RUBADO COLUMN

Rubado: When faced with sudden adversity, Bemidji came together and got to work

Jared Rubado — Tue, 24 Jun 2025 19:03:32 GMT

How often is a rally towel actually used as a towel?

In the wake of the damage caused by the hurricane winds and severe thunderstorms, temperatures and humidity rose to a 2025 summer high on Sunday in Bemidji.

Battling the heat and still without power, as I was forced to move out of my condemned apartment unit, I reached for a hand towel out of a bin I packed earlier that day.

I picked up a small, white cloth and soaked up the sweat pouring out of me. Within minutes, it had fulfilled its purpose.

The towel was from the 2024 Mason Cup championship game. I happened to snag one as I was the last one to leave the Sanford Center 14 months ago in the dead of night. I had no idea how useful that towel would be.

Like many in the Bemidji area, my storm story started around midnight on Friday with a severe alert. The alert then changed to a tornado warning.

I was sitting in my one-bedroom apartment on Conifer Avenue finishing the first of the four “John Wick” movies. I had planned to do a franchise rewatch over the weekend while staying inside out of the heat. People like me — big-bodied with fair skin — aren’t built for temperatures that creep into the 90s.

When the storm picked up, I grabbed my dog and some essential items and moved to the laundry room on the first floor of my complex. I shared the room with another resident around my age and a couple with a baby who was just a few weeks old (the baby didn’t wake up once; such a trooper).

For the better part of two hours, we heard the destruction take place outside of the windowless room. We felt the foundation of the building begin to shake during the storm’s peak. We saw the power go out.

When the storm subsided, sleep wasn’t possible. I walked up to my unit and saw the hole in the ceiling outside my front door in the hallway. My balcony was filled with debris from the side of the complex. Without the garage lights, the neighborhood was completely black, sans the cell phone flashlights of the people assessing the damage in the early a.m. hours.

I dropped off my dog at my unit and joined them outside. Despite being limited to handheld light, it was evident that cars, buildings and the surrounding property were destroyed.

I slept for about 45 minutes before getting to work. I sat in the Northdale Oil Inc. fuel line for roughly two hours before making my way around town, taking pictures. I could charge my computer and phone in my car, which allowed me to help with the Pioneer’s storm coverage.

When I meandered over to Bemidji State’s campus, I got a call from my property manager telling me they brought in an evaluator to asses the damage. The roof was caving in in my apartment unit. I had to move, and I had to do it quickly.

I got that call around 2:30 p.m., then I picked up the new keys at 5. My family and I spent the next 30 hours moving from one building to another 100 yards away with no power.

The weekend moved so fast; I felt like I didn’t have time to think. Nothing hit me until Monday afternoon on my drive home from the Pioneer office.

My story is not unique, nor do I feel like a victim. Thousands of people suffered irreplaceable losses. Relatively speaking, I got out pretty unscathed.

But I’m someone who over-appreciates the little things. I find immense joy in the minuscule aspects of life. I used to love my drive home from work. But that drive home to my new complex on Monday put a lump in my throat.

I loved the view of the tree-lined tunnel down 15th Street. Bemidji takes pride in being located in rural northern Minnesota, and its identity is ingrained in each aspect of this town. But in a matter of one night, it felt like that identity in this community — our community — was stripped from us.

The storm left people scrambling for solutions. It tore down the physical aspects that make our city unique. It’s utterly howling to peruse Bemidji roads as cleanup has only just begun.

However, I had another realization, as I assume so many other Bemidjians did this weekend. This community isn’t defined by what needs to be replaced. Bemidji is defined by its people. And, man, in the aftermath of destruction, these people got to work.

Thousands of people laced up their boots, put on their gloves and sought to provide relief. Donation efforts in the form of monetary and physical contributions poured in. City officials, first responders and more acted fast.

A weekend that could’ve withered Bemidji down to the studs brought out the best in its people, and that’s something we can be proud of.

If I have the space to ask for one thing, it’s this: be patient if it’s possible. It’s going to take a long time to put the pieces back together. And even though some of those pieces are forever lost, the core of this community is strong.

I’ve spent a lot of time this weekend thinking about when I moved to Bemidji in January 2023. As a Brainerd native, I never liked the idea of living here. I justified it by saying the job was too good to turn down, and I could put up with living in this place until it was time to move on.

I look back at that line of thinking and feel foolish. I’ve seen what it looks like when Bemidji shows its true colors, and each of those experiences will make it harder for me to leave.

When you get a chance this week, take a step back and give yourself some credit. The job isn’t finished; we have a ways to go, but you made it this far. Sooner or later, last weekend will become one of those fabled stories you look back on when things are good again.

