Conventional football wisdom says that young teams with new offensive schemes take a while to gel….
So much for conventional wisdom.
It was truly a night for the record books as the Nelson Governors exploded out of the gate to start 2012 with a dominating 64-47 road win over the Dragons of William Monroe. Behind a crushing performance from an offensive line that features just one senior, the Govs rolled up over 700 yards and nine touchdowns on the ground (that’s not a typo, folks). So dominant was the ground attack that Nelson didn’t attempt a single pass.
Leading the way on offense was senior quarterback Tyler Vest. Operating out of the team’s newly installed pistol offense, Vest ran through, around, and over the Dragons for 454 yards, the second best effort in Nelson history and the fifth highest in Virginia high school history. Vest also reached the end zone six times. Adding balance to the assault was running back Devonte Turner, who bolted for 257 yards and three scores.
The evening marked the unveiling of an impressive multi-million dollar athletic complex at William Monroe, but the evening did not go as the overflow crowd had hoped. The contest was tight early, with Monroe countering Nelson’s punishing ground game with a quick-hitting, balanced attack. The Dragons and Govs traded touchdowns twice during a hard fought first quarter before Nelson seized the momentum and put its foot on the gas- hard. The Govs lead gradually ballooned to 64-31 before both teams emptied their bench, allowing Coach Mark Wells’s team to gain valuable playing time for the backups while the Dragons added some cosmetic scores late.
As is often the case in season openers, the Friday night air was filled with penalty flags, and unfortunately most of them were directed at Nelson. Correcting the mistakes which led to the abnormal number of penalties will obviously be high on the team’s priority list in practice this week as the team puts this game in the rear view mirror and prepares for Central Senior of Lunenburg. However, the fans who made the trip north from Nelson, to witness history, won’t likely forget this game anytime soon.
Isaac is the nearest storm in cue that may affect portions of the US in the next few days. Another Atlantic storm lurks as well.
Until now the start of hurricane season back on June 1st has been quiet. With soon to be hurricane Isaac, that’s about to change. Exactly where he will come ashore in the US is still unknown, though better projections will probably be in place by Saturday of the coming weekend. As of Thursday evening Isaac was still a tropical storm, but after clearing Cuba in the near future, it will probably rise to hurricane strength.
Current position and 5 day projection for Isaac. Some meteorologists believe a likely turn up the eastern seaboard is not out of the question. In addition to Isaac, TS Joyce is meandering out in the Atlantic. Though it's believed she will hook right out to sea before hitting the US.
As with any tropical system, many changes will take place before a better track estimated landfall are known.
Publicity Photo: The VA Craft Brewers Festival is this Saturday - August 25 on the grounds at Devils Backbone Brewing Company in Roseland.
Roseland
Nelson County, VA
The Virginia Tourism Corporation and Virginia Craft Brewers Guild have partnered with The Festy Presents to celebrate Virginia Craft Beer month with the First Annual Virginia Craft Brewers Fest. The Fest will be held on Saturday, August 25th from 2:00-8:00pm at The Camping & Concert Grounds of Devils Backbone Brewing Company in Nelson County, Virginia.
The Virginia Craft Brewers Fest will feature the Virginia Craft Brewers Cup awarded to the best overall brewery as well as five award categories for best Pale Ale, Belgian Style, Lager, Dark Beer and Specialty Beer. The event will also feature beer tastings, some of Virginia’s best live bands, an amazing local food experience by The Rock Barn and camping in the beautiful Blue Ridge Mountains.
The Virginia Craft Brewers Fest is open to all ages. General admission tickets can be purchased in advance at virginiacraftbrewersfest.com for $10 or at the door for $20. Kids under 12 are FREE. Tasting and VIP packages are also available with one or two-day camping and RV passes. Rain date for the event is Sunday, August 26th.
Attending breweries: With over twenty confirmed craft breweries, some of the notable attending are Legend Brewing Company, Starr Hill Brewery, St. George Brewing Company and Port City Brewing Company.
Live music lineup: Featuring some of the best of Virginia’s live music bands: Canon, NoBS! Brass Band, Downbeat Project, Founding Fathers (featuring members of The Infamous Stringdusters).
