The Spud Drive-In

The Spud Drive-In movie theater is an icon here in Teton Valley. The big news late this spring was that the Spud would be closing down for good. A big corporate business had bought the Spud just over a year ago, purchasing a digital projector and hosting concerts and other events. This spring, when profits weren't as promising as they'd hoped (of course I don't know the full story), they suddenly announced their closing, which seemed like the real end for the Spud.

However, some local people decided to "Save the Spud," and are trying to make a go of it, rallying support from people in the valley. With Cars 2 showing, we couldn't resist a night out at the Spud!

"Old Murphy" is the truck that sits in front of the theater, with the big potato on it. Old Murphy no longer runs, but is usually placed on a flatbed float to join the 4th of July parade. This year, they came up with Mater the tow truck, which we just found completely amusing! "Mater tows Tater in the Parader!"

Skiing and Swimming

After seeing all the skiing on Saturday (Targhee's summer opening day), Corb could not resist the idea of breaking out his Scotty Bobs (telemark skis that he left here) and joining the fun. On Monday morning, he took Brady downtown to rent some equipment. We all headed up to the mountain and Brady and Corb took a few runs, while Connor, Maggie and I enjoyed the pool. We never thought any of us would ski here in June - so awesome. Corb even took a few more runs on Tuesday; Brady opted for the pool that day.

This is the first year that Targhee has offered summer pool passes, which also include chairlift passes for the summer, so we jumped at the opportunity.

Hit the Ground Running!

We started playing as soon as we arrived, so now we're playing "catch up" with our blog. I'm adding a couple of new pictures from the top of Wray's Wrun, which I did with my friend, Sharon. It was a great way to start my summer!

Later that afternoon, I took the kids back up to Targhee for "Battle of the Bands," where we had a great chance to visit with Tammy and Rudy and the Wilcox family. Maggie had a great time with Rudy and Cheyenne, and Brady even got paid to watch Rudy for a little while to give Tammy a break! Our votes helped our friends and wonderful musicians, the Miller Sisters, to win the opportunity to be an opening act during Targhee's Music Festival in mid-July.

The next morning (Sunday 6/26), I met Tammy and Heather to run the "Fandango Fun Run," hosted by Karee and Candice Miller. Afterward, they handed us Miller beers, which was a little weird at 10am, but we went with the flow. Later that afternoon, we all went back to Linn Canyon Ranch for the Fandango Music Festival. Brady's friend, Lia, was already hanging out at our house, so she came along for the fun. We met up with Tizzy and Sam, the Browns (Tammy's family) and the Wilcoxes and ran into a few other old friends. It was a very fun afternoon for all of us. The kids had fun exploring the tipis and wall tents, while we really enjoyed a the chance to catch up with good friends. Corb also got to hear the Miller Sisters play for the first time ... and was impressed!

After those two days of running, I was very sore!

Back in the Teton Valley

After a long hiatus, we finally arrived back in the valley on June 24.  The drive from Lander is familiar, but there was so much snow on Towgotee Pass that the road to the lookout near Towgotee Lodge was impassable.  Tim and Tizzy Benson and their son Sam had been staying at our house and when we arrived we found a bottle of wine and a lasagna in the fridge for an easy dinner.
This was the lightest we've ever travelled, so we were unloaded and settle in less than two hours---which meant there was enough time for me to get in a short ride before dark.

We went to Targhee the next day for Wray's Wrun up Fred's Mountain.  The event was put on by Dreamchasers so we got to see the Batchen Family and other friends.  Nancy made her way to the top only five minutes slower than last year then cruised down with a few more friends.  This was the opening weekend of Targhee's summer season and there were people still skiing from top to bottom!

WYO

After a morning stop at Cabelas in Sydney, NE, we finally crossed the border into Wyoming.  It seems the we all breathe a little easier with our first sight of the snow capped Rockies.  Lunch in Laramie was followed by a drive-by through Rawlins so we could stop at the Split Rock rest area.  The Campbell's had a wonderful dinner waiting for us when we arrived.  We ate grilled chicken on their deck with Phil and Carolyn Gilberston.  Bruce had just trapped a beaver and was stretching the hide in his garage.  After dinner, Bruce took us to the rifle range.  Everybody got to shoot the .22

 

The Heartland

After our day in Cedar Point, we needed to make time.  Luckily we got through Chicago with very little traffic and arrived in Amana, IA for a stay at the Wasserbahn.  The next morning we were able to get all the way to Ogalla, NE, but not before a stop in Gothenburg, NE for the best homemade vanilla ice cream from Peterson's Market.

Our First Stop on our Trip West

In the Truck

Entering Cedar Point

Summer officially began on June 19, 2011, when we left Andover for another trip across the country.  The first day of the trip west this summer was spent driving to Sandusky, OH so that we could spend following day at Cedar Point.  Nancy, Connor, and Brady were loving the thrill of all the roller coasters.  Brady especially liked the splash rides.  Brady rode nearly all the roller coasters.  Brady and Connor talked me into riding on the roller coaster called Corkscrew---it was the first and last roller coaster I rode all day.  I liked the train and the boat rides through the park.  Maybe because it was Monday or a little overcast, but there were no lines.

Super Slushies

My Kind of Ride

The Power Tower

The Wind Seeker

Kids These Days