By Christian Lasher
christian@pokesnews.com
We see him on the sidelines of War Memorial Stadium on Saturdays in the fall. Or maybe on the court at the Arena Auditorium in the Winter. Pistol Pete, Wyoming’s resident mascot, can be seen all over campus with the rest of the Wyoming Spirt Squad at most sporting events.
But what if I told you the man inside the Pistol Pete costume hasn’t always been a man?
Long before she was the Communications Director for Liz Cheney’s Senate bid, before she was an on air radio DJ, and even before she was Director of Stewardship for Climb Wyoming, Brittany Wells Gray was the first female Pistol Pete in the history of the University of Wyoming.
From 2004-2008, Wells Gray was an undergraduate student at UW from Rawlins, Wyoming. While in high school, she was on a competitive cheer team that won Nationals her senior year. In 2004, She tried out for the UW Spirit Squad and got a scholarship to join the team. After suffering a back injury during her first year on the “All Girls” squad, she was approached by a friend to dawn the giant head and transform into the persona of the famous cowboy mascot.
Former mascot and friend, Jeremy Hanson, encouraged her to try out to be Pistol Pete. She said to him, “I have no idea how to walk like a guy or any of that, and he said, ‘I can teach you!’” So in 2005 she tried out and got the part.
Wells Gray says with a smile, “I traded in my cheerleading skirt for a big head, mustache, and chaps!”
Wells Gray didn’t look back after that day and embraced the role from 2005-2006.
Shenanigans Under the Giant Head
“Being Pete is like the ultimate VIP pass, one game, I was on the sidelines and there was this police officer working security. I took the policeman’s hand cuffs out of his side pocket and I ran into the student section and I found this guy and a girl who were not together and I cuffed them and ran away. I was like, ‘Good luck!””
Then there was the time she jumped up on the director stand in front of Western Thunder, UW’s pep band, and started directing the “Beer Song.”
She says she also affectionately remembers crowd surfing as Pete after the Pokes scored touchdowns.
Another time, she had the opportunity to bust into a friend’s wedding in Buffalo, Wyoming dressed as Pete and swept the bride off her feet when the pastor asked if anyone there objected to the bride and groom getting married. She adds, “No one had a clue it was me. I overheard these two older women leaving at the end saying, ‘We didn’t want to come to a wedding, but that was the best dang wedding we’ve ever been to!”
One of the most rewarding aspects of being Pistol Pete for Wells Gray was the interaction with the fans.
“You get to see the kids get excited and they start shaking because they get to meet Pistol Pete and they are crawling all over you and taking pictures and they get excited about the University…I loved that part!”
Challenges and Opportunities as a Giant Cowboy
“The mascot is really hot, and I had to share the uniform with a few other guys, so there was that challenge!” “It’s both liberating and a little bit isolating at the same time, you have the sense of freedom to express yourself without judgment. You are also hidden from view and people don’t really know who you are, but that’s part of the beauty of it.”
Wells Gray remembers running onto the field at the start of the football games. She used to have to run out in front with the big Wyoming flag and try not to get trampled by the players, many of whom were way bigger than she was.
“I am not near as tall as the players nor as fast and so it was always a struggle trying to run as fast as I could so I didn’t get rolled over by the players!” Add to the challenge, the giant mascot head she was looking through. “You could only see out of the mesh screen part of the mouth of the big head and you had no peripheral vision.”
Wells Gray remembers the life lessons she learned with her time as Pistol Pete.
“When I went to UW, part of the appeal is that you can do what you want and you have an amazing network to support you, but at the same time being there gets you out of your comfort zone, and nothing gets you out of your comfort zone like wearing men’s clothing, cowboy boots, a giant head, and trying to ride a unicycle!” That experience gave me a crash course in overcoming challenges. It wasn’t a question of you’re a girl and you can’t be Pistol Pete. It was more like, ‘How can we get you there?’ The inclusivity of it, I always felt really welcome. There is a sense at the University that If you believe in it and you are excited about it, there are people there to support you.” Wells Gray says.
Wells Gray also was sometimes inside the inflatable Pistol Pete mascot that used to roam the sidelines at the AA for basketball games. Affectionately known as “InflataPoke,” the costume was powered by a battery pack attached to a fan, which kept the mascot’s form. “You would rotate between the two Pistol Pete costumes, and I always wore my hair in a braid, but one day in InflatePoke, my hair got caught in the fan. I felt it get stuck, so I turned the fan off and the costume just started “melting” in front of the fans. I had to figure out how to get my hair out of the fan and off the court and not ruin the facade. Hopefully I didn’t traumatize too many kids!”
Wells Gray adds that she understood the importance of performing at a high level as Pistol Pete. “You are just really mindful about what it means and what it represents when you are the mascot. It’s like riding for the brand or representing the brand. It is a sacred thing, it’s the logo, and I felt responsible for people having a good experience when I was Pete. I just wanted to create something fun and memorable.”
Fun and memories is what she had at UW as Pistol Pete.
So next time you give ole Pete a “high five” at a game, remember the people who paved the way for Pete to be him or herself for the fans of UW.
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