The 8th Annual Big Sandy American Legion Coyote Derby started off much better than last year. The weather was brutal, with blowing snow and freezing temps that settled in Friday night and didn't let up until Sunday afternoon but it sure didn't slow down the calling class teams as the number of dogs they brought in in comparison to the open class was pretty crazy. We started the weekend with 31 teams for a total of 109 participants. With our crazy weather there weren't as many as some years but teams still brought in a total of 236 coyotes through the weekend. The derby brings in people from all over Montana. We had many teams from all along the hi-line as well as Bozeman, Three Forks, Great Falls, Lewistown, and Winifred.
The American Legion raised right at $10,500 this year. Of the 236 coyotes killed this weekend, many participants donated 57 of them, plus a porcupine and a bunch of jack rabbits back to the American Legion which when sold to the fur buyer brought an additional $275 for the American Legion. Our derby continues to be a blessing that allows us to give back to this amazing community. We gave away $2,000 in scholarships to Big Sandy students. This brings the total to $22,825 in scholarship awards that we have been able to create since the derby's creation in 2017. A program we plan on continuing for many years to come.
We also donated $2,500 to the boyscout troop that American Legion Post 50 sponsored, Troop 1450, that was started early last year. This is a great group of kids in our community which includes Gabe Cline and Walter Heimbigner from Big Sandy, Ernie Goetlich, Blake and Aj Marsh from Havre, and John Hummert from Gilford. The donation will go toward the troop purchasing an enclosed trailer so they can properly store all of their gear and equipment
First Place went to the 406 Outlaws which included Cooper Jenkins, Jade Van Wechel, Glenny Phillips, and Jace Lewis who brought in a total of 37 coyotes.
Second Place in the Open Class went to the Fresno Tavern team which included Kyle Peterson, Peyton Peterson, Kodi Peterson, and Paxton Peterson who brought in a total of 35 coyotes.
Third place went to Team "WestFork Farms" which included Jon Stoner, Kolton Brough, Jamie Douglas, and Josh Granell with 24 coyotes
First place in the calling class went to Team Parvo: Ned and Sam Miller, Chad Wiberg, and Jeff McGarvey with a whopping 45 coyotes.
Second place went to Team Busch Light: Eli Hinebaugh, Garrett Powell, Tanner Pronto, and Trent Jones with 28 coyotes.
Third place went to Team Whiskey: Ben Richmond, Brandon Stahl, Jeremy Stahl, and Chris Holstad with 16 coyotes.
This event would not be possible without the incredible sponsors, our community and the amazing participants that come year after year. A huge thank you goes out to everyone involved to make this event such a huge success.
