Gorman, BC set to enjoy travel benefits

Spencer Patterson

Thursday, Sept. 14, 2000 | 9:57 a.m.

The way the Las Vegas area has grown during the past decade, parents may feel like they've driven to the ends of the earth to see their sons play high school football.

But this year, players, coaches and parents will truly come to understand the meaning of travel, as a pair of football games will take two area schools to the far reaches of the United States.

Next week, the Bishop Gorman Gaels and their faithful followers will fly to Anchorage, Alaska, for a Sept. 21 contest against Dimond High School.

Six weeks later, the Boulder City Eagles will take to the air as well, flying to Orlando, Fla., for a Nov. 3 clash with Lake Placid High School as part of this year's Disneybowl.

"You're getting an expansion of interest in high school football, and it's happening all over," Eagles coach Dan Cahill said. "Things like this make the football experience something really special, something that you really remember."

To that end, Bishop Gorman and Boulder City have planned a series of activities in conjunction with the football games in an attempt to make their trips educational as well.

For the Gaels, who leave Wednesday morning and return Saturday night, a tour of the Anchorage area is on tap for Friday. Included will be trips to Earthquake Park, site of the most powerful earthquake in North American history, and to a local museum, where the team will learn about the construction of the Alaskan Pipeline.

On Saturday, Gorman will visit a pair of Alaskan glaciers, the Portage and Exit glaciers, with a boat ride planned so the players can experience the frozen masses up close and personal.

"There's an educational value to this trip that's tremendous," said Gorman coach Roger Whalen, whose squad will be housed by host families in Anchorage. "It's a cross-cultural experience."

While Bishop Gorman's coaches and administrators planned their own Alaskan itinerary, Boulder City's schedule was predetermined by Disneybowl officials, who hold games between like-sized schools throughout the month of November.

The game will be played at Disneyworld's All-Star Sports Complex, a massive facility that houses four football stadiums, as well as several gymnasiums and multi-purpose fields, including the Atlanta Braves' spring training complex.

Before Friday's contest, the Eagles will attend a series of "classes," during which instructors will use the Disneyworld/Epcot Center facilities to show the students real-life applications of classroom education. For example, Boulder City players interested in science and math will get a behind-the-scenes look at the inner workings of the park's rides.

The Eagles will receive four-day passes to Disneyworld, and will get opportunities to spend time at Epcot and the MGM Studios Theme Park. The school's cheerleaders will also perform at the Magic Kingdom on Saturday.

"They were looking for a western team about our size, and they'd never had a team from Nevada or Utah before," Cahill said. "We had an opening in our schedule."

Of course, trips to Alaska and Florida do not come without a price tag, and that means the Gaels and Eagles have been in serious fundraising mode for months.

Gorman, which will bring a total of 50 coaches and players to Alaska, has raised $40,000 since last winter, through a series of fence projects, car washes and a team lift-a-thon.

Boulder City has also been at it for the past year, raising $42,000 of the $52,000 the school will need to send 43 players, 14 cheerleaders and nine coaches to Florida. The Eagles worked with local businesses to offer "bottomless" thermos cups and discount cards, washed cars and even held a giant yard sale in their home football stadium.

Both coaches agree that in addition to the money raised, those activities helped build team unity -- something they hope will translate into even greater success on the field this season.

"It was a bonding experience, being out in 115-degree weather together working on fences," Whalen said. "I thought it might pump some interest back into the program, and it has."