Gail Halvorsen, also know as the "Candy Bomber", poses for a portrait in the cockpit of a Cessna 182 Turbo Skylane belonging to the Civil Air Patrol on Thursday, March 23, 2017 at the Spanish Fork-Springville Airport. Halvorsen earned his nickname by air-dropping candy to kids during the Berlin Airlift after World War II from 1948 to 1949.
I'm surprised I haven't run into camera malfunctions (knock on wood) with how much I shot during March.
The weather has gotten beautiful around Utah County (highs from the high 50's to low 70's, but with snow still capping the mountains), and it seems everyone in the valley decided to get out and be active. Spring sports such as soccer, softball, baseball, and even college football have begun ramping up, while men's college volleyball is about to enter tournament season - and sporting events haven't even been the majority that've kept myself and the rest of the photo staff busy. There's just been loads of general assignments, which truly run the gambit in terms of what they entail.
In the latter portion of the month, I was assigned to photograph the Daily Herald's picks for player of the year in high school basketball (both boys and girls) and wrestling. The newspaper decided on motion to be the theme tying together the pictures. So, I took inspiration from my friend Logan Riley who used rear-curtain sync on a player-of-the-year series this past winter, and tinkered with it a bit. The photos were a several-second exposure with a small bit of constant light throughout to make the blur of the players' motion visible with a pop of the studio lights at the end to freeze the player. After some experimenting with my friend an co-worker Dominic Valente (who did a wonderful job assisting me, and our sports editor Jared Llyod who assisted when Dominic was busy), we shined two cell-phone flashlights through colored gels to make the blur different colors - which we coordinated with each player's school colors. It was a fun shoot, and I look forward to trying something different for the next round of player of the year sports portraits.
For my Monday Close-Up this month, I decided to learn more about motocross: specifically in its most entry-level and smallest form, pit bike racing. I went to a pit bike race held at a local Honda motosports dealership and met the Millers. Randy Miller, the patriarch of the Miller crew, is an active dirt-bike racer, and he's in the process of introducing his children to the sport. The story ended up only being a two-day shoot due to other story ideas and contacts not panning out, but it was neat to learn a little about pit bikes (and I even got to ride one thanks to the Millers, which was obviously pretty sweet). The story I wrote can be read here: provodh.com/60kie.
With winter coming to an end, I'm hitting a transitional period personally and at work. Assignments are taking place outside more often (oh how I've missed some nice natural light), and I'm personally getting ready to trade in my skis (at least for the season) for whatever other summertime activity I get myself into. I've finally put my voice back into commission by joining a small choir here in Provo (for those of you that don't know, singing is a love of mine that is only narrowly bested by photojournalism for me). I also went back home to Ohio for a few short days to visit my alma mater of Ohio University and sing with the men's choir I sang with in college, the Singing Men of Ohio.
With another busy month behind me, I'm getting closer and closer to seeing what it is like to spend a full year in a community working for a newspaper.
Riggen Gibbens, 4, of Highland, tosses a toy football in the air as his mother Lacey watches among various taxidermy mounts at The Hunt Broker's booth during The Big Outdoors Expo on Saturday, March 11, 2017 at the UCCU Center on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem.
The grilled pineapple is pictured Tuesday, March 7, 2017 at Braza Grill in Lehi.
Diane Garcia poses for a portrait at Garcia's family farm along South River Bottom Road on Wednesday, March 1, 2017 in Spanish Fork. The property has been in Garcia's family since her great-great grandfather settled the land in 1852.
Samatha Buck, center, and Amaya Simp, right, both of Provo High School, shoot smoke rings to try and knock a cup off the head of Scot Gilbert, not pictured, at the IM Flash booth during SheTech Explorer Day on Friday, March 3, 2017 in the Grande Ballroom on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem.
Whitney Hjorth, 3, of Orem, spins about as she plays with her wand during a Fairy Tea session Saturday, March 4, 2017 at the Provo City Library.
Anistyn Barber, 9, center, of Provo, plays with her wand along with other kids during a Fairy Tea session Saturday, March 4, 2017 at the Provo City Library.
From right, Andrew Sanchez, Cory Burtcher and Janelle Sanchez, all of Orem, enter Cinemark Movies 8 during its last day of operations Thursday, March 16, 2017 in Provo.
