Survey of the week

This week we head north of the “dotted line” to Vancouver’s 1410 C-FUN, that city’s second contender in the top40 wars for teen listeners.  From 1960-67, the station played the charted hits & offered some of the best talent on the west coast led by Vancouver radio legend Red Robinson.  C-FUN’s big disadvantage was their puny 1,000 watt signal that had a hard time reaching around all those corners & up/down hills in the city & Fraser Valley.  Within 2 years of it’s launch, the rock underdog would unseat Vancouver’s first top40 – 1130 CKWX (with it’s mighty 50,000 watt clear channel signal) as the reigning champ.  However, C-FUN met it’s match when 730 CKLG switched to top40 in Aug. ’64.  ‘LG had a much bigger signal (10 kW) & a crack team of DJs, plenty of remotes & live promotions.  Within 3 years, C-FUN would call it quits, switch format to MOR & concede to “73CKLG”.  After a call letter change & a few failed format tries, C-FUN would once again regain the call letters & relaunch as a top40 in 1973.  Now with 50,000 watts, the station had a long run of success until changes in listener habits &  the competitive Vancouver market would force C-FUN to finally give up in 2007.

Mike Cherry

retired broadcaster: on-air, MD, PD, asst PD, Prod Mgr, IT, station technician/engineer, pioneer Internet webcaster, station installation/maintenance; 12 years in commercial radio, 17 years volunteer in campus/community radio in B.C., Alberta & Wash. Amateur radio operator & “DXer” specializing in AM night-time DX, short-wave DX/listening & remote SDR DXing/listening