Tech Saturday...

It’s an amazing time we live in:

For 115 fall Friday nights I broadcast high school football for the continually powerful Lipscomb Mustangs. The games were fabulous - during that time Lipscomb went to the state championship game six times and we got an inside track and the best seats in the house to boot. Those experiences led to some of the closest friendships I developed while in Nashville. And I got to spend incredible evenings working with Gary, Bayron, Craig, Peter, Paul, Burt, Rob and, of course, Jonathan, on what was arguably (present writer excluded) the best high school radio crew in the southeast. This season several of us “hung our mics up”. I’ve enjoyed some Friday night freedom, but really have missed the camaraderie and memories we made most every week - it was never boring.

This week Lipscomb traveled to Spring Hill to play “our” Raiders. Broc Loveless, the quarterback for Spring Hill, is one of our own and played a great game. But when I realized the game would be here we decided a radio crew “reunion” of sorts would be in order. So we had our pre-game meal, I got to give the crew a tour of the new building at Spring Meadows and then we headed to the game. Rob and Craig did the intro and then to my utter surprise Rob took the headphones off and gave them to me for the night and headed to the sidelines with Bayron. We were having a blast (at least I was) when the equipment basically gave up the ghost and couldn’t be repaired. Craig and Jonathan did all they could but it was for naught.

Then I had an idea. I used my iPhone, called the radio station, his add a call and called Craig, we broadcast on two phones talking back and forth. Then during a commercial, I added another call, Rob on the sidelines, next commercial I added Jonathan. We had four calls going through my iPhone. We were totally wireless and the only equipment we needed had been in our pockets all night (instead of the four or five large cases we all hauled for 8 years) But that’s not all. While talking I got a text message from Tom, then from Melanie, then from Andrew. So I was talking to the radio station in Nashville, to Andrew in Gatlinburg, to Rob, Craig, Jonathan, Tom and Melanie in the stadium. After the game ended the post game went on while I (my phone on mute) visited with some old friends and then got in my car and headed home. When the call finally ended Ron Johnson back at the studio said the quality was great. Amazing.

Probably nothing really significant here, just a fun story or friendship and technology.