
Former Auburn University football coach Pat Dye runs a beautifully landscaped Japanese maple tree nursery on his 1,500-acre property near Auburn University.
When I learned of the business, I thought the timing was perfect for a video interview with “Coach” and visuals of his more than 6,000 trees in springtime.
This time, he was almost clobbered by a set light blown over by the wind.
The nursery manager happily agreed to the visit, and I was soon traipsing to eastern Alabama with my brand new video camera.
Only problem was this would be my first-ever professional video shoot. The action played out as you might expect.
After shooting the sit down interview with Coach, who then left to attend a funeral, I discovered there was no audio recorded on the camera.
Moment of panic and guilt ensued. But after recovering from the embarrassment, I arranged another session with Coach for the following week.
This time, he was almost clobbered by a set light blown over by the wind. Soon thereafter, I stepped on the paw of his hunting dog, which let out a bone-jarring yelp.
Coach was not pleased.
Somehow, we managed a decent video and a great learning experience.
But you can be the judge of that: Coach Pat Dye Talks Trees