News for September 2010

Fall Foliage at Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast

State tourism website features Fall Color Map
An interactive map on the Alabama Tourism Department’s website allows visitors to see the predicted fall color change for each weekend this fall. The map, a list of recommended viewing sites and a Circle of Color driving route are all available on the state tourism website at www.alabama.travel.

Large concentrations of hardwoods make Alabama State Parks some of the best places to enjoy the fall color change. Joe Wheeler has an excellent viewing spot next to the dam and near the cabin area on the Lawrence County side. Autumn scenery can be found at DeSoto State Park at Little River Canyon and DeSoto Falls. Monte Sano has views of the Tennessee Valley along the Warpath Ridge Trail and its overlook. Cheaha’s Bald Rock and Pulpit Rock trails both have excellent views. Cheaha is the highest point in the state at 2,407 feet above sea level.  TREASURE ISLAND Bed and Breakfast is near Cheaha State Park.

With cooler days and lower humidity, autumn is a wonderful time to enjoy Alabama’s many fall festivals and events. Lee Sentell, director of the Alabama Tourism Department, recommends several events designed around being outdoors and enjoying the beautiful fall weather.
 
Outdoor events scheduled for this fall include:
·         National Shrimp Festival in Gulf Shores on Oct. 7-10
·         Old Town Walking Tour in Huntsville on Oct. 9
·         Kentucky Festival of the Arts in Northport on Oct. 17-18
·         National Peanut Festival in Dothan on Oct. 29-Nov. 6
·         Original German Sausage Festival in Elberta on Oct. 30
·         Alabama Frontier Days in Wetumpka on Nov. 3-7
·         Pike Road Arts and Crafts Festival in Pike Road on Nov. 6
·         Cayne Syrup Makin’ Day in Beatrice on Nov. 6
·         National Veterans Day Parade in Birmingham on Nov. 11
·         Christmas on the River in Demopolis on Nov. 28-Dec. 4
A complete list of fall events is available at www.alabama.travel.

For a direct link to the Fall Color section of the Alabama Tourism Department website please see http://www.alabama.travel/activities/tours-and-trails/fall-color-trail/

Edited: September 30th, 2010

OPRAH Winfrey to open an Island Bed and Breakfast

OPRAH Winfrey is reportedly planning to build her own bed and breakfast in Hawaii!

The TV talk show host — whose The Oprah Winfrey Show is in its last season — is renovating a 12-bedroom inn on the island of Maui that will be low-key, rustic retreat.

“Oprah’s planning on having a high-end bed and breakfast for her friends and wealthy customers who like the quiet of the Mai countryside ,” a source told American tabloid the National Enquirer.

“It will be a place for people to rest and reflect.

“Oprah plans to personally play hostess on the ranch when she is on the island.”

Edited: September 28th, 2010

Best Kept Secret of this Alabama Bed and Breakfast

Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast located on the shores of the Coosa river on Logan Martin Lake is one of Alabama’s best kept secrets for romantic lodging. It is ideal for that anniversary celebration getaway as well as that first honeymoon night. In fact, the Anniversary Suite overlooks the lake with a romantic view of the moon as it sparkles across the water as diamonds on black velvet. Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast offers military discounts as well as senior citizen discounts. With easy driving from Birminghan and other area locations in the area, there is no reason to not to take advantage of this unique and special location for your accommodations. Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast is a memory making place that you will treasure those good memories in your heart for years to come. So, for the autumn season of the gorgeous turning of the leaves, sit on the balcony and experience the beauty of God’s handiwork. You may make your reservations at www.treasureislandbedandbreakfast.com

Edited: September 28th, 2010

Thousands expected for bike races at Barber near Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast

 College football won’t be the only sport with a huge following this weekend.

Motorcycle enthusiasts will get their fix when Barber Motorsports Park hosts a series of races for the AMA Pro Superbike Championship.

Forty-thousand fans are expected to attend and bring a large economic impact to the area.

It’s a season-ending event. So there’s a lot more interest in these races.

Locals and tourists are expected to generate more than $12 million into the local economy. Tickets have been sold in more than 30 states for this event. Most of the out of town fans will arrive Friday. “I love watching it. The sound of it is exciting. The people…. everyone here with a common thing …we all enjoy makes it fun,” said Chad Jatko.

The manager of Hampton Inn in Leeds, Patrick Brankin, said, “We had a really slow summer being a brand new hotel in a kind of struggling economy. It’s a huge weekend. We are going to sell-out actually two of the next three weekends just because of events at Barber.”

