The Rocky Mountain area isn’t known for its lakes, but there’s one we’re all pretty proud of. It’s everyone’s favorite terminal saline lake: Utah’s Great Salt Lake that, sadly, is getting less and less great every year.

To find out why it’s shrinking, why that matters, and what we can do to turn things around, Outlaw Beat talks to lake expert Eric Edwards, senior fellow at PERC (the Property and Environment Research Center) and associate professor of agricultural and resource economics at UC Davis.

Eric dispels some major myths about the state of the lake, like how much climate change is to blame and the practicality of some of the “magic bullet” solutions that are floating around out there.

This episode matters if you care about the wildlife, clean skies, and winter sports that make Utah a special place to visit or live.

Watch the full interview: ExploreBigSky.com/episodes/GreatSaltLake

Read more about PERC’s work with the Great Salt Lake: https://perc.org/2025/04/11/optimism-for-the-great-salt-lake-starts-with-water-leasing/

And attend the Lone Peak Film Festival in Big Sky Sept. 17-20! LonePeakFilmFestival.com

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May is Cystic Fibrosis Awareness Month, so it’s time to become aware of cystic fibrosis (and what it is) with Bozeman’s Cody Dieruf Foundation, named in honor of a 23 year old woman who passed away due to CF in 2005.

Outlaw Beat gets a crash course in CF thanks to Foundation Board President Janel Shamblin and Executive Director Pam Western. And with Give Big Gallatin Valley 2026 coming up in a couple weeks, there’s never been a better time to show your support.

Watch the full interview: ExploreBigSky.com/episodes/cody

Give Big: https://www.givebiggv.org/organizations/cody-dieruf-benefit-foundation

Learn more about the organization (and those MT license plates!) here: BreathinIsBelievin.org

And grab a sloshie at Big Sky’s Cowboy Coffee: CowboyCoffee.com/Big-Sky

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The 2026 Winter Olympics had it all: triumph, heartache, filthy cheating Canadian curlers, and a delightful clean-cut 23 year old freestyle skier from Helena, Montana named Konnor Ralph. 

Konnor joins Outlaw Beat to talk about his experiences in Milan where he did us proud by finishing 5th in Big Air and 9th in Slopestyle. He answers all your burning questions about the Olympic Village, getting mentally prepared to leap hundreds of feet in the air, and making the transition from terrain park rat at Great Divide to the largest stage in winter sports.

Watch the full interview: ExploreBigSky.com/episodes/konnor

Follow Konnor on instagram @konnorralph

And plan your next trip to the Crown Jewel of the National Park System with Explore Yellowstone! PlanYellowstone.com

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We’re talking about building Big Sky on this episode with help from a couple of locals who are doing the heavy lifting… JoDean Bing of Blue Ribbon Builders and Becky Brockie of Big Sky Community Housing Trust. Blue Ribbon Builders has been building well-known Big Sky infrastructure and homes since day one in the early 1970’s and the Housing Trust is doing important work to accommodate an increasingly large and precariously housed workforce. 

We cover a lot of ground in this interview: Chet Huntley, geothermal activity, the “Good Deeds” and “Rent Local” programs, the first fax machine in Big Sky. And it’s part of a series brought to you by the Big Sky Chamber of Commerce, in case you’re wondering who to thank.

Watch the full interview: ExploreBigSky.com/episodes/blueribbon

Enlist Blue Ribbon Builder’s help for your next project: BlueRibbonBuilders.com

And learn more about & support the Community Housing Trust here: BigSkyHousingTrust.org

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To oversimplify, powwows are big, colorful Native dance competitions. And if you’ve never been to one, have we got a doozy for you… 

Montana State University’s 50th annual powwow is coming up March 27th & 28th at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse, and who better to preview the massive milestone event than the co-presidents of the student-led organization responsible for putting it together, the American Indian Council.

Titan Brockie and Michaiah Pease join us to chat about traditions old and new that they oversee while also providing a beginner’s guide to powwows, in case this is your first year to attend. And you should attend! All are welcome and free to enter.

