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MONDAY, APRIL 19, 2010
THE TIMES-DELPHIC
The Drake Relays parade hits the streets
photos by EMILY TOZER | Staff Photographer
MOLLY LUNDBERG AND ANIL ALIMOHD, the 2010 Relays hostess and host, wave at passerbys during the parade Sunday (top left). Owner Kevin Bell props up the 2009 Beautiful Bulldog Porterhouse. Porterhouse will relinquish his title today during the Beautiful Bulldog contest at 11 a.m. in Nollen Plaza (bottom left). The winner will make his or her first major public appearance during Relays ceremonies. Ronald McDonald was one of 70 different entries into the parade that encircled campus (right).
Q&A
LAY PACIORastEK C D N A N E S IS Y E C ke Relays Telec WITH STA d executive producer of the Dra The coordinating producer an
compiled by NICOLE MITTELBRUN |Staff Writer
STACEY ISSEN
Q How many people do you have working under you and what are their jobs? A I have an assistant, executive producer, content and technical producer, I oversee the talent coordinator who holds the talent practice meetings and I oversee the sales team, which has five people doing sales.
Q How much time have you spent preparing for Relays? A Oh God, well, each week since first semester I’ve had 30-minute meetings
with the sales team every Sunday, weekly hourly meetings with producers, talent meetings every other week since last semester and I have my own stuff to do for Relays other than just overseeing those things—it’s been a lot of time. The week of Relays we put in so much time, we have to edit packages and production elements, Thursday night, all-day Friday, all day Saturday we work Relays. We tear down Saturday night. It’s 60 hours straight. We have a 4 a.m. call to 10 or 11 p.m., sometimes later depending on what we still have to
photo by SARAH ANDREWS | Photo/Design Editor
CLAY PACIOREK
Q Where can we find you during Relays? A I will be in the parking lot behind the stadium in a truck the whole weekend. I feel like a bat when I walk outside.
Q What has been the hardest part preparing so far? Q Why is it worth it for you to be so involved with Relays? A There’s nothing like the thrill of live production. It’s one of the most amazing A The hardest part is definitely trying to prepare without having a truck and experiences ever. You may be running around like a chicken with your head cut off and just knowing all the planning that you put into it, and see the product put out. It’s just so cool having that much power and control over a situation and being the person people answer to. It’s a power rush, but it’s awesome.
Q Do you have the opportunity to work with other broadcast crews and what is that like?
A Last year ESPN came in and some people went into the ESPN truck but it’s
completely a student broadcast that really rivals professional broadcasts. We don’t need to bring professionals in because ours really is professional, our talent is really good; they’re broadcast majors. We have play-by-play and color people, we’re directing, and we’ve won awards, like we won a Telly last year in live production and it wasn’t in a student category.
then finally figuring out we are going to have it. For a while I was preparing to do a broadcast in a way we’ve never done it before, so the uncertainty of that was difficult. Thankfully that’s solved, so it doesn’t even matter anymore.
Q What is your favorite part of Relays? A Being in the truck and when everything is rolling and things are going smoothly and we’re having fun. It’s awesome to see all the work you’ve put into it really play out and come together.
Q What kind of changes have you made since last year? A Last year was a great broadcast; it was the best one we’ve ever done. This
year I want to tighten things up and make some things better with graphics and continue what we had last year.
New organization takes to the climb by JACKIE WALLENTIN News Editor tdnews@drake.edu
Rock climbing. Hiking. Crosscountry skiing. For most Iowans, these sports would seem out of place in the Midwest, with corn husking much more likely to be a recreational activity than archery or camping. After working last summer as a trail guide in Wisconsin, senior math and computer science double-major Ethan Kerzner found his return to Drake greatly lacking in outdoor entertainment, the inspiration behind the Drake Outdoor Leadership Club (DOLC). “When I came back to school, I was distraught that I was back in Iowa and there was nothing to do outside,” Kerzner, a co-president, said. “I figured a student-run outdoor program was better than no program at all.” Kerzner pitched his idea for the club to fellow co-president senior finance and quantitative economics double-major Becky Hiu and sophomore actuarial science major Elizabeth Demmon, who shared his fascination for the outdoors. Together, the three students devel-
oped a plan and sent their proposal to Student Senate for an approval of the club. In late September, the DOLC became an official campus organization. “There was an outdoor club at Drake over six years ago, but it never worked out,” Hiu said. “Each and every one of us in the club has an interest in the outdoors. No other organization can provide these needs to students on campus.” Although the club had not yet been approved, the DOLC held their first unofficial rock-climbing event in September, which drew a crowd of approximately 30 students. “I love rock climbing to death,” Hiu said. “I used to teach lessons at home in Malaysia. I have expertise in that field, whereas Ethan is our wilderness expert.” The DOLC has a partnership with Climb Iowa, an indoor climbing facility with over 100,000 square feet of climbing space that opened in Des Moines in November. The partnership allows students to climb on Sunday nights after the facility closes. Hiu says rock climbing is the club’s most frequent event. Freshman journalism and English
double-major Chelsey Teachout attended a DOLC camping trip in the fall and has since then become an official member. The students traveled to the Loess Hills in the northwest corner of Iowa where they spent the weekend camping, hiking and exploring the prairie and forest bluffs. “I enjoy being outdoors, of course, so I wanted a club that wasn’t just a committee, but active,” Teachout said. “It has all been a positive experience.” The DOLC also works with professors in the environmental science department to gain knowledge and different depths of field about the nature surrounding them, Hiu said. The eight regular DOLC members meet on Sundays at 6 p.m. in Olin 102 to plan new events and discuss members’ experiences. Next year the DOLC will lose both Kerzner and Hiu, but Kerzner remains positive that the future of the DOLC is bright. “We’re trying to get the younger members to take over the club so our leadership positions are subsiding,” Kerzner said. “It’s really up to the younger members now. It’s in their hands.” n
photo courtesy of ETHAN KERZNER
DRAKE OUTDOOR LEADERSHIP CLUB MEMBERS practice climbing indoors. The group has a partnership with Climb Iowa.