Rotary Club of Casper, WY
Meeting Summary
08/07/2017
President Richard Schwahn called the meeting to order promptly at 12:27, with the ring of the bell and welcomed everyone to today’s meeting. He also told us that Steve Domonkos and Susan Frank are fine, they just had a miscommunication on return time.
Inspiration, Pledge, 4-Way Test:
Maribeth Plocek
Greeters:
Bob Barnard and Jesse Helm were the greeters today, and Jesse introduced the members who brought guests:
- President Richard Schwahn introduced Tom Page (Altitude Vet Clinic);
- Jason DeWitt introduced Evin Rodkey (Casper College);
- Bill Schilling introduced Dave Bruni (First Interstate Bank;
- Charles Schoenwolf introduced Carly Applegate (Epsilon Health Solutions) and also Sarah Szewczyk (City of Casper);
- Denise Prugh introduced our special guests for the program today, Rob Preston, Mari Chandler, Kyle Peter and Erik Sanders;
Song:
Gary Pehrson had us all stand and lead us in singing “We Will Rock You”
Kyle Gamroth, sponsored by Steven Schnell, gave his classification talk today. He told us about being raised here in Casper with two brothers. He graduated from KWHS in 2007 and went on to Casper College and then to UW where he graduated with his degree in Psychology in 2013 then he returned to Casper. He worked at WBI for a while with the teenagers and children which he really enjoyed. He then went to Central Wyoming Counseling Center where he still works and enjoys helping his clients. He loves outdoor activities and really enjoys what we have in Wyoming. He thanked his parents for their great influence in his life and how they raised him to be the person he has become.
Rotary TidBit:
President Schwahn introduced Deb Theriault who talked about the history of our Duck Derby. Deb told us that the Duck Derby started during her year of being Club President back in the year 2000. It was started because the prior fundraiser was decreasing in effectiveness because it was based on just Rotarians so they wanted to create a fundraiser that would involve the community and would be sustainable. Dick Stribling suggested that they take a look at the Estes Park Duck Race that they did every year. So they went down to their Duck Derby and watched the event and thought it would be a great idea and then realized that doing it on the Platte River would be a bit of a challenge. The first year they raised about $35,000 and we have increased that to over $100,000 each year now and has been a great fundraiser for our community projects.
Family of Rotary:
- Jack Swanson let us know that he and Denise Prugh went and picked up their kids from Young RYLA and said how much of a wonderful life changing event that is for those kids.
- Tom Lockhart let us know that their younger son had an article about him in the newspaper about his service to our country serving in Afghanistan and Saudi Arabia and a great full military career.
Rotarians of the Week:
- Bill Schilling nominated all of those who helped up at Rotary Park last Saturday; Clark Turner, Brad Cundy, Dennis Jack, Dick Wimbish, Dick Shambley, Dean Cline, Tom Thorson and his team, Richard Schwahn, and Guy Dewitt (the great painter).
- John Griffith nominated Jim Porter who, along with his wife just completed riding their motorcycles through West Virginia which was the last of the 50 states for them to ride through, they completed that goal.
- President Schwahn nominated those who helped with the Rotex meeting of the ex-exchange students; Becky Byron, Kevin and Ruth Christopherson, Mark and Janet Owens, and Michelle and Madeline Schwahn.
- Dave Elmer nominated all of those who worked Bear Trap selling tickets over the weekend; Jesse Helm, Susan Griffith, Peaches Lynch, Bill Schilling, Kimberly Manchego, Lisa Scroggins, Lori Klatt, Tom Bromley, Nicol Kramer, Don and Jim Harris, Anne and Bruce Ladd, Kristin Galles, Becky Byron, Dennis Jack, and Greg Brondos.
- Charles Schoenwolf nominated those who are helping him out with getting prizes for the Duck Derby; Dan Odell, Phillip Rael, and Sarah Szewczyk.
Announcements:
- President Schwahn announced that there will be a board meeting on Monday August 14th as we will not be having club meeting on the Monday of the eclipse August 21st.