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Best of the Beavs: The Pioneer’s top 2024-25 moments from each Bemidji State team

Jared Rubado — Tue, 10 Jun 2025 17:05:48 GMT

BEMIDJI – When the athletic year comes to a close, it gives us time to reflect.

Bemidji State and its 14 athletics programs are firmly in their offseasons. Before the Beavers arrive on campus this fall, the Pioneer sports department looked back on our favorite moments from this past season.

It was a year of triumphant highs and crushing lows, as is for any institution that competes on the field, ice, pitch, track, course and court. Here are the moments that stuck out to us:

Football: Gabe Ward’s miracle in the mountains

Faber: On Nov. 30, Bemidji State trailed Western Colorado 19-14 on the road with less than four minutes left in the game. The Mountaineers were driving deep into Beaver territory, content with milking out the clock in the second-round Super Region 4 Tournament tilt.

The Beavers needed a miracle. Stephen Hoffman and Gabe Ward provided it.

On a designed quarterback keeper, WCU’s Josiah Roy rushed past the line of scrimmage and was met by Hoffman, who forced a fumble. Ward scooped the ball up and blitzed 75 yards to the end zone, giving BSU a 20-19 lead with 3:25 left in the game.

The lead stuck, and Bemidji State advanced to the Super Region 4 Championship for the first time in program history.

Volleyball: A brave effort with heavy hearts

Rubado: It’s hard to remember a sporting event as emotional as the Bemidji State volleyball game on Sept. 26.

The Beavers’ home opener was heavy, to say the least. It was the first contest BSU played in since the passing of head coach Kevin Ulmer, who died after his three-year battle with cancer.

With his wife and kids in attendance, Bemidji State battled No. 15 Minnesota Duluth and pushed the Bulldogs to the brink. Ultimately losing in five sets, it was a night where any score or result was secondary.

I find myself looking back on that game and thinking about how tough the BSU players were for having the courage to suit up that night. Ulmer, among a plethora of apt descriptors, was a beloved community member, and he would’ve been proud of the effort his players and coaches showed that night.

Women’s soccer: The Stocke connection

Rubado: A pair of siblings competing for the same collegiate program isn’t unheard of. Three of them, however, are worth remembering.

Maria, Bri and Dayna Stocke were raised in Andover, but hadn’t played more than one high school game together on the same team. Maria, a senior, and Dayna, a freshman, were years apart, with Bri, a redshirt sophomore, splitting the age difference.

In their own ways, all three were and are valuable contributors to the Beavers. But it took a little bit more in the tank for Bri to get there. In high school, she had “calf problems,” and was later diagnosed with compartment syndrome. She played in 10 matches this season, the most since she was a Husky at Andover.

Men’s golf: Schoepp’s three-day reign

Rubado: Going wire-to-wire in a tournament is impressive at any level of golf. Doing it with an individual NSIC championship on the line certainly adds to the resume.

Bemidji State junior Logan Schoepp went to Blue Springs, Missouri, in April and finished every round at the top of the leaderboard. Schoepp edged out Concordia-St. Paul’s Thomas Gutzmer to win his first individual crown.

Women’s golf: A message worth continued sharing

Rubado: I never met Tracy (Depew) Lane. I never got to see her golf. I’ve only heard stories about the kind of person and athlete she was.

Unfortunately, Lane’s golf career can be overshadowed by her premature passing. In August 2013, Lane died after a battle with cervical cancer. Three years later, Judy Mayotte, Tracy’s mother, has taken time to travel to Bemidji and speak with the players at the Tracy Lane Memorial Golf Tournament about “Tracy’s dying wish.”

Sometimes, the best sports moments are routine. And while it’s become part of the yearly routine for Mayotte to speak with the women’s golfers who make their way to Bemidji in the fall, my conversation with her opened me up to a passionate cause.

Women’s track and field: Trading throws

Rubado: Mikenna Pattrin decided she’d thrown enough softballs and taken enough hits on the rugby pitch. During her freshman year at Bemidji State four years ago, Pattrin was offered a spot on the BSU women’s track and field team as a thrower. She wrapped up her senior spring season with her best.

On Jan. 31, Pattrin heaved a throw of 13.10 meters, breaking into the NCAA Division II College Indoor rankings at No. 48 for the first time in her career.

Women’s cross country: Twilight personal records

Rubado: The Bemidji State women’s cross country season is the shortest of all sports at BSU. The Beavers had just five meets before their focus shifted toward the indoor and outdoor track and field seasons.

However, one meet stuck out. Bemidji State took third place out of 13 teams at the Dragon Twilight meet in Moorhead. Maggie McCarthy (19:26.196, 18th place) and Carol Miller (19:30.02, 23rd) finished inside the top 25. Additionally, four runners notched personal-best times. Miller, Sydney Price (21:58.4), Sophie Rylance (20:44.6) and Ava Werner (23:18.9) all cruised to their best marks under the lights in Moorhead.

