Wyoming

Barron: Creating another House caucus

Published

1 year ago

April 24, 2023

Press Room

CHEYENNE — The Wyoming Home might have new political caucus subsequent yr when members convene once more.

Proper now we’ve the Republican Celebration, the Democratic Celebration and the Freedom Caucus.

The latter is comprised of Republicans of the extremely conservative exhausting edged selection who might or might not attend the massive tent GOP caucuses.

The brand new caucus could be referred to as the Wyoming Caucus or Wyoming Group, in accordance with a number of revealed sources. Membership would come with conventional or extra reasonable Republicans, branded as RINO’s (Republicans-in-Identify Solely) by the Freedom Caucus.

The minority Democratic Celebration has its personal separate caucuses.

The Wyoming Caucus holds a majority of the 62 home seats. The Freedom Caucus claims about 26 and the minority Democrats maintain solely 5 seats this time period.

Feeling Freedom Caucus creep that might win extra seats within the 2024 election to provide a majority illustration and management of the Home, the traditionalists lastly are compelled to behave.

The complaints in regards to the Freedom Caucus members appeared extra quite a few and louder this yr than final. Their chief Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette, was within the open about their ways, specifically that they had been getting data from the nationwide Freedom group in Washington every day together with solutions on the way to vote.

As a result of they’d their directions and knew how all or most of them would vote, they noticed no want to speak about these payments.

Because of this there was little or no debate on some measures.

As one legislative observer put it, “They simply test the containers.”

Veteran Rep. Dan Zwonitzer, R-Cheyenne, nailed the issue throughout an interview after the Nov. election final yr.

The Legislature, he stated in accordance with revealed sources, can not operate if it’s attending to the purpose the place practically a 3rd of its members don’t need to learn or assume, and robotically vote “no.”

There is no such thing as a room, he added, for various ideological discussions or debate, as a result of these lawmakers received’t have interaction.

And that’s a disgrace. As a result of various ideological discussions and debate is the meat of the Wyoming Home.

It’s bigger, youthful and livelier than the Senate. Previously it was the stage for a lot of very lengthy and really heated debates on some very important points..

This yr, Home members had been in a position to wrap up early.

The Senate for the primary time in reminiscence took a day without work as a result of it had so few Home-passed payments to take care of.

I can perceive the pluses for the traditionalists to have their very personal caucus the place they’ll share data with like-thinking individuals.

And so they may also, if wanted, do some planning or scheming, to push by means of their very own agendas.

The draw back is that one other caucus additional splits the already break up Republican Celebration

And that’s the what former Home Speaker Eli Bebout objects to.

Having two Republican teams or caucuses within the Home isn’t wholesome, he stated in an phone interview final week.

“I don’t like the thought of getting bifurcation within the Republican Celebration,” he stated.

Bebout additionally was president of the Senate, stated that when he was within the management in each homes the Republicans had a powerful agenda of problems with significance to the Wyoming individuals. However they didn’t all agree. For instance he was pro-life and different Republicans had been pro-choice.

“We debated just like the dickens,” he stated. But on the finish of the day they nonetheless had been Republicans doing what they felt was proper for the state.

Bebout added that he may become involved within the dialogue of this new subject.

One other former Home Speaker, Kermit Brown of Laramie, was conscious of the issues going through the Home and the divided GOP.

Brown, who was not too long ago re-appointed to the College of Wyoming Board of Trustees, was cautious in his statements due to that place and the political nature of the caucus subject. He was noncommittal on the plan tor a Wyoming Caucus.

However he added, “I believe one thing must be performed,” Brown stated.

I believe different former home audio system would agree.

Joan Barron is a former capitol bureau reporter. Contact her at 307-632-2534 or jmbarron@bresnan.internet.

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Wyoming

Wyoming High School Boys Soccer Scoreboard: April 30-May 4, 2024

Published

4 hours ago

May 4, 2024

Press Room

Boys’ prep soccer teams in Wyoming are into Week 8 of the 2024 season. This is the final week of the regular season for Class 4A teams. They continue to jockey for postseason seeds at next week’s regional tournament. Two weeks are remaining in the Class 3A regular season. Opportunities are running out for school to be among the top four from each conference to qualify for the state tournament. Only two games feature a ranked team playing another ranked team, but that could change when the new poll comes out on Wednesday.

