Inside Alaska

Alaska: Celebrating 50 Years of Statehood

FCVB — Fri, 16 May 2008 18:57:16 +0000

Alaska officially begins a two-year celebration of its history and culture in Fairbanks on May 28th by marking the 50th anniversary of its statehood, which was officially granted on January 3, 1959. A series of 50th Anniversary events are scheduled throughout the summer, here are the tentative plans for our area courtesy of Festival Fairbanks:

Friday, May 23 - Trace Adkins in Concert at Carlson Center

Saturday, May 24 - A Look Back at Our History – Alaska Museums Day

Sunday, May 25 - Memorial Day

Monday, May 26 - Memorial Day Observance

Tuesday, May 27 - A Look Forward to the Future…AGIA Findings, Chamber’s Luncheon: Noon ~ 1pm @ Carlson Center

Wednesday, May 28 - Bonfire, Bar-B-Q and Music at Pioneer Park (Peger Rd. back entrance) 5:30 – 8:30 PM Special Guests: Senator Ted Stevens, Senator Lisa Murkowski, Mayor Terry Strle, Mayor Jim Whitaker, Interior Delegation

Thursday, May 29 - Elton John in Concert at the Carlson Center

Friday, May 30 - Proud To Be Alaskan: Join us for the community festival at Pioneer Park

Saturday, May 31 - Kite Day at Griffin Park in Downtown Fairbanks at 2pm. Free kites for the first 500 people!

The Alaska Statehood Celebration Commission has a few more details.

103rd Midnight Sun Baseball Game

FCVB — Tue, 13 May 2008 22:31:16 +0000

The Alaska Goldpanners will be hosting the California Running Birds during the 103rd Midnight Sun Game. Big news from this year’s game includes the official launch of the Goldpanners Alumni, and the addition of Bill “Spaceman” Lee as starting pitcher. This game has an amazing history, featuring some of baseball’s all-time great players, including Barry Bonds, Tom Seaver and Dave Winfield.

Find out more from the ESPN feature on the game (below) or this more recent story from Yahoo!, then be sure to put the June 21st game on your Fairbanks summer itinerary. It is one of the top ten Ultimate Baseball Experiences, and a Fairbanks Midnight Sun sports tradition.

Come see the fine young players, one of whom may emerge as the next great Major League star, during the Midnight Sun Game at Growden Memorial Park on June 21, 2008! Full details can be found at the Goldpanners homepage.

5/9: New Visitor Center Hours, Golden Heart Greeters

FCVB — Fri, 09 May 2008 19:35:34 +0000

Visitors now have the entire day to stop at our Log Cabin Visitor Information Center for brochures, maps and other information on Fairbanks and Alaska’s Interior. The new hours are announced in today’s update, along with a bit of information on direct flights from Fairbanks to Frankfurt, and details on our Golden Heart Greeter program. Listen or download today’s program below.

Download 5/9 Update

5/2: Be a Visitor in Your Own Town

FCVB — Fri, 02 May 2008 18:30:58 +0000

Fairbanks residents have the opportunity to take in a little of what a visitor may experience this Saturday. Click play or download below for all the details.

Download 5/2 Update

Subscribe to Inside Alaska

FCVB — Thu, 01 May 2008 19:05:03 +0000

There are a couple of quick and easy ways to get “on demand” information about Fairbanks and Alaska’s Interior from Inside Alaska. Instead of simply bookmarking the site and coming back for a periodic visit, why not subscribe via RSS or signup for an e-mail subscription and have each new post sent to your inbox? Get a complete guide to subscriptions by visiting the Feedburner Feed 101 page.

World Eskimo-Indian Olympics Back in Fairbanks

FCVB — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 19:17:35 +0000

If you don’t know anything about the World Eskimo-Indian Olympics; be sure you make plans to experience them this summer. The competition takes place July 16-19 and features one-of-a-kind events such as the knuckle or seal hop, the four man carry, the ear pull, the kneel jump and the Eskimo or Indian stick pull. If any athletic event can be called “truly unique” this is the one!

Alaska Public Radio Network filed a fantastic Rebecca Sheir/NPR report for last year’s games that will give a touch of the overall WEIO flavor. Play or download the entire feature below. Then visit the WEIO homepage for full details.

Download WEIO Feature from Last Year

Alaska Book Festival 2008

FCVB — Wed, 30 Apr 2008 17:40:25 +0000

Poetry, natural history, science fiction, history, photography and cooking are among the dozens of topics to be discussed at the second annual Alaska Book Festival. The three day event brings together a diverse group of Alaska authors, meeting all over the Fairbanks area June 12-14, 2008. Events will be held on the UAF campus, as well as at coffee shops, book stores and other venues around town. All the details can be obtained on the official Alaska Book Festival website.

4/25: Fairbanks Bed & Breakfast Open House

FCVB — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:42:53 +0000

Eleven Fairbanks Bed & Breakfasts are participating in an Open House this Saturday (April 26, 2008). This is a terrific opportunity to see some of the options for B&B accommodations around the area. Susan Keltner gets the details from Karen Lane on this week’s program. Click below to hear or download the update, or for a full list of participants, along with contact information and driving directions.

Bed & Breakfast Open House Participants, Driving Directions

Download 4/25 Update

Voted Best for the First Quarter

FCVB — Tue, 15 Apr 2008 21:33:32 +0000

The first quarter winners of our Fairbanks and Interior Alaska Photo Contest have been determined. John Dykes captured the most first and second place votes with his northern lights pictures, and Bill Brophy secured third place with a sled dog closeup. Click the thumbnails below to see the winning shots.

Thanks to everyone who participated in this round. Entries are already being gathered for the second quarter contest; sumbit yours today!

25 Toughest Athletes; Mackey #2

FCVB — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 18:01:59 +0000

Sports Illustrated has published a list of the 25 Toughest Athletes. Our very own Lance Mackey finished number two, although many on the SI comment boards thought he should be first. SI tells us what makes him tough:

Caginess and steadfast refusal to quit in the face of throat cancer (2001), hostile terrain and 40-below temperatures. He did the impossible in sled dog racing — win the 1,000- mile Yukon Quest and 1,100-mile Iditarod within a month - not once, but in two straight years, most recently this year on frostbitten feet that hadn’t fully healed after the Quest.

Check out our coverage of the Mackey toughness, then leave a comment and let us know why you think he should be #1.