Getting To Know: Pete Springer

Which OPB staffer has the secret ambition of photographing
the Oregon National Guard troops in Iraq?

Name: Pete Springer

Position at OPB:  radio/television producer; OREGON TERRITORY producer

Place of Birth: Portland, Oregon

Education: Bachelor's degree in biology

Career Highs: Photographing Oregon National Guard soldiers during the first rain in six years outside Sharm el Sheik, Egypt

Secret Ambition: To photograph Oregon National Guard soldiers in Iraq

Weirdest Job: Planting trees for Louisiana-Pacific in the redwood clearcuts of northern California. We were paid every week by a guy who carried around a pistol and a briefcase full of cash. He would fire the pistol in the air before paying us to make sure we all knew it was loaded.

Favorite Book(s)/Author(s): Cormac McCarthy, “Suttree”; Jack Kerouac, “On the Road”; Vince Welch, Cort Conley, Brad Dimock, “The Doing of the Thing: The Brilliant Whitewater Career of Buzz Holstrom”

Favorite Film(s): “American Beauty,” “Pulp Fiction” and “The Sopranos”

Earliest Political Memory: Hearing my brothers talk about the bullet-proof shield Gerald Ford used during a speech in Portland

Best Interview: William Sullivan, a popular Oregon guidebook writer

Most Interesting Interview: A female wild-land firefighter who was a smokejumper, hotshot and strike team leader on the B&B fire. She slept on the bare ground instead of using a sleeping pad to keep from going soft.

Most Challenging Interviewee: Any MOS (man on the street) or VOS pops!

Most Fun Interviewee: Getting my dog to bark for a story about pet ownership (hey, that’s an interview of sorts ... )

Favorite Musician(s)/Groups: The Who

Hobbies: Backpacking, canoeing, snowshoeing and gardening

Four Fantasy Dinner Guests: Shirley Manson, Liz Phair, Neko Case, Bill Clinton

Hot Topic You Couldn’t Care Less About: “wardrobe malfunction”

Worst Radio Blunder: Mixing up the names Noah Adams and Neal Conan during a pledge break!

First Job: Delivering the Oregon Journal by bicycle after school

Best Vacation: Hiking 100 miles along the Pacific Crest Trail from Mt. Rainer to the lava fields south of Indian Heaven Wilderness with my black lab

One Thing Most People Would Be Surprised to Know About You: I make recipes from Sunset magazine on a regular basis.