Young Volunteers Brave Rain, Help Clear Soldier Hollow Olympics Venue
Salt Lake Tribune 6Jun99 C8
By Karl Cates: Salt Lake Tribune

MOUNT TIMPANOGOS, UTAH: Six Chartered busses from the Edgemont Ward in Provo, off-loaded 250 kids for a service project at Soldier Hollow. The group was sent to ready the landscape for the location of the Olympic biathlon and cross-country events in 2002.

The site, situated in the shadows of Mount Timpanogos, stands out by itself among Utah's other Olympic venues for its backcountry charm, which still persists despite the noisy preparations. Winding primitive roads have been cut to follow the topography, and the sound of heavy equipment competes daily with forest wildlife sounds. However, the bowl-shaped Soldier Hollow remains a mostly untrammeled and park-like respite.

Some volunteers took out generations-old fencing that once divided the land for grazing. Others cleared trails or installed plastic protectors around new seedlings planted several weeks ago but still vulnerable to foraging deer.

The Salt Lake Organizing Committee has asked for and eagerly seized upon any opportunity to harness any army of volunteers, as it always does when any such organizations come forward. This group was offered a list of 8 or 10 things to choose from.

"I'd have to put pencil to paper to figure out the value, but it'd be literally thousands of dollars if we were paying for this," said SLOC Project Manager, Kevin Jardine.