March 10 opening planned for MacKenzie River Pizza in Idaho Falls

The MacKenzie River Pizza at Snake River Landing, 1490 Milligan Road, will be opening March 10. There will be an invitation-only soft opening March 8.

Are you a visionary leader?

Today is President’s Day, and I’ll be honest with you: It probably won’t be the hardest day of work for me this year.

With school out, kids at home and most businesses closed, it will probably be a day that I juggle work tasks from the kitchen table and running after my toddler before he creates the next natural disaster in our house.

The meaning of President’s Day and its observation isn’t about three-day weekends or sales at our favorite retailers, however. It represents so much more. George Washington and Abraham Lincoln were visionary leaders, with dreams, visions and goals much bigger than themselves. Their stories will never die and their passion will never be forgotten. While their hard work, struggles and sacrifices are beyond what we can probably imagine, their stories paint lighter pictures of men with dreams changing the world.

We’d all like to be visionaries in business wouldn’t we? The good news is being a visionary leader really isn’t as complex as it seems and doesn’t involve changing the world by being like Steve Jobs and creating a company like Apple.

Visionary leaders most of the time are able to innovate on things that are right in front them.  They are aware of the world around them and have proactive, not reactive, minds that allow them to plan and create solutions.

Visionary leaders are thinking constantly. They are watching, researching, gathering and analyzing information, and this allows them to move forward. As well as information, they rely on intuition in their decisions.

These leaders have courage and understand that risk is necessary to growth and success. Last of all, visionary leaders are inspirational. They are able to motivate their teams by creating cultures of vision and passion and goals for everyone to share. When it comes to selecting teammates, employees and partners they take special time and pay special attention.

Above all, visionary leaders never stop reinventing themselves, their ideas and visions. All of this comes very naturally and doesn’t take a lot of work because it is a part of who they are, personally and professionally.

Is there anything we can do to become more like visionary leaders? The simple answer to that is, where there’s a will there’s a way.

The TV show “Undercover Boss” offers great examples of executives showing visionary leadership based on input they receive from their employees. By the end of the show you may be an emotional wreck and ready for some chocolates, but it shows that visionary leadership isn’t terribly complex.

You don’t have to be George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, or Steve Jobs to be a visionary leader. It simply takes time, discipline and determination. It’s an everyday thing -- even President’s Day.

Cabela's announces plans for store in Ammon

A typical Cabela's store, one of which is planned to open in Ammon in 2015.

Cabela's Inc., announced today that it will be building a new store in Ammon, on ground at Sunnyside and Hitt Road.

In a press release, the Sidney, Neb.-based outdoor sporting goods retailer announced it plans to open a 42,000-square foot store here in spring 2015. Idaho Falls-Ammon is one of three new markets in which it plans to open stores (the others are Short Pump, Va., and Fort Oglethorpe, Ga.) The company has two other stores in Idaho, in Boise and Post Falls.

They expect to employ 90 full- and part-time people.

"The Ammon store will be designed with a rugged look and feel and offer seasonal product assortments. In addition to thousands of quality outdoor products, the store also will feature museum-quality wildlife displays, innovative digital signage, an indoor archery range and archery tech room, gun counter and more," the announcement said.

Customers will be treated to the exciting Cabela’s shopping experience with access to all Cabela’s merchandise via online order kiosks, as well as free shipping with an in-store pickup program. In-store pickup allows customers to order Cabela’s gear ahead of time and pick it up at their convenience at the store of their choice.

“The continued loyalty of Cabela’s customers across the state, coupled with the success of our Boise and Post Falls locations, made it an easy decision to open a store in Ammon,” said Tommy Millner, Cabela’s chief executive officer.

The ground where the store is planned is being developed by Ball Ventures and the Salt Lake-based Woodbury Corp., which recently submitted plats to the city of Ammon. City administrator Ron Folsom said work on the infrastructure ought to be finished in time for retailers to begin construction in the late summer or early fall.

Maltese Crossfit moves to new, larger location

"The Rig" at Maltese Crossfit, which recently moved to a new, larger facility.

Maltese Crossfit has moved to a much larger location at 2380 Gallatin, on Idaho Falls' industrial south side.

If you're expecting plasma screen TVs and comfy couches, look elsewhere. Spartan is probably the best word to describe the 5,000-square-foot gym.

Sam Harmer, an Idaho Falls firefighter who started the gym in his garage four-and-a-half years ago, says the hundred or so people who come to classes do so to work hard on strength and conditioning.

"It's a different mentality," he said. "It is hard. It never gets easy. There's no end in sight to what you can do."

What keeps people coming back is camaraderie and shared sense of endeavor. "It's a good community of people who are very supportive of each other. They help push each other," he said. "Everybody goes through the same kind of ordeal."

The concept of Crossfit emerged in the 1990s as a way to keep soldiers, firefighters and police in shape for anything. But whether it's a firefighter lifting a 200-pound person or a 65-year-old woman lifting a 25-pound sack of groceries, the principles of across-the-board strength and conditioning training are the same. Everything is scalable and relative to a person's capabilities.

It was first commercialized in 2000 in California by Greg Glassman.

Harmer has three trainers who conduct classes Monday through Saturday, starting at 5:30 a.m. on weekdays. Anyone can schedule a first hourlong class for free. While the work is hard, the amount a person does is based on what kind of shape he's in. Nobody, beginner or veteran, is going to get pushed beyond what he or she can do.

The oldest person taking classes at Maltese Crossfit is 75 years old. Although contracts are available, most people pay month to month, between $75  and $100. "If you're not here, I really don't want your money," Harmer said.

Membership is growing, and they are looking at adding a second class to the Crossfit Kids program.

To find out more, call (208) 360-9423 or e-mail info@maltesecrossfit.com.

Flights between Idaho Falls, Minneapolis-St. Paul set to start in June

The 76-seat CRJ900, a regional jet that is scheduled to start flying between Idaho Falls and Minneapolis-St. Paul in June. 

Delta Air Lines will begin offering non-stop service from Idaho Falls Regional Airport to Minneapolis-St. Paul beginning on June 7.

Service will be provided with a CRJ-900 jet aircraft that will offer first class and economy seating as well as domestic Wi-Fi service. The public can purchase tickets online now at www.Delta.com.

They will initially offer the new service three days a week (Wednesday, Saturday and Sunday) through the end of summer. “The goal is to have the flights be successful enough that it will translate into continued flights and additional service,” Airport Director Craig H. Davis said in a press release.

Flights will arrive in Idaho Falls at 12:59 p.m. and depart at 1:25 p.m., arriving in Minneapolis-St. Paul at 4:43 p.m.

"The connection will provide multiple destination options for both business and leisure travelers to and from our community," Davis said. "(The) airport offers a very comprehensive service to the upper Midwest and East Coast." There are 95 possible destinations beyond Minneapolis-St. Paul, 30 more than what is available beyond Salt Lake City, he said.

Delta began taking delivery of 76-seat CRJ900s in the second half of 2013 as part of a drive to restructure its fleet of planes. In late 2012, it announced it had made an agreement with Bombardier Aerospace under which Delta was to acquire 40 new CRJ900 two-class regional jets, with the option of purchasing an additional 30, phasing out its smaller regional jets.

“The economics and customer features of the Bombardier CRJ900 made it the right aircraft to add to our Delta Connection fleet,” said Delta President Ed Bastian. “Combined with the removal of 50-seat aircraft, this opportunity bolsters our ongoing fleet restructuring program to remove less efficient, smaller regional aircraft from the system.”