RVTV continues to be all about people of small-town Iowa

RVTV started as a three-person excursion that took place outside of Cyclones Stadium in Ames back in 1995.

It has evolved into a mass television production and the street party of the year in small towns all across Central Iowa.

“There was no buzz or enthusiasm at that time,” WHO-TV 13 Sports Director Keith Murphy said about the start of RVTV. “Iowa fans knew they were going to win and Iowa State fans tried to be excited but knew what was coming.

“I came up with the idea because the Cyclones had started to win and the game became a bigger deal in the state. I decided to camp out at the stadium. It was called Cyclone Stadium at the time.”

Murphy worked for WOI Channel 5 in 1995. His first experience staying inside Cyclones Stadium was in an RV similar to what Cousin Eddie drove in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.

Murphy recalls parking the RV right by the field and being the only one of his three-person crew who actually stayed in the RV.

When Murphy made the switch to WHO-TV 13, they began rotating between stadiums in Ames and Iowa City.

There was even a point during the early stages of the week-long event where Murphy thought it was time to jump the shark.

“We were repeating the same stories and I felt like it was the same attempt at humor,” Murphy said. “The station knew it was a pretty good brand. So they asked us to keep doing it. That’s when I thought of having the tour on the way to the game. That kind of rejuvenated it.”

The RVTV brand has expanded into a week-long journey that takes the WHO-TV 13 “Soundoff” crew into small towns across Central Iowa who are excited to host the year’s best street party.

This year, the team chose four new sites, including a pair of Jasper County towns. They drove into Baxter on Thursday and ended their week Friday in Newton. According to Murphy, it was the crew’s first time in both places. RVTV did make a stop at Iowa Speedway several years ago though.

“I go all the way back to the beginning. I think that was 2001,” WHO-TV 13 news anchor Andy Fales said. “It’s about making new connections in the towns. I end up getting feature story ideas that I can come back to. I meet a bunch of people who I never would have met otherwise. We are here for one purpose, and we just meet so many people.”

Murphy said choosing the route each year is a team effort, but WHO-TV 13 sports reporter John Sears is largely involved in the process. Sears said around 50 towns apply for consideration each year. But only about 20 of those are real options.

Amanda Moorman, the Baxter Chamber of Commerce Treasurer, said a restaurant in town called Benolas asked her team to apply for consideration.

The town of Baxter currently has 970 citizens, making it the second-smallest town to ever be featured for RVTV.

“It’s incredible. We are a really small community,” Moorman said. “It’s been really cool to see this all come together. There were people out here at 9:30 in the morning getting things set up.”

Baxter’s street party officially started at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday. Main Street was packed before the 4 p.m. newscast that featured Murphy’s interview with Baxter head football coach Rob Luther.

The RVTV crew also made its way out to the football stadium for a promo video that might have been used to motivate other football teams across Iowa on Friday night.

Fans in Baxter donned Hawkeye black and gold, Cyclone red and gold or Bolts purple to support their favorite team.

There was a pep rally for the 5 p.m. newscast and the party continued through the 10 p.m. newscast.

“It’s a great way to bring small towns together,” Baxter Mayor Doug Bishop said. “I want to give a big shoutout to all of the volunteers that made this happen.

“We just had our (annual Baxter) Fun Days in July. Then to turnaround to get this event done, they really stepped up. As you can see by the people around, lots of folks showed up. We are excited and having a great time. It’s a great event for the City of Baxter.”

The regular RVTV team these days goes about eight deep. And they all have a very specific set of roles.

Murphy, Fales and WHO-TV 13 Chief Meteorologist Ed Wilson handle most of the on-air spots for the 4 p.m., 5 p.m., 6 p.m. and 10 p.m. newscasts.

Sears and WHO-TV 13 sports reporter Mark Freund help with the live shots and get video throughout the day and then edit the videos at the end of the night for a montage that concludes the visit at each town.

Scott Siepker, also known as the Iowa Nice Guy, sees himself as the utility guy.

“All I do is the weather. But I do interview people and put them on live TV,” said Wilson, who joined the RVTV team 10 years ago. “I’m the diversion who takes pressure off the other guys so they can step away to edit or get things done for their newscasts. I’m the dog and pony show really.”

This year’s RVTV was Freund’s fifth. He said the toughest part for him are the two weeks before when he’s working on the feature story in each town that airs during their RVTV night.

Freund’s stories close to our hearts in Jasper County were about Baxter’s record-setting quarterback Braydon Aker and the Newton-Colfax-Mingo-Pella girls swim team.

“My stories are done before we even get started,” Freund said. “That allows me to be a floater and help with whatever is needed during the week.

“Connecting with all the people is the best part. They are all really nice to us and so warm and welcoming.”

