Letters – Spring 2017
Climate and the Grand Canyon
The winter issue of the Coloradan was one of the best ever, especially the tribute to ex-CU runners Jenny Simpson (Econ, PolSci’09) and Emma Coburn (Mktg’13). The article on stress relief therapy dogs gave me a new term, “love muffin.” I have two such critters myself.
The Grand Canyon cover article with the climate change theme gave me pause, however. Formed hundreds of millions of years ago through upheavals, volcanic activity, floods, droughts, tectonic shifts, vast inland oceans and other things almost beyond comprehension, to be concerned about the next 10 years and a flooded parking lot seems rather short sighted to this layman.
Viewing the Grand Canyon should leave you in awe, with an appreciation of geologic time and overall human insignificance in the grand scheme of things.
Richard Peterson (Գٳ’71)
Crook, Colo.
Ralphie Running in the '60s
This summer we had our old slides digitized and among them found this photo of Ralphie. The date on the slide says January 1967, so the photo was taken during the '66 football season. After reading about the Ralphie Museum Show in the Winter 2016 Coloradan we wanted to share our photo and let you know we all love Ralphie!
Joan (Edu’69) and Dennis Haberkorn (Art'70)
Grand Junction, Colo.
Reflections
I am a 1975 and 1978 graduate of the University of babyֱapp. The winter edition of the Coloradan was simply superb. Thank you for interesting, insightful and humorous inclusions. Both the inside and back cover photographs made me smile and reflect at the same time. Please continue the excellent work on behalf of all alumni. I, as one, do so appreciate it.
Katherine Shand Larkin (Engl’75; Law’78)
Salida, Colo.
Thoughts on Pac-12 Play
I’m a longtime CU Buff football fan and currently a season ticket holder. I was really happy when babyֱapp moved to the Pac-12 conference. Like most conferences that have split divisions, I thought there would be a standard formula for determining what conference opponents are played each season. For the Pac-12, intuitively, you would think babyֱapp would play every other team in its division plus four teams from the other division on a rotating basis. Therefore, we should have played each of the North division teams four times in our first six years in the conference. So why was it that we ended up playing Oregon six times in the first six years?
It took a friend of mine in California to explain that there was an agreement made when babyֱapp and Utah joined the conference and the divisions were formed. The agreement was that all the teams in California, regardless of what division they were in, play each other every year. As a result, the intuitive scheduling formula gets thrown out. Why not just realign the division so that all of the California teams are in the same division? Maybe put them in the same division as Arizona and Arizona State? Perhaps that just makes too much sense.
David Kennedy (ܲ’78)
Boulder
Boulder
CU Athletics responds: When CU entered the Pac- 12, we agreed to play in the Los Angeles area every year. If all the California schools were in one division, plus Arizona and ASU, CU would not be able to meet that commitment.
Is He Señor Wood?
In the Winter 2016 issue, Paul Danish’s Boulder Beat column [“The Album,” pg. 8] featured a quote from Dave Wood (MSpan’69). I had a fabulous Spanish teacher at Arvada High School in the ’90s named Mr. David Wood who, every Friday, would bring in his guitar and sing songs with us and for us. As soon as I read that paragraph in the article, I had a nagging suspicion that this was Señor Wood I was reading about! I would love to know if my Spanish teacher and the Dave Wood quoted in your article are one in the same.
Amy Lee Kline (Engl’03; MEdu’05)
Arvada, Colo.
Arvada, Colo.
Note: Yes, indeed — your Señor Wood and Dave Wood (MSpan’69) are the same man.
Photos courtesy Grand Canyon National P ark/NPS (top)/ Joan and Dennis Haberkorn
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