Homecoming 2012

Meet Bernie, I created him in 2008 and he still "hangs" around

If you are reading this you obviously survived the weekend so well done. To put it simply this weekend and the days leading up to it were pretty crazy here. From Thursday at 9am to Sunday at 9pm I was at work a total of 61 hours. Since it would take me about that long to do a full recap of the weekend I will just do a daily highlight reel.

Thursday: Normal practice day for both teams, nothing too exciting other than ordering Chinese food for dinner while I waited for the visiting mens team to arrive. They showed up around 10pm which allowed me to throw in their dirty laundry and be home by 11:30. Stupid me and my insomnia stayed up watching movies most of the night though which made Friday seem longer than it was.

National Anthem as see from the Student Balcony

Friday: Game Day! Made it to work by 6am so that I could start my game day prep. Got both teams on the ice for their pregame skate and had laundry turned over pretty quickly. My women's team had practice that afternoon which made things a little tight timetable wise but nothing we couldn't all work with. It was actually a nice way to break up the day and the boredom that sometimes come while waiting for the game to start. After the game Friday is when the fun really started, and here is why. As the title says this was homecoming weekend. Which means for most schools a football game. Now I have pretty much nothing to do with football except that the visiting teams always use the locker rooms in the arena to dress. Now both hockey teams were home this weekend which means they each had a visiting team in the building, plus football and you have 3 visiting teams using 2 locker rooms. So after the men's game Friday the visiting team had to bag most of their gear and condense it in to a small changing room so that Saturday the visiting women's team could have a place to change. I left work sometime after 12am Saturday after having gotten all the laundry at least started.

Saturday: 4am came very early, even more so when it's pouring rain and I really don't want to move from my amazing bed. I managed to get myself up and to the rink. Pretty eventful drive to work actually which surprised me. Driving up the hill to the rink I came across a guy on a bike and a car in the middle of the street. I slowed down and rolled my window to make sure everything was okay. The kid of the bike tells me that he had just come across the car and that it was abandoned. I parked my car and proceeded to call campus police to get things taken care of. I checked out the car and the windows had been smashed out, it reeked of booze and oh yeah, there was a huge branch sticking out of the wheel well. I guess someone had too much to drink, missed the turn on to campus and went through the trees. Word of advice kids, DON'T FUCKING DRINK AND DRIVE!

Only better seat to watch the game is on the bench

   After my eventful morning the rest of the day went by pretty quickly. Had a pregame skate for the girls and the visiting guys. Did some laundry, watched some football, got soaked watching football, dried off and then it was game time...for the girls. I was busy trying to get things set for the guys so I sadly missed most of the girls game, but from what I did get to see they played very tough. They ended up taking the game to OT and came up just short falling 4-3. After the girls it was the guys time to play. The game didn't go as planned as they can do from time to time. I was kept pretty busy with lots of broken sticks and a puck that missed my face by an inch. After the game I cleaned up quickly and headed home to get what little sleep I could because I wasn't done for the weekend yet.

Sunday: Sunday was an easy day of sorts. I did a lot of laundry and a lot more laundry, and on top of that more laundry. The girls had their second game of the weekend and were able to swing the score in their favor for their first league win of the season. I was able to watch most of their game and it was a great way to relax after the crazy days prior. I've found I have become an awful fan of hockey now that I work in the sport, I can't just sit back and watch, I analyze. Sunday I was probably just too tired to think and watching was all I could muster. After the game I did more laundry and then pretty much had time to kick off my shoes and passed out as soon as I got home. All to wake up and start the week and prep for the next set of games.

Women's player lighting the lamp on Sunday

This week I hit the bus for the first real roadie of the year, we head down to Providence for 2 games. I'm excited to start league play for the guys, and catch up with my counterparts from other schools. I'm not looking forward to the 5+ hours on a cramped bus but such is life when your closest opponent is 3 hours south. I'll be sure to let you all know what fun adventures I get myself in and hopefully out of sometime next week.

The Mid-West Doesn't Suck

     If you couldn't figure it out from the title, first let me say I'm sorry you're an idiot, and secondly let me now share the adventures of Maine hockey as we participated in the College Hockey Inc. Ice Breaker Tournament.

How many Freshies can fit in a Jetta?

