Cut the Cord, Keep the Sports (c)

In a perfect world, cutting the cable cord wouldn’t mean cutting sports out of your life.

Last year, I lamented* how my life has been changed without cable TV.  Replacing cable with Netflix and Hulu (via a Roku) has been a success for most of the household – except when there is a sporting event that I want to watch.  Then I’m mostly out of luck.

*Or, as my wife might say, “cried like a b___ baby”.  Six of one…

For the most part, I’ve learned to deal with this.  My friends are great about letting me join them to watch my beloved Huskers play their road games – even that game at Fresno State last fall that didn’t kick off until 10 pm.  Otherwise, I’ve accepted that I’m only going to experience TV sports second-hand through Twitter comments or a highlight clip shared online.

But then, my beloved Kansas City Royals started playing good baseball.  All summer they were either in first place or in contention for a wildcard spot.  I would listen to games on the radio while I was out running errands, but I rarely saw them play on TV.

Once late September hit, it really started to get serious.  The Royals could clinch their first playoff spot in 29 years.  This was something I had to take in.  Fortunately, the MLB TV app was offering a free upgrade so I was able to listen to most of the game without sitting my car all night.  But as the Royals inched closer to that playoff spot, the itch to watch became too much.  I hopped in the car and went down to the neighborhood bar to watch the last inning on TV.  The Royals won and earned a wildcard spot.

For the wildcard game, I needed to step up my game.  The game was on TBS, so I tried the TBS app on our iPad.  Problem:  you needed to be a cable subscriber to access the app.  But if I had cable, I wouldn’t be watching a baseball game on my iPad, I’d use the 50″ screen in my living room.  Back to the bar for that game.

For the ALDS, I settled on MLB.tv, where for $3.99 I was able to access the TBS broadcast on the iPad.  However, that was not a perfect solution.  On the bright side, you could pick which camera angle you wanted to view (center field, catcher, first or third base angle, home or visitor dugout, etc.).  That’s pretty cool.  The downside was you were locked into that camera angle.  For example: if I was watching the center field view, I could see the pitch come in, but if it was hit, I couldn’t see the rest of the play – my view was still coming from that one camera.

MLB.tv did offer a “Quad View” option, where you got the center field and catcher angles (along with two other views) in a split screen.  Unfortunately, the other two angles were locked into the home and visitor dugouts.  I saw A LOT of Ned Yost during those first few games of the playoffs.  Plus, my already small view of the game was now even smaller.  And even though you were listening to the TBS broadcasters, you did not get to see the TBS graphics or replays, so you had better pay attention.

A family mini-vacation aligned perfectly with two games of the ALCS, so I was able to watch those games in the hotel room in full HD glory.  Game three was back to the iPad with MLB.tv.  The clinching game four, started during the afternoon, so I didn’t get home from work until the late innings.  Not wanting to watch the final outs on the Mini’s screen, I scooped up my one year old daughter and ran down to the neighborhood bar*.  We watched the Royals clinch the American League pennant while she ate orange slices from the bar.

*Yeah, I did.  And I’d do it again.

With this crazy, improbable playoff run culminating in a World Series berth, it was time to do something different.  I looked into live streaming options for the Fox telecast, but it appeared to me that I would need a Fox app (and likely, an active cable subscription).  A coworker suggested a website where you can view streams of various sporting events, provided you can navigate a maze of pop up ads and spam links.

Finally, I found the MLB app for our Roku player.  With a $9.99 purchase, I am able to stream the full Fox broadcast (replays and all) on my big TV.  Even better, the app has options to jump to a specific inning which meant I could wait to start Game 2 until the kids were in bed.  Even though the World Series ended in heartache, it was a joy to be able to watch live sports in the comfort of my home on a screen larger than nine inches.

I had the itch for live sports.

*   *   *

You can currently subscribe to services like MLB At Bat to get “out of market” games streamed to your mobile device, but as I mentioned last time, it seems ridiculous to watch a game on a four-inch phone screen when most homes have a 40 inch (or larger) TV set.  Yes, there are ways to get content from your device onto your plasma, but I want something that doesn’t involve buying a new device/TV, tethering my device to a HDMI cable, or some third-party app.