Hailie Johnson, 13, of Herriman, tries to counterbalance several younger children Tuesday, March 21, 2017 at Neptune Park in Saratoga Springs. Though there's still snow atop the mountains, the 20th marked the official start of Spring.
Colton Estey, a student from Illinois Central College, begins climbing up a tree along with other students from colleges around the country during a practice for an arboricultural event Wednesday, March 15, 2017 at Wymount Field on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo. The practice was a part of the National Collegiate Landscape Competition, and an arboriculture competition was held on Friday.
Cows stand in a field along Lakeview Parkway in Provo as a controlled burn takes place in a rural area of Springville on Wednesday, March 15, 2017.
Rachael Hall hitches her bike up after the Ladies Fancy Ride as part of International Women's Day activities Wednesday, March 8, 2017 at the Provo Bicycle Collective. Hall helped organize the bicycle ride, which was one of several events held in Provo in celebration of International Women's Day.
From left, the Boldt family including Aaron, Sadie, Nancy, Lance and also David Hair pose for a portrait Thursday, March 9, 2017 in front of Joshy's House of Hope, located at 43 North 100 East in American Fork. Nancy is holding a photo of her sons Benjamin and Joshua, both of whom died of cancer. The Boldts bought the home to host meetings for Canary Garden, a center for grieving families, which is in its 14th year.
Sgt. Spencer Cannon briefs the media as the Utah County Sheriff's Office investigates the scene of two fatalities Friday, March 24, 2017 at a home at the end of S. 1800 W. in Benjamin.
Gail Halvorsen, also know as the "Candy Bomber", poses for a portrait Thursday, March 23, 2017 at the Spanish Fork-Springville Airport.
Brigham Young Cougars outfielder Keaton Kringlen (17) jumps, but can't catch the ball as it sails out of the park for a home run to put UCSB ahead 1-0 in the first inning of the second game of a double-header between Brigham Young University and the University of California Santa Barbara on Friday, March 10, 2017 at Miller Park in Provo.
Lehi right fielder Alli Butterfield (3) listens to head coach Tim Kennedy speak after the Pioneers were swept by the Red Devils 13-0 in a game between the Springville Red Devils and the Lehi Pioneers on Tuesday, March 14, 2017 at Springville High School.
Timpview midfielder Cesar Alvarez (14) heads the ball while guarded by Skyridge forward Jaxon Sorensen (2) during a game between the Skyridge Falcons and the Timpview Thunderbirds on Tuesday, March 21, 2017 at Skyridge High School in Lehi.
Brigham Young Cougars quarterback Tanner Mangum (12) fumbles the ball during the spring scrimmage Saturday, March 25, 2017 at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo.
Brigham Young Cougars opposite hitter Ben Patch (13) celebrates his scoring hit along with middle blocker Miki Jauhiainen (19) during a game between the Brigham Young Cougars and the Long Beach State 49ers on Saturday, March 25, 2017 at the Smith Fieldhouse in Provo. Patch celebrated his 1,000th kill during the game.
Springville senior Andrew Slack poses for a portrait Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at the Daily Herald in Provo. Slack plays as a center and was selected by the Daily Herald as the Utah Valley Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
American Fork senior Taylor Moeaki poses for a portrait Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at the Daily Herald in Provo. Moeaki plays as a guard and was selected by the Daily Herald as the Utah Valley Girls Basketball Player of the Year.
Payson senior Chayce Loveless poses for a portrait Wednesday, March 22, 2017 at the Daily Herald in Provo. Loveless wrestles in the 190-pound weight class and was selected by the Daily Herald as the Utah Valley Wrestler of the Year.
Randy Miller talks to his son Bode, 1, after taking a ride around the Miller's neighborhood on a pit bike Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017 in Lehi. Bode has a few years to go before he rides himself, but Randy's motto is that if you can ride a bicycle without training wheels, you can begin to learn how to ride a dirt bike.
Devin Miller watches as riders blur past him in a race during the first round of the Pit Bike Race Series on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017 at Monarch Honda in Orem. Though just 8-years old, Devin has been riding pit bikes for 3 years.
Randy Miller gives his son Devin, 8, a thumbs-up before a kid's race during the first round of the Pit Bike Race Series on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017 at Monarch Honda in Orem. Being their first official races for both Randy and his son, Devin was a bit cautious after a less-than-perfect practice run, but eagerly took the starting line after some encouragement from his father.
