[Editor’s note: The 1980s were heady times for journalism on the South Coast. The Santa Barbara News-Press, then widely acclaimed as one of the best newspapers of its size in the country, had three sports columnists who were all considered must reads: John Zant, Mark Patton and Paul Yarbrough — all three of whom would, at one point, serve as the paper’s sports editor. Yarbrough’s column was a mixture of humor (or attempted humor), musings and opinions that sometimes got him in hot water. He was sports editor in the mid-1980s as the News-Press made the switch to a morning publication from more than a century as an afternoon paper. Others may remember him as the radio “Voice of the Gauchos,” with his trademark “BINGO!” call. Today, as he makes the transition into semi-retirement in Eugene, Ore., along the banks of the Willamette River, he resurrects his Time Out column just for us, and Noozhawk could not be more thrilled. Look for his weekly column on Mondays.]
» I will be pulling hard for Phil Mickelson this week when the U.S. Open hits Bethpage in Farmingdale, N.Y. And only part of the rooting will be because he anchors my fantasy golf team …
» I miss Scott O’Leary. I can’t think of a more deserving person to have the on-campus football stadium at Dos Pueblos High named after. Little-known fact: Scott asked me to be his permanent third-base coach in 1971. Alas, I had begun my now 40-year newspaper career by then and just couldn’t fit it into my schedule. But I’ve never forgotten the offer. Or Scott …
» Where are they now: Doug Rex?
» One of the highlights of my life was taking Dad to play and stay at Pebble Beach in 1977. A close second, when I took Mom and Dad to Fenway Park in Boston during the bicentennial year of 1976 …
» I have viewed sports in many venues over the years, but I think my favorite remains La Playa Stadium. Whether it’s football or track, you can’t beat the view. I have such great memories of sitting in the stands with my Dad and older brothers watching the Easter Relays. We would each pick an athlete (based on his uniform color) and cheer and cheer like crazy during the race …
» You realize how long the journey has been when you stop to think about the advances in technology since I first walked into the News-Press offices at De la Guerra Plaza back in 1971. Back then, everything was produced on an Underwood typewriter, with a carbon copy sent to our radio station, KTMS. (Do they even make carbon paper any more?) Now, I produce this column on a Toshiba laptop and transmit it via a wireless Internet. There are days when I miss the simpler times …
» Speaking of technology, for me, the greatest invention ever: the DVR! What it allows you to do with recorded and live television programming is amazing. There are times, when I will set the DVR to record the Super Bowl, then run home and fast-forward through the game and watch the commercials …
» My favorite TV commercials right now: Anything from Sonic Drive-In and the ESPN bits featuring pro athletes working in their Bristol, Conn., cubicles …
» You are getting old if you remember Mike McGory. “For Gaucho glory, it’s Mike McGory” …
» Sixty years! Vin Scully has now been the Voice of the Dodgers for 60 years! I remember him explaining, many years ago, why it was a pretty good gig: “The hours are good and there’s no heavy lifting involved.” There are very few things in life better than sitting on the back patio, cold beverage nearby and Vin Scully superbly describing a Dodgers’ baseball game …
» I wrote a bit once, after he had once again dashed the hopes of my Lakers, saying I would like to pop Danny Ainge. I had a listed telephone number at the time, and received an anonymous threat in the middle of the night from an Ainge fan who apparently took offense. Small World Department: My daughter graduated last year from the same high school that Ainge attended in the 1970s, North Eugene. You can visit the neighborhood pizza parlor and see a shrine honoring his accomplishments.
— Noozhawk columnist Paul Yarbrough can be reached at pyarbrough@noozhawk.com.