Recently, I discovered that I can cast the screen from my Android phone to our Roku.  That’s been great during the NCAA Tournament, as the March Madness app streams all of the games, but I would not describe the picture quality as “crisp” or “clear”.  And with this set up, I can’t use my phone for calls, texts, tweets, or a quick game of Candy Crush during a commercial.

*   *   *

During the heart of the past college football season, a miracle happened.

No, I’m not referring to Jordan Westerkamp’s ridiculous behind the back catch.  A kind-hearted angel, who will remain nameless, signed into the Watch ESPN app on my Roku with the info from their cable account.  Suddenly, I had access to live college football, and it was glorious.  I thought about the moral and ethical implications of receiving content that I was not paying for.

I also thought that averaging $75 a month for cable TV over the last 20 years – which is probably low – I’ve given the cable companies around $18,000.  Suddenly, watching Wisconsin and Rutgers didn’t seem so horrible.

*   *   *

So where do we go from here?

With every passing year, the likelihood of me going back to cable, or trying out satellite gets lower.  Today’s internet and streaming apps have given us the expectation for content on demand.

In short, I want to view what I want, on my big TV, without having to pay for crap I don’t care about.

The sports networks (ESPN, FOX Sports, Turner, etc.) should follow the lead of a true pioneer:  The WWE.

Yes, you heard me.  World Wrestling Entertainment.

Last year, they launched the WWE Channel for the Roku streaming player.  The 24/7 channel has original content, “classic matches”, and other rasslin’-centric programming.  But most importantly, the WWE Channel offers the monthly pay-per-view events (including WrestleMania) as part of the subscription price.  The price ($9.99 a month) isn’t bad considering each PPV match costs $44.95 ($59.95 for WrestleMania).

I would love to see other leagues and teams follow this model.  Imagine an NBA fan being able to subscribe to see all of the games for their favorite team along with the programming on the NBA TV network.  Or a college football fan being able to subscribe to the Big Ten Network to get access to games.

Major League Baseball has the MLB.tv service that allows you to watch “out of market” games on mobile devices.  You can upgrade to the Premium version for an extra $5 a month (or $20 a year) to be able to use a streaming device like Roku or Apple TV, or XBox).  But the kicker here is “out of market”.  Even though my house is 200 miles away from Kaufmann Stadium, my ZIP Code is considered to be in the Royals’ market – so even if I paid $129.99 for the full season of MLB.tv Premium, I would only get a handful of Royals games.  Heck, even if I was a fan of, say, the Pittsburgh Pirates, I’m still paying for a bunch of content that I’m not interested in.

*   *   *

In my perfect world, there would be options for all types of cord-cutting sports fans:  the diehards who live for the individual sports, passionate fans of individual teams, and the casual sports fan.

That guy who lives for the NFL, MLS, or NASCAR?  He buys a league pass package giving them all of the games.  Casual fans could subscribe to the ESPN or Fox Sports apps without having to get 95 other channels of garbage.  And passionate fans of a specific team could buy a “streaming season ticket” giving them access to all of their team’s games – regardless of the network they are on.

Until that day comes, I’ll be praying my kind-hearted angel doesn’t change the password on their cable account, or my children will be accompanying me to the sports bar for those can’t-miss moments.

*   *   *

(Author’s note:  Wondering why there is a random letter in parentheses in the title of this post?  Not sure how this post corresponds to the daily letter in the April A to Z Challenge?  Like clicking on links?  These questions are all answered here.)

Top Ten Ways to Help the Royals Win Again

My poor Kansas City Royals.

They are in historically bad slump – which as any Royals fan in the last 25+ years will tell you, is really saying something.  They have lost eight in a row, and 19 of their last 23.  After spending most of April in first place, they are now in last.  In short, something needs to change.

Sure, they could fire Ned Yost, one of their two hitting coaches for a team with several starters hitting below .250 with absolutely no power, or they could replace those lousy batters with a bunch of guys from the minor leagues.  Any of those things might work.  Or they might not.  Given that we’re talking about the Royals, rational changes will probably just make things worse.

The Royals need to think outside the box.  Unconventional.  Drastic measures.

Fortunately, I know how the Royals can win again.  And no, I’m not referring to a “slumpbuster” as infamously described by Mark Grace.  Here are ten ways to help get the Royals back on a winning track:

10.  Through use of wigs, fake mustaches, costumes, and fat suits, Alex Gordon bats twice an inning.

Not really relevant, but I love this picture.