- Dave Elmer announced that there are a lot of tickets left to sell. He then thanked the Duck counting and sorting committee for taking care of that big task. Mike Stepp, Deb and Gene Theriault, Guy DeWitt, Greg Brondos, Dan and Teresa McGlade, Anne Ladd, Dave McNulty, Jim Beck, Tom Thorson, Brian Deurloo, Charlie Shopp, Fred feth, Larry and Beth Madsen, Tim Anderson, Mark Owens, and John Griffith. We are still in need of more volunteers to help on the day of the event so please sign up to help. Also we need to have tickets sold and turned in as soon as possible.
Program (Adventure Race Champions):
PE Dick Jay introduced Denise Prugh who in turn introduced our guest speakers today. Kyle Peter is the main speaker today, he is the team leader for the Adventure Race team that is ranked #1 in the U.S. and #3 in the world. They also have won the Cowboy tough race each year for the past 4 years. He started by defining the term Adventure Race, Adventure racing (also called expedition racing) is typically a multi-disciplinary team sport involving navigation over an unmarked wilderness course with races extending anywhere from two hours up to two weeks in length. Typically they have Trekking, Hiking, Mountain Biking, Paddling and other disciplines that the course designers decide to include. He stated that navigation is the most crucial thing as they have to plan and execute their course for the time of the race and they constantly are checking the map and compass while out in the field. He showed us some great pictures of them in action around the world, climbing, jumping creeks, jogging on the beach mountain biking in the snow, etc. the course in Wyoming this year is over 500 miles long and entails a lot of different sports. He showed us the new rafts called pack rafts which they will be using in the race this year, they are very lightweight rafts that fold up and fit in the backpacks for easy carrying while in the race. He said that each race is unique to the place that the race is held as far as area covered, type of terrain and the sport disciplines that are included so they have to be ready for anything as they do not reveal the course until it is time to start the race. He showed us the junk food that they buy for the course and how they prep it for the length of each leg of the course. They do the same with their equipment to prepare it for each leg. Then the equipment and food is put into containers and dropped at the transition area at the beginning of each leg so that they can restock and be set for that leg of the race. They are totally self-sufficient, in that they do not have people out there handing them water bottles etc. they have to fend for themselves so they must be well prepared. One of the most important aspects is getting the correct amount of sleep as that is essential to be able to think and perform. Without enough sleep you get stupid and make mistakes. They have found that 2-3 hours a night is the right amount to stay sharp. They love to see the wildlife and countryside that they get to see while out and about in the different countries. They are here for their fifth year at the Cowboy Tough race which they have won each of the past four years, and he stated that they are thankful to have the support of Cameco as the race sponsor. This is the first year that the U.S. has the opportunity to host the AR World Championship games and this year the Cowboy Tough has been chosen to host the AR Championship. They are excited to be on their home turf for this race instead of being in a different country and they are ready to win. This year the race will be starting in Jackson and returning to Casper. He told us that the team work is the most important part of racing and they have put together a very cohesive team that works great together. He said that Governor Mead has done a great job at getting permission to cross some of the private property for the racers. They spend close to $20,000 a year each on the sport and practice 20 plus hours a week. They are not allowed GPS electronics, they have to use a map and a compass, but they do have a transponder so that they can be found but it does not help them navigate. There are a lot of racers that do it for the experience rather than trying to be the winner. This team does 4-5 of the long races and a few of the really short races like 3-4 24 hour races. Currently unfortunately there are no big sponsorships like some other sports but as the sport grows hopefully that will change.
President Richard Schwahn concluded the meeting at 1:30; letting us know that next week we are back at the Parkway Plaza and our Speaker will be the Wyoming Community Foundation.
In a new feature called the Rotary Reveal, we'll profile one member in each Rig with a series of questions and answers, that we might get to know one another better still:
Rotary Reveal: Heidi Foy
What was the last movie that made you cry? "Pretty sure I cried watching Moana."
What is your favorite color? "Green."
What is your least favorite food? "Sushi."
What book or books are you reading right now? "Find Your Extraordinary by Jessica Herrin and How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie."
If you could have dinner with up to three people from history, who would they be? "I would love, love to have dinner with my grandpas, both of whom died about 12 years ago, right about the time I realized they were incredible men. I wish I'd have taken the time to visit them more."