     We started off the trip at 4am boarding a bus that we loaded the night before. Now if you didn't know this hockey teams travel with a lot of stuff, and we are no different. We packed light for this trip in that we only had 40 bags of hockey equipment. The bus brought us from campus to the Bangor International Airport where we checked in and boarded our 6am flight to Washington DC. This first flight, like any out of Bangor was very cramped as we took up 35 of the 50 seats on the plane. I had a window seat towards the front which provided me with something I didn't expect. I had quite possibly the best view of the nation's capitol I could ever imagine. I'm bummed I didn't think quicker and take a picture but I was glued to the window. We came in just off the National Mall and from my cramped seat on the plane I could see the Capital, Washington Monument, Jefferson and Lincoln monuments and all of the museums surrounding the mall. It was pretty awesome to say the least. And to top it after switching planes on take off from DC I was able to get a good look at the Pentagon and Arlington National Cemetery.
     We touched down in KC, just after Noon Central, quickly loaded our bags on a van and headed towards the city. I was in the equipment van heading over to start my duties of unpacking and organizing the locker room for a practice later that day. Set up and practice went well and first impressions of the Sprint Center we everything I had heard of it before. It is a beautiful building, with great facilities for teams. We were in the "Home Basketball Suite" which consisted of a Head Coaches office and bathroom, Assistant Coaches office, locker room, bathroom, the team locker room with 21 beautiful wooden stalls, a large shower and bathroom, a full size training room, weight room, hydro therapy room, and to top it off a sauna and steam room (sadly it wasn't working)

Panorama of the locker room

     After practice it was off the dinner as a team, and what else would we get while in KC but BBQ. Let's just say the 3000 calorie plate that was given to each of us was interesting. I love food and had no problem pounding it down. The ribs were amazing, the brisket was fantastic, and the ham was the best I have ever had. Their sauce was tangy yet sweet and their beans were the perfect accent. I also think I was the only person on the trip that didn't complain about the meal.
     Friday was spent at the rink. We had a morning skate to get the guys moving, then while they were off in team meetings and meals at the hotel I went to work setting up for game time. I thought I did up a pretty good locker room for the guys and I could tell by the expressions on the faces of the freshman that they agreed. Sadly it wasn't enough to get the guys a win as we fell to Notre Dame 1-0 in the tournament opener. We had our chances but couldn't put the puck in the net, but such is the game. I stayed and watched some of game 2 (Nebraska Omaha/ Army) and set things up for Saturday so that I could sleep in a bit the next morning.
     Saturday proved to be a new day in many aspects. I woke up and rather than going to breakfast with the team I headed out on my own to take in the city a bit. Pretty much I just walked a different route to the rink than I had done the days before. Knowing that I had some time to kill I also took a tour of the National College Basketball Hall of Fame that was actually attached to the Sprint Center. I was disappointed in the fact that there really was no hall of fame. It was one small room with lighted glass plaques. The rest of the building was filled with basketball courts and annoying kids trying to dunk and beat each other up. It was a good waste of a half hour, just not worth the 12 bucks. The game Saturday prooved to be much better than Friday as we beat Army for the first win of the season. We ended up winning 4-3 and put 55 shots on net. I guess they say getting the first win is always the hardest so lets hope things continue from here.
     Sunday we got to start the return trip at 4am again and we landed in Bangor around 3pm after a layover in Philly which consisted of me eating way too much and then being hyper on the flight home. Once back on campus I had the lucky task of washing all the laundry which kept me rather busy for the next 8 hours. Then it was time to finally head home and pass out... that is after I unpacked my own stuff.
      So there you have it, the overly drawn out recap of my weekend in KC. This next weekend is homecoming, the men play St. Lawerence Friday and Saturday and the Women play UConn Saturday and Sunday, we also have women's soccer, football, and field hockey, so it will be one crazy weekend. Thanks for reading and if you did make it this far congratulations, you just wasted 10 minutes of your life that you can never get back!

Ready or Not Here We Go

Women's Home Opener 4-0 Win!

