Summer Lacrosse Part 2
I got such a nice response from my last article, I thought it would be good to log some of my travel experience as a Division III head coach. This is probably a good time to show my gratitude. I like to write, I always have. So for me I never really think about being a “blogger,” journalist, or any sort of lacrosse pundit. I honestly look forward to this every week. It’s good to get some of my thoughts on paper. It’s cathartic for me, not really work. But then I remember that people will eventually read this, and it is humbling to get positive responses, especially from my fellow coaches. So to everyone reading, thank you. Sincerely, to everyone out there, if I haven't had a chance to reach out to thank you personally I deeply appreciate all the kind responses.
I thought it would be fun to log a trip from my perspective. I will put in time stamps to let everyone who will read this in the future what this particular trip looked like. Quick side note: I will start off by saying that I do travel a lot. A lot of coaches will travel much more than I do, especially Division I coaches. This trip, though not totally unique, isn’t what I would consider “run of the mill,” so please take this vignette as it is, and nothing more.
Friday, June 14th - circa 9:15 pm central time
So right now I am currently submitting my first entry in this week’s piece. I don’t know exactly how many entries I will include when it’s all said and done, but I do know that this particular article will require me to write intermittently throughout the whole weekend, as opposed to all at once, which I am accustomed to. So this will be different and unique. Let’s hope I can successfully do it, and not forget to skip any sort of large segments of time. Currently, I am sitting at Gate M40 in Terminal 5 of Chicago - O’hare. I mentioned in my last blog that I was home for a couple days, which is pretty accurate. I got home from my last event around 2pm on wednesday June 12th. I picked up my daughter from daycare with my wife. We walked the mile to get her, stopped for some ice cream, and pushed her in the stroller gleefully back home. It was a typical night for the most part. I played with her in the backyard while my wife went to work out and spend an hour of much needed personal time. The next day, I went to the office to get some work done. I had an assistant candidate on campus for an interview, which went well. From there I had to catch up on my 71 unread emails. That took a while to get through. I made it home around 4:30pm. My mom came over to babysit our daughter. I had bought tickets for my wife and I to see Nate Bargatze in Cedar Rapids for her birthday. We made the 1.5 hour drive down and parked in an overcrowded parking garage. Probably should’ve ate before we got there, but you live and learn. The show was outstanding. If you guys know who Nate Bargatze is, you know how incredibly hilarious he is. It was a smashing success. My wife and I sped through some late night fast food, and made it home by 11pm. I woke up this morning and spent the day home with my daughter. We hung out in the backyard and played in her “pool,” which is a plastic bucket that we fill up with a garden hose. She wasn’t complaining on a 90 degree day. Other than that I did some laundry, mowed the lawn, showered, packed, and left around 4:30pm.
I can get to Chicago O’hare in about 2 hours and 40 minutes. The only drawback about living in Iowa, but I really don’t mind. It’s an easy drive. Got here about 7:15pm, walked through security and grabbed some food. I called my daughter and said goodnight around 8pm. Since then, I have been sitting and writing. My flight got delayed about an hour so we’ll see. Yes, I am taking a red eye. I don’t even think I mentioned where I am heading. I am going to San Diego, CA. I will get there in the morning, right before the first game starts at 8am local time. I look forward to getting some sleep on the plane. This will be a short trip for sure. All business, get in and get out. It's about 9:40 pm right now. I think the plane will start to board in about 20 minutes (I hope). I have a layer over in Denver. I will check back in once I get there.
Saturday, June 15th - 8pm PT
Right on queue, I failed to live up to my own expectations. This is about a day in the future from my last paragraph, and a lot has happened since then. After take off from Chicago, we landed in Denver around 2am central time, 1am local time. It was not a pleasant flight. Hard as I tried to get some shut eye on the nearly 3 hour flight, the incessant turbulence would not allow for any consistent sleep. To top it off, we spent nearly an hour on the runway once we landed, which really ruined my mood. I couldn’t understand why all the gates at Denver International were occupied at 1am, and I didn't really care at that point either. By the time we were allowed off at 2am, I just wanted to sleep. I curled up in a chair and slept for the next 2.5 hours. I set my alarm for 4:30am. Our plane boarded at 5am. So I missed my window to write at that point, but now that I am working through this, I am not sure what else I would have written about to be honest.
