Here we are with a brand new year ahead of us. Where did 2005 go? Let’s start by thanking our
out-going president Dennis for the terrific job that he did, especially since he moved to Lakewood
and had to drive back and forth all the way to Boulder. We are especially happy that he has
volunteered to stay on in the capacity of field trip coordinator. We use the word coordinator
advisedly, because we are looking for volunteers to plan and lead field trips, and the chairman’s job
then is to oversee these activities.

We also would like to thank our newsletter producer Barry Knapp for the excellent monthly
reports he has been putting out month after month. Due to the pressure of his work, however,
from now on we will be going with a newsletter every other month only, and we will try to send
out a letter-sheet in the off-months with a calendar of events and notification of important
dates and announcements. We strongly recommend that every member who is able to
receive newsletters by e-mail please notify Gerry Naugle. This not only saves the club postage, but
guarantees early distribution.

Remember that this is your club, and when you join we expect you to participate, because that is
where you will enjoy the greatest benefits of membership. We were especially gratified by the
turnout of so many members who made our 2005 gem and mineral show the great success that it
was.

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Flatirons Mineral Club Show
Alex Cook, Show Chairman

After two days of horrendous winds followed by two days of sub-zero temperatures, the weather gods chose to smile upon the Flatirons Mineral club,
giving us three delightful days of relatively balmy sunshine to launch our show at the new location at the Boulder County fairgrounds in Longmont December 9-11. In spite of losing all our signs which were blown away by the high winds and ended up, we think, in Kansas, we still were able to
achieve an attendance of close to 750 which not too far off from last year at the Elks Lodge. We think some of our signs ended up in Kansas because we did have some visitors from there, although we don’t know it was because they read our signs.

The new location was quite roomy, and we were able to fit ten dealers and quite a few display cases in the building. Our condolences go out to Jim Marburger of JJ&L Rocks and minerals, who took a nasty fall and broke some vertebrae before the show, and so was unable to be present. We pray for his recovery. We were able to give away numerous door prizes, thanks to contributions by the dealers and other donors. The grand prize of an
amethyst dome was won by Terry Kavanagh of Longmont, the second prize of trilobites by Christine Bayer of Berthoud, and the third prize of ammonites by Mark Movra of Broomfield. Of course the winners of the grand prizes did not have to be present to win.

Many excellent displays were presented by members of the club and others, some of which were outstanding, but unfortunately only one was able to win first place by vote of the public, and that was the display by Cory Olin, who showed a number of fossils and minerals that he had personally collected. First place for the junior division was a three-way tie between Joel Hyde, Alan Reppy and Cara Keyser. Congratulations to all of the winners.

We would like to thank all the members of the club and the show committee who worked so hard to put the show over. We could not have had the success we had without them.

Flatirons Facets is published monthly by The Flatirons Mineral Club, PO Box 3331, Boulder, CO 80307-3331. The
Flatirons Mineral Club is a non-profit organization, established March 9, 1957, and dedicated to developing and
maintaining interest in all aspects of earth science and associated hobbies. The club meets the second Thursday of each
month at 7:00 PM. We meet at The Senior Center, Arapahoe Avenue, Boulder, CO. Guests and visitors are welcome.
Membership dues are $15.00 per year (beginning October of each calendar year). People interested in membership can
contact the club either by writing to the above address or by attending one of the meetings. Web Site: http://bcn.boulder.co.us/community/fmc

The next meeting of the show committee will be at the home of the Hursts January 10 at 7:15 p.m. at 2863 Nebrina Pl, Boulder. Call John or Jeanne at 303-443-7885 for directions to their house. We will be having a critique of the 2005 show and start plans for the 2006 show which is tentatively scheduled for December 8-10 at the same location, under the leadership of our new show chairman Ray Gilbert. We welcome anyone who wishes to attend.
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Club Programs for January, February
West Boulder Senior Center, 9th & Arapahoe

 
For the January program we have lined up Ray Horton to discuss and show materials from Mt. St. Helens. Don’t miss it! The February program is still not yet firmed up, but we are hoping to be able to have a program on meteorites. Those who subscribe to the e-version of the newsletter will receive an update before the February meeting.

