Posted April 10, 2007 from Mark Newton
Denver really is exactly one mile high. By an amazing stroke of good luck, there is a step on the State Capitol Building that is exactly 5,280 feet above sea level — one mile high. Which step? Well, the 11th step is carved in stone as a mile high, but in 1969, it was found that the actual spot was four steps higher. In 2002, it was discovered that Denver is three feet higher than previously thought.
So take your pick of steps — but one of them is assuredly one mile high. In Denver's rarified ir, golf balls go ten percent farther. So do cocktails. Alcoholic drinks pack more of a wallop than at sea level. The sun feels warmer, because you're closer to it, but your coffee is cooler, because water boils at 202 degrees.
Mile High Denver is also extremely dry, so it is good idea to drink more water than normal. With less water vapor in the air at this altitude, the sky really is bluer in Colorado. But there's 25 percent less protection from the sun, so sunscreen is a must.
Posted April 6 and 10, 2007 from Mark Newton
So, the million-dollar question is what's the weather like in Denver in April? Sun, snow, rain, breeze, heat, cold -- we got it all. In April, the average high is 61, the low 34, with many days of sunshine.
Now, the two-million-dollar question is what will the weather be like during the convention?
Wed. — 53 high/37 low/10% chance of precipitation/partly cloudy
Thurs. — 45/36/30/few showers
Fri. — 38/26/60/snow showers
Sat. — 47/33/10/sunny (all the snow will be gone!)
Sun. — 55/39/10/partly cloudy
Posted March 28, 2007 from Linda Puntney
The hotel is sold out and A Room With a View will be handling the overflow reservations. If you have mailed, or tried to make reservations at the Hyatt those should be sent by the hotel to A Room With a VIew. If you still need to make reservations my suggestion is that you contact A Room With a View directly and they will handle finding lodging for you. The phone number for A Room With A View is 1-800-780-4343. They will secure the lowest available rate within walking distance to The Hyatt Regency Hotel. This is a free service for all JEA / NSPA attendees
Posted March 23, 2007 from Mark Newton
The Colorado Mammoth professional lacrosse team is offering a special rate with great opportunities for all schools attending the convention. The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 12 at the Pepsi Center (a short walk from the convention hotel).
Tickets (upper center) are $11 (one free for every 10 purchased). Also included are a post-game conference with a Mammoth player and a 10 percent discount at the team store.
If you're interested, you can contact Sarah at 303-575-1916 or sgarrity@pepsicenter.com. The offer is only valid by ordering through Sarah and is not accepted at the Pepsi Center Box Office. All ticket orders must be received by noon April 12.
Posted Feb. 27, 2007 from Mark Newton
There are plenty of restuarants near the convention hotel — in fact, you'll find some great dining in downtown Denver.
Here's a couple of links to Web sites that may help you — whether you have a large group or not...
Posted Feb. 26, 2007 from Mark Newton
DINOSAUR RIDGE HAWKWATCH
In Morrison, search the sky above Dinosaur Ridge for hawks, eagles and vultures. CLICK HERE.
BENJAMIN FRANKLIN: IN SEARCH OF A BETTER WORLD
“Benjamin Franklin: In Search of a Better World” delves into the multi-faceted personality of a man who profoundly influenced the path of a nation and whose contributions still resonate today. The exhibit moves thematically through his life and pairs more than 250 original Franklin artifacts and five U.S. founding documents with more than 40 video animations, hands-on displays, and computer-based interactive kiosks that borrow from Franklin's curiosity, wit,
and wisdom. CLICK HERE.
TRIBAL PATHS
“Tribal Paths: Colorado's American Indians:1500 to Today” is now showing at the Colorado History Museum, In 2005, the museum opened a landmark exhibit, Ancient Voices: Stories of Colorado’s Distant Past, which actively explores the culturally rich lives, art, architecture and technology of Colorado’s first peoples. On Jan. 19 the museum will pick up in time where Ancient Voices left off with Tribal Paths: Colorado’s American Indians, 1500 to today. CLICK HERE.
DAVID ROGERS’ BIG BUGS EXHIBIT
Get a bug's eye view of the world when you encounter a 1,200-pound praying mantis, a seven-foot assassin bug and eight other enormous natural sculptures at the Big Bugs exhibit at Denver Botanic Gardens, March 24-June 24, 2007. A swarm of events and educational activities that celebrate the world of plant and insect relationships will highlight the three-month exhibit. CLICK HERE.
