Men’s August Exposure and Placement Camp, The “Fire Sale” - 2004
August 17 th to 29 th.

Maribor, Slovenia, August 17 to 21

Don’t kid yourself, this story begins before the tour. Understand that most
people arrive in Europe with their own little adventures predating any of the
events destined to occur in an environment such as ours. Maybe you’re from
Japan and speak about as well as a 1985 robotic kid’s toy, maybe you survived a
33-hour train ride from Spain, or maybe you’re from the Midwest and your name is
Ryan. Whatever the case, you’re here for volleyball, or at least you think
that going in.

Maribor, Slovenia is a beautiful place. If you want to know what it’s really
like I would recommend reading a past entry written by someone who can do it
justice. From the top of the mountain by the Hotel Arena you can see almost all
of the country, from any café you can eat for under 4 Euros, and from my
perspective there is no better place to start the tour.

Maribor, top of the Pohorje Mountain

Maribor, the boys heading into town for lunch

Our first match versus OK Maribor proved to be typical Euro style volleyball.
They had one guy who we affectionately dubbed "Tubby Butter" who led their
charge. With one middle, and about as motley a crew as volleyball could muster,
we lost our first match in five straight sets. Drinking away our jet lag late
into the night, we trained the next morning and returned the next night to
come away with three of five in straight sets. It should be noted that their
opposite did tier out at the end, but as wise men say, "You can’t drive a tractor
like a corvette two nights in a row."

Logistically speaking, the tour is structured as such: You arrive knowing
only the name of the hotel in which you need to be, with more bags than you need, and if you studied you also have the information provided in past journals.
This last bit may be the single most important thing you do before you sign up.
The first night TK (Tim Kelly, your agent) will roll up in a van, shake your
hand and say let’s go. You’ll be in a gym training with people you’ve probably
never played with before, at levels as random as a lottery draw. There will
no doubt be a big banger or two, someone who passes nails, and the guy that
didn’t read the journals and can’t tie his shoes.

You’ll train twice a day at the beginning. While you do your best to be
noticed, Tim will set up loosely structured drills in between answering his
constantly ringing cell phone in one of five languages. Trust me, he sees what you’re doing and is constantly evaluating your performance on and off the court. If you don’t arrive in shape you’ll be sore. If you don’t come focused, you won’t
perform. And if you came for late nights and round-abouts with European
women, look for a different tour.

That said, there’s more to Maribor than volley and Zlatorog (the best beer in
Europe)…then again, after those, it’s hard to want to remember a whole lot
else. Our last night in Maribor saw Adam speaking sufficiently enough to order
beer and women in perfect Slovenian ("Eno pivo" and "Dice lema"). That same
night Ryan, our 6’6" corn fed outside hitter/comic relief from the Midwest stood
in boxer briefs in the middle of a crowded bar while our little Samurais
pounded beers. Of eleven, it is alleged that eight slept in the hotel.

I don’t know where you guys went to school, but we were naked every
other night.

Bled, Slovenia, August 22 to 23

Hands down the most beautiful place we’ve seen thus far. We arrived in Bled
with mediocre weather and headed straight for the lake that comprises the
greater Bled Area. I should mention that at this point we’re travelling with three
girls left over from the women’s tour who had yet to land jobs. While they
remain hopeful, it proves an important reminder of what could come to be. The
fact is that there are more people than jobs, more jobs than money, and more high aspirations than a room full of Tony Robbins clients. If you want a job that
pays well, has security, and will even give you those language lessons or the
new moped you’ve been dreaming about, shop elsewhere. If you’re here for the
experience, welcome aboard.

Bled, no words needed

After parking the vans we dove into the thermally heated lake and proceed to
swim the 300 meters to the island with the church—all standard issue for tours
of the past. However, upon return we were blessed with an absolute downpour
and chose to cram nine people into a rowboat, dragging Ryan, all the way to the
shore.

Ryan (pre-tow). No photos of the full boat, Thank God.

That night we played a very solid team from the area whose team included
Slovenian national team members. The volleyball has begun a trend of increasing
quality. The guys seem to be coming together. The morning trainings and evening matches have not taken too heavy a toll on anyone as far as I can see. We matched up well against this team though we lost all our sets. Euro volley is
something different, I will try to explain more when I understand it.

At this point another pair of realizations come into focus. First, the food
is outstanding and we are well catered too. Second, the accommodation leaves
nothing to be desired. Maribor would be our last hotel experience. In Bled we
slept in a hall (AKA, volleyball gym) right next to the lake and the city
center. We all had massive gymnastics pads and plenty of place to sleep.

