A new Great River Energy subsidiary now operates the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC) near the Minnesota Twins baseball stadium in downtown Minneapolis. Hennepin County owns the HERC, which has operated since 1989.
Whether it’s selling power plant ash to be used in concrete production or operating other organizations’ facilities for a fee, Great River Energy continues to look for opportunities to generate revenue to help offset costs for its member-owner cooperatives.
“Every dollar we save or generate goes back to our cooperative members – we always keep that in mind with everything we do,” said Tim Steinbeck, CEO of GRE HERC Services, LLC, a new Great River Energy subsidiary now operating a Minneapolis waste-to-energy plant.
GRE HERC Services, LLC, assumed operations of the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC) near the Minnesota Twins baseball stadium in downtown Minneapolis on March 3. Hennepin County owns the HERC, which has operated since 1989.
“We bring valuable expertise and insight into the waste-to-energy industry after operating our Elk River waste-to-energy facility for almost 30 years. For the last two years, we also managed the Newport waste processing plant for the Ramsey/Washington Recycling and Energy Board,” said Steinbeck. “We’ve earned a reputation as an organization that operates facilities with excellence.”
The HERC is a critical part of Hennepin County’s waste management plan by converting energy from waste into electricity for the local grid and steam that is used to heat nearby buildings. Facilities like HERC greatly reduce the amount of waste that needs to be landfilled. Almost all of the waste burned at the HERC comes from Minneapolis and the surrounding suburbs – with more than 11,000 tons of scrap metal recovered and recycled each year.
@greenharvard about 24 days 20 hours ago Join us at 4pm Monday October 22 at the Cabot Science Library for the opening event for, Warming Warning, a stunning new public climate art sculpture on view at the Science Center
@greenharvard about 4 months 8 hours 53 minutes ago In an effort to reduce the number of cars on the road, Harvard's Parking Monitors are now using pedal power to patrol campus 🚲
When one looks back on the defensive backfield for the Green Bay Packers for a number of years in the 1960s, they would have seen three players who were primarily offensive players in college.
Cornerbacks Herb Adderley and Bob Jeter were running backs at Michigan State and Iowa respectively, while safety Willie Wood was a quarterback at USC.
It was truly amazing that the coaching staff was able to see that their talents would help the Packers a lot more on the defensive side of the ball.
When it was all said and done, the three defensive backs combined for 115 interceptions with the Packers, with 11 of them run back for touchdowns.
Between Adderley, Jeter and Wood, the three were named first team All-Pro 10 times and went to 15 Pro Bowls.
Wood was not drafted at all in 1960 and he sent out postcards to teams asking for a tryout. Luckily the Packers brought him in and No. 24 made the team.
One of the first trades that Vince Lombardi made in 1959 was to bring Tunnell over to the Packers from the New York Giants, where Lombardi had been an assistant coach from 1954 though 1958.
Wood sat on the bench in 1960, but by 1961 was a starter. Wood had five interceptions that season for the Packers, plus led the NFL in punt returns with a 16.1 average and two touchdowns.
It was the start of a great career for Wood with the Packers, as he ended up with 48 career interceptions (two for touchdowns), plus was the primary punt returner for the team as well.
Wood was named first-team All-Pro five times and was also named to eight Pro Bowls. No. 24 was also named to the NFL All-Decade team for the 1960s.
Wood was finally inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1989, after being a finalist nine times prior to that.
Sounds a lot like Jerry Kramer, who was also a finalist nine times from 1974 through 1987. Like Wood, Kramer certainly has earned a bust in Canton with his play on the football field. Unlike Wood, Kramer has not yet been enshrined for some puzzling reason.
In one room, Lombardi would run the offensive meeting and he would do his fair share of yelling and screaming as he kept running the film over and over again pointing out the flaws of a given play.
While this was going on, Kramer would often hear laughter coming from the room where the defense was meeting with assistant coach Phil Bengtson.
Kramer talked about a conversation he had with linebacker Ray Nitschke about the differences between the two meetings.
“I told Ray that I wish you guys could change rooms with us one day and let Lombardi chew your ass,” Kramer said. “Ray said, ‘We don’t have anything like that, but I hate the look I get from Wood after I miss a tackle on film. Willie has mean eyes. If you miss a tackle, Willie will look at you with really mean eyes.’
“Willie was a tremendous competitor,” Kramer said. “Wood was a real knowledgeable ball player. Because he was a quarterback at USC, he was much more aware of the offensive patterns that would be coming at him as a safety.
“I think it’s a similar situation with Randall Cobb today. Randall is a sensational receiver and I think a large part of that was because he was a quarterback at Kentucky for awhile. He understands the mind of a quarterback. So did Willie.
“So Willie was very knowledgeable player, plus he hit you with every ounce of energy he had. He could really bring it. Willie was known for really whaling guys. And because he was such a good athlete, he was always in the proper position at the proper speed to really deliver a blow.
