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Vicevich, Zimpel perfect in Week 3
Dave Vicevich and Kevin Zimpel each broke 50 out of 50 targets to top individual standings during Week 3 of the Butte Trap Club’s Fall League.
The 50s bring the total of perfect scores on the season to three. Riley Rigby shot a 50 in Week 1.
Kim McClafferty and Josh Bridgeman each shot a 49, while Jake Taverna, Gillian Clark, Kohlten Fultz, Justin Lerum, Timmy Schrapps and Seth Duclos each shot a 48.
McClafferty’s 49 led women’s standings, topping Clark by one. Clark’s 48 led wobble scores. Alex Schneider was next at 47.
Through three weeks, Wolverine Systems leads team scratch standings at 556. Arc Electric is second at 544, followed by Baker Auto at 530.
Week 3 Standings
Team Scratch Standings
Wolverine Systems – 556
Arc Electric – 544
Baker Auto – 530
FJBCHO – 523
St James Hospital – 522
Cooneys Locksmith – 519
S&S Plumbing – 509
Vicevich Law Girls – 506
Lockmer Plumbing – 498
KR Contracting – 497
Archibald Co. – 495
Pro Inspection – 488
Sundance Plumbing – 477
D-M Ranch – 472
Doodlebobs – 428
Superior Title – 427
Maloney’s – 412
J3 Construction – 411
WET 2 – 376
Granite Amusement/Oasis – 370
CF Plumbing & Heating – 357
WET1 – 348
Randy’s Boys – 311
Clay Howery Construction – 300
12G Girls – 280
Hazlett’s Heroes – 268
Daddy’s Girls – 257
Cooney’s/Vicevich – 184High Individual Scores
Kevin Zimpel – 50×50
Dave Vicevich – 50×50
Kim McClafferty – 49×50
Josh Bridgeman – 49×50
Jake Taverna – 48×50
Gillian Clark – 48×50
Kohlten Fultz – 48×50
Justin Lerum – 48×50
Timmy Schrapps – 48×50
Seth Duclos – 48×50
Alex Schneider – 47×50
Scott White – 47×50
Anthony Moritz – 47×50
Jake Dennehy – 47×50High Lady Scores
Kim McClafferty – 49×50
Gillian Clark – 48×50
Jen Hislop – 42×50
Lisa Edwards – 38×50
Colleen Fink – 38×50High Wobble Trap Scores
Gillian Clark – 48×50
Alex Schneider – 47×50
Seth Duclos – 46×50
Dave Vicevich – 46×50
Dan Radamacher – 44×50
Tyler Denny – 44×50 -
Podcast No. 209: Mark Schulte
Mark Schulte is the most accomplished high school quarterback to ever come out of Butte.
Butte High players can’t even argue that point because Schulte was 2-0 against the Bulldogs as the quarterback of Butte Central.
As a sophomore in 1971, Schulte did not get in the game as his Maroons lost to the Bulldogs in the season opener. The next week against Bozeman, BC coach Ron “Swede” Kenison gave Schulte the start, and the Maroons won their next 28 games. That includes those two wins over Butte High and three straight Class A State championships.
According to Montana sports historian Brian Reed, Schulte’s 28 wins stood as a record as a starting quarterback in the Class A until Dillon great Zach McRae matched it in 2006. Hamilton’s Carson Rostad (36-7) and Whitefish’s Luke May (30-13) since passed the win total, but Rostad and May players started four years. Schulte is the only starting quarterback in the history of the Class A to win three state championships.
You would have to believe he would have won the Montana Gatorade Player of the Year honor at least one of those years had the award been around back then.
Schulte, though, will be the first person to tell you that his 28-0 career record as a varsity starting quarterback is thanks largely to his teammates. He’d actually tell you it was mostly due to his teammates.
He makes a strong point, too. He played with some great players. Several of those teammates went on to play key roles in Montana State winning a national championship in 1976.
Schulte went MSU to play football, too. But serious injuries sustained in an automobile accident sidetracked his career. After a year off, he went to play for coach Bob Petrino at Carroll College.
Schulte, who was inducted into the Butte Sports Hall of Fame in 1999, comes from a huge Butte family known for its athletic ability and storytelling. His father, Bob, played in the first Montana East-West Shrine Game in 1947. He scored the first touchdown in the history of the game, and his number 13 is retired.
