Casper City Council reviewed conceptual images of what could be the new Mike Sedar Pool at a recent work session.

Representatives with Denver-based Ohlson Lavoie Collaborative unveiled a proposed $1.8 million design concept for the swimming facility on Tuesday.

OLC Architecture senior principal Robert MacDonald says his firm has big plans for the once-neglected city pool.

“The vision for the pool now is to have three main bodies of water – one is a lazy river, or current pool, the other is a zero-depth entry pool with a play feature in it, and the other is an open body of water that can be used for swim lessons,” MacDonald said.

Councilors also reviewed optional facility upgrades for Mike Sedar Pool. Proposed add-ons include a $217,000 water slide and a $177,000 aquatic play area. A third option, which carries a $70,000 price tag, would give the optional aquatic play area a supplemental water treatment system.

Casper mayor Kenyne Schlager says, though she’s intrigued by the proposed add-ons, council will likely stick to just the base plan for now.

“(Council is) going to want to know more about what the final costs could be for those three options,” Schlager said. “Down the road, if this is a successful swimming pool, I think they’ll look at adding a few features.”

Mike Sedar Pool is expected to reopen next spring.

When I came across a post from L and C Pets and Gifts that they were helping to find homes for a litter of kittens, I saw and fell in love with our “Fred” lickety-split!  Lisa and Cathy (L & C) were awesome and hooked me up with everything we needed and sent Fred and I home well prepared!

Since then, our family has been scratching our heads at some of his favorite past-times.  The main one being…laying on our laptop computers!  What the heck is with that?  We can redirect him over and over and he’s not deterred in the slightest!  What gives?!?!  Do your cats do the same?

Fans gathered in droves at the Beacon Club for Jockeys and Juleps and witnessed Orb out class the field on Saturday to win the 139^th Kentucky Derby on Saturday.

The 5-1 favorite pulled ahead down the stretch on a muddy course after several other horses, each took turns claiming the lead. Down the stretch Normandy Invasion pulled ahead, but couldn’t fend off Orb, who rocketed to the front on the outside.

It was the first victory in the Run for the Roses for jockey Joel Rosario, as well as Orb’s Hall of Fame trainer, Shug McGaughey.

Orb will continue the quest for the Triple Crown in two weeks at the Preakness Stakes. No horse has won the Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978.

Horse racing fans at the Beacon Club (the only off track betting site in the area) cheered on their favorites down the stretch until Orb was the first to reach the line and claim the victory.

If you see a photo in our gallery that you’d like to save, just RIGHT click and select SAVE AS and feel free to save it off to your PC.

Update 4:20 p.m. – Interstate 80 has reopened at Rawlins. Natrona County Emergency Management officials say traffic in Casper should begin decreasing Friday night as vehicles resume their travels along the Interstate.

A massive traffic tie-up in Casper and Natrona County is the result of the closure of Interstate 80 at Rawlins. Natrona County Emergency Management Director Stu Anderson is urging all drivers to avoid Highway 220 and Wyoming Boulevard until further notice. The heavy traffic is causing lengthy delays.

Anderson says traffic is backed up from I-25 around WY Blvd to CY to at least Robertson Rd. Hwy 220 experiencing heavy traffic as well.

Jeff Goetz with WYDOT says blowing snow, icy conditions and numerous crashes resulted in the closures on I-80 between Rawlins and Cheyenne. He said all available resources have been used to keep the westbound lanes open, while the eastbound lanes have remained closed since Thursday evening.
WYDOT reports eastbound traffic has been diverted north to Casper during the closures. At 1:54 p.m. Friday, Interstate 80 reopened between Laramie and Cheyenne, but the eastbound lanes were still closed from Rawlins to Laramie, so traffic was continuing to be detoured through Casper.

This is the kind of excitement and drama that will keep NASCAR fans buying tickets! After Kyle Busch got the win in the Auto Club 400, Tony Stewart and former teammate Joey Logano went to fisticuffs.

Lots of different angles on Sundays Auto Club 400 in California…

On the track, it was Logano and Hamlin banging at each other again continuing a feud between the two that started at Bristol last week. Logano ended up crashing Hamlin and taking both cars out of contention for the win. That opened the door for Kyle Busch to get the victory in Sunday’s Auto Club 400. Favorite driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. moved into the lead of the NASCAR Sprint Cup points.

But the big story is how after the race Tony Stewart, fighting mad about a block Logano put on him at the restart, attacked Logano at his car.

