BANQUET AND FIVE DAY AGENDA
SEE WHAT HAPPENED AT THE 2011 EVENT:
We joined Lee Greenwood, wounded warriors, families, friends, special guests, mentors and comedian entertainers at a one-of-a-kind benefit for wounded warriors. A sportsman's dinner and auction was included Friday night in the Missouri Ballroom at the Big Sky Resort Conference Center that started at 5 PM.
HOW BANQUET TICKETS WERE PURCHASED:
1): ONLINE
2): LOCAL BIG SKY & BOZEMAN TICKET OUTLETS
3): MAIL A CHECK
Past Participating Local Big Sky or Bozeman Outlets:
CLICK ON LINKS FOR MORE LOCATION INFORMATION:
- American Legion (Down Town Main Street, Bozeman)
- Montana Travel (1102 West Babcock. Bozeman)
- Montana Troutfitters (1716 West Main, Bozeman)
- Yellowstone Gateway Sports (21 Forkhorn at Four Corners)
- Prolite Gear (421 West Griffin, #1)
- Hungry Moose Market & Deli (209 Aspen Leaf Drive, Big Sky)
- Residence Inn by Marriott (6195 E. Valley Center Rd, Bozeman)
- Best Western GranTree Inn (1325 North 7th, Bozeman)
All had the chance to win great prizes for all outdoor recreational enthusiasts! There was a FREE Montana hunt drawing for registered Operation SAS wounded guests, contributed by MOGA.
After the banquet on January 7th, there were 4 days of activities, adventures and workshops for wounded warrior and their families from January 8th - 11th. Activities included FREE lift tickets for registered warriors. A discounted rate was offered to their family and friends traveling with them.
OIF/OEF warriors with physical and/or invisible wounds received a FREE 5-day winter adventure and sportsman's dream!
BANQUET SCHEDULE:
2:00 - 5:00 PM
-- Warrior Guest Registration
-- Exhibits Open to the Public
5:00 PM
-- No Host Social
-- Silent Auction Opens
6:00 PM
-- Operation SAS Introduction by Celebrities via Video
-- Master of Ceremony, Lee Greenwood
-- Post the Colors / National Anthem / Retire the Colors
-- Welcome by Montana Senator Tester
-- Comments by Gold Star Mother, Peg O'Donnell
-- Warrior and Other Honored Guest Recognitions
-- Door Prizes
6:45 PM
-- Sportsman's Elk and Trout Buffet (Warrior Guests and their guests first)
-- Door Prizes
-- Silent Auction Continues
7:00 PM (During Dinner)
-- Mentor Speakers: Marc Hoffmeister, Sam Kavanagh and Tim Medvetz
8:15 PM
-- $7,200 Montana Big Game Dream Hunt Drawing for a Warrior Guest
Contributed by Montana Outfitter & Guides Association, ONF, Montana Mobile
Meats and Big Sky Taxidermy.
-- Live Auction with Mark Anderson
-- ONF and Peg O'Donnell
9:00 PM
-- Break
-- Group Photo for Warriors and their Guests
9:15 PM
-- Silent Auction Cut-Off
-- Door Prizes
-- Silent Auction Winners Take!
9:30 - 10:30 PM
-- Standup Comedians: Mark Sweeney and Marc Yaffee.
SPEAKER MENTOR PROFILES:
Tim Medvetz: Highway to Everest, (seven summit challenge).
Marc Hoffmeister: Wounded Warrior, Team Leader of Operation Denali and National Geographic Adventurer of the Year.
Sam Kavanagh: World Paralympic Cyclist Contender. See this ESPN story.
STAND-UP COMEDIANS:
Marc Yaffee
Marc likes performing overseas for US troops where he has been known to overindulge in falafel and hookah bars, sneak onto aircraft carriers in the Persian Gulf and shave his head on the back of a flatbed truck while performing for Marines in the desert of Iraq.
Marc is a gifted writer and performer, delivering original but relatable comedy, inspired by his multi-cultural upbringing and Navajo roots.
One of the few touring Native American Comedians, Marc careens across the comedy landscape leaving a trail of laughs that has made him a hit with club, casino and corporate audiences alike. Marc is the creator and co-star of Pow Wow Comedy Jam, recently named National Indian Gaming Association’s Entertainers of the Year.
