About The times. (Gainesville, Ga.) 1972-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 20, 2020)
Nick Bowman Features Editor | 770-718-3426 | getout@gainesvilletimes.com W&t Sttncs gainesvilletimes.com Thursday, February 20, 2020 ‘Extreme’ BY LAYNE SALIBA lsaliba@gainesvilletimes.com Monster trucks are revving their way into Gainesville. The oversized and loud trucks are part of the Monster Truckz Extreme Tour coming to Chi copee Woods Agricultural Center. “This adrenaline-filled show features the most massive mon ster trucks destroying cars, flying over mind-boggling jumps, push ing drivers and trucks to the brink of destruction,” the website says. The show, which tabs itself as “the most insane show on earth” and “the biggest, maddest and wildest event you will ever wit ness,” is scheduled for 7 p.m. Feb. 28, 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Feb. 29 and 2 p.m. March 1. The first 100 adult tickets sold online are $16.50. After that, adults are $30 and children 3- to 13-years-old are $15, unless a free ticket is picked up from a school or local busi ness. Children under 3 years old are free. While the trucks will be the main attraction, some of the real fun will come before the show. An hour before everything gets underway, drivers will be out and about mingling with ticket hold ers at the pit party. You’ll have the chance to talk with them, see their trucks and even take a ride. They’ll have bounce houses, face painting and plenty of souvenirs to purchase. Following the pit party, the show will start and be filled with all the flipping, jumping and show to feature massive monster trucks Times file photo crashing you could want. Trucks will destroy cars by running over them and jumping over them as you look on from the stands. And they’re not just big trucks, they’re true monster trucks — 12-feet tall, 15,000 pounds and 2,000 horsepower. The Nitro Motocross Team will be on hand, too, circling the Sphere of Fear and jumping overhead. A human cannonball will make an appearance and Extreme Rock Crawlers will be doing tricks. Monster Truckz Extreme Tour When: 7 p.m. Feb. 28,2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Feb. 29 and 2 p.m. March 1 Where: Chicopee Woods Agricultural Center, 1855 Calvary Church Road, Gainesville How much: First 100 adult tickets sold online are $16.50, then $30 afterwards. Children 3- to 13-years-old are $15. Children under 3 years old are free. More info: www.monstertruckz.com Two popular festivals coming back to Dahlonega this March Photo courtesy UNG Andrew Ladd, second from left, explains the physics behind roller coasters at the Dahlonega Science Festival. Times file photo Authors conduct a panel discussion at the literary festival in Dahlonega. BY LAYNE SALIBA lsaliba@gainesvilletimes.com Dahlonega is the place for fes tivals, and lucky for you, there are two coming up on the same weekend. The Dahlonega Science Festi val and the Dahlonega Literary Festival are back with plenty of books and experiments for the weekend. “What we realized was that we were complementary and there is certainly a crossover,” said Donna Governor, co-chair of the science festival and professor at The Uni versity of North Georgia, which is hosting the science festival. “There is definitely an overlap that we hope to grow more in future years.” The literary festival is sched uled March 6 and 7 and the science festival will run through March 8. Both festivals are free, except for a couple of events at the literary festival. Last year, the literary festival drew around 300 people all inter ested in books and writing, eager to hear authors speak about their pro cess and ideas for books. This year, they’ll have featured authors like Bill Curry, Jacob Appel, Jeffrey Bennett, Cassandra King, Rona Simmons and many more. Myriad regional writers will be there, too. “People are just hungry to hear writers and how they write and why they write and that sort of thing,” said Sharon Thomason, an organizer for the festival. The literary festival will take place at a few different places around Dahlonega. The Songwrit ers’ Cafe on March 6 will be at the Dahlonega Funeral Home where three local singer/songwriters will perform. The cost is $10 to attend. Workshops, presentations and panels will happen throughout the rest of the weekend at Dahlonega United Methodist Church and Dahlonega Baptist Church. “It just sort of celebrates reading and writing,” Thomason said of the event. There will be a few crossover events with the two festivals. Jef frey Bennett will give a talk titled “Global Warming Demystified — How You Can Make Sense of the Media Debate.” He’ll also host a workshop, “Story Time from Space,” and give another talk, “Einstein for Everyone,” with Jacob Appel. Both festivals will have themed escape rooms, too. The science festival is in its third year and has been popular since it started. Last year, Governor said they saw about 1,000 people throughout the weekend. “We’ll do