Since then, playing in the Shrine Game has been a Schulte family tradition.
All three of Mark’s sons were standout football players in Great Falls. His boy Rob went on to an outstanding career at the University of Montana.
Today, Mark is still in Great Falls with his wife Judy. He is retired after a long career as a teacher, coach, official and businessman.
Listen in to hear his story.
Today’s podcast is presented by Thriftway Super Stops. Download the TLC app and start saving today.
Photo of Mark Schulte courtesy Josie Trudgeon Photography.
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Robert Lester and Braxton Mitchell should be household names
If you have talked to me at all over the last couple of weeks, I likely told you about Robert Lester.
I have been telling everyone about the 27-year-old Butte guy, and a lot of people have looked at me as if to say, “Robert who?” Then I go into a 10-minute explanation about the greatness — and coolness — or Robert.
I have been talking about him so much that my wife says I have a man crush on him. She says it is like the man crush she accused me of having on the Moreno brothers, Kameron and Kobe, when they played football and wrestled for Butte High.
She is basically saying I am infatuated with Robert the way George Costanza was mesmerized by Elaine’s cool boyfriend, Tony, on Seinfeld.
“He’s such a cool guy,” George said of Tony. “You should hear the way he talks to waitresses. He gets free pie.”
I would venture to bet that Robert gets free pie, too. He should. So should his cousin, Braxton Mitchell.
Like Tony, Robert is a handsome young man with long hair. They both wear hats, but Robert usually has his hat on facing the front, and he would never tell anyone to “step off” like Tony did. He is way too nice to do such a thing.
Robert can climb rocks better than Tony, too. He has climbed Mount Rainier multiple times, and stood on the top of Mount St. Helens.
You see, Robert is a mountaineer who does not seem to be afraid of anything. He climbs up to the top of the highest peaks just to ski down what would have to be considered a triple back diamond run.
He even skied down one of the black slag piles outside of Anaconda.
Like George, I would be scared to death if I attempted to climb a rock. Any rock. I don’t even like going on a Ferris wheel, and I once had to be carried down a relatively easy run at Discovery Ski Area.
If you go to his YouTube page, you can see Robert climbing a wall of ice or swinging on a long rope off Looking Glass Rock in Utah.
I would never attempt any one the many things Robert has accomplished. Not one.
But, like George, I could make him a sandwich for his journey — tuna or salmon salad.
Robert’s latest venture is the “Columbia River Canoe Project” film that will premier Friday at the Original Mine Yard. Gates open at 6 p.m., and the night will include a concert by Butte’s Levi Bloom before the film begins at 8:15.
Robert is showing the movie to the people of Butte for free — before, as I suspect, the film goes big time.
When I first heard about the “Columbia River Canoe Project” about a month before the duo got into the canoe, I figured Robert was kind of crazy. I figured it was a journey that was half Evel Knievel and half Lewis & Clark.
Then I saw the movie. Since Robert was once again a guest on my podcast, the ButteCast, last week, he sent me a link so I could watch the uncut version of the movie before the premier.
I watched it three times already.
“Crazy” is not the word to describe Robert. He is courageous and brave. Yes, those words might be the first-cousin of crazy, but there is a difference.
Robert and cousin Braxton, then 18, hopped into a canoe in Silver Bow Creek, just off of Montana Street in Butte. They floated, walked or paddled that canoe nearly 1,300 miles. They went to the Clark Fork River, the Columbia River and the Pacific Ocean.
They crossed Idaho, went in and out of Canada, and through Washington and Oregon. One of the experts talking in the beginning of the movie called the journey “bad ass,” and it is hard to find a better way to describe it.
Even thinking about the trip is bad ass. Following through with journey over 52 grueling days and nights is off the bad-ass charts, and the film documents it all.
The film runs for 1 hour, 1 minute, and it seems like it is even longer. That is not to say that it drags on. Rather, the movie makes you feel that you are a part of a journey that almost seemed impossible. You ride the highs and lows of moral with Robert and Braxton.
The film is funny, emotional and educational.
The funny part mostly comes from Braxton, who quickly learns that his calm, cool and collected cousin is also a bit of a drill sergeant. That is because Robert knew that they had to always be on the move if they were going to make it to the Pacific.