Men’s hockey: Late night in Sioux Falls

Rubado: I think BSU head coach Tom Serratore would scoff if I tried using this space to talk about his 400th win again instead of the team as a whole. Luckily for me, one men’s hockey moment sticks out above the rest.

Bemidji State trailed its Mason Cup Playoffs quarterfinal series 1-0 against second-seeded Augustana. The Beavers were dead to rights after not recording a shot on goal in the third period in Game 1. Despite that frustrating conclusion, BSU showed its resolve and tied the series, then Adam Flammang sniped the winner. The Beavers’ upset over Augustana in the first round, in a lot of ways, mimicked a season packed with highs and lows.

Women’s hockey: Deering’s OT heroics

Rubado: When Bemidji State women’s hockey defensemen get in on the scoring action, the Beavers are typically in good shape. Senior Makenna Deering thought that one goal wasn’t good enough.

After tallying a power-play goal midway through the first period against Minnesota State on Jan. 31 at the Sanford Center, Deering showcased her overtime magic 20 seconds into the extra session to give the Beavers a 3-2 win.

To that point, Deering hadn’t scored a goal in her senior season. Her second goal notched BSU its fifth win and surpassed its win total from a year earlier.

Deering wasn’t the only senior defenseman to make headlines. Kendra Fortin became Bemidji State’s first-ever finalist for the Hockey Humanitarian Award for her efforts in organ donation awareness.

Men’s basketball: JP’s 3-point party against the Marauders

Faber: Heading into the 2025 season, the Beavers knew they had a star in John Sutherland. They knew they had returning talent and upside in Tate Olson. They knew they had exciting potential in transfer-portal addition Malang Athian.

What might have come as a surprise, though, was this season’s 3-point specialist: John Pecarich.

After a quiet freshman season, the guard from Brainerd made his presence felt just three games into his sophomore season, scoring 24 points and splashing six 3-pointers against Valley City State.

Perhaps his best performance (in a win), though, came against an NSIC opponent on Jan. 30. Pecarich was an efficient 6 for 9 from beyond the arc, finishing with 24 points in Bemidji State’s 88-76 win over U-Mary.

In a season that featured some inconsistency, Pecarich’s 3-point scoring ability – first off the bench and eventually in the starting five – was a near constant.

Women’s basketball: Beavers best Huskies for first conference win

Faber: Outside the BSU Gymnasium on Dec. 19, the wind was whipping and the snow was piling up. But inside, the Beavers were finally heating up.

Bemidji State had kicked off its NSIC slate with four-straight losses when it welcomed St. Cloud State to town. However, thanks to strong scoring performances from Tieryn Plasch and Rachel Koenig, the Beavers finally stopped their conference skid with a 78-74 win over the Huskies.

Plasch scored a team-high 22 points, highlighted by six 3-pointers. Koenig was next up with 20, putting together an efficient 7 for 8 day from the field. Freshman Aubrey Heyer also pitched in with 13 points in the win.

Women’s tennis: First time since ‘17

Faber: On April 5, the Beavers achieved something they hadn’t since 2017. They secured a win over Winona State.

It was a 4-3 victory that perfectly encapsulated the scrappy 2025 squad. Though the Warriors took the doubles point, the pairing of Mia Leshem and Sophie Groen flexed their ability at the No. 1 spot with a 6-2 win.

Groen outlasted Lainey Ristau at No. 1 singles in a three-set battle. BSU picked up another hard-fought, three-set win at No. 2 singles courtesy of Leshem, an exciting freshman from South Africa. Ana Lucía Ibáñez Castro and Lauren Rutten won at Nos. 4 and No. 5 singles, respectively, to clinch the win.

Softball: Ranked win in the Sunshine state

Faber: While campus was still busy thawing from winter, the Bemidji State softball team spent the first few weeks of March racking up wins in Clermont, Florida.

The Beavers collected eight victories at the Spring Games from March 6-14. Those wins brought the season total up to 13, matching the final tally from the entire 2024 season.

The most impressive victory was a 1-0 nailbiter on March 13. Bemidji State took down No. 16 Indianapolis, thanks to a stellar performance from freshman pitcher Kennedy Joachim. She gave up four hits and no runs through seven innings, issuing one walk while tallying 10 strikeouts.

Baseball: Ending on a high note

Rubado: Wins were hard to come by for the Bemidji State baseball team, but one of them showcased its growth.