9.  Royal batters only need three balls to walk, but get four strikes.

8.  Opposing team must chug a Boulevard beer at every base.

7.  Cork.  Lots of it.  In the bats, the baseballs, the opponents gloves, in the hotdogs.  Anywhere.  Everywhere.

6.  Manager Ned Yost is replaced with a Magic 8 Ball.

Do the Royals have a hope of winning again?

5.  The fences are moved in 20 feet whenever KC bats.  No wait, make that 40 feet.

4.  Mascot Sluggerrr arranges lap dances for player who gets game winning hit.  (I shouldn’t have to mention this, but obviously that link is considered NSFW).

3.  Don Denkinger comes out of retirement to umpire Royals games (especially the interleague series with the St. Louis Cardinals).

Close enough.

2.  Longtime play-by-play man Denny Matthews broadcasts in the nude until the Royals win.

1.  Kansas City reschedules a 7:10 pm game for 7:10 am, and “accidentally” forgets to tell the other team.

Royal Review – April

As a baseball fan, I always look forward to the start of the season.  You’ll hear announcers and writers talking about the “hope and potential of a new season” and bunch of other clichés about how everybody believes their team can win the World Series in April.

As a long time Royals fan, my response to that is “Yeah, right.”  The Royals may start in first place on Opening Day, but I’ve seen enough seasons to know that KC’s April will usually go one of two ways:

1. The Royals get off to a respectable start, flirting with first place for a day or two, before a six game losing streak drops them back in the standings.  They continue to find new ways to lose, and they’re out of realistic contention by May.
2. The Royals stink out of the gate, a lousy collection of washed up vets who don’t care and quadruple-A players who could not start for most major league teams.  They may not go on a prolonged losing streak, but they probably will – just because they can.  Any hope of contending is gone by Tax Day.  After that, the focus shifts to not finishing last in the division and guessing who the token All Star representative will be.

But the 2013 season might just be different.  General Manager Dayton Moore has built a young, but strong core of position players and spent the offseason bolstering a pitching staff that was painfully bad in 2012.  The Royals dominated the Cactus League during spring training, and are a trendy dark horse pick to win the American League Central.

One month in to the 2013 season, and the Royals have been different.  Good different.  Like, a real big league team with pitching, hitting, and defense different.

And I’m not sure what to do with it.

Let’s not kid ourselves…there is still a ton of baseball to be played.  Five full months and over 135 games, to be exact.  But as I type this on May 1, 2013, the Kansas City Royals are in first place.  They have won at home, won on the road, beat good teams, pounded bad teams, and have generally looked good doing so.  At the risk of jinxing the team, I’ll say it:

If the playoffs started today, Kansas City would be in for the first time since 1985.

But that is looking too far down the road.  I’m sticking to the same thing I said at the beginning of the year:  I will be happy – hell, I’d be thrilled – with 82 wins.  Get over .500.  Anything beyond that is gravy.

Will it happen?  I want to say yes, but history says no.  Regardless, it should be a fun ride.

*   *   *

Three Up (or “Why you might want to set aside some cash for a playoffs fund”)

1. James Shields, Ervin Santana, and Jeremy Guthrie have brought stability to the starting rotation.  Shields and Santana were the two key offseason acquisitions, and in April they were worth the price.  Guthrie came to the Royals in 2012, and has been quietly dominant.  Combined, these three are 8-3, with a 2.68 ERA.
2. The offense is has serious potential.  The majority of the lineup is capable of delivering an extra base hit at any point.  Ned Yost has not been afraid to run – the Royals are third in the AL with 19 stolen bases – which has helped put guys in scoring position, and put pressure on opposing defenses.  They’re not clicking on all cylinders, but if they do….look out.
3. There is noticeable excitement and chemistry on the team.  This is my favorite.  For the first time in ages, the team is playing with passion.  They look like they care, and they are having fun.  Fans are starting to expect this team to win, instead of finding a way to lose.

