Professional Bowlers Association

The lights are bearing down, the cameras are pointed in your face and you’ve got a producer screaming in your ear. You’ve got hundreds of thousands of people hanging on your words at home and hundreds more on the set. You ask your questions, trying not to fumble a word, hustle back to the booth and settle in for an hour and a half of adrenaline-packed live television where one mistake is magnified to a national television audience. Think Dave Ryan and Randy Pedersen’s jobs are easy and glamorous? Think again. The Denny’s PBA Tour’s Sunday telecast might seem like a long hour and a half to those watching at home, but to the two men who provide their voices and insights to the Tour, it’s the fastest and most intense hour and a half of the week. If it does appear that their job is easy, it’s because Ryan and Pedersen are now settling into their fourth consecutive season as the broadcast team for the PBA on ESPN. Their four years together marks the first consistent team the PBA has had since the legendary Chris Schenkel teamed with Nelson “Bo” Burton Jr. on ABC. Their consistency and commitment to the show, and their mutual respect for each other, has given the PBA a solid team fans can count on week in and week out. Opposites Attract Their backgrounds couldn’t be more different, with Pedersen born and raised in California before moving to his current home in Clermont, Fla., and Ryan being born and raised in New York. Professionally, Ryan was practically born with a microphone in his hand. He perfected his craft at perhaps the strongest broadcast school in the country in Syracuse University, and has been the jack-of-all trades for ESPN since 1996, doing everything from college football to curling. Pedersen, meanwhile, was busy putting together a Hall of Fame caliber career on the lanes, collecting 13 Tour titles and one Major in over 20 seasons. He didn’t spend a single day in school to learn the craft he currently handles so well each Sunday. So how did these two opposite characters come to mesh so well in such a high-stress job? They both agree it was the instant connection they had outside of the booth that got the relationship off to a strong start. “I was doing a football game in Miami in September of 2002. Randy came down and we went to dinner and hit it off right away,” said Ryan of their first meeting. “He really put me at ease and that’s so important because if you’re with someone for that many weeks, and you’re working so closely with them, you have to get along. “Going into it, that’s the biggest hurdle to get over because if you’re matched up with someone you’re not compatible with, it’s going to be tough.” Though the first hurdle was out of the way, the challenge was intense for both: for Ryan, being thrown into a sport as technical as bowling and for Pedersen, handling the intensity of live television with no previous training. Not Quite a Rookie Though Ryan had spent the majority of his pre-PBA time working major sports like hockey and college football, he wasn’t entirely new to bowling. In fact, Ryan did a bowling show on WSTM-TV in Syracuse, N.Y., in the early to mid-1990’s with none other than former pro bowler Marty Piraino and current pro Joe Ciccone, who was just 17 at the time. “We did a show called Championship Bowling as well as a kid’s show called Challenge Bowling. We actually had a pair of lanes in the TV station,” said Ryan. “It was a great experience and that’s where I initially learned a lot about the sport from Marty and Joe. It was just a very different level though because they were local amateurs.” Years later, Ryan was returning from an NHL playoff game in Ottawa when he saw the 860 area code come up on his phone. “When you see that area code, you just know it’s someone from the ‘big house,’” said Ryan, referring to ESPN. “It was our Senior Vice President of Production and he asked me if I’d like to get involved with the PBA and do the Sunday broadcast. It was very exciting to be the voice of anything at ESPN, especially a professional sport. That’s a great opportunity no matter what it is, and that it was bowling made it that much better.” Pedersen, meanwhile, had all the bowling knowledge in the world but lacked the professional broadcasting education and experience. He’d done some sideline reporting for the PBA shows on ABC as well as doing work on TNN’s “Rock and Bowl” in 2000. But nothing compared to taking over as the full-time color man for the Tour. His first full-year with ESPN came in 2001-02 after he won an audition over Marshall Holman, Brian Voss and Bryan Goebel. “I had no idea how it would go,” said Pedersen of the audition. “I know that I wanted to do it and give it a shot. I liked being on TV and I finally figured out how to get on the show every week.” Then-Commissioner Ian Hamilton informed Pedersen he’d won the job. He was given a media coach, but his first season was hardly easy. “I was standing right behind Randy when he did his first show and they had the booth by the edge of the stands then,” said Ciccone, who also works on the television crew for the Sunday telecast. “So I was standing there, and there were actually a bunch of players standing there, and Randy would say something on air, then turn around and ask us ‘Was that alright?’” While Pedersen was a natural due to his high energy and enthusiasm – not to mention his first-hand knowledge of the game - he was dealt a difficult hand his first season, being paired with three different partners. “I sucked at first,” said Pedersen bluntly. “Quite honestly, I didn’t really learn the business and wasn’t taught a whole lot until Mike Roth came aboard as our producer and he took me under his wing. I really had no idea what I was doing.” With Roth and a steady production group in place, the addition of Ryan solidified a team that would grow into a family over the next three years. Growing Pains Though their personal connection was instantly strong, it was only natural that they experience some growing pains with Ryan’s inexperience with bowling and Pedersen raw, untrained talent. Despite their initial shortcomings, their first effort was on target. “After the first show in the 2002-03 season, Randy called me