TONY DODERO -- Editor’s Notebook

A funny thing happens in a newsroom around election time. Politicians who

have a hard time returning calls, suddenly become instantaneously

accessible.

Press statements, chronicling the latest achievements of elected

officials, many of whom we’ve never heard of, blast across our fax

machine at warp speed.

I’m sure your mailbox is looking the same way as our fax machines.

If they only had this much attentiveness to their constituents during the

rest of the year, they could improve their images.

Still, don’t let the insincerity of our elected officials give you a

jaded view of politics.

Instead, get out and vote on Tuesday, and change things.

*

Speaking of elections, if Measure F, the initiative that would in essence

block a planned airport at the closed El Toro Marine base, is passed on

Tuesday night, there will be many pundits trying to predict the reasons.

South County had a bigger money war chest. South County had the

emotional, quality of life issue. South County was more organized.

While all that may be true, if Measure F passes there is one reason that

I would point to.

South County had better TV commercials.

First off, I don’t watch much TV. If it’s not ESPN or CNN or Fox Sports,

then I pretty much don’t tune in.

Well, OK, I do watch “Who Wants to be a Millionaire,” when I can, but who

doesn’t.

But as little as I watch TV, for the past two months, nary a week went by

that I didn’t see several anti-El Toro airport commercials.

Through those commercials, the message was hammered in week after week:

The noise at El Toro will be unbearable and the runway unsafe.

And anti-Measure F forces never seemed to counter the television spots,

that were albeit underhanded in some cases, of the pro-F forces.

But who knows. Maybe a miracle will happen and Measure F will go down to

defeat and we can point out how much money they wasted on those

commercials.

*

A nice respite from the election circus came with the Toshiba Senior

Classic last week. We had Arnold Palmer, the King of the links and Gary

McCord, the Clown Prince.

It was a lot of fun to watch.

Too bad Mother Nature didn’t go along with the game as rainstorms

pummeled the Newport area for Saturday’s and Sunday’s tourney.

*

My aforementioned TV habits aside, I may make it a point to tune into the

E channel this week.

Locals who also tune in may recognize the setting of one segment in the

“Weekend Getaway” program.

The program will feature Newport resident Dan Moy and Kristiane M.

Ridgway, a reporter for the Daily Pilot’s sister publication, Our Times,

in Irvine.

Moy runs Conquer Adventures, which offers a weekend clinic in adventure

racing. This is designed for people who dabble in exercise.

Racing participants, one of whom is Ridgway, begin their adventure in the

Back Bay and then bike, hike, ride kayaks and outrigger canoes and climb

ropes along the terrain of Newport, Crystal Cove and Laguna Beach.

Check out the show on Tuesday at 7 a.m. or the same time on March 16.

For more information about Conquer Adventures check out their Web site at

www.conqueradventures.com .

* TONY DODERO is the editor of the Daily Pilot. He can be reached at

949-574-4258 or via e-mail at tony.dodero@latimes.com .