Qualifying is Friday and races are Saturday and Sunday.
      
Two series champions could be crowned this weekend and that’s what the fans want to see.

Edited: September 24th, 2010

Honda signs on as sponsor of the Grand Prix of Alabama

From the article “American Honda signs on as Grand Prix of Alabama sponsor” by Ben Piper in the Birmingham Business Journal:

The Grand Prix of Alabama will be sponsored by American Honda from 2011 through 2013 organizers said. The Indy Car event, which will be held on April 8-10, 2011, will enter its second year at the Barber Motorsports Park located outside of Birmingham in Leeds. Bruno Event Team CEO Gene Hallman said the Honda Grand Prix of Alabama- originally slated to run through 2012- has also been extended through 2013. Hallman said the 2011 Grand Prix will be held one week before a NASCAR event at Talladega Superspeedway on April 17, to create a “speed week.” Terms of the three-year deal with Honda were not disclosed. The Grand Prix of Alabama was presented by Legacy Credit Union in 2010 – a race that drew 84,000 spectators. Hallman said going with Honda – a known national brand that operates a plant in Lincoln – also provides momentum for the event. “It will be a tremendous boost to the event and will also allow the state of Alabama to more widely tout the success that Honda has seen with its manufacturing facility,” he said. “The brand certainly brings some prestige to the event and when you combine that with what they will be doing at the dealerships, the benefits are tremendous.”

Hallman said having a national sponsor back the event should encourage local businesses to get more involved with the Grand Prix of Alabama. Legacy Credit Union is also still a sponsor. “What it shows to the local corporate community is that one of the fellow corporate citizens is stepping up and supporting an event in our backyard,” he said. “I think that will create some momentum for local companies to jump on board as well.” Darin White, sports business and marketing professor at Samford University, said consumers could transfer positive experiences with Honda to the Grand Prix event – one positive for the sponsorship signing. “Having a major national sponsor for a local sporting event clearly communicates value and the importance of the event beyond just the local market,” he said. “From a marketing perception standpoint, a sponsor like Honda will help that event develop certain positive attributes in the minds of potential spectators.” White said the three-year length of the sponsorship is fairly standard. He said it also opens the door for more national sponsors to bid for the event in the future if the event goes off well. Promoting races at Barber Motor Sports Park and Talladega Superspeedway should push attendance at both events, White said. “It should help both events, because there will be some spectators who will stay the entire week, which is a boost to the economy,” he said. “It seems like a win-win for Talladega and Barber. Those are two very different target markets, however, so there is some cross over in the target audiences.”
Birmingham Airport receives $14.3 million grant
From the article “BHM receives $14.3M grant for terminal project” by Aneesa McMillan in the Birmingham Business Journal:

The Birmingham-Shuttlesworth International Airport was awarded a $14.3 million grant to be used in the ongoing Terminal Modernization Project. The grant was issued by the Department of Homeland Security through the Transportation Security Administration. According to a release issued by the airport, the funds will be used to install a new baggage handling system. The total cost of the system was more than $15 million, however the TSA agreed to cover 95 percent of the costs through the grant. “This funding amount speaks to the confidence that the TSA has displayed in support of this project,” said BHM president and CEO Al Denson. “We sincerely thank the TSA official and our congressional delegation.” This is the second grant awarded to the facility this week after it was announced Tuesday that the Federal Aviation Administration awarded BHM an additional grant that totaled more than $1.8 million for the airport’s airfield maintenance and development.

For the complete article please see http://www.bizjournals.com/birmingham/stories/2010/09/13/daily40.html?ana=e_du_pub

Shelby County movie producers filming their first feature
From the article “Erwin Brothers keep first feature film local by Katie Hurst in the Shelby County Reporter:

Shelby County’s local movie-making brothers are hard at work on the production of their first feature film, “October Baby.” Jon and Andy Erwin, of Erwin Brothers Motion Pictures out of Calera, have been filming around the county this month. Scenes have been shot in Helena, the Birmingham airport, St. Paul’s cathedral in downtown Birmingham and Mobile. The film’s co-producer, Dan Atchison of Helena, said the crew has been doubling up on scene locations. Alabaster’s Barron Fan Technologies acted as the set for both a scene at a mechanic’s shop and a scene that takes place in a junkyard. “It keeps us from driving all over town,” he said. “It saves time, it saves money. It’s all smoke and mirrors.” It’s no accident that the brothers chose to film in their home state, Atchison said. Keeping the film local was intentional. “We wanted to shoot our first feature film here,” he said. “Alabama is a beautiful state. We hope to attract more films here. It’s good for the economy, it’s really good for our state.”