A typical day on RVTV starts at 9 a.m. when the crew exits one town and heads to another. Most nights end no earlier than midnight. Even though the smart decision is always to go to bed and get a good night’s sleep.

“There’s usually a pub on the town square to hang out at at the end of the night,” Murphy said. “I don’t always enjoy the next morning, but the best part is staying up late with the guys and folks from the town and reminiscing about the day and how great things went.

“The most difficult part is just getting worn out. It’s not physical labor. But yesterday we left at 9 a.m. and worked until 11 p.m. It’s mostly rewarding and we appreciate the photos and meeting people, but by the end of the week, you do get worn out from it. These are first-world problems though.”

The RVTV crew had a short 15-mile drive from Baxter to Newton on Friday morning.

Their time in Newton started with a visit to Berg Middle School at around noon.

Murphy and Fales then went to Murph and Mary’s Pub for their highly-popular Murph & Andy podcast.

The street party began at the town square at 3:30 p.m. There was a pep rally for Newton’s football game against Dallas Center-Grimes at 4 p.m.

The Cardinals’ first home game of 2024 was part of the reason Newton’s street party ended at 8 p.m.

“I think it’s great to showcase Newton. It’s awesome to have RVTV here,” said Erin Yeager, who is the Executive Director of Newton Main Street. “Newton’s a great town and it’s fun to be the last stop before Iowa City.

“The four-hour night is like any other night we do. It’s an easier set up. It’s basically a tailgate party before the first home football game. And we get to showcase Newton in the process.”

Newton Mayor Evelyn George loved the fact that Newton ended RVTV’s week. The community gets a chance to showcase its downtown and talk about all the town has to offer.

“Newton is very excited that we were selected. Especially on Football Friday Night,” George said. “Newton has a long, storied history with high school football and we get to kick the event off with a pep rally before the first home game.”

The distance between Baxter and Newton has to be one of the shortest drives from one town to the next in RVTV history.

Murphy can’t recall what the shortest trip is, but there have been a few others that may have been shorter.

“We’ve probably had a similar route where two towns are so close together, but it’s not common,” Murphy said. “The main thing we are trying to do with this event these days is finding new towns that are interested in doing it.”

Murphy said he slept in the camper for the first 15 years of RVTV, but the group no longer stays in it during the week. They rely on hotels in the towns they are in or someone in the community lets them stay at their house, like was the case in Baxter.

The RVTV crew returned to their homes during the overnight in Mitchellville because there were no hotels there to stay in.

Staying in the RV was a point of pride for Murphy during the early stages of RVTV, but it’s not the best decision for adult men in their 40s and 50s to stay in a camper for an entire week.

“They stopped staying in the RV about 10 years ago. Reality is, guys in their 40s and 50s staying in an RV for five or six days in a week is not healthy and not good for your body,” said Sears, who finished up his 12th year on RVTV this week. “It also got to the point where the school band or someone with a loud car would show up at 6 a.m. outside the RV. They think it’s funny. But it became not fun.”

Wilson was asked to do RVTV when Fales moved to the morning newscast at WHO-TV 13. Fales said he spent two years on RVTV when he went to mornings but often had to go to bed after the 6 p.m. newscast.

He even recalls sleeping on the closet floor of the RV one year because he couldn’t get his body out of that brutal schedule.

Fales’ work schedule has since changed, which allowed him to return to the event and they got to keep Wilson, too.

“Andy couldn’t be out here and that kind of kills it because Murph and Andy go together,” Wilson said. “Now we are all on here and it works out even better.

“The best part to me is meeting people you wouldn’t meet otherwise. And we are not here for a bank robbery, or a fire or severe weather. It’s for something positive. You meet some great people. It’s the best thing we do every year.”

Siepker finished his ninth year of RVTV. He said his duties for the week involve coming up with an idea, editing or shooting video, being on camera or simply just carrying stuff around.

“The best part about the week is just hanging out,” Siepker said. “It’s stressful. And we bicker sometimes, but there’s a real brotherhood. We laughed so hard the other day editing some stuff that our bellies hurt. That’s what this week is all about.”

The consensus from the RVTV crew is that the week is hard. But also very rewarding.

Freund is most proud of being able to put out a good TV product despite being pulled in many different directions and staying up way past their bedtimes.

“The quality could drop off simply because we are running around with our hair on fire,” Freund said. “But for the most part, the product still looks great. That’s a point of pride for all of us.”

Sears has spent more than a decade on TV. But is still surprised to see so much support from people who know him only from watching him on the news every night.

But he also stresses to the towns during the selection process that it’s about them.

“We want the communities to build the day around their town and the people and don’t focus on us,” Sears said. “We want them to plan a big party that we happen to show up for. We want it to be about the town. And not about us.

“We can promote this, and market it but it’s all about the towns. We don’t tell anyone what to do. We give them ideas, but they take it and run with it.”