The Bobby Sheldon car, now on loan to the auto museum from the University of Alaska Museum of the North, was built in 1905 by Sheldon.
He built the car out of a two-cycle boat engine and various other parts
he scrounged in Skagway in 1905. Since he had never seen a car before, he had to work off magazine drawings. The feat earned him a place in “Ripley’s Believe it or Not.”
He gave the car to the University of Alaska in the 1930s, and it was on display at the museum for many decades.
Sheldon went on to a long career in transportation, business and politics in Alaska. Among his other accomplishments, he was the first person to drive from Fairbanks to Valdez.
Members of the Sheldon family plan to attend the reception, along with a variety of other folks. Admission to the museum, located on the grounds of the Wedgewood Resort, is $8. It is open until 10 p.m.
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THE FIRST-PLACE DUCK DID NOT win the big cash this year.
As often happens, not all of the tickets in the Golden Days Rubber Duckie race were sold.
Duck No. 4139 crossed the finish line first Saturday afternoon, but only the $5 ticket for that duck had been sold, earning the buyer $5,000.
The $10,000 winner then becomes the second-place duck, which was No. 2011.
Of the winning ducks, the only $10 ticket that went unsold was for the first-place duck.
The only $5 ticket that went unsold was No. 5624.
A complete list of the winners is on page B2 of the News-Miner today.
Non-cash prizes can be picked up at the Chamber of Commerce office starting Wednesday. Cash prizes will be available Aug. 2.
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ALYESKA PLANS AN IMMEDIATE REVIEW of its maintenance risks and procedures for the trans-Alaska oil pipeline, Sen. Lisa Murkowski said Monday.
Three years ago, then-Gov. Sarah Palin said the state would undertake a comprehensive “risk assessment” of the oil infrastructure in the state to identify the greatest risks of failure on the pipeline and its facilities.
That assessment did not take place, in part because the industry didn’t want to reveal what it considered private information and because Palin promised far more than the state could deliver for the money.
A far more limited state review of where state oversight is lacking and what factors have caused spills in the past is nearly finished. The state could accomplish some of what Palin promised by passing a law requiring the oil companies to undertake periodic risk assessments.
CNN had a report Monday night raising questions about safety and the recent Pump Station No. 9 spill on the pipeline.
CNN said in its report, quoting Michigan Rep. Bart Stupak, that the pump station was not manned at the time of the spill and no one noticed the accident.
Alyeska Pipeline Service Co. spokeswoman Michelle Egan disputed that comment.
She said on that day there were about 40 people at the pump station because of a maintenance project. During other times there was security at the station 24 hours a day and operations personnel during the day.
Dermot Cole can be reached at cole@newsminer.com or 459-7530.
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