Observer welcomes new sports writer

RIO RANCHO — After months of searching, the Rio Rancho Observer has a new sports writer.

On his first day Aug. 11, Dan Allison was eager to learn about the Rio Rancho community and the stories it has to offer, particularly in the sports realm.

“I’ve been writing since elementary school, just about, and have been doing more sports writing since high school,” he said.

Allison, originally from Massachusetts, is joining the Observer staff after graduating from Arizona State University, where he studied sports reporting at the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism. His first experience in the news world was in an internship there.

He knew he wanted to be involved with sports well before then, however.

“Once I got a little bit older in middle school and realized I do not have the makings of a professional athlete, I thought the next best thing was trying to get into the sports industry by any means possible,” he said.

Attending classes at ASU showed him that reporting was the way to go, according to Allison.

“I would not really be here without ASU, and I think you can really pinpoint it back to my senior year internship where graduation was coming up, and I thought I would be more leaning toward a career in maybe public relations or just straight-up communications rather than being a reporter,” he said. “But then last spring, I had the chance to be a reporter for the Cronkite School’s in-house newspaper or online publication, Cronkite News, and get that hands-on experience, even though my experience prior to that was really limited. It really took my breath away on the experiences I got.”

Allison’s family has connections to sports as well. He said his brother is a ticket office salesman and he has an uncle in a similar position. He and his siblings were also brought up playing sports such as basketball and volleyball, two sports he looks forward to covering.

He also looks forward to writing about some of the lesser-covered sports. He, for a time, played ultimate Frisbee and flag football.

He is interested to see the clubs and other activities offered as well.

This is not the first time Allison has had to acclimate to a new environment.

“I think whenever you move to a new place, you kind of get that feeling of exploring and getting a vibe for for where you’re at now, obviously. I kind of had that big culture shock moment when I moved from Massachusetts to Arizona. Being the new kid on the block, or the fish out of water in a way, is something I’m familiar with,” he said.

He is excited to get to know Rio Rancho and the sports it offers.

“High school sports has a big presence here, and I grew up about 45 minutes outside of Boston in a smaller town, so I just know the significance and the impact that high school athletics really has on the community and how important it is to reflect that in the coverage of it,” he said.

He also acknowledged the impact a local paper’s coverage can have on a city like Rio Rancho.

“I really want to embody that in my work and in my writing, really reflecting the stories coming out of here, coming out of the high schools, coming out of the town itself. At the end of the day, I just want to make the community proud,” he said.

Residents will have a chance to meet Allison at Rio Rancho’s Mayor’s Sunday is Funday Aug. 17.