Duck Tales

Calling my first Oreogn Ducks basketball game was a rush - the kind of thrill you get the first time you ride a really big roller coaster.
In fact, as the engineer was counting down to airtime, I imagined myself slowing climbing the back side of a huge, high track that would throw me over the side and straight down.
Just at the crest of the hill, I grabbed on tight and just let it roll.
It seemed to go about as fast as a thrill ride, too.

Some people say it sounded like I was actually too amped up.
They may be right, but I was aware of that pitfall and consciously worked to stay in control.
I've heard announcers who try to increase their intensity in an attempt to sell the importance of the game they are covering. The bad part of that delivery is that it often becomes forced - and not sincere.

If there is one thing I try to be on the air, its sincere.
Even sometimes to the degree that I come off unprepared or less than professional.

I would rather be myself on the air with everything I do than to be considered 'professional' and fake.

The best part of the whole experience was to find out later that my mom and dad, aunt and uncle, brother and sister-in-law in Coeuer D' Alene listened to the game and even held the phone up to my grandmother in Port Orchard, Washington. My wife's family in Portland also listened to the broadcast.

For me, thats the best part of radio. You never know who is listening - or where - and often times, the relationship between broadcaster and listener is so personal.



Happy New Year to everyone.
And Happy 15th Anniversary to my wife, Jannie.

My Duck Debut

As many people know, I will be given the chance to cover the Oregon Ducks new baseball team this spring.
My first game will be at St Mary's in Moraga, California.
But that game will not be my first game for the Ducks.
Monday night, Oregon basketball hosts Long Beach State and Jerry Allen will be in San Diego for the Holiday Bowl.
That means somebody has to fill in.
And finally, that somebody is me.
Its taken four years for this to work out.

The last time the Ducks went to the Holiday Bowl, the Ducks tried to get ahold of me, but - if you can believe it - I missed the email from the Oregon Sports Network.
Instead of me, Jay Reese got the call and I had to wait for the next football/basketball conflict.

It came the next season. But the call went to Jay again.

Back in September the Ducks named me as one of the announcers for baseball.
Since I am now officially under contract with Oregon, I get my chance to say hello to Duck fans on the Oregon Sports Network.

Its really something to compare calling a college game to a high school game.
University athletic departments have fleets of staff members who compile pages and pages of notes for every game. They are called Sports Information Directors.
Their work is provided as a package of information for members of the media in order to answer any conceivable question.
Stats are just a small part of the game notes.
Storylines, trends, oddities and biographies are all included in the game notes.

In covering a high school game, the announcer is required to put together his or her own notes.
Its getting alot easier with the internet and quality websites, but it is time consuming and not always accurate.

The Ducks released the game notes for the Long Beach State game Friday afternoon or Saturday morning. I was able to go to http://www.goducks.com/, open the notes as a PDF and (even better) print the pages I need to prepare for the game.
You can do it too. Fans have access to the same information.

I have re-written both teams rosters, placing vital stats under each players name so I have instant access to the most important information.

For a high school basketball game, I get the other teams' roster at the door and get familiar with the roster as I enter into my scorebook.

Oh, thats another thing. I don't even need a scorebook for the Oregon game.
In addition to a replay video screen and live stats, those staffers in the athletic department serve as statisticians at Mac Court.

During the Duck game, I will have running stats on shooting percentage, turnovers and rebounds on a screen and a new stat sheet at every stoppage of play.

It might make me spoiled when I call my next RHS game.


To listen to Brian call the Ducks and 49ers Monday night, tune in to 101.1 fm or listen at http://www.goducks.com/.

What's the Message Here?

This has been one of the most unusual Christmas Holiday seasons I can remember.
So much bad news all around.
Such good things happening for my family and I.

It feels risky even writing that. To say that outloud makes me feel like I would invite the 'jinx'.

I'm a compassionate guy. I cry at the mere suggestion of anything even remotely touching.
But it seems like I am even more 'tuned in' to the tragedies around me this year.

Blake Kreig, Ken Jones, Tony Kuhn. Layoffs, job losses, even suicides have interrupted what would otherwise be a blissful Christmas season for me.

Then, last night on the way home from the Roseburg Churchill game I stopped in Cottage Grove to grab a bite to eat.
Sitting outside the restaurant was a man in a wheelchair.
His head was down, covered by a camoflauged cap.

When my headlights shined on him, the man looked up.
I saw hollow eyes, deeply wrinkled, brown skin and a moustache badly in need of a Kleenex.
Several layers of coats and sweaters were doing a bad job of keeping him warm.
He was coughing with every breath and wiping his nose with fingerless gloves.

I approached the man without fear. I figured I'd buy him a hamburger or coffee - anything to help.