Marc's window to comedy started when he opened his own traffic school in the mid-90s. Realizing that he could entertain a captive of audience of traffic violators, he decided to try his hand at a comedy club open mic and never looked back. Within two years, Marc won the Gold Rush Comedy Competition, landed a spot on Galavision Network’s Que Locos! and started writing for George Carlin's Laugh.com. Marc has performed at the Boston Comedy Festival and also appeared on the PBS special Crossing the Line and SiTV’s Latino Laugh Festival.
http://www.trailoflaughs.com
Mark Sweeney
Mark is crazy funny with an extensive resume of countless performances for our US Troops in the Middle-East to include Kuwait, Iraq (Baghadad, Tikrit, Taji, Balad, Al Asad, Ramadi, Korea Village, Mosul, Rustimiyah, Mahmudiyah, Bayji, Ad Dawr, Kirkuk) and Afghanistan (Jalalabad, Bagram, Kabul, Qatal and Kandahar).
TELEVISION: Days of Our Lives (NBC), Boston Public (FOX), The Visitor (FOX), HBO'S Comedy Central, Night Shift with Kevin Ferguson, Double Helix and Comedy Network.
FILM: Killshot (06), Bzerk!, Word of Mouth, Dueling Tools, Bicycle ER, Brown's Requiem, Gnome Story and Running Mates.
LIVE STUFF: Kuwait, Iraq and Afghanistan, Carnival Comedy Challenge Winner 7/07, Paces' Garage (sketch comedy), L.A. Connection Comedy Theater (Improv theater), Comedy on the Lot (CBS Studios) and The Bob and Tom Radio Show.
COMEDY CLUBS: Funny Bone Comedy Clubs, The Laugh Factory, Gary Fields Comedy Club, The Improvs, The Comedy Store, The Comedy Magic Club, Penguins, Stanford's Comedy Clubs, The Comedy Cafe, Joker's, The Comedy Zone, Uncle Funnies, The Comedy House Theaters, The Comedy Scene, The Loony Bins, Chaplain's, Hilarities and others.
ACTIVITIES AND WORKSHOPS FOR WARRIOR GUESTS,
THEIR FAMILIES & FRIENDS
SATURDAY-TUESDAY, JANUARY 8-11, 2011
Schedule details were available on warrior applications.
Warrior guests spent the next 4 days with professional instructors learning new skills, enjoying Montana and trying out adaptive equipment. They chose from challenging winter sports, leisure activities and classroom workshops... FREE FOR REGISTERED WOUNDED WARRIORS! Friends and families were welcome to join at discounted rates.
The Yellowstone tour was scheduled on Monday, January 10, 2011. Events were adjusted with weather conditions. Transportation was be available between Big Sky and Bozeman for airport travel and to enjoy more of what these mountain towns had to offer!
HERE ARE FEATURED OPERATION SAS EVENTS:
ICE CLIMBING:
Novice and advanced climbers enjoyed this exciting natural Hyalite waterfall ice climb! Wounded warriors and their families/friends were welcome join this expedition with our professional guides Montana Alpine Guides, Andes Mountain Guides, and host Prolite Gear.
|
Watch an ice climbing demonstration. First time climbers! See more about ice climbing (at the bottom of this page). Our guide services were contributed by MIKE COOPERSTEIN and his expert climbing team of athletes.
SNOWBOARDING AND SKIING:
Snowboarding/skiing at Big Sky was FREE with complimentary lift tickets for registered Wounded Warriors. 
Big Sky Mountain Hosts were available to show warrior guests the slopes, if they were independent skiers. Eagle Mount provided further assistance with instructors specifically trained in adaptive skills, and will have special equipment available including mono-skis, bi-skis, ski-legs, snow sliders and outriggers. No matter what the disability, warriors enjoyed the exhilaration of downhill snow-sports!
MOUNTAIN DOG SLED TREKS:
Everyone learned how to mush their your own dog sled team through high mountain forests and meadows. See more at Spirit of the North dog sled adventures.
SNOWMOBILING:
Whether a beginner snowmobiler or want advanced powder play, they saw both Yellowstone and Teton National Parks, 3 states and 3 National Forests from these beautiful mountain sledding trails! See more at Yellowstone Snowmobiles. Sledding suits were provided.
HORSE DRAWN SLEIGH RIDES TO A BREAKFAST YURT:
Sleigh rides to a mountain yurt for breakfast and western entertainment had to be canceled in 2011 due to extreme cold conditions. See more at Cedar Mountain Corrals at Moonlight Basin for the next winter event.