Too often did the Beavers let games slip away in the late innings. The regular-season finale against St. Cloud State wasn’t one of them. Leading 9-1 after seven innings, BSU took the Huskies’ best punch. SCSU scored five in the top of the eighth inning at the BSU baseball field, but couldn’t find the tying run. Ty Schulte recorded a four-out save with two strikeouts.

Brandon Lind had his best. The starting pitcher threw 7 1/3 innings, striking out ten batters in 123 pitches to give the Beavers a shot. Despite making four errors, Bemidji State held on to win 9-7.

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Rubado: An ode to guts, goosebumps and goaltending dads

Jared Rubado — Wed, 16 Apr 2025 20:59:12 GMT

In Game 7, with three seconds left on the clock in the 2009 Stanley Cup Final, Henrik Zetterberg took a shot from the top of the right faceoff circle.

Zetterberg, a star forward for the Detroit Red Wings, had a chance to tie the game in a 6-on-5 scenario. His shot rebounded to Nicklas Lindstrom — one of the greatest defensemen the sport of hockey has ever seen — near the far-side faceoff dot.

What followed was a moment that changed my life forever.

Picture a wide-eyed, 13-year-old kid, drenched in sweat after a summer hockey practice, standing two feet under a television in the mezzanine area at the Civic Center in Brainerd. Standing with his goalie gear at his feet, pads around his shoulders and his stick in his hand, he watches Lindstrom take the shot, then the save that won the Pittsburgh Penguins the Stanley Cup.

For my money’s worth, it’s the greatest save in the history of hockey, despite how ordinary it may look to some.

Marc-Andre Fleury kicked away Zetterberg’s shot to Lindstrom. While on his knees in a butterfly position, Fleury did something most goalies wouldn’t.

He dove.

Instead of pushing off his left leg and staying low, which likely would’ve exposed the top half of the net, Fleury pivoted and took a head-first approach. The puck hit him in the chest, then time ran out. The Penguins were Stanley Cup champions.

While nearly every 2009 goaltending coach would advise against it, Fleury chose to dive into position instead of sliding.

In the biggest moment of his career, Fleury trusted his gut.

I’ve thought about that save too many times to count. I’ve thought about it while playing goalie. I’ve thought about it while covering hockey. Sometimes, you just have to trust your gut.

I can’t sit here and say Fleury was the reason I became a goalie. Jean-Sébastien Giguère gets more credit in that area. Fleury, however, was the guy who made me love it and who truly made me love the sport as a whole.

So when the Minnesota Wild traded for him on March 21, 2022, I told myself I had to see my favorite goalie play in person before he retires.

Sports writing doesn’t exactly give you a flexible schedule. Beginning a college hockey writing career two years ago made it even tougher.

Despite the hiccups of trying to be in attendance for a rare backup goaltender’s start, my dad and I figured the final game of the regular season would be as good a time as any for the Wild to give Fleury some run.

When we bought the tickets a month ago, the logic seemed sound. Then, a myriad of injuries and slumps made Tuesday night’s game a must-win for the Wild to get into the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

There was no room for error, meaning Fleury would be resigned to the bench.

Nonetheless, going to the wild game was still important to me. I hadn’t been since 2017, a Game 5 playoff loss against the St. Louis Blues in overtime. Tuesday was a rare chance to take off the reporter’s hat and enjoy a hockey game as a fan.

More importantly, I got to share one of my favorite memories with my dad.

See, youth hockey in Brainerd isn’t exactly flush with goalie coaches at every level. If you’re lucky, a high school goalie will come to your practice once a week to give you some pointers (shoutout to former Bemidji State goaltender Reid Mimmack).

When I was young, my dad used to stand to my right, nose pressed up against the glass right on the goal line. I’d look at him a few times each game. He’d motion that I needed to be more square to a puck or challenge shooters more aggressively.

While those days are long behind both of us, nights like Tuesday aren’t.

With less than a minute left and the Wild trailing 2-1, Joel Eriksson Ek scored the tying goal to push the game to overtime. It got Minnesota the point it needed to secure a playoff berth.

Amid the pandemonium in the soon-to-be formerly-named Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Fleury stepped on the ice.

Glued to my phone, I felt a tap on my leg. I looked to my right at my dad, just like I did when I was playing goalie as a kid. This time was more memorable than all of them.

With tears welling in his eyes, he pointed to the ice. Fleury had gotten off the bench and was set to play the overtime period.

While it was meaningless in terms of the result, it meant everything to a father and son, and likely 18,000 others in attendance.

In less than five minutes, we got the entire Fleury experience.

He poked checked, two-pad stacked and thanked his post after a puck caught iron on a penalty kill. The fanfare was capped by Matt Boldy’s winner, which led to the Wild mobbing the 40-year-old goalie in what’s likely his final NHL game.

