The Crude Life

Casselton Derailment – Mayor Ed McConnell

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Interviews: Dale Brown and Mark Eaton

Building the Bakken Radio Episode 2 Segment 4:  Teamwork in business and community. Host Jason Spiess interviews Dale Brown and Mark Eaton.

Dale Brown interviewed by Building the Bakken host Jason Spiess at the Minot Investors Summit. Photo by Kevin Tobosa.

Former NCAA head coach and current motivational speaker Dale Brown grew up near Berthold, North Dakota. Two days before he was born his “so-called” father left his mother and two sisters right before the “frigid winter of 1935.” Brown’s father “never wrote, called or sent money,” so his mother had to get a job as a “domestic, go on welfare and move into an apartment above a bar and hardware store.” He said that mother was a great teacher and an example around the house.

When asked how people used to view North Dakota when he was coaching at Louisiana State University, Brown cited two examples. First people would say South Dakota. Second people would say “Mee-Not” instead of Minot (My-Not).  Brown then recalled the “biggest eye opener” from when he was coaching in the NCAA Final Four. During the press conference a question was raised about whether it was a tremendous advantage to coach in the Finals after working with legends at Duke, Kansas and UCLA. Brown said after the other three coaches answered the question, the media proceeded on.  This prompted Brown to raise his hand and ask, “Isn’t anyone going to ask me a question about playing at Minot State Teachers College playing under Herb Parker?” He added Alaska was not all that popular until the gold rush, the same with South Dakota. Brown concluded the question by saying “anyone who hasn’t heard of North Dakota is either in a coma or died yesterday because it is in the news all the time.”

When asked about his views on the importance of longevity in an organization he stated it is vital yet near impossible to achieve in today’s environment. Citing “immediate gratification syndrome,” Brown said John Wooden would have been fired at UCLA if he was coaching in modern time. It took Wooden 13 years to reach the Final Four and according to Brown, too many administrators and fans would have been too greedy for victory.  Brown added too many are not concerned about the character that’s going on in the program and would have fired Wooden long before his successful run as one of the most successful coaches in NCAA history.

Citing the example of North Dakota State University woman’s basketball coach Amy Ruley, who attributes longevity within her coaching staff as one of the chief reasons for her success,  Host Jason Spiess asks how important is longevity within an organization.   Brown said he knew Amy and said that is a profound question and statement. He continued by saying you need “a strong leader with a good ethical background, that sees that it takes time to build a program, and then when you build the program you are going to have ups and downs.”

Former NBA All Star Mark Eaton discusses teamwork with Building the Bakken host Jason Spiess. Photo by Kevin Tobosa

Former Utah Jazz center and NBA All-Star, Mark Eaton spoke of his recent speaking engagement in Dickinson, ND at an Economic Summit sponsored by Five Diamonds Industrial Park. He addressed leadership within an organization and said it was interesting to see the private sector, nonprofit, government workers and other industries work together and bounce ideas off each other to fix some of the issues in the oil patch.

When asked about the importance of longevity in an organization, Eaton used a sports metaphor: the Lakers, Celtics and other great organizations had a central core that stayed together. He said that allows a system to be built while the people learn to work with each other and play off each other. Eaton continued to say that in today’s world it is too corporate and people are to busy climbing on top of each other trying to get ahead. He said the ones who understand the concept of teamwork – if the team wins you win – those who take that attitude “generally have a much happier culture within their organization.” He said the culture within your organization will have a direct impact on your bottom line and your organization’s success.

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Teamwork in business and community. Host Jason Spiess interviews Dale Brown and Mark Eaton.

Dale Brown interviewed by Building the Bakken host Jason Spiess at the Minot Investors Summit. Photo by Kevin Tobosa.

Former NCAA head coach and current motivational speaker Dale Brown grew up near Berthold, North Dakota. Two days before he was born his “so-called” father left his mother and two sisters right before the “frigid winter of 1935.” Brown’s father “never wrote, called or sent money,” so his mother had to get a job as a “domestic, go on welfare and move into an apartment above a bar and hardware store.” He said that mother was a great teacher and an example around the house.