Three Down (or “Why you should consider focusing on the NBA and NHL playoffs instead of baseball”)

1. There is no consistent power threat.  The Royals are last in the league with 14 home runs (the Yankees have 35).  While several Royals can take you deep – nine guys homers in April – up and down the lineup there is not a guy who you fear going yard in every at bat.
2. Will Moustakas and Hosmer produce?  Mike Moustakas and Eric Hosmer are two cornerstones of the Royals youth movement.  In order for the team to contend, each needs to be a key cog in the offense.  So far in 2013, the two are batting a combined .221 with one homer and 13 RBI.  Moustakas has been especially bad with a dreadful .195/.276/.299 line.  At the end of April, both showed signs of heating up, but if they cannot produce, the offense will be challenged.
3. It’s still the Royals.  April was one of the better months in recent history to be a Royals fan.  It has been a blast to watch the team play good baseball, beat good teams, and get our hopes up for what the rest of the season will bring.  But let’s face it:  the die-hard fans who have been through the 100 loss seasons, puzzling roster moves, and bizarre moments that can only happen to Kansas City are waiting for the other shoe to drop.  As much as I want to believe in this team and their chances, an eight game losing streak would not shock me.

Extra Innings

• I’m trying to give the guy the benefit of the doubt, but man, Rex Hudler is brutal.  Especially when paired with the ultra dry wit of Ryan Lefebvre.  I don’t necessarily miss Frank White providing a continuous Dr. Julius Hibbert laugh track every time Ryan made a joke, but surely there is somebody better out there.
• I’ve never understood why there are so many scheduled off days in April.  You’d think a ballplayer would rather save those days off for August when the season is starting to grind and their bodies need extra rest – not five in the first 22 days of the season (not counting rain outs and the Friday the City of Boston was on lock-down).
• Jeff Francoeur:  What the heck, dude?

Call to the Bullpen

“So, the Royals playing dominating baseball and the impending snow in May in KC don’t have anything to do with the apocalypse right?” – TJ Carpenter‏ (@TJCarpenterWHB)

Random Thoughts on Random 2012 Events

A little peek at how the hotdog of this blog is made:  often something will catch my eye – a newspaper article, something on the radio, a viral video, etc – and I’ll start a post with my thoughts, observations, and (hopefully) unique spin on things.  For examples of what I mean, I’ll refer you to my posts on Google Goggles, the Penn State scandal, and the alternate uniforms worn by the Nebraska football team.

But sometimes those posts don’t get published.  Sometimes life (work, family, sleep, etc) takes priority, and by the time I get back to it, the moment has passed.  Or I’ll stop working on it because I don’t like where its going or I feel like I don’t have an interesting enough point of view.  At that point, it lingers out in my Drafts folder on the remote chance that I’ll eventually complete it or salvage it for scrap.

However, in light of my all-out, everything must go blitz today, this is a good opportunity for me to clean out some of the stuff I have lingering in my Drafts.  So let’s take a trip back through the year that was 2012, and I’ll quickly give my two cents which will seem oddly out of place several months later (especially where I incorrectly predict that Jon Bruning wins Ben Nelson’s Senate seat).

Fat News Anchor
Recap:  Some guy thinks the local news lady doing the morning show is setting a bad example because she’s on TV, overweight, and has not made any obvious changes in several years.  The anchor (Jennifer Livingston) responds on air, and the video ends up being a virally shared “I wish I’d said that” rallying cry for anybody who has ever felt bullied.  (More info here)

My take:  Maybe I’m calloused by years of reading online comments, but I didn’t really see the “bullying” in the original email.  The worst thing he says to her is that she is that her “physical condition has not improved” over the course of a few years – which she freely admits.  He does not call her fat, obese, or any other nasty playground name, nor is he (in my opinion) mean spirited in his comments.  I didn’t read where he says she needs to be an overly tanned, 110 pound stick with fake breasts to be on TV.  To me, it sure looks like he is saying “You have a great opportunity to use your platform as a TV host to promote a healthy lifestyle, and I wish you’d take advantage of it”.  Maybe he could have provided more suggestions like how the she (and her station) would benefit from chronicling her weight loss journey on air, as it would likely motivate many viewers to do the same, but again – it’s not like his email was cruel, mean, or full of hurtful words.

NFL Replacement Refs
Recap:  The NFL locked out the regular refs for the first weeks of the season, replacing them with guys who were officiating D-II and D-III colleges.  This let to numerous screw-ups, culminating in a botched call on Monday Night Football that cost the Green Bay Packers a win.