When talking about carrying the canoe through the Alberton Gorge, Braxton said, “I feel like it has been going OK, but it just really sucks.”
Braxton went on the trip with just 10 days’ notice, and he had never been in a raft or canoe before in his life. He later told Robert that he was afraid of the water.
Yet he was brave enough to take on such an incredible journey.
The emotional part comes mostly from Robert’s friend, Ty Stosich of Lima. Ty is quadriplegic, and his conversations with Robert inspired the trip that Robert had dreamed about since he was a young boy.
Ty should make the circuit as a motivational speaker. Robert’s good friend just might be the most positive person in on the planet, even when he has all the reason in the world to be negative.
When you hear him read a letter to Robert late in the movie, you are not human if your eyes are dry.
Robert, though, is the star of the show. It was his idea, and he was the leader.
What amazed me most about Robert is his problem-solving ability. He never seems to get fazed, no matter how daunting the problem might have been.
You see that in the film when the duo dumps the canoe on Day 1. Robert had to figure out a way to get the vessel out of the bottom of the creek.
When they had to carry the canoe around the Columbia River Gorge because the wind made the water way too dangerous to navigate, Robert shrugged and handled the news like someone who ordered a Pepsi but told that the restaurant only had Coke products.
He was talking about carrying the canoe all day for four or five straight days, too.
When the two were thrown from the canoe in a dangerous stretch of river that was a waterfall before a dam was constructed, Braxton was borderline panicked. Robert giggled.
“Robert was laughing and woohooing,” Braxton said, “and I was like, ‘Oh my God, I just almost died.’
“Without an attitude like his in charge of this trip, it wouldn’t be possible.”
The journey and the film also shine some light on the importance of dam removal and cleaning up the mine waste in the watershed from Butte to the Pacific.
Contamination from 100-plus years of mining should be cleaned up all the way. So should the former Smurfit-Stone Container site outside Missoula.
As it is now, only a small man-made berm separates ponds of water contaminated by cancer-causing chemicals from getting into the waterway by the Smurfit-Stone site.
Robert and Braxton brought that fact to the attention of the media as they floated through Missoula. Hopefully the right people pay attention.
As they stood and look at the ocean, Braxton said something very profound, even though I suspect he never realized it would be so moving.
“Silver Bow Creek water is in there,” he said. “Crazy. It might just be the dirty film across the top, but it’s in there.”
It sure would nice if someday we could be proud of that Silver Bow Creek water.
The movie gets two major thumbs up. Maybe even three. It would be crazy for Netflix — or some other giant streaming service — to not buy the movie. It would be crazy if you do not watch it.
Not only that, it would be crazy for Netflix to not try to get more content from Robert and Braxton. The duo should go on more adventures around the world to entertain and educate.
Those two should be household names.
It would be crazy if they didn’t invite me to join those adventures, too. After all, somebody needs to make the sandwiches.
Tuna or salmon salad.
— Bill Foley, who is also the master of PB&J, can be reached at foles74@gmail.com. Follow him at twitter.com/Foles74. Listen to him on the ButteCast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
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KC League looks to begin next week
The Knights of Columbus Athletic Club’s fall basketball league will start Tuesday, Sept. 3 if enough teams sign up.
The league features four-man teams playing games twice a week, Monday through Thursday from 6 to 10 p.m. at the Felix Madrazo Gymnasium. The league will run 10 weeks with a double-loss tournament at the end.
Cost is $125 per team, and teams can sign up at the bar or by contacting Dan Boyle at (406) 491-2529.
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Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week: Will McGree and Dylann Bartoletti
Will McGree of Butte Central and Dylann Bartoletti of Butte High are this week’s Leskovar Honda Athletes of the Week.
The honors come after the two opened the high school golf season on a high note.
McGree receives the boy’s honor after leading the Maroons in the season-opening Butte Central Invitational at the Highland View Golf Course. The junior shot a 78 to place fourth overall in individual standings.
McGree’s effort led the Maroons to third place in the team standings. McGree also competes in basketball and track for Butte Central.
Bartoletti takes home the girls’ honor after leading the Bulldogs at the season-opening Great Falls Invitational. The senior carded a 94 at the Eagle Falls Golf Club. The tournament was cut short after a storm on Monday wiped out the first round.
