The Administrators Conference attendees include control system officials from the communications, education, regulatory, operations, warehouse, retail and information technology disciplines as well as industry representatives. Held each October, the event offers workshops, committee meetings and networking opportunities to stay abreast of new initiatives and to discuss common challenges and successes. This year, our Administrators Conference is taking place in Missoula, Montana, home of our 2024 -2025 Chairwoman, Becky Schlauch. Check out the City of Missoula’s information here on their county webpage.
The Administrators Conference is INVITATION ONLY. Those who are serving on a 2024 Advisory Board, VIP guests, designated Industry members, and association affiliates have already been entered into our registration database and should be able to register. If you believe you are on the list and you are having issues registering, please contact meetings@nabca.org. For any members wishing to attend that are not already on a list, you must first seek approval from Susan Soudrette.
We’re excited to host this event for the first time ever in Missoula, Montana! For those unfamiliar with the city—here’s are some interested facts:
- It used to be entirely underwater. Missoula sits at the bottom of a valley carved out during the last ice age. This valley was under 2,000 feet of water — known as Glacial Lake Missoula — until the bursting of a giant ice dam in Idaho some 15,000 years ago.
- There’s surfing…downtown. Missoulians out for an evening stroll might stop on a bridge downtown to watch surfers ride waves in the middle of an otherwise gentle Clark Fork River. It’s not some sort of freak of nature, but rather the man-made Brennan’s Wave, built right in the middle of the city for the enjoyment of locals and visitors alike.
- Missoula produces some of the best craft beer in the country. Montana ranks fourth in the US for the number of craft breweries per capita. It’s not hard to figure out where Missoulians get their inspiration; you’ll see brews with names like Dancing Trout, Lost Peak Lager, and Moose Drool.
- The world’s largest gold nugget was mined in the area. The Atlantic Cable Quartz Lode, near Missoula, was home to what prospectors said was the biggest rock ever found. It sold for $19,000 near the end of the 19th century.
- It was home to the first woman ever elected to Congress. “I may be the first woman member of Congress, but I won’t be the last.” These are the words of Jeannette Rankin, who became the first woman in Congress in 1916. A hundred years later and there are over a hundred elected Congresswomen.
- There are (at least) four ghost towns within easy driving distance. The Gold Rush was in full swing in Montana in the late 1800s. Legends of the lawlessness of the era are plenty, and as you walk the deserted streets of Garnet you can imagine the days of holdups and gunfights. In the late 1800s a thousand people lived in Garnet, their hopes pinned on gold — the town’s amenities included a candy shop and 13 saloons. Within a few decades the gold was gone, and nearly everyone moved on, leaving behind a few tumbledown shacks that are still standing, the last hollow remnants of the Wild West.
- You can still go gold panning. Montana is home to some of the largest sapphire deposits in the world, and people today have a shot at digging up gems or panning for gold crumbs. There are public gold-panning areas set aside by the US Forest Service where you can test your technique. You can gold pan anywhere, of course, but in this area you might actually find something that glitters…and is actually gold.
- Bears are just a part of life here. People and wildlife live alongside one another in much of Montana. It’s estimated there are about 13,000 black bears in the state, along with roughly 800 grizzlies. Missoulians know the ins and outs of living in bear country and keep up a website, Missoulabears.org, to let others know about sightings.
- It’s not (that) cold in the winter. Relatively speaking, anyway. Missoula sits west of the Rockies, and the combination of climatic factors at play gives the city something of its own microclimate, with spring flowers way ahead of much of the rest of the state and an uncanny knack for avoiding cold snaps in the winter.
- A River Runs Through It was set in Missoula. Penned by celebrated author Norman Maclean, the novel A River Runs Through It was adapted into an Academy Award-winning film in 1993, starring Brad Pitt and directed by Robert Redford. The story about the shenanigans of two brothers growing up in Missoula is a classic, especially for anyone who romanticizes the sleepy joy of fly fishing.