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My Page: Alison Grey

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A World-Class Community Climbing Event

With more than 140 climbs within a three-mile square-radius, Hyalite Canyon, just south of Bozeman, is home to the most condensed, naturally consistent ice climbing in the world. And this week, ice climbers from around the country, from novice to world-class professional athletes, will convene for a one-of-kind festival to compete, teach and learn from each other.

The best-of-the-best in the ice-climbing world will be on-hand to compete and teach, exchange stories, eat, drink and be merry at the Bozeman Ice Festival. Of course, don’t be intimidated, you don’t have to be a seasoned pro to partake in the festivities; there are plenty of opportunities and clinics for first timers interested in adding ice axes to their outdoor gear vocabulary.

“It’s really a community ice climbing event,” said Mike Cooperstein, owner of Montana Alpine Guides and an avid climber of 16 years. “People can go out and experience ice climbing, get tips from the pros, and see what it’s like. What’s cool is we get everyone together in one spot; all of the top ice-climbing companies, reps, athletes and demo gear.”

More details after the jump. [more]

Gallatin Valley Non-Profits

The Gallatin Valley is home to over 200 non-profits. These organizations do not hinge on metropolitan amenities, and are often created to preserve wild places and stimulate culture in communities of the West. As part of our New West economy, NewWest.Net/Bozeman is highlighting Gallatin Valley organizations in a weekly series.

With a vision to bind art to community, energy to inspiration, youth to vision, curiosity to wisdom, absurdity to transcendence, individuals to one another and our community to the world, The Equinox Theatre Company is an established and thriving professional theatre company based in Bozeman.

Founded in 1996, the organization currently has eight board of directors, six staff members and 40 volunteers, all of whom are striving to create an off-beat, thought-provoking, heart-inspiring theatre that is national in scope and masterful in execution, that educates and empowers kids, teens and adults, and evokes a vibrant local community. Soren Kisiel, executive director, expands on the Equinox Theatre Company and their efforts. [more]

Tips on how to hit the slopes in style

On a recent hike to the "M" (Bozeman's), as I was slowly huffing and puffing my way up the final switchbacks, I was passed by a hoard of young children running past me. A young girl, maybe seven-years-old with thighs the size of my wrists smiled and waved as she ran past me. I forced a grin in-between my gasps for air. It was the Bridger Ski Foundation crew preparing themselves for the season. At the top they were cheering and high-fiving each other. They still had energy, and I felt pathetic.

It was official; a lazy off-season spent eating, drinking and lounging had left little time for any sort of fitness routine. I knew if I was going to spend my winter hiking the Ridge and actually enjoying my powder days instead of focusing on sore muscles, I was going to have to do something about my pathetic state of fitness.

I decided to head to the experts, Cindy Fuhrman and Kris Bodean at the Downtown Ridge Athletic Club, who I jointly picked their brains to answer a few questions for those of us with a little work to do in the fitness arena.
[more]

Obsession or Hobby

It’s Weather Channel season. Whether we love the station or love to hate it, it’s that time of year again where we await the ski season with impatient anticipation. The channel is set on permanent and we check weather Web sites religiously, searching for the next low front to move through the Rockies and bring those vital storms.

We analyze past years, look deeply into patterns throughout the country and attempt to predict the powder in our neck of the woods. And of course, we want forecasters to predict the powder that we want. Don’t tell us it’s going to be a warm season with little hope of powder days. Argh.

When it storms, we love the Weather Channel. When the snow doesn’t come, we hate it. Yet, we can’t turn it off.

“It’s interesting to me how folks complain about the weather forecast, but they still check it every single day,” said Ron Johnson of the Gallatin National Forest Avalanche Center. “If you bought an album you didn’t like, you’d listen to it a couple times, but you’d get rid of it. With weather, people will listen to it every day and hate it.” [more]

Gallatin Valley Non-Profits

The Gallatin Valley is home to over 200 non-profits. These organizations do not hinge on metropolitan amenities, and are often created to preserve wild places and stimulate culture in communities of the West. As part of our New West economy, NewWest.Net/Bozeman is highlighting Gallatin Valley organizations in a weekly series.

When Emerson Elementary School closed its doors in the early 90s, the historic building was put onto the market, its future questionable. Concerned about buyers developing the property into businesses or housing, members from the Bozeman community successfully rallied together to preserve the building and create a community arts center.

Since its creation in 1993, the Emerson Center for the Arts and Culture has blossomed into the primary resource for the arts and culture in Southwest Montana, adhering to their mission of stimulating and celebrating the arts in all its forms, fostering a lifelong appreciation and understanding of arts and culture, and building community and economic development among creative enterprises, businesses and civic organizations. Jeane Alm, executive director, expands upon the Emerson Center and its efforts.
[more]

Food, Fun and Fashion for the Have-Nots

We may love the lifestyle here in Bozeman, but rarely does that lifestyle translate into high salaries. For the budget-minded among us, it can be a daunting task to entertain, feed and clothe ourselves in a town of haves and have-nots, surrounded by the expensive gear stores, stylish diners and posh bars that dominate the downtown scene.