“Willie was just a wonderful ball player. He would surprise some people because he wasn’t that big (5’10”, 190 pounds). But he had great physical ability, as he could dunk a football over the crossbar of the goal post.”
Kramer then talked about the throwing contests that Wood and Nitschke would have, as they both had played quarterback at some point in their football careers.
“Willie and Ray would get in a passing contest,” Kramer said. “They would both throw the ball in the 80-yard neighborhood. Wood would throw it maybe 80 and Nitschke would throw it around 85 yards. Both had incredible arms.”
Wood played on five NFL title teams with the Packers, including the first two Super Bowl winners. It was Wood who made the game-changing play in Super Bowl I, when the Packers were clinging to a 14-10 lead over the Kansas City Chiefs early in the third quarter.
Wood picked off an errant Len Dawson pass and went 50 yards downfield to set up a five-yard touchdown run by Elijah Pitts, as the Packers went on to win by a very comfortable 35-10 margin to win the very first Super Bowl.
By: greenb02 | Tags: adjustments, aging, athletic performance, chiropractic, flexibility, Health, joint, lifestyle, mobility, muscle, range of motion, stretch, wellness | Comments: 0 | January 10th, 2017
With all this new snow, out comes the shovel and the added muscle soreness that comes with it. A typical (but dreaded) chore like shoveling snow is a normal, everyday reminder of your mobility and range of motion or lack thereof. For many of us, the words “mobility” and “range of motion” are associated with aging; we think of limitations in these areas as being exclusively assigned to older individuals, maybe after a surgery or two, or just in the combination of aging more and exercising less.
The truth is that mobility and range of motion are relevant to all of us–young, old and in between. Our bodies are designed to move fluidly and perform basic functions with ease and strength. Each muscle and joint work together to accomplish basic movements within our range of motion. The ability to move freely and with ease is called mobility. Mobility is not to be confused with flexibility; people who can bend easily can’t necessarily perform simple tasks with balance, coordination and strength.
Mobility’s importance seems obvious; you want to be able to perform duties well and without pain or discomfort. However, the lessening of mobility isn’t always obvious and it is something you always want to be aware of in order to prevent injury. If you are performing basic motions (bending, lifting, reaching or stepping) and you feel pain, tightness, or numbness, you have a lack of mobility in those areas. If your range of motion is limited in particular areas, you set yourself up for injury, which in turn will lessen your mobility even more.
Injury occurs in every day tasks when the body has to compensate for a region that has lessened mobility. For instance, if you bend to pick something up and you don’t have the proper mobility in your lower body joints, you may severely injure your lower back which has attempted to compensate for your poor range of motion in the lower body. To be able to squat and lift an object is a seemingly simple motion, but oftentimes, if the body is not trained in this exercise, injury will occur when you least expect it.
It is clear that maintaining mobility and increasing range of motion is always a good idea when it comes to enhancing quality of life and preventing injury. Here’s how you can increase your mobility in order to prevent injury and increase wellness:
Get adjusted. One of the main functions of chiropractic adjustments is to restore mobility to the joint. Even if a joint seems to be functioning normally, it is always a good idea to have me evaluate it routinely. Adjustments work as a preventative measure as well in order to keep your body moving like it should.
Foam roll. Use the foam rollers at the gym or purchase your own for home use on tight spots. This does not replace the need for chiropractic care but it will definitely help you maintain mobility once it is achieved or to help lessen any discomfort. Instead of rolling rapidly over the same spot, position the foam roller in the area of discomfort and breathe deeply into the muscle. Then, flex the muscle slowly and gradually release it. Repeat this exercise regularly (preferably daily) to manage your mobility.
Exercise. There are specific exercises that I recommend for maintaining and increasing mobility. They are often basic, slow or balancing motions that can help not only elongate the muscle (flexibility) but also to increase the motion of the joint. These motions vary per region of the body, so ask me in your next visit (or schedule a consultation!) to discuss specific exercises.
These exercises include but aren’t limited to: holding the squat position in a wall-sit, performing shoulder rotations with a resistance band, and overhead reaches for thoracic mobility.
Stretch. Stretching is helpful for increasing mobility but is definitely not my first recommendation, especially without consulting with me first. If the area is inflamed, injured or extremely stiff, you do not want to stretch it immediately. Stretching is more of a preventative exercise for areas of your body that feel slightly sore from working out or in areas that I have given you specific stretches for. This is because stretching just elongates the muscle and doesn’t necessarily add mobility to the joint, especially if you are in need of an adjustment or strengthening exercises for that area.
Achieving optimal mobility is key for athletic performance, aging properly and even just daily functionality. If you’re curious about chiropractic or are a current patient that would like some mobility exercises and tips tailored to your condition, schedule an appointment at Lifestyle Chiropractic by calling (920) 499-3333.