Bartoletti placed 18th overall in a tournament that featured 15 of 16 Class AA teams. She is also a standout in basketball and track for the Bulldogs.
For the second year, Leskovar Honda, home of the 20-year, 200,000-mile warranty, is teaming up with the ButteCast to honor the finest student-athletes from the Mining City in an effort to encourage more children to get up, get out and try all kinds of sports and activities.
Photo of Bartoletti courtesy Alycia Holland Photography.
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Podcast No. 208: Todd Ericson
When you talk about the greatest athletes to ever come out of Butte, America, Todd Ericson is definitely on the short list.
The very short list.
The 1989 Butte High graduate earned first-team All-State honors two times in football and basketball. He helped lead the Bulldogs to State championship game appearances in both sports.
But if you want to explain the greatness of Todd Ericson, you only need one number: 37.
From 1990 through 1993, Todd wore No. 37 while playing football for the Montana Grizzlies. He was just the third player to wear that jersey number in hand-me-down tradition — and it is a tradition that turned out to be one of the best in college football. Ericson helped lay the foundation for that great tradition.
Kraig Paulson wore No. 37 from 1983 through 1986. Then the fullback handed it down to Tim Hauck, who first donned it in 1987. Hauck gave it to Erickson, and it has been a Montana native who plays defense wearing the number ever since.
Ericson, who played safety for the Grizzlies, gave it to Jason Crebo of Helena, and this year Trevin Gradney of Billings will be the 18th Grizzlie to wear the number in the handed-down tradition.
Today, Ericson, a 2013 Butte Sports Hall of Fame inductee, lives in Sammamish, Washington, and he is up to some great things.
Listen in to this podcast to hear what he is up to. Listen as he talks about his class of 1989, which included fellow Grizzly football players Lance Allen and Chad Lembke and Grizzly basketball player Gary Kane. Listen as he talks about his days at Butte High and his 1989 basketball team joining the Butte Sports Hall of Fame this summer.
Listen in as he talks about his Grizzlies days and how injuries derailed his chances of making the team when he went to camp with the Indianapolis Colts in 1994.
The photos of Ericson above are, from left, his newspaper mug shot from 1989, his appearance at the Butte Sports Hall of Fame in July and his Montana Grizzly photo that is on his Butte Sports Hall of Fame plaque. (Photo of Ericson in his Green Jacket is courtesy Josie Trudgeon Photography).
Today’s podcast is presented by Casagranda’s Steakhouse. Eat where the locals eat.
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Podcast No. 207: Robert Lester returns
Last year, two young men from Butte did something incredible.
Experienced mountaineer Robert Lester and his cousin Braxton Mitchell, who says he is not a mountaineer, traveled from the Mining City to the Pacific Ocean by canoe.
In incredible — and important — journey covered nearly 1,300 miles. It took 52 grueling days as Robert and Braxton paddled and carried the canoe the entire way.
Braxton, who was 18 at the time, had never been in a canoe before.
The “Columbia River Canoe Project” is a documentary about their journey. The movie, which lasts 1 hour, 1 minute, gets two gigantic thumbs up from the ButteCast. On Aug. 30, the public in Butte gets to see why. You will laugh. You will cry. You will learn.
The movie will premier with a night of music, education and the film at the Original Mine Yard. Gates open to the free event at 6 p.m. After a Levi Bloom Concert, the film will be played at 8:15 p.m.
In April of 2023, Robert appeared on the ButteCast to talk about his adventure. Today he returns to talk about the trip and the movie.
Today’s podcast is presented by Leskovar Honda, home of the 20-year, 200,000-mile warrantee.
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Rigby, O’Dell, Schneider, Vicevich lead Week 2 of Butte Trap League
Four shooters broke 49 out of 50 targets to lead Week 2 of the Butte Trap Club’s Fall League Thursday night.
Riley Rigby, Kevin O’Dell, Alex Schneider and Dave Vievich all came within one target of a perfect score to top individual standings. Rigby registered the first 50 in the opening week.
Ryan Miller, Seth Duclos, Kevin Zimpel, Josh Bridgeman, Chad Fellows, Mark Hislop, Kohlten Fultz and Tim Cassidy each shot a 48.
