More change is hitting Sactown Sports 1140. Ramie Makhlouf announced on Wednesday that he was leaving the station. His announcement comes just weeks after his former partner announced the very same thing.
“This will be my final show on Sactown Sports here in the city of Sacramento,” he said. “I’ll be following my buddy Nick Cattles out the door and headed back east, not as far east as he’s going. I’m headed back to Milwaukee, and I’ll just say that this has very little, if anything, to do with the job, the station, the city of Sacramento, nothing to do with the people I work with on a day-to-day basis.”
Makhlouf came to the station last year from 1250 The Fan in Milwaukee. He was partnered with Cattles in afternoon drive. His arrival coincided with KHTK rebranding to Sactown Sports.
His reasons for leaving echo Cattles’s. Makhlouf felt like there was too much he was missing in his family being so far away from home.
“I’ve never lived this far away from home and I’ve just never been this far away from all the people and the places that I love and grew up loving and got so used to. I didn’t know how I would handle it. And quite frankly, I haven’t handled it great.”
He mentioned missing birthdays and not being there as loved ones were in their final days as a motivator. He noted that after Cattles exited, his mind was made up.
Makhlouf shouted out Cattles in addition to Chris Verlad and Jay Johnson, who he said were the most experienced producing team he has ever worked with. He also tipped his hat to Simone Rickford, who he said has made an instant difference on the show.
“I can’t say enough about the way that I was treated here and like I said, especially by the people I work with on a day-to-day basis, and I’d love to keep working with them,” he said. “It’s just not in the cards. We’re headed back home to the Midwest and to Milwaukee. I’ll miss Sacramento, man, and I’ll miss working with these folks. I’ll keep rooting for the Kings. I said I’ll still have a soft spot in my heart for the Sacramento Kings wherever I go.”
He reiterated that this is a personal move, not a professional one. He emphasized that he has made some calls, but there is no radio job waiting for him in Milwaukee.