5 stars, and right on the lake. Thanks Gregor!

Again, I haven’t the words to do a place like Bled justice. TK describes it
as possibly the most beautiful place in Europe. One other notable before we
move on: our two Japanese players are teaching us just enough of their native
tongue for us to get our "chin chins" cut off should we ever visit Japan.

Editor’s Note: Did Dave forget to mention that we went rafting on the
"mighty" Soca River?

"White-Water" Rafting in Bled, worth the 18 Euros

Salzburg, Austria, August 23 and 24

So often the emphasis is put on the destination. But riding shotgun in an
eight-passenger van as we pass from Slovenia to the heart of Austria, I realize
that we’ve scored more than good volleyball, good eats, and a very slim chance
to land a job. We’re getting a first rate tour of some of the most beautiful
countryside in Europe. So into the lands of the Euro we go. No more Slovenian
currency, and no more Slovenian pivo. In fact, at a rest stop after the border,
one of our outsides, Dhiraj Coates found that not all bathrooms in Europe are
equipped with toilet paper. Fortunately, we were able to collect enough
Tolars (Slovenian Currency) to avert the crisis.

In Salzburg we ate lunch at one of the most beautiful country clubs I have
seen, saw postcard perfect mountains, and slept in a hostel within spitting
distance of the castle. To settle a bet, I will verify that the lead (Julie
Andrews) in the Sound of Music is also Mary Poppins…and yes, I would.

Our lunch spot in the Sound of Music country…

Salzburg gave us a couple things I will never forget. First and foremost, in
Europe, although you may be a country away from the nearest ocean, and
although it may be overcast with a slight chill in the wind, it is always acceptable
to sport the banana hammocks (AKA Speedos) while playing beach volleyball or
running track. Second, and equally memorable on all levels, we acquired a new
player, an ex-Canadian National Teamer. Stories surround this guy like flies on
dookie.

We matched up well against our young Austrian opponents and won four of five
in straight sets even with the new guy missing eleven consecutive serves.
Still, on their side of the net, I think the following is typical for a low or mid
level European club. There will be one guy, maybe two, making the "big"
money. That guy will usually be the opposite or primary outside. Then there will be a middle of about 19 years and another outside that’s married and has two
kids and a job during the day.

If there is a foreign guy on the team it is likely he will not be a setter,
or even less likely, a libero (I write this as a setter: it is a cruel
reality). The bench of said team will be comprised of a motley crew of locals. So it
looks to me like this. In the US, you’ve got a surplus of players and very few
programs in the men’s game. Here, you’ve got a fair number of places to play,
but your competition is fierce. It’s not that the level is out of your reach,
it’s that you have to be two or three times better than the guy in the spot
you want because it’s going to cost them two to three times more to hire you.
The guy that works in his dads shoe store will play for free.

Editor’s note: Please re-read this part of what Dave just said: "It’s not
that the level is out of your reach, it’s that you have to be two or three times
better than the guy in the spot you want because it’s going to cost them two
to three times more to hire you."

Munich/Unterhaching, Germany, August 24 to 27

We arrive in Unterhaching and step out of the van with tight backs, popping
knees, and a little anxiety. Rather than sending players off on tryouts, we’ve
acquired two since the start of the tour. The van has become quite crowded
with the two newbies, not to mention one of the guys brought three bags—two of
them the size of small coffins.

On the court, this is the best volleyball we have seen. The club is in
serious financial difficulty but managed to snag some very good German players.
We’ve yet to play a team with a foreigner. We played three nights here and trained three times a day. We had morning practice, afternoon passing, and later,
competitions. The food has been great and I’m beginning to feel more at home on the gym floor than anywhere else.

Team BIP with TSV Unterhaching

The middle night in Unterhaching saw us doing flips off of one of the
gymnastics trampolines, over the still erected volleyball net, and onto an oversized mat. Other notables in our gym included indoor soccer, a mean game of Hearts that lasted until four in the morning, and one of our "chin-chin" brothers
dancing at attention across the floor.

Adam Stempel, probably breaking the tour rules here

We also escaped the second day to Dachau, a former concentration camp from
WWII. It was an experience I will not forget, but at times wish I could...

Dhiraj in Dachau. The ovens are one of the toughest sites on the grounds.

Editor’s note: Thanks again to Mihai and everyone in Unterhaching for being
so generous with their time and facilities. I swear that no one jumped in the
pool (or even tried) this year.