DINE FROM A HIGH MOUNTAIN YURT:
A snowcat was available up a mountain to a canvas yurt for a high altitude candlelit gourmet dinner under stars. Montana Backcountry Adventures can tell you more about this adventure.
YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK WINTER TOURS
MONDAY, JANUARY 10th:
The Snow-coach Treks through Yellowstone gave guests the chance to see wildlife and Old Faithful. This was a full day adventure trekking through this steamy winter wonderland from inside a heated snow-coach. Box lunches were provided.
LONE MOUNTAIN RANCH DINING EXPERIENCE:
Dining at this old saloon and log lodge at Lone Mountain Ranch will be never forgotten. The gourmet western food and company was outstanding!
OPERATION SAS WORKSHOPS:
PTSD FORUM AND CLINICS ARE FREE FOR ALL!
Saturday, 9:00 AM: Guests learned more about outdoor sports opportunities! MATOR (Montana Access to Outdoor Recreation) introduced warriors to adaptive outdoor recreational equipment. They also discoverd the latest in high-tech prosthetics introduced by Missoula Orthotics & Prosthetics.
Saturday, 2:00 PM: Montana Fish Wildife & Parks (FWP) joined MATOR and Yellowstone Gateway at an archery range for an archery and bow hunting clinic. There was a demo on "Visually Impaired Archery" by wounded warrior guest, Mark Schrand. This clinic and demo was held at the Gallatin County Fairgrounds. Public spectators joined in.
Sunday, 9:00 AM: Warriors and Quiet Waters showed guests how to cast and tie the best flies to catch blue ribbon trout. They answered questions about fishing regulations, equipment, etiquette and river conditions in Montana.
Sunday, 4:00 PM: A PTSD Forum has held by Mr. Jesse Sellers from Technical Management Services, Colorado Springs, Comprehensive Fitness Division - tmsworkshops.com.
Sunday, 2:00 PM: Montana Mobile Meats lead a workshop on how to process your own game from proper field dressing to steaks and sausage making.
Registered warriors received detail schedule of events by email.
CHURCH SERVICES:
Sunday, 11:00 AM: There was transporation available for warrior guests and their families to attend church services at the Journey Church in Bozeman.
MORE ABOUT THE ICE CLIMB GUIDED BY Montana Alpine Guides
Read More About Our Contributing Guide: MIKE COOPERSTEIN. mike@andesmountainguides.com
THE ICE CLIMB LOCATION
Hyalite Canyon is one of the more famous vertical ice climbing venues in the world. It is home to such well know climbs as Genesis One, Genesis Two, Mummy One, Mummy Two, Fat Chance, Thin Chance, Green Sleeves and Twin Falls just to name a few. There are hundreds more in the Canyon and some of them have not even been climbed yet. We will be concentrating on The Genesis One area and the Green Sleeves Climbs. Green Sleeves and Genesis One combined to make one big 150 ft wall of ice, with a minor divide. It is an excellent set up, offering grades ranging from W.I. 2 on Greens Sleeves all the way up to W.I. 6 on the far end of the Genesis One wall, depending on the current ice conditions.
ICE CLIMBING 101
Vertical ice suitable for climbing is formed when a warm spring drips over a cliff in cold weather and freezes, or when a waterfall freezes in very cold temperatures. In Montana we have a couple waterfalls that freeze, but the majority are springs. The ice in Hyalite Canyon, where we will be climbing, forms naturally, as opposed to some other venues where water is artificially ran over cliffs. Vertical water (as opposed to glacier) ice climbing is based on a scale of 1 to 6 typically. There are harder climbs but they are very rare. Water Ice (W.I.) 1 is going to be at a moderate angle and can often be climbed with crampons alone. W.I. 2 is 65 to 75 degrees of vertical, and can be easily climbed with crampons and ice tools, this grade marks the beginning of the climbs at Hyalite. W.I. 3 through W.I. 6 get progressively harder and steeper, all of which are represented by many climbs in Hyalite, often on the same wall.
SAFETY AND RISKS:
The uninitiated typically view ice climbing as a high risk endeavor without the possibility for safety precautions. While some forms of ice climbing are quite risky, the climbing we will be doing is not. All climbing will be done by "top roping", which removes the risk of falling. Ropes will be attached to solid anchors above the wall, so that should a climber fall, they will only fall the distance that the rope will stretch, typically a couple of feet. The rope will catch, dynamically to slow the climber down safely and comfortably, and the climber can continue or ask the belayer to lower them to the ground.