People often ask what it’s like traveling with the women’s basketball team for much of the winter. I’m not sure how to really answer that, except to say there is never a dull moment!
During a given year, we typically have 12-14 “away” games, plus our regional tournament at the end of the season. Half of these trips are “day trips” where we can travel to and from the game on the same day. This will often involve an early departure or late return, but it saves Northland a lot of money whenever possible. The other half of our trips involve some sort of overnight stay. Some, like the Kentucky trip last week, involve multiple nights away (four to be exact), but most are one night or two.
About two or three days before the trip, I’ll email an itinerary to the girls outlining the trip as planned. We typically are given a 15 or 12-passenger van with a trailer, and a mini-van by Northland for our trips. After packing luggage, medical kit, uniforms, shooting shirts, water bottles, bagged lunches, etc., we meet together in the gym for a team prayer and load up. Usually, I drive the van pulling the trailer and K-Mo (Assistant Coach Kevin Moses) drives the mini. Occasionally there is jockeying by players for positions in vans or certain seats, but they’re pretty good about mixing it up to get to know each other better. On longer trips, there are usually some trivia games by phone that go on between the vehicles. Other favorite pastimes while traveling are homework, catching up on phone calls (especially those with cell service providers without good coverage at Northland), listening to music, reading, or talking. But the majority of the time, travel is used to catch up on one thing – SLEEP! Some players have a greater reputation than others to fall asleep before we leave campus, but we’ll leave names for another time. If there’s anything more important than choosing the right place to eat while on the road, it’s choosing the right place to, well, stop for, say, “physical refreshment.” I mean, stopping at a place with a single restroom with 12-15 ladies…..well, you do the math. Bad judgment in where we stop could cause us to have to throw the itinerary out the window!
Each coach at Northland can book the rooms for their own teams within a set budget. We usually need a total of five rooms (four for the players, manager, and statistician) and one for me and Kevin. After cost, my criteria for selection is (in this order) cleanliness (based on reviews), free breakfast, free wireless, and an indoor pool (we are a winter sport team). I make room assignments before each trip (revealed on the itinerary), mixing up the groups each trip. There is a captain or upperclassman in each room, and we establish a curfew and lights out each night.
As far as meals go, Northland provides a stipend for each trip, per person, per day, based on how many meals we will miss on campus. We’re thankful for the amount, but with inflation it becomes a little more difficult to make ends meet (sound familiar?!). At times, eating on the road actually takes more thought and strategy than the game! When we eat in Wisconsin, we are tax exempt so depending on the area that can be a savings of 5-7%. So far in the young season, we have hit Culver’s, Arby’s, McDonald’s, Subway, Papa John’s, Wendy’s, and a mall food court. Otherwise, if the girls snack or eat in between normal meal times, it can leave us with the ability to combine a couple of our meals for a nicer meal. Lunch at Olive Garden or a Panera Bread stop are favorites for the ladies, but it takes saving on other meals to enable us to do it. When we’re REALLY frugal early in a trip, sometimes there is money left for Coldstone! When all is said and done, we’re always under budget, and the girls are well fed. Occasionally, depending on game times (noon or 1 pm starts especially), K-Mo and I will get meat, cheeses, fruit and/or granola bars from a local deli for them to snack on prior to the game instead of a heavier meal. As I said, it takes planning and effort.
The advantages of traveling are many. It’s great, especially at the beginning of the season, to help build team unity and camaraderie. That was a major reason for the early season Kentucky trip this year. Also, it gives us many opportunities to be salt and light while we travel. Whether it’s formal ministry like teaching a Sunday School class or singing in a church service, or by divine appointments on the road, in restaurants, and at gas stops, it’s nice to get out and apply what we’re learning.
The down side for the girls is it’s really difficult to have quality study time in the vans, but they make do. Also, this season we will likely log nearly 5,000 miles on the road, with many of those in snowy weather as we approach the winter months. So, safety is also on our minds as drivers. Personally, responsibilities on campus don’t stop when basketball season begins, and they certainly don’t stop while we travel. Most trips require late nights at the hotel catching up on dozens of unanswered emails that accumulate while driving.
But even with these few concerns, traveling with the team is a major reason why I enjoy coaching.
