stacey: ryan smith is live near altoona. ryan: the roads behind us near the flying j truck stop in altoona. drivers must remain cautious if they are on the road. like most places across the metro, if you have had your car sitting out for even a half hour, there are gobs of snow to clear up. i am measuring 4-5 inches on this car outside the flying j. snow is building up on both commercial roads and along the interstate. let's go to some video we shot not long ago. out on interstate 80 in altoona, drivers are moving cautiously with minimal traffic around the 9:00-10:00 hour tonight. also, a few stalled vehicles on the interstate. we spotted one car that had spun around completely facing , eastbound in the westbound lane, near exit 141. vehicles that haven't been moved now buried under a thick blanket of snow. we caught up with one driver, just before venturing out into the first snow storm in a new car. rich: i've never had a front-wheel drive car before. ryan: this is front-wheel drive? good luck to you. rich: tell me about it

kcci's ryan smith is live at 4020 southwest 26th street. ryan: right behind me here is that group of massive oak trees in that family's front yard that came crumbling down in a matter of seconds during that quick storm we experienced earlier this afternoon. you can't walk but a couple steps in this yard without nearly tripping over these branches that are scattered. we are located right now at 4020 southwest 20 six st. this family has a lot ahead of them in terms of cleaning up. i am joined with the homeowner. explain to us what you heard, what you saw. >> we were in the living room actually, and the sky turned a really strange color. all of a sudden, the wind picked up and it really looks like a blizzard. i don't even know how to describe this. it was kind of machine -- kind of whooshing.i yelled at the kids to have for the basement and that's when i saw things flying past, trees coming down. crazy. ryan: is truly amazing to take a look at the results of mother nature's. . as you described, this happened in a matter of seconds. >> it was 15

stacey: kcci's ryan smith explains how officers were able to track down the suspect. ryan: that police pursuit came dodge as the suspect slammed his vehicle into the foundation right behind me. and we've learned tonight the only reason officers were able to track down the suspect is because of a good samaritan who saw the crime unfold and immediately alerted officers. what was supposed to be a simple stop and citation at 7th and hawkeye avenue turned into a high speed chase. one mile into the pursuit, the 17-year-old behind the wheel crashed into this city-owned property. tire tracks and damage to the foundation still visible tonight. take a look at pictures taken this morning just moments after the collision. the vehicle sits dangling over the edge inside an 18 and 12-year-old passenger. >> the driver got out of the vehicle and took off. ryan: but before police could see where the suspect fled to he -- was hot footin it. ryan: shawn george was there. at the right place. at the right time. george showed the responding officer exactly which house the driver darted insid

now, i'm joined now by ryan smith. now, ryan actually emceed that rally. he's executive director of education trust west, which just issued a new report entitled "black minds matter." and i know you're taking a page from the black lives matter momentum that's happening right now. but really, we can't separate those two. black lives matter, black minds matter, those are very connected. ryan: yeah. i would say just as young black youth are seeing other young black youth who are unarmed being brutalized by the police, the same thing happens within the education system. we've made policies and decisions that really affect the lives and minds of black students. so, although this isn't connected to the black lives matter movement, it is inspired by it. jessica: right, let's talk about the report itself because the report was fascinating to read. the report looks at the experiences and outcomes for black kids preschool through college. let's show you this. black children in california are the least likely to be placed into gifted and talented programs, have acces

kcci's ryan smith is live in boone for the all day public hearing. ryan: 280 people signing up to speak out on this topic today here inside the boone community building. earliest morning, there wasn't an empty seen the house. at the day -- as they progressed, the crowd has thinned out. they have extended the public comment portion until 5:15 tonight. >> the vast majority of iowans support this project. >> this pipeline is wrong for iowans. ryan: a testy back and forth hearing. 8 hours of passionate pleas from iowans, taking a stand for or against the bakken pipeline. the fate of the controversial project will be decided by the iowa utilities board. the pipeline would cut through 18 iowa counties, including boone and story. an estimated 500 people in attendance, putting this community building at capacity. speakers got 2 minutes to state their case. >> it will create an unprecendented abuse of land owner's rights. it will present a perpertual threat of catastrophic spills in iowa and it will contribute to >> the apprenticeship allowing our members not

