RenaissanceRe launches StormStruck at Epcot

Bermuda-based reinsurer RenaissanceRe Holdings Ltd. has helped to create a new exhibition at Walt Disney World which will enable visitors to experience the power of a hurricane.

"StormStruck: A Tale of Two Homes" officially opened at the Epcot Centre's Innoventions pavilion in Lake Buena Vista, Florida yesterday.

The exhibit features spectacular special effects depicting a combination of different weather hazards into one "storm". After guests have experienced the storm, they learn about cutting-edge scientific research and new construction technologies that can protect their homes.

RenRe and its US affiliate WeatherPredict Consulting teamed up with partners the Federal Alliance for Safe Homes (FLASH), Simpson Strong-Tie and insurance giant State Farm to create the new exhibit.

The StormStruck project has been seven years in the making. Joe Tankersley, of the Walt Disney Imagineering team was the creative designer.

One of the reasons the reinsurer got involved in a new Disney exhibition is to raise awareness of "storm-proofing" techniques that can dramatically reduce the damage suustained by homes in a hurricane.

RenRe president and chief executive officer Neill Currie told The Royal Gazette yesterday that 130 people or so had attended the opening, including Florida legislators and scientists from the National Hurricane Centre.
"It was important to have the right balance," Mr. Currie said. "We want it to be fun and entertaining, but we also want it to show how serious a hurricane can be - without giving five-year-olds nightmares." Mr. Currie said the special effects, enhanced by wearing 3-D spectacles, made it seem as though debris was flying around and a tree appeared to be falling through the window at one point.

The benefit of hazard mitigation is the message that RenRe wants to get across.

"The name of the exhibit goes back to a story of two houses in Florida, one across the street from the other," Mr. Currie said. "One family took the proper precautions to protect their home and kept their house. The other family lost everything.

"It's not just about dollars and cents. It's about making people safer and maybe even saving lives. Losses for insurers can be lower and that causes a reduction in premiums. Several thousand people may come out of this exhibit and go home and change things. I like a situation where everyone wins."

Simpson Strong-Tie is a construction company specialising in techniques used to make homes more storm resistant. "With the large number of windstorms that we've seen this year, there's no better time than now to make sure homes are built right," said the company's president, Terry Kingsfather.

"For most people their homes are the largest investment they will ever make, so it's important they protect them. This exhibit will help home-owners understand how high winds affect their homes and how to make sure their homes are storm ready by installing such products as wind-resistant windows and garage doors, and using metal connectors to secure their roofs, walls and foundations."

The exhibit is designed for families, although its creators have warned that the main show, which features hi-tech audio and visual special effects showing hail, lightning and high winds, may be too realistic for young children. From pre-show to post-show, the experience lasts between 12 and 20 minutes.

Visitors will learn tips on protecting their homes, such as that doors that open outward have added strength from the door frame and why hip-shaped roofs are more dynamic and therefore more wind-resistant.

RenRe has been proactive in researching and developing risk mitigation techniques. The RenaissanceRe Wall of Wind is a state-of-the-art testing facility that simulates the effects of hurricanes on full-scale buildings to improve housing construction practices. In addition, RenRe has staged the Hurricane Risk Mitigation Leadership Forum series, which brought together experts from different fields to advance hurricane risk mitigation efforts and awareness.

The StormStruck exhibit is scheduled to remain at Epcot for three years. More information is available on the Internet at www.stormstruck.org

New Milford Makes a Statement: Farming Is Staying

NOT all that long ago, this was a dairy town, with cows nibbling on the grass along the town’s sleepy spine, Route 7, and barns and silos rising as majestic as castles across the landscape.

Those days are gone, and by some estimates there may be only a handful of dairy farms left out of a peak of 200 in the mid-20th century. Route 7, progressively widened and manicured, now sports a Staples, Home Depot and Wal-Mart because developers have swallowed up the farms and turned them into hundreds of houses and apartments whose occupants need places to shop.

