Nerd Farmer Podcast

A reminder our #NerdFarmReads Fall Book is "We Gon’ Be Alright" by Jeff Chang. Buy it, read it, tweet about it using #NerdFarmReads. We’ll record in the fall.

The World Cup is the biggest sporting event on the planet. Every four years billions of people worldwide tune in to watch their national teams (adopted or otherwise) compete for the most important title in sports. The month-long tournament just wrapped up. On this episode, Nate sat down with Steven Ketelsen and Kevin Zamira, two of the hosts of the Flounders B Team. Flounders B Team is a South Sound soccer podcast on the Channel 253 Podcast Network.

We discussed the cultural divisions within US soccer: “suburban & mainly white (cargo shorts)” versus “urban & mainly Latinx and African immigrant” and how it harms the growth and development of the sport in our county.

We also discussed the US failure to qualify for this World Cup. Coaching is the number one reason, but there are problems at the core. Future pod guest Matt Pentz’s Own Goal is required reading for this conversation.

We then discussed problems with player development and what Nate dubbed “the Lost Generation of USMNT Players.”

We wrapped up a discussion of about the final. 

Extra Credit & For Reference

Panama Announcers at World Cup -- just watch the pride

American Fiasco by Roger Bennett -- a podcast series about the 1998 World Cup mentioned by Steve

Matt Pentz’s Own Goal on the Ringer -- Why we didn’t qualify in 2018

America’s Youth Development Gap

The Socials

Steve on the socials

Kevin on the socials

The Flounders B Team on the socials

*Note: During the 5 Nate didn’t have the heart to tell Steve on-air that @SoccerByIves is Jersey-based, but follow him for good Peruvian food recs anyway

Housekeeping: Buy the fall #NerdFarmReads Book, We Gon Be Alright: Notes on Race and Resegregation by Jeff Chang

Kent is a school district located south of Seattle that serves 26,000 students and employs 3,400 people. Layoffs were announced this spring and teachers are fleeing in droves. It may be summertime, but we decided to get to the bottom of the sitch in Kent.

Guests: KNKX Youth and Education Reporter, Ashley Gross and 2018 Puget Sound Regional Teacher of the Year and 15-year teaching veteran, 6th Grade Teacher, Denisha Saucedo

5:00 Nate kicks off the show with an anecdote he’s heard about the laying-off of Kent’s entire I.T. department

10:00 What is the McCleary Decision? What is a Title I School? And what do they have to do with all of this?

19:00 Kent’s finances are especially messy. Ashley Gross explained, how unusual is it to borrow from the Capital budget and/or the Rainy Day fund?

23:00 Denisha discusses the impact of the budget situation on her students, especially her level of access to technology.

28:00 Denisha and Ashley bat around their perspectives on the level of culpability of the School Board versus the Superintendent

32:00 **Nate conflict of interest disclaimer** re: The Broad Foundation

34:00 What’s the “Geographic Footprint of Kent Schools”?

38:00 What are some solutions (spoiler: there aren’t many)?

41:00 Who should the audience follow if they want to know more about what’s happening in Kent?

The 2:

1. Denisha: Where is that necklace from?

2. Ashley: Favorite Pho Joint? (Mekong Bar, 4th & Vine)

Denisha's Necklace

The Socials

Ashley Gross Twitter

Denisha Saucedo Twitter

Going Further

Channel 253 Memberships

Broad Foundation

Paige Cornwell, Seattle Times

Aaron Artman: President of Rainers and Sounders FC2

Casey Catherwood: Creative Director (Ringmaster) Rainers and Sounders FC2

Aaron is a tech and marketing dude who loves sports and has found a home in Tacoma. Casey is a musical journalist turned event planner, now Executive in Charge of Chicanery, Nonsense, and Tomfoolery for Sounders FC 2 and the Tacoma Rainiers. 

2:00:  How in the world did y'all end up here?

12:00: Cheney Stadium, sunsets, forming community, switching to the R logo, and working with great partners in Tacoma.

15:00: The science behind when people will go to soccer versus when they will go to baseball. Ownership? Contracts?  How does all this work? How much does it cost to transform the stadium?

23:00: Where are we getting new players? Are these kids really 15-20 years old?

28:00: The purpose of minor league team is to develop talent. The people that watch and come to wins would like to see wins. How do you navigate these two interests?

33:00: S2's move to Tacoma happened faster than anyone expected. One of the reasons is that NASL (RIP) was involved in a lawsuit (it's complicated). Cheney provides a higher capacity than Starfire. What are the opportunities you're excited about exploring? 

35:00 What is your favorite ‘What the hell is Casey Doing?!” moment? and what’s up with the pineapples?

41:00 What is the proposed stadium location? There’s a rebrand coming! What should we do? [Warning: this is some deep South Sound soccer nerdery].

The 5

1. What’s the best or your favorite live sporting event?

2. Is there a soccer stadium you’re looking to for inspiration?

3. Best athlete you ever saw in person?

4. If you had to listen to one song on repeat, what would it be?

5. What’s the best concession value that which people don’t take advantage?

Going Further

Nate's Top World Stadiums ~5000 capacity

Tacoma Kraken

Video of Epic Sax Gorilla

Twitter

Casey Catherwood

Sounders FC 2

Tacoma Rainers

Websites

Sounders FC 2

Tacoma Rainers