kcci's ryan smith is live in studio. ryan: local leaders sounding off about president obama's announcement. the fight over the canada-to-texas project became political football for the past seven years. nebraska's governor stating today that the keystone pipeline would brought revenue to the counties. we spoke with iowa congressman david young late this afternoon. he expressed disappointment in the president's decision. and said islands would have benefited -- iowans would have benefited from the project. rep. david young: you look at the people getting their welding certificates now at some of our community colleges and those apprenticeship programs, they would have been working on this pipeline. the drivers and truckers out there, they would have been hauling pipeline. this would be money in the pockets of iowans. i'm disappointed the president did this. ryan we are gathering more : reaction tonight on this controversial decision. we hear from the state's senator ted cruz, tonight at 10:00. live in studio, ryan smith, k

kevin: kcci's ryan smith is here now with a look and those responses. ryan: congressman david young criticizing the decision tonight, saying the pipeline meant an economic boost for iowa. u.s. senator ted cruz, who's home state would have marked keystone's endpoint, calling its denial "cold and cynical." the pipeline's path would not have crossed into the hawkeye state. rep. david young: am i disappointed? yeah, these are jobs. ryan: but congressman david young says the project meant opportunity for iowa workers. rep. young: they would have been working on this pipeline, the drivers and truckers out there, they would have been hauling pipeline. this would be money in the pockets of iowans. ryan: the pipeline would have shipped roughlhl830,000 barrels a day of heavy, crude oil from fields in canada to gulf coast refineries. texas senator ted cruz in des moines today, vowing to revive the controversial project. sen. ted cruz: if i'm elected president, i will approve the keystone pipeline. ryan: offstage, he was quick to accuse president obama and washingto

kevin: ryan smith just back from the lake of the ozarks tonight with sergeant randy henry's emotional admission. ryan: sergeant randy henry didn't hold back in our one-on-one interview. the former water patrol supervisor tells me the highway patrol is at fault, but the agency has been trying to silence his story. >> i just feel so bad for the family that we killed their son. ryan: brandon ellingson's death on missouri's lake of the ozarks was ruled an accidental drowning. but nearly a year and a half later, a former water patrol supervisor is speaking out. >> as soon as brandon ellingson got onto tony piercy's boat i believe it was a death march. ryan: sergeant randy henry of the missouri highway patrol was working that night and interviewed trooper anthony piercy immediately after the accident. >> this happened on our watch. it should not have happened. it was totally preventable and it was covered up. ryan: may 2014, trooper piercy while intoxicated. those critical moments after on the highway patrol boat have been criticized by brandon's family and spurred legislative hearings. tro

ryan smith has been watching the proceedings all morning and joins us live now from boone. ryan? reporter: today's public hearing now in its third hour. this is slated to go until 5:00 tonight. let's get you inside in a live look inside the community building on the boone county fairgrounds. more than 260 people sign up to speak this afternoon. the breakdown, wanted to 34 and favor. 143 opposed. three people at the podium today expected to take neutral stances. speakers have two minutes to state their case. the controversy over boston pipeline that bakken has proposed interest all over the state and outside of iowa. opponents say the pipeline cutting through 18 iowa counties , including boone and story county would be an environmental threat of farmland. eminent domain also they concern. backers of the pipeline to the them. union workers said they are temporary jobs but will help kickstart construction careers. >> there are those that argue jobs created by the pipeline project are temporary and only provide work until the project is complete. i think it is important to take a wid

kcci's ryan smith traveled to the lake of the ozarks for the exclusive. family that we killed their son. ryan s.: brandon ellingson's death on missouri's lake of the ozarks was ruled an accidental drowning. but nearly a year and a half later a former water patrol , supervisor is speaking out. >> as soon as brandon ellingson got onto tony piercy's boat, i believe it was a death march. ryan s.: sgt. randy henry of the missouri highway patrol was working that night and interviewed trooper anthony piercy immediately after the accident. >> this happened on our watch. it shouldn't have happened. it was totally preventable, and it was a cover up. ryan s.: may 2014 trooper piercy arrests ellingson for boating while intoxicated. those critical moments after on the highway patrol boat have been criticized by brandon's family and spurred legislative hearings. trooper piercy admits he placed the wrong life jacket on ellingson who was handcuffed when he went overboard. >> he was totally defenseless in that boat. ryan s.: sgt. henry says the highway patrol hid key evide

