No Holds Barred

Will a fractured conservative slate hand Lynchburg City Council to the Democrats? Is Congressman John McGuire facing an upset in Virginia's 5th District? University of Lynchburg Political Science Department Chair Dr. David Richards joins Rich Roth on No Holds Barred to break down everything on the ballot across Central Virginia and Capitol Hill. From the invalidated Republican primary and cont...

Data center developments are sparking intense debates across city councils, board meetings, and social media feeds throughout Virginia. But behind the controversy, what are the actual facts? Are data centers an environmental threat to local communities, or are they a vital economic engine that can build modern schools and keep residential property taxes low? In this episode of No Holds Barred, hos...

Are online classes actually effective, or are we just relying on convenience? How should parents and teachers handle student AI use without turning to heavy-handed policing? In this episode of No Holds Barred, Rich Roth sits down with Dr. Holly Gould, Department Chair of Curriculum & Instructional Design at the University of Lynchburg, to break down the real impact of remote learning, why mult...

Nearing the 25th anniversary of September 11th, host Rich Roth sits down with Greg Meacham—a Vietnam veteran, retired Lynchburg police officer, and DoD contractor who made the remarkable decision to return to active combat in Iraq at 56 years old. In this powerful episode of No Holds Barred, Greg shares his journey from walking a beat in Lynchburg, Virginia, to living alongside U.S. Army Special F...

How do you transition from selling shoe materials to supplying natural luxury leather for Ralph Lauren, NetJets, and luxury homes worldwide? In this episode of No Holds Barred, host Rich Roth sits down with Sackett Wood (Executive Chairman) and Tray Petty (CEO) of Moore & Giles. They dive into the 90+ year history of the Lynchburg, Virginia-based company — from surviving the collapse of Americ...

As retail marijuana laws shift and high-potency concentrates change the market, how does cannabis actually affect your health, your sleep, and your job security? In this episode of No Holds Barred, host Rich Roth sits down with Ryan Gordon, founder of Blue Ridge Scientific, for an in-depth, reality-check conversation on the modern evolution of weed. With over 25 years of medical experience and 15...

What does it take to grow a local business started with a few piglets into one of the largest independent pest control companies in North America? In this episode of No Holds Barred, Rich Roth sits down with Bert Dodson Jr., President and CEO of Dodson Brothers Pest Control and former 12-year Lynchburg City Council member. Bert shares the incredible 80+ year story of his family business—from its h...

UVA legend, College Football Hall of Famer, and current Tennessee Assistant Coach Anthony Poindexter sits down with Rich Roth on No Holds Barred. Now coaching in the SEC at Tennessee, Dex reflects on his journey from Jefferson Forest High School to the top of college football and the NFL. In this candid interview, he breaks down turning down Peyton Manning’s Vols during a snowstorm in high school,...

What is it really like growing up with one of the most polarizing last names in Lynchburg, Virginia? In this episode of No Holds Barred, Rich Roth sits down with 3rd-generation aviator Kyle Falwell, owner of Bon Air Jet. Kyle opens up about his "wild" past as a professional horse trainer, what happened when the Jerry Falwell Jr. scandals broke and how he carved out his own multi-million...

In this episode of No Holds Barred, host Rich Roth sits down with retired history professors and editors Clif and Bundy Potter to celebrate the LYH250 anniversary! Together, they dive into their brand-new anthology, A Good and Pleasant Company: Lives and Legacies of Central Virginia. Discover the incredible, hilarious and deeply moving stories of the people who shaped the greater Lynchburg area. F...

The USMNT crapped the bed against Belgium—now what? In this episode of No Holds Barred , host Rich Roth sits down with Landon Moore, Executive Director of Central Virginia United Soccer Club (CVU), for a raw post-mortem on Monday night's crushing World Cup elimination. We dive deep into the viral comment from Alexi Lalas that "moral victories aren't good enough anymore" and debat...

Welcome to another edition of No Holds Barred with Rich Roth! Today, we are sitting down with Dave Saunders, the owner of Lynchburg’s ultimate culinary institution: The Texas Inn (lovingly known by locals as the "T-Room").Established in 1935, the Texas Inn has been a staple of the community for nearly a century. When it went up for sale on Craigslist, Dave knew he couldn't let Lynchb...