When asked how people used to view North Dakota when he was coaching at Louisiana State University, Brown cited two examples. First people would say South Dakota. Second people would say “Mee-Not” instead of Minot (My-Not).  Brown then recalled the “biggest eye opener” from when he was coaching in the NCAA Final Four. During the press conference a question was raised about whether it was a tremendous advantage to coach in the Finals after working with legends at Duke, Kansas and UCLA. Brown said after the other three coaches answered the question, the media proceeded on.  This prompted Brown to raise his hand and ask, “Isn’t anyone going to ask me a question about playing at Minot State Teachers College playing under Herb Parker?” He added Alaska was not all that popular until the gold rush, the same with South Dakota. Brown concluded the question by saying “anyone who hasn’t heard of North Dakota is either in a coma or died yesterday because it is in the news all the time.”

When asked about his views on the importance of longevity in an organization he stated it is vital yet near impossible to achieve in today’s environment. Citing “immediate gratification syndrome,” Brown said John Wooden would have been fired at UCLA if he was coaching in modern time. It took Wooden 13 years to reach the Final Four and according to Brown, too many administrators and fans would have been too greedy for victory.  Brown added too many are not concerned about the character that’s going on in the program and would have fired Wooden long before his successful run as one of the most successful coaches in NCAA history.

Citing the example of North Dakota State University woman’s basketball coach Amy Ruley, who attributes longevity within her coaching staff as one of the chief reasons for her success,  Host Jason Spiess asks how important is longevity within an organization.   Brown said he knew Amy and said that is a profound question and statement. He continued by saying you need “a strong leader with a good ethical background, that sees that it takes time to build a program, and then when you build the program you are going to have ups and downs.”

Former NBA All Star Mark Eaton discusses teamwork with Building the Bakken host Jason Spiess. Photo by Kevin Tobosa

Former Utah Jazz center and NBA All-Star, Mark Eaton spoke of his recent speaking engagement in Dickinson, ND at an Economic Summit sponsored by Five Diamonds Industrial Park. He addressed leadership within an organization and said it was interesting to see the private sector, nonprofit, government workers and other industries work together and bounce ideas off each other to fix some of the issues in the oil patch.

When asked about the importance of longevity in an organization, Eaton used a sports metaphor: the Lakers, Celtics and other great organizations had a central core that stayed together. He said that allows a system to be built while the people learn to work with each other and play off each other. Eaton continued to say that in today’s world it is too corporate and people are to busy climbing on top of each other trying to get ahead. He said the ones who understand the concept of teamwork – if the team wins you win – those who take that attitude “generally have a much happier culture within their organization.” He said the culture within your organization will have a direct impact on your bottom line and your organization’s success.

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Interview: Mary Hodell, South Heart, ND, resident

Building the Bakken: Episode 2 Segment 3 The Crude Life: Traffic in the Oil Patch

Mary Hodell (left) shares her story with Building the Bakken host Jason Spiess (right). Photo by Kevin Tobosa.

Mary Hodell shares her experiences driving on the roads in Western North Dakota and what it was like hitting an oil truck carrying Bakken crude oil.

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Building the Bakken: Episode 2 Segment 3 The Crude Life: Traffic in the Oil Patch

Mary Hodell (left) shares her story with Building the Bakken host Jason Spiess (right). Photo by Kevin Tobosa.

Mary Hodell shares her experiences driving on the roads in Western North Dakota and what it was like hitting an oil truck carrying Bakken crude oil.

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Building the Bakken Radio Episode 2 Segment 2:   Part 2 – How long will the Bakken “boom” last? Interviewed in this feature:  Richard Gardner, PHD Center for Rural Entrepreneurship, Patrick Hart, President Meyer Real Estate Group, Ken DeCubellis, CEO, Black Ridge Oil & Gas, Nancy Hodur, Research Professor NDSU, Shawn Kessel, Dickinson City Administrator, Peter Elzi, Principal Partner THK Associates

Nancy Hodur, NDSU, interviewed by Jason Spiess at the Bakken Investors Summit. Photo by Kevin Tobosa.

