He was just a kid and the radio was on – as usual. It’s here that Jon Jensen’s story begins. Growing up, it was a common scene for Jensen, a moment filled with emotion and excitement.
Perhaps it was Dave Niehaus giving an exciting play-by-play of another Seattle Mariners game – “Get out the rye bread and mustard, grandma…” Or it was Bob Blackburn giving a descriptive account of the Seattle SuperSonics – “Lenny Wilkens skips a pass inside to Tom Meschery.” Or it was Pete Gross, giving an emotional play-by-play of another Seattle Seahawks game – “Dave Krieg drops back to pass…”
Usually with goosebumps, Jensen was listening, pumping his arms in excitement as the games unfolded.
“My background has been radio,” Jensen said. “I grew up listening to Bob Robertson, Bob Blackburn, Pete Gross.”
And those exciting moments of listening to Gross, Blackburn, Niehaus and Kevin Calabro and Bob Robertson – all famous names in radio sports announcing – shaped Jensen’s future. Those moments became his passion, his life-long desire to follow those famous voices.
Eventually, after serving in the Air Force, Jensen ended up earning two degrees from Washington State University, Communications and Sports Management, in 1999. He had become that voice on the radio, doing broadcasts of sporting events.
A lifelong resident of the Pacific Northwest, Jensen has been involved in the media throughout Washington State as a broadcast on-air talent and production specialist. Along with covering high school sports, he’s performed play-by-play duties for his alma mater, Washington State University.
Jensen’s coverage of sports spans the gamut, including NCAA Division I, North West Athletic Conference, Arena Football, Indoor Football League, and most recently, the Professional Bowlers Association.
The departure of radio covering local sports has opened a door for Jensen to continue to follow his love and passion – broadcasting high school sports. Rather than broadcasting on radio, Jensen has gone high tech. He uses the internet to post his broadcasts of local high school sports.
Five years ago, Jensen developed Sound Sports Net, a webcasting entity for presentation of local and regional sports online. A veteran of the Gulf War, Jensen moved to Lacey in the spring of 2016, Sound Sports Net has taken root in the South Sound region, with growth and expansion forthcoming.
Every Thursday and Friday night in the fall, Jensen and his cohort, Mike Buchanan, are at local high school football games, providing exciting and comprehensive play-by-play coverage. Then during the winter, basketball and wrestling will be the order of the season.
And those exciting broadcasts of North Thurston, Yelm, Timberline, Olympia, Tumwater or another local high school football team, are kept on Sound Sports Net’s website. If you missed the live broadcast, there’s an archive of that game.
“Media is ever changing and evolving, certainly where terrestrial radio is concerned,” Jensen said.
“Yet, the internet is massive, more intimate and socially vast. To take the tradition of high school sports on a Friday night, merging with the power of social media and portable technology, anyone can have access to events anywhere, at any time. It makes for compelling entertainment.”
Now, Jensen’s passion is to spread the word, letting South Sound high school sports fans know that he’s broadcasting. Eventually, somewhere down the road, Jensen hopes that his website will post live video coverage of local games. For now, as he spreads the word and builds support, he’s sticking with the audio presentation.
“Jon’s passion has never wavered,” said Buchanan, who has been Jensen’s color man for 16 years. “We called our first football game back in 2001. This is a vision he’s had for the South Sound and being able to put these kids on display. This is something he’s been passionate about for a very, very long time.”
Jensen owns and operates Sound Sports Pro Shop at Westside Lanes. A lifetime bowler and PBA member, Jensen, who has rolled 11 sanctioned 300 games. Jensen has insight and passion he has for bowling business and broadcasting combined. He believes in sharing the experience.
Growing up on Whidbey Island, Jensen’s involvement started when he began doing the PA at games for his high school in Oak Harbor. Then he started to call in football scores and give reports with KBRC-AM in Mount Vernon in the mid 1980s.
But as he learned the trade, many radio stations stopped broadcasting high school sports. And Jensen saw a need and the potential. “A niche that needed to be filled,” Jensen said. “So, I felt that making the move back here to South Sound was most prudent.”
He knew things were going to take time to develop. “The number one priority was establishing that trust,” Jensen said. “Number two is having the credibility, accountability, and integrity as a journalist, along with the content, context and substance of the presentation. Think of a recipe. All those ingredients come together. A dash here. A few pieces there. Get the product out.”
Eventually, Jensen wants to expand his broadcasting team to be covering several games a night, but he wants experienced voices on the mic.
“Jon is about quality,” Buchanan said. “He doesn’t want his name on anything that’s not top tiered. His mindset is if he’s putting his name on it, it needs to be good quality.”
The big challenge right now is getting the word out, talking with schools and letting parents know.
“We are establishing relationships,” Jensen said. Things are growing. Right now, people can access Jensen’s broadcasts on computers, iphones and tablets. Four years ago, Jensen registered the trademark the name of his website with the state.
“People can identify with it,” Jensen said.
And Jensen is passionate about connecting with the community through his sports broadcasts. He’s living his dream.
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