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Jr. Geologists to Grow Crystals in January

January’s Jr. Geologist meeting will be on Saturday, January 7 from 1 to 3 p.m. at Dennis Gertenbach’s house. By popular request, we will be preparing solutions to grow crystals. Each participant will be able to take home their solutions to grow crystals at home over the next several weeks. If you have them, please bring safety glasses and plastic containers with lids to take home your solutions. Extra glasses and containers will be available, if you don’t have them. Contact Dennis if you are planning to come.

At last month’s show, several Jr. Geologists completed the requirements for several badges we have been working on during the past few months. By putting together a display for the show, Cara Keyser, Stefan Codrescu, Joel and Andrew Hyde have completed the requirements for the Showmanship badge. In addition, Andrew, Joel, and Stefan have completed their requirements for the Fossil badge.

In February, the Jr. Geologists will begin working on the Earth Resources badge.

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Denver Gem & Mineral Guild Annual Jewelry, Gem & Mineral Show

Lakeside Center, I-70 at Harlan
Jan 13-15, 2006

Friday: 10 a.m. – 9 p.m.
Saturday: 10 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Sunday: 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Free Admission!  Lapidary supplies, Crystals and Fossils, Unique Jewelry, Gem & Mineral Dealers; Gem, Mineral, and Fossil Exhibits, Gem Cutting Demonstrations. Grab bag sales proceeds applied to scholarship at Colorado School of Mines.

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Obituary

Derek Firth of the Grand Junction club and a past active officer/member of the FMC and North Jefco mineral clubs passed away on Dec. 29th, 2005 of natural causes while on vacation near Leadville.  Derek had been a long time employee of Rocky  Flats and he and his wife, Barbara had retired to the Grand Junction area in the late 1980s.

Derek had been the field trips chair for the GJ club for many years, and had escorted a group of FMC members this past year to the Book Cliffs area. The Firths can be found on internet search-engine or dexonline under that city, if you would like to have their address to send Barbara a sympathy note. The obituary in the Daily Camera can be found at the following URL:  http://www.dailycamera.com/bdc/obituaries/article/0,1713,BDC_2437_4361325,00.html

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2006 Officers

President
 Alex Cook

1st Vice president: Program
 Terry O’Donnell
 Ray Horton

2nd Vice President: Trips
 Dennis Gertenbach

3rd Vice President: Show
 Ray Gilbert

Secretary
 Shaula Lee

Web Master
 Emily Epstein

Treasurer
 Gerald Naugle

Membership
 Trick Runions

Librarian
 Ray Gilbert

Newsletter
 Barry Knapp
 Charlotte Morrison

Scholarship
 Paul Ralston

Sunshine
 Martha Ralston

Denver Show Rep
 Carl & Naomi Bird

Denver Council Rep
 Gerald Naugle

Board of Directors

Past President
 Dennis Gertenbach

Term Expires 2007
 Hallie Cook
 Paul Ralston
 John Hurst

Term Expires 2006
 Paul Boni
 Shirley Mehta
 Alex Cook

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An Elephant Never Forgets!

 A friendly reminder that the annual dues to the FMC were due on October 1st, 2005.  The dues are still only $15 per individual  (or) family. You can pay in two ways:

 SEND A CHECK TO:
Flatirons Mineral Club (made to "FMC")
P.O. Box 3331
Boulder, CO 80307

(or) pay Gerry Naugle, Treasurer (or) Trick Runions, the Membership Chair at any FMC monthly meeting. One of them is at the sign-in table upon entering the room for the monthly meetings. Your receipt is your new annual membership card.

If you pay by CASH at a meeting, the receipt will be your new 2005-06 FMC membership card issued to you. Please do not send cash to the Club P.O. Box 3331 by regular mail.

