I really enjoy Barnburner because it represents me as a Flames fan.
I want to see the Flames win. I want to see the Oilers lose. I want to hear about Darryl Sutter stories from the early 2000's.
- I don't study analytics, so Pinder is like a buddy who fills that knowledge gap for me.
- I didn't play for the Flames, so Rhett is "old time story guy".
- Boomer is the sports broadcast lifer who brings it together. And cranky (like me).
- They have amazing guests. Noodles, the Silver Sausage, D.D. Wish they had more of Krahn, more of Stephen Brunt, and could get Eric Duhatschek in there.
You can't remove any one element and have anything close. When Boomer isn't on, Pinder just blabs non-stop and Rhett falls asleep. When Pinder isn't on, the energy level is like 80% lower. When Rhett isn't on there won't be any random interruptions of half dressed Rob Ray weeding the lawn.
Yes, Pat Steinberg is a great resource for more in depth Flames coverage... but he's also super positive all the time, which grates on me (again...cranky) when the team sucks, and there are limited blue chip prospects. I'm sorry, Matthew Phillips was never going to make it, and it was stupid to keep pumping his tires.
Finally - Nacho talk. Skateboard accident videos. Gator attacks. Open attempts to make Boomer throw up on the show through disgusting foods. Old man bitching about idiot kids, local construction, the weather, the municipal government. Members of the podcast actively drunk on camera.
Yes.
Don't want or need it all the time... but break up the day a bit. Give me a couple cheap yuks just like my buddies would. I know it's coming, it lightens my mornings.
This isn't a perfect podcast. I skip over NFL, CFL, MLB, NBA, and soccer talk. It's a podcast after all so you can do that easily. Gambling is super brutal on families IMO. Boner pills, fake diamonds, and local bars are the level of sponsors. Hope that changes (or grows into something else).
But it's still pretty much perfect "for me". Cranky old Flames fans who chuck back the occasional wobbly pop looking for realistic franchise opinions and yucks.
Come to think of it... it's kind of like CP...