Slideshow: Ultimate Warriors Race During Crow Native Days

Click on the picture to view more than a dozen photos of Sunday's race.

Photos by Casey Kills Pretty Enemy
CrowNews.Net

Slideshow: Obama Visits Crow Country

Several thousand people attend the Barack Obama rally in Crow Agency Monday.

By Mary Hudetz | Photos by Casey Kills Pretty Enemy
CrowNews.Net

Sen. Barack Obama, the front-runner in the race for the Democratic
presidential nomination with Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, came to Crow
Country Monday, outlining his stance on some of the many issues facing
Native Americans and saying that if elected president he would honor
treaty obligations.

On June 3, Montana and South Dakota Democrats will weigh in on the
race for the Democratic party's nomination and the two states' primaries will mark
the end of the historic 2008 primary season. Obama's visit to
Crow marked the first time a presidential candidate campaigned on the
Crow reservation.

"Few have been ignored by Washington for as long as Native Americans, the first Americans," he said.

The Illinois senator's afternoon rally in Crow Agency was part of
one-day tour through Montana that included stops in Billings where he
held a town hall-style meeting at West High and an evening rally at the
Brick Breeden Fieldhouse. It was Obama's second trip to Montana this
campaign year.

"I'll host an annual summit at the White House with tribal leaders
to come up with an agenda that works for tribal communities because
that's how we'll make sure that you have a seat at the table when
important decisions are being made about your lives, about your nations,
about your people," Obama said to a crowd of several thousand people
spread across the grounds of the Veterans Park in town.

Editor's note: The slideshow above and this website are best viewed with the Firefox Web browser. Click here for a free download.

 

Video: 'Barack Black Eagle' Vows to Honor Treaties, Brings Spotlight to Crow Country

CrowNews.Net

In case you missed the rally in Crow Agency or you were there and just want to see
video footage from the event, the video above -- posted to YouTube by
the Obama campaign -- includes excerpts of Obama's speech and people in
the crowd.

The New York Times also has footage of a
laughter-filled moment during the event when Obama attempted to say "Absaalooke" several
times before getting the pronunciation right. (Click here to go to the Times' website and watch the video).

"I'm sorry, you know I'm still working on it," he said. "I
was just adopted into the tribe so I'm still working on my
pronunciations."




The crowd cheered. Obama was adopted in a private ceremony by Hartford
Black Eagle Sr. and his wife Mary just before the rally.

"I like my new name 'Barack Black Eagle,'" he said. "That is a good
name."


The Indian name given to Obama is "Awe Kooda Bilaxpak Kuuxshish" (One
Who Helps People Throughout The Land).



The rally, precluded by powwow
singing and Crow traditional dancing, was distinct from those the campaign
often holds in college and professional sports arena that seat upwards
of 8,000 people. NY Times political reporter Jeff Zeleny had this to
stay about the rally in Crow Country in a post on "The Caucus," a
political blog on the newspaper's website:

As the Democratic
presidential campaign has moved from season to season over the last 16
months, the political rallies and the town meetings often have taken on
a similar feeling and a familiar flavor.

Not so today, here on the Crow Indian Reservation.

A number of media outlets from The Washington Post to the Los Angeles
Times covered Monday's rally in Crow. Here are some more links
to stories on other websites:

• The Washington Post has a short blog post with a photo of "Barack Black Eagle" being escorted by his new adopted parents, Hartford and Mary Black Eagle. The candidate is also shaking a young supporter's hand.

• And the Los Angeles Times' Andrew Malcolm offers a fun read with a piece on the moment when Chairman Carl Venne explained to Obama the tribal officials wives had gifts for Obama's "wives." When the senator took the microphone, he corrected Venne with an air of humor, saying he only has one wife. "I don't want to get in trouble when I get home," Obama said. "I can have new parents, but no new wives... My wife is spectacular, she really is."

• Closer to home, the Billings Gazette's Becky Shay and Molly Priddy have a pair of articles about the Crow Agency rally.

Enjoy.

 

Crow Culture Day Slideshow

Photos by Casey Kills Pretty Enemy
CrowNews.Net

Click on the image above to view photos from the Crow Culture Day parade, taken on May 8th.

Daily Specials at the Trading Post Cafe

Slideshow by Adam Sings In The Timber
CrowNews.Net

Click on the image above to view the audio slideshow.

To view similar photos, visit the CrowNews.Net Flickr group.

A Look Back at the End of Plenty Coups' Season

Click above to view a slideshow from the Plenty Coups-Rocky Boy State Class C semifinal game in Butte.

By Brandon Gonski
CrowNews.Net

All season, the Plenty Coups Warriors had visions of a state Class C title game. And with only one loss going into the state tournament in Butte last month, it seemed a possibility.

Until the Warriors met the Rocky Boy Stars.

In the Friday night semifinal game featured in the slideshow above, the Warriors fell to the Stars 101-74, losing the chance to advance to Saturday night's championship game.

Despite a disappointing end to the Warriors season head coach Lawrence DeCrane said he was very proud of the boys getting this far and viewed their successes this season as a blessing that they should all appreciate.

