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Hey, Spike! on eruption interruption

Miles F. Porter IV
Special to the Daily/Miles F. Porter IVCharlotte Clarke and Rob Philippe with the prized "Frisco Model T."
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Isn’t it amazing how a volcano thousands of miles from Summit County can have an impact on life here?

Iceland’s Eyjafjallajokull volcano, spewing its hot Earth innards into the sky, created little wrinkles for some locals.

The Stecher Family of Bill’s Ranch had to extend its stay in Stockholm, Sweden, until international flights resumed, allowing mom Kicki and children Lukas and Lina to return home.



Kicki, who works for United Express over at the Eagle Airport, is a native of Sweden, and regularly takes the kids to visit relatives.

Dad Mike stayed here to finish the Copper Mountain Resort season as a veteran ski instructor.



Lukas, 6, goes to Kindergarten, and Lina, 4, to Preschool, both at Frisco Elementary.

“We were in Sweden for spring break and were supposed to come back the day after the volcano erupted,” mom explains. “I didn’t think much of it, or we would probably have tried to fly out that day.”

“You couldn’t see any of the ash, just blue sky and sunshine, so it was really strange there were no airplanes,” she notes. “We spent some extra days in Stockholm, checking the news, and looking at alternatives – maybe we could take the train to Moscow or take the boat over. Nothing sounded really good.”

Early this week, they caught a break when limited air travel resumed.

“On Monday we found out at 7 a.m., that the airport would open for a short period of time. I woke the kids up and went straight there. It was like a ghost town, with only four international flights going, and not many passengers. I don’t think too many people knew it was open, or had time to get there. We got some of the last seats on the 10 a.m., flight to Chicago, and then they closed the airport again later that day.

“I never thought we would get back, flying standby. We would probably still be there if we wouldn’t have caught that flight in that short window the airport was open,” Kicki reports. “We flew over northern Iceland on the way home, but couldn’t see any ash cloud or the volcano.”

 “The kids are happy to be back to school and see their friends, and of course daddy, but a little sad to leave their cousins and grandparents in Sweden,” Kicki says.

Others having to deal with the ash-filled skies were Bethany Lambrecht’s Summit High French students being delayed in Paris (gee, too bad); half a band for Copper couldn’t get out of London; and some Norwegian fish shipments – weren’t.

 ***

Entrepreneur Rob Philippe has acquired the 1921 Ford known as the “Frisco Model T” from history buff Charlotte Clarke.

The auto will soon displayed in Rob’s Frisco Emporium on Old Main Street Frisco, a factor leading to Charlotte selling it in a sweetheart deal.

Local engineer Norm Ringhand bought car back in 1980 from a guy and later donated it to the Summit Historical Society, Charlotte explains. She still has a Model T Speedster she’s thinking about parting with.

••••

Miles F. Porter IV, nicknamed “Spike,” a Coloradan since 1949, is an Army veteran, former Climax miner, graduate of Adams State College, and a resident of Summit County since 1982. He owned newspapers here for nearly two decades.

Email: milesfporteriv@aol.com


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