As I write this a day later, my arms are still filled with goosebumps. I got to watch my favorite goalie with an even better goalie dad.

When I write these columns, typically, there’s an unqualified morality message from the mouth of somebody who’s probably not old enough to deliver it. Today, however, I just wanted to say thank you to the goalie and the dad who gave that 13-year-old sweat-soaked kid one of the greatest sports memories of his life.

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Rubado column: Where does ‘up north’ begin? Spoiler, it’s Brainerd

Jared Rubado — Thu, 20 Jun 2024 18:58:33 GMT

Plenty of wrong opinions are shared on the internet every single day.

Over time, I’ve learned to let most of them go and let people believe the wrong things they believe. But one opinion that’s circulated on Twitter for the better part of a week has gone too far.

A user by the name of @TheSotaSwede took to the social media streets to claim Brainerd should not be considered “up north.” His discussion about the geographical logistics of Minnesota garnered over 675,000 impressions, which later sparked a debate about the “up north” vibe.

https://x.com/TheSotaSwede/status/1800954463370236225

What transpired was a myriad of people claiming that not only Brainerd but also places like Detroit Lakes, Moorhead and Alexandria, should be exempt.

Luckily for the ill-informed people agreeing with this notion, there are few more qualified to speak on this than me — someone who was raised in Brainerd before moving to Alexandria, Detroit Lakes and Bemidji.

Even though this column is very much written in jest, I’m here to burst your bubble. While Brainerd is smack dab in the middle of the state, it’s very much “up north.”

For starters, we need to quantify what “up north” actually is. The discussion begins in the Metro area, the most populated hub in Minnesota. The phrase “up north” is in relation to weekend travelers getting out of the Twin Cities, primarily to indulge in lake, cabin and resort life in greater Minnesota.

The original tweet claimed places like Ely, Grand Rapids, Tofte and Hibbing all qualify, and that’s correct, and it’s more correct than saying Brainerd is “up north.” But if I tell you I’m driving two-plus hours straight up the state to a lake destination, you would call that “up north” every single time regardless of the destination.

https://x.com/kpottermn/status/1801065760179224711

From the cultural perspective, the small-town feel you can find near the Canadian border and on the iron range can also be found in the neighboring areas around Brainerd — Crosby, Aitkin, Pequot Lakes and Pillager. If we were limiting the discussion of “up north” to that specific small-town feel, we must disqualify not only Brainerd but also Detroit Lakes, Moorhead, Alexandria, Duluth and Bemidji.

But that’s also ridiculous because saying Bemidji and Duluth aren’t “up north” is like saying I’m going to grow a full head of hair by 2025. It’s just not happening.

So where do we draw the line of what qualifies as “up north?” Again, it’s based on feel.

There are qualities that make each of these larger areas in greater Minnesota unique. But, for the most part, Minnesota’s summer vacation cities offer comparable ways of living.

Brainerd is a lake town filled with good golf courses, better restaurants and a plethora of avenues for city-living tourists to soak up during the summer. The population doubles, the traffic is headache-inducing and local businesses boom.

Does that sound familiar?

If so, it’s probably because you get that same vibe in Bemidji or the other aforementioned towns. And in a technical sense, it’s utterly ridiculous to disregard a gigantic portion of the 218 area code from its “up north” counterparts.

Here’s the most logical way to structure the regions of Minnesota: Anything below Lakeville is southern. From Lakeville up to St. Cloud should be considered central, while everything above St. Cloud should be deemed “up north.” Moorhead is basically Fargo, N.D., and Superior, W.I., is essentially Duluth.

I can’t find the tweet (thanks, Elon), but the best descriptor I heard for Brainerd is it’s the gateway to “up north.”

Trying to gatekeep Brainerd from “up north” living is a head-scratcher to me, especially when the bare minimum amount of logical reasoning points in my favor.

If living in a log cabin, getting your heat from a stove and your water from the river is the only way to spend a weekend “up north,” then we’ve lost the plot. But Brainerd — along with Bemidji, Detroit Lakes, Alexandria and Duluth — are summer tourist towns.

It’s what they are and always will be. You can’t separate them.

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The best thing I saw last week: Joel Hoover's appreciation for deserving seniors

Jared Rubado — Fri, 16 Feb 2024 17:42:06 GMT

I vividly remember the first time I met Joel Hoover.

I covered a Bemidji High �� boys hockey game last February at the Bemidji Community Arena. I hadn’t moved to the area yet since starting at the Pioneer and was still commuting from Detroit Lakes. I walked up to the cramped booth hanging above the bleachers and sat next to the KBUN radio setup.

