Meet Levi...

A few weeks back I came up with the idea to do a story about a football player with the local af2 (minor leagues to "big time" arena football) the Boise Burn. My fascination with these athletes is that the majority of them don't get payed enough to be full time athletes and so many have part time jobs. Before doing any research I had hoped to find a player who in his spare time worked as a plumber or a roofer or some other blue collar job. Unfortunately, I didn't find such a player. However, I did meet Levi Madarieta, a 5-year arena football veteran who happened to have a pretty interesting story to tell.


Initially I wanted to follow him on his journey through the rigors of a typical "work week" but after starting the project I began to struggle to find the time to tag along with him because of the time constraints of the daily schedule.

I was able to hang out with him about three or four times. Up until the Saturday before the package was supposed to run the story continued to evolve. Originally I wanted to do a mix of video, audio and stills but then I had an epiphany...

On Saturday, July 18th I attended an SPJ narrative writing workshop here in Boise. I'll admit that I've never been much of a writer but I have always had interest in it and so with a little bit of trepidation I decided to sign up... And I am so glad that I did. The guest speaker was Pulitzer Prize winning feature writer Tom Hallman Jr.. Tom turned out to be a very inspiring speaker who made the world of narrative story telling, which was once such an unknown to me, seem so clear. I left feeling as though learning to write well would be my next greatest challenge and after a few weeks I still feel the same way.

So anyway, I was inspired by the event and decided to try to write some copy about Levi. It turned out to be a pretty challenging exercise but I really enjoyed it.

This is how it read...

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BOISE - It's three hours before kickoff and inside Qwest Arena the lights are off and the seats are empty. In a narrow hallway beneath the bleachers workers shuffle from one end of the arena to the other, preparing for the hordes of fans that will soon help bring the place to life. The hustle and bustle is interrupted momentarily as workers stop to say "hey" to a man who makes his way through the hall.

He feels butterflies in his stomach as the sounds of laughter and loud music grow closer; knowing full well that once he walks through that door, it's time to go to work.

At 29, he's not exactly young for a football player but after five years in the af2 - three spent as a starter for the Boise Burn - Levi Madarieta is in better shape than ever before, and most importantly, he still loves what he does.

"I'm still able to do it at a high level and perform well and so why not," said Madarieta, I love to do it."

Even though he speaks with a breath of ambition about his future in professional football, he understands the reality of his situation.

"In this league you're either trying to go somewhere and move up to bigger and better things or if you're like me, you play because you love it."

With a laundry list of injuries from broken fingers and ribs to a complete reconstructed ankle, Madarieta has experienced plenty of painful setbacks, but throughout it all has remained positive.

“My body has taken a beating over the years but it’s worth it to me" he said, "on Sundays when I wake up and I can't really move I don't exactly love it, but when the weekend rolls around I remember why I do it."

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Not necessarily a masterpiece but for a first try I feel pretty good about it.

I also produced a short slideshow about the guy that you can check out HERE.