The buses rolled into Silverton at approximately 2:15AM with as much energy as they departed 4 short days ago. Typically, It would be nice to have sleeping riders on a long trip, but their energy through song and play helped keep all of our drivers alert.
As I said goodbye to our last campers, Brueckner mentioned, "Well, we made it. 23 straight hours." I could not believe it. Who in the world scheduled this trip? However, I believe this trip was a tremendous success! The coaching staff will continue to debrief over the next couple weeks on ways to improve, but the initial consensus is that this trip was well worth the effort. Except for a few blisters and sunburns, all returned safe. Beyond that, the team is closer connected, they improved athletically and they are ready to take on new challenges that will arise in a football season.
There is so many people to thank. First and foremost, I want thank all those who faithfully covered us in their thoughts and prayers. I would also like to thank, Toni, Rebekah, Selena, Rachael, Angie, Carol(Mom), and Bill(Dad). Their servant hearts made everything possible. We were well taken care of. Thank you to the University of Montana, Missoula Parks and Rec, 10,0000 Waves, Stevensville High School, Big Sky High School, and West Valley High School. Finally, I want to thank the parents, coaches, and players. This was truly a team effort.
Please continue to use this site. It is a great medium for information and feedback on future events. It also serves as a good community site for the team to stay connected. I moderate the site, so nothing is posted without my eyes first seeing it. This is to keep it family friendly and helpful. Please continue to interact. If anyone would like to be a guest "poster," let me know. We would love to have you do it.
GO FOXES!
Coach Gragg
Thursday, June 26, 2008
Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Shhh....Listen.....
Do you hear that? Hear what you may be wondering? The sound of 40 football players at the ranch. It is all quite now. The players and coaches have made it to Spokane after an early wake up call and rafting on the Blackfoot. Sorry no pictures to post. Take my word, it was beautiful and a TON of FUN!! Players and coaches alike had great fun splashing one another in the 53 degree waters.
Remember Cabella's mentioned in an earlier blog entry? Well...they just continue to pack in the fun. The buses stopped for a 30 minute visit prior to their Spokane arrival. All is well and they should continue on the road as planned once finished in Spokane at West Valley High School.
I just wanted to say all of the players were a pleasure this week! They helped out whenever needed and did it quickly and cheerfully...(early mornings maybe not a lot of cheer) They built teamwork even in those moments. That's all from the ranch!! Thanks!
Toni Gragg
Remember Cabella's mentioned in an earlier blog entry? Well...they just continue to pack in the fun. The buses stopped for a 30 minute visit prior to their Spokane arrival. All is well and they should continue on the road as planned once finished in Spokane at West Valley High School.
I just wanted to say all of the players were a pleasure this week! They helped out whenever needed and did it quickly and cheerfully...(early mornings maybe not a lot of cheer) They built teamwork even in those moments. That's all from the ranch!! Thanks!
Toni Gragg
Tuesday, June 24, 2008
Day 3
Well, the very worst part of the trip took place this morning: high ropes on the Ropes Course! No, seriously, I think the consensus from the coaches was that this event was probably the best part of the trip in terms of players trusting and supporting one another. We woke up at 6 am and, after a very quick breakfast, headed for the Missoula Parks and Recreation headquarters. Though the ropes course looked terrifying to many, it was amazing to see the number of players whom at least attempted the various rope events. Players were harnessed in and were forced to trust the equipment and, in many cases, their teammates. The heights of the ropes varied from the “Y” ropes at around 20 feet to the bridge, Hour Glass, and swings at almost 50 feet. Take a look at the pictures on the right for a better idea of the experience.
After the ropes course, we had a quick lunch at McCormick Park, then loaded up and headed for Big Sky High School. We competed against the Eagles in a good passing scrimmage. Meanwhile, Coach Porter and Coach Gragg took the linemen and worked on pass rush moves and blocking technique.
Following the scrimmage, the players returned to the ranch and were welcomed with pulled pork sandwiches. The rest of the night has been let to relax and play heated games of volleyball. Lights out is earlier tonight because of the early wake up and rafting trip down the Blackfoot River (famous in A River Runs Through It). That’s it for now. Due to the tight schedule (and lack of internet connection), you may not hear back from us until we arrive in Silverton early Thursday morning.
Go Foxes!
Coach Emmert
Please remember us in your thoughts and prayers as we ask for safe returns to home sweet home! Coach Gragg
After the ropes course, we had a quick lunch at McCormick Park, then loaded up and headed for Big Sky High School. We competed against the Eagles in a good passing scrimmage. Meanwhile, Coach Porter and Coach Gragg took the linemen and worked on pass rush moves and blocking technique.