Remember you can receive electronic or paper club newsletters containing the general meetings  information, guided club field trips information, annual show opportunities, silent auction opportunities and an annual club summer picnic when you are a member of the Flatirons Mineral Club. The 2005-06 dues must be received by the Treasurer by Feb. 20th, 2006 in order to stay current on the newsletters and club member benefits.

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Towel Show Winners

November’s meeting was our annual Towel Show, where members bring their best specimens found this past year and their best jewelry and lapidary projects completed this year. This year, we had some really great displays. The ribbon winners were:

Juniors

Club Field Trips: First Place – Joel Hyde
                        Second Place – Andrew Hyde

Personal Field Trips: First Place – Stefan Codrescu
                              Second Place – Joel Hyde

Jewelry: First Place – Andrew Hyde

Lapidary: First Place – Andrew Hyde

Best Display: First Place – Joel Hyde
                    Second Place – Stefan Codrescu

Ugly Rock: First Place – Stefan Codrescu

Adults

 Club Field Trips: First Place – Cory Olin
                         Second Place – Dennis Gertenbach

 Personal Field Trips: First Place – Carol Codrescu
                               Second Place – Ray Horton

Jewelry: First Place – Carl and Naomi Bird
            Second Place – Joyce and Ray Gilbert

Lapidary: First Place – Terry O’Donnell
              Second Place – Bill Eads

 Best Display: First Place – Bill Eads
                     Second Place – Ray Horton

Ugly Rock: First Place – Ed Raines
                Second Place – Carol Codrescu

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Lifelong Learning Geology Classes

Our own Ed Raines is teaching two Geology classes this spring through the Lifelong Learning program. Those who have taken Ed’s classes in previous years have raved about how much they learn. To sign up for these classes or for more information, call 303-499-1125 ext. 222.

Front Range Geology - Boulder is a treasure trove of geological wonder. Learn the basic geologic principles and history so that you can more fully appreciate the incredible scenery of our Front Range. We will examine the violent origins of the Rockies and discover how the oceans, glaciers, volcanoes, and the collision of continents have reshaped this area. Additionally, we will investigate the world-famous mineral deposits and the gold and silver mining of the Front Range. Four weekend field trips will be scheduled in class to examine the geologic lay of the land, the footprints of long-extinct organisms, and the gold and silver mining districts. A $25 materials fee is payable to the instructor in class.

Tuesday, 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM: 9 sessions starting March 21, 2006, ending May 23, 2006
Cost: $135, Materials Fee: $25

Mineral and Rock Identification Lab - This is an opportunity to spend lab time with popular geology instructor Ed Raines. He has built a collection of 150 to 200 teaching example mineral specimens for you to experiment with and rock kits (with examples of all of the important sedimentary, igneous and metamorphic rocks that one needs to be aware of in a simplified classification.) Each student will have their own low power stereo microscope to use during each class. SPACE IS LIMITED TO 10 STUDENTS SO REGISTER EARLY! A $100 lab and materials fee is payable to the instructor in class.

Wednesday, 7:00 PM - 9:00 PM: 7 sessions starting April 12, 2006, ending May 24, 2006

Cost: $95, Materials Fee: $100

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New FMC Club Members  

We welcome the following new club members:
Julie Elstner - Longmont
Dwane Deines - Boulder
Cindy Smith - Canon City
Don & Lauren Brantner - LaSalle
Catherine Williams - Denver

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Cloud Dome?

We seem to have lost track of the club’s Cloud Dome (photographic igloo). A couple of members have expressed interest in using it, but we don’t know who it is checked out to. Please let Gerry Naugle, Alex Cook, or John Hurst know if you have it. Thank you!

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Huge Meteorite Found in Kansas
By Dennis Gertenbach

Hunting in an area that has yielded meteorites before, Steve Arnold found a huge meteorite this fall near Brenham Township in southern Kansas. This rare 1,400-pound meteorite was discovered seven feet underground using a metal detector mounted on a three-wheel vehicle. This latest find came from the same area that produced a 1,000pound meteorite in 1949, now on display at the Celestial Museum.