Joel was in the middle of his pregame show when I was setting up my stuff for the Lumberjacks’ game against Warroad. He removed his headset, leaned over to me and said, “You must be Jared. Welcome to Bemidji. We are so excited to have you here.”

When you cover prep sports, you’re often acquainted with other media members who follow opposing teams. I hadn’t met Joel yet but had seen him on Twitter. It was nice to put a name to a face.

We briefly chatted before he went back on the air. But before he put on his headset again, he asked me a question.

“How do you pronounce your last name?”

I laughed and said, “It’s Rue-bae-doe, but don’t worry about it.” He never asked me about it again.

A few months later, Joel asked if I wanted to come on for a segment of “High Noon,” his daily radio show. He kicked off our live-air chat by welcoming me to the show, and he remembered how to pronounce my name.

I was dumbfounded thinking about how he got it right the first time. Then I remembered he had asked me a few months earlier.

He remembered.

When you’re around Joel long enough, you realize that’s just who he is. He’s a personable broadcaster who prides himself on details and punctuality, rooted in respect for others, even if it’s not required. That’s just who he is.

I could list the countless moments I’ve seen those traits exemplified over the last year, but it really hit home last Saturday at the Cullen Hockey Center in Moorhead.

The Bemidji High �� girls hockey team saw its season end at the hands of the top-seeded Spuds in the semifinal round of the Section 8AA Tournament. Joel did his postgame interview with head coach Mike Johnson before doing his final sign off.

His final words went on a little longer than usual on this occasion. With only a roster in hand, Joel paid homage to all five BHS seniors who saw their high school hockey careers end.

The best thing I saw last week was a broadcaster going the extra mile to give each kid their moment. Joel spoke from the heart about each senior individually and what they meant to the program. He spoke about the personal connections he has with them. It didn’t matter if they played every varsity game or never played at a level higher than JV. Every single senior got their moment on the radio.

In sports media, things like that are appreciated but not required. Then again, a lot of people aren’t Joel. There’s something that drives him to showcase the best of each player during their lowest moment.

Joel does this for every sport, meaning every Bemidji senior has their name called on the radio at least once. Most of these kids will never hear those sentiments, but that’s not the point. Joel says them because of the principle he set for himself and what he wants his broadcast to represent.

You can learn a lot from sharing the press box with Joel. Whether it’s an obscure stat that I never would’ve thought to look up on my own or an unintentional reminder that some moments are worth taking a step back to look through the lens from a different perspective, I’m grateful we have him here in Bemidji.

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The best thing I saw last week: Pausing the euphoric celebration

Jared Rubado — Fri, 03 Nov 2023 14:00:00 GMT

Sometimes, the guy writing the story doesn’t catch everything.

The first game I ever covered in Bemidji was a good one. The Bemidji High �� boys basketball team hosted West Fargo on Feb. 2, 2023. It was the game when Isaac Severts received a three-quarter-court pass from Dan Clusiau, turned toward the basket and drove to the rack for the game-winning bucket.

Not a bad way to start your time at the Pioneer, right? And I was beginning to believe not all first games for me here wouldn’t be that thrilling until I covered my first BHS football game last Tuesday.

The Jacks hosted St. Cloud Tech in the Section 8-5A Tournament at Chet Anderson Stadium. The 49-47 instant classic was pure, unadulterated chaos, ending with a touchdown and a blocked field goal from senior Sam Gish.

To peel back the curtain a bit, my routine after a game is to wrap up quickly in the press box and get down on the field to grab the players and coaches I need for quotes. Football is always tricky because there are so many people on the field waiting for the postgame huddle to break.

I found the guys I needed – Gish and Kobe Brown – then migrated toward head coach Bryan Stoffel for the last of the quotes. It was a euphoric, emotionally charged set of interviews that matched the weight of the moment. But amid the hysteria, I missed something bigger.

The best thing I saw last week was something I didn’t see until later that week: a pause in the celebration. Jacks players and coaches rushed the field immediately following the kick — all of them except for a group of five players, that is. They stopped momentarily on the field to console St. Cloud Tech’s Batuo Teboh, who fell to his knees after the Tigers’ crushing loss.

Athletes often have the realization that when a season ends, it’s the last time that specific group of players will ever take the field together. At all levels, that concept is undefeated. For the Lumberjacks, that realization wouldn’t come until the following Saturday, but it didn’t stop that group of five – including Carson Perez, Kasey Roff and Kohen Donat – from lending a hand to a kid who needed it on Tuesday.

Luckily for me, and more importantly, the rest of the Bemidji community, we have people like Misty from Misty Moments Photography who were in the right place at the right time. She snapped a picture of the kids helping Teboh through his sorrows and shared it on Facebook to a viral ovation. But if you allow me to peel back the curtain again, that moment embodied something more significant than the grandiose attention it received.