right after it was over and in his typical fashion, he was all excited. He didn’t know why, but he felt like something just clicked,” said Ryan. “I think we just hit it off from the beginning and when you get along outside of the broadcast, that helps so much on the broadcast because you’re not pretending.” With each show, Ryan and Pedersen have become more and more comfortable with their own performance, as well as with each other. “There are a lot of minutiae in this game and there’s such a unique language to the sport,” said Ryan. “Randy has taught me so much about the sport and he continues to. I’m still learning. The hardest thing has been learning the intricacies and speaking the language. That has been a challenge, but he’s taught me an immeasurable amount about bowling.” With Pedersen’s help and his own dedication, Ryan continues to learn the sport in the little time he has. During college football season, Ryan will fly directly from a Saturday game to that week’s Tour stop. He has less than 24 hours to take in an entire week’s worth of bowling. “Dave is probably one of the most prepared people for the show I have worked with, and I’ve worked with a lot of different people over the years,” said Ciccone. “He takes as much time and effort into being prepared as he possibly can. He is very dedicated to making the show the best possible show it can be.” For Pedersen, it was a consistent crew and a mentor that shaped him into a finely-tuned broadcaster. “My first year I worked with three different announcers and three different producers in the same year,” said Pedersen. “When Roth came on board the first year, he took me under his wing and worked with me constantly. We were basically attached at the hip. The following year I started to do interviews and he continued to help me and tutor me. I owe where I am today to Mike Roth because of his passion for what he does.” Credit Where Credit Is Due Though they credit each other and their crew for their success, both Ryan and Pedersen have relied largely on their natural talent. “He brings incredible knowledge and background because he’s still active and still a very good bowler,” said Ryan. “Randy’s enthusiasm is so great. He has so much energy and that brings energy to the show. He just has a great TV presence. “Randy has really learned how to get specific on things and really be definitive at the right moment,” Ryan continued. "He’s the kind of guy who could talk about something for 10 straight minutes, but on TV you obviously don’t have that luxury. He has a few seconds to get his points in and he’s become much more succinct. “The other thing is that he’s very funny. I don’t know if people outside our group know just how funny he is, but he has an unbelievable sense of humor.” Dave Schroeder, the PBA’s TV production liaison, has seen both Ryan and Pedersen develop throughout his tenure. “Dave’s very good at storytelling and bringing out the personalities of the players. I think his strength is that he is so good off the cuff in on-cameras and interviews and at the close of the show. You never see him mess up a player interview or an on-camera. “I think also because he does so much for ESPN, doing college football and college basketball, he really lends a lot of credibility to our show. We are fortunate to have him as our bowling guy because he does so many other things.” After three seasons together, Ryan and Pedersen are only getting better – as a team and as individuals. “From my point of view, Randy has really blossomed as far as his analyst role is concerned, especially in being able to anticipate things from the bowlers,” said Schroeder. “He has been really good, especially this year, about predicting what’s going to happen in a match and having the confidence to put those things out there whereas before he didn’t have as much belief in himself to say those things. What I’m noticing this year is more often that not he’s right. When he makes a prediction about how a match is going to go, nine times out of 10 he’s right. “His level of comfort and his level of confidence have grown leaps and bound,” Schroeder continued. “He has worked really hard at his on-camera presence and I just think a light went on last season and his confidence really came out.” Pedersen agrees he’s become more comfortable over the years, but he still has his moments. “I thought last year was my breakout year in terms of interviews. I thought I was solid week in and week out. I can’t tell you why, I just was,” said Pedersen. “Looking back at this year I’ve had good weeks, but I’ve also butchered some interviews.” Pedersen pointed to a situation this season when he was interviewing Tom Baker about his transition to and from the Senior Tour. “I had this long drawn out dissertation and that’s not what people want to hear. They want to hear the interviewee,” said Pedersen. “I went on and on and I just forgot the question. Then I got stuck and asked the first thing that came out. At that point you have to pull yourself back together and ask the next question. “With our schedule, if you don’t get enough sleep the night before or you’re not prepared, it’s a scary place to be. Live television with the camera in your face and all the people staring at you, it’s crazy.” Pedersen has seen the stress of the television show from both sides, something that few people can say. “For those that watch at home and for bowlers that watch re-runs, they have no idea what goes into a telecast,” said Pedersen, who has made 31 television appearances as a competitor. “Brad Angelo went into the truck when Baker made the show a couple weeks ago and he said ‘I’ve got a completely different view of what you go through on Sunday. That was the craziest thing I’ve ever witnessed.’ It gave him a whole new respect and a different outlook on Sundays. “That was nice to hear because a lot of people don’t know the little things that happen, like when you’re in the midst of a sentence and your producer talks in your ear,” Pedersen continued. “Or you lose the feed from the truck and you’re on your own. It’s crazy. That stuff happens and until you’ve been in that situation you have no idea what to do.” That’s where Pedersen has leaned on Ryan’s experience to get through the rough patches. “Dave’s been doing it for a long time and he’s a pro,” said Pedersen. “I’m feeling more confident but you never really get comfortable. I’m still not comfortable. All the in-game stuff is comfortable for me because it’s what I know and what I do. The on-cameras and the interviews are difficult. After 10 years of doing it, I’ll probably still feel the same way.” Ryan, meanwhile, is still working hard to overcome the difficulty of working in a sport he doesn’t have an extensive background in. “I think that when I first started, because the ball goes in the pocket so fast, there’s a very fine line between whether it’s a light hit or if it’s high, and there are so many different terms for what leave it is,” said Ryan. “We have our list and we talk before the show about what we most likely will see on the show, but it happens so fast that there are times when you just have the wrong call. “You try to make every call right, but it’s not easy. For someone who’s not a full time bowler that makes it even harder,” Ryan continued. “The angles are different depending on the cameras, and those cameras are set up differently every week depending on the center. You try to avoid it, but if it happens, all you can do is admit your mistake.” While Pedersen was instantly a hit with his expert analysis and his quick wit, he had to learn to get comfortable with asking the questions rather than answering them. “The show is a hectic job. And there are not a lot of color commentators that go out and do interviews,” said Pedersen. “John Madden doesn’t go down to the field and do interviews during live broadcasts. All those guys went to school and I never did. I’ve basically been learning everything on the fly. Each week produces its own different challenges and live TV is a crazy, crazy hour-and-a-half thing. It’s controlled chaos.” Pedersen still feels he has a lot of room for improvement. “The biggest thing I’ve learned - and I’m still working on it - is I can’t try to do too much or try to force things. I have to be me and do it with my personality. A lot of time that gets lost. You’re only as good as your supporting cast and I couldn’t do it without everyone in the truck.” Though he’s no longer bowling full-time on Tour as he did when he first started, Pedersen still has weeks when he juggles his two passions. In fact, he says it’s those weeks when he produces his best work. “I think that I do a better show when I’ve actually competed in the tournament because it gives me a better insight into what happened that week on the lanes,” said Pedersen. “I bowled on the conditions so I don’t have to rely on second-hand information. When I’m actually out there, then the bowling information on the show is much better.” We are Family What ultimately makes the Ryan-Pedersen combo work is the sense of family, not just between the two but between the entire TV crew. The bond that Ryan and Pedersen have goes beyond the booth. “I just really consider him one of my best friends, and really since I’m an only child, he’s like the brother I never had,” said Ryan of Pedersen. “He’s just an incredible guy.” Pedersen uses a simple example to explain the bond. “Dave’s been over to my house down in Florida. In fact, I stayed at his house in Syracuse by myself while he was gone and I was doing an exhibition in the area. When you do that, there’s a lot of trust involved. That shows the kind of relationship we have.” Ask Ryan to name his most memorable moments, and he has many. He’s called two televised 300 games, as well as an emotional show at last season’s U.S. Open. But there’s one memory that stands out in his mind, as well as the minds of all who were on the television crew in 2002. “When Randy bowls on television, it’s always a huge challenge, but when he won in Philadelphia a couple seasons ago that was very difficult,” said Ryan of Pedersen’s emotional win in the 2002 Pepsi Open. “Everyone in the truck was crying. It was a challenge for all of us just to keep doing the show.” Pedersen easily agreed that it was his most memorable moment of the last four years. “That was my first year working with that crew and not only was I bowling to win the tournament for my family and friends, but now I have a new family in the guys on the truck. I even said on the show, ‘that’s for the guys in the truck,’” said Pedersen. “That was probably Roth’s worst produced show in his time because they’re in there watching and not focusing on their job. They were all basket cases. “But that shows the kind of relationships that have developed from grinding it out with these people each and every week on the show.” In for the Long Haul After working with athletes in all the major sports, Ryan has found joy in the ease of working with bowlers. “Someone told me bowling is the sport of the people and everybody is so down to earth. Well, it’s true. People always ask what these guys are like and I tell them that I have not in four years had any issues of ego or guys not showing up or giving us attitude,” said Ryan. “It has been a joy working with these guys. I have worked with all four of the major sports and bowlers are by far the most accessible and easy going.” Ryan wants to continue building on the foundation he and Pedersen have built. “I’ll keep on doing this as long as the PBA and ESPN will have me. I love doing it,” said Ryan. “Chris Schenkel set the benchmark for greatness and it’s my duty to keep up the level of excellence and commitment. With my schedule the way it is now, this has become my main gig now.” Pedersen doesn’t have visions of when and how his broadcasting career will end. For now, he’s only planning the perfect ending to a bowling career that’s already been brilliant. “I’d sure like to win one more tournament, especially if my kids were going to be there,” said Pedersen, who has two kids, Savannah, 9, and Chad, 6. “I’d like to win with them there in the set, one last time. They’re old enough to where they could enjoy it and appreciate it. And then we could put a nice little end to the book on Randy.” And though it might turn out to be the most poorly produced show in the Tour’s history, there’d be nothing more Ryan or the rest of the crew would love to see.