Thanks to the Alabama film incentives that were approved in July, the company will receive a 25 percent rebate on production expenses over $500,000. It gives the film a 25 percent larger budget and it keeps jobs and money in the state, Atchison said. Much of the crew and cast are also from Alabama, including the film’s lead actress, Rachel Hendrix. Other familiar cast names include Chris Sligh, Nashville-based American Idol contestant and John Schneider from the TV show, “Smallville” and the original “Dukes of Hazzard.” The movie follows the story of a college-aged girl who finds out she’s adopted and searches out her birth mother. It’s a coming-of-age story about recovering from a painful past and finding forgiveness, Atchison said.“We hope it will cause people to think about the relationships in their lives,” he said. “But it will entertain first and foremost. The Birmingham area is the perfect place for filming because of the diversity between big city, country and old small towns, Atchison said. “Birmingham really plays any town U.S.A., you can make it anywhere,” he said. “It’s a great place to shoot.” The film will be in post-production for at least three months before touring at festivals, Atchison said. The goal is for a big distributor to pick it up and put the film in theaters spring of 2012. If they meet that goal, the company would like to premiere the film like they produced it – locally, Atchison said.

For the complete article please see http://www.shelbycountyreporter.com/2010/09/13/erwin-brothers-keep-first-feature-film-local/ 

Edited: September 24th, 2010

York Times travel blog features Birmingham

From the article “Frugal Traveler blog notes Birmingham’s 4th Avenue Business District as a gem” by Stan Diel in The Birmingham News:

Birmingham got some buzz as a travel destination this week with a glowing report in The New York Times Frugal Traveler blog. Seth Kugel, who has been touring the country on the cheap, stopped at the Barber VintageMotorsports Museum, the Birmingham Civil Rights Institute and Golden Rule barbecue. But what impressed him the most about Birmingham was how genuinely friendly its people are. Kugel writes that as he walked through the historic 4th Avenue Business District people in the barbershops called out, inviting him in to chat, and people on the street stopped to talk. “Then it hit me,” he wrote. “People from Alabama are just this nice.” He also ate too many chicken wings and fried green tomatoes at Green Acres and too much sweet potato pie at Nelson Brothers Cafe, he wrote.  It was Kugel’s final installment in the blog, which can be found on The Times’ website at http://frugaltraveler.blogs.nytimes.com/2010/09/07/the-final-stretch-and-home-again/#more-5289

Edited: September 10th, 2010

Bon Appetit picks Birmingham’s Trattoria Centrale

From the article “Bon Appetit picks Birmingham’s Trattoria Centrale one of country’s best places for daily specials” by Bob Carlton in The Birmingham News:

Trattoria Centrale owners Brian Somershield and Geoff Lockert were pleasantly surprised to check out the September issue of Bon Appetit magazine and find their downtown Birmingham eatery listed as one of “10 More Spots for Fantastic Daily Specials.” “We had no idea,” Lockert says. “Maybe it was word of mouth. We just feel very humbled.” The latest issue of Bon Appetit is devoted to restaurants around the country, with additional features on the best new restaurants, the best places to eat at the bar and the best cookie shops. Trattoria Centrale — which, since opening last summer, has fast become famous for its fresh-and-local pizzas, pastas and salads — is the only Birmingham restaurant mentioned in the issue. Word has traveled fast, Lockert says. “Oh yeah, we had quite a few people who came in and said they saw (the magazine) and popped in for that reason,” he says. “And we certainly did go through the lunch special pretty quickly Monday.”

Edited: September 3rd, 2010

AMP Energy Event near Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast

The 2010 AMP Energy 500 Weekend will feature NASCAR Sprint Cup Series practice, followed by qualifying for the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series on Friday, Oct. 29. On Saturday, the field for the AMP Energy 500 will be set during Food Land/Food Giant Qualifying, followed by the stars of the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series battling it out in the Mountain Dew 250 fueled by Fred’s. On Sunday, dreams will be made and others broken as 43 of NASCAR’s finest compete in the AMP Energy 500, Race Number Seven in the Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup.

Edited: September 3rd, 2010