Torosaurus article

["Andy Farke" <andyfarke@hotmail.com>]

Here's another article on the "new" Torosaurus skull from Montana. . .
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Head of its class

By MARTIN J. KIDSTON Lee Montana Newspapers

Dinosaur skull plucked from hillside in front of national TV audience

WINNETT - When a helicopter crew from the Montana Army National Guard
hoisted a 65 million-year-old dinosaur skull from a hillside Friday, NBC's
"Today Show" audience was watching.

With excavation crews from Bozeman's Museum of the Rockies on hand, Guard
pilots maneuvered their UH-60 Blackhawk helicopter into position as the sun
rose over the Missouri River Breaks, lighting the cave left by the removal
of the multi-ton torosaurus skull.

"We like things when they go well," said Capt. Kent Hanson before the lift.
"We don't like it when they don't."

Once the "Today Show" went live, the helicopter rose and plucked the skull
off the cliff. The plaster-wrapped skull of the rare torosaurus, whose claim
to fame was having the world's largest head, reflected the morning light as
it hung below the helicopter high in the air.

"It went exactly how we planned," said SSGT. Don Van Daele after the pieces
were safely flown to a distant road.

"The rigging was excellent," said Sgt. Carroll Benjamin. "The load sat
beneath the helicopter just like we hoped. The pilots did a good job."

Pilot CW3 Glenn Faechner was also pleased with the operation.

"We were wondering why we had to get up at 3 a.m. to move something that's
been here for 65 million years," Faechner laughed.

Members of the Guard arrived Thursday at the remote location 30 miles north
of Winnett, where they began planning the extraction of the fossil.

The fossil had been fully excavated by crews from the Museum of the Rockies
several months before and sat wrapped in plaster and tarps, wet from the
falling rain.

Bob Harmon, head preparator at the museum, along with the excavation's crew
chief Nels Peterson and assistant Lora Logi, made final adjustments to the
fossil after the rain stopped. The crew stabilized the skull's frill - a
bone nearly as large as a pool table.

Before the lift, the "Today Show" spent the night turning a ridge above the
Missouri River Breaks into a virtual stage, equipped with lights, cameras,
and shadow screens. A second film crew stood below the cliff near the fossil
during the extraction.

The show went live for six minutes and included an interview with
paleontologist Jack Horner, the inspiration for the character of Dr. Grant
in the movies "Jurassic Park," "The Lost World" and "Jurassic Park III."

In real life, Horner works as curator of paleontology at the Museum of the
Rockies.

At a minimum, Horner said, the torosaurus skull measures 9 feet from end to
end and 7 feet across, making it the largest skull of any land animal.

Maj. Joe Foster, public relations officer for the Montana Army National
Guard, said the chance to lift the fragile skull was a good training
opportunity for crews.

"The Museum of the Rockies contacted us to see if we could assist them in
loading up the fossils last fall," Foster said.

Getting clearance to assist the museum, however, was a lengthy process.

Hanson said the Guard was required to conduct an environmental checklist, a
site survey and ensure it wasn't competing with any private enterprise.

"After that, we went to the National Guard Bureau and they had to go all the
way to the Secretary of Defense," Hanson said. "We started the process in
November and just got clearance last week."

Foster said the Montana Army National Guard has extracted fossils in the
past. However, the multi-ton torosaurus skull was the Guard's first
extraction in several years. The last took place when crews airlifted a
thescolosaurus from Makoshika State Park near Glendive in 1996.

Pilot CW3 Scott Bare said the Guard is accustomed to using helicopters to
lift heavy items, such as military equipment. And while the dinosaur skull
was estimated to weigh 3,500 pounds, Bare said, it didn't test the lift
capacity of the helicopters.

"They have an 8,000 pound lift capacity," Bare said of the Blackhawk.
"They're real strong machines. They do a great job for us."

Martin Kidston is a reporter for the Helena Independent Record.
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The article, with a picture of the site, will be on-line until tomorrow.

http://missoulian.com/display/inn_news/news03.txt

Andy
_______________________________
Andrew A. Farke
South Dakota School of Mines and Technology
501 East St. Joseph Street
Rapid City, SD  57701

andyfarke@hotmail.com