The week hit hard: reports of a gunman targeting Imam Shuab Din, a fresh wave of controversy over Prop 4 signatures, and courts signaling the redistricting fight is nearly done. Add a new constitutional court fast-tracking hot-button cases, measles exposures popping up locally, a 3.5 quake near Magna, and avalanche danger rising with new storms, and you can feel the ground of civic life and literal earth shifting at once. We pull those threads together without panic and ask the only question that matters: what kind of place are we becoming?

Then we pivot to joy and design. I sit down with Brendan Nicholson, the creative director at Momentum Climbing, the mind behind the problems that humble you on Tuesday and make you feel like a hero on Saturday. Brendan breaks down how route setting blends geometry, storytelling, and risk to serve every climber in the gym—beginners learning body tension on V2s, veterans solving dynamic sequences on steeps, and everyone chasing that quiet moment of flow. We get into the details: how hold selection shapes movement, why forced beta usually backfires, what makes a comp-worthy boulder exciting instead of gimmicky, and how community feedback loops keep a gym vibrant.

Throughout, we connect city-scale themes to gym-scale craft. Trust erodes fast when signatures go sideways; trust builds slowly when problems are fair and repeatable. Policy choices rewire institutions; route choices rewire how people move, meet, and belong. As storms line up and headlines crowd the feed, this conversation offers a reset—proof that thoughtful design can turn friction into progress and strangers into partners on the mat. If you care about Salt Lake’s identity, or just love a good send, you’ll find a lot to hold onto here.

If the show resonates, follow, rate, and share with a friend who needs both the context and the stoke. What problem—on the wall or in the city—are you working on this week?

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What happens when a fifth-generation ranch kid earns a PhD in molecular biology and decides to rebuild the bridge between land and table? We sit down with Keven Johnson to unpack how a century-old Wyoming ranch now feeds Utah families and top restaurants through a modern, transparent, and surprisingly intimate supply chain.

Keven grew up branding calves and rolling hay near Lusk, Wyoming, then dove deep into lab life, grants, and postdoc work. Along the way, he noticed what most of us miss: the farther we get from our food, the more we lose in flavor, nutrition, and trust. After his family’s ranch earned a centennial recognition, he felt a responsibility to carry it forward—e-commerce, farmers markets, and direct-to-consumer beef that tells you exactly where it came from. His dry-aged steaks and ground beef quickly earned a following, from Wheeler Farm regulars who text orders to chefs who judged the product by taste, texture, and consistency.

Scaling real beef takes patience and planning. Keven explains the 18–24 month timeline behind every pound, the careful balance between restaurant sourcing and market customers, and the choice to grow without compromising quality. We get into big ag versus small ranching, why minimal processing matters, and how dry aging transforms flavor. Then, a curveball rooted in both tradition and science: beef tallow. Keven leveraged his lab background to create cooking fats, balms, soaps, and more, tapping tallow’s skin-compatible lipids for products that feel as good as they perform.

This conversation is a blueprint for anyone curious about local food, farm-to-table sourcing, and sustainable growth without the buzzwords. If you’ve wondered whether you can taste the difference when you shorten the food chain, this is your sign to find out. Subscribe, share this story with a friend who loves great steak, and leave a review with your favorite cut—we might help you discover a new one.

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A hard choice came first: I pulled a planned conversation after learning about alleged misconduct tied to the guest. That accountability moment set the tone for a brisk, honest tour through a week when Salt Lake City felt alive in every direction—tremors underfoot, signatures under scrutiny, bills moving from talk to consequence, and a long-overdue storm finally pointing our way.

We start with the Magna-area quake and what geologists say it does—and doesn’t—mean for the Wasatch Fault. From there, we dig into the Prop 4 repeal effort and the growing reports of people finding their names on petitions they don’t remember signing. I share the exact tool to search and remove your name and why petition accuracy is about more than politics; it’s about trust in redistricting, fair maps, and the systems that shape representation across Utah.

Mid-session at the Capitol, energy turns into outcomes: renewed Great Salt Lake funding debates, a tug-of-war over street control between the state and the city, and social policy fights that move from committee rooms into family conversations. On the street level, there’s bright news too: snow returning after a warm stretch, Ava reopening on Main as a small but vital win for local dining, Westminster’s castle-like residence hitting the market, and the aquarium’s expansion quietly pushing us into top-five territory nationwide. It’s the kind of week that reminds us how infrastructure, culture, and civic life braid together.

We close with a preview I’m thrilled about: Kevin Johnson, a PhD biologist turned Wyoming rancher whose beef shows up on some of your favorite Salt Lake menus. It’s a ranch-to-table story built on soil science, genetics, grazing practice, and a deep respect for local food systems. If you care about what’s on your plate and how it gets there, you’ll want to hear where science meets flavor.

Tap play, stay curious, and if this resonated, subscribe, share with a friend, and leave a quick review. Your support helps more neighbors find thoughtful local news, policy context, and food stories that actually matter.

www.Burrn.org <= Check to see if your name is included in signatures to repeal prop 4

Have a Question? Ask it here!

50% Off Minky Couture Blankets: softminkyblankets.com/SMALLLAKECITY

Please be sure to like, review, follow, subscribe and share the podcast with your friends and family! See you next time

Support the show

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