About Virginia Craft Brewers Guild
The Virginia Craft Brewers Guild’s mission is to organize craft brewers for purposes of economic development, business development, supply chain management, tourism and government affairs. Membership includes representatives of craft brewers and businesses and organizations that provide support services or products to the industry. The Virginia Craft Brewers Guild was officially launched as an affiliate of the Virginia Manufacturers Association (VMA) in December 2010.
About The Festy Presents
Cerberus Productions, producers of The Festy Experience, is based out of Charlottesville, VA and since 2008 has produced The Brew Ridge Trail Music Festival (2009 & 2010), The Blue Ridge Oyster Festival (2010 & 2011) and partnered with The Infamous Stringdusters and The Artist Farm in 2010 to help create The Festy Experience. In addition to promoting and producing outdoor events in the Charlottesville, VA area it also assists in the production of The Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival, The All Good Music Festival, Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival and The Foxfield Races.
Photo Via NCSD: Aaron Messer who recently served as the Rockfish Valley Community Center's Interim Manager has been bound over to a Nelson County Grand Jury on several felony charges alleging crimes while on duty in that position. He remains in jail without bond.
Lovingston/Afton
Nelson County. Virginia
The former manager of The Rockfish Valley Community Center in Afton remains in jail this evening after a judge continues to deny bond after charges in his case were sent to a Nelson County Grand Jury that convenes on September 25th.
“We had the preliminary hearing on the Messer case this Wednesday morning in the General District Court. All charges were certified to the next term of the Nelson County Grand Jury which is September 25th. His request for bail was once again denied, so he remains in custody pending his trial in the Circuit Court,” said Nelson County Commonwealth Attorney Anthony Martin.
Messer is being held without bond on 3 felony forgery charges; 3 felony uttering charges; and 1 charge of embezzlement relating to the total of the 3 checks according to information from the Nelson CA office on June 15th 2012.
Lovingston / Arrington
Nelson County, VA
We first told you about Rick Becka back in our March 2012 printed edition of Nelson County Life Magazine. NCL found out about Becka’s photos from another person living in neighboring Waynesboro who let us know about them. The rare never before seen slides had been tucked away in a box until our publication. The original slides were donated to the museum earlier this year after Becka sent them to us. This past weekend the photos were part of a program remembering the 43rd anniversary of the killer hurricane.
Our March 2012 story about Richard Becka’s rare find of 43 year old slide photos of Hurricane Camille’s damage in Nelson County, Virginia. Click on the magazine image above to read.
“ The program was especially interesting to people who remember the Camille event as living history,“ said Samantha Embrey, president of Oakland’s Board. “ Rick Becka’s story is compelling. His photos include scenes of partially damaged homes that Oakland volunteers have not been able to identify. We hope people who came to our program will tell us who lived in those houses and tell us their stories.”
During the afternoon, Becka will gave PowerPoint presentations of his long-lost photos.
At the time of Hurricane Camille, Rick Becka had just completed courses at East Tennessee University for his BS degree–both in Meteorology and Geomorphology–under Professor Dr. Don Poole . He was preparing to go the University of Pittsburgh to work on a master’s degree when Poole encouraged him to accompany him to Virginia and study what happened in Nelson County.
The two men arrived in Nelson shortly after the disaster. Even though Becka brought his camera with him, there was little time for study or for photos, as he and Poole offered assistance to many suffering people. They found it rewarding to be able to provide help where it was needed. He has never forgotten the many fine people he came to know in Nelson in those days. As the recovery progressed he was able to take more pictures but what he and Poole saw and experienced for the most part was never captured by them on film. As much as he wanted to pictures full time, it was more important to help people.
When Becka returned to Tennessee he changed his mind about graduate school and joined the U.S. Air Force. He put the photos he took in Nelson away and embarked on a military career that over the years engaged him in other important recovery work. Dr Poole and Becka became lifelong friends and often talked about their adventures in Virginia until Poole’s death five years ago. In 2011 another friend encouraged Becka to look for the pictures he put away in 1969 and Becka was surprised to be able to find them. He gave the photos to Tommy Stafford, editor and publisher of Nelson County Life, who in turn donated them to Oakland’s Camille Resource Center.
