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2/18/2009
Observations from a college student

On Friday November 7th, we got to visit Gordy Sanders and Tim Love of Pyramid Mountain Lumber, “the oldest surviving family owned and operated lumber mill in Montana” (http://www.pyramidlumber.com/). The company, started on 1949, specializes in boards and molding. Gordy noted that one of the company’s strong points was their flexibility due to the fact that they use all species and size classes of trees. With 65-70% of their products coming from private landowners, Pyramid and these owners are concentrated on looking into the future. They are focused on wildlife habitats and their preservation instead of money. The company is a prime example of a concept we have been discussing through other trips – “Goods for services”. In return for using land, Pyramid gives back by providing land management activities and improvements on the land.

We then heard from Tim Love who gave us an introduction to the Montana Legacy Project. He explained the Blackfoot project to us, as Caroline Byrd had a week or so ago. One topic we covered was the idea of collaboration. This reminded me of when Matthew Koehler came in to talk to us about the Beaverhead-Deerlodge Partnership. According to Gordy, a lot of collaboration efforts have been going on recently. From Matt, we learned that these can definitely leave some people or groups feeling left out. Gordy did introduce us to one of their collaborative efforts – the Blackfoot-Clearwater Stewardship Project, which is focused on forest restoration. He did distinguish one important detail, which is that the Montana Legacy Project, though a collaborative effort, is more of a business deal.

A lot of the discussion focused on the current economic situation and how that is affecting Pyramid Mountain Lumber. The company was gravely affected due to the housing crisis and therefore a low demand for lumber products. We even heard how they have cut an entire working day out of their schedule because they can’t afford it. Gordy did note that one reason they are still surviving is because they are a small family owned business. They make different decisions than big businesses do and are not as focused on the ‘big bucks’.

This was one more reality check for me in discovering the economic crisis truly is hitting “Main Street” and not only “Wall Street”. The stock market really does have an effect on the entire country and companies that you would not initially compare with the stock market. The projects going on to preserve wilderness that we have discussed recently have really opened my eyes to the massive influence of money on our lives. Coming from a New York suburb, I have naively assumed that people geographically outside of the city are not affected. And out of ignorance, I especially assumed that Montana was all about farming or for some reason in my mind, farming had nothing to do with the economy. I am now realizing how ridiculously mistaken I have been by looking at the world from some sort of superiority I thought I had by living under stock market parents. Clearly every corner of the country, and nation, has been hit.

As many will agree, I thought the best part of the field trip was getting a tour of the factory. I have never been anywhere near a factory of any sorts, so that entire idea was mind boggling to me. Connecting all the steps of lumber production was incredible in the sense that whenever I see a truck with logs on it, I now know where it is going and what is going to happen to it. Unfortunately, we didn’t get to see the factory in motion because it was not a working day. But we were shown all the steps that the wood is taken through. I had two favorite parts of the tour. The first was watching these three guys with markers labeling each plank that came through based on the wood grade. Sounds simple – but when all the different requirements and elements needed for each grade were explained to us, it sounded absurdly complicated and I have loads of admiration for these men who have to sit there all day. My second favorite part was the sorter. This was where the planks were dropped into different columns. As they piled up, these cool lasers would sense the pile getting higher and then the bottom of the column would drop, giving more room for wood. This is another prime example of my sheltered childhood. I guess I never thought lumber factories would be technologically advanced enough to have access to lasers. That sounds so ignorant, but that was honestly what I thought. And I am happy to say, there is no reason I should assume that.

Overall, I found the trip to Pyramid Mountain Lumber to be a very eye opening experience for me, personally. I definitely had no idea what a factory like this looked like and it was amazing to see one and get to walk around in it. After getting to see how everything went through the factory, I have a new appreciation for where my kitchen floor came from. Sounds silly but it’s true. The trip also served to be intriguing on an educational level, as always. I enjoyed hearing about more collaborative efforts happening around Montana and how hard these groups are working to preserve the wilderness and environment. But I had more of an emotional experience on the trip because I really got to step out of my comfort zone and learn about the lumber business. This is something that many communities depend on for business and jobs, so it was great to see one of these in action.