Nancy Hodur, assistant research professor, North Dakota State University, said to take stock in the information provided about the Bakken. She said all their models show despite tremendous growth in the past two years, there is still unbelievable potential in the future. Hodur said currently there are roughly 8,000 wells in the state and the consensus scenario is a projected 40,000 wells. She said this boom is the “real deal,” and it wasn’t going to “poof go away.” She added the oil activity “will change the face of western North Dakota.”

Dickinson city administrator Shawn Kessel addressed the city’s potential growth.  Kessel said projections for the city’s population in the next 5 to 10 years are between 42,000 and 47,000, up from nearly 20,000 today.  He said he was confident Dickinson would reach the 42,000 mark. Peter Elzi, THK Associates, pointed to a number of factors that could effect the length of the Bakken play.  For example, Elzi said just the number of known wells going up in North Dakota should result in at least 20-30 years of activity.  However, Elzi did cite factors that could effect that time frame like “the EPA or the folks in Washington doing anything stupid.”  Elzi believes the continued production of the wells and services will continue into the next generation.

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Interviews:  Richard Gardner, PHD Center for Rural Entrepreneurship, Patrick Hart, President Meyer Real Estate Group, Ken DeCubellis, CEO, Black Ridge Oil & Gas, Nancy Hodur, Research Professor NDSU, Shawn Kessel, Dickinson City Administrator, Peter Elzi, Principal Partner THK Associates

Building the Bakken Radio Episode 2 Segment 2:   Part 2 – How long will the Bakken “boom” last?

Nancy Hodur, NDSU, interviewed by Jason Spiess at the Bakken Investors Summit. Photo by Kevin Tobosa.

Nancy Hodur, assistant research professor, North Dakota State University, said to take stock in the information provided about the Bakken. She said all their models show despite tremendous growth in the past two years, there is still unbelievable potential in the future. Hodur said currently there are roughly 8,000 wells in the state and the consensus scenario is a projected 40,000 wells. She said this boom is the “real deal,” and it wasn’t going to “poof go away.” She added the oil activity “will change the face of western North Dakota.”

Dickinson city administrator Shawn Kessel addressed the city’s potential growth.  Kessel said projections for the city’s population in the next 5 to 10 years are between 42,000 and 47,000, up from nearly 20,000 today.  He said he was confident Dickinson would reach the 42,000 mark. Peter Elzi, THK Associates, pointed to a number of factors that could effect the length of the Bakken play.  For example, Elzi said just the number of known wells going up in North Dakota should result in at least 20-30 years of activity.  However, Elzi did cite factors that could effect that time frame like “the EPA or the folks in Washington doing anything stupid.”  Elzi believes the continued production of the wells and services will continue into the next generation.

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Building the Bakken Radio Show Part 1: How long will the Bakken “boom” last?

Interviewed in this feature:  Richard Gardner, PHD Center for Rural Entrepreneurship, Patrick Hart, President Meyer Real Estate Group, Ken DeCubellis, CEO, Black Ridge Oil & Gas, Nancy Hodur, Research Professor NDSU, Shawn Kessel, Dickinson City Administrator, Peter Elzi, Principal Partner THK Associates

How long will the Bakken Boom last? This is the billion dollar question we posed to industry experts Ken DeCubellis, Nancy Hodur, Dr. Peter Elzi, Patrick Hart, Dr. Richard Gardner and Shawn Kessel.

Dr. Richard Gardner, Center for Rural Entrepreneurship, says population growths of 1-3% are normal, 3-5% starts to stretch the ability of small towns to deal with the growth. Gardner says their projects show the city of Williston projecting an 8% growth increase per year until 2020. Gardner says those numbers “boggle the mind and there is no way you can plan well enough to be building water systems, sewer systems, roads, parks, schools fast enough to meet that demand.”