here's abc's ryan smith. >> reporter: when jordan one thing on his mind. football. dalton, number 71 for the north wood high school chargers, is a senior on the varsity team. identified as a high-risk player. high risk for concussions the field. but it's those hits on the field that worry his mom cara. >> when i see jordan get hit, i'm usually thinking about how hard was that hit? concussion? was it hard enough for a concussion? that's the part that i don't really know. >> reporter: across the country parents like cara are questioning just how safe the game is. preoccupied a big hit could land their son in an emergency room or worse. since july there have been 11 high school fatalities, seven directly related to a traumatic injury. the most recent? >> slipped past a tackle -- >> reporter: luke shem, number 4, scoring in a playoff game two weeks ago after taking a hit in the third quarter and running off the field, shem collapsed, was flown to a hospital where he died the next day after his family removed him from life support. >> our beautiful gift from god months l

steve: kcci's ryan smith is live tonight where that man approached the girl. ryan: please tell me that teenager was leaving north side library often and euclid when she says a strange man walked -- man approached her. the man invited her into his home but she refused. area parents see this library as a safe haven for their children. but a father who lives next door says he's now keeping a close eye on his kids. >> it is kind of shocking because i have two young children myself. ryan: police say the girl who they are not identifying left the north side library around 4 :00 on halloween. in the parking lot, 24-year-old sundayboy tarlue targeted the teen and walked with her to a nearby house. once there, she refused his invitation inside. the des moines police report says that's when tarlue grabbed her buttocks, chest area, and attempted to look down her shirt. the middle school aged girl principal two days later. >> those are target-rich environments for creeps that do that kind of thing. ryan: kcci security expert tom conley says no place is off-limits for crimi

kcci's ryan smith is live outside hy-vee with the rush. ryan? ryan: big family feasts mean big business for local grocers. tonight plenty of last-minute shoppers crammed hy-vee on -- plenty of last-minute shoppers out and about. you can tell from the parking lot that it is a bit more phil than you would expect any other 10:00 hour. the holiday rush is here. >> in here, it's choatic. ryan: from the shelves to the checkout line, customers are hunting down those crucial last-minute dinner items. >> got to have plenty of stuff for the dressing and the turkey and the ham, got to have that. ryan: the turkey, stuffing and those delicious holiday must-haves are a moneymaker across the u.s. spending on thanksgiving dinner billion this year. with the average household shelling out 56 bucks. if you think it's chaotic for customers -- >> we start at 2:00 a.m. ryan: try working behind the counter. >> i've been in the baker business all of my life. ryan: dave kelderman is the man behind urbandale hy-vee's famous pumpkin pies. while most people enjoy a day off

abc's ryan smith met the woman on a mission to find out what really happened to his first wife. however long it takes. >> every time i come out here i think, she's here. her spirit is here and she's waiting for someone to find him. >> reporter: for janine this bleak stretch of land is sacred ground. the former prosecutor is showing me the area in south jersey where she believes kathleen durst is buried. >> she is here. there's no doubt in my mind that she's here. and the family deserves to be able to bury her in a place of respect and dignity. >> reporter: she was the first wife of robert durst, the troubled millionaire scion at the center of two murders and a disappearance. kathleen vanished into thin air. his best friend found shot in the head. his neighbor who he admits to killing and dismembering. >> i know there is intense interest. >> reporter: she says durst should be held responsible. what do you think should happen to him? >> he should be shot in the back of the head and his body dismembered hike he did to everyone else. >> reporter: she's credited with reopening kathle

ryan: the shooting claimed the life of 20-year-old dashawn smith and hospitalized three others. neighbors along nw 6th avenue say they are fed up with the activity happening most weekend nights. >> i expected it to be not heavy criminal activity. ryan: since the nightclub's opening in april, polk county sheriff's deputies have responded 70 times to the business. most calls logged show noise complaints, a few fights and one other report of shots fired. >> that's insane. that's way too many calls for one business that hasn't been operating for what six, seven months. ryan: the county supervisor tells me he's actively investigating, along with the sheriff and county attorney, to determine if the business was in violation of any laws. if so, evolution nightclub could lose its liquor license. >> noise complaints are one thing and we take them seriously but when you get a shooting , that's a whole different level of problem. we need to do something. ryan: i did reach out to the nightclub's owner. it's a family-run business. they didn't want to go on camera but told me over the phone th

