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Members of the Kee baseball team celebrate the presentation of their State Qualifier banner being held up by Kee baseball head coach Jim Mauss after the Hawks won their Class 1A Substate 2 championship game over Northwood-Kensett Tuesday, July 20 at Charles City High School. The baseball Hawks hammered away for an eight-run second inning that proved to be the catalyst for their 11-0 mercy-rule victory in five innings that shines on the scoreboard in the background of the above photo, earning Kee baseball its first qualification for the State Baseball Tournament in 10 seasons, when the Hawks finished as the Class 1A State Tournament runner-up to complete their 2011 season. This year’s Substate 2 Championship earned the Hawks a number-four seed in the Class 1A State Tournament eight-team pairings and a Monday, July 26 first-round date with fifth-seeded New London at Merchants Park in Carroll.

Coronation of the 2021 Allamakee County Fair Queen took place Tuesday, July 20 at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon, kicking off the 168th Allamakee County Fair. The two area young ladies pictured in the photo above were each vying for this year’s Fair Queen crown, which was bestowed upon Madelyn Moser (right), daughter of Lee and Rachel Moser of Waukon. Morgan Stortz (left), daughter of Brian and Tammy Stortz of Waukon, was crowned Allamakee County Fair Princess, and both served as the Allamakee County Fair Royalty Team throughout this year’s fair. Moser will now advance on to represent Allamakee County in the 2021 Iowa State Fair Queen competition, with that coronation being held August 14 in Des Moines. Photo courtesy of Diana Davidson of Diana Coral Photography. Additional photos and information from the 2021 Allamakee County Fair will be published in future editions of The Standard.
 

by Joe Moses

A town hall meeting with Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand was held Friday, July 23 in the Waukon City Park as part of Sand’s annual 99-County tour, an effort to hear from Iowans in each county across the state. Sand provided a brief introduction discussing the format of the meeting, explaining that the meeting’s focus would primarily be on questions from those in attendance and, time permitting, an update from his office relating to a variety of matters at the State level.

Allamakee County Democrats co-chairperson Karen Pratte questioned Sand about Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds and her recent decision to have Iowa State Patrol officers assist with border operations at the United States and Mexico border in Texas. She specifically discussed concerns relating to expenses associated with this decision and whether Iowa tax payers will be responsible for paying for this expense.

Bon Jovi Tribute Band to headline Friday's grandstand; Variety of activities and events planned

After having to be held in modified form last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Allamakee County Fair is expected to return in full force for its 168th year this week, July 21-25 at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds in Waukon. A wide variety of entertainment is in place to headline this year’s fair at the grandstand, along with a great deal of other activities for everyone to enjoy each and every day throughout the five-day event.

GRANDSTAND STAR POWER AND HORSE POWER

Kicking off this year’s grandstand entertainment line-up Wednesday, July 21 at 7 p.m. will be a Truck and Tractor Pull featuring local trucks and tractors as well as some powered-up regional competitors in a variety of high-revving classes. Free admission is being granted to all local military veterans for that truck and tractor pull event.

State of Iowa Auditor Rob Sand will be hosting a town hall meeting for Allamakee County residents this Friday, July 23 in Waukon. Auditor Sand will be in the Waukon City Park, located at 1240 Rossville Road, at the Allamakee Freedom Rock location from 4-5 p.m.

Those attending are invited to bring a lawn chair. Auditor Sand will talk about what his State Auditor office has been up to and will also offer time for a question and answer (Q&A) session.

The 14th annual North Iowa Tractor Ride will be making its way through the tri-state area during the three-day event this week, Thursday, July 22 through Saturday, July 24. Approximately 200 vintage and restored tractors will be traveling two different day-routes along some of Allamakee County’s roadways, crossing over just a bit into Wisconsin and Minnesota.

Those tractors and their drivers and support crews will begin arriving at Waukon High School Thursday afternoon, July 22 in preparation to begin their ride routes each of the following two days from that parking lot location, arriving back there those same evenings.

July 20 coronation event and Youth Showcase will kick off the 168th Allamakee County Fair

Two Allamakee County young ladies are vying for the title of 2021 Allamakee County Fair Queen. Those two candidates for this year's crown include Madelyn Moser and Morgan Stortz, both of them being students at Waukon High School this past school year.

The crown of Allamakee County Fair Queen and all the honors and responsibilities that accompany it will be bestowed upon one of those two candidates Tuesday evening, July 20 during the Allamakee County Fair Queen Coronation event being held at the Allamakee County Fairgrounds Pavilion in Waukon to kick off the 168th Allamakee County Fair.

The 14th annual North Iowa Tractor Ride presented by Klapperich Farm Systems and hosted by radio stations 98.7 KISS Country, 103.7 The Fox and 95.1 The Bull will be making its way through the tri-state area during the three-day event late next week, Thursday, July 22 through Saturday, July 24.

Approximately 200 vintage and restored tractors will be traveling two different day-routes along some of Allamakee County’s roadways, crossing over just a bit into Wisconsin and Minnesota along the way.

Those tractors and their drivers and support crews will begin arriving at the Waukon High School parking lot Thursday afternoon, July 22 to get signed in and participate in an initial driver safety meeting and evening meal. Those tractors will then begin their ride routes each of the following two days from that parking lot location, arriving back there those same evenings after their ride route is complete for each day.

The Transportation Policy Board for Upper Explorerland Regional Planning Commission (UERPC)/Regional Planning Affiliation 1 (RPA-1) will hold a public hearing at its upcoming meeting to receive comments on the draft RPA-1 Transportation Improvement Program (TIP) for federal fiscal years (FFY) 2022-2025. The meeting will take place Wednesday, July 21 at 11 a.m. at UERPC’s offices in Postville, 134 West Greene Street.

The RPA-1 TIP document identifies the multimodal transportation projects - street, transit, highway, bridge, planning, and pedestrian and bicycle facilities - on which State and Federal funding will be used over the next four years within Allamakee, Clayton, Fayette, Howard and Winneshiek Counties.

by Lissa Blake

Many visitors to Yellow River State Forest are less than happy about the recent reassignment of longtime Park Ranger Rylan Retallick to the Volga River Recreation Area. The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (DNR) recently announced Retallick’s time would be redistributed, with him spending 75 percent of his time at Volga and only 25 percent at Yellow River. Local residents, including members of the Friends of Yellow River State Forest (YRSF), have expressed concerns about the future safety of Yellow River State Forest users in light of the reassignment. The Allamakee County Board of Supervisors and Allamakee County Sheriff Clark Mellick also penned separate letters to the Iowa DNR, questioning the decision to cut Retallick’s hours at Yellow River State Forest.

SAFETY FIRST