Flash Fox is living on a billboard on I15-24 hours and counting

I am going to post more about the logistics of how we put this together later but I wanted to get a post out there that gives some explanation of our Fox experiment.

About a month ago the idea was tossed around about having the Fox live on a billboard on I15. I don't remember if it came from one of our brilliant interns or if it was me trying to encourage them to think more creatively, but it was put out there.

Originally we laughed it off and dismissed it as another crazy idea in a long list of crazy ideas. However, as days passed we all kind of came back together liking the idea. We started imagining how far we could take it and the things we could do to make it really interactive. These included a live web cam with chat (ustream), twitter feed, facebook app and more. We started working on the logistics of survival because it is not easy to stick a fox on the top of a 3x40 foot platform 50 feet in the air. If you can imagine the prep that goes into a David Blaine stunt, this is about 1/100 that sort of thing and it was still a lot to take on.

Ultimately we all loved the idea. It is part survivor, part big brother, part locked up (abroad), and a whole lot of crazy.

The easiest part of planning the ordeal was convincing the Fox. Let me tell you he is unique. I love the guy but trust me when I say in the nicest possible way, he is crazy. None of us could do what he is doing. I climbed up on the ladder for 5 min last night and realized this is a phenomenal stunt. He never even hesitated.

He will be there until we sell 500 season tickets or what we call season equivalents. For us that means group tickets count but 24 group tickets equal 1 season ticket. This could take 3 days but it could take 2 weeks, it is hard to say.

Whatever the case may be the Utah Flash staff is having a lot of fun with this. One of the things we have said over the past few months is that we want to have more fun this year. We want to bring some of the cool minor league aspects back to our season. The edginess you can't get away with in the big leagues. This is an example of that type of thing. It may be a publicity stunt but it is something we are all captivated by. If you haven't taken a minute to check out saveflashfox.com it is worth it. I was on there for several hours yesterday watching and chatting. It may be crazy but it is really bringing fun back into the team. I'll post more details on how we pulled it off later.

D-League Referees have been called-up

As I attended the first NBA preseason game last night between Utah and Denver it was unusual to see three referees on the court who I have seen several times at Utah Flash games. Tre and Diedre did a good job of ignoring my attempt to say hello but I received enough response to see they knew I was there and didn't want to revisit their D-League days. They were focused. Guys, I was cheering for you to do well, or at least cheering for you not to screw up. And give them some credit, they did fine. For an NBA ref "fine" means you scored an A/B.

In the past few weeks several people have asked how I believe the D-League referees will perform under the NBA lights. Much like in the NBA, in the D-League we have refs we think are fair and those we believe have it out for us. There are refs that are good and refs that are bad. I am willing to admit as a team owner much of this may be in my head.

So, how will they do? I think they will do "fine". They may be rattled at first. It will be intimidating to have 20,000 fans screaming at you when you have never seen more than 7,000 in the D-League. But many of these refs have seen large crowds in college games and I think the intimidation will wear off quickly. If there is a time when you may see some holes I would expect it to be at the end of tightly contested game. In the final moments you may witness some inexperience, but I believe the NBA has hedged potential inexperience by rightfully expanding instant replay.

The NBA instructs us that every ref has to go through a rigorous process of testing and rehashing after every game. I can vouch for the fact that we have to provide a DVD of the game for the crew chief at each Flash game and part of their training is to review the game later that night with the two other crew members. In fact the crew chief has to travel with a DVD player that will allow them to analyze plays where controversial calls may have cost the Flash the game. Tre, I think you know the call I am talking about. Now that you are big time, I forgive you.

While it is not easy to ref NBA games, in this economy the NBA Referees Association should not be hard lining negotiations. Working as an NBA ref is a tough job but these guys are making six figures with great benefits. They are paid well to handle the pressure. As a kid I learned a valuable lesson from my Grandpa who decided not to join the famous Air Traffic Controller strike back in the 80's. He used to tell me that a strike means you don't get paid, you may loose your job, and whatever equality you were fighting for will quickly be erased by foregoing a slightly reduced salary. NBRA, you should have hired me to negotiate your deal and you would be on the court right now. Charles Barkley would be challenging Dick Bavetta to a game of thumb-war and all would be as it should.

Best of luck to the D-League referees who have been promoted. I am much more concerned about the refs that are now going to be promoted to work D-League games than I am about the D-League refs who have been promoted from the D to the NBA.

Brandt Andersen

Michael Jordan VS Bryon Russell $100,000.00 Challenge

I wasn't at the Hall of Fame to see the acceptance speech by Michael Jordan but I was watching. I also wasn't at the 1998 finals when Jordan hit that shot over Bryon Russell with 5.2 seconds, but I have seen it about a hundred times on NBA promos.

One thing I can tell you is that I want to be front and center for whatever the outcome is when the two meet up next.

So here is my offer: Michael Jordan vs. Bryon Russell-1 on 1 challenge to 21. I will personally donate $100,000 to charity in the name of the winner. We can do it during the half time of the Utah Flash home opener on December 7th. $100,000 in cash for a 15 minute pickup game. MJ even you can’t say no to that.

