On the bus
By Myke Clark | April 20, 2005

Hi there. I'm CBC Reporter Myke Clark. I'll be filing a series of journals about the election campaign, specifically, what's happening 'on the bus'.

There's a campaign tradition of packing a gang of reporters onto a bus with the party leader. These journals will bring you behind the scenes: what's happening, who's saying what, and how the various campaigns try to get their message out. Enjoy!

April 20, 2005

08:50 – The day begins
The NDP campaign team is based at a downtown hotel, and reporters show up ready to hop on the bus that is idling outside. Reporters stand around, talking about what happened yesterday, what made the news, and what's on the schedule for today. The consensus: a pretty straightforward day yesterday, with the hope more substantive issues will be tackled today. Everyone jumps on board, and the orders are taken. Breakfast orders! Coffee and muffins are passed around to keep the media satisfied. Blueberry muffin for me.

11:00 – St. Mary's Hospital
In the midst of another routine campaign stop, something interesting happened. A former hospital employee was on site taking pictures of the place where he worked for more than a decade. One of the print reporters started interviewing him after the bus had already been loaded. Can't let that happen! So everyone gets off and joins the scrum. And it doesn't take long for NDP handlers to realize it's a good photo op. So Carole James gets off the bus for a 'greet and grip', all while the cameras roll. After yesterday's incident with the 'hamburglar' confronting James (he turned out to be the former head of the B.C. Young Liberals), reporters were curious to know if this guy was planted by the part. He assures us he wasn't. Turns out is was just a fortuitous example of how the St. Mary's hospital closure affects real people.

11:30 – About to take a lunch break in Surrey
I look out the window on King George Highway: there's a young man looking up at the bus from his Volkswagen Jetta, shaking his head with disdain.

12:30 – Lunch
Everyone is hustled into a hotel room at the Days Inn on King George Highway. Technical issues dominate for this reporter: trying to get internet access hooked up, which is key for filing timely stories. As for lunch, sandwiches were good. Had ham and cheese and some water. Gotta watch the calories... there's always food on these buses.

The Curtain
Being so early in the campaign, it's probably a good time to mention a bit about the actual bus setup. There's a curtain that separates Carole James from the media horde at the back of the bus. Up to now, the curtain has remained open and James is accessible to clarify comments she made at any given stop. Who knows if or when that may change as the campaign gets heated.

1:50 p.m. – Campaign stop in Coquitlam
A ten-minute whistlestop with a few dozen supporters. They presented James with a cake, spelled 'Carol' instead of 'Carole'. Media make a few jokes about how nobody seems to know who Carole James is.

2:30 p.m. – Chit chat
The day's events are wrapping up... time to file stories and figure out what's happening tomorrow. Another reporter and I are talking to a couple of NDP'ers about tomorrow's agenda. It's mentioned that we're heading to Kamloops. Who's the local candidate, we ask? Mike Hanson in Kamloops-North Thompson, and ...? hmmm, who is running in Kamloops proper? That one stumped the staffers. But hey, it is the leaders tour and they can't know everything. After a bit of research, it was discovered Doug Brown is running in Kamloops.

7:00 p.m. – Pub Night at the Golden Spike Pub
It was a tough struggle with the assignment desk over this one! Actually, we passed on the pub media availability – no doubt a great surprise to the politicos on the bus who often joke about the media's propensity to imbibe.