News for December 2010

Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama at Barber Motorsports Park

Birmingham, Ala. – Barber Motorsports Park and ZOOM Motorsports announced today that tickets are

now on sale for the Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama presented by Legacy Credit Union to be held April 8

 

?10, 2011, at the Barber Motorsports Park. Tickets are available at www.barbermotorsports.com

Last year’s inaugural Honda Indy Grand Prix of Alabama brought over 75,000 fans from all over the world to watch the stars of the IZOD IndyCar Series compete on the twists and turns of the 2.38 mile road course at Barber Motorsports Park. The 3 the Stars, defending champion.

In addition to Castroneves, this year’s event will again feature the most dominant names in the IndyCar Series, including 2008 Series Champion and Indy 500 Winner Scott Dixon, 2007 and 2009 Series Champion and 2 Sports Illustrated swimsuit model Danica Patrick.

Spectators can select from a variety of tickets ranging in price from $15 to $425 and are encouraged to purchase tickets in advance, as prices will increase the week of the race. Among the many ticket options this year, are 3 Club, a trackside hospitality area with a sports bar atmosphere located between turns 14 and 15. In addition to tickets, spectators can also purchase tent camping, motorhome camping and onsite parking. Limited quantities of these options as well as tickets are available.

Lodging only 20 minutes away can be made at Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast www.treasureislandbedandbreakfast.com ,can be made online.

Edited: December 30th, 2010

Alabama Tourism Announces Top 10 Events for 2011

 

Montgomery, Ala. — A traveling exhibit inspired by the CSI television drama, the richest golf tournament in a generation, the 50th anniversary of “The Miracle Worker” and two original Civil War plays about Montgomery are among the top ten events selected by the Alabama Tourism Department for 2011.

“These 10 events celebrate milestones in tourism in Alabama,” said director, Lee Sentell. “We celebrate The Year of Alabama Music, the Sesquicentennial of the Civil War and significant anniversaries. These events showcase our state’s rich music and heritage.”

Below are the Top 10 Events of 2011 that are listed in the tourism department’s annual calendar of events:
1. CSI: The Experience, Huntsville

Jan. 29-May 1

U.S. Space and Rocket Center—The exhibit immerses guests in hands-on science while leading them through the challenge of solving a crime mystery. The center is open daily from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. 256.721.5411, www.spacecamp.com.

2. Civil War Plays at Alabama Shakespeare Festival, Montgomery

Feb. 4-Mar. 19

The Flag Maker of Market Street

In this performance, Montgomery store owner George Cowles walks a fine line catering to the Confederacy while holding secret Unionist meetings in his back room. Cautious of the increasingly stirring climate and fearful for his family and business, George is careful not to take any risks. But when George is asked to create the first Confederate flag and enlists the help of his slave Mae, he unwittingly exposes her to danger— and has to make a choice between upholding his convictions and living a lie.

 

Feb. 18-Mar. 20

Blood Divided

Fifteen-year-old Willie Baldwin, enchanted by the passionate rhetoric of the ardent secessionist William Lowndes Yancey, is increasingly disgusted by his father’s more moderate views. As tension grows between Willie, his family and longtime friend freedman James Hale, Willie’s rash behavior has unforeseen consequences resulting in tragedy and ultimately, redemption.

800.841.4ASF, www.asf.net.

3. 197th Anniversary of the Battle of Horseshoe Bend, Alexander City

Mar. 26

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park—Visitors will experience live cannon fire, live the lives of Creek and Cherokee Indians, visit hunting camps and see demonstrations of traditional skills of the early 1800s. They will also learn the importance of this battle in U.S. history. 9 a.m.-3 p.m., 256.237.7111, www.nps.gov/hobe.

 

4. Courage Under Fire: The 1961 Burning of the Freedom Riders Bus, Anniston

May 14-Jul. 15

Calhoun County Public Library—Visitors can see more than 60 photographic panels depicting the May 14, 1961 attack by violent segregationists on the first Freedom Ride. Taken by a local newspaper photographer, the famous images show the mob at the downtown Greyhound Bus Station and the attack outside of town. The photographs helped ignite national and international outrage at the treatment of African Americans in the South. 256.236.0996, www.spiritofanniston.org.