Just 11 days after that thrilling basketball game last February, Bemidji was struck with the burdensome news that Bemidji High �� football assistant coach Jim McKeon died of a heart attack. To say he was beloved is an understatement. It was news that rippled through the gut of people who saw the outpouring of support for his family and friends.

I never met McKeon, but in my conversations with some of the people closest to him, I learned that he was one of those larger-than-life figures that high school sports needs. I was told his ability to connect with people was what made him who he was, and it’s hard not to think about how proud a guy like that would’ve been to see his players do the right thing in that moment.

This BHS football season won't be remembered forever for its results on the field. They won’t raise banners or bring a bus full of kids to Minneapolis for the Prep Bowl. But I hope I’m not alone in saying that last Tuesday’s showing, during and after the game, has had a lasting impact on me. Stuff like this preserves my faith in the humanity of people, whether they’re the ones teaching, acting or capturing the moment with a camera.

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Rubado: There’s nothing like the Birchmont… or is there?

Jared Rubado — Mon, 07 Aug 2023 14:27:21 GMT

Admittedly, it took me longer than expected to make it out to the Bemidji Town and Country Club for the first time.

For some reason, the cards never lined up for me to cover any of the high school or collegiate golf teams at BTCC this spring.

My first trip down Birchmont Beach Road was for the Galen Nagle Memorial Golf Tournament, an event for Bemidji State men’s hockey alumni that gave me an opportunity to interview Stanley Cup champion Zach Whitecloud. Before the festivities kicked off, I met with Micah Friez, the former sports editor at the Pioneer.

Micah showed me around the clubhouse area and pointed to the cart path leading up to the 10th tee box. He said, “Right up there overlooks the clubhouse, and you’ll find the best view of Lake Bemidji in the whole town.”

I didn’t have time to check it out that day, but that comment stuck with me as I walked up to the clubhouse on Monday, July 24 – the first day of the 99th Birchmont Golf Tournament.

I was there to chat with four players who were warming up for their 30th qualifying round together. After talking with Rick Passolt, Pete Passolt, Curt Howard and Tim Gruidl, I had about 20 minutes to kill before my next assignment. I walked up the cart path to the 10th tee box and checked out the view.

To absolutely no one’s surprise, Micah was right. It really is the best view of the lake. But I think that moment hit a little harder for me because I’ve felt that exact same feeling twice before.

The first time was in August of 2019 at the Alexandria Golf Club. It was a blistering Saturday at the Resorters Golf Tournament, my first time covering the event. For those who don’t know, the Birchmont and Resorters are two legs of a three-week stretch of match-play tournaments in northern Minnesota. Unofficially dubbed the Resort Tour, some players are eager enough to participate in all three.

My first Resorters was a beast. At the Alexandria Echo Press newspaper, we churned out daily issues for our readers. Late nights and even earlier mornings made our four-person staff for the week a little hysterical. But by championship Saturday, the hard part was in the rearview mirror, and I got to enjoy the beauty of high-level golf.

There’s a hole at AGC that looks over a hole on the back nine, and behind the tee box is a bench. Exhausted from the week, I sat and watched the two women’s division golfers play what ended up being the final hole of the match. A horde of people followed them as they walked from the tee box to the green, but I stayed behind. I just took it in – all of it.

Three summers later, I was at the Detroit Lakes Country Club covering the Pine to Palm Golf Tournament – the third event of the Resort Tour. My rigorous experience covering Resorters had me over-prepared for the solo responsibility of covering the 90th Pine to Palm.

I remember sitting in a golf cart near the ninth green, waiting on a men’s player for a sidebar story. I took in a view overlooking the entire fairway that stretches up the road leading to the clubhouse. It stuck with me the same way the view in Alexandria did, as did the one in Bemidji a year later.

Moments like those can put a lot of things into perspective. For me, those visuals taught me the importance of the Resort Tour. No words I can write will do justice to those who relish those weeks. It’s not just about family or friends, winning or losing, good or bad shots. Those weeks are about the communal essence of sports.

Seeing people reunite, play through the struggles of a hole or exhale after a week-long gauntlet of golf gives you an understanding of how much people value these tournaments. These events raise kids, graduating them through their stages of life until they bring their own kids to play in the tournaments themselves.

Following this year’s Pine to Palm, which begins on Monday, Aug. 7, there will have been 291 iterations of Resort Tour tournaments. I’ve covered five of them, and there’s a good chance I’m the only person who’s covered all three versions. From a media perspective, these weeks are a beast, but it’s a welcomed challenge that routinely leaves me proud of the work we accomplish.