The Stars were favored to win the semifinal, but the Warriors and their fans were hoping for the first state title since 1987 when they beat Absarokee 72-66. Plenty Coups made it to the championship game five years ago when they faced Roberts but lost 72-65.

The Warriors trailed the whole game but the fans never gave up hope, cheering the Warriors on until the very end.

The Warriors tried to match the Stars fast break style and made their own run in the third quarter but  simply couldn't keep up.

“Defense wins games,” said Warrior senior Altan Smart Enemy, “We just didn't have it.”

Smart Enemy who led the team in rebounds, points and turnovers (11-22-10) said he was very disappointed with the loss but that the team couldn't blame anyone but themselves. He and many of his teammates had dreamed of winning a state championship since fifth grade, he said, but that the team just couldn't get back on defense and acknowledged that they were overconfident after  after an otherwise great season.

The Warriors finished the regular season 21-3.

The Warriors indeed could not get back on defense allowing four Stars to score in double digits. Rodney Turn Toes led the Stars with 24 points, followed by Jerod Parker with 20. Mike Sangrey Jr. scored 18 while Eric Schildt had 17 points.

The Warriors had two players in double digits. Smart Enemy had 22 points and Rumeal DeCrane had 20 points.

The Warriors were beat to the boards constantly. The Warriors only pulled down 32 rebounds compared to the Stars 49. But neither team was able to hold on to the ball. Rocky Boy had 40 turnovers and Plenty Coups had 35.

With Rocky Boys' fast break and both teams amazing number of turnovers the game was frantic and came down to who could move the ball the fastest but also hold on to it. That team turned out to be Rocky Boy.

Jerod Parker finished the game with an 18-foot jumper in the last 26 seconds putting triple digits onto the Stars side of the scoreboard.

Smart Enemy remained optimistic for Saturday night's game.

“The team hurts bad but we'll just pick our heads up for tomorrow. We're definitely not out yet,” said Smart Enemy.

Big Sandy beat the Warriors 72-64 the following day.

2007-2008 Basketball Season Round Up

Here's a quick look at how the season went for some of the other teams on or near the reservation:

While the Plenty Coups boys finished their season at the state tournament in Butte, the girls team's last game was against Roberts on Feb. 16, when they lost 43-33, according to the Billings Gazette's GazPrepSports.com website. They finished 2-7 in their conference and 4-10 overall.

The Hardin High School boys went 11-7 and finished third in the Eastern A conference.
Their season ended during divisional tournaments. Clint Not Afraid was the Bulldogs' top scorer this year,
averaging 15.5 points per game.

The Lady Bulldogs' ended the season with only one conference win that came in a December home game against the Laurel Locomotives. Their overall record was 5-13, according to Montana High School Statistics website. Charla Takes Enemy and Leisha Shawl were the Bulldog's
top scorers this season, and each averaged roughly 11.5 points per game. For a
closer look at individual statistics on the women's team, click here.

Between St. Labre and Lodge Grass, our two Class B schools, the
Lodge Grass Indians finished with the better standings in their
district. They ended the season ranked second behind Columbus among
District 4 teams and went 8-10 overall while the St. Labre boys went
6-16 and finished fifth in District 3.

The Lodge Grass girls had a tough year, too, with six wins in a
10-game season. And the girls from St. Labre went for 2-15 to finish up
with a very rough season. Looks like it was a rebuilding year in Class
B.   

Zooming in on the Class C State Tournament

The Plenty Coups Warriors and the Rocky Boy Stars prepare to tip off during the Class C Basketball semifinal game in Butte. Click here to view a gallery of photos taken by Casey Kills Pretty Enemy. The images capture moments of the Plenty Coups players, cheerleaders and fans' trip to Butte last month.

Tournament Teams Face Off

Click on the image above to see the audio slide show.
To download photos for personal use visit: http://www.flickr.com/groups/crownews/

Story by Jennifer Kirby | Photos by Adam Sings In The Timber and Emily Haas
CrowNews.Net

Families and friends gathered in Lodge Grass last Saturday night for an informal hand game tournament. Seven teams paid the $100 entry fee, hoping to win the $700 prize.

Albert Gros Ventre, the announcer at the event, explained that tournaments like these occur frequently and sometimes address a need in the community. 

“We’ve had a number of deaths here recently, so we offer the prayer
to get rid of bad vibes," he said. "Then we can have fun and have a good time."

Drumming, singing and smoke filled the community building on the edge of town as players prepared to confuse their opponents. 

Play began around 10 p.m. The first round took nearly 45 minutes.
“We might be here until five in the morning,” Gros Ventre said.

Observers unfamiliar with the game may find it hard to follow. Which
players are hiding elk teeth?  Who’s up to guess this time? Are the
sticks divided up between the teams already? Who’s winning?

If the rules are complicated, the strategy of the game is unfathomable to the untrained eye.

Tylis Bad Bear, a young hand game player, offered his version of what it takes to be a good player.

“Just experience," he said. "There are certain things you have to look for. Everyone has their own way of guessing.”