02-23-26 - BBTL - Break 3 - Travel Warning Issued For Mexico - Stories Of Our Time In Guadalupe

Summary

Holmberg's Morning Sickness – Arizona

Episode: 02-23-26 - BBTL - Break 3 - Travel Warning Issued For Mexico - Stories Of Our Time In Guadalupe

Date: February 23, 2026
Host & Crew: Brady Bogen, Bret Vesely, Dick Toledo, et al.

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Episode Overview

This segment from Arizona’s #1 Morning Radio Show dives into the recent U.S. government travel warning for Mexico, specifically addressing concerns for Arizonans who frequent popular border destinations like Rocky Point. Prompted by escalating cartel violence, the hosts discuss official shelter-in-place notices, swap stories from their own travels and misadventures in Guadalupe near the old KUPD offices, and reminisce about wild times in their early radio days. The mood is classic HMS: irreverent, candid, and full of the insider banter fans love.

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Key Discussion Points and Insights

1. U.S. Travel Warning for Mexico

• [04:27] The team reports on the American advisory to “shelter in place” for those already in Mexico due to cartel violence erupting across the country, including spots like Jalisco, Guadalajara, Puerto Vallarta, Cancun, and Tulum.

  • Quote:
    • E: “The government said if you’re an American in Mexico currently, either on vacation or if you’re spending time there, shelter in place. Because traveling as an American right now is risky, because, like Brett said, they’re burning the whole thing down.” [04:39]
  • The hosts mention local listeners possibly being affected and joke about how their RV circle, known for trips to Mexico, is currently avoiding travel south.

• Economic & Social Impact:

  • [05:21] C: “All this destruction’s going on because…that is, you know, a big part of the economy. It’s hurting their own people more than anything.”

  • The group reflects that cartels seem cognizant about keeping violence from resort towns, but it's not guaranteed.

2. Guadalupe and Old KUPD Days: Unfiltered Memories

• Guadalupe’s Grit:

  • Stories flow about the old KUPD building in Guadalupe, including celebratory gunfire on holidays, bullet holes in their trailer, and the general sketchiness of the area.
  • [06:31] D: “I remember on a New Year’s Eve once, I was leaving Guadalupe, driving out. Who’s out there in the middle of the road? Bunch of folks shooting guns in the air.”
  • [06:51] E: “They used to count the holes in the trailer from being shot at from the locals there. Like every day they did a count…The whole side of it was riddled with bullet holes.”

• Wacky Workplace Antics:

  • The crew shares how they killed time in the rough environment:
    • Throwing oranges at the Insight building’s billboard ([07:21]).
    • Riding motorcycles, setting up “slalom” courses with styrofoam cups in the parking lot ([09:12]).
    • Hiding meth-heads caught by police in ditches by the lot ([07:44-08:14]).
    • Listeners occasionally crashing cars through the fence; abandoned vehicles became targets or local legend ([11:24-12:14]).

• Nostalgia & Attachment:

  • Despite its roughness, there’s a real fondness for those days:
    • D: “What a. It was a dump. But it was our dump, G. It was hard. It was our dump.” [11:13]
    • Memorable stunts: Monster truck events, food trucks almost run over, and “white trash picnics” all mentioned with glee ([09:45-10:34]).

3. Fun with Yiddish: Throwback to Studio Gags

• [13:07] A: “Replace one Jew for another. Well, we couldn’t even tell the difference.”
  • Refers to tongue-in-cheek jokes about swapping show hosts and recurring Yiddish word bits.
• The crew recalls their Yiddish word of the day tradition, landing on “maven,” meaning someone very skilled, and, for today: “balabusta” (homemaker) ([13:35-14:20]).
  • D: “She’s one Balabusta Busta. Yeah.” [14:30]

4. Listener Requests & Show Rituals

• Requests pile in for “Best of Guadalupe Squares”—a beloved game-show parody segment ([14:38-15:06]). Special mention of classic requests (the “Diet Pepsi” bit).

