|
May 30
|
A moment in history…
Fonda, NY Train Wreck
“The wreck occurred on July 18, 1947 at Fonda, NY. My grandfather was the engineer operating engine number 2775, an L2a Mohawk I believe. He was the only one injured. It tied up all four tracks of the mainline for quite some time. He said the tower man switched his train into the back end of a work train sitting on a siding. He also said they never saw the tower man again after the wreck.” Don Relyea, May 2010
 |
 |
 |
 |
Also shown at Railroads of Madison County
|
May 30
|
A moment in history…
Hotel Roy Burned
Fonda Landmark Destroyed – Night Porter Injured While Escaping
Hotel Roy Fire - Fonda, NY - 1909
Syracuse Herald, Syracuse, NY, 26 Jan 1909
Fonda, NY – Jan 26 — The most disastrous fire that has visited this village since 1899 was discovered about 2 p.m. yesterday in Hotel Roy. The fire was first discovered by Miss Agnes Miller, an employee of the hotel, and before she could give the alarm, the entire building was filled with smoke. The fire is thought to have originated in the laundry, which was located in the cellar of the hotel. The Fire department was called out and shortly afterwards word was sent to Fultonville for assistance, and the firemen from that village – were soon on hand to give their help. The firemen worked faithfully, but all their work only seemed to help the blaze, and at 1 o’clock the entire structure was a roaring furnace.
When it was seen that the hotel could not be saved, streams of water were turned on the buildings on the opposite side of the street and they prevented the fire from spreading.
Shortly after the fire was discovered, John McMaster, who was the night porter in the hotel, and who was asleep in his room on the third story, on the west side of the hotel, was awakened and being unable to enter the all, opened the window and hung by his hands on the window ledge for several minutes, when the bricks became so warm that he lost his hold and fell to a roof below. He received a bad gash across his forehead, a badly burned arm and a broken hip. He was taken to Amsterdam hospital on the 4:52 train. Hotel Roy was erected by John V. Borst in 1836, and was one of the old land marks of the village. In 1892 Wells and Ward Streeter of Gloversville purchased the hotel of the late Jacob Snell and have since conducted the same. The building was destroyed and the loss is estimated at about $40,000 with an insurance of $25,000.
|
May 03
|
Queen of the workout video Jane Fonda gets back in the old routine
By Daily Mail Reporter – Last updated at 1:47 AM on 3rd May 2010
Trim: Jane Fonda launches World Fitness Day at the weekend looking as fit as ever
It takes more than hip and knee replacement surgeries to stop the queen of the workout video. Jane Fonda defied her 72 years at the weekend, sliding into her 1980s leotard to host the first annual World Fitness Day in Atlanta, Georgia. The Oscar-winning actress looked as trim as ever as she demonstrated her trademark exercise moves in the tightly-fitted yellow and black number.
‘I’m part of a demographic that’s kind of ignored,’ She said. ‘We have to go into it with guns blazing and be as healthy as possible.’ The appearance comes just a year after she was photographed being pushed round New York’s JFK Airport in a wheelchair. Fonda had knee replacement surgery last year after wearing of the cartilage in her left knee left bone rubbing on bone. The surgery followed a hip replacement five years ago and years of painful back problems. In the past she has succumbed to plastic surgery, going under the knife for breast implants and cosmetic surgery to remove the bags under her eyes. But more recently she has insisted she is determined to grow old gracefully and naturally and has spoken out about cosmetic surgery.
Fonda became a Hollywood star after her appearance in Barbarella in 1968. But she is arguably more renowned for her vast exercise empire, making millions in the Eighties and Nineties from her gyms, keep fit books and videos. She famously encouraged her viewers to ‘go for the burn’ – which they did, by the millions. Her first exercise video, ‘Jane Fonda’s Workout’ released in 1982, remains one of the highest selling fitness videos of all time.
|
Apr 28
|
ESS EXTRA!! – Fonda Speedway, Fonda, NY
Empire Super Sprints – April 25, 2010 – by Dean ReynoldsThe “Track of Champions” continues to thrive in Upstate, NY under the promotions of Ric and Laura Lucia and the race directing of Marty Beberwyck. While many tracks are pulling back the reins with the state of today’s economy, Fonda Speedway goes on the offensive by adding bigger events with a very aggressive schedule for 2010.