My take:

I’ll get the disclaimers out of the way right up front:  I’m not a huge NFL guy.  I don’t watch a ton of NFL games (and what I do watch is more in the form of background noise while I’m doing other things).  Since I haven’t been in a fantasy league for a few years, my knowledge of the game is fairly low – which is to say that it’s probably on par with most Americans.

But this week it has been impossible to not be aware of the controversy and chaos caused by the replacement refs working NFL games.  This week’s Monday Night Football game was (incorrectly) decided on a last second pass that appeared to be intercepted, but was ruled as a touchdown.  Since then, the outrage from fans, players, even the President, has reached a fever pitch.  At last count, SportsCenter had shown the play 12,753 times, completely wearing out two digital copies of the play.

Here are some thoughts I have on the replacement refs:

• It will be awesome when the “real” refs come back, as they have never done anything controversial, or had high-profile blown calls that impacted the outcome of a game (cough, cough, Phil Luckett*, cough, cough)
• With the poor way the lockout has been handled, and the negative impact it has had on the league, could it possibly be true that sports’ favorite scapegoat (MLB commissioner Bud Selig) is now ahead of Roger Goddell in popularity and public perception?
• When the real refs come back, what sort of grace period will they get from fans and the media where mistakes and miscues are forgiven?  I’ll set the over/under at two games (and would likely take the under).
• Listening to the MNF game, I’m surprised ESPN commentator Mike Tirico didn’t reference the 2006 Alamo Bowl (Nebraska v. Michigan) that was worked by officials from the Sun Belt conference.  In that game, the refs made several questionable calls, and appeared lost on some of the reviews.  Tirico could not stop talking about how the officials from a lower conference were not equipped to deal with the speed of a bowl game featuring BCS conference teams.  Definitely an easy parallel to the replacement refs moving from D-III to the NFL.
• Ironically, that Michigan-Nebraska Alamo Bowl came down to a crazy, bizarre, rarely before seen, last second play where a number of obvious penalties were missed.

*I had initially planned to just drop in the Wikipedia link for Phil Luckett, but when I googled him to find the URL, I saw this article – Luckett was in the replay booth for the ill-fated MNF game as a league supervisor for the officiating crew.  Geez, this guy has a Forrest Gump-ian way of showing up for controversial moments.  If he ever gets on your flight, I’d suggest walking.

Worseminton
Recap:  In the Sumner Olympics, eight players from four different badminton teams (South Korea, China, and Indonesia) were tossed out of the Olympics for intentionally trying to lose their matches.  And I mean intentionally.  Here is a video of one of the matches where some of the greatest badminton players in the world can’t (won’t) hit the shuttlecock over the net.  When we played badminton in junior high P.E., we were better than these Olympians – of course, we were actually trying.

My Take:  A few days before this happened, I posted a list of Rejected Olympic Events.  One of the events I listed was “worseminton”, which was a punny (and hopefully funny) play on badminton.

I did not think anybody would take it seriously.

Why would anybody try to lose at the Olympics?  Because of how the badminton tournament is set up.  Basically (as I understand it) in the early rounds, teams play a sort of round-robin style.  These teams had already qualified for the next round, and the outcome of these matches would determine who they played in the quarterfinals.  Apparently, the teams figured out that losing would be advantageous to their medal chances.  The event organizers should have been aware of this loophole and should work to ensure the best way to win is by winning, not losing.

And that is why I don’t really have a problem with them trying to lose.  These people train hours a day for four years for the chance to win an Olympic medal.  Twenty years from now, nobody will care if the Indonesian B Team won their 3rd match in pool play.  They’ll care if Indonesia won a medal or not (as much as folks will care about badminton results in 20 years).  So if these teams figured out a (legal) loophole to improve their chances at that medal, good for them.

Where they screwed up is by sucking so badly.  It’s too bad that in all that training, they could not have found time to practice losing in a plausible manner.

MLB Home Run Derby
Recap:  The 2012 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was held in Kansas City.  Robinson Cano of the New York Yankees (a team Royals fans love to hate) initially said that he would consider picking hometown slugger Billy Butler for the Home Run Derby, but then left him off the team.  Cano was booed loudly during his HR Derby at-bats, and exited the competition quickly.

My Take:  KC fans were justified to boo Robinson Cano.  Consider:

I guarantee that if Cano does not say anything about including a representative from the Royals, he does not get booed (or at least not that loudly – he is a Yankee, after all).  But Cano opened himself for the abuse by opening the door and then slamming it in the face of the Royals fans.

