Judge, Jury, & Executioner

Two weeks ago there was an attempt to climb a mountain. It failed terribly! The Judge decided that the trail was erroneous which resulted in a hike to Stewart Falls, down to Sundance, and the unwieldy detour back. As a result there of, and three hours past, a trip to Timpanogos Cave was the new destination. 1.5 miles up a paved path covering a weak 1,000 feet, the cave became a cool refuge. Nice to see and do, however, nothing ground breaking for the inner self. Two weeks later the Jury came to an oh so daring accord and the proper destination was disclosed. At 7:40 AM on June 25, 2010 from an elevation of approximately 6,500 feet it began. Seven miles, six hours, and an ascent of nearly 5,000 feet the summit of Mount Timpaongos a new notch on the belt of life was carved. After a quick descent on my backside down a glacier and the familiar traversing trail, the Executioner lynched the 11,700 foot Brobdingnagian until a resurrection in the future.

Below is the visual summation.

The Menu

Juniper
Grill

Smoked Turkey Sandwich 8.00
Shaved turkey breast, herb havarti cheese, cranberry Serrano aioli, vine ripe tomato,
Bibb lettuce on toasted French bread

Red Ledges Burger 11.00
Half pound Angus burger, apple wood smoked bacon, sharp white cheddar cheese, vine ripe tomato, sweet onion, Bibb lettuce, roasted
garlic aioli on a fresh roll

Grilled Chicken Sandwich 9.00
Boneless chicken breast, roasted red bell peppers, vine ripe tomatoes, aged provolone cheese, green chili spread on toasted French bread

Chicken Lettuce Wraps 8.00
Coriander poached chicken, Provolone cheese, diced tomato, cucumber, red onion, simple vinaigrette in crisp Bibb lettuce **

Fish or Shrimp Tacos 10.50
Fried Gulf Wahoo or shrimp, Serrano chili
slaw, pico de gallo, shredded cheese, white
corn tortillas, chimichurri dipping sauce

Nathan’s All Beef Frank 7.00
Soft sourdough roll, assorted condiments

Brat and Caramelized Onions 7.50
Soft sourdough roll, assorted condiments

SOUP AND SALADS
Red “Wedges” 8.50
Petite lettuce wedges, Pt. Reyes blue cheese, roasted vanilla bean scented pears, candied pecans, Port wine vinaigrette, crispy shallots

Southwest Chopped Chicken Salad 9.00
Grilled chicken, diced tomatoes, red onion, sharp white cheddar cheese, red bell pepper, black beans, chickpeas, crisp lettuce, crunchy tortilla, cilantro balsamic vinaigrette

Watermelon and Cucumber Salad 10.00
Cubed watermelon, sliced European cucumber,
red onion, watercress, toasted pine nuts,
simple vinaigrette **

Side Salad 3.50
Crisp lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion

Soup of the Day 4.00

FOR THE KIDS
Grilled Cheese 6.50

Hot Dog 6.50

Chicken Strips 6.50

SWEET TOOTH
Marinated Strawberries 5.00
Halved strawberries, Bourbon vanilla beans,
honey, citrus scented mascarpone cheese

Creme Brulee 6.00
Chef’s selection of flavor

"You're Gonna' Win"

Two weeks prior to the grand opening of Red Ledges, a Private Four Seasons Community. The setting was bleak, drab, and almost gnarly. Contractors working, mobiles chirping, staff scrambling, and owners rambling. Too much to do in too little time! This was the view of our soon to be golf clubhouse. Over Sixty days of consecutive work for myself, event after event, tournament to tournament, my life found itself a new living. Crazy...sure, retarded...maybe, daring...by all means. Let the real truth be the judge of that though. When one says that a picture is worth one thousand words...I'm not certain. I will let you determine that with the "after" picture, that's all I can offer unless you have seen it for yourself.





When the season was all said, tried, strangled, beaten, true, and done; we came out on top. Over thirty lots out of twelve hundred put the development fourth in the nation. Oh..I can't forget Golf Magazine's "Best New Private Course in America" for 2009 as well as "Best New Course in Utah". Our owners have spent hundreds of millions and a time span of over thirty years to accomplish this extraordinary accolade. Mitchel Anthony Burns "Tony" is more than thrilled with our success. He was in for his oh so often visit last week before we had opened the doors to our membership and sales prospectives. As expected, he chose to eat at the Juniper Grill (that's my world) everyday for his go to spot while in town. Not quite prepared for the full menu we improvised to accommodate him. It is not every day that a fortune 500 CEO comes by your "shoe box" of a kitchen for a bite. In a mild conversation, as he walked out the door to depart the Heber Valley, he leaned over to me and said, "you're gonna' win". To have the support of a man dangerously powerful, deeply pocketed, and remarkably bright is humbling, inspiring, and probably the most terrifying three words of gratitude I have encountered yet!

The Second Coming

Almost six months later I find myself in the Rocky Mountain range, nestled upon the Jordanelle between the Wasatch and Uintas National Forests telling this tidbit for the second coming. Winter was spent in Florida and one month in several countries in Asia. My new residence has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, full size kitchen, washer and dryer, and not to forget a living room that is larger than my entire shoe box of a renovated mud room in which I lived last season. Work began yesterday after three days of unloading the array of tangibles in which I drug over two thousand miles. A long time friend will be sharing the below with me as well as working at Red Ledges for me. The condo is owned by a family from Arizona and they own the unit across the hall also that they keep vacant for their personal use from time to time. Contemporary Asian is the aesthetic throughout. I had the landlord remove the majority of the wall hangings to allow for mine and to break the soft feel. I signed a year lease which means that I will have to learn how to fall down a mountain again once the snow arrives and the golf course closes.

This summer is more than likely going to be a repeat of last with the only exception that the "grand opening" leg work is absent. Hopefully that will enable a day off in a week or two as opposed to a month or two. The core network of management has returned but most of the line level staff will be new. I am looking forward to that reality in some strange way. A few improvements are taking place to our facility which should enable an increase of sales and comfort of the temporary setting. If sales are successful early in the season they will look into building the pool and fitness center along with our first permanent food and beverage amenity.