Watch the full interview: ExploreBigSky.com/episodes/powwow

Check out this link for further details: https://www.montana.edu/news/25161/montana-state-to-host-50th-american-indian-council-powwow-on-march-27-28

Help support the American Indian Council: https://www.montana.edu/aic/donations.html

And come out to the Waypoint for Ballots & Brews Tuesday, March 24! BigSkyWellnessDistrict.org

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Strip down to your skivvies! We’re getting hot and cold with Bozeman’s new rejuvenation destination, Umvelt (pronounced OOHM-velt) Bathhouse, where owner Paul Byrne shows off the luxurious sauna/steam/soak experience he has created in a 1936 Frank Willson building just off Main Street. 

Paul also helps us understand the history and health benefits of the ‘Slavic banya’ style spa and the way that ‘Umvelt’ delivers on its German definition: “the world as you experience it.”

Check out Umvelt at 22 South Grand Avenue (behind the Lark Hotel) or buy a membership here: Umvelt.co

Watch the full interview: ExploreBigSky.com/episodes/Umvelt

And join Gallatin River Task Force at the 20th anniversary of the fly fishing film tour on March 12 at The Waypoint gallatinrivertaskforce.org/fly-fishing-film-tour/

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For 90 years, the Bridger Ski Foundation has promoted, organized, and created opportunities for skiing as an activity in the Gallatin Valley. And up to this point, it has done so without a building to call a homebase. Just schlepping gear from van to storage closet to garage to ski-swap like Nordic nomads.

But that changes now. Board President Natalie Flowers and Board Member Peter Belschwender host Outlaw Beat at the worksite on Gold Ave that is soon to be BSF’s permanent home – “The Base” – to discuss the countless lives that have been touched and trails that have been groomed by the organization.

All of this has been made possible by the incredible generosity of donors, but there are still opportunities to help with the build and get your name on it.

Learn more, donate, and volunteer with BSF here: BridgerSkiFoundation.org

Watch the full interview: hoarymarmot.net/episodes/bsf

And learn more about the vote to create a Big Sky Wellness District here: BigSkyWellnessDistrict.org

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We’re talking about what makes the American West different (for better and for worse) in this episode with help from local historian and author Dr. Betsy Gaines Quammen. Her latest book “True West: Myth & Mending on the Far Side of America” explores how myths of the American West fuel modern polarization, extremism, and conflict over land and identity. 

Betsy’s area of expertise is extremism and land disputes in Western communities, so the conversation touches on Ruby Ridge and the Bundy family all the way to January 6 and beyond. You might be surprised by what we all have in common – namely a love for public land and a distaste for Utah Senator Mike Lee.

Watch the full interview: hoarymarmot.net/episodes/quammen

Betsy has a wonderful writing style that adds color to historical events and makes them relevant in the current time. Buy her books! https://www.betsygainesquammen.com

And check out some fast cars on a cool track at Big Sky’s FAT Ice Race: FAT International.com

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Bozeman Children’s Theatre is a machine that churns out 8 live productions a year, but their upcoming dark comedic musical “Heathers” both cuts deep and helps the wounds heal. Thanks to partnerships with Bozeman Health and Howlers Ridge, all the performances will feature a mental health-focused talkback immediately to follow.

Based on the 1988 movie and featuring a cast of high schoolers from across the Gallatin Valley, “Heathers” explores the complexities of teen relationships, identity, and peer pressure, all through the lens of dark comedy and 1980s pop-inspired music. Shows are at the Willson Friday Feb 27 at 6pm and Saturday Feb 28 at 1pm & 6pm.

BCT Executive Director Patrick Higgins and board Vice Chair Adrian Advincula join us to explain the origin and importance of the show. They also talk about the serendipitous way that actor Taylor Kitsch and his nonprofit Howlers Ridge became involved in the production.

Watch the full interview: hoarymarmot.net/episodes/heathers

Get your tickets at Bozeman Children's Theatre.com

And treat yourself to one of the few remaining lots at Sandhill in south Bozeman: sandhillbozeman.com

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Joey Morrison was elected Mayor of Bozeman in November 2023 so naturally he was just sworn in last month. We talk to arguably the youngest mayor in city history about that unique systematic oddity. We also discuss another of his triumphs, the creation of a local tenants union, plus the hollow victory of banning urban camping, and the small-town challenges presented by federal efforts to crack down on illegal immigration. 

Then we put him through his paces in a very realistic press conference.

Watch the full interview: hoarymarmot.net/episodes/mayorjoey

Make your voice heard in the civic arena: https://www.bozeman.net/departments/city-commission

And buy tickets now for the Big Sky Food and Wine Festival this Sept. 25-26 – bigskyfw.com

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