NORTHERN ROAD TRIP DIARY

Hello Flyer Fans, This past weekend, the Winkler Flyers boarded the bus and made the trip up north for the first time this season. It was a 1,500 km journey that began Friday morning in Winkler and ended in the early morning hours of Monday when the team arrived back home.

For those of you that listened to the games you will know that Eric and I made the trip along with the team. It was a busy and tiring trip and a lot of fun at the same time. I kept a bit of a diary of our travels complete with pictures. For most of you the only time you get to see the team play is at home. I hope this post gives you an inside look at life on the road....enjoy!

(stretch time in Dauphin)


Friday, November 5th
- 10:30am - Board the bus (the pride of '83) and began the 530km journey to Swan River, home town of the Swan Valley Stampeders.

-1pm- Make a stop at the convenience story in Neepawa for drinks, snacks, and a potty break.

-2:30pm- Stop for lunch in Dauphin and back on the road in a hour.

(pre-game walk before the Swan Valley game)

-5:30pm- Arrive at the Swan River Centennial Arena.

-10:30pm- Following a tough 3-2 loss to the Stampeders we are back on the road and drive 230km to The Pas (the home of the OCN Blizzard)

-12:30pm- We get to the WescanaInn in The Pas, get our room assignments, bring in our stuff, and head off to bed.

(Unloading the bus in Swan)

Saturday, November 6th

-9:30am- Wake up call!!!!

-10am- Bacon, eggs, sausage, hashbrowns, and LOTS of coffee is on the menu for breakfast at the hotel.

-2:30pm- After some down time in the room it's time for a pre-game stretch and walk.

-5:30pm- Pack up the bus and make the five minute drive to the Gordan Lathlin Memorial Centre to take on the OCN Blizzard.

(Ernie Sutherland is wide awake....I think)

-10:30pm- After a 5-3 loss to the Blizzard the boys are back in the hotel for a post game meal. After that it is off to bed to get ready for another day on the bus.

(Troy Kliever and John Marks)

Sunday, November 7th

-9am- Wake up call!!!

-9:30am- After packing the bus and getting ready to leave its time for a quick breakfast buffet at the hotel.

-10am- All aboard the bus and we embark on the 405km stretch to the Waywayseecappo First Nation.

(Ernie showing the guys his fancy stick work)

-12:15pm- Stop at the Swan River Tim Horton's for some of the worlds best coffee and "healthy" donuts and back on the road within 15 minutes.

(There is good fishing up north and Peter Alexander is letting you know just how big they are)

-3pm- Arrive at the Waywayseecappo Community Complex.

(What hotel isn't complete without a snow mobile in the lobby)

-7:15pm- Finally the Flyer were able to pick up two points with a 5-3 win over the Wolverines. The customary two honks of the horn and we are off with the sweet sounds of Travis Tritt's "It's a Great Day To Be Alive" ringing in our ears.

(WescanaInn....we didn't try the soup)

-8:30pm- It's time for some Dairy Queen in Neepawa after a big win.

-9am- Back on the road and headed for home.

(shot of the hotel)

With full stomachs and positive vibes after a win you would think that the remaining two hours of the trip would go smoothly right?........WRONG!

(Dining room at the hotel)

-9:12pm- The faint hum of the road is back in our ears and we are all settling in for the final leg of this long journey...but....something breaks the silence.....POP...flapflapflapflapflap. Yup it's a tire.

(GLMC in OCN)

After a 30 minute effort to try and remove the back outside tire in order to get to the busted inside one we gave up and called for some help. A nice guy with a shop in Gladstone (about 15 minutes away from the tire event) tried to help us out but didn't have the tools to do the job.

So the next option was calling the after hours phone number for Fountain Tire in Portage. Success!

-11pm- We were able to limp our way to Portage and thanks to Justin at Fountain Tire we were in and out in half and hour and back on the road full steam ahead.

Monday, November 8th

-12:50am- The bright lights of Winkler show up on the horizon and we pull into the Winkler Recreation Complex. The trip is over and a good nights sleep in the comfort of our own beds is just minutes away.

Well that is your look inside a road trip of the Winkler Flyers. I hope you enjoyed it.

Scroll down for some more photos.....

(Me doing some work)

(The endless highway)

(Me and Kevin Klassen, the best bus driver in the game)

(Looks pretty comfortable to me)

(Inside the Wayway Arena....biggest ice service in the league)

(Steve Hancock doing a pre-game tape job)

(Here is a shot of the surroundings)

(John Marks doing some pre-game reading)

(The Tickle Truck)

(The broadcast booth in Wayway)

(Wayway crowd)

(Eric Braun on the left and myself on the right)

(Nice way to end a busy road trip)

(Checking out the damage)

(David Goerz holding a road flair making sure we don't get run over)

(You can see the hole in the inside tire)

(You can see the big gash in the top of the tire)

(Justin the Hero)

(THE END)