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Tribune File/John Byrne - Nevada quarterback Colin Kaepernick looks downfield during a game against Boise State on Nov. 21 2008. Nevada is hoping to leave the Western Athletic Conference and join the Mountain West Conference.
WAC-y Departure
What looked like a milk and honey situation when the University of Nevada, Reno first announced that it was leaving the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) to join the Mountain West Conference
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Big News Week
The past week has been a dream for local newspaper editors in that several major stories broke that could drastically effect a large portion of the population in the Truckee Meadows. First and foremost was the ongoing struggle between the officials of Hot August Nights (HAN) and the Reno City Council. It looked as if the council had dug its heels in about having the HAN board sign not only a long-term contract with the city, but also the poss...
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Pack leaves the WAC
Breaking news on Wednesday was the fact that the University of Nevada, Reno’s athletic program had decided to accept the invitation to join the Mountain West Conference (MWC), thus leaving the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) with only six teams, since Fresno State also jumped to the MWC. In what seems to be a win for Nevada fans, since they now will see a much higher caliber brand of competition in the major sports, the decision might be a t...
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Tribune/Debra Reid - Smoke billows as an engine roars, drawing cheers from the crowd at the opening night of Hot August Nights 2010 in downtown Sparks. This year's event was marred by the uncertainty of Hot August Nights' future in northern Nevada.
Hot August Fights Continue
Now that the copious clouds of carbon monoxide from Hot August Nights (HAN) auto entries have wafted out of the Truckee Meadows, the serious business can begin about whether or not the HAN organization can sign a long-term commitment with the cities of Reno and Sparks for future celebrations.
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Courtesy Photo/Nevada Historical Society - A view of Squaw Valley looking toward Squaw Peak during the 1960 Olympics. The games brought many people to the region, including members of the press as well as celebrities that called the Mapes Hotel in Reno home during the Olympics.
2010: A Year of Anniversaries
A couple of years ago, former Nevada State Archivist Guy Rocha and I were having lunch and discussing some of the major historical events that occurred in northern Nevada during the past 50 years or so.
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Hot August Nights test case
At the end of next week’s Hot August Nights local celebration, we will get to see if this year’s move to open HAN at South Lake Tahoe had any impact on the financial benefit of HAN to Reno-Sparks.
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Advisor comments on Social Security deficit
This year the U.S. Social Security program will run at a deficit, paying out $29 billion more than it takes in through taxes.  A rise in unemployment equaled a drop in the number of taxpayers contributing to Social Security, which when paired with a record number of Americans applying for benefits early, led the program to its current predicament.  Social Security may bounce back for a few years if the economy recovers fast enough, but the So...
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Bruce Walter, Hot August Nights executive director
Classic Car Confrontation
The area’s No. 1 controversial story for the past several days came to a head on Wednesday when Bruce Walter, the executive director of Hot August Nights, appeared before the Reno City Council. What some local wags had labeled the “ignition inquisition” did not reach the crescendo that many had forecast. Instead, both sides had a chance to vent and there was even a somewhat amicable conclusion when both agreed to sit down and discuss a multi-y...
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Tribune File - Basketball player Charles Barkley plays golf at Edgewood in July 2007 as part of celebrity golf tournament.
Golf Fans Feeding Frenzy
Today’s headline refers to next week’s plethora of golf tournaments that will be competing for the attention of local links aficionados.
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Staff Photo/Nevada Historical Society - Century-old posters and photos of the Johnson-Jeffries boxing match are on display at the Nevada Historical Society in Reno.
A Centennial Weekend
It is highly unlikely that there is anyone around today who was present at the most historic event to come to the city of Reno. I am speaking, of course, about the famous Johnson-Jeffries fight for the heavyweight boxing championship that happened 100 years ago Sunday.
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Tribune File/Nathan Orme - Stunt riders amaze the crowd at the 2009 Reno Rodeo.
Reno Rodeo Redux
Reno’s oldest special event closes tonight with the final performance of the 2010 Reno Rodeo.
