This weeks feature article is on good friend Dan Hoskins. (I just wanted to blatantly plug one of my sponsors). He's not so much a sponsor but more of a guy that gave me a hat once (a really cool hat at that). He also buys me a burrito from time to time, which I appreciate. I first met Dan in High School. I was a football player which made me a rocker. Dan was a swimmer/waterpolo player which made him a fishhead. We liked to think that we had something on the swimmers as we got to play under the lights on Friday night. Hell, the cheerleaders were cheering for us. I never saw them on the pool deck, not once. But somehow, the swimmers got all the wool. Sure the quarterback would have some chick on his arm, but us linemen were left in the woods with nothing but stump--hear what I'm saying. Dan was an All American, or at least that's the way I tell it, in waterpolo and went on to swim at Cal. He led the Wolves to the NCS final but as is true to form for the Lobos, they lost when "Crossbar" Colin Sherrill forever became immortalized for cranking one off the crossbar on a penalty shot late in the game. Dan doesn't consider this his biggest disappointment however. That would come at Cal where he was unceremoniously thrown out of the weightroom by a walk on football player. Later, that walk on went on to star in soft porn movies and marry a Saudi Oil barons daughter, and that really gets Dan's dander up to this day. Dan endured second class citizenship when he became a member of the Cal Lightweight rowing squad. The heavies were the power back then, well at least until UCLA got their crap together, and treated the lights as if they were second class citizens. Through it all, Dan kept his upper lip stiff and it has made him the man he is today.

Upon graduation, Dan entered the food and beverage industry getting on board with Cola Uber Power--Pepsi (editors note: I love Diet Pepsi, but I quit as of Tuesday and after I'm done with this post I'm going back under my desk to shake uncontrollably). From there, Dan moved onto Odwalla and almost single handedly brought down the company twice. The first was when Dan inadvertently let some cow manuer into a batch of juice and ecoli ran rampant through the stores. The second was when the company warehousemen were trying to unionize. Dan is somewhat of an enigma, wrapped in a riddle, inside a fortune cookie. He'll tell you he's a repub, but votes dem. He'll tell you he doesn't like the union, but he's constantly trying to get it on with his wife.

Today, Dan is the COO of Sundia Watermelon Juice. If you like, he can go for hours talking about this fruit. And you know, I find it fascinating. The juice is pretty darn tasty. Among other celebs that drink the drink, Dan Vickery lead guitarist Counting Crows, Dennis Eckersley (and his wife). He is the proud father of three kids and is very engaged. He actually went and sat in on classes at various schools in his area to judge for himself the curiculum that was being taught. Recently 40 and an Orinda resident, Dan is extremely praiseful of his wife. He once proclaimed that his wife makes more money, is smarter, and is better looking than an other wife he has ever met. I'm sure we all feel that way, but Dan will tell total strangers on the morning BART train stuffed with commuters. He's on his way, to be sure.

It is my pleasure to introduce Dan to my growing list of readers. Watch for this rising star as Sundia Watermelon Juice makes its way up the ladder to greatness. It will have everything to do with my good friend.


Johnny GoFast