kcci's ryan smith is live outside iowa methodist with how many cases health officials are predicting for this year. ryan: unity point health confirming that they have treated 28 cases of the flu since october 1. that is an early start to the nearly 300,000 flu cases health experts here in iowa anticipate seeking this flu season. >> amber was a great kid, she was very gifted artistically. ryan: this thanksgiving would have marked amber gray's 15th birthday. last december, she died six days after being diagnosed with the flu. >> i hope nobody has to go through what we went through. ryan: this year's flu season is hitting central iowa early. the state is now ranks in the top 3 for highest influenza activity. >> bottom line is, the flu is here and it's going to get worse. ryan: news of two flu deaths is a painful reminder for amber's grandmother. >> it's just, oh no, here we go again. ryan: amber caught influenza a, a strain health officials say last year's vaccination did not match well with. this year, they've been matching >> all of the viruses they've seen in the northern hemisphere a

right now, ryan smith's live in the unidome. or the fans have been lined up for hours. hi, ryan. ryan: dowling leading the valley tigers 17-6. for this dowling team, they feel right at home playing here in the dome. crosstown rivals valley tigers know it is win or go home tonight. moments before kickoff, predictions are made. >> who's gonna win? >> dowling! ryan: some fans are more confident than others. matt: and we're going to probably win, i think. ryan: i think? there's no room for doubt under the dome. >> it's do or die tonight. >> it's intense, it's intense. >> i'm a senior, and this is the first time i've ever been to the dome. ryan: each team counts on the crowd as its 12th man. competition above the field who can out-cheer their opponent. valley students take pride in their tiger print. but one dowling grandma may have them beat for most eye-catching swag. audrey: i have a lot of little kids that go "look mom, look!" ryan: audrey scigliano severly damaged the nerves in her right eye. her custom-made patch says it all. audrey: what else can i do but support dowling? ryan:

stacey: kcci's ryan smith has the story from osceola tonight. ryan: these criminal complaints from the clark county courthouse show us three men, two women who now face prostitution charges. this after police in osceola set up an off-site operation for a human trafficking sting. investigators conducted operation trojan horse at a local motel over a 14-hour period yesterday. these officers started planning the sting in june. >> a sting allows us to control the environment more, we can control who comes in, who comes out. also, just to send a message of, we don't want your activity here, if you're here go somewhere else. ryan: the bust netted six arrests, five people for prostitution. we've learned four of them are from des moines and west des moines. the two women, sharree austin and belladonna guirgis, came to the hotel together. >> we wondered if this was something we needed to get ahead of, so we did. ryan: police chief martin duffus says officers spotted local ads for sex acts popping up on sites like craigslist and backpage.com. >> is this a

ryan smith is there live. ryan: des moines police dispatch receiving a call just before 3:00 this afternoon. the caller reportedly finding to dead bodies inside the home right behind me here. this address is 3819 center street. it is actually located just pedestrian bridge. earlier, our cameras were rolling when some police officers arrived on scene, who immediately carried out to children out of the house, and toddler. i am told by a police sergeant that they showed no signs of injury but were taken to a animal control officers also on to be two or three small dogs removed from the scene. shots fired called but they are not telling us exactly what happened or what led up to the scene that is inside this home. no information at this hour on the victims or a potential suspect. we will be back at 6:00 for another update. steve: as ryan said, he will have much more tonight at 6:00. at the first world conference on climate change, the challenge seemed insurmountable. but today, as world leaders come together in pa

ryan smith, abc news, new york. >> a mother who left her newborn baby in the nativity scene of a new york church will not be charged. the baby boy was discovered by a custodian lying in a manger and the mother came back the next day to make sure he had been found. new york has a safe haven law that allows people to anonymously drop off newborns at a church, hospital, police or fire station. >>> a new york family is in shock after waking up to find a man crawling on their bedroom floor with a knife between his teeth. security cameras caught the burglar skulking around the house for about a half an hour there before he entered a bedroom where the homeowner was actually asleep. he snatched a cell phone and then took off when the homeowner woke up. so far it's unclear how the man broke into that house. >>> also caught on camera baggage handlers at san jose's airport playing a game of cause the suitcase? a passenger complained to southwest airlines but it says check out the uniforms there. they don't belong to southwest. alaska airlines did step up to the plate saying those are their empl

