NorthEast Radio Watch "On the Road": Rochester to Sudbury

[Scott Fybush <fybush>]

*Hello from the Great White North -- well, Sudbury, Ontario, anyway.
This is the first in a series of "On the Road" updates you'll be
receiving as your NERW editors make our way across Ontario, into
Michigan, and back home.

This year's NERW trip began (for co-editor Garrett Wollman) in Boston
on Monday, and kicked into high gear as we left Rochester Tuesday
morning.  We listened to the new "Dancin' Oldies B92.9" as we drove
through Buffalo, then sped across the border, up through the Toronto
suburbs (passing the former CBL and still CJBC site in Hornby as we
went), where we came across a format change.  CKDX (88.5 Newmarket)
was trying to do dance-CHR for the northern end of the Toronto market,
but the competition became too fierce, especially when CISS (92.5
Toronto) went CHR (with, briefly, the same "Power" nickname CKDX
used).  As of Monday, CKDX has become "Cat Country," with the format
CISS used to use before its own flip.

With CKDX still coming in as we drove north on Highway 400, we came to
Barrie, which looks much as it did the last time we were there, a year and
a half ago -- with perhaps a bit more yellow paint on the front of the
CKVR (Channel 3) building and the demolition of long-defunct CKBB
(950) the only items of note.

On we went to Orillia, and after getting lost for an hour or so, we
regained our bearings, found the studios of "EZ Rock 105.9" (CICX) in
an industrial park, then found the transmitter for CICX and the CBC's
CBCO (91.5) south of town.  There was no remaining sign of CICX's
predecessor, CFOR (1570).