Mount Washington Valley News Brought To You By Horsefeathers

PINKHAM NOTCH NH —  On Friday, the evening before the 50th running of the legendary Mount Washington Road Race, four of the greatest runners in the race’s history became the first members of the new Mount Washington Road Race Hall of Fame.
Bob Hodge of Massachusetts, Anna Pichrtova of the Czech Republic, legendary English coal-miner-turned runner Fred Norris, and the late Gary Crossan of New Hampshire were chosen by a committee made up of the race’s organizers. These runners, each with an outstanding history at Mount Washington, were selected from a larger list of nominees with exceptional accomplishments in this all-uphill race to the summit of the highest peak in the Northeast.
The inaugural Hall of Fame inductees were honored at a ceremony at the Eagle Mountain House in Jackson.

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NORTH CONWAY, NH - The MWV HOG Chapter invites all motorcyclists to “Rally in the Valley”, an official event of the Laconia Motorcycle Week in beautiful Mount Washington Valley…the heart of the White Mountains of New Hampshire. Surrounded on all sides by roads meant for motorcycles, the communities served by the chamber offer bikers the ultimate rally experience complete with small town charm and hospitality. Motorcyclists looking for lakes, mountains, hills, curves and beautiful country roads with breathtaking views will find it in Mt Washington Valley. NH

Please respect the rights of others, just as you want others to respect your rights as motorcyclists. Be considerate of resident concerns and do whatever is necessary to minimize the noise level of your motorcycle’s exhaust system - thank you.
Buy A Wristband for $5.00 to Support the MWV Hog Chapter’s Scholarship for a Kennett High School Student Interested in the Trades!
Buy your Wristbands at the Mt Washington Valley Chamber of Commerce, Rally Headquarters or as part of any participating lodging package - $5.00

Wristbands are required for entrance to the Rally Headquarters for Concerts, Guided Rides, Fashion Show and Bike Show and provide discounts at area businesses.

By Lloyd Jones
Editor - Conway Daily Sun

CONWAY NH — Welcome to Title Town.
Those words could be added to the Town of Conway signs after this past weekend. In the span of 18 hours. Kennett High won two state championships, both in dramatic fashion, making it the greatest weekend in the Eagles’ storied sports history.
The Kennett girls’ basketball team won the Class I State Championship on Friday night beating top-seeded and previously undefeated Lebanon 52-45 at Southern New Hampshire University in Manchester. The sixth-seeded Eagles became just the second Kennett High girls’ team to lift the basketball crow, equaling the feat of the 1989 Kennett squad, which beat Monadnock 53-52 at the University of New Hampshire in another thriller.
Saturday afternoon, in the Verizon Wireless Arena, also in Manchester, the Kennett hockey team won its second straight Division III state championship by topping second-ranked Bedford 2-1 in a barnburner that went right down to the final seconds.
Both teams returned to Conway and celebrate with parades Friday and Saturday nights. On Saturday, the hockey team invited the basketball team to share in its celebration and the girls willingly accepted another victory lap.
“This could be easy to get used to,” Kennett High principal Neal Moylan said as he greeted both teams at the Ham Ice Arena in Conway. “What a weekend. I think we are the new Title Town. Move over Green Bay.”
“I would have to think this is the greatest sports weekend in Kennett history,” Michael Lane, Eagles’ head hockey coach, who successfully guided his team to back-to-back state titles, said following the parade. “I really don’t know that another weekend can compare to this. The girls had a great weekend and we’re so proud of their championship. I really think it motivated our team a little bit more after seeing their success. I’m so proud of both teams and thrilled for Coach (Peter) Ames (of the girls’ basketball team).” Read the rest of this entry »

