Soldier's bear highlights Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation banquet

POLSON — Army National Guard Sgt. Dennis Delano couldn't be at last Saturday's Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation banquet, but in many ways, he was there in spirit.

Delano's near-record, fully mounted black bear was on display at RMEF's annual meeting at the KwaTaqNuk, providing a scenic backdrop for the more than 250 hunters, conservationists and outdoorsmen who attended.

Having the bear as a guest of honor was a combined effort between Delano's wife, Kelli, and RMEF's western regional director Kirk Murphy, who jumped at the idea to honor a soldier - something various RMEF chapters have been doing for the past year in recognition of the situation in Iraq, he said.

"I told Kelli, 'We don't have a lot of room, but with a display like that we can put it on the main stage,'" Murphy said.

He said veterans have been asked to stand and be recognized at RMEF banquets around the western part of the state over the past few months, and displaying Delano's bear was another way to acknowledge his and other veterans' service.

"We had some (RMEF) fall banquets in which we asked veterans and soldiers to stand and be recognized, and I thought that would be a good idea for this banquet," Murphy said. "This is something we've been doing for the past year or so, because of the situation in Iraq."

Delano arrived in Iraq the day after Thanksgiving, and won't be home until early next year, Kelli said.

"We found out two weeks ago that he has orders through December 24, 2005, and could be there longer than that," she said. "But this is what he wants - to share that bear with everyone else."

Delano, who is with the 1163rd Infantry, Charlie Company, out of Missoula, is part of a "fire team" that is responsible for clearing and securing buildings, providing security and armed guard support, and other high-risk activities.

Delano harvested his bear in October, 2003, and the circumstances surrounding the harvest are as interesting as the bear itself, Kelli explained.

"He was hunting in Southwest Montana, near Dillon, and he and his friends saw this bear running on the side of a mountain. His first shot kicked up dust in front of the bear, but he got him on the second shot," Kelli said. "He hit him on a dead run from 866 yards out with a .340 Weatherby. Nobody would have believed him if it weren't for the fact that his friends were with him."

Dave Farrar at Elk Horn Taxidermy put the finishing touches on the mount in preparation for the RMEF banquet. Delano originally wanted to have a rug made out of it, but upon finding out he was going to Iraq, he decided to get the full mount, Farrar said.

"The nose-to-tail measurement is six and a half feet, and the live weight was probably about 400 pounds, so it's a good-sized bear," Farrar said. "I've had my taxidermy shop in Polson for the past five years, and this is the biggest black bear I've had since then."

"I didn't know he was getting a full mount until I went to the (taxidermy) shop to pay the bill," Kelli said. "But it's worth it."

Unofficially, Farrar said Delano's black bear measures about a 19 on the Boone and Crockett scale, which would put his bear in the top 100 or so harvested in the state. Not a record, but a pretty good bear nonetheless.

Farrar will take the bear up to the sportsmen's show in Kalispell in March to have it officially scored. Boone and Crockett black bear scores are derived from taking measurements of the skull.

Regardless of the score, Kelli said just having the bear on display to share with other sportsmen was all Delano wanted. In fact, that might be the bear's permanent fate. Kelli is in the process of selling the family's Polson home and moving to Missoula, and finding space to fit all of Delano's trophies, including deer, elk and even an Alaskan brown bear, is proving to be a challenge, she said.

"We're going to give the bear to Spirit Quest (archery store) in Kalispell. They've already got a display area prepared for it," Kelli said. "Dennis just wants to be able to share it with everyone, and I don't know if we'll ever have a house big enough for it."

Delano's enthusiasm for hunting and love of the outdoors has apparently rubbed off on some of his fellow soldiers, Kelli said. He is trying to plan a brown bear hunt with some of them in Alaska again when he gets back, she said.

"He wants to go bow hunting for brown bear in Alaska. I told him he's crazy," Kelli said with a laugh.