He accepted a cup of hot coffee - "5 creams and 7 sugars" - as requested.

He continued to cough. He was barely understable.
He said "Its the napalm. It got me in Vietnam. It gets worse in the cold."

I realize its possible he was trying to garner sympathy from a stranger, but I think he just wanted to talk to someone.

I told him I hoped he would get better soon as I put one foot in my car.

He asked, "Why? Why should I want to get better?"

I was stunned, but said "You gotta have hope, man."

And here is what he said.

The thing that stayed with me and motivated me to share all of this with you.

"Hope for what?"

Think about that for a second.

Hope for what?

My Sunday School education made me want to say something about God and Heaven and Christmas, but it all felt so hollow as those thoughts echoed around my head.

Hope for what?

From his perspective, what does he have to hope for?

What was I supposed to say? Tell him that 'its all gonna be okay'? 'You're gonna be fine'? 'Jesus loves you'?

How do you answer that question? Why do you have hope? What are you hopeful for?

For me, my family and my faith and my career give me hope.

But what if you don't have any of those things?

Then what?

I think I have come to understand the message that I am supposed to get out of all the things I have seen and reported on over the last few months.

Alot of people have lost something lately.

Loved ones...jobs...houses...their health.

If you have somone to love and something to live for, you still have the one thing it takes to make it through the hard times.

If you think you have it hard, be happy if you have hope.

There's a guy in a wheelchair in Cottage Grove who wishes he had some.

Behind the Scenes on a 'Snow Day'

Rarely is there a better day to be on the radio than on a Snow Day.
Schools report their delay and closure information, updates come in from transportation officials, the phone rings off the hook with parents and kids asking the same question:
"Do you have any school closure information?"
Radio people always want to ask, "Do you have a radio? We're repeating the list every ten minutes."
Instead, we politely provide the information they are requesting and get on to the next update.

When a big news story breaks - or the snow starts falling - people in radio get a big adrenaline rush.
Days like these are why all of us love radio.
But Snow Days are special.
Sometimes when big news hits its because something bad has happened to someone else.
There isn't any bad news downside to snow.

We remember what it is like, listening anxiously by the radio for your school to be mentioned on the laundry list of closures and delays.
On the other side of the radio, every time you hear a feature on KQEN or a song on Best Country 103, rest assured the on air staff is rushing around, getting the latest information.

And how about this one.
Have you noticed where we go to find out what other people are doing on Black Friday or to find out where the deepest snow has fallen?

Coffee Stands.

Those baristas talk to a wide (and fairly random) sampling of people every morning.
This morning, Kyle was able to judge the roads between the station and his favorite coffee stand (the Garden Valley Shopping Center Dutch Bros) when he made his run.
The barista there told him that people in Umpqua were hit with about five inches of snow.
The day after Thanksging, Bob interviewed another coffee stand employee to discover how early the people started heading out to their favorite shopping haunts.

It says two things: coffee baristas are turning into a kind of local bartender or priest - the kind of person who finds out alot of stuff about alot of people every day.
Second, someone should figure out how to make money on that fact.

Happy Snow Day!

Okay, I'm at work this morning. But I'm not happy about it!

They say the snow is coming in from the north later this morning.

Really they do.

I feel like the boy who cried wolf, except I'm just crying.

And before you mock me over the insistent forecasts I gave ALL DAY, remember this:

No listener can make me feel any worse than the image in my mind of my youngest daughter's face when she wakes up and sees no snow this morning.

Well, Raegan, maybe we can go out in the yard and make a rain man, instead.

If it doesn't snow tonight...

If it doesn't snow tonight (Wednesday) I am calling in sick Thursday morning.
Kyle thinks I'm joking, but I'm not.
If it doesn't snow tonight, my kids are going to disown me.
My youngest daughter keeps asking me "When's it gonna start snowing?"
Staying true to my 'reporting roots' I keep telling her "According to the Weather Service it should start snowing at 2Am."
See, they teach us to always credit the source with the information because the reporter isn't the one with the information, the reporter is reporting what the newsmakers do and say. I'm not sure that will get me off the hook with my daughter if it doesn't snow and I know it won't get me off the hook with the listeners tomorrow morning.

P.S. Kyle, I'm not kidding.

Official Launch of My First Official Blog

Well, we've finally gotten around to blogging.
Why did it take so long?
We've always been sort of concerned about professing our opinions on the news when we take our news coverage so seriously.
But times they are a changin and this forum is really no different than having an open mic.
What we say here has to be fair, just like what comes to your radio.
We have to be a little bit careful about calling someone out or complaining too much, but other than that this is a great way to tell the KQEN listeners about some of the other stuff that goes on when we cover the news in Douglas County.
I look forward to exploring this new (to me) way to share more information with you.

Brian