Last Friday, the 19th of September, Students at Rocky Mountain High School gathered around to watch student council light the Rocky Mountains mascot on fire. The Grizzly had been donated last year by the graduating class of 2025 as their senior gift. It was built by Austin Carlson. This gave the student council the idea to try to start a new tradition for Rocky Mountain. They had decided that the lighting of the bear would be a great start to the homecoming weekend with many fans and students attending the game. And also (though not totally known) celebrating footballs win for the night. To light it, they covered the frame of the bear with some old student council t-shirts soaked in fuel and set fire to that, allowing the bear to get consumed by flames. Due to potential fire hazards there was much planning that went into the event. They got the OK from the fire marshal, asked for permission from the administration and also bought their own safety gear and fuel for preparation.
Although they were prepared for anything, the event went according to plan, despite a half-hour delay so football could make it after the big game. Students had lots of fun hanging out with friends and showing their school spirit. Violet Davidson said, “I think it’s a very nice tradition, I think it was fun, and not too long or boring.” This event was the perfect start to the weekend getting students excited for the night to come.
Student council director Mr. Drlik said, “Thank you to all who attended the first ever burning of the bear. We will be planning a few more for this school year. We want to make this a huge event.”