But the town has not abandoned its agrarian spirit, and in late July it made a bold statement that farming still matters. With about 40 farms left that mostly grow hay and vegetables, the town passed what it calls a right-to-farm ordinance. It cautioned all those home-owning arrivistes that this is farm country, son, though it put it a little more formally.

“Agriculture is a significant part of the town of New Milford’s heritage and a vital part of the town’s future,” the preamble read.

The ordinance essentially told newcomers to think twice before complaining about the fragrance of manure wafting into their backyards at planting time or the growl of tractors, the bellowing of cattle, or the crowing of roosters at dawn. It urged the newcomers not to object to the dust kicked up by plows or the pumping of sprinklers when farms have to be irrigated at night. Grumblers would have to take their beefs to a mediation panel.

A half-dozen farmers interviewed could not recall receiving any nuisance complaints themselves. But they see the ordinance as a pre-emptive strike, one that Bonnie Weed, a farmer, describes as “an insurance policy.” When neighbors do complain, farmers will have the law to back them up.

“New Milford is making a statement that they support agriculture, that they support the farming industry, which is not a position a lot of communities take,” said Jeremy Schulz, who farms 200 acres of corn, tomatoes, pumpkins and other vegetables that he and his wife, Willow, sell from a stand on Route 7.

The farmers are clearly conscious of how their work affects neighbors. Bill Weed, 50, a farmer’s son who with Bonnie, his wife, grows hay and feed corn on 240 acres, is aware that when he runs a 14-foot wide hay mower down a country lane at 12 miles an hour, impatient drivers behind him seethe in frustration. He knows he upsets neighbors when he and his crew are harvesting hay at 11 at night to get it baled and in the barn before a thunderstorm ruins it. Not everyone may be in love with his eight Belted Galloway cattle, even if they bear such cute names as Oreo, Doo-wop and Pebbles. But that is the price of having farms in your midst.

The paradox is that many professionals who move to New Milford and commute to jobs in Stamford or New Haven chose the town because of its rural character. When they get there they want that rural character to be sort of like a painting — silent and inanimate in the background. But it can’t be.

“They want to move to the country so they’re surprised that farming can mean a nuisance,” is the way Ms. Weed puts it.

While Litchfield County continues losing farms, farmers here see a flicker of hope in the growing interest, by those alarmed by reports of tainted food, in having their produce locally grown so they can have a more secure sense of what went into the growing. There are at least four farm stands in New Milford. Mr. Schulz, 34, a first generation farmer who fell in love with farming as a teenage helper, recently opened a market that will use his farm’s produce in dishes that his wife and others will cook, including eggplant parmigiana made with the eggplants they grew.

Private efforts to preserve farms in New Milford go back at least three decades. For 15 years, the Weeds have leased their land under an agreement with the Nature Conservancy, the nonprofit land group that bought the land to preserve it as a farm. But as development has consumed thousands of acres, transforming New Milford from village to exurb, farmers have become an endangered species, and the town decided it needed to step in. It formed a farm preservation commission, one of whose members, Daniel Readyoff, a lawyer who is the son of a Bridgewater farmer, drafted the ordinance.

A handful of Connecticut towns have passed similar measures protecting farmers, and the state already has such a measure, but it applies only to farms in place for at least a year. The town’s ordinance also set up a five-person panel to mediate disputes that arise.

The farmers were pleasantly surprised that when the town council put the ordinance up for a vote, 75 people showed up, but not one to protest.

“When it was finally done, it was the best of democracy,” Mr. Weed said. “Everybody came out a winner.”

St John's Hopes to Save Lives with Carseat Inspections

Is the car seat in your vehicle up to safety standards? Parent who weren't sure, checked into it Saturday morning.

State Farm Insurance and "Safe Kids Springfield" made free inspections at the Kohl's department store on east Independence.

Parents were able to ask questions and see car seat demonstrations. Organizers say car seat straps are what give parents the most problems.

