The audience claps along with The National Parks as they perform in the backyard of a private home in Provo as part of the band’s "Campfire Tour" on Thursday, June 25, 2020. In a time of face masks, sanitizing and social distancing, telework, digital conferencing and way too much time indoors, the latest album release by The National Parks could be considered by many as a literal breath of fresh air, a perfect analogy for the group’s Utah tour stops as well. In conjunction with the album release, The National Parks revamped the concept of a tour to not only follow state and local social distancing guidelines, but also to share their music in a more intimate and personal way.
It's officially summertime!
June was another month of unpredictable ebb and flow. The first half of the month kept the jam-packed pace that May had established, and the last half slowed down a bit, but there were surprises that came up throughout the month that kept my schedule all over the place.
The coronavirus has altered many aspects of our lives, and Utah's primary election was no exception. The normal voting booths were replaced with a drive-thru and drop-off only setup. In terms of precautions, Utah has been pretty relaxed (especially compared to other states my family and friends live in, like Ohio, Arizona, Texas, North Carolina, Tennessee, and so on). Gyms are open, pools are open, the vast majority of people don't wear masks in public, and besides sports seasons being postponed or cancelled and stores/organizations implementing social-distancing protocol, things feel pretty "normal" – Which, is honestly a bit scary. I've been keeping up with my personal protective equipment on assignments, but it remains yet to be seen just how much the coronavirus will spread, and how different states taking different precautions will help/hurt populations long term.
One experience that stood out this month was photographing stock car racing for the first time as I covered the ARCA Menards Series West at the Utah Motorsports Campus about an hour northwest in Tooele, Utah, for NASCAR. Having never really watched NASCAR let alone photographed it, I tried my best beforehand to familiarize myself with the sport and the specific photos NASCAR wanted me to get from the full day of racing. Preparations can only do so much, however, but I found myself having more fun and less stress than I anticipated as I soaked up the loud, fast cars, hot sun and orchestrated pit crews. Everything I saw was a brand-new experience for me to photograph, and it was a treat of a day. More photos from the races can be seen here: provodh.com/e9xfs
Looking forward to July, it's uncertain just how weird the month will feel. I'll still be photographing Fourth of July and Pioneer Day fireworks, but there'll be no crowds and none of the usual fanfare leading up to the events (like Stadium of Fire – an annual rock concert featuring dance displays, skydivers, big-wig speakers, and of course, fireworks). Regardless of what life throws at me at work, I'm excited to have my parents visiting me in Utah for two weeks, and being able to visit my girlfriend in Sacramento for the first time to see what her life is like at her 1-2 year Report for America fellowship with the Sacramento Bee.
Blaine Perkins, driver of the #9 Sunrise Ford/Four Star Fruit-Lucas Oil Ford, gets settled in the driver’s seat just before the first ENEOS/Sunrise Ford Twins presented by the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame race for the ARCA Menards Series West at the Utah Motorsports Campus in Tooele, Utah, on Saturday, June 27, 2020.
Lawless Alan, driver of the #12 AUTOParkit Toyota, competes during the first ENEOS/Sunrise Ford Twins presented by the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame race for the ARCA Menards Series West at the Utah Motorsports Campus in Tooele, Utah, on Saturday, June 27, 2020.
Fans watch as cars round a corner during the first ENEOS/Sunrise Ford Twins presented by the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame race for the ARCA Menards Series West at the Utah Motorsports Campus in Tooele, Utah, on Saturday, June 27, 2020. In accordance with county and state regulations, all guests’ temperatures were taken at the gate, and social-distancing rules were enforced. A limited run of 500 spectator tickets were available for the event.
A crew member of Giovanni Scelzi’s #16 NAPA Auto Parts/Curb Records Ford, preps tires before qualifying for the ENEOS/Sunrise Ford Twins presented by the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame for the ARCA Menards Series West at the Utah Motorsports Campus in Tooele, Utah, on Saturday, June 27, 2020.
A young fan watches as Kris Wright, driver of the #7 Pitts Racing Chevrolet, competes during the second ENEOS/Sunrise Ford Twins presented by the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame race for the ARCA Menards Series West at the Utah Motorsports Campus in Tooele, Utah, on Saturday, June 27, 2020.
Jesse Love, driver of the #19 NAPA Power Premium Plus Toyota, hugs one of his crew members after winning the first ENEOS/Sunrise Ford Twins presented by the West Coast Stock Car Hall of Fame race for the ARCA Menards Series West at the Utah Motorsports Campus in Tooele, Utah, on Saturday, June 27, 2020.
Burn scars from the Elberta Fire remain on the mountainside while cows graze at Elberta Valley AG southwest of Goshen on Monday, June 8, 2020. The wildfire was sparked by an undetermined cause late on Friday night and eventually grew to roughly 2,000 acres, but was 100% contained by Tuesday morning, and reportedly didn’t cause any serious damage to property.