WYOMING HIGH SCHOOL BOYS SOCCER SCHEDULE WEEK 8 2024

WyoPreps Boys Soccer Standings on 4-28-24

This is the boys’ schedule for Week 8. Schedules are subject to change.

CLASS 4A

Final Score: #3 Jackson 13 Riverton 0 (conference match)

Final Score: #4 Sheridan 2 Campbell County 0 (conference match)

CLASS 3A

Final Score: #5 Lander 2 #3 Green River 1 (conference match)

Final Score: Rawlins 3 Douglas 1 (conference match)

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New WyoPreps soccer rankings are released on Wednesday.

New WyoPreps Coaches & Media Soccer Polls

CLASS 4A

Final Score: #3 Cheyenne Central 3 Laramie 1 (conference match) – Custis had 2 goals for the Indians.

Final Score: Cheyenne South 2 Cheyenne East 2 (conference match) – ends in a draw.

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CLASS 4A

Final Score: #5 Thunder Basin 2 Campbell County 0 (conference match)

Final Score: #1 Jackson 6 Star Valley 0 (conference match)

CLASS 3A

Final Score: #5 Lander 8 Lyman 1 (conference match) – Hanson & Richards with 2 goals each.

Final Score: #2 Torrington 8 Newcastle 1 (conference match)

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CLASS 4A

Final Score: #3 Cheyenne Central 4 Cheyenne South 0 (conference match)

Final Score: Star Valley 2 Riverton 1 (conference match) – Buehler with the game-winner with 19 seconds left in the match.

Final Score: #2 Kelly Walsh 9 Evanston 0 (conference match)

Final Score: Rock Springs 5 Natrona County 0 (conference match)

Final Score: #4 Sheridan 2 #5 Thunder Basin 0 (conference match)

Final Score: Cheyenne East 2 Laramie 2 (conference match) [at UW IPF]

CLASS 3A

Final Score: #3 Green River 4 Pinedale 2 (conference match)

Final Score: #4 Cody 9 Lyman 1 (conference match) – Rocky with the hat trick for the Broncs.

Final Score: Buffalo 2 Douglas 0 (conference match)

Final Score: Powell 1 Mountain View 0 (conference match)

#1 Worland at Rawlins – postponed to May 8, 2024

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CLASS 4A

Final Score: Natrona County 4 Evanston 0 (conference match)

Final Score: #2 Kelly Walsh 4 Rock Springs 0 (conference match)

CLASS 3A

Final Score: #4 Cody 7 Mountain View 0 (conference match) – Gail with a hat trick for the Broncs.

Lyman at Powell (conference match) – no report!

Final Score: #2 Torrington 4 Buffalo 3 [Blazers win SO, ???] (conference match)

Rawlins at Newcastle (conference match) – no report!

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Last Week’s WyoPreps Week 7 Boys Soccer Scores 2024

Wyoming High School Sports Pics of the Week: Apr. 17-20

Gallery Credit: Shannon Dutcher, Josh Eastman, Greg Wise, James Yule, Chrissy Sanchez, Adria Trembly, Tony Montoya, Libby Ngo, Treva Hurst, Upton Booster Club,

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Wyoming

Why The Heck … Does Wyoming’s Rare Periodic Spring Turn Itself On And Off?

Published

11 hours ago

May 4, 2024

Press Room

Why The Heck … Does Wyoming’s Rare Periodic Spring Turn Itself On And Off?

The on-again, off-again stream in Swift Creek Canyon is a rare geological feature located about 5 miles east of Afton, Wyoming. So rare, it is probably one of only a handful in the world.

The natural spring cycles on and off at regular intervals, earning it the name Periodic Spring, or sometimes Intermittent Spring. Folklore often labels the feature “The Spring That Breathes,” and while that moniker sounds Native American-like, there is no evidence supporting First Nation peoples in the Star Valley area ever even knew of it.

What is known is that an ice-cold stream that is 100% drinkable runs down a mountainside one minute and dries up the next.

Thirsty? Fear not. The wait between flows is usually less than 20 minutes.

Springing To Life

Olympic gold medalist wrestler Rulon Gardner’s great-great-grandfather discovered this phenomenon in August 1894.

While logging up in Swift Creek Canyon just east of Afton, Bruce Gardner found an unnamed spring that fed Spring Creek to be very tasty to a parched logger. The trouble was the spring would be running full bore one minute and dried up the next. Its flows weren’t unreliable, just intermittent.