Are younger employees actually "entitled," or are we just experiencing a massive breakdown in workplace communication? In this episode of No Holds Barred, host Rich Roth sits down with Jeffrey Reason, Assistant Director of Career Services and Employer Relations at the University of Lynchburg. With five generations beginning to mix together in the modern workforce, the rules of profession...

In this episode of No Holds Barred, host Rich Roth goes one-on-one with Andy Flint, President of L.G. Flint General Contractors, as the company celebrates a historic 75 years of business in Central Virginia. Andy opens up about what it really takes to pass a legacy business down through three generations—including the twist of fate that kept him from architecture school and landed him in biology....

What is the National D-Day Memorial doing in a small Virginia town of just a few thousand people? The answer lies in the devastating opening minutes of June 6, 1944, when Bedford lost a generation of its youth on Omaha Beach. In this special episode ‘No Holds Barred’ Rich Roth sits down with Ken Parker from the Bedford Boys Tribute Center located in historic downtown Bedford, VA. Ken unpacks the r...

Are you prepared to protect your family as the legal and social climate shifts? In this episode of No Holds Barred, host Rich Roth sits down with Marko Galbreath, a retired SWAT Sergeant, undercover detective and the founder of T4Tactics. Key Takeaways With new Virginia gun laws looming on July 1st, Marko breaks down exactly what you need to know about magazine restrictions, concealed carry recipr...

Lynchburg is a city defined by its contradictions. In this episode of No Holds Barred, Rich Roth sits down with Ted Delaney, Director of the Lynchburg Museum System, to peel back the layers of local history that most residents don't even know. From his early days as a teenage volunteer at the Old City Cemetery — where 15,000 to 20,000 people are buried — to his current work preserving the city...

In this episode of No Holds Barred, Rich Roth sits down with Cyrus Pace, the new Executive Director of the Academy Center of the Arts. After 15 years leading the Jefferson Center in Roanoke, Cyrus shares his vision for fostering local growth and the "incubator" model for talent in Lynchburg. We discuss everything from taking over an organization after a "standing ovation" to hi...

What does it take to play professional golf for over 50 years? Join Rich Roth on No Holds Barred as he sits down with PGA and Senior PGA Tour Pro, Dick Mast. In this deep dive, Dick Mast shares incredible stories from a career that spans eras from playing a practice round with an 18-year-old Tiger Woods to competing at the highest level at age 75. Now a resident of the Lynchburg area and teaching...

Rich Roth sits down with Danny Givens, the owner of Lynchburg’s iconic Givens Books & Little Dickens, as the business celebrates its 50th anniversary. While many know Danny as the curator of a local "Wonderland," he is also a certified Death Doula. In this episode of No Holds Barred , Danny shares his nomadic upbringing, the "serendipitous" founding of his toy store and why...

Technology is moving faster than ever, and today on No Holds Barred, we are looking at the massive shifts hitting Lynchburg and beyond. From AI breakthroughs that let us talk to our pets to radical changes in our local dining scene and state laws, our guests are breaking some "exclusive" news you won't believe. PET TRANSLATOR: 0:00 - 8:17Charley Butcher (University of Lynchburg) disc...

Step inside a Lynchburg legend. This week, Rich Roth welcomes Wells Duffy , owner of the iconic Cavalier Store (The Cav) since 1987. Wells shares the fascinating history of the building; from its origins as a trolley garage to becoming a nationally recognized burger destination featured in Southern Living . Discover why this "cash-only" neighborhood staple remains a timeless sanctuary in...

"I didn't take a whole lot of crap from anybody." In this edition of No Holds Barred , Rich Roth sits down with Karl Hess —a man who spent decades at the center of college basketball’s biggest stages. Hess held Liberty University’s all-time scoring record for 40 years before transitioning into a storied, and often controversial, career as an ACC official . In this episode, Karl discu...

Join Rich Roth as he sits down with retired Colonel Tom Current—a man whose career spans from the grueling training of the Army Rangers and Special Forces to a legal career dedicated to defending faith-based institutions. In this episode, Col. Current shares: The "guilt" that drove him to volunteer for Ranger and Special Forces training during the Vietnam era. What it really means to be...

In this episode of No Holds Barred, Rich Roth sits down with Mark Maslow, the founder of Southern Landscape Group. Mark’s story is a masterclass in entrepreneurship, beginning at age 9 with a push mower and evolving into one of Central Virginia’s premier outdoor living firms. But this isn't just a "success story." Mark opens up about the brutal reality of burnout that led to a life-t...