Friedrichshafen, Germany (and Amirswil, Switzerland), August 27 to 29

Now we’re getting somewhere! Before arriving in Friedrichshafen we managed to
unload Monte Tucker and Ryan Genova. Monte was a former All-Conference
outside hitter in the MPSF at the University of California, Irvine. And Ryan, well,
you wouldn’t remember the school (Juniata), but you’d never forget this kid.
Both will be missed for their own unique contributions. (Note: Monte signed the
next day with an N1 team in Vannes, France. Ryan is currently on a temporary
training contract in Almeria, Spain where some other American guy is also
located (Curt something, I think he went to Stanford)).

Editor’s note: Curt Toppel signed with UniCaja Almeria for the 2004-2005
Season. Almeria is the #1 ranked team in Spain and will be competing in Champions League this season. Hopefully Ryan will remain on the roster.

While in Friedrichshafen we managed to dump another player as well, though
you hate to see it go down like it did. From my angle, it appears that some guys
are just not meant to play in Europe. I don’t care what National Team you play
ed for, if you can’t even take a training session or a game seriously, you’ll
find yourself on your own. And that’s all I have to say about that.

That night we found a club with well-equipped fifteen-year-old girls,
fifty-cent beers (Becks!), and a dance floor. If you’ve never seen a Euro dance, it’s probably just as well. (PS. Don’t forget your shants, leather sandals, and
see-through or cut-off shirt)

The volleyball in Friedrichshafen is probably the lowest that we saw. We
played their second team and absolutely crushed them with Doug English, standout libero from Northridge, playing in the middle blocker position. We also met, the next night, a setter from the US who signed with them: Keith Schunzel from Ball State. It seems like a cool town. Right on the Swiss boarder and the
biggest lake in Europe.

Editor’s Note: Vfb Friedrichshafen’s #1 Team is one of the best in Europe.
They’re always a powerhouse in the Champions League and usually win the German Bundesliga as well. The team we played is their 2nd League Development Program and is very well run. We thank Sohnke profusely for his generosity and support of our tour and players. Danke!

Day two, we headed across the lake via the ferry. Tim said it was the first
ferry on tour...I beg to differ.

The first ever ferry ride on a BIP Men’s Tour

In Switzerland we competed against two teams during the day in a kind of very
informal, semi-tournament deal with no referees. We absolutely Chernobled the
first match. It was embarrassing. Their German middle might as well have
resurrected the Berlin wall because no one on our side was getting by him. We
reloaded on the grass fields outside, under the shade of a tree, and ate a gourmet picnic—complements of Tim. We won our next match against a team from Germany who had an American placed with them. The player’s name is Nate Hallet, of Rocklyn, California, and he is training as a setter/opposite.

Our author with his hero, Nathan Hallet. Two hacks if you ask me…

This team had the first player/coach I had seen. The dude was forty-four
years old and played libero and outside for them. Weird by US standards, but Tim
said it’s pretty standard in the second and third level leagues.

Editor’s Question: Didn’t the old guy roof someone on our squad? Any ideas on
that Dhiraj?

The "Drop-Off", Munich, Germany, August 29

So here it is. The end of the tour. It breaks down like this (As of
8/29/2004):

-Monte Tucker—signed in Vannes, France

-Ryan Genova—signed (temporarily) in Almeria, Spain

-Dhiraj Coates (OH, Pepperdine) and Adam Stempel (our OPP from the Great
Lakes region) are off to Poland to tryout for a team in Bialska-Biala

-"New Doug" Soviero (OH, Sacred Heart) is off to a small town in Germany to
tryout (Rottenburg).

-At this point, I think I leave for Holland to tryout for a team that pays
about a 100 Euro a month but gives me the opportunity to live and play in
Europe. And that’s it.

Doug English, probably the best position player on the team is heading home.
The sad fact being that there are simply no jobs at the moment for Liberos.
Our Japanese players are also homeward bound. Our 6´10" middle, Josh Stanheiser (of University of Hawaii) is going to travel around until something pops up. Everyone else is headed back to the States where there exist real possibilities
of work, consistent paychecks, and all those comforts we’ve come to treasure
growing up in the most spoiled nation in the world. Whatever happens on my
end, I’m in for the ride...

Editor’s Note: The final roster, with notes as of 9/6/2004:

Dave Kniffin (your author above): Signed in Teurel, Spain (FEV)
Monte Tucker: Signed in Vannes, France (N1)
Ryan Genova: Signed (training contract) in Almeria, Spain
Josh Stanhiser: Trying out with an Estonian Team in Finland
Adam Stempel
Dhiraj Coates
Doug Soviero
Doug English
John Krammes
Jyunya "Junior" Matsumoto
Yoshiyuki "Tatsu" Imai

The journal has to include this one…

Many lessons learned..