5. Classic Rock Radio Culture & Celebrity Encounters

• Reminiscing about hosting rock stars and off-the-wall guests in their unconventional studio environment, including Peter Steele of Type O Negative (noting his intimidating presence and famed Playgirl spread) and some awkward interviews ([15:13-17:03]).
  • D: “We pulled out the Playgirl and we started flipping through it and talking to him. Hey, did you see this? Did you see the Peter Steele? Look at that crank. Oh, man, that is…big and purple.” [16:34]

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Notable Quotes & Moments

• On the old office vibe:
  • D: “It was our own little frat house. And we ran it. Well.” [08:56]
• On cartel violence:
  • C: “All this destruction’s going on because that…is a big part of the economy. It’s hurting their own people more than anything.” [05:21]
• On RVers in Mexico:
  • A: “That s-hole to the ground, man.” [04:58]
• On wild stunts:
  • E: “With his flying truck. Yeah. And miked me up and I sat shotgun with him…He hits out two wheels. I just remember I’m screaming and he looks over at me one handed…‘Pretty cool, isn’t it?’ As on two wheels going about 60 miles per hour.” [09:53-10:14]
• On nostalgia:
  • D: “What a. It was a dump. But it was our dump, G. It was hard. It was our dump.” [11:13]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

• [04:27] Travel warning for Mexico, “shelter in place” order
• [06:31] Wild stories of Guadalupe: gunfire on holidays
• [07:51] Old KUPD trailer: bullet holes and meth head encounters
• [09:45] Parking lot shenanigans: monster trucks and motorcycles
• [11:13] Reflection: “It was a dump, but it was our dump”
• [13:07] Yiddish word of the day / show host jokes
• [14:38] Guadalupe Squares listener requests
• [15:13-16:34] Interview stories: Peter Steele, rock star guests

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Overall Tone & Style

The discussion is casual, irreverent, and packed with in-jokes; the hosts’ familiarity and Arizona pride shine through. Listeners get a blend of real-world warnings, riotous station lore, and a taste of the distinctly raucous, blue-collar energy that sets HMS apart in morning radio.

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Summary

This episode segment exemplifies HMS at its best—important local news (travel safety), wild workplace history, signature humor, and fan engagement, all delivered in the group’s unique, unfiltered style. If you’ve ever wondered what it was like “back in the day” at Arizona’s rock radio HQ—or if you miss that classic blend of bold jokes and brotherhood—this is a can’t-miss break.

Transcript

[A]

You're listening to the HMS podcast brought to you by MMP Guns.com, your most trusted online marketplace for firearms, ammunition and accessories. Hey, it's Brett Vesely and I'm here with Byron from MMP Guns. Look, Byron, I have a friend wanting to sell some guns he inherited. What's the best way for him to do that?

[B]

Brett, the last thing you want to do is sell the gun to someone who can't legally own one. Tell him not to put himself at risk and come into M and P Guns where he'll get a fair offer and he can rest easy knowing it's not getting into the wrong hands.

[A]

Okay, but what if he lives out of state?

[B]

Easy. Legalgunbuyer.com and he can do it online. It really that simple?

[A]

There you have it. MMP Guns or legalgunbuyer.com the safe and legal way to sell your firearms.

[C]

It's Brady for Game Day Men's Health. The Valley's largest men's health clinic with 12 locations. You should schedule a complimentary appointment today. Go to gamedaymen's health.com Every location has a cool man cave environment. You'll sit down with a board certified medical director and figure out what treatments that can help you. They have an on site lab and you will know what your testosterone level is during your first meeting. Do what thousands of Phoenix area men are doing by going to Game Day Men's Health and schedule your complimentary appointment. You gotta get back in the game with Game Day Men's Health.

[D]

You thought that was funny? You were laughing like a hyena when he said it. What the hell is wrong with you? 98 KUPD. It's Arizona's real rock with you Fest. Psych and rock from Godsmack. They're playing you Fest 2026. It is September 12th over at the Talking Stick Resort Amphitheater. And you got Dorothy and Stone Temple Pilots playing this year. Those tickets are available now online at 98kupd.com should be a lot of fun. And of course they'll do some Brady songs there too, I'm sure.

[C]

And there might be another band added to it.

[D]

Might be another band here. Added to it here. Soon enough. Waiting for the word. Waiting for the thumbs up.

