Boyle County graduate Ian Loughry has beenin Australia since September working on his Master¿s degree and has an internship with the Australian baseball League. He did take some time off, though to do some skydiving at Byron Bay. |
Ian Loughry didn’t mind extra work when he was helping Boyle County win state football championships from 2000-2003, and that can-do attitude continues to help him pursue a career in a sports-related public relations position.
That’s why he’s been in Australia since September finishing his Master’s in communications-public relations — he will return to Danville in mid-August — and working for the Australian Baseball League since May in the communications and media department where he writes stories and sets up media guides/programs.
“I am currently working on setting up their online video content via YouTube and twitter and should have that up and running in the coming weeks. The website is www.theabl.com.au,” said Loughry, 25.
“I actually lucked out to get the job. My advisor (at school) mentioned it after the deadline had passed so I threw together a resume and sent it in. After one conversation with the ABL they told me to start the next week. I think the fact that I have a background in sports writing, and that I am American and understand the game helped out a lot. Some of their Aussie interns apparently have a hard time writing about a sport they know nothing about,” Loughry, a 2009 Western Kentucky graduate where he did a variety of sports-related jobs, said.
“This is only coming up on the second year of the league, so a lot of what I am doing is a first, which is nice to have my own personal stamp on the league. It’s just amazing to be around the sport you love. I get to watch baseball and write about the players, among other things. What could be better than that?
“The people I work with are great as well. There are a lot of Americans here because baseball is still pretty foreign to many Australians, so it’s nice to be around people from the United States who just love and respect the game as much as I do.”
There have been a few “testy” times during his stay when it comes to sports.
“I can’t remember how many times I’ve argued with an Aussie on why the NFL is a better sport than rugby. But it has been great to learn other sports like rugby and AFL (Aussie rules football). The fans are the same. They show the same spirit and loyalties but the sports are completely different,” Loughry said. “I’ve come to enjoy just about everything besides cricket. That just puts me to sleep. But they love American sports here as well. They are big basketball fans, especially the NBA so when I mention I am from Kentucky they usually know who the Wildcats are.
“I have actually met some great people from Kentucky, even some UK students which is really cool. It was great getting to meet them and just talk about UK basketball for a bit in passing.”
His favorite UK-related story deals with meeting a girl from Malaysia who was a huge Boston Celtics fan.
“It’s funny when you tell people here you are from Kentucky, you usually hear three things: bourbon, basketball, and KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken). This girl, Grace, was immediately talking about basketball and how she loved the Celtics,” Loughry said. “More importantly, she couldn’t stop telling me how much she loved Rajon Rondo. She knew everything from his NBA stats to what he did when he was with UK, so we had a nice conversation about the relationship between the Celtics and UK all the way back to the (Rick) Pitino days.”
Loughry, despite the 14-hour time difference, has done his best to keep up with local sports during his time in Australia.
“I heard right away when Boyle won its last state championship and was proud that they are keeping the tradition alive,” he said. “I didn’t get to watch as many UK games as I wanted, but I did wake up a few times in the middle of the night to catch a few games.
“I remember when they beat North Carolina to go to the Final Four I was watching in the library and screamed pretty loud and got a couple of funny looks from some students. And one thing about Australia is that guys love to wear jean shorts still for whatever reason, so you can’t help but think of (Josh) Harrellson everywhere you look. He would fit in great here and wouldn’t even have to change his fashion.”
He says he misses his family and friends. However, there’s one thing he misses even more.
“The one thing I can’t wait for is some American restaurants. The food just isn’t the same here and I miss some things we might take for granted like free re-fills and ketchup on the table. Everything cost extra here, so you just learn to live without it,” Loughry said.
However, there have been experiences he’ll never forget.
“I got to go skydiving over the Pacific Ocean which was really cool. To be able to do that and stare at the Australian coast at the same time was pretty amazing,” Loughry said. “There are so many climates here and all within a short distance of each other. It’s crazy. To be in a rain forest one minute and a beach the next and an outback just up the road, it really is a whole new world over here.
“Seeing things that you hear about growing up and actually standing in front of it is a great experience. I’ve always heard of the Sydney Opera House and the Harbor Bridge, but to actually walk across of it and sit inside of it is great, something I’ll always be happy I got to experience.”
He’s hoping his degree and internship will lead to future employment when he returns to the United States.
“With this internship with the ABL I am hoping to make great contacts to work the same type of job with a professional sports league in the States,” Loughry said. “I do love this country and it is an amazing place, but there really is no place like home. But to be able to get the education that I am getting and gain some life experience at the same time, I would recommend it to anyone.”
How would a year in Australia, though, without friends, family and American restaurants compare in difficulty to the preseason football camps he went through at Jabez under former Boyle coach Chuck Smith?
“I don’t think I’ll ever experience anything in life harder than a coach Smith Jabez camp,” Loughry said. “I still have nightmares about those four-a-days. I guess it wasn’t all bad though I did get four nice (state championship) rings out of it.
