February 24, 2008 - Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images North America)
Some years ago, when I started racing Cyclocross with friends of mine from
Eagle County down on the front range, there was always one thing that made the races better, and more fun, and more exciting. It was a show, it was not just a bike race. The voice, the wit, and the character of Dave Towle always made the race day a great experience, and on the long slog back to the mountains Dave's commentary always snuck into the conversation and we would laugh. The guy just had a rare talent.
Well, a few years go by, and I end up promoting and announcing some small hometown races and find I like the mic. This probably spewed from 11 years of playing music professionally back in the 80's and 90's in Summit County, as well as a year long stint as a radio DJ for an AM Country Music station that hailed from Dillon back in the 90's. These small town "gigs" announcing and promoting lead to an opportunity to announce the cycling events at the Teva Mountain Games in Vail, Colorado, which this year drew some 40,000 fans for the weekend. This got me some more and much needed exposure, and from there the ball has been rolling, in a very positive direction for the most part. I've been blessed to announce many mountain and road bike races in Colorado as well as my favorite, Cyclocross all over the front range of Colorado for the past two seasons, it's been an amazing experience getting to witness and call so many amazing athletes in amazing races.
I've also made some mistakes along the way, way before I ever thought I would be pursuing a professional announcing career I stepped on toes of some promoters, right here on this blog. Damn, I truly had no understanding of just how many people were reading my rants and raves out there in cyberworld until the day I called out Brook Watts and Chris Grealish for charging people to get into Cross Vegas on the pages of A2B. It was never meant as a personal attack, but it came across that way, it was simply a difference of opinion which caused quite a bit of strife out there. One thing I have learned over the past couple of years since those days, is that good bike racing is entertainment, and worthy of some type of "charge" to view, I'm not sure what that price is, but it is definitely worth the price of admission if you understand just how good all these athletes are, and I love calling the action. I understand those who were pissed about my stance on that issue, there were also many who agreed and supported what I thought. Bottom line is, it would be nice if that all flows under the bridge some time and I actually get to work with those guys in the future.
But the main point of this ramblishing, is to thank one person alot. Dave Towle, who'm I have a tremendous amount of respect for as he is simply the best at what he does and has been a tremendous help to me this race season. From our conversations face to face, and Dave reaching out to me to give me some great advice for a path to the future, it has been an incredible confidence boost to have his support. I mean are you kidding me? That's like some street fighting rookie having Angelo Dundee in his corner as he starts his path towards his dream of a heavy weight crown. His public support of me as a race announcer means a ton, and the support I get from so many racers and fans is telling me I may have a shot at this if I stick with it. And I do not plan on going anywhere, 2011 is already shaping up to be a great season on the mic. So THANK YOU Dave Towle for the support.......next Ten Fidy is on me, and of course, thank you to the racers and fans, you are the ones that give us the call.
photo sammy rutherford