     There are a few things in life that are certain, death, taxes and another season of college hockey. It doesn't matter if the players, coaches, staff, fans, or arenas are ready the season will come. Summer always seems too short this time of year and many are left to think about how we could have prepared better for puck drop, I'm no different. This past summer I was on the phones and emails just about every day getting things set for the athletes return in September. No matter how set you think you will be though and no matter how many deadlines for orders you were early on things will always become a cluster fuck in the end, this year has been no different. But hey at least my new order of gloves did arrive, less than 24 hours before game time. Plenty of time to have them broken in and comfortable for the players...NOT! Oh well, I don't wear them, that would be way too annoying trying to sharpen skates without the use of my thumbs.
     The men opened the 2012-2013 campaign this past Saturday (girls started last weekend but only an exhibition.) The men played ECAC foe Quinnipiac University. Lucky for me the team arrived in town Friday around 8pm unlike our normal 11-12pm arrival times during league play. That set me up for a great Saturday morning where I was able to come to work after getting a full nights sleep. Game day prep is what I consider ordered chaos. There is always something going on during the day running up to puck drop. Usually for home games I start things off with a stop at Tim Hortons for coffee and donuts and then a round of skate sharpening. I can tell you all find this very interesting. The teams will both have an hour of ice to loosen up the legs and get the heart pumping, sometimes I think it's more just to get the guys out of bed and off the couch which is not a bad thing. Once our guys take off from whatever meetings and meals they have and the locker room is empty it's really my time to get moving. My staff (all student workers and volunteers) and myself will work to clean and organize the locker room, set up whatever items are needed on the benches and pretty much get everything ready for the players so all they have to do is show up and play the game.
     It might sound strange but during the game I usually sit back and catch my breath. There is little that I can or need to do as long as I am fully prepared before the game starts. On the bench I will hunker down in the corner next to my array of players back up sticks and try my best to actually watch the game. It's not easy to see around a backup goalie in full pads so most of my game viewing is on the jumbo-tron. If something does break I'm still limited in what I can actually do without getting off the ice. Time is essential for the players as they don't want to and often can't afford to miss shifts so I do tend to stay on my toes to hand out sticks when needed and to fix the lost skate edge or helmet screw.

First Career Goal Celebration

    Anyway, now that you are all bored here is what happened in the games. Saturday we ended up losing to Q'pac 2-1. The boys played well, we were really flying out there on the ice, just couldn't put the puck in the net. The one highlight did come early though as one of our freshman scored his first career goal, off an assist from his older brother.
     Sunday was much the same for me, we played the University of New Brunswick and ended up tying 2-2. I gave my student assistant a shot at taking the game and I watched from just off the ice in case I was needed. I think it was a good experience for him and something he will get to do many more times this year. It was fun for me too, I got to take a breather for a few hours which does not happen often in the season.

Behind the Visitor's Net

  Now it's on to the next set of games, and our first roadie. Thursday at 4am we fly out to Kansas City MO for a two game weekend. First off we play Notre Dame who next year joins our conference and Saturday we play either the University of Nebraska Omaha or the US Military Academy. I'm thinking all the time on planes this week will warrant a second post so stay tuned for more fun and exciting times from ITER.

Setup of Men's Locker Room

Life is all about me...or at least this entry

     So here we have it, the first of what might be a few or many posts from inside the equipment room. This is all very new to me so I hope you are all strapped in and ready for the ride. I'm no writer, not even close, since leaving college the extent of my writing have been orders of equipment, and emails plainly stating "Where the fuck are my orders?"I want to use this blog as a way of sharing my experiences in working for a Division I college hockey team.I wont come out and tell you what team I work for but I promise you will be able to figure it out sooner or late, you will just have to keep reading. I know it's a mean trick but I have to keep you coming back for me. I've been in the industry for a few years now, starting as a student volunteer and then jumping around a few schools before I was able to land my dream position. That's all I'll say about me and now on to the fun stuff.

Meet my co-worker, we share an of

    Now let's see what to say about what exactly my job is? I guess the best place to start is with the title, Equipment Manager. I'm in charge of every aspect of the equipment operations for the men's and women's teams here on campus. That means I do everything from ordering, organizing, repairing, selling and cleaning every piece of equipment that the teams use both on and off the ice. I sharpen skates, patch gloves, sew jerseys, put cages on helmets and oh so much more. Unlike a lot of college facilities I'm equipped with everything I need to repair and maintain every piece of equipment we use. And then there is the fun part of the job, the laundry. Two huge machines do all my washing and drying for me but lucky me I push those buttons. There's also a lot more to my job than just hockey stuff though. I act as middle man between coaches and players, and sounding board for whoever walks through my doors. It's part mediator, psychiatrist, secretary, friend, enemy and lastly comes the equipment aspect.

It's always your co-workers that make the job great

     Every day there is something new and it's never boring. I guess it doesn't hurt too all the free stuff that I get from different companies. I think the best part of this job though are the people. I have been lucky in my short career to work around and become friends with some of the top hockey players in the game at both the college and pro levels. Summers with a locker room full of alums who now grace NHL rosters are always a plus, especially when they pick up lunch.
     So that's the job in a nut shell, I'm sure you're all bored stiff but in case you made it this far I promise next entry will be more interesting. We will have had the first weekend of the men's season under our belts and hopefully come away with a few wins. I'll be sure to include some pictures and a full insight on what it's like to watch a game from the best seat in any arena if I can see past the backup goalie. So until next time aim for bar down.