[E]

Speaking of thumbs up, this one that you're bringing to town. It's a band. Yes. Okay.

[D]

Well, yeah, I mean we'll.

[E]

We'll.

[D]

We'll see. We'll see. But speaking of bands and some big stuff going on, I can't tell you the all the details but you Know we just did that Nine Inch Nails Sweet that feeds contest. That show is right around the corner. March 6th. We're gonna be doing another promo code contest coming up here soon enough.

[E]

This is the one that no one will tell us.

[D]

Yeah. And really, I hope I'm not here to announce it. I hope it's Holmberg because he should be the guy to be bringing all this on. And that's going to be first thing Wednesday morning. So hoping that John comes back for that. John Holmberg, if you did not know, is out. He had this retina surgery and milking it. He's milking it. I, you know, again, I think I said this the other day. I have this feeling that he does these things specifically. So when he comes back, everybody goes, oh, thank God you're back. Thank God. It was so bad. It was so bad while you were gone. So bad. Thank God you're back. We love you, John.

[E]

He's not gonna buy that for a second.

[D]

No, no. You know, and honestly, John, you know, all these years, like, how many surgeries has he had? We've seen hip surgeries, we've seen shoulder

[E]

surgeries, both hips, both shoulders back back surgery.

[D]

And he pushes it every single time. Lobotomy pushes it. Lobotomy that he had his eyes, you

[E]

know, I mean the surgery with Schwartz to correct his vision, get rid of glasses.

[D]

Right. Which by the way, his eyes are fine from that.

[E]

Right.

[D]

Tired of hearing about that scenario. You should stop playing those Schwartz laser eye center commercials. John's at home with bad eye from that.

[A]

And we've had enough face down, ass up comments. But my, but you're not original.

[D]

My point is I'm going to take

[C]

advantage of it either.

[D]

My point is John has pushed it for all of those surgeries and all of those surgeries he's come in when he's not supposed to. He's always come back early. And this time he was like, I just can't. I can't. I can't risk it. And I don't blame him. And I absolutely don't blame him.

[E]

Well, to his credit, this is one where he finally went. This is something that's.

[D]

That's what I'm saying.

[E]

The most serious.

[D]

Yeah. You know, so good for him for staying home and saying, I can't do it. Just don't put Larry on the air, whatever you do. So here we are.

[C]

Mark my words.

[E]

Hurry back, Homeberg.

[D]

It's Brady's Morning cup and what's going on in the world? The hell is going on?

[E]

Well, all of Our people in Phoenix that love going to Rocky Point, you're gonna have to put that on hold for a while. And if you're there, thanks, El Hencher. You might be stuck there. So you're here, shelter in place, but

[D]

you're hearing actually from some KUPD listeners.

[E]

Well, the government said if you're an American in Mexico currently, either on vacation or if you're spending time there, shelter in place. Because traveling as an American right now is risky, because, like Brett said, they're burning the whole thing down.

[A]

Oh, yeah, they're burning that s. Hole to the ground, man.

[D]

I thought maybe you heard from some of your RV friends.

[E]

I haven't heard from any that. That are there. Every. All of our RV friends that go there are here currently, and then our old neighbors who used to go down there and rent a house. They haven't gone in a while, but we were all trying to plan when

[A]

we were going to go down there.

[E]

It's been put on hold.

[D]

All of it's on hold.

[C]

It's interesting that they. That all this destruction's going on because that. That is, you know, a big part of the economy. It's hurting their own people more than anything.

[D]

Sure.

[A]

Hence, why don't go there.

[E]

That's never concerned. The cartels hurting their own people.

[C]

Well, they're pretty. They seem like they're pretty cognizant about protecting the resort towns, like staying away

[E]

from them a little bit.

[D]

Yeah. So what is this you're pulling up here?

[E]

Just the. The article that I was going to put this out on our. On our page. Told the shelter in place as cartel violence erupts all over the country because they're down in Jalisco. Is that where they got the guy?

[A]

I believe so, yeah. Or was it Guadalajara?

[E]

Guadalajara, that. Was it.

[D]

Guadalupe.

[A]

Huh.