Hurricane Camille was the second most powerful hurricane to make landfall in the United States. Prior to reaching Mississippi on August 17, 1969, it passed over the Gulf of Mexico, suctioning up vast amounts of water. After causing historic damage in Mississippi, Camille lost hurricane status. Yet, the storm continued to move north and then eastward across the country, causing heavy rainfall. When it reached Nelson County on the night of August 19-20, it released as much as 27 inches of rain within a six-hour period, causing massive mudslides and flooding. Residents had absolutely no warning of the approach of a storm of such magnitude and, that night, 125 people, about one percent of the population, lost their lives in Nelson County. The storm also destroyed homes, farms and businesses, washed out bridges and roads, and cut off most communication with the outside world.
Members of the community came together and organized—with the help of Civil Defense resources and, eventually, volunteers from around the country—to rescue survivors, locate the dead, provide for the needs of the residents, and restore homes and churches, where possible. Indeed, in the Camille saga, the courage of many residents during the storm and their resourcefulness and energy afterward helped to redeem the destruction and relieve the grief.
The Oakland Museum has a room devoted to telling the story of Camille, and this room was completely renovated, with new displays, for last year’s anniversary event. The upgrades include a new large video screen on which visitors can see a documentary about Camille and, eventually, an animation of the weather phenomena that led to it. There are also listening stations to allow visitors to hear first-hand the stories of tragedy and heroism that marked that event. Available in the database of the Camille Resource Center are hundreds of photographs, videos, newspapers and publications relating the Camille storm that are accessible to the public. The Camille exhibit was funded with grants from the Nelson County Community Fund, the Smyth Foundation, the Charlottesville Area Community Foundation and private donors.
Oakland is located three miles south of Lovingston on U.S. 29 at 5365 Thomas Nelson Highway.
The museum is open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and on Sundays from 1 to 4 p.m.
Wintergreen Resort
Nelson County, Virginia
The air was crisp, clear and filled with the sounds of authentic mountain music this past Saturday during the 7th Annual Blue Ridge Mountain Music Festival put on by Wintergreen Performing Arts. By early afternoon, there wasn’t a seat left in the house with people sitting nearby on the grass to take in the music. For several years in a row now, NCL’s Tommy Stafford emceed the festival.
The group Nothin Fancy was back again at the 2012 festival. They have made appearances in the past and are always a very popular group at the festival. Photo By Tommy Stafford : Mike Andes, lead singer for Nothin' Fancy takes a minute to walk through the crowd and shake hands as part of their performance. For the second year in a row, The Virginia Ramblers were back at the Blue Ridge Mountain Music Festival. They kicked off the event at 12 noon and held another performance later in the day. Photo By Tommy Stafford: During several of the musical performances audience members jumped from their seats and joined in the musical fun. Here Nothin' Fancy had them on their feet just before finishing their last set of the day. People that didn't want to, or couldn't find a seat inside chilled out by listening to the music on the hillside nearby. Photo By Tommy Stafford : Rounding out the day was Kim & Jimbo Cary of Nelson County along with Pete and Ellen Vigour.Photo By Tommy Stafford : In addition to the main festival, several jam sessions among the musicians, and others that just wanted to join in, were held outside near the event tent.
The 2013 festival is already in the planning stages! See you next August!
Nothin’ Fancy (2:00 & 5:00 pm) is just one of the many mountain music acts this weekend at the annual Mountain Music Festival at Wintergreen.
Wintergreen Resort
Nelson County, VA
The Virginia Piedmont is known for its beauty, its history, its crystal streams and hardwood forests, but it is also the home of a rich musical tradition. Drawing on a Scots-Irish heritage, the Blue Ridge settlers added voices from Africa and, in a unique medley of fiddle, banjo, bass and guitar, sang of America. Join us to enjoy this uniquely American sound on Saturday August 18, 2012 (starting at 12 noon – scroll to bottom for admission details) when Wintergreen Performing Arts will present the voices of the Blue Ridge through its 7th Annual Blue Ridge Mountain Music Fest. NCL Publisher Tommy Stafford will be back again this year as the festival emcee.