“A year in Australia is unbelievable, but four years of championship football is even harder to come by.”
That’s why he’s been in Australia since September finishing his Master’s in communications-public relations — he will return to Danville in mid-August — and working for the Australian Baseball League since May in the communications and media department where he writes stories and sets up media guides/programs.
“I am currently working on setting up their online video content via YouTube and twitter and should have that up and running in the coming weeks. The website is www.theabl.com.au,” said Loughry, 25.
“I actually lucked out to get the job. My advisor (at school) mentioned it after the deadline had passed so I threw together a resume and sent it in. After one conversation with the ABL they told me to start the next week. I think the fact that I have a background in sports writing, and that I am American and understand the game helped out a lot. Some of their Aussie interns apparently have a hard time writing about a sport they know nothing about,” Loughry, a 2009 Western Kentucky graduate where he did a variety of sports-related jobs, said.
“This is only coming up on the second year of the league, so a lot of what I am doing is a first, which is nice to have my own personal stamp on the league. It’s just amazing to be around the sport you love. I get to watch baseball and write about the players, among other things. What could be better than that?
“The people I work with are great as well. There are a lot of Americans here because baseball is still pretty foreign to many Australians, so it’s nice to be around people from the United States who just love and respect the game as much as I do.”
There have been a few “testy” times during his stay when it comes to sports.
“I can’t remember how many times I’ve argued with an Aussie on why the NFL is a better sport than rugby. But it has been great to learn other sports like rugby and AFL (Aussie rules football). The fans are the same. They show the same spirit and loyalties but the sports are completely different,” Loughry said. “I’ve come to enjoy just about everything besides cricket. That just puts me to sleep. But they love American sports here as well. They are big basketball fans, especially the NBA so when I mention I am from Kentucky they usually know who the Wildcats are.
“I have actually met some great people from Kentucky, even some UK students which is really cool. It was great getting to meet them and just talk about UK basketball for a bit in passing.”
His favorite UK-related story deals with meeting a girl from Malaysia who was a huge Boston Celtics fan.
“It’s funny when you tell people here you are from Kentucky, you usually hear three things: bourbon, basketball, and KFC (Kentucky Fried Chicken). This girl, Grace, was immediately talking about basketball and how she loved the Celtics,” Loughry said. “More importantly, she couldn’t stop telling me how much she loved Rajon Rondo. She knew everything from his NBA stats to what he did when he was with UK, so we had a nice conversation about the relationship between the Celtics and UK all the way back to the (Rick) Pitino days.”
Loughry, despite the 14-hour time difference, has done his best to keep up with local sports during his time in Australia.
“I heard right away when Boyle won its last state championship and was proud that they are keeping the tradition alive,” he said. “I didn’t get to watch as many UK games as I wanted, but I did wake up a few times in the middle of the night to catch a few games.
“I remember when they beat North Carolina to go to the Final Four I was watching in the library and screamed pretty loud and got a couple of funny looks from some students. And one thing about Australia is that guys love to wear jean shorts still for whatever reason, so you can’t help but think of (Josh) Harrellson everywhere you look. He would fit in great here and wouldn’t even have to change his fashion.”
He says he misses his family and friends. However, there’s one thing he misses even more.
“The one thing I can’t wait for is some American restaurants. The food just isn’t the same here and I miss some things we might take for granted like free re-fills and ketchup on the table. Everything cost extra here, so you just learn to live without it,” Loughry said.
However, there have been experiences he’ll never forget.
“I got to go skydiving over the Pacific Ocean which was really cool. To be able to do that and stare at the Australian coast at the same time was pretty amazing,” Loughry said. “There are so many climates here and all within a short distance of each other. It’s crazy. To be in a rain forest one minute and a beach the next and an outback just up the road, it really is a whole new world over here.
“Seeing things that you hear about growing up and actually standing in front of it is a great experience. I’ve always heard of the Sydney Opera House and the Harbor Bridge, but to actually walk across of it and sit inside of it is great, something I’ll always be happy I got to experience.”
He’s hoping his degree and internship will lead to future employment when he returns to the United States.
“With this internship with the ABL I am hoping to make great contacts to work the same type of job with a professional sports league in the States,” Loughry said. “I do love this country and it is an amazing place, but there really is no place like home. But to be able to get the education that I am getting and gain some life experience at the same time, I would recommend it to anyone.”
How would a year in Australia, though, without friends, family and American restaurants compare in difficulty to the preseason football camps he went through at Jabez under former Boyle coach Chuck Smith?
“I don’t think I’ll ever experience anything in life harder than a coach Smith Jabez camp,” Loughry said. “I still have nightmares about those four-a-days. I guess it wasn’t all bad though I did get four nice (state championship) rings out of it.
“A year in Australia is unbelievable, but four years of championship football is even harder to come by.”