[E]

Warned of tourists, of violence in Puerto Vallarta, Cancun, Tulum, and elsewhere.

[C]

Do you think if we're still in the old office, we'd be shelter in place there?

[A]

Perhaps it's about the same. Perhaps about the same.

[D]

Some people don't know. I. It did get a little funky around there. Oh, yeah. Every once in a while, I used to work the night shift.

[C]

Yeah.

[A]

Long, long ago.

[D]

And I remember on a New Year's Eve once, I was leaving Guadalupe, driving out. Who's out there in the middle of the road? Bunch of folks shooting guns in the air.

[A]

Well, they would shoot at the AM towers in that field.

[D]

Not even just shooting at the. Just shooting straight up.

[A]

Oh, I know, but they would shoot at those towers. Too, those boats.

[C]

Celebratory shots most of the time.

[E]

Yeah, supposedly. So I worked with the guy that I went to Little Rock with and to Toledo with. Started at KUPD when it was in a trailer where the baseball field is now in Guadalupe. And he said that they used to count the holes in the trailer from being shot at from the locals there. Like every day they did a count just to make sure that if there was any more that had happened, the whole side of it was riddled with bullet holes.

[B]

Wow.

[D]

We used to throw oranges over at the billboard.

[E]

Insight Building.

[D]

At the Insight building.

[E]

And John would knock.

[C]

It was a perfect cup. You had to throw it in that little. Yeah, yeah.

[E]

And then throw down the rain gutter.

[D]

The rain gutter on the side of the building. Holmberg was great at that. I never got one.

[C]

Brett, did you? I mean, you had a guy, basically, mcso would stop by once a night on overnight.

[A]

Oh, yeah, yeah. Oh, yeah. He hang out with me. I'm like, no, it's a lot safer with you here. I'm good. You know.

[E]

Is he the one that caught the meth heads on the couch out in the. Out in the a.m. i think so.

[A]

I think so. In that little ditch.

[E]

Did you ever. You saw that, didn't you?

[D]

Oh, yeah.

[E]

They dug it out where that hedge was. Had a couch down there. You couldn't it even from the Guadalupe overpass.

[D]

So cool.

[E]

I don't know if it's cool or not.

[A]

Yeah, I'm not going cool.

[D]

So cool. Brett sees a little hiding area.

[E]

Cherry lighting up in the distance from the studio.

[D]

Yeah.

[A]

From the crack pipes out there.

[D]

Oh, those were. Those were the days we'd have carpet.

[B]

Yep.

[E]

And don't forget a lot. Don't forget. This is a. Larry used to wax poetic about that. When first couple of years we were in this building.

[D]

I know.

[C]

The old building.

[D]

I will still say you got to appreciate where you come from.

[E]

True.

[D]

And so I still have a love in my heart for Guadalupe. I still have a love in my heart.

[E]

And the bees in your office and everything else.

[A]

And the piss that would roll out of the bathroom into your office. Well, I don't know why.

[E]

I don't know what you loved about that building.

[D]

It was our own little place.

[E]

It was our own little frat.

[D]

It was our own little frat house. And we ran it. Well.

[E]

Remember when they took that dishwasher out of there and everything in that kitchen and everything behind it?

[C]

They now charge admission. It's a cavern. The stuff that grew underneath that dishwasher

[D]

I learned how to ride motorcycles in the parking lot there. Oh, not learned, but I mean relearned, I suppose. How to ride street bikes and. In the parking lot with Wolfman.

[A]

Yeah. You know those styrofoam cups set up in the parking lot late at night, a little slaloming. Yeah.

[D]

Was that you? That was.

[A]

I was on. Yeah.

[D]

Okay. So. Yeah, you were on the overnights. I would finish up and start riding around on a motorcycle back and forth in the parking lot. It was a blast.

[E]

We're all too old.

[D]

Yeah. What can I say?

[A]

Destroying cars in the parking. That's great.

[E]

Well, if you abandon your car in our parking lot, get what you pay for.

[C]

You know, we had Grave Digger out there jumping cars. And then Robbie Gordon came out.

[E]

Yep.

[C]

With his.

[E]

With his flying truck.