DOWNTOWN AQUARIUM
Take in the sights and sounds of various themes including Under the Sea with several different species of sharks, In the Desert with Diamondback rattlesnakes or the Rainforest with beautiful Sumatran tigers and a variety of colorful birds. CLICK HERE.
REI — DENVER FLAGSHIP
Located in the restored 1901 Denver Tramway building, our Denver Flagship is a complete outdoor resource, a historic landmark and an award-winning architectural accomplishment. Come gear up for your next adventure. Don't miss the interactive features, including mountain bike trails, a 45-foot climbing wall, a cold chamber for testing sleeping bags and more! CLICK HERE.
NATIONAL CENTER FOR ATMOSPHERIC RESEARCH
NCAR’s Mesa Lab, located at the west end of Table Mesa Drive in Boulder, is a working research laboratory that welcomes the public seven days a week. Admission is free. The building and the adjacent weather trail are both wheelchair-accessible. The inspiring setting is worth a visit in itself. We maintain the site as a nature preserve. Mule deer, fox, and other wildlife range over the area and adjoining mountain parks. NCAR’s laboratory offers a wealth of hands-on educational exhibits that visitors are welcome to explore on their own, on a tour, or with an audiotour. CLICK HERE.
LARIAT LOOP MOUNTAIN GATEWAY
Welcome to the LARIAT LOOP, a 40-mile scenic circle in the foothills west of Denver, Colorado. The Loop is the literal and metaphoric connection between the communities of Golden, Morrison, Lookout Mountain, and Evergreen, and includes surrounding areas and the natural and cultural elements that comprise our unique regional heritage. CLICK HERE.
Posted Feb. 23, 2007 from Mark Newton
Some Television and Movies Set in Denver. CLICK HERE for more.
- Diagnosis Murder (partially filmed in Denver)
- Father Dowling Mysteries (filmed in Denver)
- Perry Mason (later episodes were filmed in Denver)
- Mork and Mindy (filmed in Boulder)
- Pulp Fiction (1994) (partially filmed in Denver)
- Dumb and Dumber (1994)
- Die Hard, 1 & 2
- 3 Ninjas: High Noon at Mega Mountain (1998)
- Things To Do In Denver When You're Dead (1995)
- Vanishing Point (1971)
- The Philadelphia Experiment (1984)
- The Fan (1996)
- Everybody's All American (1988)
- U2: Under a Blood Red Sky (Boulder, Red Rocks)
- U2: Rattle and Hum (partly filmed in Denver)
And, for you MTV fans CLICK HERE or CLICK HERE. The MTV house is located at 1920 Market Street.
Posted Feb. 17, 2007 from Mark Newton
Jim Sheeler is one of the keynote speakers in Denver. Rocky Mountain News Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter Jim Sheeler won further recognition Friday when the Penguin Press bought the rights to a future book by Sheeler. CLICK HERE
Final Salute
Rocky Mountain News reporter Jim Sheeler and photographer Todd Heisler spent the past year with the Marines stationed at Aurora's Buckley Air Force Base who have found themselves called upon to notify families of the deaths of their sons in Iraq. In each case in this story, the families agreed to let Sheeler and Heisler chronicle their loss and grief. They wanted people to know their sons, the men and women who brought them home, and the bond of traditions more than 200 years old that unite them. CLICK HERE
Another keynote is Reggie Rivers. CLICK HERE
Posted Feb. 7, 2007 from Mark Newton
Big Bugs Exhibit
March 24–June 24, 2007
Get a bug's eye view of the world when you encounter a 1,200-pound praying mantis, a 7-foot assassin bug and nine other enormous natural sculptures at the Big Bugs exhibit at Denver Botanic Gardens. A swarm of events and educational activities that celebrate the world of plant and insect relationships will highlight the three-month exhibit. 720-865-3500 or CLICK HERE. This would require public transportation, probably about a half-hour from the hotel. But, a 1,200-pound praying mantis and a 7-foot assassin bug, how cool would that be?
Posted Feb. 6, 2007 from Stan Zoller
The Outreach Academy is a free, one-day, preconvention workshop for publications advisers new to JEA. Sponsored by JEA to promote both diversity and membership growth, the goal of the Outreach Academy is to help build strong scholastic journalism programs by reaching out to advisers in schools traditionally underrepresented in the JEA ranks, especially urban schools, rural schools and middle schools.
This intensive one-day program will include training in the following topics: setting up, staffi ng and funding a journalism program; teaching the basics of journalism; design; press law; making sure your publication represents your student body and covering issues pertaining to diversity. The Outreach Academy will be from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 12. It will be limited to 30 participants, tuition will be free, and lunch will be provided.
