Big Sky PBR is right around the corner and this year is set to start with a bang thanks to Montana’s Premier Horse Sale July 10-12. Colby and Codi Gines of MM Auction Services join us to preview the event that will bring in top-shelf horses and horse buyers from all over the country.

Big Sky PBR has added a new event to Big Sky’s Biggest Week — a series of trail races taking you through local wilderness on dirt and single track. Race organizer Liz Blue and race co-designer Dr. Kaley Burns join us to preview the 21K, 11K, and 5K relay races heading this way July 13th.

We’ve got bobcats on horseback this episode because the MSU Rodeo Team made the mistake of letting Hoary Marmot onto their practice facility in Belgrade.

On this episode, we’re joined by Montana’s current U.S. Representative and former University of Oregon pulling center Ryan Zinke. His college football career is over, so these days, he’s pulling center to orchestrate bipartisan efforts to protect our public lands by authoring and backing key legislation in Washington DC.

Learn while you burn calories this summer with the Extreme History Project as it hosts several different walking tours in various parts of the rich, historical site that is Bozeman. Co-founder and Director Crystal Alegria joins us to talk about Bozeman’s somewhat impolite but nonetheless important past that deserves to be remembered.

The time has finally come to pay homage to Montana Ale Works, one of Bozeman’s best restaurants year in year out, but this year just happens to be their 25th anniversary. All five owners sat down with us to talk about all the things that have changed and all the things that have stayed the same since they opened their doors March 16, 2000.

Word has gotten out about how great the Gallatin Valley is, so now the question is how do we manage the inevitable growth? To get an insider’s perspective, we talk to Mike Magrans, Managing Partner and Chief Investment Officer at Outlaw Real Estate Partners.

On this episode, Executive Director of the Arts Council of Big Sky Brian Hurlbut joins us to preview both the summer lineup for Music in the Mountains and the brand spanking new facility dubbed the “Big Sky Center for the Arts.”

After 25 years of teaching middle school, Eric Matthews hung up his whiteboard eraser and went to Helena to represent Bozeman’s House District 66 and help Montana’s students in a different way.  On this episode, we talk about all that he’s doing to help our local public schools overcome challenges passed down from both the state and federal levels.

Keep your pocket Scoville scale handy because this episode is all about local hot sauce with Beehive Brothers and their lineup of sauces featuring Montana-grown chili peppers. Hot sauce baron Bryan Gill joins Hoary Marmot to talk about Beehive Brothers’ expanding hot sauce empire and the blood, neck sweat, and tears that go into every bottle. Figuratively!

American Prairie is a privately funded Montana-based nonprofit working to create one of the largest nature reserves in the U.S. for the use and enjoyment of anyone who wants to visit. CEO Alison Fox joins us to discuss American Prairie’s ambitious plan to restore the prairie ecosystem, reintroduce wildlife (like bison), and maintain public access for recreation.

On this episode we’re joined by Deb Davidson of the Center for Large Landscape Conservation and Scott Bosse of American Rivers to talk about their important nonprofits, the beneficiaries of this year’s Wildlands Music Festival (in Big Sky Aug 1 & 2). We talk about how their work will be bolstered by the proceeds from the concerts featuring Dave Matthews, Lukas Nelson, and Molly Tuttle.

Just in time for Butte’s legendary St Patrick’s Day festivities, we spoke with the one-of-a-kind mining town’s Historic Preservation Officer Kate McCourt at the Anselmo Mine Hoist House atop 3500 miles of underground tunnels that produced 18 billion pounds of copper over Butte’s history. The perfect place to discuss the lore and ore that built Montana.

We’re going behind the bark on this episode to learn the secret language of wolves. Ahead of his TED Talk next month, Dr. Jeff Reed joins us to discuss the “Cry Wolf Project” he’s been carrying out with his partner Casey Anderson, a wildlife filmmaker and current host of the series “Endless Venture.”

It’s hard to believe we’re already thinking about this summer’s Big Sky PBR weekend, but with tickets going on sale March 3, you can’t afford to wait. Cord McCoy, the voice of Pro Bull Riding, joins us to preview the perennial event of the year Big Sky PBR headed our way July 17-19.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Big Sky Country has been doing good work in the area since 1973, creating one-on-one mentoring relationships between bigs and littles, all for the low low cost of free. In this episode, you get to meet one such pairing, Mike & Billy, to see the value of the program and the real lives that are affected.

On this episode, we’re interviewing the team behind a new feature documentary called “Champions of the Golden Valley.” Producer Katie Stjernholm and Director Ben Sturgulewski join us to talk about their film that tells the story of a group of skiers in Afghanistan’s remote Bamyan region who ended up in the crosshairs of the Taliban.

We’re talking Wildlands Music Festival and this year’s headliner, Dave Matthews! Outlaw Founder & CEO Eric Ladd joins us to talk about the origin and ethos of Wildlands and to give us a preview of this year’s festivities. Plus he casually drops a bombshell announcement…

Just in time for Valentine’s Day, talented singer and multi-instrumentalist Kishi Bashi is visiting Bozeman to woo each and every one of us with his sultry blend of indie pop, psychedelic pop, and electronic music.

We’re learning about Cottonwood Day School, Montana’s only private nonprofit school for students with special education needs. Founder Meredith Scully and Executive Director Amy Wood talk about the approaches, curriculum, and facilities that set Cottonwood apart from every other school in the state.