...AIR STAGNATION ADVISORY REMAINS IN EFFECT UNTIL 1 PM MST
FRIDAY...
* WHAT...An extended period of stagnant air, with light winds
and little vertical mixing.
* WHERE...Portions of south central, southwest and west central
Idaho and northeast and southeast Oregon.
* WHEN...Until 1 PM MST Friday, and this time may be extended.
* IMPACTS...Periods of air stagnation can lead to the buildup of
pollutants near the surface.
* ADDITIONAL DETAILS...Winds will be strong enough today,
Wednesday, and Thursday afternoons in portions of the Upper
Treasure Valley and Western Magic Valley to limit stagnation.
However, parts of the zones will experience stagnant air and
were therefore included in this advisory.
PRECAUTIONARY/PREPAREDNESS ACTIONS...
An Air Stagnation Advisory concerns itself with meteorological
conditions only. For more information on air pollution in Idaho,
visit website www.deq.idaho.gov. For Oregon, visit website
www.oregon.gov/deq.
If possible, reduce or eliminate activities that contribute to
air pollution, such as outdoor burning, and the use of
residential wood burning devices. Reduce vehicle trips and
vehicle idling as much as possible.
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Eddie Ift has appeared on Comedy Central, the Joe Rogan show, Showtime, Chelsea Lately, and Last Comic Standing.
By the time we reach the end of our interview, comedian Eddie Ifft feels like a close friend, like the kind you text silly memes because you know they’re the only one to appreciate it. Prior to him explaining the concept of a “chairlIfft rollback” and inciting me to watch a horrific video of said concept while we were on the phone, Eddie gave me a glimpse into his career, one that has evolved into a multi-hyphen job of comedian, producer, writer, director, and podcaster. Putting on a comedy show is a job that requires wearing many hats, something Ifft has perfected in his 27 years of doing comedy which has included appearances on Comedy Central, the Joe Rogan show, Showtime, Chelsea Lately, and Last Comic Standing. The Sun Valley favorite (Ifft has been performing there for years) will be doing two New Year’s Eve shows at the Argyros Theater in Ketchum, one at 4 p.m. and one at 8 p.m. What better way to ring in the new year than to be reminded of all the crappy, funny stuff that happened in the last one?
Like so many conversations about Sun Valley, ours kept coming back to skiing. It’s one of, if not the, main draw to the area and like anyone who’s visited as many times as Ifft says he has, you’re bound to ski. Surprisingly, Ifft was a ski patroller back in the day; he recalled to me his second day on the job when a kid’s backpack got stuck and he was hanging from the chairlIfft, just going round and round. When they eventually stopped the lIfft, Ifft was tasked to stand on the seat of a snowmobile to hold the kids boots to stabilize him while they worked on getting him down. ChairlIfft incidents featured prominently in our conversation as well; in addition to the aforementioned “chairlIfft rollback,” Ifft cites the Peak 2 Peak Gondola at Whistler and the potential of getting trapped between the lIfft’s notoriously sparse towers as one of his greatest fears. “I’ve parachuted, bungee jumped, swam with great white sharks in Africa—the Gondola on Whistler is terrifying.”
Like any good comedian, Ifft adapts his set a bit to his audience, and for his Sun Valley shows he plans to inject some local humor, including — obviously — jokes about chairlIffts. “I’ve talked about the Cold Springs chairlIfft all over the world,” says Ifft of the old two-seater lIfft on Baldy which has since been replaced. “I was riding it with a friend once and we were passing over this super high spot and I said to my friend, ‘Can you imagine getting stuck here?’ and then we got stuck. It got to the point where I put my arm around the bar — I just acquired a fear of heights.”
Aside from chairlIfft memories, Ifft will also perform material from his new album, Man Child. The comedian, who says his comedy used to be “pretty edgy,” found that becoming a father seven years ago changed his comedy and sense of humor. “It used to be no holds barred, nothing off limits,” says Ifft. “Now I have a lot more empathy. I realize why people get upset by things or get triggered. I’m sensitive about that, so I’m like, I can’t joke about that. I think my kids have dulled me down a lot. I’ve had to become more clever and less edgy.”
But rest assured, you will certainly find plenty to laugh at during Ifft’s sets. In the almost three decades Ifft has been in comedy, he has performed to sold-out crowds in over 15 countries, released critically acclaimed live set DVDs, made numerous TV appearances and performed specials, and, most recently, gotten into the podcasting game by hosting two different shows. The first, “Talkin’ Shit with Eddie Ifft” is about what you’d expect from a comedian: Eddie brings fellow comedians, entertainers, and celebrities to his Venice Beach living room for an hour of raw, uncensored comedy. The other is more surprising. “The Wodcast” is a show about functional fitness, blending CrossFit experience and insight with humor and meaningful content. A former CrossFit enthusiast, Ifft was amused at how seriously CrossFitters take themselves and began joking about it while still being serious about functional fitness. The result was a podcast where Ifft could “nerd out” on his own health and fitness while questioning experts on various health topics.
Should you choose to spend your New Year’s aglow in Ifft’s comedy, you won’t regret it. And maybe you’ll be lucky enough to ride the chairlIfft with him the next day.