The spring is known as a “rhythmic spring.” There are reportedly only a handful of these in the world, and Period Spring is supposedly the largest.

The classification of Periodic Spring as a rhythmic spring remains an educated guess. This particular feature in Wyoming is often denoted as an underground cold-water geyser, but that’s not technically correct.

Cold-water geysers are a rare phenomenon known around the world. Germany’s Andernach is the highest spouting and the Herľany Geyser, discovered in 1872 in Slovakia, blows its top only once a day.

Cold-water geysers are similar to their geothermal counterparts like Old Faithful. The difference is, Old Faithful uses heat generated by a layer of basaltic magma to boil water to the steam-driven point it explodes to the surface.

Sometimes called soda pop geysers, cold-water geysers use underground pockets of CO2 to push water to the surface.

Crystal Geyser just outside of Green River, Utah, is probably the best-known of these. It was accidentally “created” in 1936 when exploratory oil drilling unknowingly tapped into a carbon dioxide-charged aquifer.

The underground nature of Periodic Spring near Afton means you cannot see the eruption spout. But you certainly can hear it as it gurgles in a cave perched atop a heavily-wooded hillside above Swift Creek.

Much like Old Faithful, a period of hissing and wheezing signals flow from the springhead is about to begin. Water then rises to the lip of the underground cistern and eventually spills over. What starts as a trickle is soon a roaring rivulet, cascading its way over moss-covered rocks to its confluence with Swift Creek a quarter mile below.

For about 15 minutes, all seems normal. A delicious-looking rill bubbles to life looking like it has always been there. Stick around, though. Once the underground reservoir empties out, the flow shuts off, the streambed dries up, and all is still once again for another 15 minutes.

How It Works

“Everything about this spring is somewhat surprising. It’s an extremely unusual occurrence,” said Kip Solomon, a hydrologist at the University of Utah.

Scientists are not 100% sure what makes Periodic Spring do what is does, but they’ve made a fairly safe, educated guess.

Solomon has studied the spring probably more than anyone. He said the closest thing to it in behavior is a similar phenomenon in France.

He shared his best theory on how it works.

“As groundwater flows continuously into a cavern, it fills a narrow tube that leads out. As it pours over the high point of the tube, it creates a siphon effect, sucking water out of the chamber. Eventually, air rushes in and breaks the siphon,” Solomon assured.

Studies conducted by University of Utah in the mid-2000s confirmed no gas content in the water, strongly suggesting support for the siphon theory.

“We can’t think of another explanation at the moment,” Solomon added.

The best time to view the spring turning itself on and off is from late August through November when the water table is at its lowest and the distinction between flows is at its most distinctive.

A similar rhythmic spring called the Ebbing and Flowing Spring can be found in Hawkins County, Tennessee, near Rogersville. That spring flows for a period of 2 hours and 47 minutes, ranging from an indiscernible trickle to nearly 500 gallons per minute.

Periodic Spring is very much like an artesian well. The pristine ice-cold water and can be safely consumed right out of the ground. In fact, the Periodic Spring provides part of the water for the town of Afton. That’s the reason for the cement hood placed over the mouth of the spring to prevent rocks and other debris from falling into the opening.

The spring feeds a torrent of water down Swift Creek Canyon to a hydroelectric plant, which supplies surrounding towns with electricity.

Getting There

Locate Second Avenue in Afton, then head east out of town. The road is paved for a mile or so and then turns into a well-maintained dirt road (FR 10211) for another 4 miles. On the way, you will notice a drinking water tank maintained by the town of Afton.

The road ends about 5 miles outside of town at a parking area. You can’t miss the beginning of the trail at the far end. You are now in the Bridger-Teton National Forest, by the way.

The walk is only three-quarters of a mile on relatively flat terrain. To get to the spring, cross the Swift Canyon Creek to an area with a highly visible sign and a picnic table.

Want a close-up look at where the wellhead is? Begin the trek up along the left side of the rocky rill. Be extra cautious — the rocks near the top will be extremely slippery.

The whole area is refreshingly low-key and un-sensationalized. It is a wonder of nature, both remarkable and rare. Enjoy the serenity, tread lightly, and leave no trace.

Contact Jake Nichols at jake@cowboystatedaily.com