Orem head coach Pablo Barker-Valdez tries to set pads upright before softball practice held at Orem High School on Monday, June 1, 2020. The pad, along with several spots on the dugout, were vandalized with racist and homophobic graffiti over the weekend.
Volunteer McKay Martin, a registered nurse and senior in Utah Valley University’s nursing program, takes vitals from a patient as fellow volunteer Dianne McAdams-Jones, a faculty member in UVU’s nursing program, takes notes at the Volunteer Care Clinic in Provo on Thursday, June 18, 2020. The clinic is free and often serves disadvantaged individuals and is staffed by retired and volunteer doctors, physicians assistants, nurses and pre-med and nursing students from Brigham Young University and Utah Valley University.
Trent Christensen, CEO and president of VentureCapital.org, poses for a portrait at his home in the Daybreak community of South Jordan on Friday, June 5, 2020. Christensen is looking to win Utah's 4th Congressional District seat over the position’s current incumbent, U.S. Rep. Ben McAdams.
Heather Browning, an operations associate with Zagster, unloads a fully-charged scooter to be placed along University Avenue in downtown Provo on Thursday, June 4, 2020. Electric scooters are coming back to Utah County. The three-month COVID-19 hiatus brought big changes and upgrades to the popular transportation choice in Provo along with new scooter companies in Provo, Orem and Lehi.
Denise DeVynck inspects an elderberry bush for signs of damage from pesticides at the Utah Valley Permaculture Classroom Gardens and Greenhouse in Orem on Thursday, June 25, 2020. After six years of maintaining and cultivating a self-sustaining ecosystem, DeVynck, who is the director of the Utah Valley Permaculture Classroom Gardens and Greenhouse and who has taught hundreds Utahns how to grow their own gardens, believes her “personal heaven” is threatened by pesticide drift.
Maple Mountain pitcher Cooper Littledike (10) loses his hat after delivering a pitch during a game between the Maple Mountain Golden Eagles and the Provo Bulldogs as part of the Last Chance Tournament held Thursday, June 4, 2020, at Maple Mountain High School in Spanish Fork. After the high school baseball season was cancelled due to coronavirus, the Last Chance Tournament, a single-elimination bracket, was held once restrictions loosened in lieu of a traditional playoffs.
Volunteers Ethan Stauffer, 14, and Claire Dean, 13, pour sanitizer into bottles at the SCERA Center for the Arts on Wednesday, June 3, 2020, in Orem. When the SCERA Shell Outdoor Theater opens for the summer season Friday, at-risk patrons will be handed a special gift. In a joint partnership, the SCERA and Central Bank are providing small bottles of hand sanitizer to at-risk patrons concerned about the coronavirus, according to Adam Robertson, president and CEO of SCERA.
Shae Orme, 9, of Saratoga Springs, makes her way down the slide during an open plunge at the Scera Park Pool on Tuesday, June 2, 2020, in Orem. Two weeks ago, Gov. Gary Herbert announced the change from orange (moderate-risk phase) to yellow (low-risk phase) concerning the coronavirus during his weekly news conference. The Orem Recreation Department had a plan ready to go to help residents get back to the pool, the ballparks and the fields.
Joseph Freeman poses for a portrait in his West Valley City home on Friday, June 5, 2020. Freeman was the first Black man of African descent, since the time of Joseph Smith, to receive priesthood from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. He was baptized on Saturday, Sept. 20, 1973, and received priesthood on Sunday, June 11, 1978.
Community members check out several petroglyphs on a rock during a tour of the northeastern area of West Mountain on Tuesday, June 16, 2020. This area of the mountainside is home to roughly 100 Native American petroglyphs, but the rock art is also in a popular area for shooting firearms and mining operations looking to expand, both of which threaten the petroglyphs.
MacCene Grimmett, 106, poses for a portrait at her home in Provo on Thursday, June 11, 2020. Grimmett was born on Friday, June 13, 1913, and will turn 107 on Saturday.
Isabella McMurry, 7, of Highland, excitedly eyes the cheese from her pizza slice as she prepares to take a bite at Summit Pizza Co. on Tuesday, June 23, 2020, in Lehi. Summit Pizza Co. is one of 700,000 restaurants across several hundred thousand locations on the new PopDish app, which was created by a Utah County couple.
Don Milne, founder and director of Stories Behind the Stars, poses for a portrait with mementos from his own family’s WWII history at his mother-in-law’s home in the Daybreak community of South Jordan on Friday, June 26, 2020. Stories Behind the Stars is a national nonprofit initiative started this year with the goal of telling the stories of all 400,000-plus Americans who died during World War II.
Warehouse manager Devin Killian fills a customer’s order at Duncan's Fireworks in Springville on Monday, June 29, 2020. Formerly Provo Fireworks, the company was renamed Duncan’s Fireworks to honor its founder, Duncan Neil Lillico, who died unexpectedly of a pulmonary embolism in 2018.