Following the scrimmage, the players returned to the ranch and were welcomed with pulled pork sandwiches. The rest of the night has been let to relax and play heated games of volleyball. Lights out is earlier tonight because of the early wake up and rafting trip down the Blackfoot River (famous in A River Runs Through It). That’s it for now. Due to the tight schedule (and lack of internet connection), you may not hear back from us until we arrive in Silverton early Thursday morning.
Go Foxes!
Coach Emmert
Please remember us in your thoughts and prayers as we ask for safe returns to home sweet home! Coach Gragg
Good Morning!
After breakfast, high ropes here we come! After that we are scheduled to scrimmage against some schools from Missoula.
We should be back a little earlier tonight and should have something posted by 8PM.
Thanks for all of the great support. Everyone is stretching themselves a little farther than they are comfortable. I like the way we are coming together!
GO FOXES!
We should be back a little earlier tonight and should have something posted by 8PM.
Thanks for all of the great support. Everyone is stretching themselves a little farther than they are comfortable. I like the way we are coming together!
GO FOXES!
Monday, June 23, 2008
Day 2
Is it possible to be too exhausted to type?
There was not a moment that went by where we were not touring, training, eating, hiking, walking, tight-roping, or team building. If fact, we stayed so busy that we landed at the ranch about an hour behind schedule.
The morning began with an hour and a half tour of the athletic facilities at the University of Montana. It was with a tremendous amount of pride that I was able to “show off” this great university. We ended the tour by invading the University bookstore. I think we made a few more Griz fans out of the boys.
After the bookstore, we changed and spent two hours practicing in a Division I stadium. The practice was lively and we did continue to make strides on offense and defense. In fact, we had each of the kids make an attempt at punting and I think we found a few candidates!
Once we finished practice, we headed towards Missoula’s Parks and Recreation headquarters for low-ropes challenges, team building activities and a mountain hike to the ‘M’ on Mt. Sentinel. Every coach and player made it! The view was well worth the challenging hike.
After finishing at the Parks and Rec, we stopped for quick showers at Stevensville High School before heading home. We then made it to headquarters for an awesome dinner of BBQ Chicken and a special chocolate dessert.
I’m calling it a night. The kids should sleep well tonight!
Good Night and Go Foxes!
There was not a moment that went by where we were not touring, training, eating, hiking, walking, tight-roping, or team building. If fact, we stayed so busy that we landed at the ranch about an hour behind schedule.
The morning began with an hour and a half tour of the athletic facilities at the University of Montana. It was with a tremendous amount of pride that I was able to “show off” this great university. We ended the tour by invading the University bookstore. I think we made a few more Griz fans out of the boys.
After the bookstore, we changed and spent two hours practicing in a Division I stadium. The practice was lively and we did continue to make strides on offense and defense. In fact, we had each of the kids make an attempt at punting and I think we found a few candidates!
Once we finished practice, we headed towards Missoula’s Parks and Recreation headquarters for low-ropes challenges, team building activities and a mountain hike to the ‘M’ on Mt. Sentinel. Every coach and player made it! The view was well worth the challenging hike.
After finishing at the Parks and Rec, we stopped for quick showers at Stevensville High School before heading home. We then made it to headquarters for an awesome dinner of BBQ Chicken and a special chocolate dessert.
I’m calling it a night. The kids should sleep well tonight!
Good Night and Go Foxes!
Rise and Shine
Good Morning!
Quick hello to show you sunrise on St. Mary's Peak and a picture of the boys 5 minutes before the lights go on (this will probably be the same seen 5 minutes after the lights go on.
We will be gone all day. Next Post around 10PM.
Quick hello to show you sunrise on St. Mary's Peak and a picture of the boys 5 minutes before the lights go on (this will probably be the same seen 5 minutes after the lights go on.
We will be gone all day. Next Post around 10PM.
Sunday, June 22, 2008
Busy Afternoon
The second half of the day one in Big Sky Country was filled with intense team building activities, spirited football competition and a visit from former Grizzly Linebacker Garrett Ventors (AKA 'Doc').
After eating a great lunch and giving the kids a chance to rest after our long hike we began the afternoon with three team building activities. These activities required the boys to work together and problem solve. They did a great job. This will be important as we build for the fall.