After all was said and done, Logano FoxSports,

I watched the replay. I can understand being a little irritated but in my eyes that’s just racing. In his eyes it isn’t. I’m going to have to talk to him about that. We’ve always gotten along really well, so I’ll see if we can work this one out.”

When FoxSports aske Tony About the incident he said,

What the hell do you think I was mad about? Dumb (expletive) runs us clear down to the infield. He wants to (expletive) about everybody else and he’s the one who drives like a little (expletive). I’m going to bust his ass.”

Next week the teams are off to be with their family’s for Easter.

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Point Standings going into Martinsville April 7th…

Here are some photos…

Saturday, hundreds of men, women, and children showed up to the Eastridge Mall and shaved their heads for St. Baldricks, a non-profit organization that raises money for childhood cancer research:

Why We Exist – Worldwide, 175,000 children are diagnosed with cancer each year. And in the U.S., more children die of childhood cancer than any other disease—more than AIDS, asthma, cystic fibrosis, congenital anomalies and diabetes combined.

While some organizations spread their research dollar between adult and children’s cancers, every grant funded by the St. Baldrick’s Foundation is for childhood cancer research.

The St. Baldrick’s Foundation takes great care with every donor dollar, keeping the staff small, the expenses low and directing every possible dollar to childhood cancer research.

Since 2005, ST. Baldricks has raised $103,450,166, including $17,769,268 in 2013 alone.

Once again, our little city stepped up in a big way. Men, women, children…all were on stage getting their heads shaved for a fantastic event. There were random people who just showed up, saw what was going on, and decided to get involved. I almost broke my promise to my wife and shaved my mane, but thought better of it, and gave some random shavee $20 instead.

Thanks to Ian Delap for taking time on his day off to snap some photos and videos. As always, great event coverage benefits everybody.

Kudos, Casper!

Here are some photos…

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Have fun while you help raise awareness for people with disabilities at NOWCAP Services’ 9th annual Wyoming Disability Awareness Walk!

It’s coming up on Saturday, March 30th in Casper, Cheyenne, Cody, Gillette, Newcastle, Riverton, Rock Springs, Sheridan and Worland.

All walkers get a free t-shirt and teams of 10 or more receive a free banner.

Sponsored by Mountain View Regional Hospital & Clinic, Hilltop National Bank, The Craig and Susan Thomas Foundation, First Interstate Bank, Casper Star Tribune, KCWY-TV 13 and Townsquare Media.

At last report… 28 injured, 14 treated in area hospitals, and 2 in critical condition.

Here are some photos of the tragic event…

The Jason’s Friends Foundation is a volunteer, non-profit organization that assists families throughout Wyoming whose children are suffering from life-threatening brain or spinal cord  tumors and childhood cancers. In short, they help families concentrate on getting their kids healthy, without having to worry about the bills that may be accrued during this tumultuous time.

Check out some photos from this years event.

Fans of all ages gathered Thursday night at the Casper College T-bird gym to cheer on their favorite team and athletes.  The 2013 Peach Basket showcased the best talent NCHS and KWHS had to offer in this annual friendly rivalry game.  Students and parents represented their school spirit to the fullest extent in efforts to cheer their team to victory.  Both teams, boys and girls, gave their all to win this years title.

Final Scores -

NC Girls flexed their muscles, and tromped the the KW squad 68-19

KW Boys proved they had the better team by defeating the NC Boys 51-46 in a tight one.

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The 2013 Wyoming State Dart Tournament threw down in Casper Feb. 13th-17th.  It was another successful tournament with players traveling from all over Wyoming to earn their spot as a state champion.

The Parkway Plaza in Casper was full to the brim over the weekend with dart throwers and dart enthusiasts.  A full schedule of events kept the darts flying all weekend.  Men and women from all over Wyoming came together with their eyes set on being a state champion.  Categories ranged from singles events to full team events.  Sunday a juniors tournament was even held for the children of the competitors to join in on the fun.  The best in the state were present to show their stuff and to have fun.  Darts is a sport that has a large, close community.  Despite the competition, sportsmanship was in full effect.  Most sports/games can get real competitive and the fun will get pushed to the background.  This is not the case with this dart tournament.  All attendees appeared to be friends and everyone cheered each other on even if playing against one another.  It is rare to see such comradery, especially in a state wide tournament with few prizes to be given.  The best of the best were handsomely rewarded.  Those who’s darts fell short still hung out to root for their friends on their way to the winning spot.  2013 was another bulls-eye for the annual Wyoming State Dart Tournament.