The Millers, including Diann, left, Breann, 5, bottom center, Randy, center left, Bode, 1, in arms, and Devin, 8, bottom right, watch a race during the first round of the Pit Bike Race Series on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017 at Monarch Honda in Orem. “We play together, and it helps the family grow closer together,” explained Diann.
Randy Miller talks with his daughter Breann, 5, during the first round of the Pit Bike Race Series on Saturday, Feb. 25, 2017 at Monarch Honda in Orem.
Bode Miller checks out a pit bike as his brother Devin takes off his gear in the garage Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017 at the Miller's home in Lehi. “A lot of the guys that stay in the industry start when they are young,” said Jeff Panelley, Digital Marketing and Events Coordinator at Monarch Honda in Orem.
Taylee Smith talks with a friend during a class field trip to the Brigham Young University Museum of Paleontology on Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 in Provo.
February started off with lots of things to photograph, and now that the month's over, I don't think that pace is going to slow down at all.
It's tournament season for several high school sports. This month I shot a whole lot of high school sports with some feature, news, and portrait assignments sprinkled in-between fun nights of watching a ball bounce around (for most of the sports). Those daily assignments are book-ended in this blog post by two projects I particularly enjoyed working on this month.
The first project was given to me by my boss. She noted when I first started at the Herald that I wanted to work on some feature-y sports stories, so when our sports reporter was going to do a story on a girl who has Down Syndrome and serves as a team manager for a local high school girls basketball team, she called me up.
The story originally came to the paper's attention when our sports editor heard that Taylee Smith, the young lady with Down Syndrome, would be scoring the first basket of the Springville High School girls basketball team's last home game. I was assigned to photograph the girls and boys games and work on features of Taylee on her special night taking the court with her friends. The next day my boss graciously cleared my schedule (which is pretty special for newspaper photographers) and I was able to spend the majority of the day hanging out with Taylee to photograph her day-to-day life to round out the feature story. I tagged along with Taylee to a school field trip, time at school, a quick basketball practice, physical therapy, and at her home. It was an absolutely wonderful feeling to have the freedom and access to spend the whole day working on a story. It reminded me of how much I enjoy being a newspaper photographer, and how lucky I am to work at a newspaper that allows me to do work like this from time to time. Taylee's story begins with the image above, and continues with the 12 pictures below (I know, it's a pretty loose edit - I'll be working on it for future use).
The second project was my monthly edition of the Herald's Monday Close-Ups. I've been interested in goalball (a Paralympic sport for the blind) for some time now, and I finally got an opportunity to delve into it for this story. For the story I shadowed Elizabeth Chantry, a legally-blind goalball player who's a sophomore at a local high school who evens plays in the school band and takes piano lessons. Elizabeth has 20/400 vision, meaning she does have sight, but 20/400 vision means that she can see at 20 feet what perfectly-sighted people can see at 400 feet. She has Dominant Optic Nerve Atrophy, which is a hereditary condition she and her younger sister inherited from her mother, who also has the condition. Elizabeth's story wraps up this blog post with the last five pictures. The written story can be read here: http://provodh.com/o61iz.
Taylee Smith checks out a dinosaur skull in the Brigham Young University Museum of Paleontology during a field trip Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 in Provo. Taylee has Down Syndrome, and is currently a senior at Springville High School.
Taylee Smith steps off the bus after her class's field trip to the Brigham Young University Museum of Paleontology as she heads back to class Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 at Springville High School.
Taylor Ehlert hugs Taylee Smith in the hallway between classes Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 at Springville High School. Taylee is near and dear to many students at school. She frequently greets her many friends in the hallways between classes.
Greg Thorpe fist-bumps Taylee Smith during her physical therapy appointment for arthritis in her knee Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 at the Springville Orthopedic and Sports Medicine Center. Taylee is active and is an avid fan of sports, especially basketball.
Taylee Smith picks up her basketball during the girls basketball team's practice Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 at Springville High School. The ball was given to her on her 18th birthday by Sarah Radford, one of her friends with Down Syndrome, and signed by her friends and family at her basketball-themed party.
