Big East Women’s Tournament – ESPN Family of Networks
Travel in on Thursday was agonizing. I was on about 2 hours of sleep. By the time I arrived at the hotel I had a horrible headache and was about to pass out from exhaustion. Instead of getting settled into the room, like I always do, I chose to take a nap.
The nap was a bad call. I felt worse when I got up 45 minutes later. But there were things to do!
Ventured out on a walk so I could get some bottled water for the week. (I go thru several bottles a day and shockingly enough, I am very particular about the brand). I had already broken 2 of my rules today – had drank hotel tap water from a hotel room glass because I was so dehydrated.
Side note – try not to use the glassware/coffee cups in hotel rooms. They aren’t really washed. The housekeeping staff wipes them off with furniture polish (makes them shiny) and puts them back on your shelf or counter. I read this horrifying fact in a business traveler publication a few years ago. Try giving the glass a sniff next time – I bet you it smells like Pledge!
Anyway – I set out on my walk for bottled water. I knew there was a CVS about 8 blocks away. (we didn’t have rental cars due to budget cuts) So my plan was to get a 12 pack and then go back in a day or two for more.
It was bitterly cold and my headache was entering into the migraine phase – I got to CVS and all they had were cases of water. Well there was no way I was going to look for another store – so I walked the 8 blocks back lugging a case of water.
Got unpacked and checked email, etc. The migraine worsened as I found out several of my former co-workers at Ch. 6 had just gotten laid off. Including the person I trained to replace me. I felt so horrible for all of them.
The rest of the night I spent in absolute misery. One of the worst migraines ever! I thought I was going to die at many points in the night.
Woke up on Friday feeling much better!
Made my way over to the XL Center and started setting up for the tournament.
In this arena, the trucks park inside which is nice as we don’t have to deal with the cold weather.
The next few days were a whirlwind!
Saturday & Sunday we didn’t have studio support for our halftimes or between games. So we were on the air for 5 hours straight. Basically, I have to dehydrate myself to make it thru without a potty break.
I enjoy the challenge of tournaments (and double-headers), but yowza the days are long! Sitting for 10-12 hours for several days in a row also takes a toll on your body.
There are stacks of media guides, stat packs, box scores, etc. everywhere you look in the truck; it gets quite messy within the first day!
All-in-all the tournament went very good. It was probably the smoothest tournament I have ever done. I was paired up with Jason, my AP from football, and of all the events we have worked on together over the years – this was by far was our best event to date.
No rest for the weary – had a 6am flight out on Wednesday morning. Once again was miserable and questioning my career choice. Had a full day awaiting me back in Columbus – was doing a Duet training session for a client and then dinner plans with friends. (Yes, I did something fun and normal for once!)
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