Redmond had fared pretty well in holding off the nasty weather in this El Nino-impacted winter that left things mostly warm and dry.

But that all came to an end this week.

Ice and freezing rain caused all sorts of problems. Redmond School District canceled activities at times during the week and school was canceled on Friday. The Redmond Airport closed on Thursday afternoon and remained closed through late Friday morning, which caused numerous cancellations and delays for commercial flights. Flight schedules are likely to remain impacted until planes are back into position and regularly-scheduled travel can be resumed. If you had a flight delayed or canceled (or have one scheduled in the next day or two!) check with your airline for updated information.

Some really awful things can happen during serious weather events.

A tragedy occurred Sunday morning, when a Redmond man was found frozen to rocks just above the popular Dry Canyon Trail on one of the coldest nights of the year. The man, who has not yet been identified by authorities, later died at St. Charles in Bend. Our condolences to his loved ones.

Unfortunately for the folks at Redmond Snow and Skate, the winter weather didn’t come soon enough. Poor early-season ski conditions contributed to a rough start to to the season for the store, which will close at the end of the month.

The future of Redmond High continues to be debated by a committee formed to make recommendations to the school board. Lots of difficult decisions coming down the pike on that as the price tag is steep, but the community’s love for Redmond High is deep.

Before things got really bad, the Redmond v. Ridgeview Hometown Showdown went off as scheduled on Tuesday. And what a barnburner it turned out to be. It’s neat to see the history of the coaches adding depth to the local rivalry.

I got into a verbal tussle on Friday with former State Sen. Peter Courtney on Oregon Public Broadcasting’s Think out Loud program about the Oregon state flag. I think it’d be in the state’s best interest to kickstart a civic project and get Oregonians talking and debating something with little lower stakes than the rest of the legislative session and presidential election. And far from exacerbate the urban/rural divide, I think it would be a debate that would honor and value rural areas. Heck, we’re the ones with the best vistas, the best colors, and the history that Oregon prides itself on. Peter wasn’t having any of it, but I think professional vexillologist Ted Kaye was on my side!

Here’s a fun story: The first-ever fossilized grasshopper egg pod was found nearby at the John Day Fossil Beds. Still so many gems to unearth here in Oregon — maybe this one belongs on the state flag!

Quote of the Week

“I grew up watching Reagan as a middle-schooler, going to his games. Like the younger generations now idolize the high school players, I idolized Reagan.”

— Maarty Leunen, Ridgeview coach and former basketball star at Redmond

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— Tim Trainor is editor of the Redmond Spokesman.