Springville forward Cheyanne Brown, center, talks with senior team manager Taylee Smith, right, in the locker room before a game between the Springville Red Devils and the Maple Mountain Golden Eagles on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017 at Springville High School. Taylee has served as the team's manager throughout school, and the Red Devils thought it would be fitting to have her start the game with all of them on senior night.
Springville senior team manager Taylee Smith high-fives teammates and cheerleaders as she's announced with the Red Devils' starting line up before a game between the Springville Red Devils and the Maple Mountain Golden Eagles on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017 at Springville High School. The two teams agreed to allow Taylee to start the game and also score the first basket for Springville.
Springville senior team manager Taylee Smith takes and makes the first shot of the game between the Springville Red Devils and the Maple Mountain Golden Eagles on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017 at Springville High School. Maple Mountain then was allowed to score two points uncontested to even the score.
Springville senior team managers Taylee Smith, right, and Brittany Simpson hug after a game between the Springville Red Devils and the Maple Mountain Golden Eagles on Tuesday, Feb. 14, 2017 at Springville High School. Both are seniors at their last regular-season basketball game together, and the duo have been close friends since the 7th grade.
Video of Taylee was picked up by ESPN after the game and went viral, accumulating over a million views by the next afternoon. While the Springville high school girls basketball team practices in the gym Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017, Tammy Smith checks out several videos for the first time that the media posted of her daughter Taylee's opening shot from the previous day's game.
Taylee Smith and her siblings shoot basketballs around in the driveway of their family's home Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 in Springville.
Taylee Smith prepares to shoot a basketball in the driveway of her family's home Wednesday, Feb. 15, 2017 in Springville.
Carolene Cook, who teaches Family and Consumer Science, waits along with the youths in her class for lunch time during a class Thursday, Feb. 2, 2017 at Slate Canyon Youth Center in Provo.
Members of Maple Mountain High School's military drill team perform during the 4A/5A State Drill Team Finals on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017 at the UCCU Center in Orem.
Members of Corner Canyon High School's military drill team get ready before taking the stage during the 4A/5A State Drill Team Finals on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017 at the UCCU Center in Orem.
Members of Pleasant Grove High School's military drill team prepare to perform during the 4A/5A State Drill Team Finals on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017 at the UCCU Center in Orem.
Members of Pleasant Grove High School's military drill team perform during the 4A/5A State Drill Team Finals on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017 at the UCCU Center in Orem.
Members of Skyridge High School's military drill team peek out from behind the curtains as another drill team performs during the 4A/5A State Drill Team Finals on Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017 at the UCCU Center in Orem.
Skyridge's Cameron Schenk sustains a hold on Cyprus' Nick Korhonen during the 5A and 4A Utah State Wrestling Tournaments on Wednesday, Feb. 8, 2017 at the UCCU Center on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem.
Uintah's Gavin Ayotte stands backstage before the 5A and 4A Utah State Wrestling Finals on Thursday, Feb. 9, 2017 at the UCCU Center on the campus of Utah Valley University in Orem.
Tod Spencer, owner Leon Larsen's son, searches for a movie disc in the back of the store for a customer at Larsen Video on Saturday, Feb. 18, 2017 in Springville. Leon originally opened his video store in 1987 and it employed all of his children at one point in their lives. Now, only Tod stops by to help from time to time.
A side of mashed potatoes with cheese and bacon is pictured Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2017 at Chubby's Neighborhood Cafe, located at 91 Commerce Dr. in Saratoga Springs.
Q Sciences CEO Marc Wilson poses for a portrait Thursday, Feb. 23, 2017 at the Q Sciences offices in Pleasant Grove.
Pleasant Grove guard Casey Brown (3) looks to pass while guarded by Lone Peak defenders during a game between the Lone Peak Knights and the Pleasant Grove Vikings on Friday, Feb. 17, 2017 at Lone Peak High School in Highland.
Brigham Young Cougars forward Eric Mika (12) lays the ball up while guarded by St. Mary's Gaels center Jock Landale (34) during a game between the Brigham Young Cougars and the Saint Mary's Gaels on Saturday, Feb. 18, 2017 at the Marriott Center in Provo.
Lone Peak's Emma Clark (35) reacts just after the Lone Peak Knights were defeated by the Copper Hills Grizzlies 56-48 in the 5A state girls basketball quarterfinals Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2017 at Salt Lake Community College in Taylorsville.