Whether you’re a fan of red, green, or white chili; this years annual cook-off had something for everyone’s taste buds.  With over 40 chilies to sample as much as you wanted, it was near impossible to leave without a full belly.  Things got funky and fresh with this year’s theme “Disco Inferno”.  Dancers and afros were in abundance as everyone ate their way towards a good cause.

We got these from both Facebook and Twitter…

Some video from the funeral procession heading to Texas State Cemetary…

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Summer cannot come soon enough.  Summer brings warm temperatures, barbecues, and of course the Beartrap Summer Festival.  The 2013 Beartrap Summer Festival is set to go off the weekend of August 3rd and 4th!

Since 1994, the Beartrap Summer Festival has descended upon the meadows of Casper Mountain every summer.   The sweet sounds of bluegrass and country captivate audiences by the thousands each year.   2013 is promising to be another stellar year for the music festival.  Top music acts, vendors, and all around fun are on the schedule for this year.  Past years have brought us great acts such as Asleep at the Wheel, Patty Loveless, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Taj Mahal Trio, Marshall Tucker Band, Steve Earl, and many more.  Clear your calender for August 3rd and 4th, because you are not going to want to miss out on the best summer music festival in Wyoming.  See you there!

Stay tuned for updates, more information and performer announcements.

Check out some photos from the 2012 Beartrap Summer Festival.

Meet Carly McKinney, a 23-year-old teacher from Aurora, Colo. who is better known as CarlyCrunkBear, on Twitter. Miss CarlyCrunkBear is in a bit of hot water over her Twitter account and we have the reason right here.

CarlyCrunkBear is currently being looked at by the Cherry Creek School district in Aurora, Colo. due to some lewd photos.

Most high school students, and possibly some student’s fathers would really enjoy hanging with Miss CarlyCrunkBear after school hours, quite frankly we would too.

The sweet and innocent looking CarlyCrunkBear (picture above) has dark and crazy side if we were to judge by these photos.

If you think pictures speak a thousand words, a tweet must speak a million:

We wish the best for this partying teacher, everyone needs to let loose every now and then — next time she’ll learn not to blast it out on a social media site.

Jimmie Johnson and Brad Keselowski are in an epic points battle running one and two in points for the 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup. At the end of the AAA Texas 500 it was Jimmie Johnson getting the checkered flag only .808 seconds in front of Keselowski.

Johnson’s win at Texas now gives him a seven point lead going into the 9th of the 10 Chase races, at Phoenix International Races.  (It’s important to mention that Johnson has won four of the last ten races at Phoenix.)

This win at Texas is his fifth of the 2012 season, his second at Texas Motor Speedway, and the 60th of his career.  This is the second week in a row that Jimmie Johnson has won from the pole.  Brad Keselowski finished second, Kyle Busch ran third, followed by Matt Kenseth in fourth, and Tony Stewart rounded out the top 5.

Kevin Harvick was the big winner of the NASCAR Nationwide Series O’reilly Challenge on Saturday at Texas Motor Speedway.  Harvick was the top of the field, for the whole night, and in the end he finished in dominate fashion 1.6 seconds in front of second place 18-year-old Ryan Blaney, polesitter Kyle Busch finished third, Ricky Stenhouse Jr. was fourth, erasing the six point lead that Eliot Sadler was holding at the beginning of the race. Stenhouse, and Sadler are now in a tie for the Nationwide Series Championship.

After the O’reilly Auto Parts Challenge they shoot off the regular celebratory fireworks, but not all were in the air above the speedway, there were some on the track between Sprint Cup veteran Denny Hamlin, and Austin Dillon…

Up next the NASCAR Sprint Cup series travels to Pheonix International Raceway for the Advocare 500 Sunday November 11th.  Television coverage for the race will be on ESPN beginning at 1 p.m. (cst).

Sprint Cup points going into Phoenix:

Naturally, you can come up with something better than these, but when laziness is the key, these costume ideas may work in a pinch.

via Pleated Jeans

As I was walking through this place, taking in the atmosphere, I started to pay attention to the actual tombstones. With very little to go by, one could tell that there were stories behind each and every one. The man who passed before his wife, the couple buried right next to each other over 50 years ago- it really is a sight to be seen. I decided to take some photos of some of the more interesting tombstones. Check them out below.

*Please note that out of respect for the departed, last names have been blurred out*