[C]

Yeah. And miked me up and I sat shotgun with him.

[D]

That's right.

[C]

And he didn't put it up on two wheels.

[E]

Oh, yeah.

[C]

He hits the thing in the parking lot, you know, on that dirt. Hits out two wheels. I just remember I'm screaming and he looks over at me one handed.

[E]

He did the dad.

[C]

Pretty cool, isn't it? As on two wheels going about 60 miles per hour.

[D]

The white trash picnic.

[E]

So that. And remember, it wasn't Grave Digger. It was the other monster, Tom means. Tom meets. He almost. He almost hit the guy wire.

[D]

Yeah.

[E]

Because he got so high. That would have been, oh, nights out for all.

[D]

But even still, like, I look back at some of those videos and I go, all it would have taken is one wrong move. Oh, yeah.

[E]

Because all the listeners gather around.

[D]

They would all gather around. I mean, like one wrong move and somebody gets clipped.

[E]

So I'm with you on that. That I have that stuff I have a reverence for.

[D]

Yeah.

[E]

The near misses that we brought in.

[C]

Brought in a food truck. The one morning people were gathered around as the gravedigger in there. Like a burrito buggy or something like that around there that could have been crushed.

[D]

It was a lot of fun. I see. And in that regard, I do miss those days. Yeah.

[A]

But not that building.

[D]

What a. It was a dump. But it was our dump, G. It was hard. It was our dump. You're listening to Brady's Morning Cup. If you didn't know once a month

[C]

the opening gate wouldn't work.

[E]

Oh, yeah. Well, and then we had the listener

[D]

that every time it rained the gate wouldn't work. Yeah.

[E]

The listener that had a diabetic episode

[D]

and rammed the gate and ran right off of the freeway. Off of the 10 freeway.

[E]

Right that one. I forgot about that one. Yeah, the other gal that was actually right there that hit the gate.

[D]

Oh, right, right, right, right. Yeah, yeah. We actually had somebody that ran off of the 10 Freeway through the back

[A]

parking lot, and then that was out there for like 10 years or whatever. Then that car hit the van. Remember that van that was sitting out there was like one of our old engineers, like prior to Melo type thing? The old Chester the Molester van that was out there?

[D]

Are you talking about the old Kukuban?

[A]

No, no, no. The one that had no windows in it and everything else. The Chomo mobile.

[E]

No, that van became the Katy west van, didn't it?

[D]

Did it?

[A]

I don't remember.

[E]

Now, the one that.

[D]

If you.

[E]

If you accelerate.

[C]

That thing was held together by the wrap. It didn't.

[E]

It didn't have anything. Any support for the driver's seat. So if you gassed it, the. The whole back end would fly back.

[D]

Right, right, right. And as a kid, I ran in that van. I ran around town in that van with Larry Mack as a kid. As a kid ran around in that van giving away bumper stickers. Boy, oh boy.

[A]

And we're getting emails, of course. Brady remembers the food trucks that showed

[D]

up in the quad. How about that? That graphic that you just got sent there for Larry's morning sickness.

[A]

I'll post it if you want.

[D]

Larry's morning sickness graphic with the Hasidic Jew and the page I'm gonna post on.

[A]

Screw this.

[D]

Good stuff. I love it. What was the comment that was made? You replaced.

[A]

Oh, yeah, yeah. Replace one Jew for another. Well, we couldn't even tell the difference.

[D]

That's right. McFeely's morning sickness. No, it's Brady's morning cup.

[E]

If I had the best of marked, I would pull up something from Brady giving out the Yiddish word of the day. I'll have to look for it.

[D]

Yes. We all used to do the Yiddish word of the day. That was a lot of fun.

[A]

Why don't we just do it now? We had a dictionary around here.

[C]

Oy, I don't know.

[A]

You gotta have one in your office.

[D]

Come on, Larry.

[C]

I always remember maven.

[D]

Maven.

[E]

Yeah.

[D]

And why do you remember that?

[C]

The definition is you're really good at something. You're a maven. You're a maven.

[D]

Yeah. The best.

[A]

Yep.

[D]

The biggest.

[C]

He's a maven.