Pleasant Grove guard Sadie Nixon (33) is fouled on her shot by Sky View center Hunter Krebs (42) during a game between the Pleasant Grove Vikings and the Sky View Bobcats in the 5A state girls basketball quarterfinals Wednesday, Feb. 22, 2017 at Salt Lake Community College in Taylorsville.
American Fork guard Savana Stephenson (3) looks towards her teammates on the bench as a timeout is called while American Fork leads Coppers Hills 48-45 with 1.1 seconds to go during a game between the American Fork Cavemen and the Copper Hills Grizzlies in the 5A state girls basketball semifinals Friday, Feb. 24, 2017 at Salt Lake Community College in Taylorsville. The Cavemen defeated the Grizzlies to advance to the 5A state finals.
Jennifer Boulton hugs her daughter Madelyn Boulton after Timpview fell to Skyline 52-45 in the 4A state girls basketball semifinals Friday, Feb. 24, 2017 at Salt Lake Community College in Taylorsville.
Elizabeth Chantry feels the goal to get into the right position as she prepares for a shootout during a community goalball tournament Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017 at the Openshaw Education Center in Salt Lake City. Goalball is a Paralympic sport for the blind that relies heavily on players' sense of hearing. Elizabeth has Dominant Optic Nerve Atrophy, which leaves her legally blind.
Elizabeth Chantry reads a book after finishing a math worksheet during class Friday, Jan. 27, 2017 at Timpanogos High School in Orem. Elizabeth has approximately 20/400 vision (anything less than 20/200 is considered legally blind), but she can read if the words are big enough and close enough.
Elizabeth also spends some of her free time teaching younger and less experienced players how to play goalball. Elizabeth Chantry helps Thacia Bingham get into the proper blocking position during a youth goalball practice Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2017 at Bonneville Elementary School in Orem.
Elizabeth Chantry blocks the ball as her mother and sister look on during goalball practice Saturday, Jan. 21, 2017 at the Northwest Community Center in Salt Lake City.
Elizabeth Chantry hugs Madelyn Stafford after their team won a match during a community goalball tournament Saturday, Feb. 4, 2017 at the Openshaw Education Center in Salt Lake City.
Annette Roug, left, a Wildlife Veterinarian for the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources, prepares to take a blood sample from a bighorn sheep Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017 in Cedar Hills. The Utah Division of Wildlife Resources captured bighorn sheep and mountain goats, brought them to the staging area to record information about them, then released them back into the wild.
The new year started off sort of slow, but January held a few neat-o gems.
Most notably, I got to cover a little bit of the Sundance Film Festival in Park City. Sundance isn't really the most photogenic event to cover (lots of people walking along Main Street, a few red-carpet events), but it was exciting to be there. Celebrities mix in with the locals (who also incidentally look famous because they're from Park City - i.e. wealthy and stylish). I also think I saw Jason Segel, who shouted, "It's that guy!" (referring to me as some media guy jokingly), but I can't be entirely sure because we were both packed in crowds moving in opposite directions. Loads of movies premiered throughout the 10-day festival, and I was lucky and got to photograph the premiere of "The Little Hours", which allowed me to be feet away from Dave Franco, Nick Offerman, Aubrey Plaza and other famous folks from the movie (although John C. Reilly didn't show, which made me pretty sad). It was thrilling to be around the buzz of Hollywood for a few evenings and get a peek into the environment that surrounds motion-picture celebrities.
I also spent some time working on a story about Amberley Snyder, a professional barrel racer who is paralyzed from the waist down from a car accident when she was 18. I found Amberley through the Utah State office of Rehabilitation, but she's no newcomer to media stories. She was thoughtful and allowed me to photograph her while she practiced, competed, and chilled at home. The last six images in this blog post are from that story, and the full written story I wrote can be seen here: http://www.heraldextra.com/news/local/south/elk-ridge/barrel-racer-amberley-snyder-overcomes-paralysis-to-earn-pro-card/article_7d52beed-f749-57fb-9f0f-f34e8b6513be.html?utm_source=twitter&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=social_isaac_hale.
Otherwise January was a pretty normal month in Utah County. Though many assignments are moving inside due to the cold, it's nice to see how the community transitions through the seasons.