There was a ton of criticism for how the KC fans reacted which bothered me too.  If this happened in New York, Boston, or Philly, not as much would be made of it, but the media couldn’t understand how the normally charming Midwesterners could do this.  As a Midwesterner, I’ll tell you:  treat us with respect and we’ll return it tenfold.  Treat us like fools and suffer the consequences.

Finally, with this being MLB, there must be criticism for Bud Selig and the commissioner’s office.  One of two things needs to happen.  Either 1) Always include a roster spot for a hometown guy, or don’t put the pressure of picking teams on one of the players.  Take the defending champ, the leaders from each league, and any other blatantly obvious choices (i.e. Prince Fielder, Jose Bautista, etc) who might be left out.

Obama Slow Jams the News
Recap:  President Obama went on Late Night With Jimmy Fallon and took part in a bit where he discussed policy (the cost of higher education, in this case) while The Roots and Fallon provided a background of a smooth R&B jam and backing vocals (“He’s the POTUS with the most-us!”).

My Take:  This is an interesting way to take his message to the audience (Fallon was taping at the University of North Carolina that week) that would love it and respond accordingly (instead of CNN, C-SPAN, or some speech).  I like how Obama embraced this and was able to pull it off looking smooth and cool, which is not something you’d see out of pretty much any Republican nominee (save, maybe, Bush Jr.)  Could you imagine Romney, McCain, Dole, Bush Sr, or Reagan trying it?  That would be a different kind of hilarious.

But ultimately, how does Obama benefit?  Sure, he locks up a good chunk of the youth and “hip” vote, but I’m guessing Romney would much rather have the old and “un-hip” vote, as they, you know, tend to actually vote.

Bob Kerrey Runs For Senate
Recap:  When Ben Nelson chooses to retire from the Senate instead of seeking reelection, Nebraska Democrats recruit former Senator and Governor Bob Kerrey to come back from New York City to run.  Why?  Because it is widely believed that Kerrey gave Democrats the best chance to retain Nelson’s seat.

My take:  Politics in Nebraska is kind of like a Harlem Globetrotters game.

The Republicans are the Globetrotters, the seemingly unbeatable team dressed up in red, white, and blue.  The Democrats are the Washington Generals, the hapless team that feigns resistance while the Globetrotters do whatever they please to keep the people happy.  In Nebraska, the Governor, all three U.S. Representatives, and one Senator are all Republicans.  So are Attorney General, Secretary of State, and the majority of state senators.

So Kerrey announcing that he’s going to come back and run for the Senate is both good and bad.

It is good because it means the Senate seat won’t be decided in the primary election.  The Democrats have a candidate with name recognition, experience, and serious potential to win the election.

But it is bad because the best candidate* the Democrats could find to replace the soon-to-be 71-year-old Ben Nelson is a 69-year-old who has been living in New York since 2001.

*No disrespect to University of Nebraska regent Chuck Hassebrook, who decided to run after Kerrey initially declined to join the race, but you were going to join Stormy Dean, David Hahn, Mike Meister, and others in the category of “Sacrificial Democrat Lambs in Nebraska Elections.”

And that is the sad part.

It is sad and pathetic that the Democratic Party has so completely and utterly failed in developing viable, state-wide candidates that Kerrey is the best (if not only) option to have a shot in November.

Look at the Republican Party:  you have some rather established names in the big offices (Heineman, Johanns, Fortenberry, Terry, Smith).  But it is the depth that helps to make them a political juggernaut.  Bruning, Sheehy, Flood, Foley, Fischer, and a couple of other state senators whom I’m blanking on at the moment.  One goes down, two more step in.

This isn’t to say that there is nobody in the Democratic line-up.  On the contrary, there are some very good state senators (Bill Avery, Danielle Conrad, Amanda McGill, and my fellow Gretna Dragon, Heath Mello).  All are doing good things in the Unicameral, and making names for themselves.  Unfortunately, none of them are truly ready for a statewide or national election.  And that failure is squarely on the shoulders of party leadership.

And so I will be voting for Kerrey (mainly because Jon Bruning is a sweater vest away from being Rick Santorum), but I hope the Democrats know and understand that after this election, there will be no more white knights riding in to save the day.