kcci's ryan smith has the story, it is new at 10:00. ryan: city and county officials just this month moving forward on that $100 million dollar hotel. just tonight, the owner of ray gun using their trademark wit. raygun built its t-shirt empire mocking pop culture and poking fun at the people and places of iowa. now, the wildly successful social commentators have an unusual target. mike: it's like an orphanage for business travelers. ryan: the $100 million downtown convention center hotel. the city and county had to form a non-profit to get the hotel financed. mike: we don't need a non-profit hotel. if the market that support this hotel, the market would build a hotel. ryan: $20 million of the project relies on eb-5. a controversial program that gives wealthy foreigners a green card, if they invest $500,000 in american projects. however, eb-5 could be suspended next month. so, raygun came to the rescue in true tongue-and-cheek form. mike: that's why we say no salvation army people on this corner. we have got to do what we can for the con

kcci's ryan smith is live with a look at how one of the metro's biggest athletic events is adjusting to the cold front. ryan: out here tonight at this 10:00 it's a sign winter is at hour, our doorstep. the leaves here in central iowa, for the most part, are gone. tonight, race organizers at living history farms are preparing for saturday's winter-like weather. you can still spot the bright yellows, fire orange, and deep reds around downtown. the flowers lining fleur drive are upright but their days are numbered. bare branches along gray's lake are a sign that fall is fading fast. runners now bracing for the day when an outdoor jog requires more than a light jacket. >> more like september weather this year. i lived in the midwest all my life and i can't remember a november this warm. ryan: central iowa will be confronted with below average temperatures for the first time this season. that 4-letter weather obscenity snow is on its way. organizers for this year's living history farms off-road race are preparing. >> you just have to allow for the weather. ryan: steve bobenhouse and tyler

kevin: kcci's ryan smith is live outside the iowa state patrol headquarters with details from every scene. ryan: it has been certainly a deadly day on central iowa roadways. tonight, the state patrol here in des moines, now investigating three crashes resulting in five deaths. a line of debris connects interstate 80 to a vehicle crunched to its core. car parts along with the contents of a woman's purse left scattered across a sopping wet field. children's clothes, a reminder young ones experienced the frightening moments when this gmc envoy was smashed into unrecognizable mangled metal. the iowa state patrol reports a mother and her 3 daughters inside when the vehicle slid across the interstate and rolled multiple times down a ditch close to the iowa speedway exit. it claimed the life of the 39-year-old driver and her 11-year-old daughter. not far away, 76-year-old judith beadle of oskaloosa, died after her vehicle slammed into a tree off highway 163 in pella. and two people died in a rollover crash on highway 20 near webster city. >> it's unusual, yes it is. ryan: three deadly crashes cl

abc's ryan smith has the details. >> reporter: he was a gridiron hall of famer. >> sends frank gifford flying -- >> reporter: an icon in the broadcast booth. >> frank gifford with al michaels and dan dierdorf. >> reporter: announcing for 27 years married nearly 29 years to his wife kathie lee. his family revealed he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy, caused by cte detectable only after death. a team of pathologists diagnoses after he died of natural causes at the age of 84. no stranger to big hits suffering one of the year's most famous head injuries in 1960s. knocked unconscious in a game. carried outen a stretcher. cte has been discovered in numerous players like hall of famer junior seau who took his own life. ryan smith, abc news, new york. >> a mother who left her newborn baby in the nativity scene of a charged. the baby boy was discovered by a custodian lying in a manger and the mother came back the next found. new york has a safe haven law that allows people to anonymously drop off newborns at a church, hospital, police or fire station. >>> a new york family is in s

kcci's ryan smith has their responses. ryan: the pipeline's path would not have crossed into the hawkeye state. >> am i disappointed? yeah. these are jobs. ryan: but congressman david young says the project meant opportunity for iowa workers. >> they would have been working on this pipeline, the drivers and truckers out there, they would have been hauling pipeline. this would be money in the pockets of iowans. ryan: the pipeline would have shipped roughly 830,000 barrels a day of heavy crude oil from fields in canada to gulf coast refineries. >> we remember how that story ended. ryan texas senator ted cruz in : des moines today vowing to revive the controversial project. mr. crus: if i'm elected president, i will approve the keystone pipeline. ryan: off stage, he was quick to accuse president obama and washington democrats of cozying up to environmental donors. mr. cruz: they just made the calculation, i assume, that there's more money they can get from the california billionaires and the union members jobs are not that imp

