Peter B. Mires, a Vermont native, first came out west in 1990 and has been fascinated with the Reno-Tahoe area ever since. He received his Ph.D. in historical geography from Louisiana State University in 1988 and subsequently taught at the University of Minnesota-Duluth and the University of Delaware. His publications include several books and more than fifty scholarly articles, book reviews, and op-ed pieces. Dr. Mires is retired and lives in Reno, and when not reading or writing he may be found hiking the Tahoe Rim Trail or exploring the Nevada outback.