was held on Memorial Day Weekend May 23-26, 2008
Extravaganza Poster
Activity List
2008 Extravaganza Caving Videos
2008 Extravaganza Slippery Rock Creek Paddling Slideshow
We had a weekend full of various outdoor activities:
road bike and bike trail trips, mountain biking, canoeing or kayaking on lakes or streams, sailing, rock climbing and rapeling, rafting, caving, horseback riding and various levels of hikes.
There was also a pontoon boat tour and fun workshops.
Breakneck Campground was our base camp, but camping is optional. Leaders met you here 9:00 AM each morning and took you to where each trip or workshop began.
Delicious breakfasts, bag lunches and evening meals were catered at the campground, but also optional. Friday was a Weiner Roast/Picnic, and Sat. we went all out with a Pig Roast.
Each evening brought a great speaker presentation or wonderful entertainment, followed afterwards with telescope viewing and sitting around the campfire.
The 2008 12th Annual Outdoor Extravaganza sponsored by the Butler Outdoor Club had another successful turnout at Breakneck Campground.
We had about 250 participants throughout the weekend. It is amazing how it grows and grows each year with not only people from all over Pennsylvania but many from other states.
Its lots of work planning and coordinating everything, but the weekend comes and it happens, with many happy faces, laughter and excitement. That makes it all worthwhile.
This year brought more children with 2 days of Childrens Activities on Sat. and Sun. thanks to Kerry Hornyak, Jan Berg and Alice Stehle. Other fun workshops included Photograhy with Bob and Linda Steiner who are well known photographers, Stream Stomp with Andy Desko from Jennings Environmental Center, Birding with John Stehle, and Leave No Trace with Mill tour and short nature hike with Natalie Simons from McConnells Mill SP. They were well attended. there were about 15 various workshops and outdoor trips each day with various levels of difficulty on hikes, bike rides and canoe/kayak trips.
Carol Bickel, art teacher, made up the design for the T-shirts. Jean Adams took care of newspaper adds and Dave Adams made up the posters. Both of them took care of getting the weiner roast picnic food. Even Jason Peffer from Piazza Joes, near the campground, provided piazzas at a discount for Friday night. Although the piazzas replaced the usual hamburgers, we still had the hotdogs for the "weiner roast" and everyone seemed to like the change. And of course, Joyce Appel made smores around the campfire and everyone wanted more and more.
Other volunteers helped set up the campground, put up posters, worked at the Registration Booth, checked name tags for meals, brought firewood, and lead trips. Those involved were: John Keffalas, Jeff Rapp, Jan Berg, Jerry Hoffman, Jean and Dave Adams, Carol and Steve Bickel, Tom McCartney, Dale and Pat Vilsack, Helen Coyne, Sue McCoy and kids, Boop and Tom Baumgardner, Joyce Appel, Paul Henry, Vickie Gotaskie, Russ Tague, Andrew Neidra, Dana Asbury, Alice and John Stehle, Joanne Sergeant, Joanne Winwood, Mark Pozzuto, Tim Dunn, Sandy Devonshire, Tim Henigin, Patty and Steve Brunner, Mike Henderson, George Collich, Cecil Neily, Mary Parker and anyone I forgot.
We were blessed with 2 forms of entertainment around the campfire, Dan Rossi, blind since age 7, told of his accomplishments and what he likes to do. Nancy Dickson played her guitar and sang songs. Sat. night brought something different to the Extravaganza, a magician, Keving Cramer, with his bag of tricks. And Sunday, Linda and Bob Steiner showed great slide slow of their adventures on Prince Edward Island.
Thanks to Paul Egbert from Wind and Water Boatworks, Russ Tague, Paul Henry, Pat and Dale Vilsack and Bill for providing hauling trailers with canoes and kayaks. Thanks to George Collich for Rock Climbing instruction with Falling Angels, John Bridges for setting up Sailing with the Moraine Sailing Club, Dan Pedan for setting up Caving with Pittsburgh Grotto, and Mike Henderson, from Oil Region, who set up a Mt.Bike Trip. Thanks to Betsy, Vic and Dan Cheeseman for always providing great food and hospitality at their campground.
A special thanks to Tom Baumgardner for his many hours setting up a spreadsheet in an Excel program and working out the bugs and gliches many days between him and I on the phone. Also a special thank you to Paul Henry who does a lot of behind the scene work, working out the water trips and getting them and the trailers ready to go each day of the Extravaganza....besides supporting me for months before the event.
Thank you..... thank you... thank you all !!!!!
Get ready now and mark your calendar for next year over Memorial Day Weekend.
Joyce Appel
Coordinator
For more information:
joyceappel@windstream.net 724-526-5407 www.butleroutdoorclub.org