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'Events Network’ rebirth?
Interesting reading was on the front page of Thursday’s edition of the Sparks Tribune. It concerned a meeting of special events people and businessmen at the Grand Sierra Resort to discuss the impact the events have on the local economy. For a number of years, up until several years ago, there was an organization in the area that was called The Events Network of Northern Nevada (TENNN). TENNN was open to special events managers and the grou...
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Sharron Angle
Primary Election Dust Settles
As of Wednesday morning, the dust from a contentious primary election had finally settled over the state of Nevada and the surprising figure standing in the Republican senatorial primary to oppose U.S. Sen. Harry Reid was none other than Sharron Angle.
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Tribune/Nathan Orme - A mustachioed campaign poster of U.S. Senatorial candidate Sue Lowden in North Valleys embodies the craziness that has characterized the 2010 mid-term election in Nevada.
'Mean season' ends on Tuesday
In recent years, every election cycle has earned the moniker of being the “worst ever.” This year’s primary, which ends with voting on Tuesday, is no exception.
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Courtesy photo - TV personality Art Linkletter died Wednesday at age 97. The comedian worked the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, Calif. and was recognized everywhere he went as he toured Reno's club scene during his stay.
Art Linkletter lives on in Nevada lore
The sad news on Wednesday that longtime Hollywood personality Art Linkletter had passed away brought many reminiscences for northern Nevadans and Northern Californians who worked with the personable star leading up to, and during, the 1960 Winter Olympics. At that particular time Linkletter had been selected by none other than Walt Disney, who was in charge of the opening and closing pageantry at the winter games. As such, Linkletter was here ...
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<a href= mailto:dreid@dailysparkstribune.com>Tribune/Debra Reid</a> - Horses are a significant part of the history of life in the Truckee Meadows.
Lucky lives up to his name
In last Saturday’s Preakness horse race, Lookin’ at Lucky salvaged some of the prestige he lost at the Kentucky Derby when he made a strong move in the homestretch to capture the win. Norther Nevadans were out in force at various locations to cheer on Lucky since he is partly owned by Carson Valley Inn co-owner Mike Pegram. Pegram himself is no stranger to thoroughbred horse racing since a previous horse he owned, Real Quiet, missed winning th...
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Tribune file/John Byrne - Wolf Pack basketball coach David Carter interacts with a player from the University of Nevada, Reno's team.
Pack basketball: ‘Carter Era’ begins at UNR
The upcoming 2010-11 basketball season at the University of Nevada, Reno will mark the start of the “Carter era” at the school as the head basketball coach will field a team that lists only one player from the Johnson/Fox era in the person of Dario Hunt.
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Courtesy photo - Longtime Reno resident Harry Spencer contributed his tidbit of local history to the StoryCorps project during its visit to the area.
StoryCorps comes to Reno
If you noticed the shiny aluminum Airstream trailer parked in downtown Reno last month on the plaza across from City Hall it was a very unique vehicle in many respects. First, the meticulously restored trailer had “StoryCorps” emblazoned in orange letters on both sides. That ID gave promise of what was on the inside: a mobile recording studio boasting the best in current technology. At the rear of the trailer there was a two-microphone setup f...
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An economic snapshot of the city of Sparks
The city of Sparks is home to about 90,000 people who eat, sleep, work and, most importantly for business, shop in their hometown. “I think that we are going to see a change, a change for the better not only here in Sparks but all over,” said Len Stevens, executive director of the Sparks Chamber of Commerce. “You can see the preparation right now and it is for growth. We see more venues coming to the city in terms of events and programs. Th...
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Nevada Tax Climate Highlights
Basic facts on Nevada’s tax system and how it compares to other states according to the Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan educational and research organization: Nevada's State/Local Tax Burden Second-Lowest in Nation
 During the past three decades, Nevada's state and local tax burden has consistently ranked among the nation's lowest. Currently estimated at 6.6 percent of income, Nevada's state/local tax burden percentage ranks 49th highest natio...
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