One of the many pleasures of my job as a sports writer is meeting a select few people that make a positive impact on people's life outside of a basketball court, football field or baseball and softball diamonds, etc.. Former Bloomfield boys basketball and cross country head coach, Ron McBride fits this billing to a tee.

McBride is now the athletic director for the Cardinals -- which not letting him continue his coaching duties is not a smart move in my opinion -- but his love for the sports teams he once guided is still just as passionate as before.

Last week during the Greene County boys and girls cross country invitational, it was hard to determine if McBride was still guiding the Cardinals or just a vocal fan of the sport. He could be spotted on the side of the course giving encouraging words to his former runners as they passed by and rooting them on. It was during this time that while conversing with McBride -- when there were a break from athletes passing by -- that reassured me that he is more than just someone that shares a common passion about sports. He also cares just as much, if not more, about peoples lives -- and just not his former athlete's lives.

Over the past year or so, every time I have spoken with McBride, whether it be in person -- such as last week -- or on the phone, he always makes a point to go out of his way and ask how things are going with myself. This time last year, I was in the process of moving my then girlfriend (now ex) down here with me and trying to find her a job. McBride offered his help in this process as he went out of his way to set her up with a couple job interviews and so on. Even after the break-up he would continue to ask how things were going with me outside of work and so forth.

Never once did I call on McBride for advice or help as I have come to realize this is in his natural being to offer his assistance in any way possible. When interviewing him after he became athletic director, McBride made clear that he was an educator first and everything else is on the back burner.

"I am an educator first and foremost," McBride said the school board made it official of him becoming the new athletic director two months ago. "Winning and losing games was just one aspect of my job, it was really just a smaller part of my duties."

Another example of McBride's care and concern for people also came last week at the cross country meet. Before the start of the meet, McBride was mingling around with a couple other athletic directors and some coaches and a former student/athlete caught his attention. He immediately dropped conversation practically in mid-sentence and wanted to know how his former pupil was doing after the first week of college.

My first encounter with McBride was not a pleasant one however, but still memorable. I was covering McBride's Cardinals for the first time here and they were on the road at White River Valley. The host Wolverines handed the Cardinals their first defeat in Southwestern Indiana Athletic Conference play that night by a score of 46-37. The Wolverines made more free-throws (27) that night than the Cardinals attempted (22).

McBride bolted out of the locker room after a brief meeting with his team after the game. It was obvious he was not happy with the officiating or the Cards performance, as his first words were "I don't have much to say".

Being the young and not so experienced sports writer that I was, I let my charming personality -- please hold back the laughs -- take over the interview. A couple questions later and I had managed to get the animated coach to cool down and 20 minutes later the interview was complete.

My next meeting with McBride during post-game interviews I experienced the same guy that I have come to know over the last couple years. After every home game, McBride would invite me into the locker room and would always offer something to drink out of the cooler and made sure I felt right at home, no matter if they happened to win or lose.

He has never been a person shy to voice his opinion -- which is one reason why maybe I have come to respect him so much -- and may not always be the most likable person during competition. But for now with his coaching days put on hold, one thing is for certain -- Ron McBride is more than just a coach that cares about the number of wins and championships.

It's been a great pleasure to have the experience to see the competitor and the friend that McBride has become to this sports writer. I am sure that there are more great things to come his way.

Travis David is a sports writer for the Greene County Daily World and can be reached at 812-847-4487 ext. 20 or by e-mail at tdavid@gcdailyworld.com.