Karst Stage was born from a young entrepreneur , Pete Karst , in 1902 . Pete bought a stage coach and some horses to deliver workers down the Gallatin Canyon . He branched into vehicles , owned a dude ranch , started a general store , and even created Montana ’ s first rope tow up to a ski jump . In the 50 ’ s he sold , and in nearly 120 years , it is only under its fifth owner : Dan Martin . Today , Karst has over 20 motorcoaches that deliver workers to job sites , take high school and collegiate athletes to their games , run summer tours in Yellowstone , and anything in between . Karst has a small school bus operation in West Yellowstone . Their airport shuttle operation with 12 vans and a few minibuses runs about 10,000 passengers per year to Big Sky and West Yellowstone to ski and snowmobile . Karst is also contracted to run Streamline Transit in Bozeman and Skyline Transit in Big Sky which combined haul over a half a million passengers per year . Mel is an integral part of the team that makes Karst run smoothly .
Mel , an Ohio native , started her love for Montana at an early age on a family trip . She explains how she ended up in Yellowstone in 2011 , “ I visited the park as a part of the ‘ Great American Road Trip ’ as a child and thought it would be a great place to figure out what was next after college ... instead I fell in love with the Mountains and never moved back to Ohio .” In 2011 she applied to Yellowstone on a whim , as a way to build some job history after college . After spending one summer working at a park hotel , driving the tour buses seemed like a great way to see and enjoy even more of that beautiful area . As she trained in the knowledge
and resources needed to discuss park history , zoology , geology , etc , she also trained on ( and tested in ) the 1975 MC5B motor coaches still in use at the time . “ I kind of jumped into the deep end , learning how to double clutch while learning the ins and outs of maneuvering a large vehicle .” After a few years of jumping from park to park , Mel decided to set up a home base in Bozeman Montana , and started driving for Karst Stage in 2014 .
Mel ’ s first year at Karst marked her as a “ Jack of all Trades ” in a business that runs two transit systems , an airport shuttle operation , school buses , and charters . In a fleet and business models as diverse as Karst has , there are infinite combinations of vehicles and shifts to drive . “ It felt like every day I was going to places I hadn ’ t been or I ’ d be stepping into a vehicle I ’ d never seen before .”
In 2015 Mel transitioned into a dispatching position and became a “ Jack of all Office Positions .” In addition to dispatching full or part time ( depending on the season and needs of the office ), she has stepped into sales roles , and special projects as the need arises . Karst owner , Dan Martin , adds , “ Mel has done everything in our operation except turned wrenches , and I ’ m not sure we haven ’ t had her fix a few clearance lights along the way . In fact , she spearheaded our dispatch and maintenance software conversion which went off without a hitch . Her institutional knowledge is invaluable in our operation .”
When she is not bouncing around the office , Mel is out enjoying the beautiful places around Montana on foot or by car . She still maintains a Yellowstone Guide Card , and does many of Karst ’ s summer tours in the Park helping others experience the wonder of the area we live in .
MONTANA
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