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WSU students at Zion National park for Outdoor Recreation Center trip
Fall 2021

Memories of the ORC

They trekked and climbed, skied and snowshoed, camped and hiked, biked and paddled—and learned some things about themselves along the way.

The experiences they shared and skills they gained as participants or employees at Washington State University’s Outdoor Recreation Center shaped their careers, grew into lifelong passions, and became treasured memories.

Here, in celebration of the ORC’s fiftieth anniversary this year, they share some of the moments and history that helped define them and the long-running program.

 

The beginning

He didn’t start it, and it wasn’t his idea. But Chris Tapfer is often credited with both. That’s because he got involved with … » More …

Woman on a paddleboard riding the Snake River
Fall 2021

Outdoor Recreation Center timeline

 

Highlights from the history of the Outdoor Recreation Center

 

1969—Christopher Tapfer (’73 Rec.) enters WSU and works as a ski instructor for a physical education class at Tamarack Mountain. The same year, WSU buys the North South Ski Bowl, now known as Palouse Divide. It will be managed by the Outdoor Activities Program until 1980. It’s sold in 1984.

1971—The Outdoor Activities Program (OAP) is established as part of ASWSU. Tapfer and a graduate assistant teach winter survival, mountaineering, and canoeing.

1972—Tapfer takes over management of the OAP, which moves into Compton Union Building for the next 29 years. During this era, the … » More …

Cougar snarling
Winter 2020

The Butch Brawl

The plan seemed simple enough: launch Kenyon “Ken” Bement into the air at just the right moment so the Cougs could reclaim their cougar.

University of Washington fans had stolen it more than a decade earlier. And Bement and his friends on the Yell Squad decided enough was enough. It was time to bring the stuffed cougar mascot back home to Pullman.

They spread the word through the student section of the stands at Husky Stadium during the rainy, muddy Apple Cup on November 12, 1932. And almost everything went according to plan.

“The basic idea is to pick up Ken—he’s the smallest of the cheerleaders—and, as the Huskies parade by at halftime with the stuffed cougar, he’s going to go up … » More …

Butchmen spelled out by crowd for WSU football game
Winter 2020

Butchmen memories

They got Butch where the cougar needed to be: on the field for football games.

Some forty years after Washington State University ended the tradition of a live cougar mascot and the Butchmen disbanded, alumni share memories of the spirit group.

 

Al Kirkpatrick 
“Our job was to get the cougar to the football games and then, after we would score a touchdown or field goal, we would take him around the track,” recalls retired Colfax dentist Al Kirkpatrick (’75 Zool.), a member of the Butchmen for three years.

One time, he and his fellow Butchmen simply couldn’t get the cougar out of his cage and into its trailer. “We were the ones … » More …