5. Regions Tradition PGA Tour, Birmingham

May 2-8

Shoals Creek Country Club—Some of the most recognizable and accomplished players in the game compete with 16 World Golf Hall of Fame members and other major championship winners. 205.969.9229.

6. 50th Annual “The Miracle Worker” Play, Tuscumbia

Jun. 3-Jul. 9

Keller’s Birthplace and Home—Now in its 50th year, this Broadway-style play recalls the childhood of deaf-blind Helen Keller, “America’s First Lady of Courage,” and her gifted teacher, Anne Sullivan. Performances on Fri. & Sat. only; gates open at 6:45 p.m. 256.383.0783, www.TheMiracleWorker.org.

 

7. 30th Annual W. C. Handy Music Festival, Florence

Jul. 22-30

The weeklong celebration honors the musical heritage of Northwest Alabama and the legacy of W.C. Handy, the “Father of the Blues,” with a parade, concerts, exhibits, theater, athletic events and live music. 256.766.7642, www.wchandymusicfestival.org.

 

8. BayFest Music Festival, Mobile

Oct. 7-9

More than 225,000 people are expected to jam the streets of downtown Mobile to hear some 125 live musical acts on nine stages during the weekend. BayFest offers continuous music for every fan including country, classic rock, alternative, pop, jazz, R&B, rap, gospel and modern rock. The event includes family activities that have garnered rave reviews. Fri., 6:30 p.m.-midnight; Sat., 2 p.m.-midnight; Sun., 2-10 p.m. 251.478.5679, www.bayfest.com.

9. 40th Annual National Shrimp Festival, Gulf Shores

Oct. 13-16

The beaches come alive with more than 300 vendors of fine arts, arts and crafts, a retail marketplace, delicious seafood and fabulous entertainment. There is a Children’s Activity Village, Sand Sculpture Contest and exhibits for families to enjoy. Local and national music acts feature genres from country, blues, and rock ‘n’ roll to zydeco and soul. 251.968.4237, www.nationalshrimpfestival.com.

10. 40th Annual Kentuck Art Festival, Northport

Oct. 15-16

Nationally recognized for its quality and diversity, the festival celebrates a variety of artistic styles from folk to contemporary arts as well as traditional crafts. More than 250 artists participate in the festival and are invited as a guest artist or are juried based on the quality and originality of their work. The guest artists are nationally recognized and their powerful visual images continue to capture national and international acclaim. Annie Tolliver Turner, Lonnie Holley, Butch Anthony and Charlie Lucas are among the self-taught artists Kentuck has showcased. 205.758.1257, 205.391.9200, www.kentuck.org.

Edited: December 22nd, 2010

Alabama resident wins CMT singing contest

A 20-year-old Alabama woman has won a national singing competition sponsored by County Music Television (CMT). Brittany Davis, a 2008 graduate of Spain Park High School in Hoover who is now a junior at Oklahoma City University, garnered the most online votes in the “Country Strong” singing challenge being held in conjunction with the January release of the movie by the same title, starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Tim McGraw. “I’m still in shock. This has been a real whirlwind,” Davis said. Davis was one of 16 regional winners who made it to the national competition. Online voters had six days to choose their favorite. As the national winner out of about 500,000 votes cast, Davis will be flown to Nashville around Jan. 2 by Sony Records for a tour of the CMT set and to record her own version of “Country Strong.” “There’s also the strong possibility I’ll get a meeting to talk with a Sony representative and a shot at an appearance on the CMT Top 20 Countdown,” Davis said. It would be “a dream come true”, Davis said, if she left Nashville with a record deal. “I’m going to bring my guitar and my songs and let them know how strong my passion is for country music.” www.brittanygdavis.com.

