When Bomber second baseman Andrew Steiger commented at a tournament in July of 2003 how "cool" it would be to travel across country playing baseball, no one knew that this dream would become reality. But Coach Rick Ockerman saw it as a challenge and opportunity. So when he found a bus on ebay, he bought it and with the help of the team and team parents (particularly "Builder Bob" Wilson), Da Bus was born, equipped with bunks, sofas, seats, TVs, a refrigerator and the all important "X-Box" game system.
The dream though, would not have become reality but for the sponsorship of Honda of Kirkland. When Larry Mallory said that Honda of Kirkland would pick up the tab for the costs of the trip, the dream came alive. The dealership covered the cost of the fuel, oil, repairs, tires, and KOA campgrounds fees, totaling nearly $5000.
On June 25, 2004, Da Bus rolled out of Kirkland and headed east for tournaments in Yakima, Cooperstown and Gettysburg to name a few. Planned stops in along the way, we almost as enjoyable as the unplanned stops for blow tires and the like. The team took trips to Deer Lodge, MT for fishing as shown in the movie A River Runs Through It; the Custer battlefield at Harlin, Montana, and then on to Mt. Rushmore.
The team also visited other landmarks along the way, Major League Baseball's Hall of Fame, the Gettysburg battlefield, Mount Vernon, the Monticello and in Washington, DC, the Lincoln, Vietnam Veteran's, World War II, and Washington memorials. They also saw the White House, the Smithsonian, the Air and Space Museum and finished up on the steps of the Capital Building.
The highlight of the trip came in a game against the hometown Twins in Cooperstown, NY. The Twins were "monster" players, most being the sons of retired professional ball players and included the son of the President of Baseball's Hall of Fame. The Twins jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, but the Bombers, true to form, kept coming back. Another outstanding game ensued watching the lead change hands three times. Then in the bottom of the sixth inning, Dean "Little D" Buchannan came up to bat. Little D hadn't had a hit all year long, but he swung a mighty stick that day hitting a two run single to put the Bombers up 8-7. Then Steve Ockerman came in again to close out the game striking out the final batter on a 3-2 count curveball for the win.
Elated, the players, coaches and parents jumped for joy and then lined up to receive the recognition from the Tournament Director as the Champions of the Tri-Town Invitational Tournament. The 30 inch trophy was proudly displayed on the dashboard of "Da Bus" for the remainder of the trip.
On the return trip home, a detour to Dyersville, Iowa to see the Field of Dreams, allowed the boys to practice with one of the Ghost teams. A semi-pro team that plays in the uniforms of the early 1900's as depicted in the movie.
Da Bus completed its trip home to Kirkland by arriving at 2:00am on July 11th having driven 68 straight hours. Players were met by parents and family and more than one swore that they would never get on "Da Bus" again!
Postscript: Upon arriving home, the Bombers shed their gold and black for their Senior Division Little League Reds uniforms and immediately entered the District 8 All Star tournament to come away with that Championship as well, and are now headed to the State Tournament in Vancouver. Looks like "Da Bus" will roll out again sooner than they thought!