Pam Holt, St. John's Trauma Prevention Coordinator says, "A lot of times the car seat isn't strapped into the vehicle the right way of the child isn't strapped in the right way. If the harness straps aren't tight enough, if the seat-belt or latch isn't used right then that can result in a misuse and result in injury and fatality."

Motor vehicle crashes are the leading cause of unintentional injury-related death among kids 14 and younger. St. John's says it's also the leading cause of trauma admission at its hospitals.

Puterbaugh halts Gaines' three-race win streak

By CAREY FOX
Times Sports Editor

PUTNAMVILLE -- For three weeks, sprint car drivers had attempted to find a winning combination to end Dickie Gaines' domination at Lincoln Park Speedway.
On Saturday night, Billy Puterbaugh finally came across the right formula, adding equal parts lead foot with a lack of brakes to edge Gaines for a victory.

Puterbaugh was able to overtake Gaines in traffic late in the race and was able to hold off the veteran over the final laps despite losing his brakes down the stretch.

The win extends his points' lead to 48 over Shane Hollingsworth, who was not at LPS on Saturday night.

One driver who did have the fans buzzing with his arrival was Cory 'the Kruser' Kruseman, who brought his team with him to the Putnamville oval. The Ventura, Calif. native and multiple Indiana Sprint Week champion was making his first 2008 trip to Lincoln Park Speedway.

It did not begin well.

Gaines and Tyler Reddick won the first two heat races setting up the final nine-car heat race, which included Kruseman.

Just one lap into the race Kruseman was collected in a crash with Derek Williams and flipped his No. 71k machine.

Luckily, Kruseman was able to get his car prepared for the B-Main, where he blasted through the field to take the runner-up spot behind Bret Tripplett.

Twenty-nine sprinters were whittled down to the final 20 for the A-Main with Blake Fitzpatrick holding the pole alongside Jesse Cramer.

As the green flag waved, Cramer pulled a huge wheel stand that nearly put him on his head down the front stretch, though he was able to save the car in traffic.

Gaines assumed his familiar spot at the front of the field with Puterbaugh in hot pursuit. The two grabbed a comfortable lead, leaving an exciting fight for the third spot between Fitzpatrick, Mark Perry, Kenny Carmichael Sr., Henry Clarke and Stephanie Tuttle.

The group put on a side-by-side show for the fans, hungry to gain that third spot and with it, a good look at the leaders.

Up front, Gaines and Puterbaugh were taking advantage of a nice cushion that had formed at the top. The pair entered traffic and Puterbaugh got the opening he needed, slipping past a slower car that held up Gaines.

Puterbaugh nabbed the point after several laps of side-by-side action. Behind them, Carmichael Sr. made the pass of Fitzpatrick to take the third spot where he would stay.

As the white flag flew, Puterbaugh had the Creative Design Embroidery sponsored sprinter on top, but with no brakes remaining and Gaines just behind him. Coming off turn four, Puterbaugh was a little too hot for the corner and jumped the cushion. However, he had just enough of a lead to hop back over the berm and blast to the finish line for the victory. Gaines was followed by Carmichael and Fitzpatrick with Beauchamp, Mark Perry III, Kenny Carmichael Jr., Kruseman, Henry Clarke and Tuttle in the top-10.

The points chase in the UMP Modified division is just as hot as the A-Main action was on Saturday night.

Only eight points separate leader Paul Bumgardner and Saturday's winner, Kenny Carmichael Jr.

Carmichael and Travis Shoulders were never more than a couple of car lengths apart for the entire feature and spent much of the final laps leaning heavily on each other in a dogfight to the checkered flag.

Carmichael led early and Shoulders led late before a caution with three laps remaining set the stage for the final charge.

On the restart, Carmichael got a good jump off turn four and pulled even with Shoulders, sponsored by Ottawa Trailer Parks, Cardinal Contracting, Durabuilt Racing, Eubank & Sons, Pizza Den and Still Here Liquors.

The last two circuits weren't kind to either cars' sheet metal with plenty of contact, but Carmichael was able to edge ahead with one lap left and held on for the win.