The meteorite is the type known as an oriented pallasite, which is coned shape and has crystals embedded in an iron-nickel alloy. Because of its shape, an oriented meteorite falls to earth in a stable flight rather than tumbling. These types of meteorites are quite rare and only two larger ones have been found; one weighing 3,100 pounds from Australia and a second weighing 1,500 pounds from Argentina. Mr. Arnold, who has hunted for meteorites around the world, estimates that his find is worth in the seven figures.

The Brenham meteorite is thought to have exploded centuries ago, scattering more than three tons of fragments over what is now Kansas. Most pieces from that meteorite are no larger than a softball.

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New Fossil Discoveries
By Dennis Gertenbach

Fossilized Dinosaur Dung Yield Surprise

Paleobotonists have long assumed that grasses did not evolve and diversify on Earth until at least 10 million years after the dinosaurs disappeared. A team of Indian and Swedish botanists, studying dinosaur coprolites (fossilized dung) from India have recently found plant fragments that clearly came from ancient grasses. This new evidence indicates that the grasses originated at least 80 million years ago, and that the grass family evolved and underwent diversification 30 to 40 million years earlier than we previously thought. The grass remains were from species related to modern day varieties of rice and bamboos, giant reeds common in modern swamps, grasses that modern grazing animals eat such as Kentucky bluegrass, the researchers reported.

Sea Monster Fossil Found

Fossil hunters in Argentina have uncovered an almost intact, 135-million-year-old skull of a large marine crocodile in an area that was once a deep tropical bay in the Pacific Ocean. Named Dakosaurus andiniensi, this creature had a short, blunt nose and relatively few teeth, compared to other marine crocodiles. It had a head like a carnivorous dinosaur and a tail like a fish and measured 13 feet in length. Researchers have nicknamed their find “Godzilla.” With its massive jaws and serrated teeth, Godzilla preyed on other marine reptiles, unlike other known ancient marine crocodiles, which fed on small fish. Its massive, short head is puzzling to paleontologists, because it suggests that this creature was a relatively slow swimmer. How it was able to catch its prey is still being studied.

Giant Water Scorpion Once Roamed the Scottish Coast

Newly discovered tracks reveal that a 5-foot water scorpion was crawling on the shore of riverbanks in what is now Scotland about 330 million years ago. The tracks are the largest ever found for these creatures and show they could walk on land, according to geologist Martin Whyte of the University of Sheffield in England. The tracks show that they could come out of the water at least for short periods of time. Whyte estimates that the creature was 5.2 feet long and 3.2 feet wide. The track is 20 feet long and was made by a species of Hibbertopterus, a family of arthropods known as water scorpions.

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Calendar of Events

Jan 7 Junior Geologists Meeting, 1:00 PM Meet 1:00 – 3:00 PM at Dennis Gertenbach’s home.

Jan 10 FMC Show Committee Meeting, 7:15 PM Hurst’s home, 2863 Nebrina Pl, Boulder

Jan 12 FMC Club Meeting, 7:00 PM, WEST BOULDER SENIOR CTR., 9TH & ARAP. Ray Horton will present a talk and show-and-tell on Mt. St. Helens

Jan 13-15 Denver Gem & Mineral Guild Show, Lakeside Center (I-70 at Harlan) Fri 10 AM-9PM, Sat 10 AM-6 PM, Sun 11 AM-5 PM

Jan 30 FMC Board Meeting, 7:30 PM Meet at Alex Cook’s home

Feb 9 FMC Club Meeting, 7:00 PM, West Boulder Senior Ctr., 9th & Arap.. Program to be announced

Feb 27 FMC Board Meeting, 7:30 PM Charlotte Morrison’s house, 290 Seminole Dr, Boulder

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Updated 4/14/08