sales to stock up on inexpensive items like crayons and paper. But most importantly, will come again next year, time same at the and it never hurts to plan ahead. back-to-scho- ol d. fifteen-passeng- working without producing) is driven home every time someone in a group asks how theyre going to get their rental bikes to the Slickrock Trail without a rack on their back-to-scho- Only on the way there, is my standard response, which is never If we havent found a way to move people around before oil hits $80 a barrel, bursting our bubble, most of Moabs economy will collapse. There will be no buses towing rafts up the River Road, no vans covered with bicycles heading out around the west, and certainly no Humvees creeping up Amasa Back. Its not too late to begin pushing for alternatives, for ways to maintain a flow of visitors to the area, but so far its not happening, at least not with the sort of initiative this country is supposed to be famous for. However, a good first step would be coming up with a true definition for sustainable, one that describes the whole picture. Start with this: to sustain ourselves, we need food, water and air. Air is a given; so long as we dont poison it too heavily. Were also fortunate to have a significant water source here in the desert. For food, we have a resource: its a booklet called Fresh, Organic, and Native, Foods of the Four Corners, subtitled, A Directory of Ecoregional well-receive- School spending is up tra curricular back-to-scho- SUNDAY EVENING Amtrak is going under, even though trains can move people efficiently by electricity, which can be generated by wind or solar power (hydroelectric has its own unacceptable impacts). The nature of the industry I work in (and I use the Food er Sustainability. Its pub- lished by the Center For Sus- tainable Environments at Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, where they truly understand the definition of the word. In our area, the directory lists Arches Vineyards, Spanish Valley Vineyards, Castle Rock Farms, Ye 01 Geezer Meat Shop, Moab Farmers Market, Daystar Adventist Valley AcademyCastle Farms, Karuna Farms, Manzana Springs Vegetable Farm and CSA, the Youth Garden Project, and Moon-flowMarket as businesses which further the goals of er sustainability. The Grand County Agricultural Exten- sion can also help, especially if you want to join this list. So, all you English teach- ers are asking, whats the theme here? When are you going to tie this all up with a neat little bow? Well, thats exactly the point its already all connected. Everything is connected, and if wed just d step out of our lives, away from our climate-controlle- over-processe- d sustenance once in a while, wed see that. Its time for a new context, d and would provide sustainability that. Or, to tie it to the bigger theme that this column promises, an excellent place to start is from the seat of a bicycle, where the context will make much better sense. well-define- Tip of the Week just to show I can provide useful information for your daily lives, heres a quick piece of advice: when using a bike rack, park your bicycle rear wheel first. When you park it front wheel first, the bike can pivot on the headset and tip over. Plus, when bikes are parked front wheel first, their handlebars get tangled together. Parked rear wheel first, you can turn the bars, without the bike tipping over, so that others can fit in next to you. Keeping your bike parked upright helps prevent unnecessary frame damage to your bike as well as others parked next to you. While bikes end up scratched and even dented in the normal course of events, it doesnt seem like they should suffer while parked. Coming out to find another bike heaped on top of your own is as disturbing as finding a shopping cart banged into your cars fender. The rudest options include locking your bike parallel to the rack, denying anyone else the space, or parking with your front wheel over the rack, which prevents anyone from using the other side of the rack and leads to bike tangles as you try to extricate your ride from the rest. If you dont believe me, take a look at any of the display racks at the local bike shops. Theres a good reason the bikes are parked the way they are. You can reach Ron Georg with comments or information regarding this column at or send email to 259-305- 2, ontwowheelslearthlink.net. |