Indeed, Sharan, who was ousted from his position as program director at 104.3 The Fan last November after Denver's onetime sports-radio leader experienced a precipitous ratings slide, is so upbeat and bubbly discussing his latest gig — afternoon-drive personality and promotions director at Colorado Springs-based Cat Country 95.1, where he bowed in early February — that he seems like an entirely new person. And that's appropriate, since he's changed his air name from Raj to Roger.
Did Sharan make this tweak because he feared C&W fans in one of the state's most conservative areas would be less welcoming to someone with an ethnic-sounding moniker? Not according to Sharan. "Publicly, I'd always see my name misspelled," he says. "I just thought it would be fun to go by 'Roger' on the show," which is called Ridin' Home With Roger. "And since people say 'Rog' is short for 'Roger,' it's not a huge deal either way."
Much more important to Sharan are the ways in which the Cat Country position makes his days more enjoyable. "Lifestyle-wise, it's a great fit for me," he notes. "I've lived in Colorado Springs for twelve years" — which meant he had a two-to-three-hour round-trip commute to Denver every day for the nearly eight years he worked in various positions at The Fan — "and my station now is right down the road from my house. I'm getting to spend a lot more time with my family and getting to know more people locally. So far, it's been great."
Maybe that's why he exhibits so little bitterness about his previous employment situation. Rather than channeling "Take This Job and Shove It," Johnny Paycheck's classic country rant about a lousy employer, Sharan offers only positive comments about The Fan. And even if his contract with the station contained a non-disparagement clause, as is standard in the radio industry, he sounds entirely sincere when he calls his stint "really special. I made a ton of great friends along the way and learned a bunch. It was a very positive experience."
Starting at The Fan
That was certainly true in January 2016, when Sharan joined the staff of The Fan. Within months of his arrival, he was named producer of The Drive, co-starring Darren "D-Mac" McKee and former CU Buffs and Denver Broncos standout Alfred Williams, which ranked first among men ages 25-54, its target demographic. In May, the program scored a 10.7 ratings share among such listeners — a then-record performance for which Sharan was rewarded that fall with a promotion to the station's executive producer. Just over two years later, in February 2019, he was bumped up again, this time to program director.Too bad another major development also took place that same month: Williams announced he was leaving The Fan in order to sign a mammoth contract with KOA, a heritage signal that is also the broadcasting partner for the Buffs and Broncos. And attempts to fill Big Al's enormous shoes as D-Mac's partner didn't go smoothly.
First up was Broncos center emeritus and Empower Field Ring of Famer Tom Nalen. But Nalen lasted only from his introduction in April 2019 until October of that year, when he decided to move back to his home state of Massachusetts. The Fan then tried to double its chances for success by signing up two more members of the Broncos fraternity to keep D-Mac company: Nick Ferguson and Tyler Polumbus. But management ultimately decided that the studio seemed too crowded, essentially cutting Ferguson but keeping Polumbus around.
The move appeared to be a wise one: Polumbus grew in his role, and his chemistry with McKee seemed built to last. But while the two maintained their popularity lead over Altitude and KOA in The Fan's main demo, they didn't have the sort of cultural impact that Williams and D-Mac achieved.
Against this backdrop, a new option arrived in the imposing form of Derek Wolfe, a hero to Broncos loyalists owing to his no-holds-barred success as a defensive lineman during a seven-year period that included Denver's triumph in Super Bowl 50. Suddenly, Polumbus was out (he was quickly snared by Altitude, where he was subsequently reunited with McKee) and Wolfe was in.
Wolfe, though, was a novice as a radio host — and there were early indications that he had other priorities beyond mastering the sports-talk art. His debut on the air was delayed for around three weeks, near the start of football season, to accommodate a hunting trip. And in an interview with Westword published in early November 2022, he peppered comments about his first forays on The Fan with enthusiastic hype about a completely different project: a hunting-centric YouTube channel called Wolfe Untamed that positioned him for the sort of fame achieved by rocker/Second Amendment zealot Ted Nugent.
Just nine months later, Wolfe and The Fan parted company even as Altitude Sports Radio, the flagship station of the Colorado Avalanche and Denver Nuggets, was gaining steam. By the summer of 2023, Altitude had surpassed The Fan in key ratings for the first time, and that September, the Fan's management reacted by going into full-scale bloodletting mode. Among those sacked were McKee and fellow personalities Nate Jackson, Orlando Franklin and Chad Brown, and The Drive was placed in the hands of midday host Zach Bye and former Bronco Phillip Lindsay, yet another radio amateur who needed to learn on the job — and the results were cringe-inducing.
After the Fan
Just two months later, Sharan was given the heave-ho amid a whispering campaign that cast the majority of the blame for The Fan's swoon on him. But he's far too happy at Cat Country to fire back at any of his critics."I like country music a lot," he enthuses. "I grew up in western Colorado, in Montrose, and my mom took me to Country Jam when I was a kid. So I'm really enjoying the music, and as the promotions director, I'm getting to help with contests, events, that kind of thing. It's been fun."
Adds Sharan: "I'm really enjoying the people I work with and everything else about the station. I hope I'm here for a really, really long time."
Roger that.
