THE STREAK
By Chris Kowalczyk
2-10-10

I remind Rick Childers that there’s some irony in calling him today, as a foot of snow is piling up outside, the result of Richmond’s worst winter storm in years. He doesn’t seem fazed.

“I don’t think I’ve ever missed a game because of snow,” He says. “We always seem to make it.”

That might be the understatement of the year. Counting VCU’s Feb. 9 game at George Mason, Childers has been “making it” to every VCU Men’s Basketball game, home or away, for five straight years - 165 in a row. That includes excursions to Reno, San Juan, The Virgin Islands, New Orleans, Buffalo, Oklahoma City, Peoria and everywhere in between.

The last time Childers missed a game was Feb. 2, 2005, after his father died. Before that, he had been to 72 consecutive games.

That doesn’t mean there haven’t been some close calls along the way. Last November, VCU was scheduled to play Oklahoma in Oklahoma City. The day before the game, Childers was driving up 95 North on the way to the airport with his wife, Yevonne, and Hook Shepherd, his friend and longtime travel partner, when he learned his flight had been cancelled.

“Hook said, ‘I think that means we’ve got to take a left,’” Childers joked.

And they did, spreading the 19-hour drive over two days, with a stop in Memphis along the way.

Childers (right) has not missed a VCU Basketball game, home or away, since 2005.

Not every trip is ad-libbed. Most of them are planned months in advance. Every year, when VCU releases its schedule, Childers and Shepherd meet at Melito’s in the West End and hash out travel plans over chili dogs. They decide which games are drivable, which will require a flight, if they need to stay overnight or if they can make it in a single day. From there, Childers begins making arrangements.

“I’m the travel agent,” Childers says.

Travel czar is more like it. Need an $80 flight to Atlanta? He can do that. Trying to decide which airport you should use to get to Kalamazoo, Mich.? Not a problem. Got a hankering for seafood in Wilmington, N.C.? Childers is all over it. On overnight stays, he usually goes with Marriott hotels, where he can rack up points. As much as he tries to keep costs reasonable, he does have his limits.

“I work hard for a living and I’m not sharing a room with anybody but my wife,” Said Childers, a state police lieutenant.

Some trips are easier than others. You can get to league foes James Madison, Old Dominion, George Mason and William & Mary all in two hours or less. In four, you can knock out trips to Drexel, Delaware and UNC Wilmington. Childers says that driving to Hofstra and back on a Wednesday isn’t his favorite thing in the world, but he still does it every year.

“I don’t drive fast,” The 52-year-old Childers said. “People think I drive fast because I’m a police officer and they think I can get out of tickets. But we don’t.”

Instead, Childers combines advance planning with cool efficiency. They tailor their schedule to avoid traffic and rarely make stops. Childers admits he doesn’t need a GPS during conference season anymore.

Some games are like mini vacations. When the Rams played Tulane in New Orleans earlier this season, Childers, an Indianapolis Colts fan, and his wife stopped in Jacksonville, Fla. to watch Peyton Manning and Co. take on the Jaguars.

But the real question here is, what would cause a man to put in more miles than FedEx?

“The thing about VCU is, I know the coach. We’re not buddy buddy, but I know the coach. Try to go to North Carolina and do that.”

Shepherd agrees that the tight-knit atmosphere of VCU is hard to duplicate.

“The one thing about VCU Basketball is that it’s a family affair,” said Shepherd, a regular at Rams’ games since 1968. “You’re able to get to know the people. When you travel a lot you get an insight into the kids. It’s more than just basketball for them. They’re young men growing up.”

It all started in the early 80s, when they started going to Rams’ games with friends for $1. They went to as many games as possible, and in 1985, the Childers’ broke down and purchased season tickets, which they have held ever since. VCU opened the Stuart C. Siegel Center in 1999, and Childers has attended every Rams’ game in the building. He’s also seen every CAA Tournament game, whether it be Northeastern versus Towson in the first round, or VCU against Old Dominion in the final, since the Rams joined the league in 1995.

Childers spends an inordinate amount of time following VCU Basketball, quite literally, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.

“It gets me through the winter,” He says simply. “I’m one of those people, if I don’t have something to do, I go crazy.”

Childers doesn’t know how long he’ll keep the streak going. He’s aware of it, but he doesn’t go to games just to perpetuate the streak.

“After the streak of 72 ended, I looked at my wife and said that I was kind of glad it was over,” Childers said. “But it just sort of kicked back up again. It’s easy going when you’re winning.”

One potential streak stopper is the Rams’ annual BracketBusters contest. The Rams don’t learn their opponent for that game until three weeks prior. Last season, VCU was sent to Reno, Nev. Two years ago, it was Akron, Ohio. Even when VCU’s BracketBusters game is played at home, as it is this year, the Rams have to return that game the next season.

“Every time I see a team mentioned, I start thinking about how I’m going to get there,” Childers said.

For now, the streak chugs ahead. Over the years, a number of people have made an appearance and hitched a ride on the Childers Express. If you’re every lucky enough to be one of them, it’s best to know the ground rules.

“If you’re traveling with Rick,” Shepherd says. “Don’t be drinking a whole lot of coffee before you leave, because he’s not stopping.”

Not anytime soon, anyway.  

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