By Tom Eastman

NORTH CONWAY NH - “There will likely come a day when another weather station reliably records a wind of greater than 231 miles per hour. When that day comes, [Mount Washington] Observatory staff, perhaps better than anyone, will understand the value of the achievement. But that next world record wind cannot diminish the significance of the 1934 World Record Wind, in what it will still say about the mountain and those who have worked there.”
— Dr. Peter Crane, “The Story of the World Record Wind,” Mount Washington Observatory Web page
• • •
Those who love the mountain that locals affectionately refer to as “The Rockpile” have been suffering a bit of an identity crisis all week.
Who are we, we ask our weather-loving selves, if Mount Washington is no longer holder of the “World Record Wind?”
Mount Washington devotees are at a loss this week to learn that the 6,288-foot focal point of the Mount Washington Valley — the “Top of New England” and the highest peak in the Northeast — can no longer lay claim to holding the world’s wind speed title.
In case you missed it, the mark of 231 mph record on April 12, 1934 by the crew of the then two-year-old non-profit Mount Washington Observatory has been blown away, if you will.
In a press release issued Jan. 26 by Scot Henley, executive director of the North Conway-based observatory, news of the new record is contained in a report released Jan. 22 by the World Meteorological Organization.
The record was toppled in 1996 at Barrow Island, Australia, during Typhoon Olivia.
According to the report, the new record stands at 253 miles per hour.
News of the new world record was released by a WMO evaluation panel of experts in charge of global weather and climate extremes. The panel was led by Dr. Randy Cerveny of Arizona State University.
“It was bound to happen, but it’s definitely quite a shock to hear that news,” says the observatory’s Henley. “While we are disappointed that it appears that Mount Washington may have been bumped from the top, at our core we are all weather fans and we are very impressed with the magnitude of that typhoon and the work of the committee that studied it.”
Sure, it hurts some to lose the distinction — but Mount Washington is still a bear of a mountain.
“We are still ‘Home of the World’s Worst Weather,’ ” said Henley, “and just because we may have lost the World Record Wind title does not change that. The mountain is still one of the most feared places on the planet. It’s a combination of bitter cold, freezing fog, heavy snow and incredibly high winds.” Read the rest of this entry »

Pinkham Notch NH - Saturday, January 9
Dr. Brian Irwin will hold a book signing and reading for his new book “Recompense: Streams, Summits and Reflections” from 6 to 8 p.m. at Pinkham Notch Visitor Center. Irwin is a family physician at Tamworth Family Medicine, a division of Huggins Hospital, and writes a health column for the Conway Daily Sun. Containing some articles that have been previously published in magazines and medical journals, “Recompense” is a compilation of essays, exploring the tenderness of life, the realities of death, and the strings within each person that holds all facets together. For more information visit www.recompensethebook.com.

FRYEBURG, ME – Maine’s biggest agricultural fair kicks off Sunday with the promise of more than 4,000 animals, harness racing, pig scrambles, 165 food booths, exhibition halls and a midway with more than 50 rides.This is the 159th year of the Fryeburg Fair, which runs eight days before wrapping up next Sunday. The event draws close to 200,000 people each year.Fair organizers said one of the fair’s top attractions will be “Energy Row,” where companies involved in wind power, solar power, wood pellets, wood and corn furnaces, geothermal power and other renewable energy options will set up and display their products.

The 21st Annual Bach Festival, presented by the White Mountain Musical Arts, returns to North Conway Sunday, Aug. 23, and Friday through Sunday, Aug. 28 through 30. Approximately 80 musicians, professional and amateur, will gather for the four-day event to perform the great instrumental and vocal works of the Baroque masters.

The festival opens with a concert preview at 7 p.m. Aug. 23 at Christ Church, Episcopal, Main Street, North Conway, followed at 7:30 p.m. by a concert featuring Ray Cornils, municipal organist for the city of Portland, performing on the church’s on the Casavant free-standing, two manual tracker organ.

The festival continues at Cranmore Mountain Resort’s air-conditioned 10th Mt. Pavilion at Cranmore, Aug. 28 through 30, with concerts Friday and Saturday evening at 7:30 p.m., and a show Sunday at 4 p.m. Each of the concerts will feature a concert preview one-half hour before the concert begins. Both works for soloists and small ensembles as well as larger works for full chamber orchestra and chorus are scheduled for performance at this year’s festival.

On Aug. 30, a Sunday Morning Bach Service will be held at First Church of Christ, Congregational, North Conway, with a Pre-Service Prelude Music at 9:30 a.m., followed by the Worship Service at 10 a.m.
The full Bach Festival Chorus, soloists and orchestra will bring the 2009 Bach Festival to a close on Sunday afternoon.

For further information and tickets, go to www.mwvevents.com/WMMABach or email to info@mwvevents.com, or for information about Cranmore events, call 356-5543.