Following this, we hustled over to Stevensville High School and competed in 7 on 7 against the the Yellow Jackets. Great progress is being made on offense and defense. We are leaps and bounds ahead of where we were last year at this time. During the 7 on 7 competition, the linemen spent some time with Coach Porter and Coach Gragg and worked on some fundamentals. It was great to work some of Stevensville's big guys as well. After the scrimmage we invited our opponents over for dinner and spent some time connecting off the field.
After dinner, Coach Gragg's college teammate and current elite fireman, stopped by to share some thoughts. He also showed us some new core activities that Porter was taking notes on for conditioning next fall. Thank You Garrett for stopping by.
The boys are settling in for some good rest tonight. As busy as today was, Tomorrow looks to be just as action packed.
Good night from camp head quarters.
After eating a great lunch and giving the kids a chance to rest after our long hike we began the afternoon with three team building activities. These activities required the boys to work together and problem solve. They did a great job. This will be important as we build for the fall.
Following this, we hustled over to Stevensville High School and competed in 7 on 7 against the the Yellow Jackets. Great progress is being made on offense and defense. We are leaps and bounds ahead of where we were last year at this time. During the 7 on 7 competition, the linemen spent some time with Coach Porter and Coach Gragg and worked on some fundamentals. It was great to work some of Stevensville's big guys as well. After the scrimmage we invited our opponents over for dinner and spent some time connecting off the field.
After dinner, Coach Gragg's college teammate and current elite fireman, stopped by to share some thoughts. He also showed us some new core activities that Porter was taking notes on for conditioning next fall. Thank You Garrett for stopping by.
The boys are settling in for some good rest tonight. As busy as today was, Tomorrow looks to be just as action packed.
Good night from camp head quarters.
Kootenai Trail Hike
On June 22, 2008 the team that went to Montana, went to the mountain to go hiking. It was a great time for my first time going hiking. We hiked up the trail for about 4 miles it wasn’t that hard to walk on. Right next to the trail there was a river it was pretty wide. It was moving pretty quick. With so white water waves. We took some breaks along on the way up, so everyone could regroup and rest. I had a lot of fun hiking and hanging out with the team. Dakota Koenig
Saturday, June 21, 2008
FOXES Arrive Safely!
Wow…what a trip so far! The ride to Stevensville was an advenure in itself. The players and coaches really enjoyed the trip and many commented on the excitement of seeing a new part of the country. Here is a quick recap of the ride to Montana…
-The busses were able to depart Silverton at 5:15 this morning, 45 minutes earlier than we had planned. The coaches put non-monetary bets on the late arrival of certain players (i.e. Bremner, Humphreys, all Sinns), but were more than surprised to find that all players arrived prior to the official 5:00 arrival time. In fact, Joe Bremner was first, which must mean that the trip will be a huge success!
-We made it into the Columbia Gorge at about 6:15 and were making incredible time. Just before Multnomah Falls, one of the vans blew a rear tire. Luckily, a State Trooper was passing by and stopped to help us replace the tire. We lost a few minutes and received a thrill, but all in all, no harm done.
-We were able to arrive in Kenniwick, Washington right at 10:00am. Most players chose to eat at A&W, but a few went to McDonalds. We departed at 10:45 and were on our way toward Spokane.
-If you haven’t driven Interstate 90 to Spokane,…you aren’t missing much. This was the point in the trip where the weather got hot and the kids got tired. Many tried to sleep, but that endeavor was met with minimal success. On top of that, the topography of eastern Washington is nothing to write home about…lots of grass-covered hills and no trees.
-Once we came into Spokane, it really felt like we had gotten somewhere. The players seemed to brighten up and the long bus ride turned for the better. Spokane is a nice city to drive through, but the most excitement came with the sighting of the Cabela’s store on the Idaho border.
-The highlight of the trip up to that point (with the exception of the tire issue) had to be entering Idaho, and finally Montana. As we passed the state lines of both states, many players tried to take pictures of the welcome signs, but that was not met with much success. There was some hootin’ and hollerin’ going on, but that might have been because they had lived through four states of Brueckner’s driving. Not sure about that…
-The trip went so well that we actually arrived at the ranch an hour ahead of schedule! Players are already enjoying the ranch with several opportunities to fish, play volleyball, basketball, and some ball/rope toss thing (?).
-Parents you can take a deep breath we arrived safely! ☺
-The busses were able to depart Silverton at 5:15 this morning, 45 minutes earlier than we had planned. The coaches put non-monetary bets on the late arrival of certain players (i.e. Bremner, Humphreys, all Sinns), but were more than surprised to find that all players arrived prior to the official 5:00 arrival time. In fact, Joe Bremner was first, which must mean that the trip will be a huge success!
