Enga mellom fjella

Lite. Da Game. A soaked Montana team loses :(

Lite

Trailer trash:

Bud Lite,
Coors Lite,

just piss-water, not real beer,
not whiskey
         that breath of water and life.

She grabbed an ale instead.

But,
beer,
real beer,
is never the same as trailer trash Lite, she said.

         for Janie

© 2008 Kåre Enga [165.289] 2008-10-05

Janie just wanted a Bud Lite. They didna have any on the bus. She told me how other folks said it was trailer trash beer. Whence the poem. Whiskey comes from the Irish uiske beatha (pronounced ish-keh baha), the "water of life" (uiske = water).

DA GAME:

Da Game was miserable! Soaking rain and a muddy field. Montana made mistake after mistake and then loss their cool. Unsportsmanlike conduct penalties? The coach is going to have to sit on the players this week

(many are very very talented players who were passed over by other teams because of behavioral question marks. Three red-shirt freshmen are on probation over an assault last month. Last year it was even worse. Losing one's cool usually is detrimental to winning as the penalties really hurt.)

45-28 loss after being up 21-10.

The scenery was nice though (what I could see of it through my wet fogged up glasses ) Weber State [Weber (pronounced Wee-ber is the county, the river, the valley] sits up against the mountains in Ogden (much like the UM's campus in Missoula). The stands were empty. About 3,000 of which a few hundred were wearing Montana maroon. It felt like a high school game. There was nowhere to go inside to get out of the weather and because they have a policy whereby you cannot leave the stadium and re-enter, this was brutal. Folks huddled in the restrooms or under the west side (?) stands. One couldn't get a coffee either as the concession stands didn't sell any. Beer I can understand. But ... in spite of Weber State being a public university, this is Mormon Country ... no coffee. Maybe they should change the name to Deseret State and be done with it. I don't imbibe alcohol like many Montana fans, but no coffee! Since swearing isn't welcome either, you can imagine how crude we Montanans must seem.

Ah ... the game ... called my friend John when the Griz were leading the Wildcats 14-10. I always call him during a football game (traditionally Kansas-Iowa state). His immediate question was, "Where are you?" He's known me for quite a few years. I'm sure he wasn't expecting Utah as the answer though. Anyhoo ... he informed me that my Jayhawks had come back against Iowa State (they won 35-33). So nice to have friends who watch t.v. (He was watching Notre Dame - Stanford, of course . He lives about 10 minutes from Fivesixer Notre Dame has many fans there.

The game you asked, did you? I traveled with the cheerleaders who were totally soaked and relegated to the 10 yard line because they weren't allowed behind the Weber State bench (their cheerleaders were behind the Griz bench where their orange rain coat clad pep band was playing to the student section (no, that's not a typo ... there were very few students out and about; we may have had as many as they did.). I guess they couldn't find purple raincoats (their team color). Back to our cheerleaders. They were missing most of the second half - too wet. I spoke with our mascot Monte. He had to give up on his sideline antics because he was 'coming apart' and his outfit costs a wee bit (about $3,000?). He is hilarious in person. His personality would shine through sackcloth. Maybe he should've worn sack-cloth? Would the Mormons have been offended? Anyhoo ... this was his 27th regular season game and his first loss. Back to cheerleaders ... Monte's boss, Kenny, was once a cheerleader and was rallying the troops from the stands. He could help the cheerleading squad if they let him (hope he gets a chance and hope they listen to his wisdom).

Kenny arranged the trip. We had muffins and bananas, orange juice, et cetera for the way down (we only stopped to let off one of the bus-drivers - this trip had two, we picked him back up in Idaho city on the way back) and sandwiches for lunch (which everyone forgot about) and pizza from Pizza Hut at 5 p.m. on the way back. We had plenty of food and drink . Kenny did a superb job and I'd go again if he were planning it. What was super nice were the stadium staff who work the Griz games and therefore don't really get to see one were invited to go and then there were some empty seats so the public was invited too. These small gestures mean a lot to folks. One of the original reasons for the bus was the cheerleaders and mascots going down together in one bus. Safer than vans on a long 7 hour+ trip they figured. I think they were correct on this one.

The trip: rain, rain and rain. It may have had flurries mixed in for all I know. On the way back, I saw little but grey glowering clouds through wet windows.
We left at 04:02; bypassed Butte and went south through Dillon; got to Idaho at 07:19; got to Utah at 10:00. On the way back we left at 05:02 and came in at 00:05. Not bad. Beachline bus drivers know how to put the peddle to the metal. Google-maps says it's 495 miles (6 hrs, 58 minutes) ... and that's just about on the dot. One of the cheerleaders gave me a lift home. (I pulled my back; I was still soaked; nice folks.) I was home before 00:30; got into a hot tub; slept well.

Everything cost me $85 (food, ticket). With gas at $3.38 (outside my window) and a car that gets 30 mph ... hmmmm ... 1,000 miles would equal about ~ $112 just for gas. Of course ... no one would ever drink or fall asleep at the wheel on a 20+ hour trip (14+ driving) or ... Yep. better this way. Could they have done better? I'll share a minor complaint with Kenny privately. He did such a great job, I'd rather you all know that it was well done.

Ah ... the game. There was a game? We're all trying to forgot that part. It was the first win over Montana by Weber State since 1998. One of our main adversaries, Eastern Washington also lost to Portland State ... not great news because we play E Wash next week in their house in Cheney, Washington (near Spokane). The loser of that game is going to be hurting. Both teams went to the playoffs last year. This year looks more iffy. Northern Arizona and Weber State are now in the 'driver's seats'.

ME:

Why did I go? I told Susan: Yes, I took off because I could! It is the freedom to do things I want to do (within reason) without having to feel grumpy or guilty about it. I considered the costs decided I could go and did. I'm 'good' for a few weeks now. I told David: I'm sure it was drier watching it on t.v. The whole thing took me back to high-school (same maroon colors). Great game? I was soaked through. And Scarlett: You nailed it. I don't normally do 3 a.m.; but, I had things laid out or I would've arrived late. Walking at 3:30 is not my cuppa nothing. 7 hour ride down and it wasn't even scenic due to rain. I got totally soaked. Didn't dry out completely in the 7 hour trip home. Would I do it again? Probably. Regardless, I'm glad I went this time.

Montana: 51º at 14:00, clouds and sunshine. Snow on Lolo.

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