Friday, October 16, 2009

Missoula 2009, Episode 3


One good reason to move to Missoula is the presence of lovely little micro-breweries. I never once while living there went to Big Sky Brewing on a Friday evening to have a growler filled up with Moose Drool brown ale for $5.00, but I know people who did. And so it's nice to come back and visit for one of these marvelous creations, fondly called "motor oil" by Danish Cowboy.Another fine reason to travel to Missoula, and the whole point of this little adventure, was to attend a University of Montana Grizzlies football game. These people tailgate in any and all weather. The valley may be filled with smoke from wildfires in early September or it may be covered in snow with the temperature hovering at 15 degrees Fahrenheit. But the show will go on.
And what a show it is! I doubt that there are other stadiums that are more scenic than Washington Grizzly stadium. I doubt that there are other places where your seats can look off to the north and you can daydream about the Rattlesnake wildnerness area, located just a short bike ride from where you are sitting. I doubt that there are other places where you can look at those mountains and trees, knowing that they extend uninhibited for many miles to the north into what is known as the Y2Y corridor.But wait, we didn't come here to daydream about mountains!
We came here for some good entertainment! Meet Monte the mascot. He is the only 2 time Capital One mascot of the year and is the highlight of the opening ceremonies.
Because this was homecoming weekend, all the stops were pulled out. A special treat for my ears: an acoustic rendition of the Star Spangled Banner by the Mission Mountain Wood Band. Never heard of them? Imagine a Montana good ole' boy version of The Dead or Phish. And then imagine them singing the National Anthem. Have I said before how much I love this town!
As a grand finale to this little opening number, we were treated to a flyover by two privately owned military jets. And I discovered that no matter what your feelings are towards military actions, this sort of thing gives you a sense of pride and makes your heart swell with emotion.
Apparently they also played a little bit of football that afternoon. However, my eyes had frozen over at this point and my toes were numb. What was that, do you ask? "Did we win?" Of course we won.


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