[D]

I don't know why Holmberg and I always did Jackie. We have been doing Jackie Mason impressions. Or at least I have been to Jackie. Jackie Mason walking down the hall hey, John, how you doing? What's going on? You're a schmuck. The biggest. See you, John.

[E]

Today is the 23rd, right?

[D]

Yeah. Today is a Monday.

[E]

Balabusta is homemaker. B, A, L, A, B, U, S, T, A.

[A]

All right.

[D]

This is a Yiddish word.

[E]

Yiddish word. It means homemaker.

[D]

There's your Yiddish word of the day. Balab.

[E]

I don't know. I don't have the Yiddish Balabusta.

[D]

There it is.

[C]

Oh, she's a balabusta.

[D]

She's one Balabusta Busta. Yeah. Are we gonna play some. You said something about Guadalupe Squares.

[E]

We'll do that after the. We'll. So that's something we can do. People have been giving me requests of Guadalupe squares that. And we've done so many of them that I don't remember all of them, obviously, but people remember certain ones. So if you have a request for a Best of Guadalupe Squ Squares version, we'll play that in lieu of the Guadalupe repe. After the Brady Report. So give me those requests. You can email them or text them in detailedo8kupd.com if you have a favorite Guadalupe Squares episode.

[D]

And I keep getting hit up with the Diet Pepsi.

[E]

That one is awesome. And then we can get a story.

[D]

Diet Pepsi. I think I'll have Diet Pepsi.

[E]

Because he asked you for the Diet Pepsi, right?

[D]

Yeah. We were in the studio. I think it was Larry Mack that was in the studio with us. He was doing the interview and.

[C]

Can we get you anything, Peter?

[D]

Would you like anything to drink? I only have a Diet Pepsi. All right, sure thing.

[E]

Was he a giant?

[D]

Be right back. He was a big guy. For sure. He was a big dude. I love Diet Pepsi. Then I will take your blood.

[A]

Bring me to Deftones.

[D]

Deftones concert, yeah. How about that? Back in the day, that concert, the one that never happened? It happened.

[A]

Well, part of it did, but it didn't happen.

[D]

Part of it, 1998.

[E]

Well, he was six, eight.

[D]

Oh, yeah. Sorry. That's all right. I'm.

[E]

Wow.

[D]

Learning how to use the buttons here.

[E]

Things that Larry never had to do,

[D]

never had to do before. That'll work. Yeah.

[A]

I'd say he's a big guy.

[D]

And he was in Playboy magazine. Play Girl or Play Girl. I'm sorry. Play Girl magazine. And I remember I was doing an interview with one of our old DJs.

[A]

Okay. Oh, okay.

[D]

And it was. Oh, it was with Jared. Jared Meeks of Days of the New.

[E]

Oh, yeah.

[D]

And we were out at the. What's now? The Talking Stick. And we were sitting around doing this interview with Jared Meeks. And we pulled out the. The Playgirl and we started flipping through it and talking to him. Hey, did you see this? Did you see the Peter Steele? Look at that crank. Oh, man, that is. That's big and purple. Wow, look at that thing. And he got so uncomfortable. And he was. He was done with the interview pretty quickly. He did. He did not want to look at that thing. Although a lot of ladies wanted to look at that thing for sure.

[E]

And did. I'm sure.

[D]

Yeah. It's Brady's Morning Cup. I'll tell you what, we'll do some commercials and then come because we're gotta pay the bills. Gotta pay the bills, right? That's what they say when you're bad. Bugushka or whatever the word is. Yiddish word. It's Brady's Morning Cup. We'll be right back. Arizona's most powerful, powerful rock radio station.

[E]

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[F]

Fishertools.com all right, HMS Podcast, time again to let you know where to go for some great comedy in the Valley this week downtown at Stand Up Live, get out and see the comedy of Moshe Casher and the up and coming Ari Maddie. Up north at Desert RIDGE, you'll get Joc, Josh Wolf, and SNL's Tommy Brennan. And Eastside of the Tempe Improv, don't miss the very funny Sam J. And more Josh Wolf. For the complete lineups and for Tickets, go to standuplive.com desertridgeimprov.com and tempeimprov.com.