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October 2012 Devil Mountain Brigade
Serving Danville By Fran Miller
They are the world’s only shotgun “almost semi-precision” marching unit in the world. For nearly half a century, Danville’s own Devil Mountain Brigade (DMB) has been delighting locals at community events with their choreographed shotgun blast volleys - blanks, of course. Organized in Danville in 1971 by locals Howard and Jack Weightman and modeled after early west shotgun marching groups, the Brigade has since appeared in every annual Danville July 4th parade, where children dart onto the parade path to collect their empty black powder bank cartridges, just as their parents once did. The Brigade has also become a regular at the Elks Rodeo Parade in Santa Maria, Gold Nugget Days in Paradise, and Nevada Days in Carson City. They have participated in parades in Virginia City, Reno, Truckee, Tahoe City, Oakland, Crockett, Oroville and other small communities. Their services (all gratis) are sometimes requested for 21 gun salutes to dedicate local businesses or for an individual memorial service. Its 100 members are also participants in “Clampers,” an early western history appreciation group whose first California chapter was established in 1849 in remote Sierra County. Today, 30 charitable Clamper chapters primarily install and dedicate brass plaques on buildings and sites of historic interest nearby and all over the country. Brigade Vice Commander Norm Nielsen has been a DMB member for more than 20 years, and he notes that fans are often surprised to find that the bearded, shotgun toting mountain men do not
Volunteer Trail Patrols Put Safety First in East Bay Regional Parks By Jody Morgan Keeping multi-use trails safe throughout the 112,000 acres of the East Bay Regional Park District (EBRPD) is a daunting task. With 65 parks and only 60 sworn officers to supervise the more than 1,100 miles of trail open to the public, the 200 members of the Volunteer Trail Safety Patrols contribute significantly to ensuring the courteous sharing of this exceptional open space by park visitors. Volunteers currently serve on Mounted, Bicycle, Hiking and Companion Dog Patrols and may also Jerry Buck promotes safety for all trail users. qualify for Search and Rescue. Heather Gilfillan, EBRPD Volunteer Coordinator, meets with prospective volun-
Mounted Patrol volunteers pictured are left to right: Priscilla O’Meara on Sarge, Cindy Shon on Tucker, Julian Frazer on Silhouette, Judy Gile on Wendy.
live in the woods, only to come out for parades. “We like our mountain man image, but the truth is that we come from all walks of life,” says Nielsen who is a retired Senior Research Engineer at Stanford Research Institute. Commander Bob Gray held a similar position with Lawrence Livermore Lab. “Our careers
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teers to assess their qualifications. A few are too interested in being enforcers, a role reserved for Park Police. Others lack the communication skills to turn an encounter with a visitor violating park rules into a cordial educational experience rather than a hostile confrontation. Some will not commit to remaining on patrol for at Volume III - Number 12 least a year. Each patrol has its own certification testing. 3000F Danville Blvd. #117, “Once we get them on patrol,” Heather laughs, “they Alamo, CA 94507 (925) 405-6397 stay on board a long time unless they move out of the Fax (925) 406-0547 area! Some have been on patrol for 30 years.” The concept began with four civilian riders who Alisa Corstorphine ~ Publisher wanted to make a difference. In 1979 they formalized editor@ their vision as the Volunteer Mounted Patrol. Bicycle yourmonthlypaper.com Patrol followed in 1989, Hiking Patrol in 1994 and opinions expressed herein belong Companion Dog Patrol soon after. While each of The to the writers, and do not necessarily the patrols makes its own unique contribution to reflect that of Danville Today News. Danville Today News is not promoting safety and preserving natural resources, responsible for the content of any of all share the mission of observing, reporting and the advertising herein, nor does
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publication imply endorsement.