some of the same things as we did last year,” Gov ernor said. “We have panels and speakers and we have a Discovery Center with hands-on activities.” But new this year is a focus on environmental activities. They Dahlonega Science Festival Where: The University of North Georgia, 82 College Circle, Dahlonega When: March 6-8 How much: Free More info: www.dahlonegascience.org want to bring the environment into the activities to teach children more about it at a young age, some thing that’s been missing in years past. There will be shows at the George E. Coleman, Sr. Planetar ium. They’ll have hands-on activi ties and experiments around town for the kids as well as places to make things to take home. “We’re not going to blow any thing up,” Governor said, laugh ing. “That’s the one thing we’re not going to do. There’s going to be so many different types of hands-on activities between the environ mental ones and the Makers Fair and the Discovery Center. There’s Dahlonega Literary Festival Where: Dahlonega Baptist Church, 234 Hawkins St., Dahlonega When: March 6-7 How much: Free More info: www.literaryfestival.org going to be such a wide range of activities.” And because of that, Governor said the science festival suits just about every age. There are fun activities for the younger ones and interesting panel discussions for the older folks. “It’s always fun,” Governor said. “Science is fun. It’s hands- on, it’s interesting, it’s a lot of wonder.” And while the literary festival is geared a little more toward an older crowd — high schoolers and older — Thomason feels the same was about the festivals. “It’s just a great little small town event,” Thomason said. Times file photo 2020 Outdoor Expo offers ways to enjoy North Georgia The Times The forests, streams and summits of North Georgia are calling. The whizz of the line rac ing down the fishing rod after a cast, the thwack of a bow string being released, the slap of a paddle on Lake Lanier — as the region shakes off the worst of winter, remind your self of your favorite bits of the outdoors at the second-annual Outdoor Expo. Set for March 14 at the Gainesville Civic Center, the expo will include a slew of demonstrations, booths and vendors. Attendees to the free event can catch up on the lat est in bass fishing tech, kaya king, wilderness survival and even wildlife photography. Local anglers will have practiced hands leading semi nars on SONAR and electronic charts. Fishing writer and local guide Ken Sturdivant is set to give a demonstration on stripers and SONAR, while John McCalpin will talk about how to get the most out of your modern fish finder and other mapping technology. “These devices tend to not be cheap, and unfortunately most people who buy them never get the maximum value out of them,” McCalpin said on Wednesday, Feb. 12. Following his advice, McCalpin said anglers can save a third of their current fuel burn simply by knowing how to use the fish finders and other tech they likely already own. “For me, it’s been huge. I didn’t really start fishing until about 10 years ago,” he said. “One thing I found out really quickly is the guys who have been out there 30 or 40 years ago just seemed to know where they’re going.” To compete with the veter ans, he dug into his charts and now spends less time trying to guess where fish might be at any given time of year and more time catching them. “The end result for me is I Outdoor Expo When: 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. March 14 Where: Gainesville Civic Center, 830 Green St. NE, Gainesville More info: lnelson@ gainesvilletimes.com, gainesvilletimes.com/ outdoorexpo How much: Free probably spend less than half the amount of time going from place to place than I used to,” he said. The inaugural expo was held in Cumming near For syth County News, a sister paper of The Times and Daw son County News. “The interest in this event last year was incredible,” Edi tor in Chief Shannon Casas said. “Our region has so many opportunities for enjoying the outdoors, whether you like fishing on Lake Lanier, camp ing in the mountains or just going on an occasional hike or paddle. We hope to provide a lot of expertise on those topics all in one place.” This year’s event will fea ture speakers on topics includ ing fishing, kayaking and wilderness survival. The Out door Expo is set for 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. at the Gainesville Civic Center, 830 Green St. NE, Gainesville. Here’s the schedule: Room A ■ 11 a.m.: Bass fishing lures with pro angler and Lake Lanier guide Phil Johnson ■ Noon: SONAR with Low- rance Pro Staff Ken Sturdi vant and Capt. John McCalpin ■ 2 p.m.: Kayaks with Vibe Kayaks pro Erica DeLana ■ 3 p.m.: Stripers with Lowrance Pro Staff Ken Sturdivant RoomB ■ 11:30 a.m.: Survival tips of the trail with Mark Warren ■ 1 p.m.: Crappie fishing with Capt. John McCalpin ■ 3:30 p.m.: The secret art of stalking for photographers, wildlife observers and hunt ers with Mark Warren