Participation in the program will include free registration to the Denver convention. Priority for admission will be given to advisers in the host city of Denver and to advisers in JEA’s Region 2, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. Consideration will be given to advisers in schools with ethnically diverse populations, advisers of color, advisers of middle school programs and new advisers.
To apply, complete and send the form on page 13 of the pre-conference brochure with a personal statement explaining how you and your school would benefit from this event. The application deadline is March 9.
Posted Feb. 5, 2007 from Johanna McCormick
To download a PDF version of a coupon for discounts via SuperShuttle in Denver, CLICK HERE. The discount code for online pre-paid reservations at www.supershuttle.com is G4EEH. For groups of more than 11 people, call their toll-free number — 800/258-3826.
Posted Feb. 4, 2007 from Ann Visser, JEA President
- Budget items: submit to Ann Visser from Board members by Feb. 15. Include any necessary explanation/information.
- Denver agenda items: due from Board members by March 5.
- Motions to be considered in Denver: due from Board members by March 5.
Posted Feb. 3, 2007 from Mark Newton, Local Committee Chair
Looking for something to do in Denver before, during or after the convention?
Check out The Denver Center for the Performing Arts. It’s only a few blocks from the hotel — an easy and safe walk.
“The Taffetas”
It’s 1950-something and Kaye, Peggy, Cheryl and Donna – four singing sisters from Muncie, Ind. – are making their national television debut. “Spotlight on Music,” a fictitious weekly program on the real-life Dumont Television Network, is the framework for an evening featuring some of the greatest hits of the ‘50s. A nostalgic nod to girl groups of the era, "The Taffetas" pays tribute to the sounds of The Maguire Sisters, The Fontaine Sisters and The Chordettes.
Tuesday-Sunday evenings: 7:30 p.m.
Saturday and Sunday matinees: 2 p.m.
Tickets: Friday and Saturday evenings, $40; all other performances, $34
Tickets go on sale Monday, Feb. 5 at 10 a.m.
Student matinees on Thursday, April 12 at 1 p.m.
“Mrs. Warren’s Profession”
Economic necessity meets social hypocrisy, and ignites theatrical fireworks. Vivie Warren, a proper English college student, loses her illusions – and her fiancé – when she unexpectedly discovers how her wealthy and powerful mother built the fortune that has paid for Vivie’s upper-class education. Shaw’s electrifying characters, hard-headed humor, and witty dialogue make for a scandalous comedy as timely today as when it premiered in 1902.
“Pure Confidence”
The high stakes world of Civil War-era horse racing is the stage for this riveting drama of slavery and Reconstruction. Both Simon Cato, a smart, cocky “colored” jockey, and his horse, Pure Confidence, are owned by Colonel Wiley Johnson. Cato uses his wits and his championship winnings to buy his and his wife’s freedom. But the Civil War changes everything and the passage of time doesn’t bring Cato the success he expects. A surprisingly funny, daring and emotionally moving look at the complexity of race, humanity, love and dignity in the second half of the 19th century. Pure Confidence was the favorite pick of the Humana Festival in 2005.
For the student matinee, you get:
• A post-performance discussion with members of the company.
• A professionally-prepared study guide.
• One free chaperone ticket for every 15 tickets.
• Seating is general admission.
Info: www.denvercenter.org/event_calendar/student_matinees.cfm
Also playing at the time of the convention is “The Sweetest Swing in Baseball. Celebrated painter Dana Fielding is the toast of the art world. But after her latest exhibition tanks and her boyfriend dumps her, she winds up in a psychiatric hospital where she finds inspiration from the unlikeliest of sources – the legendary bad boy of baseball, Darryl Strawberry. The Sweetest Swing in Baseball is a funny and caustic play about the pressures of success and the need to create a protective "other self" to survive life in the spotlight.”
Posted Jan. 28, 2007 from Mark Newton, Local Committee Chair
As you prepare for your trip to Denver, the Queen City of the Plains, here are
some links to Web sites that will make your trip more enjoyable:
www.colorado.com
www.denver.org
www.flydenver.com
www.rtd-denver.com
www.5280.com
www.colorado.gov/colorado-visiting-activities
www.denvergov.org
www.denver365.com
www.coloradoski.com
Don’t forget to sign up for your visitor’s guide. CLICK HERE
And, sign up for your visitor e-newsletter. CLICK HERE
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