Changing the Weather
A former meteorologist’s tale of his new and exciting business venture
Story and photos by Matthew Wilson
Former WPTZ Meterologist Jim Moore is enjoying his new job as the owner of Dicky's Barbaque Pit, Plattsburgh. Moore spent 11 years at WPTZ covering the morning weather.
Because of its border location and college presence, Plattsburgh has become a hot spot for some of the country’s most famous franchises. Every year, it seems two or three more famous food outlets appear in the city. New to the growing food franchise roster is Texas-originated Dickey’s Barbeque Pit. The casual, quick-order restaurant is the first of its kind in Plattsburgh, but its owner is far from having a fresh face to the Plattsburgh scene. The man behind the plan is store owner Jim Moore who was the meteorologist at WPTZ from September 2000 to September 2011. After 11 years of helping Plattsburgh residents get ready for their day, Moore decided to venture down a completely different path.
The Meterologist
“Since I was two or three years old, I always wanted to be a TV meteorologist.”
Moore beams when he talks about his time at WPTZ, a place that will always be close to his heart. In fact, weather reporting was Moore’s passion from a very young age. It was all he ever thought that he wanted to be, and it was all he remembers pretending to be as a kid. “Since I was two or three years old, I always wanted to be a TV meteorologist,” he says. “Through grade school, high school, and college, I knew exactly what I wanted to do.” His zeal for his desired job most certainly showed, and he was beloved by his colleagues and his viewers. During his time at WPTZ, he coined sayings that would become staples to the WPTZ weather newscast. His “double nickel” and “when thunder roars, go indoors” became reassuring messages to North Country residents’ ears.
Despite doing what he felt he was destined to do, Moore started to feel the strain on his body of putting in so many early hours. He always predicted that meterology would be his lifelong field, but as the mornings became more and more strenuous with each day, Moore felt he needed to find a solution. “I honestly thought I was going to do morning weather on channel five for the rest of my life, but getting up at 1:45 in the morning was just starting to wear on me.”
The Change
Moore finally accepted that it was time to say good bye to WPTZ. “I needed a career change; it just felt like the right time,” he says. Moore says that after much thought, he decided on doing something he thought he would love, something that obviously didn’t have waking up early in its description. “What do I love? Food,” Moore says. “I love to go out to eat, so I said to myself, 'You know what, why not open up a restaurant?'” After deciding to enter the restaurant business, the next difficult task was to decide which kind of cuisine to serve. Moore says he contemplated a bit, thinking of what Plattsburgh didn’t have and what they might need or further enjoy.
After realizing that Plattsburgh lacked a barbeque restaurant, Moore began doing some research. “I literally went on the computer, did a franchise search, and Dickey’s Barbeque came up,” Moore says. Excited by what he saw on the site, he immediately started contacting Dickey's company representatives. Following seven tedious months of back and forth discussions, Dickey’s Barbeque opened on Oct. 22, 2011, across from the Champain Centrel.
“Jim is a wonderful boss and a wonderful person. I really do enjoy working for him.”
A view of the inside of Jim Moore's new resturant, a franchise called Dickey's Barbeque Pit. The resturant opened on Oct. 22, 2011.
Moore identifies his desire to help and interact with people as his prime reason for wanting to be a meteorologist, and luckily for him, he feels he can do the same with his new job. “When you are doing weather, you are helping people plan their day, and when you own a restaurant you are making people happy by serving them great food at a quality price. It is great to see the smiles on everyone’s faces,” Moore says.
Moore confesses that it is not all smooth sailing when it comes to owning his own franchise. “I would admit it is pretty stressful—you are your own boss, so you can’t be fired,” Moore says. “You have a lot of people under you."
One of his employees, Elizabeth Boland, describes how Moore is as an employer. “Jim is a wonderful boss and a wonderful person. I really do enjoy working for him,” Boland says. “And the food is great too,” she added.
Despite all the stress that comes with his new responsibilities, Moore is comforted by the support he has received from his family. “They are happy as long as you are happy,” he says. “My parents were actually here this weekend visiting, and they saw how I was interacting with the customers and almost thought I was more natural doing this than the weather.”
"When you own a restaurant you are making people happy by serving them great food at a quality price. It is great to see the smiles on everyone’s faces,” Moore says.
Although still early, business has actually been better than he originally expected. “We have been open two weeks and we have customers been here four or five times already,” Moore says. The restaurant has even done so well that they have run out of food a few times.
Accepting that Moore is No More
The locals in Plattsburgh are still adjusting to seeing Moore’s familiar face behind a grill and not on their televisions. Plattsburgh resident Dan Ormsbee, who has been watching Moore on television since as far back as he can remember, accepts and understands Moore’s move. “We all miss Jim on the news station," Ormsbee says. "He brought a lot a light to it, but this is what he wants to do, and in life, you should always do what you want."
