An intern’s take on Irrelevant Week

Before I detail my experience of Irrelevant Week XXXII, I’ll begin with a bit of background.

I’m a Newport Beach native, student at San Diego State University, multiple sport athlete, football fanatic, aspiring sports journalist, and a new Daily Pilot Sports intern. Match made in heaven, right?

My position as the Daily Pilot Sports intern took me by surprise. In fact, it was not until earlier this week that I was even aware of my intern title.

After several persistent (read: nagging) calls to Sports Editor Steve Virgen, I was certain that my invitation to a Little League baseball game last month and allowing me in the office to write briefs was Steve’s form of charity. But alas, Monday evening, Daily Pilot Sports Reporter David Carrillo Penaloza made my day by referring to me as “Super Intern,” two words I was more than happy to respond to.

Much better than the mediocre term “shadow,” which is sort of what I was expecting.

Now, back to Irrelevant Week. Here are some of the highs from the week.

Monday afternoon I received a voicemail from Steve confirming my invitation to that evening’s kick off event of Irrelevant week. That voicemail is still saved on my phone, as it represents the beginning of an unforgettable week.

More giddy than a 6-year-old on caffeine, I arrived at the event wide eyed, desperately trying to hold in my excitement, as not to scare any children. I watched as Mr. Irrelevant XXXII, Alabama native, Ramzee “Bino” Robinson made his first appearance.

I followed David’s lead as he chased Ramzee through the crowd for an interview. This was the point when I was referred to as “Super Intern.” (High #1!)

I’ll never forget it; Pacing through the sand in my three-inch wedges, drafting off a pack of cheerleaders, I faked left, a groupie goes down from my quickness (and maybe a stiletto stuck in sand), I faked right, another groupie down, my blazing speed tore right through the middle of the pack, giving David and me a clear shot at Ramzee. “Someone had to see those moves,” I thought to myself, “Where’s Leigh Steinberg when I need him?”

I put out my hand, eager to recite my new greeting, “Megan Curry: Daily Pilot Sports.” But instead of a handshake, Ramzee piles his multiple plates of food on one of my arms. That must be a sign of respect in the South.

The next morning I met up with David, Ramzee, and the whole Irrelevant crew at Disneyland. It must be said that I am not a fan of Disneyland. When previously asked if I wanted to cover the Disneyland story, I forced a smile and managed to squeeze out the word, “Sure.” But despite the scorching heat, Disneyland proved to be a good time, especially since we were considered VIP.

While curious spectators, TV cameras and media bombarded Ramzee, David and I threw around the pigskin, which is all I need to keep me happy and occupied for hours. As we threw the ball in front of a massive crowd at Space Mountain, I was told I have, “Hands like glue.” (High #2!) Ramzee even chimed in on one of my deliveries, “That’s a pretty good throw. You’ve got an arm little girly!” (High #3!) That’s all I needed to make my day at Disneyland a success.

Wednesday night was the Lowsman Banquet, which was absolutely overwhelming being in a room full of world-class athletes, soaking up their pearls of wisdom directed at Ramzee. But High #4 didn’t come during the banquet, or the uber trendy bar, Kantina where we met up after. High #4 came at a beach house we used as a place to relax and unwind after all the evening’s excitement.

In true Megan form, I spotted a volleyball on the balcony from 100 yards away. Call it a gift, if there is any sports equipment within 200 yards of me, I will find it. Within 10 minutes that volleyball had served me as a soccer ball, water polo ball, and football, in addition to its original purpose. Ramzee looked up at me from the couch, “You’re quite the athlete!” Ahh, there it was, High #4!

The week’s activities finished off with an evening regatta in the Newport Harbor on Thursday, followed by a traditional Ultimate Tailgate Party on Friday. Both were great fun and good opportunities to work on my journalism skills.

The week’s events all honored Ramzee in celebration and in roast.

Sure Ramzee was the last NFL draft pick, but he was still a pick. And an incredible athlete. And although for an NFL cornerback 4.52 seconds is considered slow for a 40 yard dash, it is still faster than I’ll ever be…probably.

Now my speed is just used to chase down stories.