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Daily Newspaper and Travel Guide
for Pecos Country of West Texas
Top Stories
Friday, November 1, 2002
KPEJ's `cavity' leaves hole in Cowboy fans' schedules
By JON FULBRIGHT
Staff Writer
PECOS, Friday, Nov 1, 2002 -- Sports fans in Pecos didn't have any problem
watching Game 7 of the World Series last Sunday on Fox.
But those wanting to watch Emmitt Smith break the all-time NFL rushing
record in the Dallas Cowboys' game against the Seattle Seahawks earlier in
the day were out of luck, as local viewers instead were shown the Atlanta
Falcons-New Orleans Saints game. And Cowboy fans may not have any more luck
in watching their team play this Sunday afternoon.
That's because of new problems with the translator station for Midland-Odessa's
KPEJ, which forced Classic Cable to switch back to the FoxNet satellite signal
at the start of the World Series two weeks ago.
"We lost the `cavity,' the part the translator itself mounts on," said
Doug Faltus, engineer with KPEJ. "We're getting a replacement it. It's coming
out of Colorado and is supposed to be in next week."
KPEJ, which is on UHF Ch. 24 in the Midland-Odessa area, does not have
a strong enough signal to reach into the Pecos Valley, so it relays its transmission
past Pecos to the translator station on 6,500-foot Gomez Peak, which then
broadcasts the station over UHF Ch. 20 in the Pecos area. That signal is
then picked up by Classic Cable's antenna and shown on Ch. 8 in Pecos.
KPEJ had problems with its translator signal for about two months in August
and September due to a problem on Gomez Peak. That problem was resolved in
early October, and the station was back on the air for about two weeks until
the latest trouble began.
Pecos cable subscribers were changed over to FoxNet for the last few days
before the signal was restored in October, and when the cavity failed, Faltus
said KPEJ worked with Classic Cable to put the FoxNet signal back up on the
local system, so baseball fans would be able to see the World Series. However,
the FoxNet regional pro football games are selected out of New York for national
broadcast, and Fox officials last Sunday opted to show New Orleans and Atlanta
instead of the Dallas-Seattle contest.
KPEJ aired the Dallas-Seattle game, in which Smith broke Walter Payton's
all-time NFL rushing record.
This Sunday, the Cowboys play the Detroit Lions at 12 noon. It's one of
three regional games Fox will air at that time, the others being Philadelphia
at Chicago and Minnesota at Tampa Bay. Most of the U.S. will see the Philadelphia
Chicago game, but there was no listing available for Sunday's 12 noon FoxNet
game. KPEJ will show Dallas-Detroit and both it and FoxNet are scheduled
to air San Francisco against Oakland as their 3:15 p.m. national game on
Sunday.
While rains and other bad weather has caused problems over the years for
KPEJ's translator station, Faltus said the failure of the cavity "was probably
just normal wear and tear. It's like anything electronic."
"We're spending about $10,000 on this. It's a sizeable part, and not something
we enjoy changing out," he said, adding that the rains that have been in
the area for the past two weeks shouldn't cause any problems getting to the
translator antenna on Gomez Peak.
"The road up there is pretty good, so it shouldn't take long to change
out once we get it in."
Catholic Daughters set garage sale
PECOS, Friday, Nov 1, 2002 -- A garage sale will be held from 9 a.m. until
2 p.m., Saturday at St. Catherine's Catholic Church Hall, corner of Plum
and Walthall.
The event is sponsored by the Catholic Daughters.
Election training program planned
PECOS, Friday, Nov 1, 2002 -- An election training program will be held
at 6 p.m., Monday at the Reeves County Courthouse, in the second floor courtroom.
Everyone is invited to attend the program. Election Day is Tuesday, with
polls open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m. at 11 sites in Reeves County and at the
Community Center in Barstow.
Today is the final day for early voting. Reeves County voters can cast
ballots until 5 p.m. in the first floor lobby at the Reeves County Courthouse.
Barstow voters casting ballots early must do so at the Ward County Courthouse
in Monahans.
New optomitrist joins Gann, staff at Vision Center
PECOS, Friday, Nov 1, 2002 -- Dr. Charles Gann and staff at Castle Rock
Vision Center would like to welcome Dr. Russell Subia to the local office.
Dr. Subia is a 2002 graduate of the InterAmerican School of Optometry.
He will offer complete eye exams for both children and adults, including
contact lens exams.
In addition, he is a licensed therapeutic Optometrist and can assist in
the treatment of eye infections, cataracts, glaucoma, allergies and dry eye
syndrome. He also screens for high blood pressure, diabetes, and other systemic
conditions.
Dr. Subia's wife, Linda, is a schoolteacher in Odessa and they have a
six-year-old daughter, named Kayla.
"We feel Dr. Subia will be a great asset to the community," said Dr. Gann.
"Please come by to meet Dr. Subia and give him a `Pecos warm welcome handshake".
U.S. 285 repairs scheduled between Orla, Mentone
PECOS, Friday, Nov 1, 2002 -- Speed limits that just went up to 75 miles
per hour on one section of U.S. 285 last week will be heading back down again
next week, as the Texas Department of Transportation prepared to begin work
on a 20-mile section of the road north of Pecos.
