Scott Imlach
I moved back to Fallon in '87 and stayed with my sister for a year while trying to find a company willing to give a recent graduate a chance to prove himself. The closest I got was a second interview with a DOD contractor there in Fallon writing software to provide electronic combat to the pilots training at the Naval Air Station. To earn my keep, I again did warehouse work for a furniture store, Winan's, and bartended at the Bird Farm. After a year of this, I decided that if I was going to get a job in the computer industry I had better get a degree in Computer Science. I moved back 'home' and began attending the University of Alaska in Anchorage. In the spring of '89 an event occurred that would change many things forever, the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. This event not only impacted the ecosystem of Prince William Sound, but the economy of Alaska as well. I landed a job doing database work combining data collected in the field by scientists with the analytical results measured by the chemists in the laboratories. The result of this effort was a huge database that measured the overall impact of the oil spill and was used by Exxon in their litigation. It was from this job that I developed my skill with database and was asked to accompany the database to Houston, TX where the data could be studied more readily by the Exxon staff.
I was in Houston in '92 and had a planned scuba trip to Cozumel when I learned of the ten year reunion. Apologies for not making that one but the reservation had already been booked and Cozumel was great fun! With my continuously growing skills in database, I was able to land a job providing Database Administration to a major oil company here in Anchorage. This job was through the consulting firm with whom I am still employed, Resource Data, Inc.
I was able to learn much about the petroleum industry through my job at BP and was even able to see the Bering Sea on a trip to Prudhoe Bay! Through restructuring, RDI lost the contract to provide DBA services to BP and I began working more as a true consultant. My expertise allows me to work with clients with a wide range of needs. Clients have included a local internet startup that allowed me a chance to learn about the procurement industry, agencies managing the state fisheries, child welfare systems (the salt lake city trip), building permit systems for the municipality, watershed management, and most recently city finances as we make reporting available on the internet to City Hall. For a career I fell into, it's worked out pretty well.
It was almost paradise as I could wake up and flip a coin... golf or ski? In addition to these two past times, SLC is also home to a couple micro breweries. If it wasn't for the hot summers and the road construction underway for the 2002 Olympics, I would have been tempted to stay. But alas, I am still in Anchorage, Alaska where the recreation is a bit more seasonal.
I currently am coaching a Co-Ed softball team on which I am the pitcher. It's been a lot of fun but the team is comprised of co-workers. Being a computer consulting firm specializing in GIS and Database, we don't have many staff gifted with great athleticism so our goal is simply to have fun, and get to the beer that's waiting after the game :-)
About two years ago I began another passion, hockey. Turns out it's in the blood. My grandfather's 2nd cousin was Punch Imlach. Punch coached the Toronto Maple Leafs to three consecutive Stanley Cup Championships in 62, 63, and 64. In the winter time it seems if I am not playing hockey, I am watching it on TV. Go Red Wings!
With my computer background, it would seem silly not to have some computer oriented hobby. I did on-line gaming for a while and got pretty good at Quake II and Quake 3. I have hung up my blaster and grappling hook however and am now a novice web developer. My site is located here if you care to take a look **eyes rolling**. There are a couple pages that are secured as I host a few special things for my family that is not for public consumption.