Public Safety officers and event security staff kicked out about 140 people from the Foresters' Ball this year for rude and rowdy behavior, but no one acted badly enough to warrant an arrest.

"We triaged the situation" and opted to help people with medical problems instead of writing tickets, chief Gary Taylor said.

The Forestry Club worked with Public Safety to manage the large crowd. A group of foresters called "the posse" removed people if they became too rowdy, often trying to diffuse the situation, chief push of the ball Zach Miller said.

"Despite complication, the Foresters' Ball continues," Miller said. "We have been really tolerant."

The ball moved from the Schreiber Gym to the larger Adams Center. The Forestry Club sold 3,200 tickets this year compared to last year's 2,500.

"The bigger the party, the harder it is to manage," Taylor said.

Taylor said officers were so tied up helping intoxicated people that they didn't have time to write tickets and opted to kick people out instead. Officers said they saw a few people vomit on the dance floor, brawl and urinate behind props or on themselves. Normally these actions would result in a disorderly conduct charge, but officers understood the situation, Taylor said.

"I wish people would be as passionate about the ball as foresters and would drink a little less," Miller said.

Miller said that unlike a concert that lasts a couple of hours, Foresters' Ball lasts five hours, and people want to be drunk the whole time. This leads to over-consumption, but foresters do all they can to mitigate problems.

The Forestry Club arranged for Missoula Emergency Services and nursing students to be at the event to offer people assistance. Medical personnel treated some people for the over-consumption of alcohol. Personnel took seven people to the hospital over the course of the two-night event.

The foresters were happy to provide assistance for party-goers, Miller said.

The Forestry Club developed a risk management plan and consulted with the University's drug and alcohol committee to make sure the event would run as smoothly as possible, Miller said.

UM Senior Neal Gavigan went to the Foresters' Ball Friday night. He said he thought the people working the door were strict about bringing alcohol into the event, but he didn't care because he was already drunk.

"Everybody was too wasted," Gavigan said. But he didn't notice a lot of problems.

The Forestry Club does a good job of screening people at the door, but people get creative when sneaking alcohol into events, Taylor said.

A Public Safety officer caught Colin Snodgrass, 21, urinating in a parking lot in front of the Adams Center. The officer gave him two options: go to jail or give up his ticket to the ball, Snodgrass said.

Snodgrass' friends ran at the sight of the officers and joined the line of people waiting to get into the ball. He found his girlfriend and handed over his ticket to the officer. The officer told him not to try and sneak in, Snodgrass said.

His girlfriend and he joined the line of people without tickets, but they didn't have any money. Other patrons gave them $35 to buy a new couple's ticket. On their way into the ball he ran into the same officer that told him to stay out, Snodgrass said.

At first the officer did not let him inside, but after talking with Snodgrass the officer let him into the ball.

"He was really cool about it," Snodgrass said.

Snodgrass said he wishes he would have drank less so he could have enjoyed more of the props and scenery.

"I wish I was more sober so I could have seen everything they put up," he said.

spencer.veysey@umontana.edu