Be prepared to experience real racing action and actually feel the thunder at the track of champions! Fonda Speedway boasts over 50 years of championship dirt track racing just off exit 28 of the New York State Thruway at the Montgomery County Fair Grounds; less than 30 minutes from Albany. This famous egg shaped half-mile oval has seen the likes of Richard Petty, Bobby Allison, Shirley Muldowney, Pete Corey, Steve Kinser, Brett Hearn and Jack Johnson just to name a few.
Fonda’s history dates back to 1927 since the AAA days. NASCAR Grand National division toured Fonda in the 50’s with Petty, Baker, Johnson and others visiting the small hamlet. The ¼ mile dragstrip opened in 1958 (Closed in 1969) with the legendary Shirley Muldowney starting her career in Fonda.
For the better part of four decades now, big block modifieds have called this half-mile, odd shaped oval home. Lazzaro, Corey, Johnson, Lape, Coville, Romano are names of Fonda lure with names such as Varin, Delorenzo, a second generation Johnson, Trombley, Camara and others play host to big crowds weekly.
In 2010, Fonda will once again kick off and close the full point season for the Lucas Oil Empire Super Sprints with the 7th annual Earl Halaquist Memorial on May 29th and the crowning of the 27th Anniversary champion on Sept. 25th as a part of the historical McDonald’s Weekend. Also, Fonda will play host to the All-Star Circuit of Champions sprint cars, where many ESS teams will be on hand to support, for the first time ever the Lucas Oil Late Model Tour, the Thunder Series for mods with Utica-Rome Speedway and tribute nights for the late Lou Lazzaro and Dave Lape.
ESS drivers of local interest will be Cory Sparks, Jami Russell, Jessica Zemken, Warren Alexson, Jared Fink, Mark Zemcik, Tyler Rice and many-time Fonda Speedway champion Bobby Varin who will make another appearance in a winged sprint car on each night. Fonda is also the closest to several New England racers such as Anthony Cain, Russ Bennett and Billy White.
ESS Facts – Fonda Speedway:
ESS Events Run: 8
Different Winners: 7
Most Wins: Justin Barger (2)
Last Event Run: Sept. 26, 2010
Most Recent Winner: Lance Yonge
Fonda Facts:
Location: Exit 28 off of I-90, Montgomery County Fairgrounds
ESS Date(s): May 29th and Sept. 25th
Track Promoter: Ric Lucia
Track Phone: (518) 853-4235
Website: www.fondaspeedway.net
Sites of Interest:
Major League Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown (45 min. away).
The famous Howes Caverns in Howes Cave (30 min. away)
Historical Fonda Speedway display at the local McDonald’s right in Fonda
City of Albany just 30 min. away.
|
Nov 12
|
Internet café opens at Utica veterans center
By Emerson Clarridge, Observer-Dispatch
Posted Nov 07, 2009 @ 08:31 PM
William Fonda of Utica mingles during the grand opening of the Central new York Veterans Outreach Center’s “The Bunker” internet cafe in Utica, Saturday, November 7, 2009. Dave Londres / Observer-Dispatch
UTICA — When he returned from Iraq in early 2005, Army veteran Gary Matt was quickly caught in labyrinthine bureaucracy. Medical appointments often sent the 30-year-old Utica man to Syracuse. “Even just going out to Rome is a pain,” he said.
Matt’s experience is typical of the disarray that meets former military men and women once they’ve left the battlefield and returned home, said Army veteran Vincent Scalise, who served with Matt. “The government does what they can,” he said. Yet often, he said, the assistance falls short.
To ease the transition to civilian life, Scalise began year ago to head an effort to convert the former 87,000-square-foot YMCA building on Washington Street in Utica into a single-stop veterans’ service clearinghouse that offers advice on legal matters, employment assistance and counseling. Many of the services already are available at the Central New York Veterans Outreach Center, and construction began last week on 15 transitional housing units – apartments for veterans struggling to find a place to live – that Scalise said he hopes will be ready in mid-2010.
The center’s most recent addition is a first-floor coffee shop and Internet café called The Bunker, which celebrated its grand opening Saturday night to a steady flow of patrons. Computers will be available from early morning to late at night so veterans can fill out online forms for Veterans Administration assistance and access the Internet for other purposes. The space will be open to veterans and nonveterans.
“I want people from all different walks of life,” Scalise said. Jessica Perusse, the center’s head social worker, said “it’s a very relaxing, calm space.” A formal flag-raising, ribbon-cutting and open house is scheduled for Wednesday, Veteran’s Day.