Rayelynn Brandl shot a 44 to top women’s standings. She beat Gillian Clark by one. Jen Hislop followed at 41, while Colleen Fink shot a 39, and Kim McClafferty broke 38 targets.
Stephen Frazee’s 47 led wobble scores. Scott White and Reese Gehrig were two back at 45, and Ryan Bossard shot 44.
Arc Electric leads team scratch standings after two weeks at 373. Wolverine Sytstms and Granite Amusement/Oasis are tied for second at 370.
Butte Trap Club – 2024 Fall League – Week 2 Standings
Team Scratch Standings
Arc Electric – 373
Wolverine Systems – 370
Granite Amusement/Oasis – 370
CF Plumbing & Heating – 357
Baker Auto – 353
Lockmer Plumbing – 348
FJBCHO – 342
Cooneys Locksmith – 338
Vicevich Law Girls – 335
S&S Plumbing – 334
KR Contracting – 333
D-M Ranch – 324
Pro Inspection – 322
Archibald Co. – 322
Randy’s Boys – 311
Maloney’s – 288
Superior Title – 279
WET 2 – 277
Hazlett’s Heroes – 268
Doodlebobs – 265
Daddy’s Girls – 257
J3 Construction – 249
Cooney’s/Vicevich – 184
St James Hospital – 175
WET1 – 174
Sundance Plumbing – 168
Clay Howery Construction – 164
12G Girls – 139High Individual Scores
Riley Rigby – 49×50
Kevin O’Dell – 49×50
Alex Schneider – 49×50
Dave Vicevich – 49×50
Ryan Miller – 48×50
Seth Duclos – 48×50
Kevin Zimpel – 48×50
Josh Bridgeman – 48×50
Chad Fellows – 48×50
Mark Hislop – 48×50
Kohlten Fultz – 48×50
Tim Cassidy – 48×50High Lady Scores
Rayelynn Brandl – 44×50
Gillian Clark – 43×50
Jen Hislop – 41×50
Colleen Fink – 39×50
Kim McClafferty – 38×50High Wobble Trap Scores
Stephen Frazee – 47×50
Scott White – 45×50
Reese Gehrig – 45×50
Ryan Bossard – 44×50 -
Silver B’s induction set for Sept. 20
The 2024 Butte High Silver B’s induction will be held Friday, Sept. 20 at Butte High’s Richardson Gymnasium.
Joining the Silver B’s this year will be all first-year varsity football lettermen from the 1999 Bulldog team. Golden B’s will be the lettermen from the 1974 team. Lee Smith of Columbia Falls will be inducted as a Diamond B. Smith earned his first letter in 1949.
Smith, however, will not be able to attend the event.
All attendees are asked to RSVP and prepay so the organization can get an accurate count. Submit your reservations and payments at buttehighsilverbs.com. You can also mail in your payment to Butte High Silver B’s, P.O. Box 4655, Butte, MT, 59702.
The Bulldogs will take on Missoula Big Sky on Silver B Night. Game time is 7:30 p.m.
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Bill Salonen showed that old saying about Butte is still true
The saying is as old as time, and it still rings true.
“You can take the boy out of Butte, but you can’t take the Butte out of the boy.”
Yes, there is just something about our old mining camp. Being from here is something to be proud of — even if decades have passed since you moved away.
Sometimes we might come across as a little too proud because so many of us wear the fact that we are from Butte boldly on our sleeves. Like vegans and cross fitters, you don’t have to ask us if we’re from Butte. We will let you know.
Some people will even tell you that their parents or grandparents were from Butte. We are from Butte, America, dammit. Once a Butte Rat, always a Butte Rat.
Last month, we got a reminder of that when Bill Salonen came back to town for the Green Jacket Ceremony of the Butte Sports Hall of Fame.
The Green Jacket Ceremony is on Friday night of the Hall of Fame weekend. The new individual inductees get their Green Jackets, while many past inductees come back for another victory lap as a Hall of Famer.
Bill celebrated his 90th birthday during the Green Jacket Ceremony on July 19.
Salonen is not only a Butte sports legend. He is a Montana State and Great Falls High legend. He is probably most well known in Great Falls — as an administrator and as the father of Brian Salonen, a University of Montana Hall of Famer who had a brief career with the Dallas Cowboys.