The 2012 program features the return of Nothin’ Fancy. Nothin’ Fancy formed as a bluegrass band in September 1994 to compete in the East Coast Bluegrass Championship in Crimora, Virginia. Since their auspicious debut, they have grown in popularity, released 8 full length albums and one CD single, played the Ryman Auditorium in Nashville, the Lincoln Center in New York City, the Birchmere in Alexandria VA, have hosted their own festival in Buena Vista, VA since 2001, and won SPBGMA’s “Entertaining Group of the Year” three consecutive years (2008, 2009, 2010) in a row. Their unique blend of zany on-stage humor with impressive bluegrass musicianship makes them audience pleasers wherever they perform.
The Steel Wheels (1:00 & 4:00 pm)
Also returning to the Mountain Music Fest will be The Steel Wheels. The Steel Wheels are truly an Americana band, rooted in musical styles that explore the territories between blues and bluegrass, old-time sing-alongs and foot-stompin’ fiddle tunes. They are subtle innovators who respect the past but whistle their own tunes, layering in rich textures and decidedly modern energy to forge a new sound. The four-piece band is based in the Blue Ridge Mountains of Virginia, where lead singer and primary songwriter Trent Wagler has been a staple for nearly a decade.
The Virginia Ramblers (Noon & 3:00 pm)
From a successful performance at last year’s Mountain Music Fest comes the Albemarle and Nelson County bluegrass music of The Virginia Ramblers. Led by lead singers Charles Frazier and Jeff Vogelsang, the group exemplifies traditional bluegrass in Central Virginia, with tight harmonies and hard driving instrumentals.
The Carys and Vigours (6:00 pm and jamming)
The day’s performances will conclude with the Appalachian string band music of Kim and Jimbo Cary and Pete and Ellen Vigour. The Carys and Vigours will also be leading jamming sessions throughout the day.
Event: 7th Annual Blue Ridge Mountain Music Fest
Festival Event: Non-WSMF Events
Date: SATURDAY, AUGUST 18TH 2012
Time: 12:00pm
City: Wintergreen Resort, VA
Venue: Evans Center
Country: United States
Admission: $25/$10/Free (See below)
Age restrictions: All Ages
Box office: (434) 325-8292
Notes: ADULTS – $25 STUDENTS (6-17) – $10 CHILDREN (UNDER 6) – FREE
Screenshot via VDOT: A multi car accident slowed traffic westbound Wednesday afternoon on I-64 around the 102 mile marker which is just east of the Afton Mountain Exit.
Afton Mountain
Nelson / Albemarle County, VA
Traffic was backed up for around 3 miles at one point Wednesday afternoon between 4 & 5PM when a multi car accident occurred on I-64 westbound around the 102 mile marker.
Nelson County, VA
After a fantastic weekend and a great stretch of miler, dry and less humid weather, rains showers and scattered thunderstorms are back in the forecast by Tuesday. Over this past weekend, daytime high temps never made it into the 90’s, but hung in the low and mid 80’s for most of that time.
Tommy talks about this week’s weather and next weekend’s cool down in his audio forecast above.
Via NWS: By Tuesday rain showers and thunderstorms will begin overspreading the area once again. Nothing extremely heavy, though a few spots could receive isolated heavy downpours.
After a short break on Wednesday scattered afternoon thunderstorms return Friday into Saturday. The 2nd half of coming weekend looks dry and mild with daytime highs only in the upper 70’s!
Photo Courtesy of Kimberly Dawn: Dark storm clouds moved across the mountains at Wintergreen Friday afternoon. Kim took this shot from The Cliffs Condo Unit on the mountain as the storm was headed toward other parts of Nelson.
Nelson County, VA
After a stormy Friday afternoon, the majority of the weekend will be nice with milder temperatures and less humidity, especially by Sunday. As a matter of fact, we may see overnight temps Saturday night falling into the upper 50’s!
