FLC Cycling Team restructures

The Fort Lewis College Cycling team has decided to change things up. Due to the increasing competitiveness of the collegiate cycling world and a new commitment from the college, the team’s leadership will be restructured.

Over the years, collegiate cycling has become a competitive niche for the college, and the FLC Cycling Team is seen as a great resource for recruiting new students. The college responded with more funding for the program.

Currently, FLC Cycling sits atop the collegiate cycling rankings, but the field is becoming so competitive that it is necessary for FLC to adapt. The restructuring is intended to bring the team more in line with a professional cycling team model, and the decision was made following a recommendation by members of the Fort Lewis College Cycling Board of Directors.

The current position of head coach will be expanded and replaced with a team director. The team manager position will remain.  FLC Cycling Head Coach Rick Crawford and current Team Manager/Assistant Coach Dave Hagen have been invited to apply for the new positions.

“This is an exciting time for FLC Cycling,” explained Rick Mull, FLC professor and a member of the cycling Board of Directors. “President Bartel’s support for FLC Cycling has allowed us to take a huge leap in functional evolution. We now have the resources to emulate the new models of cycling success as illustrated by Team Columbia and Garmin-Chipolte in the Tour de France.”

The new position of team director will encompass all of the duties of the current head coach position, namely coaching and recruiting. Added will be fund raising and more administrative responsibilities.

“We appreciate all that Coach Crawford has done for Fort Lewis College Cycling over the years,” said Vice President for Student Affairs Glenna Sexton. “However, we feel that this new course is necessary for FLC Cycling to both continue as the premier program that it is and reach new heights of success.”

Gas drilling prompts lawsuit

Local oil and gas extraction took some responsibility for a major national stink last week. A coalition has announced its intent to sue the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency over its failure to regulate pollution from drilling. The San Juan Basin is one of the keystone cases referenced by the coalition.

Jeremy Nichols, director of Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action, argued that oil and gas drilling releases a number of harmful air pollutants. In addition, compressors on pumpjacks are not required to have emissions controls, a prospect that means bad air for adjacent communities.  

“Federal clean-air safeguards for oil and gas drilling have failed to keep pace with technology and science, putting our children, communities and climate at risk,” Nichols said. “Oil and gas drilling should not come at the expense of our health and our future generations.” Under the Clean Air Act, the EPA is required to periodically review and update clean air regulations. Nichols noted that in the case of the oil and gas industry, the agency has

neglected to review and update three separate sets of clean air regulations. One of these has not been reviewed since 1985. The net result, he said, is that a number of operations related to oil and gas drilling are unregulated.

“In the face of booming oil and gas drilling, the Rocky Mountain West is facing its most significant air-quality challenges ever,” said Nick Persampieri, a lawyer with Earthjustice. “We can’t meet these challenges if we don’t have updated clean air safeguards.”

The San Juan Basin, which spans Southwest Colorado and Northwest New Mexico, is the largest producing natural gas field in the United States. In nearby San Juan County, there are more than 18,000 oil and gas wells. According to Rocky Mountain Clean Air Action, more than 375 of those wells emit hydrogen sulfide, which at low levels can cause difficulty breathing, nausea and headaches. At high levels, the compound can cause loss of consciousness and even death. The coalition argued that federal clean air regulations only limit hydrogen sulfide emissions from large natural gas processing plants and oil refineries. There are not regulations for individual oil and gas wells.

Shirley McNall, a resident of Aztec, has experienced hydrogen sulfide pollution firsthand. There are at least 20 wells within a mile of her home and a well pad within 500 feet.  For 2½ months in 2005, amid strong hydrogen sulfide odors, she experienced sore throats, headaches, dizziness and muscle weakness.

“Like hydrogen sulfide, the EPA’s foot-dragging stinks,” McNall said. “For our health and our future, clean air regulations for the oil and gas industry need to be brought into the 21st Century.”

Durango-based groups, San Juan Citizens Alliance and the Oil and Gas Accountability Project, are partners in the suit. A half-dozen other regional and national conservation groups will also take part in the litigation.

Backcountry bouncing back

Remnants from the winter of 2007-08 are still hanging on in backcountry around Durango. A legacy of rockslides and landslides are hampering access on several roads and trails on local national forest. There are also numerous reports of downed trees across trails in the high country, and Forest Service crews are working to clear trails. However, some of these access problems will not be remedied this season.

The Elk Creek Trail in the Weminuche Wilderness is not passable for those traveling by horse or with stock. Approximately 2 miles from the D&SNG train tracks, a large slab of rock has taken out a 36-foot section of the trail. The rock’s continued movement has opened up a deep and wide crack, and the trail is slumping down into the river. Backpackers can navigate the section by stepping up onto a large out-sloping rock, but the section is not safe for horse users, who are encouraged to access the drainage from upper connecting trails.

Also in the Weminuche, the upper portions of the switchbacks of the Endlich Mesa Trail are blocked by downed timber in the area leading down into Florida Park and City Reservoir. Approximately half a mile of trail is currently inaccessible, but can be bypassed by using an older route.

Furthermore, crossing Vallecito Creek in the area of the former Soda Springs Bridge about 7 miles north of the wilderness boundary is highly problematic at current water levels. Three years ago, an avalanche took out the bridge and covered a 1-mile-long section of the trail with debris. The section of trail was reopened by the Forest Service in a blasting operation last year, but there are no current plans to replace the bridge.

In addition, Junction Creek Road will be closed in late July and early August for about two weeks to allow for repair of retaining walls damaged by landslides along a 1-mile section of the road between mileposts 5 and 6. The temporary closure will block access to the Animas Overlook, Clear Creek Trailhead, South Fork Trailhead and Champion Ventures Mine Road. Access to the lower Colorado Trail Trailhead, Logchutes Trail System, and Junction Creek Campground will not be affected.

– Will Sands