During his career, Bill had a profound impact on the lives of so many students — athletes or not — as they made their way through the school system.
Before that, though, Bill was a superstar for the Butte High Bulldogs.
The 1952 Butte High graduate led the Bulldogs to a divisional title as a senior. He was named All-State that season. At 6 feet, 2 inches, Bill, who was described as “rangy” by The Montana Standard, jumped into the Bulldog starting lineup as a senior, and his career took off.
He scored 220 points that season, and his name appeared in more headlines than a Kardashian.
On the gridiron, Bill was named to the sixth Montana East-West Shrine Game in 1952, and he helped the West beat the East, 13-0.
He was the vice president of his senior class at Butte High.
After graduating, Bill took his talents to Montana State, which was then called Montana State College. He played basketball for the Bobcats, receiving tons of awards and recognition. He graduated ranking No. 4 on the school’s all-time scoring list.
He currently ranks No. 8 in free throws made as a Bobcat and No. 7 with 120 career games played.
After college, Bill served in the Army and then put in 21 years in the Army Reserves, where he retired as a Lt. Colonel. He began coaching and teaching in Glasgow before his career took him to Great Falls, where he is beloved.
Bill was inducted into the MSU Hall of Fame in 2003. That came four years after he became a member of the Butte Sports Hall of Fame as part of the seventh class of the Mining City Shrine.
Seeing how happy Bill was to be back in town for the Green Jacket Ceremony last month was one of the highlights of the weekend. It ranks right up with seeing Bob Rowling push fellow Hall of Famer Dick Roche, who was in a wheelchair, down the aisle during the Green Jacket Ceremony.
When it came time for Bill to walk down the aisle with his cane, Ron Davis read some of his many accomplishments. Then, he announced to the crowd that it was Bill’s 90th birthday before leading the crowd singing “Happy Birthday.”
Bill acknowledged the crowd by raising his left fist high in the air as he used his right hand to hold his cane. Eventually, that fist turned into a very high thumbs up.
Thankfully, Josie Trudgeon caught the moments with her camera.
Bill Salonen acknowledges the crowd during the July 19 Butte Sports Hall of Fame Green Jacket Ceremony. Click on the photo for more memories of the weekend. (Josie Trudgeon photo) Being far from a Hall of Famer, I cannot say what the best thing about the Butte Sports Hall of Fame is for inductees. But I would have to imagine returning every two years for that victory lap has to rank very high.
As he celebrated his 90th birthday, I think Bill would have agreed. He shook the hand of almost every person in the packed Butte Civic Center to introduce himself.
After the ceremony, Don Peoples, the founder of the Hall of Fame, and I looked on as Bill introduced himself to Gary Kane, a fellow Butte High hoops legend from four decades later.
Gary knew the man introducing himself, and I think the guy who played with the Montana Grizzlies against Larry Johnson and that great UNLV basketball team in 1991 was star struck.
I would venture to bet that bragged about that encounter in the weeks following the event.
Bill was so happy at the Green Jacket Ceremony that he mailed a donation check to the Butte Sports Hall of Fame the following Monday. He wanted to help put on the next event so other old Hall of Famers could feel like he did.
Unfortunately, Bill will not be able to attend the 2026 induction ceremony. At least not physically.
Shortly after the Hall of Fame weekend, Bill became sick. Last Tuesday, he passed away peacefully. His funeral will be held at 3 p.m. Saturday at the Great Falls High Davidson Auditorium.
Guests are invited to wear Great Falls Bison apparel of their choice. But hopefully, we see a few Butte Sports Hall of Fame Green Jackets there, too.
Bill was a very proud member of that “Green Jacket” fraternity. Being a Butte Sports Hall of Famer was important to him. You could see that in his face as he took one last victory lap.
His smile said it all. As beloved as Bill Salonen was — and always will be — in the Electric City, a large piece of his heart always belonged to the Mining City.
Bill’s smile also showed us once again that the saying is true.
No matter how hard you try, you can just not take the Butte out of the boy.
— Bill Foley, who will never be taken out of Butte, can be reached at foles74@gmail.com. Follow him at twitter.com/Foles74. Listen to him on the ButteCast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you find your favorite podcasts.
