Pole patrol

You know how most job descriptions have a line at the bottom of it that says (something to the effect of): “Other duties as assigned”? Yeah, well. That was my DAY on Monday! Other duties as assigned!
 
Alert readers of this blog might know that our track team has pole vaulters on our roster. Pole vaulters need poles. Poles are expensive. Fortunately, we don’t BUY them. We RENT them. Each year, we order poles for our vaulters from a Massachusetts group called Patriot Pole Vault Club. The catch? We have to go GET them (before the season) and RETURN them (after the season).
 
After a few email exchanges, the poles are waiting for us on some sawhorses in a residential area in Westborough, MA. For those keeping score at home, that’s about a 375-mile roundtrip. Drive there, in one of our team vans, load the poles, drive back. That’s a DAY.
 
Fortunately, I had two loyal teammates – Jeremy Mbogo and Gabe Rodriguez – along for the ride. Van talk was plentiful. They were able to help me load the 14 poles (yes, 14 poles!) for the return trip to Marist. For their companionship and service, they were treated to dinner at Chick Fil A at some exit off the Mass Pike.
 
Previous pole/van trip companions have been my friend Eric and my daughter Natalie. Who will ride with me in May? That’s a long time from now. But, it’ll be here before we all know it.