Bumgardner battled Brad Robinson during the early stages of the event before a spin sent Robinson to the tail and an eventual 13th-place. Bumgardner stayed close to the leaders and managed to beat Shoulders to the line by a hair for second-place. Mark Auler took fourth ahead of Chris Brewer, Dan Lewellen, Wayne Cooper, Phil VanSant, Carlos Bumgardner and Doug Bryant Jr.

Carmichael's win came in the Carmichael's Exhaust, Wellum Chiropractic and Bud & Sons Auto car.

Slick Griffin was able to top the field in the UMP Super Stock A-Main, besting Kris Starks and David Bumgardner to the line.

Terry Arthur had the early lead upon the start, but Griffin and Chris Hillman were in the thick of the battle along with Greg Amick and Starks.

Hillman challenged Griffin early in the race and stayed alongside him for several laps before a spin by Joe Whisler brought out a caution. Hillman's fight for another LPS victory was derailed on the restart by mechanical problems.

That left the Griffin Auto Salvage, Hoosier Towing, GT Collision and Joe's Tire machine to cruise to the win ahead of Starks, who couldn't quite reel the Brazil native in down the stretch.

David Bumgardner stayed in third-place ahead of Tami Lawson and Greencastle's Curt Leonard, sponsored by Theresa Cunningham, State Farm Insurance, Black Diamond Contracting and Don's Garage. Kenny Carmichael Jr. was followed in seventh by Doug McCullough, Tony Erdly, Mike Wright Jr. and Joe Whisler.

In the bomber main event, Terre Haute's C.J. Bryan claimed his third feature of the season, holding off Dustin Shoulders for the feature win that pushes his points' lead to 32 over Lloyd Walls, who ran third on Saturday night. Bob Farris came home fourth ahead of last week's winner, Ben Williams. Chad Nolte was sixth ahead of Kevin Kemp, Ron Smith, Arvis Shepherd and Michael Thompson.

Bryan is sponsored by Perfection Auto Glass, Pott's Tax Service, Joe's Hobby Barn, Red Hot Vending and Durabuilt Racing.

Next week will be a regular schedule with sprints, UMP Modifieds, UMP Super Stocks bombers as well as the Heartland Automotive school bus race.

McCain vows to beef up US global trade at Iowa fair

DES MOINES, Iowa (AFP) — Republican White House hopeful John McCain came face to face with a 1,259-pound pig named Freight Train Friday and vowed to further open up world markets to US products.

McCain also reiterated his desire for greater energy independence through offshore oil drilling and nuclear power as he addressed hundreds of people attending the 13-day Iowa State Fair.

"This is the heartland of America. This is what America is all about. This is the people I want to know and meet," McCain said, devoting most of his speech to foreign trade, an issue critical to the livelihoods of many Iowa families.

If the United States approved of a free trade agreement with South Korea, for example, Iowa, which is the country's leading corn and soybean producing state, would greatly benefit, he said.

"My mission and my job as president of the United States, one of them will be to make sure that every market in the world is open to your products," McCain said.

He again lambasted Democratic hopeful Barack Obama for calling on Americans to properly inflate their tires to get the best gas mileage.

"I'm all in favor of inflating our tires, don't get me wrong. But that's a public service announcement. It's not an energy policy," McCain said.

Accompanied by his wife Cindy, McCain also visited a life-sized sculpture of a cow made of butter and ate a pork chop on a stick.

But fairgoers expressed mixed reactions to McCain's visit to this key midwestern swing state won in 2004 by President George W. Bush.

"He talked about energy independence yet he voted against ethanol subsidies and he is opposed to the farm bill," said Iowa Democratic Party Chairman Scott Brennan.

"He talks about things that he doesn't back up, that he's never backed up in his time in Congress."

Democrat Nancy Brown said however she planned to vote for McCain, won over by his plans for a healthcare insurance problem that she and her family face.

"The more I hear Obama, the more I think he can speak well, but can't act," Brown said.