Insider Column 14

An insider's look at Townsend...
Chapter Fourteen


August 17, 2001



Four interviews down and one to go. Dom is the only Townsend member that I have yet to interview. He’s not available this week and next week Wendy and I will be away. I chose to interview Dom last because he usually has a lot to say and he speaks his mind. Well, okay that’s the truth but it’s not the whole story. Dom has a way of turning questions into more questions and answers into questions. It’s hard to predict what the outcome of the interview will be. One thing for sure, it will be interesting. I’ll probably try interviewing him the week that the guys perform in Sacramento at the State Fair.

Recently I’ve attempted to make sense of the Townsend web site statistics that are provided by Verio. According to the our web site statistics page:


1. The number of daily hits the site has been getting recently is around 400.
2. So far the site has been visited over 80,000 times. (The number of hits on the "counter" plus hits on the index page - used when people bookmark the site, bypassing the flash page)
3. Over 1800 different visitors have visited the site in the last six months
4. Approximately 50 people read the messages posted on the message board each day
5. Over 3500 messages have been posted to date on the message board
6. Over 400 folks frequently visit the site
7. Folks from over 20 different countries have visited the site so far.

It was nice to see so many of the Townsend fans at the Moffett air show. Did you notice how many people had tears in their eyes after the guys sang Just Say Goodbye to Kristen? If you haven’t read Kristen’s write up about how she felt when she was on stage with the Townsend, you should. It is outstanding. It brought a tear or two to my eyes. It’s on clubs.yahoo.com/clubs/ryespartycrewclub?s Check it out.
The air show turned out to be a tough event for the guys. Remind me to never sign them up for an air show again. The night before their performance at 10:30 they conducted their sound check. It went well. All five mics functioned as required. The sound engineer knew what to do and when to do it. All was well. Right? Wrong! No need to tell those of you who saw their performance that there were a few "technical" difficulties. Matt’s mic kept cutting in and out and Dom’s mic didn’t work at all. Needless to say, that was a little unnerving. I don’t mean to imply that it was unnerving for the guys. I was the one who nearly went into ventricular fibrillation. The guys maintained their composure. Needless to say, I survived and the guys made some new fans.

Sunday, at Santa Cruz, things went much better for the guys. I wasn’t there, but Wendy and Julie told me all about it. Wendy called me on her cell phone when the guys’ performance started. I didn’t hear it that well. Mostly all I heard was a high-pitched scream. I’m not sure if it was the fans screaming in Santa Cruz or the jets flying in the air show. Maybe it was a combination of both.

It’s time that I straightened something out. I really do enjoy getting email from the Townsend fans. And, I do not mind answering all the questions that I receive. So, if you’re going to send me email do not apologize. Do not say things like "I’m sorry for bothering you", or "I’m sorry that this email is so long". And another thing, your time is important, you’re important, and as long as you do not forget it others won’t forget it.

Townsend is very fortunate to have so many very dedicated fans. By the way, you don’t have to go to all the Townsend events to be considered a dedicated fan. Being dedicated to Townsend means that you are wholeheartedly devoted to supporting Townsend in achieving its goal. There are many ways to support Townsend. Every time you chat with another Townsend fan about Townsend you’re supporting the guys. Every time you tell someone new about Townsend you’re helping the guys. Every time you encourage a potential new fan to meet the guys you’re helping the cause. When you step aside so a new fan can meet the guys you’re not only being dedicated you’re being gracious.

Wendy and I are heading out soon. We have to get up at 4:30 tomorrow morning. We’re off to Maine. While we’re gone, I expect you all to behave, eat your vegetables, get plenty of rest, and read a good book. I’ll expect you to tell me what book you read when I get back.

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