Edited: December 22nd, 2010

Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast wishes all a Merry Christmas

Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast wishes to extend to all our guest a very Merry Christmas and a prosperous new year. Thank you for staying with us as our guest and leaving as our friends. We have indeed hosted some of the best of the best people in the world this past year. We have hosted many honeymoon to anniversary celebrations that marked the events in their lives’ with wonderful memories that will endure. We hope to have you visit with us soon, whether it’s for a relaxing get away or a special event that the year brings forth. May 2011 bring blessings and prosperity to you and yours. See you soon. www.treasureislandbedandbreakfast.com

Edited: December 21st, 2010

First elephant makes home in Birmingham Zoo’s Trails of Africa exhibit

Just after the stroke of midnight Tuesday morning, Birmingham’s newest resident took the first steps into his new home. 
 
Bulwagi, a 13,000-pound, 10-foot-tall, 29-year-old male African elephant, made the daylong trip Monday from Disney’s Animal Kingdom in Orlando to become the first occupant of the zoo’s “Trails of Africa” exhibit, slated to open next spring. Despite an unloading process that took roughly three hours, Bulwagi calmly backed into the zoo’s new elephant barn, shoveling sweet potatoes into his mouth along the way. 
 
Within an hour, Bulwagi was roaming the climate-controlled barn, throwing sand on his back with a bale of hay nestled between his tusk and trunk, occasionally reaching up to grab a mouthful. 
 
Bulwagi is the first elephant for the zoo in almost four years and will be the first of its male elephant herd — something zoo officials say has never been tried in a zoo setting before. Elephants in the wild tend to travel in female-dominated herds, with males pushed out at maturity to fend for themselves. 
 
Bulwagi will later have two other male elephants join him, allowing zoo officials and scientists interested in elephants to study their interaction. 
Zoo officials looked specifically for male elephants that would be temperamentally suited to living well with others. They expect Bulwagi to be the herd’s patriarch. 
 
But how do you move a 12,000-pound elephant? When the elephant is good and ready. 
 
Zoo officials spent five days with Bulwagi to prepare him for the moment he stepped out of his specially-designed trailer into a very cold Birmingham. On Thursday, the zoo sent two employees to Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World to get acquainted with him. 
 
Bulwagi stands out in a crowd because he only has one tusk, on his left side — the result of an accident in his youth when he fell and broke the right one. His home for the last four years has been four acres of simulated African savanna at Disney. Before that, he lived at Lion Country Safari near West Palm Beach, Florida. 
 
One of those who made the trip down was Pat Flora, the zoo’s zoological manager. Before coming to Birmingham, he helped put together the elephant program for the zoo in Melbourne, Australia. Accompanying Flora was Jason Miles, an animal keeper who has worked for the last five years with the zoo’s predators, managing and training the big cats. This was his first time around an elephant. 
 
Flora and Miles spent the weekend getting to know Bulwagi. Animals at Disney get to roam, but rest during cold nights in a heated animal barn. This allowed the two men at least four sessions a day to spend some time with him, pick up feed, lead him into the barn, scrub him down for a bath and observe his movements. 
 
“He has a gentle nature,” Flora said. “He’s a bit passive. He doesn’t seem as eager to interact with the other males.” 
 
Miles said Bulwagi’s laid-back temperament is “perfect for what we want to do.” 
  
At first light Monday, workers began coaxing Bulwagi onto a special climate-controlled trailer for the 580-mile trip to Birmingham. Once a crane arrived to load the trailer, keepers used guide ropes to walk Bulwagi inside. The process took about 40 minutes, Flora said. 
 
To assist with the move, the zoo flew down veterinarian Stephanie McCain. During the trip, workers monitored Bulwagi’s temperature, the temperature inside the trailer, and his behavior at regular intervals. 
 
“We try to balance how often we stop with the necessity of getting there as quickly as possible,” McCain said. 
  
Bulwagi arrived at the zoo shortly after 9 p.m. A crane lifted the trailer up to the door of the barn, allowing the zoo’s team to begin backing him out. A worker from Animal Kingdom will remain at least through Thursday to give Bulwagi a familiar face. 
 
Over the next few weeks, Flora said keepers will be watching Bulwagi for signs of how he is acclimating. African elephants can be a little more suspicious of their surroundings, Flora said. 
 
“We make sure he’s eating, drinking, getting the attention and care that he needs,” Flora said. “An adult elephant typically needs about two or three days to get their head around a new facility.” 
  