According to a news release from TxDOT today, Jones Bros. Dirt and Paving
Contractors out of Odessa will begin work on Nov. 11 to rebuild the section
of U.S. 285 between the State Highway 302 junction west of Mentone and the
junction with FM 652 in Orla. The initial work is expected to take about
three months to complete, though final completion of the road won't be done
until May of 2003
TxDOT said there will be two sections of roadway being rebuilt at any
one time, and will be roughly eight miles apart. Traffic in those areas will
be reduced to one lane during construction hours, and pilot cars will be
used to guide vehicles through the work zones. The highway will be open to
two-way traffic at night.
The $2.9 million project will involve removing the existing surface of
U.S. 285 in the first phase, and then stabilizing the road base with a cement
mixture before a temporary driving surface is put in place. In the second
phase of construction, which will be done next May, crews will resurface
the road with a rubber modified hot mix asphalt.
Flagmen and speed limit restrictions will be in place on U.S. 285 in the
construction area while the project is underway.
Last week, TxDOT crews installed new speed limit signs on the highway
between Sanderson and the New Mexico state line, raising the maximum speed
from 70 to 75 miles per hour. The road is one of five two-lane highways in
West Texas that has been certified to receive the new 75 mph speed limit,
after Interstate 10 between Kerr and El Paso counties and I-20 in Reeves
County had their speed limits raised to 75 mph late last year.
Stockton's "Living History Days" set for Saturday
By ROSIE FLORES
Staff Writer
PECOS, Friday, Nov 1, 2002 -- Students from 32 school districts and 19 counties
were scheduled to participate in Fort Stockton's annual "Living History
Days" celebration today, while the general public is invited to take
in events scheduled for Saturday in downtown Fort Stockton.
The students were scheduled to will participate in the annual living history
celebration, though fourth graders from Bessie Haynes Elementary School who
were scheduled to attend today's event stayed home because of the cold, rainy
weather.
The first Friday in November is always designated as Education Day at
the historic site, while "Living History Days 2002" will be on Saturday on
the grounds of Historic Fort Stockton. Saturday is open to the public and
there is no admission fee.
The grounds will be open from 9 a.m. until 5 p.m. for "Living History
Day," which celebrates the Indian Wars post and the frontier of the 1800's.
The grounds come alive with re-enactors, historians and musicians. Re-enactors
will include soldiers, laundresses, civilians, native Americans and craftsmen.
The children will learn the arts of soap making, tatting and weaving, spinning,
blacksmithing, gourd painting, medicinal herbs and more. They will learn
the hardships of frontier life on and off this army post of the Indian Wars.
There will be a western feel in the air as the Pecos River Gang keeps
the peace and Gerry Allison gets into a scuffle over the story of his ancestor.
Doug Whitaker have the public spellbound with his rope tricks and fast draw.
The chuckwagon camp will stay busy as they feed the re-enactors.
There will be entertainment from all over the state of Texas. Ricky Boen
and Texas Mud and Washtub Jerry and Glenn Moreland will you have tapping
your toes and clapping to the best of the music. Gloria Espino and Wallace
Moore, followed by the 6th grade Intermediate Stars will perform
in the afternoon. The Daylights will be back again this year and have some
good music planned for us. The Sahawee Indian dancers will also be back this
year. Celtic Dancers and bagpipers will be added this year.
There will be several food vendors and coke trailers available. There
will also be several non-living history units this year.
Fort Stockton was one of a string of 19th Century military
posts that protected travelers and commerce on the San Antonio/El Paso road
during the Indian Wars (1867-1886). IN fact, military history in this area
goes back to the 1850's when Camp Stockton served as a base for the expeditions
throughout the region. During the Civil War, the post was occupied by units
of the Army of the Confederacy.
This history will again come to life with soldiers setting up camp on
the old fort's parade grounds. Once again, the infantry will drill to the
sergeant's commands, cavalry will take the field, and cannons and small arms
will fire, and the air will be filled with the music of the bugle, the fife
and drum, and the fiddle.
Weather
PECOS, Friday, Nov 1, 2002 -- High Thursday 51. Low this morning 53. Rainfall
last 24 hours at Texas A&M Experiment Station .02 inch. Forecast
for tonight: Cloudy with a 50 percent chance of rain. Lows 45 to 50.
East winds 5 to 15 mph. Saturday: Cloudy with a 30 percent chance of
rain. Highs 55 to 60. East winds 5 to 15 mph: Becoming southeast. Saturday
night: Cloudy with a 20 percent chance of rain. Lows near 50. Sunday:
Mostly cloudy. Highs near 60. Monday: Mostly cloudy with a chance of
rain. Lows 45 to 50. Highs 50 to 55.
Pecos Enterprise
York M. "Smokey" Briggs, Publisher
Division of Buckner News Alliance, Inc.
324 S. Cedar St., Pecos, TX 79772
Phone 915-445-5475, FAX 915-445-4321
e-mail news@pecos.net
Associated Press text, photo, graphic, audio and/or video material shall not be published, broadcast, rewritten for broadcast or publication or redistributed directly or indirectly in any medium.
Copyright 2002 by Pecos Enterprise
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