I have spent 20 years working in minor league sports, and have vast and varied experience in all aspects of sports and sales; from promotion, marketing, and administration, to retail, stadium operations, tickets and concession management. I started at the bottom, as a popcorn vendor, and worked my way up to Assistant General Manager with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox Baseball Club in charge of merchandise, team travel, group sales, public relations, as well as sales and marketing . Along the way, I worked with the Denver Grizzlies of the IHL in 1994/95, where we won the Turner Cup.After an eight-year hiatus from sports, I spent the last 2012 reprising those duties here in Texas with the San Angelo Colts as their Assistant General Manager. In addition to my work as the Assistant GM, I also took over stadium operations briefly and, at the end of the season, took over the concession stand when our Concessions Manager resigned.The sports business is a great learning environment. It taught me how to work as part of a team, find creative solutions, see projects through to completion and meet deadlines. Most importantly, it has taught me to think on my feet and outside the box. Anyone can sell a program ad, but creating a promotion working to the customers strengths of his business and his visions takes special types. Luckily I’ve had the best teachers whose knowledge is unmatched. When I left baseball in 2004, I took a job in Kuwait where I worked with troops from all branches of the Armed Forces, training for service in Iraq. I was hired for that position just as civilian contractors were taking over many projects the military had been running. This put my skills in public relations and customer service to the test on a daily basis.After returning from the Middle East, I took a job as a casino dealer where I dealt Craps and Blackjack, and also worked as a floor supervisor.