I’ve thought about that view from the bench behind the tee box at AGC – who I was at the time and who I’ve become. I’m proud of the things I’ve accomplished that have gotten me to this point. But what does it for me is seeing the success of the people around me.

Whether it’s my coworkers, the brilliant reporting from Christian Babcock and Dennis Doeden that was matched by the incredible photography from Madelyn Haasken, Annalise Braught and Maggi Fellerman, or the countless hours of coverage devoted by the sports departments I’ve been a part of in Alexandria or Detroit Lakes, these weeks are rewarding.

These tournaments don’t happen without hundreds of dedicated workers and even more golfers that give us their time. We appreciate the people who share their stories and allow us to tell them.

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Rubado: There’s nothing like the Birchmont… or is there?

Jared Rubado — Fri, 04 Aug 2023 15:06:51 GMT

Admittedly, it took me longer than expected to make it out to the Bemidji Town and Country Club for the first time.

For some reason, the cards never lined up for me to cover any of the high school or collegiate golf teams at BTCC this spring.

I didn’t have time to check it out that day, but that comment stuck with me as I walked up to the clubhouse on Monday, July 24 – the first day of the 99th Birchmont Golf Tournament.

These tournaments don’t happen without hundreds of dedicated workers and even more golfers that give us their time. We appreciate the people who share their stories and allow us to tell them.

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RUBADO COLUMN: I am honored to be the Bemidji Pioneer’s sports editor

Thu, 16 Mar 2023 14:41:32 GMT

How often do you call your parents?

If you asked my parents, they’d probably say I call them too much.

My name is Jared, and I’m your new sports editor at the Bemidji Pioneer. I was born and raised in Brainerd before graduating high school in 2014. I attended Augustana University and graduated with journalism and sports management degrees, then moved to Alexandria to start a career in sports writing at the Echo Press.

When thinking about how I want to write this introductory column, memories of the little things that got me here keep popping up in my head.

When you get your first pair of hockey skates two months before your third birthday, the trek up State Highway 371 to Bemidji becomes regular. Whether it was playing in youth games or venturing into the Sanford Center on the weekends, there were plenty of excuses to be in the area.

I was the only one of roughly 500 Brainerd High �� graduates to attend Augustana in 2014. Despite its imminent arrival to Division I men’s hockey this next winter, Sioux Falls wasn’t exactly a hockey town.

Instead, I spent time interning for the athletic department, which meant attending a bevy of Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference games. I was there when Augie won men’s basketball and baseball national championships, and I worked for the football team for two years. I also spent my summers interning at the Brainerd Dispatch.

Contrary to the market now, jobs in sports media were tougher to find in 2018. I applied for a sports reporting position in Alexandria and was so nervous about the interview I forgot to wear the suit coat that burned a $250 hole in my dad’s wallet.

Five days after the interview, I got offered the job. The call came in the middle of a midterm exam. I was so excited I forgot to return to the classroom to finish the test.

I spent over three years in Alexandria working with Eric Morken, one of the best sports writers I’ve ever met. In August of 2021, I was approached with an opportunity to replace Bob Williams as the Detroit Lakes Tribune’s sports editor.

My role in Detroit Lakes expanded to Perham and Wadena. I like to joke that I’m just making my way through the northern Minnesota Forum Communications properties, which became less of a bit when Micah Friez told me he was leaving the Pioneer.

I’ve known Micah for a few years now. We covered a Section 8-3A boys basketball semifinal game at the BHS Gymnasium together in March of 2020. We also survived the heat wave that crashed the Section 8-3A softball playoffs in June of 2021 in Sartell.

When Micah told me he was leaving the Pioneer, I was shocked. When he asked if I would apply to replace him, I was intimidated. How am I supposed to replace Micah?

The hardest part was leaving Detroit Lakes, a place that truly became my home. But the opportunity was too good to turn down.

So what is the point of all this, and why am I asking how much you call your parents? For me, the constant on this entire path to Bemidji has always been the phone calls.

It was calling my parents after I got my first college internship with the Augustana athletic department. I called my mom, telling her I forgot to wear the suit coat and wouldn’t get the Echo Press job because of it. I forgot to return to class after receiving my first job offer because I called my dad in the parking lot outside of the building.

It’s calling my mom and telling her I got my first chance at being an editor for the Detroit Lakes Tribune, and then again when I heard of the Pioneer’s opening.

I love this job so much. I have an undying passion for sports writing. I live for telling stories and showcasing local athletes. I love being there for the big games, meeting great people and calling my dad on the way home to brag about what I will write before the night ends.

I’m excited to be your sports editor and eager to learn more about the great people of Bemidji. I can’t wait to call my parents and tell them what makes this place special, like all places I’ve been.

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