The varsity cross country team and varsity field hockey team have logged the longest bus rides of any fall sports team thus far with a two-hour long trek each.
Athletes take similar approaches to enduring these commutes.
Senior varsity cross country runner Andrew Fogerty said that the bus ride is a time for the runners to relax and settle in. “The longest one that we have had this year is two hours,” Fogerty said. “On the bus rides, I just listen to music and try to relax before the race.” The cross country teams traveled to Seneca East High School, southwest of Shaker Heights, for a Sept. 6 meet.
Men’s soccer and golf teams have ridden the second- and third- longest rides, respectively.
Senior varsity defender Will Taigen said that the long rides are divided between hanging out with teammates and zoning in on the game ahead. “Our longest ride was traveling to Wooster. It was about an hour and 15 min ride,” Taigen said. “I would say the first part of the bus ride is mostly spent talking and joking around with teammates, but toward the later half of the drive, most of us listen to music and focus on the game ahead.” The soccer team’s record is 6-1-1.
Quintin Garnett, a senior golfer, said that the team’s rides are relaxed. The men’s golf team’s longest ride to this point was an hour and a half drive to Port Clinton Aug. 10 for the Port Clinton Classic. “And we just chilled and watched TikTok and talked to our coach,” Garnett said. The Raiders placed first among 20 teams.
No other fall sports team has ridden longer than an hour at this point in the season. The next longest drive, at 45 minutes, belongs to the varsity women’s and JV men’s golf teams, who traveled to Bunker Hill Golf Course in Medina Aug. 8 and Sept. 12, respectively, to face Brunswick.
This story originally appeared within the Raider Roundup, published Sept. 23, 2023.