Rudyard's Fossil Fest set for this weekend

The Rudyard Dinosaur Museum and the Rudyard Community Commercial Club are collaborating this year to put on Rudyard’s very first family-friendly Fossil Fun Fest Friday and Saturday.

The gathering was prepared with the support of local and surrounding volunteers. The Rudyard Dinosaur and Depot Museum is also known for being one of the stops on the Montana Dinosaur Trail.

Rudyard Community Commercial Club Treasurer Adria Mikulecky is one of the volunteers helping run the event.

“Hosting these types of fun events always helps a community reconnect,” Mikulecky said, “It also gives the community a chance to share what amazing assets we have and how proud we are of them.”

“We want the world to know what treasures lie in these types of small towns,” Mikulecky said, “We have an incredible museum that is staffed with some of the best volunteers that have taken the time to learn about each section of the museum to give every visitor a unique and enjoyable experience.”

The festival will feature world-famous paleontologist Jack Horner.

Horner, recognized for being one of the world’s most famous paleontologists, began his career in the 1970s.

A Shelby native, Horner’s paleontology has deep connections with this area. He and fellow paleontologist Bob Makela, who taught science at Rudyard High School, discovered a nesting site of a new genus of dinosaur, first discovered by Marion Brandvold of Bynum and her son.

Horner and Makela investigated a nesting site of the dinosaurs, which they named Maiasuara, or “good mother lizard,” and established that some dinosaurs were social, built nests and cared for their young. The discovery helped make Horner, an award-winning paleontologist, a top name in the field.

Horner was a scientific consultant for the Jurassic Park movies directed by Steven Spielberg and champions the now-common theory that dinosaurs were warm-blooded social creatures more like birds than cold-blooded animals like lizards.

Horner will be at Rudyard’s Dino Museum from 5-9 p.m., an event that includes wine and cheese, lemonade and cookies and live music by Celtic Highlanders.

Saturday at the Dustbowl activities are from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with a 3-on-3 basketball tournament, food and craft vendors and the museums in Rudyard all being open.

“We have an assortment of vendors that have signed up and are continuing to sign up. From crafts to snacks, we have a little of everything,” Mikulecky said, “Parkers BBQ will be located at the park and we will have Dale Dogs as well as donuts at the Dust bowl with the vendors.”

She added that, aside from the themes events of fossils, there will be other activities available to the younger crowds.

“We have the 3-on-3 basketball tournament going on for the younger kids. We have Brickcent$ for one of our vendors and we also have Mackenzie Thompson doing face painting,” Mikulecky said.

“I am hoping (that) for next year’s Fossil Fun Fest we will have an information booth with a banner that says Fossil Facts where Rudyard’s elected Ol’ Sorehead (Bob Christenson) and a handful of his knowledgeable cohorts will sit and offer advice for any questions that are asked of them,” Mikulecky said.

Another event taking place during Fossil Fest will be two showings of movies at the local Rudyard theatre. The theatre is owned by Conrad Wendland and is open every Friday through Sunday. Wendland also puts on mystery movie nights on Wednesdays. Wendland picks a random movie, so it is a surprise every time the audience attends. During the Fossil Fest, the theatre will have a matinée showing Saturday afternoon, as well as a regular movie at 7 p.m.

Saturday’s events go all day, from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday evening’s final event will be music performed by the Shakedown County group until 9 p.m.