Still, there are some pretty good deals on food, fashion and fun around town, and you don’t even have to resort to the corporate evils of North 19th.

Here are a few of the places (mind you, I’m judging on daily drink and food specials and overall low prices, not necessarily health) that offer the some of the best dirt-cheap options around. And please, if I’m missing any must-know deals around town, let me know!
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Non-Profits of Gallatin Valley

The Gallatin Valley is home to over 200 non-profits. These organizations do not hinge on metropolitan amenities, and are often created to preserve wild places and stimulate communities of the West. As part of our New West economy, NewWest.Net/Bozeman is highlighting Gallatin Valley organizations in a weekly series.

Founded upon the notion that a healthy and functioning environment requires interconnectivity between its natural landscapes, American Wildlands (AWL) has been advocating and promoting the conservation and protection of vital lands and wildlife throughout the Northern Rockies since 1977.

Placing a priority on areas outside of protected lands like National Parks and designated wilderness areas throughout Montana, Wyoming and Idaho, the organization is committed to protecting these ‘in-between’ places that are vital components to a healthy ecosystem.

The organization focuses much of its efforts on its Corridors of Life and Safe Passages Programs, with its most recent success being the initiation of a multi-year project on Bozeman Pass to decrease wildlife and vehicle collisions. The project was the response to the extremely high animal mortality rates on this stretch of highway, with nearly 1200 deaths in the past five years.

Tom Skeele, executive director, expands on AWL and their efforts. [more]

To Be or Not to Be…or To Be Midweek?

My credit card bill just arrived, and on it is a hefty chunk of my hard earned dollar going towards a season ski pass. Weighing in at two months of rent and one tank of gas (ouch!), I am hoping that the snow gods start gracing the Rocky Mountains with the necessary moisture to make my investment worth it for the season.

Skiing is a rich man’s sport that us poor people seem more than willing to dive further into poverty to pursue and every fall we have to determine which pass makes the most sense to us. My inner dialogue goes somewhat like this:

Should I try to get a job at the resort or volunteer my time? If I only want to work nights, am I being selfish with my recreating time? Should I invest in one pass and be tied to the same resort? Or, should a get a mid-week pass and plan weekend trips to follow the snow? Of course, that requires gas and a hotel room. Plus, I’ll probably blow too much money on eating out and going to those expensive resort bars. That’s out of the question. If I do buy a season pass, will work get in the way of making it worth the money? Maybe I should just find some hot ski bum with a sled to cozy up with and forsake the hill altogether! [more]

Avoiding the College Scene

It’s Friday night in Bozeman, and I find myself conflicted about whether I should brave the downtown nightlife. You see, fall marks a significant change in my life: college is back in session, bringing with it an influx of students and I find myself pushed out of my favorite watering holes by scantily clad underage glammazons flashing their fake ids and the gangs of loud testosterone driven boys that follow them.

The high heels and egos infiltrate every space of local bars completely transforming them from chill hangouts into blackout, puking bing-like atmospheres.

The non-college crowd backs away into winter hibernation, and unless we compete for bar space, our social lives are altered. We have to ask ourselves: Is the obnoxious Friday night college drinking scene worth braving in the name of a cold beer or some live music?

Here are some suggestions on where to avoid and where to find sanctuary. [more]

Non-Profits of the Gallatin Valley

The Gallatin Valley is home to over 200 non-profits. These organizations do not hinge on metropolitan amenities, and are often created to preserve wild places and stimulate communities of the West. As part of our New West economy, NewWest.Net/Bozeman is highlighting Gallatin Valley organizations in a weekly series.

According to the National Coalition Against Domestic Violence, 1.3 million women are physically assaulted by their intimate partner every year. Nearly eight million will be raped by an intimate partner and one third of female homicide victims are killed by an intimate partner. In Montana, according to the most recent statistics, there were 11,562 victims of assault reported in 2003.

Founded in 1979 under the belief that every individual in our society has the absolute right to a life free of abuse and oppression and the vision that peace in the world begins with peace at home, The Network Against Sexual and Domestic Violence was created to advocate for, and assist, survivors of violence.

With six board of directors, seven staff members and 15 volunteers, The Network is the only shelter in the Bozeman area, and during the last fiscal year, assisted nearly 800 survivors of abuse, offering a crisis hotline, legal advocacy, a safe haven and the emotional support required to survive an abusive situation. [more]

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