Patrick Hart, president of Meyer Real Estate Group, says their company is poised for 5-10 years of “hyper-growth.” Meyer said their company is participating in the hyper-growth in a variety of industries in the oil patch. He added the Bakken play will span over 20-50 years and will change the way of life for “the Western edge.” Things will level off after 5-10 years of hyper-growth, but Hart believes it will be up to 10 years of a “frenzy.”

Ken DeCubellis, CEO, Black Ridge Oil & Gas, said there will be two phases in the boom.  First, the oil production.  Once the wells are in place, they will produce for 20-30 years.  DeCubellis added the level of investment in drilling will be moderated by the access to the pipeline needed to move oil to the refinery. He said western ND lacks that infrastructure right now, and until that investment occurs, it will moderate the pace of activity. He added that in the end there will be a 5-10 year span of frenzy-like activity before leveling off.  DeCubellis said the “big wild card” is if they find more productive formations. He added Continental Resources recently began talking about a third bench of the Bakken in northern McKenzie County. He also pointed out the Three Forks Layer, which has yet to be “fully understood,” in his opinion, and if those layers become productive, the Bakken Boom could continue even longer.

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Tech billionaire Rob Ryan (left) answers a question for Building the Bakken host Jason Spiess. Photo by Kevin Tobosa

Bakken Events: 5th Annual Rocky Mountain Economic Summit

The 5th Annual Rocky Mountain Economic Summit is an event where the top entrepreneurs and economist converge to share information and network in the beautiful town of Jackson Hole, WY.

During the conference, Rob Ryan was in attendance and is doing business in the Bakken. He currently runs the Roaring Lions Ranch, which is a ranch that “raises entrepreneurs.”

Rob Ryan is the founder of Ascend Communications and Entrepreneur America. Ryan earned national attention when he grew his 1989 start-up company, Ascend Communications, Inc., to more than $500 million in sales by 1995. Lucent Technologies acquired Ascend in 1999 for $23 billion, in what was termed the “largest technology merger ever.” Ryan has since started and sold three more billion dollar companies.

Ryan talked about HERO leadership characteristics and core competencies. What are you good at? What are you unique at? Ryan focuses more on the person rather than the product.

Ryan also discusses starting with the core and then how to add employees. Ryan believes it is best to support yourself with others who compliment your core competence.

Ryan also talked about the importance of a good marriage and the foundation at home. Being a CEO is a lonely position and your partner has to be able to be someone you can bounce ideas off. Ryan stated if you look at successful entrepreneurs and world leaders the one thing they all have in common is a long term marriage.

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Bill Dunkelberg (right) responds to Jason Spiess (left)

Bakken Energy: Is There a Natural Gas Boom in the Bakken?

Former North Dakota Public Service Commissioner Tony Clark called natural gas in the Bakken a “real wild card.” Current Public Service Brian Kalk agrees. Ken DeCubellis, CEO, of Black Ridge Oil and Gas gives his views on whether natural gas is a boom or not.

Mr. DeCubellis posses over 20 years of executive experience in a broad range of energy industries including 10 years at Exxon Mobil Corp and most recently as President and CEO of Altra Inc, a venture capital backed biofuels company. Mr. DeCubellis also previously served as Chairman of KD Global Energy, Belize Ltd, a firm that provides upstream technical and geological services to petroleum lease holders in Belize. Mr. DeCubellis received an MBA from the J.L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management at Northwestern University in 1996 and a Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in 1990.

Mr. DeCubellis said there is a natural gas play in the Bakken, but he would not call it a boom. The reason the gas coming out of the Bakken is so attractive is because it is a wet gas. Wet gas sells at a premium. DeCubellis said Dow and Exxon want ethane, which is a precursor for plastics and other petroleum products. The petrochemical industry is projected to invest $30 billion of capacity expansion to get access to the natural gas.

DeCubellis said flaring is an issue, but technology is being developed to capture that gas and reduce flaring.

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