Echoes of the Mountain

Being a native Phoenician I have always been in awe of Camelback Mountain.  I few years back I finally started to climb it.  It all started when a client asked me to climb it with him.  Being the savvy sales person that I am I said sure.  So we climbed Echo Canyon. I love hiking  but that was a climb! Sure enough the next day I was so sore that going down steps was pure torture.  I swore I would never do it again, but twice a  year when he came back into town we would climb it again.  Everytime we went we would find some unsuspecting person to come with us so they could experience the greatest high of all….reaching the top. 

Now I am crazy mad about the climb or I may be crazy mad that I am approaching 50 and the pockets of fat are not going away so easy any more.  Now I climb on Friday mornings with some guys that race to the top trying to beat their time from the last time they hiked.  Don’t worry they wait for me at the top and always give me high fives when I get there ten minutes later.  Then we climb down. Again they race down as I slowly descend just trying not to add raspberries to my cottage cheese.  But I love it, and not just because it is a great work out and a great sense of accomplishment but because of the people. 

The people that climb that mountain are the greatest people in the world.  Everyone says hello and good morning.  They always have words of encouragement.  They are caring, giving and share the climb with you.   It must be that mystery and awe that Camelback Mountain illuminates that makes the little kids and their parents, to the avid outdoors men and women, to the older folks that I admire, so amazing. 

I thought I would just share my thoughts of this great mountain.  And would love to hear yours.  My only words of wisdom that I would share with you as you make the hike, don’t take the mountain for grant it. Drink plenty of water, take water with you, do it at your own pace not someone else’s, and it is ok if you can’t make it the top, there is  always next time. 

Stay Safe, stay hydrated and stay happy.

HIP is recycling wine corks in April

Community Project to Collect, Recycle Wine Corks in April

The average wine lover drinks 4 – 5 bottles a month. In the past, the only convenient way to recycle the cork stoppers from those bottles was the save them and make a stylish kitchen trivet. Some restaurant can go through 150 bottles of wine a week. That’s a lot of trivets, and that’s where ReCORK America comes in.
HIP – Arizona’s Hospitality Industry Professionals – is partnering with ReCORK America to collect 50,000 corks during the month of April. Those corks – nearly 350 pounds – can be turned into flooring tiles, building insulation, soil conditioner, and even sports equipment.
Natural cork is a truly sustainable resource. Cork trees are not cut down to harvest, only a portion of their bark is removed. The trees can live to be 200 years and harvested every decade.
“Cork recycling is such a simple things we as businesses can do to reduce our carbon footprint,” said HIP president MaryLynne Christman, Director of Catering and Conference Services at Sanctuary on Camelback in Paradise Valley. “And now thanks to ReCORK America, it is a very easy process.”
Participating HIP members will collect corks during April and are inviting the public to bring their corks in as well. HIP represents professionals in the hospitality, restaurant and event planning industry. A few of the businesses participating in the cork collection are:

· Phoenician Resort
· Sanctuary on Camelback/elements
· Awesome Wines
· Alliance Beverage
· Southern Wine and Spirits
· Hotel Valley Ho/Trader Vic’s
· The Boulders Resort
· The Hilton Scottsdale Resort
· Fleming’s Prime Steakhouse
· Victoria Canada Weddings · Gainey Suites Hotel
Four Seasons Resort at Troon
Pointe Squaw Peak
Wigwam Resort
Aventura Catering at Phx Conv. Center

For more information about HIP and its April cork drive, visit www.hip-az.org.

About Hospitality Industry Professionals (HIP)
HIP is a non-profit professional organization designed to promote professionals in the hospitality, restaurant and event planning industry by providing networking and educational opportunities. HIP also offers educational seminars and workshops to assist this region’s hospitality professionals develop additional skills and expertise. In just five years the hospitality association has grown to 225 members and has expanded to include Tucson.

Cork Facts

· Over 13 billion natural cork wine stoppers are produced worldwide for the wine industry each year.

· World forested areas of cork account for nearly 6 million acres.

· Portugal accounts for approximately 70 percent of worldwide cork production.

· A natural wine cork retains approximately 9 grams of CO2.

· Portocork America and Amorim Cork America (affiliated with ReCORK America), sell nearly 450 million corks in the U.S. each year. Their recycling efforts have the effect of reducing CO2 emissions by approximately 800 tons.

· It takes approximately 100,000 champagne corks or 300,000 wine corks to yield a ton of cork.

Angela Muniz – TinCan Marketing