-We made it into the Columbia Gorge at about 6:15 and were making incredible time. Just before Multnomah Falls, one of the vans blew a rear tire. Luckily, a State Trooper was passing by and stopped to help us replace the tire. We lost a few minutes and received a thrill, but all in all, no harm done.
-We were able to arrive in Kenniwick, Washington right at 10:00am. Most players chose to eat at A&W, but a few went to McDonalds. We departed at 10:45 and were on our way toward Spokane.
-If you haven’t driven Interstate 90 to Spokane,…you aren’t missing much. This was the point in the trip where the weather got hot and the kids got tired. Many tried to sleep, but that endeavor was met with minimal success. On top of that, the topography of eastern Washington is nothing to write home about…lots of grass-covered hills and no trees.
-Once we came into Spokane, it really felt like we had gotten somewhere. The players seemed to brighten up and the long bus ride turned for the better. Spokane is a nice city to drive through, but the most excitement came with the sighting of the Cabela’s store on the Idaho border.
-The highlight of the trip up to that point (with the exception of the tire issue) had to be entering Idaho, and finally Montana. As we passed the state lines of both states, many players tried to take pictures of the welcome signs, but that was not met with much success. There was some hootin’ and hollerin’ going on, but that might have been because they had lived through four states of Brueckner’s driving. Not sure about that…
-The trip went so well that we actually arrived at the ranch an hour ahead of schedule! Players are already enjoying the ranch with several opportunities to fish, play volleyball, basketball, and some ball/rope toss thing (?).
-Parents you can take a deep breath we arrived safely! ☺
Friday, June 20, 2008
Gentlemen...Start Your Engines!
Early Thursday morning we sent the lead team (Toni, Selena, Rebekah, Anna & Brian) to Big Sky Camp Headquarters. I am happy to announce that they arrived safe and sound Thursday night. They did mention some Highway road repair that may slow us down tomorrow, but we’ll just have to wait and see.
Thursday, we concluded our spring practices with great enthusiasm and focus. Players are excited about the trip and we are already coming together as a team. After practice, we loaded the trailer with our football equipment and are now poised to launch early Saturday morning.
I would like to take this time to thank Matt Lovegrove and Lovegrove Collision for donating their trailer for this trip. The flames on the side perfectly match our theme, “CATCHAFIRE”
Thanks Matt!
Thursday concluded with a well-attended parent informational meeting. Thank you to all who were there. Please feel free to check-in anytime. We would love to hear your comments on the blog as well.
Thursday, we concluded our spring practices with great enthusiasm and focus. Players are excited about the trip and we are already coming together as a team. After practice, we loaded the trailer with our football equipment and are now poised to launch early Saturday morning.
I would like to take this time to thank Matt Lovegrove and Lovegrove Collision for donating their trailer for this trip. The flames on the side perfectly match our theme, “CATCHAFIRE”
Thanks Matt!
Thursday concluded with a well-attended parent informational meeting. Thank you to all who were there. Please feel free to check-in anytime. We would love to hear your comments on the blog as well.
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
T Minus 96 Hours to Departure
Well, we are less than 4 days from our inaugural Big Sky Camp. Much time, effort and thought has gone into this five day trip. Energy continues to build as we look to the exciting adventure.
There is still pre-trip work to do. Toni is busy finalizing grocery and packing list. Toni, the kids, and Selena Emmert will depart on Thursday to begin preparing for our arrival. Bill and Carol Gragg have had a busy spring sprucing up camp headquarters.
I am happy to announce that all activities have been finalized and Big Sky Country is anxiously awaiting our arrival. If you are interested in getting a birds eye view of the ranch click here.
The weather looks like it may cooperate during our visit. To get the 10 day forecast click here.
We welcome your comments and support.
GO FOXES!
Coach Gragg
There is still pre-trip work to do. Toni is busy finalizing grocery and packing list. Toni, the kids, and Selena Emmert will depart on Thursday to begin preparing for our arrival. Bill and Carol Gragg have had a busy spring sprucing up camp headquarters.
I am happy to announce that all activities have been finalized and Big Sky Country is anxiously awaiting our arrival. If you are interested in getting a birds eye view of the ranch click here.
The weather looks like it may cooperate during our visit. To get the 10 day forecast click here.
We welcome your comments and support.
GO FOXES!
Coach Gragg
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