Cornering Consciousness

It's an ambling of a different nature for us, or at least for me, one that doesn't involve internal combustion, but rather internal determination. Mindy's been at this for three years now, and I just picked up my bike, let's see, more than a year ago. But, I'm putting more miles on it finally, fifty three of which were added this weekend at the Desperado Dual, a "tour" from Panguitch to the Bryce Canyon area and back to Panguitch. My idea of a workout is swapping out the ATs for the mudders on the Montero. I've never been much for endurance sports though producing documentaries about professional cycling in the nineties stoked my enthusiasm for all things bi-pedal with wheels, especially the Tour types, and it's been the Tour de France this year along with Mindy that's given me the motivation to get on the road. Go Team Sky. We're talking about signing up for our next race as I write this, the Gran Fondo in San Luis Obispo, Californi...

Speak the names of most small towns in Utah and you can immediately fetter out who's a native and who isn't, especially when you say the words, "Tabiona" or "Hannah." These neighboring villas are nestled along the Duchesne River at the base of the High Uintah Mountains, and host the annual gatherings of the Moons and the Fabrizios, families indigenous to this area, along with the Defas. The Fabrizio name came across the Atlantic from Italy with a "De" in front of it and was later divided into two, though I'm not sure where that happened, and those families established the history around Hanna and Tabiona. You'd think there'd be strong Italian traditions that survived the emigration, but it seems the Uintahs would have none of that. Instead, what evolved were a work ethic honed by the rugged territory, foods adapted from available resources, and values rooted in old world ideas elevated to reflect new religious influences. What didn...