After a much smoother flight to San Diego, we landed at 7am local time. I was able to get a little more sleep but nothing substantial. Since I didn’t have any checked bags, I walked straight to the uber pick up island and headed right to the venue. Timing couldn't have been better. Games started at 8am, and I arrived right on time for the first games of the day at Del Norte HS. I spent the next 5ish hours doing what I do; watching lacrosse and taking detailed notes on the players. I rather liked this event. It is small. There are only about 7 or 8 teams with rising seniors. I find benefits to these more intimate styles of tournament. I don’t feel pressure to race all over a massive venue with dozens of fields just to see everyone. Instead, I can see guys play multiple times. If they make a mistake, they will have plenty of opportunities to redeem themselves in front of the coaches. I was impressed with the talent and the layout of the tournament. I headed to check in to my hotel a short 10 minute uber ride away. I took a 2 hour power nap with my phone on do not disturb. I woke up and went to the pool for about an hour. Then I took a mile stroll to the nearest sushi restaurant, which I was craving for some reason. It hit the spot. I walked back to the hotel, said good night to my wife and daughter, and plugged some receipts into an expense report. That led us to right here and now. I will most likely hit the pillow very soon. Games start at 8am tomorrow and would love to get a full night’s sleep.
Sunday, June 16th - 4pm PT
Currently, I am in a “cafe” on the mission beach boardwalk. I am not trying to be coy by putting cafe into quotes to hide the fact that it is a bar, nor am I trying to protect the privacy of the establishment. I literally can’t remember the name of it , and can’t see the sign from where I am sitting. I have some time to kill before heading to the airport, and was just looking for the coziest and most scenic place to sit for a bit, and whip out the ole laptop. Rest assured, this is a perfect ending to a busy, yet productive weeknd. That is part of the reason I love this job. I know I can drone on about recruiting season being a grind, etc. And it can be. But it could also lead you to some awesome places you might not have the opportunity to see otherwise. As a coach you have to go to where the talent is. It’s not my fault California is a great Lacrosse State (insert winky face). In all seriousness, how did I get here?
My alarm woke me up around 6:45am. The solid 9 hours of sack time was much needed. Tonight will undoubtedly be another sleepless one. I showered, packed, and headed down to the continental breakfast, followed by a short walk to the Starbucks across the street. I caught another short uber ride to the tournament venue, grabbed some snacks at the tent, loaded up on sunscreen, and made my way to the stadium. Today I was watching mostly rising juniors play, having seen all the rising seniors yesterday. I had to endure an hour of sophomore play as there were no 25/26 games happening. Not that the talent wasn’t great (it was), it is just too early enough to seriously recruit the sophomore class. Most schools at our level are probably only recruiting juniors and seniors. But the game was entertaining and engaging, I will say.
The next few hours were spent walking back and forth from the stadium to the far field to watch some 2025 bracket play. This was probably at least my 3rd time around seeing them play, so I had some good notes. I ate some lunch, and watched the championship game at 1:15. Then I needed a plan. The tournament was ending and there was no one left for me to see. My flight doesn’t leave until 8:30 tonight. One of my good coaching friends that used to live in the San Diego area suggested I check out Mission Beach. So I booked an Uber and headed down. I don’t have a lot of luggage, just a backpack. I hit up the beach and did a nice stroll down towards the pier. I wanted to make sure I got at least 10,000 steps in today, intentionally as they say. It was cleansing to get my feet into the sand and cold ocean water. I know I’d rather be home for Father’s Day, but I am glad I did something for myself instead of going back to a hotel or straight to the airport. That leads me here. I got some chips and salsa, and am waiting to have dinner at another suggested seafood spot. Just need a pit stop to write about today. I’ll let you know how the rest of the trip goes.
Sunday, June 16th - 7pm PT
This will be my last entry. I won’t overpromise and underdeliver like I did the last time. I have a layover in Vegas, and you can put money down on me wanting to sleep, and not wanting to write, once I get there. Dinner was great. I had an awesome poke bowl. I went to a gift shop to buy something small for my daughter. She doesn't need anything (especially clothes) but I try to get something for her everywhere I go. It’s not the easiest to shop for a toddler, especially whenever whatever I buy I have to squeeze in my backpack. So it can’t be anything too big. I hope she likes it. Like I said, she’s hard to shop for, but easy to please at the end of the day.
From there, I took my last uber to the airport and buzzed right through security. This is the type of stuff that can ruin an otherwise solid trip. I just found out my flight is being delayed. Not my first flight to Vegas, but the second one from Vegas to Chicago. I think at this point, I am just cranky and want to get home. So goes it, as they say. It has been a different piece for me doing some “day in the life” type of stuff. I hope to submit this article tonight, get a chance to email some recruits I saw this weekend, and hopefully get some shut eye as well. I will be making another trip out west this coming weekend. This one will have my family on board, which will make the trip more enjoyable. That way no one feels left out (mostly me). Thanks for reading up to this point. It has been a good trip all in all. Just a lot of travel in a relatively short time span. Not saying every trip will be as exciting as this one, but at least it gave me an excuse to bring my laptop along and actually use it for a change.
KASEY BURST
The HC at the University of Dubuque, Kasey brings all things college lacrosse to your inbox.