Ada Bates, 11, of Provo, keeps herself warm with her candle as she makes her way towards the Wilkinson Student Center during the Martin Luther King Jr. Walk of Life on Monday, Jan. 16, 2017 on the campus of Brigham Young University in Provo.
Riders warm up their horses in the large arena as the dirt is tilled at the other end of the arena between heats during the Dash for Cash on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2017 at the Spanish Fork Fairgrounds.
Carter Papke, 10, of Orem, narrowly misses hitting an inflateable ball as he and his sister Anya, 8, play pass in the lazy river during the Polar Plunge on Friday, Jan. 7, 2017 hosted by Special Olympics Utah at Seven Peaks Waterpark in Provo.
A photo illustration that ran with a story about fake news (starring Dominic Valente as my wonderful model).
Hayden Webb poses for a portrait Thursday, Jan. 5, 2017 at Karl Maeser Preparatory Academy in Lindon. A junior at Maeser Prep, Webb created a Twitter account that posts positive anonymous Tweets that complement students.
Calvin Thomas, 8, of Park City, plays through a level of Rez Infinite at Embodied Media's virtual reality demonstration during the Sundance Film Festival on Friday, Jan. 20, 2017 in Park City.
Daniella Nogura, 5, stays away from the action during a game of dodgeball Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017 at the Provo Clubhouse of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Utah County.
Alia Herrod, of Provo, helps hand out yard signs during the ground-breaking ceremony for the Utah Military Academy's Valdez-Peterson Campus on Friday, Jan. 27, 2017 in the parking lot of the American Fork UTA train station. The campus will be located at the intersection of Pioneer Crossing and South Center Street in Lehi.
Timpanogos cheerleaders look on as Timpanogos' Brett Dawson grapples with Bountiful's Austin Hayes-Carter during the semifinals of the UHSAA 4A State Dual Wresting Tournament on Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017 at Alta High School in Sandy.
Payson's Brock Loveless walks off the mat as Wasatch's Stockton O'Brien is declared the winner during the finals of the UHSAA 4A State Dual Wresting Tournament on Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017 at Alta High School in Sandy.
Brigham Young Cougars guard Nick Emery (4) lays the ball up while guarded by Pacific Tigers forward Ilias Theodorou (33)during a game between the University of the Pacific Tigers and the Brigham Young University Cougars on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2017 at the Marriott Center in Provo.
Pacific Tigers guard K.J. Smith (30) holds his hands on his head as the Tigers trail the Cougars by more than 20 points late in the fourth quarter during a game between the University of the Pacific Tigers and the Brigham Young University Cougars on Saturday, Jan. 7, 2017 at the Marriott Center in Provo.
Lone Peak forward Braden Bromley, right, celebrates with guard Garrett Frampton, left, after Bromley hit a 3-pointer during a game between the Lone Peak Knights and the American Fork Cavemen on Friday, Jan. 13, 2017 at Lone Peak High School in Highland. Lone Peak defeated American Fork 74-61.
Amberley Snyder rounds a barrel atop her horse named Legacy, also known as French Open, during the Dash for Cash barrel races Saturday, Jan. 7, 2017 at the Spanish Fork fairgrounds.
Amberley Snyder uses her standing frame to utilize her leg muscles and pump blood through them as she talks with her family at her home Thursday, Jan. 5, 2017 in Elk Ridge. On Jan. 10, 2010, Snyder was driving on her way to the Denver Stock and Rodeo show when she looked down to check her map and drifted out of her lane. She then looked up, overcorrected and slid off the road: ejecting her from the vehicle and into a metal pole. The crash fractured her spine and left her without feeling in her legs.
Amberley Snyder gets into her rugged and motorized wheelchair as her friend Emmy Peterson readies a snow blower on a snowy afternoon at Snyder's home Thursday, Jan. 5, 2017 in Elk Ridge.
Amberley Snyder pets her dog Ellie Mae as she and her sister Autumn prepare horses to ride for practice Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017 at the Spanish Fork Fairgrounds.
Cory Snyder lifts his daughter Amberley up onto the saddle of her horse named Legacy, also known as French Open, before competing in the Dash for Cash barrel races Friday, Jan. 7, 2017 at the Spanish Fork Fairgrounds.
Amberley Snyder practices her barrel-racing routine on her horse named Legacy, also known as French Open, on Tuesday, Jan. 3, 2017 at the Spanish Fork Fairgrounds.
