You quite often hear of family connections in sport.
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Fathers and sons, mothers and daughters playing in the same teams.
Back in the ’80s the Canterbury Bulldogs Rugby League Club was referred to as the family club, featuring the Mortimer and Hughes brothers.
But that trend is now moving into local radio circles, with Triple U FM boasting no less than four family teams hosting shows.
Station president John Comber, known as Coco has been on air with his daughter Haylee for two years, father and son Peter and Bailey Skewes, father and daughter Chance and Bec Hanlon and Milton duo Martin and Maxine Booker are all regular presenters.
“I don’t know what it is but it’s pretty cool to have all these family teams on air together,” Mr Comber said.
Haylee and Coco produce a drive show on Wednesday afternoons from 5pm to 7pm called In The Land OZ; two hours of Australian music.
Peter and 17-year-old Bailey started at Bay and Basin FM Radio before moving to Triple U.
Having started at age nine, Bailey could now be considered a radio veteran. They produce a Friday Drive Show from 5pm-7pm of rock classics in a contemporary and retro mix. They have taken that family mix even further with his two younger brothers Blake and Noah also appearing on the show.
Chance and Bec Hanlon are part of the popular Shoalhaven CBF Show on Thursday mornings.
Earlier this year Chance joined Barry Mac on the Shoalhaven F&B Show filling in for Graham French who was off on one of his highly documented travelling adventures [train spotting].
Since Frenchie returned, Chance has remained as part of the extended team which is now broadcast from the Hanlon Studios in Bomaderry.
Bec has also joined the team filling in on various occasions and has proved to be right at home behind the mike.
Martin and Maxine are a new father and daughter combination from the Milton-Ulladulla area.
They have a alternative, punk show on a Wednesday night from 9pm-11pm.
“It’s just great to see all these family connections within the station,” Mr Comber said.
“I haven’t heard any other stations having that many family connections.”
After forging a career in commercial radio in Sydney and then with 2ST for 15 years, Mr Comber stepped away from the mike but returned in 2015 to help out a young neighbour, who liked music.
“We started an one hour show each Friday but when she left school and got into the workforce it was just me,” he said.
“Haylee is like me, she is a music tragic and she stepped in. It’s been fantastic that we can both enjoy our passion for music together.
“We both look forward to our slot each week and put a lot of preparation and research into it.”
Their tastes may vary, Haylee a devoted Jimmy Barnes/Cold Chisel fan, and yes she did meet him again during his recent Nowra visit, in fact along with John interviewed the Working Class Man for their show.
John is well-known as a music historian, likes all genre of Australian music - pop, rock and country and all eras, but admits the Beatles is his favourite group.
And there has been yet another family connection - Aiden and Angus who produce a Tuesday afternoon show, on a few occasions Angus has been away and Aiden’s father Greg has filled the void.
Triple U FM Community Radio was launched in the 1980s and according to Mr Comber is becoming more and more popular as listeners look for an alternative to other stations.
“We offer such a diverse range of programs,” he said.
“It’s also a chance for people to get a taste of radio and offers the opportunity for them to see if it’s a career for them.
“While we have a full program of shows at the moment we are always interested to hear from people interested in being presenters.
“We are all volunteers. We have all ages, young and old.”