Dakota Datebook: Lifesaving whiskey, Mother's advice

Lifesaving whiskey

North Dakota is home to many types of snakes. The largest is the bullsnake. It averages 83 inches long. The record length is 93 inches. They would rather escape than attack. If cornered, a bullsnake will open its mouth, hiss, vibrate its tail, and appear ready to strike. Fortunately, bullsnakes aren't venomous, but they're often killed because they appear dangerous. Bullsnakes are most common in the western part of the state.

Also found in the west are racers, a fast snake that's difficult to catch. They usually live near water.

Another North Dakota snake is the common garter snake. They can be found throughout the state, often in populated areas. They are harmless to people, but useful because they eat bugs.

The prairie rattlesnake is North Dakota's only venomous snake. It's found west of the Missouri River. It averages three feet in length, with the largest nearly five feet. The prairie rattlesnake is most commonly spotted in the spring and fall. Their most recognizable feature is the rattle on their tail. Some people think the size of the rattle indicates the age of the snake, but there's actually no connection. The sound of the rattle is a warning and should be taken seriously. The snake can strike quickly and its venom can cause death. However, people should remember that snakes help control pests like mice, rats, and gophers.

On Sept. 7 in 1908, Mr. Dreveskracht of Stanton was bitten on the wrist. He had come across several young snakes, and thought he would find a stick and kill them, but hadn't noticed an older rattler. He was able to kill it when it struck, but too late – it had already bitten him. The Washburn Leader reported that Dreveskracht "happened to have a flask of whiskey in his pocket which no doubt saved his life." It is not clear, however, if he poured the whiskey on the bite or if he drank it.

Dakota Datebook written by Carole Butcher.

Mother's advice

The 2001-2002 season was a rough one for the UND hockey team. It was the first time since 1994 that they played a losing season, and the first time in five years that they did not make the Western Collegiate Hockey Association's final five tournament. Many factors played into this, such as a large number of rookies. However, there was also the rough patch for two of the players – brothers Ryan and David Hale.

Ryan and David were from Colorado Springs. They were good hockey players. When Ryan first arrived for the 1999-2000 season, he was on the team that won North Dakota's seventh NCAA national championship. Brother David joined the team the following season, but only played eight games with his brother before Ryan suffered a shoulder injury and had to sit out the rest of the schedule, watching from the sidelines as David and the rest of the team lost in overtime to Boston in the championship.

Then a month later, David's luck took an unfortunate turn when he developed a kidney condition that affected his play. But the biggest struggle for the brothers was the loss of their mother. Jennifer Enoch died on this date in 2001 after an eight-year struggle with breast cancer.

Encouraging words she wrote a year before addressed the family's challenges: Adversity into adventure; Criticism into compassion; Trouble into tenacity; Problems into positives; Opposition into opportunity; Slump into success; Sorrow into support; Mistakes into miracles

After their season of hardships, the boys took on leadership roles as the team rebounded with a winning record of 26 and 12.

Dakota Datebook written by Lucid Thomas.