The much-anticipated Mountain Man Rendezvous organized by Jared Davis and the Activities and Recreation Committee (ARC) offered new experiences for every
Arrowman. At the southern-style pow-wow, Arrowmen tried and shared their skills
in different types of dances.
Arrowmen of all ages lined up to attempt mountain-man-style sports. Matt K. of Illini lodge in Champagne, IL, described the knife-throwing as "very fun and entertaining—spirit-lifting, in fact. It wasn't anything I had ever done before." Next to Matt, other Arrowmen threw tomahawks while others branded wooden blocks or leather with a special Indian Summer iron. Arrowmen also shot black powder rifles and tried to pop balloons with a bullwhip.
Bluegrass music for the evening was provided by the Whitewater Bluegrass Company led by "everybody's uncle"—Ted White on the upright bass. Completing the group were Billy Cunningham on the fiddle, Bill Byerly on the guitar, and Grammy Award winning Marc Pruett on the banjo. Ted led Arrowmen in a variety of dances, including a large square dance.
Arrowmen also participated in traditional Native American games including Native American leg wrestling, pahsahëman (similar to soccer), hoop and dart, and Native American lacrosse.
Over
100 dancers took part in the southern-style pow-wow. Slightly different music and dance styles from the
Sunday night northern-style pow-wow highlighted the regional differences in Native American cultures. Intertribal dances brought all dancers out onto the floor and specialized dances allowed the best dancers to hone their skills.
With both the Mountain Man Rendezvous and the Pow-wow, Arrowmen expanded their horizons and tried new and exciting things.
Revised 08/06/2003.
[an error occurred while processing this directive]