Our venue is the perfect place for this challenge because it brings BRuss back to Utah and Michael Jordan has a home just outside of Park City (I have seen his Carolina Blue Jump Man plane on the runway at Million Air in SLC) so it is convenient for both guys. Not to mention that it would be sacrilegious to have this take place anywhere outside of Utah.

I have already called BRuss directly and spoken to him about the event. I have also sent a message through a mutual friend to MJ to invite him. He is going to be a little more difficult to convince but not impossible. This would be a good PR move for him following his speech. Back up those words that anytime you see BRuss with his shorts on you are “coming at him”.

Think about the benefits for the two of them. BRuss wants some vindication and MJ puts that fire we have always seen to the test by lacing them up one more time in a casual ‘all for charity’ event.

The match up between these guys created one of the greatest moments in basketball history and was memorialized at Michael's Hall of Fame Induction Speech. Let's lace them up just one more time.

Brandt Andersen

Starbury Playing for the Flash

So it seems a little crazy to think that Stephon Marbury could be in a Flash uniform next year.

I believe that the goodwill and buzz that it would create for his career would make it tremendously lucrative for him. Come play for the love and the money will always follow. He looks good in the uniform. Thanks to J.E. Skeets for helping us visualize. Keep an eye on twitter @flashbrandt for updates.

Brandt Andersen

Athletes Should Not Tweet

Like many of you I follow several athletes on Twitter. It is entertaining to see the inner thoughts of some of the guys I love watching most on the court and on the field. I enjoy reading how Nate Robinson (@nate_robinson) is hanging out with some rapper or how Stephon Marbury (@StarburyMarbury) is blasting some random antifan just because they took a shot at his craziness.

Even though I love it, I believe Twitter is one of the worst things to happen to pro athletes in recent memory. If I were a pro athlete I would shut my twitter account down right now. Although an argument could be made that it is a great way to increase your potential fan base and that it gives you the ability to reach out on a personal level, those things are not necessary for a professional athlete to be successful. Athletes do not need to sell millions of albums and they do not need us to go to their newly released movie. If you want to succeed and you want acceptance we just need you to play well. If you do your talking on the court we will love you and respect you, even forgive a few sins. If you don't play great it really doesn't matter how entertaining you are off the court, or how many followers you have on twitter.

Consider a few recent mishaps intensified by twitter posts. Nate Robinson gets pulled over by the police for driving on a suspended license and is arrested. His irresponsible twitter post sets off a storm of press and forces him to make a public apology admitting the stupidity of the post. Then there is JR Smith who makes some suspicious posts that are labeled as 'gang posts'. Shortly after, likely acting on some sound advice, he shuts his account down.

One of the most difficult scenarios to play out on twitter is that of Michael Beasley. Shortly after a photo was posted of him on twitter with what looked like two bags of weed, he made two concerning posts; “Y do I feel like the whole world is against me…I can’t win for losin,”Feelin like it’s not worth livin!!!!!!! I’m done.”. Shortly after he was admitted to rehab.

Although it is hard to pinpoint the exact reasons why I enjoy twitter, I can tell you that it has done much more bad than good for the careers of the pro athletes that are tweeting.

Marc Spears (@spearsnbayahoo) from Yahoo reported this week that David Stern says the NBA soon would issue twitter standards for the league. The NFL has already done so. While I am a fan of ‘all access’ in sports, I believe that access should take place before, during, and after the game. I do not believe the ‘all access’ should extend into the personal lives of the athletes. It is not good business for the leagues and it is worse business for the athletes.

While it is feasible to believe that at some point an advertiser like Nike or Gatorade might be willing to pay more money to an athlete who has millions of followers on twitter, for now the risks far outweigh the benefits. One foolish post or untimely picture can undo years of good PR for an Athlete and nullify a lucrative promotional deal. Large advertisers should be very concerned if an athlete who is receiving millions in promotional dollars is actively tweeting.

So if you are a pro athlete and you just can't avoid the temptation of becoming a twitter sensation make sure you consider the risks. Just know that we will all love and forgive you as long as you lead our team to a world championship every year. If you can't deliver that to us no cool twitter post will make up for the loss we feel. But it may hurt you while you entertain us. The NBA will come out with some standards that will attempt to protect the game, but they cannot do anything to protect the players from themselves.

Brandt Andersen

Going under construction

On Friday we are starting construction on the first low cost post modern home in Utah County. Most of the feedback has been really positive, some head scratching and a few think it will be an eye sore. I love the concept.

Some may find it crazy but just wait and see. I think you will like the way it turns out. I found out yesterday that there is a project in SLC that is doing a similar product that has had success in selling the homes. I will keep you posted. We have had three different people say they want the homes. Two of the three have considered putting it under contract but have not yet signed the deal. So off we go.

It is nice to be moving forward with something. It seems like the last 10 months have been spent planning for a doomsday scenario. I am glad to see that the economic mood is shifting. With a little luck maybe we can get things firing again in Lehi. I continue to believe and look forward to seeing that project succeed. We have slowed down a bit until things stabilize. Demand needs to catch up with inventory and we will again push it forward.

Not posting as much as I was during the season

If you are frustrated with my lack of postings follow me on Twitter under the handle @Flashbrandt.