No stories from me. I sat between Zabel and Podolak as their spotter for 7 years. Never saw anything but complete professionalism from either one while in the booth. Stories while outside the booth are another matter .
Wow, I would love to have had that job.
I do have a great Zabel story to share. I lived in Quad back in the 80s...it was crazy. A bunch of guys started the "Jim Zabel fan club". (tongue in cheek) We had membership cards printed up, etc...and tried to get in touch with "Z" a number of times. A few of the guys were from Des Moines and had some connections that finally got a response.
Zabel agreed to come to a dinner "in his honor". We secured a banquet room in Quad dining the night of a home basketball game. (games were right across the street in the fieldhouse). Not sure whether we had permission or not, but there was plenty of booze at the "dinner"...and about maybe 60-70 guys there. Zable shows up way late... most everybody was trashed by then. But when he walks in, the place explodes. He takes the mic, talks about the Hawks for 10 minutes, tells a handfull of dirty jokes and leaves to thunderous applause... just in time to get to his pregame broadcast across the street.
A night I'll never forget.
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