Fear and Loading
For more than three decades I've had the privilege of interviewing people, reporting news, doing reviews and covering stories across the nation.
Unlike my “Who, what, when, where and sometimes why” news coverage still appearing elsewhere, what you will find here is strictly my jaded opinion. It is, however, built on verifiable fact with convenient links and/or document screenshots. It’s a modest—some claim painful—attempt at creating a lighthearted educational blog. Quiz in 30 minutes, BTW.
The overlords at Substack recommend I provide some sort of posting schedule. The short answer is when the mood strikes me between business travel, story deadlines and family obligations. I’m a camera fanatic, so you might be subjected to bad photos as well. You’ve been forewarned.
These pushy website gurus—who are undoubtedly enjoying another margarita on a sunny Pacific beach right now—also urge contributors to share personal information or professional backgrounds. Here it is in glorious boredom.
Personal Info:
Grumpy—Verified by my gorgeous bride every day.
Ugly—Confirmed, early and often, by my older brother.
Father—Five kids deliberately scattered about North America in a random fashion to confuse the FBI’s AI system.
Grandfather—Six grandchildren with whereabouts determined by payday proximity.
Great Grandfather—Look in the garden, she’s there somewhere.
Life Highlights:
10-Gallon Blood Donor—And all the Red Cross gave me was a stinking pin.
CPR and Multi-Media First Aid Instructor—While in my delirium after giving all that blood somebody at the Red Cross had me sign a paper. I wound up teaching the life-saving skills for five years, or thereabouts. It’s still confusing.
Search & Rescue—12 years with a Mountain Rescue Association group in Arizona and I still can’t climb a ladder without asking for a rope, helmet, belay and stiff drink, usually not in that order.
Free Fishing Clinics—For five years my lovely wife and I held free fishing clinics in Arizona for inner-city kids and their parents. They got lunch and free gear donated by companies. We in return, received threats from the city of Tucson, grief from Arizona Game and Fish and never caught a fish.
Veterans Fishing Program—My bride and I launched a fishing program at a veteran’s hospital in Arizona, probably the most fulfilling project we ever undertook. Out of respect for the men and women who put on a uniform and stood on the front line of freedom, to whom we owed so much, there’s no punchline, sorry.
America’s Most Notorious Outdoor Writer Title—This honor was bestowed upon me by an animal rights group. I inquired about a scepter, but never heard back.
My family would be angry if I didn’t mention the pair of highlights they bring up every holiday. I somehow survived a brutal guinea pig attack—I still have nightmares—and once lit my face on fire while working on the washer (see ugly entry above).
Professional Life
Editor in Chief—12 years at the NRA for several different publications, 12 years overseeing Safari Times for Safari Club International, Fitness Plus in Arizona for too long, Arizona Gourmet for a painful period (although the catered lunches were a delight) and the outdoor news monthly tabloid my wife and I put out for about five years. I’ve never been fired from one of them, but considering what I’m writing here Substack the streak may come to a summary end.
My byline’s appeared in the Washington Post, Cleveland Plain Dealer, Four Wheeler, Bassin’, Bass Fishing, Survival, Shooting Illustrated, American Rifleman and many other print magazines. In most cases the stories were accompanied by my photos, along with notes of complaint from their respective art departments.
I got my start accidentally with the Tucson Citizen, which has fallen victim to today’s Internet outlets shoveling pretend news. The editor at it asked me to write a single outdoor story, but I was quickly stringing everything from features, to business, news and current events for the paper.
That’s it. I’ve done my duty and now that I’ve put you off to sleep it should be enough for the Substack police to remove me from their most wanted list.