kcci's ryan smith has their responses. ryan: the pipeline's path would not have crossed into the hawkeye state. >> am i disappointed? yeah. these are jobs. ryan: but congressman david young says the project meant opportunity for iowa workers. >> they would have been working on this pipeline. the drivers and truckers out there, they would have been hauling pipeline. this would be money in the pockets of iowans. ryan: the pipeline would have shipped roughly 830,000 barrels a day of heavy crude oil from fields in canada to gulf coast refineries. texas senator ted cruz in des moines today vowing to revive the controversial project. mr. cruz: if i'm elected president, i will approve the keystone pipeline. ryan: off stage, he was quick to accuse president obama and washington democrats of cozying up to environmental donors. mr. cruz: they just made the calculation, i assume, that there's more money they can get from the california billionaires and the union members' jobs are not that important. i think that is cold and cynical. r

ryan smith has the story. ryan: this criminal complaints from the clark county courthouse chill was three men, two women who now face prostitution charges. this after police in oc all of -- in ocl a -- in a schola -- in osceola -- these officer started planning the staying in june. >> and allow us -- it allows us and send a message of we don't want your activity here. ryan: the bust netted six arrests, five for prostitution. four of them are from des moines and west des moines. >> we wondered if this was something you -- we needed to get ahead of. ryan: the police chief said officers spotted local ads for sex acts popping up on local sites like craigslist. >> any crime like this, any sexual crime, is a concern for a chief in any town. ryan: investigators created their own ads which drew solicitors from the metro to small-town osceola. >> high-volume traffic areas, i-35 between des moines in kansas city, and we are right on that route. ryan: and addition to police arresting those individuals on prostitution char

abc's ryan smith met the woman on a mission to find out what really happened to his first wife. however long it takes. >> every time i come out here i think, she's here. her spirit is here and she's waiting for someone to find him. >> reporter: for janine this bleak stretch of land is sacred ground. the former prosecutor is showing me the area in south jersey where she believes kathleen durst is buried. >> she is here. there's no doubt in my mind that she's here. and the family deserves to be able to bury her in a place of respect and dignity. >> reporter: she was the first wife of robert durst, the troubled millionaire scion at the center of two murders and a disappearance. kathleen vanished into thin air. his best friend found shot in the head. his neighbor who he admits to killing and dismembering. >> i know there is intense interest. >> reporter: she says durst should be held responsible. what do you think should happen to him? >> he should be shot in the back of the head and his body dismembered hike he did to everyone else. >> reporter: she's credited with reopening kathle

ryan smith breaks it down. ryan: kcci obtained bill stowe's implement contract, and there is a golden parachute. guaranteeing he will be getting 200% of his contract if he stays the 2020. a half-million dollar payoff according to the ceo is them way to keep the most qualified person on the job. graham gillette says it has helped the public utility save millions. stowe we vamped the retirement system, transitioning from a self-funded plan to the state plan known as ipers. >> bills history with des moines has enabled him to navigate and negotiate well with the city. he is an engineer,, an attorney by training, he understands this better than almost anyone in the country. ryan: board members approved the bonus in september, one month later they signed off on a 10% rate hike for customers. we have learned that water works is spending $750,000 on his lawsuit against three northwest iowa counties over water quality issues. they recently hired an environmental advocate with an annual salary of $62,000. des moines city

elizabeth: ryan smith explains how one of the biggest athletic events is adjusting. ryan: you can spot the bright yellows, fire oranges, and deep red around the town. the colors along fleur drive are there but there does a numbered. fall is fading fast. runners bracing for the day when an outdoor jog requires more than a light jacket. >> more like september weather this year. i've been midwest on my life and i can't remember it being this form. ryan: central iowa will be confronted with below average tempers for the first time this season. snow is on its way. organizes for this year's living history farms off-road race are bracing for the weather. they walk the seven mile course wednesday, making a few last-minute changes. >> downhill areas we think will be slick and so we are trying to make allowances there, making sure there's nothing they can slide into heaven cells. ryan: the 5-6000 expected know that race day weather is unpredictable. >> one year we had 11 inches of snow and half the field showed up anyway. elizabeth: a mild november has also led to happier utili