The next few weeks will also give Bulwagi time to test the new “Trails of Africa” exhibit area ahead of the other elephants. 
 
“He’ll teach us everything we need to know about it,” Zoo CEO Bill Foster said. “He’ll leave his scent for the others who come after, and we’ll get to know him.”

Edited: December 15th, 2010

USA TODAY: Snowbirds flocking to the Gulf Coast

Tourism officials in the areas of the Gulf Coast hit hardest by spring’s BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill say winter tourism appears to be normal or better as snowbirds flock to the region in numbers approaching those of previous years. The return of those mostly older visitors from northern climates is “vital” to a region that banks on tourism dollars and was battered in the summer by dwindling numbers of visitors, says Linda Whitlock of the Gulf Coast Area Chamber of Commerce in Baldwin County, Ala. The snowbird season heats up on the Alabama and Florida Panhandle coasts in late December and early January, says Karen Harrell, who publishes Snowbirds Gulf Coast. ”The season appears to be on track to equal or even be better than last season,” she says. The snowbirds, she says, “closely followed news of the oil spill” through news media and friends. “Some are true part-time residents and spend up to six months here,” Harrell says. Snowbirds, or “winter guests,” are looking to get away from the snow and ice, Harrell says. Gulf Shores saw about a 33% decline in tourism-related income in the summer because of the oil disaster, Mayor Robert Craft says. “This past summer was expected to be the beginning of the good times,” he says. “Everything pointed to people wanting to travel again after the tough economic conditions of 2008 and 2009. Our first-quarter totals for this year were up about 12% over 2009. … We were going into the spring and summer season with a great deal of momentum. Then the spill happened.” 

Betty and Marv Hastings of Ankeny, Iowa, plan to travel to Orange Beach, Ala., this year just as they have since 2003. They direct the Iowa Snowbirds Club, which has 175 to 200 members. “We’re looking forward to returning,” Betty Hastings says. “It’s a great area. We followed the news of the oil spill, of course. We’ve had friends go down on shorter trips, and they tell us everything is cleaned up and back to normal.” Aside from spending money, snowbirds will become ambassadors for the region when they return home, says Craft, the Gulf Shores mayor. www.treasureislandbedandbreakfast.com

For the complete article please see http://www.usatoday.com/travel/destinations/2010-12-10-snowbirds10_ST_N.htm.

Edited: December 15th, 2010

Glenn Leonard & The Temptations Experience

Make a real experience and come stay at Treasure Island Bed and Breakfast www.treasureislandbedandbreakfast.com and come see Glenn Leonard & The Temptations  at Pell City; Jan 29. Perhaps the most consistent Motown act from the very beginning. What is remarkable about the Temptations has been their ability to completely change personnel over their 40-year history without affecting the quality of their music or performances. Glenn Leonard had a long illustrious career as the first tenor and lead singer of the Temptations from 1975-1984. Joining Leonard will be Kareem Ali, Pete Marshall, Anthony McRae and Freddy Black in an evening that will be long remembered.

Edited: December 10th, 2010

BOOK ON ALABAMA’S MOST FAMOUS

Image Publishing, Inc. has announced that it’s latest book, Alabama Home Sweet Home, which profiles some of the states most famous natives, is now available for sale throughout the state.

Randy Owen, former lead singer with the group Alabama wrote the introduction for the 384-page coffee table book, contains rare photographs and stories of 100 of Alabama’s most fascinating people and their accomplishments

Courtney Cox, Jim Nabors, Nat King Cole, Bear Bryant, Charles Barkley, Rosa Parks and Helen Keller are just a few of the well-known Alabamans selected for the book based on their unique stories of success.

In addition to the public figures, there are 78 of Alabama’s leading businesses and organizations also featured as sponsors of the book.

The book retails for $ 44.95 and is available in bookstores, museums and gift shops through the state including Barnes and Noble, Books A Million, University of Alabama Bryant Museum, Montgomery Alabama Visitors Center, Governor’s Mansion Gift shop, Alabama Music Hall of Fame, Auburn Convention and Visitors Bureau and many more.

For more information www.imagepublishinginc.com

Edited: December 1st, 2010