Horizon Broadcasting Group has flipped a pair of its stations in Bend OR.

Variety Hits “95.7 FM” KLTW-FM/93.3 K227DC Prineville has flipped to Classic Country as “95.7 The Ranch” KRCO-FM. The station assumes the Classic Country format that had been heard on 690 KRCO since 2000. Positioning as “Country’s Greatest Hits”, Jim “Jimbo” Schoebel moves from KRCO to host mornings and cluster Operations Manager Dave Clemens will host afternoons in addition to his current spot in mornings on Classic Hits 105.7 KQAK.

With the flip at 95.7, 690 KRCO/96.9 K245BC Prineville has flipped to Sports as “96.9 The Ticket” KRCO will mostly carry programming from Fox Sports Radio including Dan Patrick in mornings from 6-9am and Colin Cowherd from 9am-12pm. Westwood One’s Rich Eisen Show from 12-3pm is the only non-Fox Sports show in the lineup. KRCO will also carry play-by-play for the NBA’s Portland Trailblazers, Oregon State University Football and Men’s Basketball and the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks.

Horizon Broadcasting Group has amended two formats in its cluster of radio stations in Central Oregon, effective April 1, 2022 (No Fooling!).

The former KLTW-FM has rebranded as Country’s Greatest Hits 95.7 The Ranch (and adopted the call letters KRCO-FM). “We have served listeners with the Classic Country format on KRCO-AM since 2000, and we have experienced phenomenal growth with this format on our heritage AM facility over the past three years, said Keith Shipman, President & CEO of Horizon Broadcasting Group. “It’s time to provide this growing audience with a crystal clear 100,000 watt signal serving all of Central Oregon with hits from the greatest country artists of all time.”

Jim “Jimbo” Schoebel, a longtime Central Oregon radio personality, will handle wake up duties on Country’s Greatest Hits 95.7 The Ranch, while Dave Clemens – one of the region’s most popular air personalities over the past two decades – will handle afternoon drive. “I began my radio career on KRCO-AM some 25 years ago – so I’ve kind of come full circle,” said Clemens. “I’m excited about this music, this format, and the opportunity to entertain the passionate country music listener of Central Oregon.” Veteran Horizon Broadcasting Group news anchor/reporter Bill Baker will provide local news updates weekday mornings on 95.7 The Ranch.

Core artists for Country’s Greatest Hits 95.7 The Ranch include Garth Brooks, Reba McEntire, George Strait, Tim McGraw and Faith Hill, Kenny Chesney and Luke Combs. 95.7 The Ranch will also be available on a translator at 93.3 FM (serving parts of Crook County) and will stream from its website – http://www.957TheRanch.com and on the Tune-In Radio App.

KRCO-AM has filled a glaring hole in the Central Oregon radio landscape by launching an all-sports format. The station is now known as Sports Radio 96.9 The Ticket and features a Hall of Fame lineup of powerhouse sports talk hosts, including Dan Patrick, Colin Cowherd and Rich Eisen and is affiliated with the FOX Sports Radio Network. Sports Radio 96.9 The Ticket is also the exclusive Central Oregon home for the Portland Trailblazers, Oregon State University Football, Oregon State University Men’s Basketball and the Seattle Seahawks.

“We are pleased to offer Central Oregon sports fans a place to go every waking moment of every day for sports talk radio from the very best personalities in all of sports,” said Shipman. “Sports Radio 96.9 The Ticket’s lineup is second to none – and we will be the only station to hear the state’s most popular live sporting events – the Trailblazers, Beavers and Seahawks. In fact, we’ll offer over 140 live sports broadcasts

annually.” The station can be heard on 96.9 FM, on KRCO-AM’s original 690 frequency (which recently celebrated 77 years of service to Central Oregon listeners), on the station website – http://www.969TheTicket.com and on the Tune-In Radio App.

Here is the broadcast lineup for Sports Radio 96.9 The Ticket:

M-F 6a-9a The Dan Patrick Show
M-F 9a-12p The Herd with Colin Cowherd
M-F 12p-3p The Rich Eisen Show
M-F 4p-7p The Odd Couple
M-F 7p-6a FOX Sports Radio
Weekends FOX Sports Radio