In this episode we're delighted to be rejoined by Craig Caswell (S:2, E:16). When we last spoke to Craig he'd recently finished his quest to see every NCAA Division I men's basketball team play in person. Well, LeMoyne College joined the ranks this season and Craig took a trip to Syracuse, NY, to see it beat Long Island, 87-74, in late January to remain up-to-date.

Beyond that, we talk to Craig about his other passion: disc golf.

At the time of this recording he'd played 727 courses over 47 states and eight countries since he first played about after walking into Dayton's Hazy Shade Disc Golf (5% discount if use TEAMHAZYCRAIG at checkout) back in 2013.

We learn how he got interested in the sport (Hint: Tiger Woods), and about some of his favorite courses (Flip City in Shelby, MI, Harmony Bends at Strawn Park in Columbia, MO, and Tampere Disc Golf Center, in Tampere, Finland).

Craig also provides us with some history about the sport, a brief tutorial, some tips for getting started, and where and how prospective players are able to get more information:

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We're joined this week by a trio of friends. Individually, they are James "Wik" Wikman, John "JR" Ries, and Tom "Opie" Bowen. Collectively, they go by "The Basketball Mavens."

They come about the name honestly. For nearly 40 years, this threesome puts in the miles (air and land) every March by attending as many NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament games as reasonably possible. That means looking over the upcoming tournament sites well in advance, attending Thursday games in close enough proximity to drive to Friday's games, head back to the first site, and finishing up back at second site. Sweet Sixteen, Elite Eight, Final Four, and Championship games follow.

This year, the Basketball Mavens are attending opening round action in Dayton, before ping-ponging back and forth between Pittsburgh and Indianapolis. Yes, that'll be 16 games by the time first weekend is done.

During our time with the Mavens we learn of their origin story, highlights along the way, just what the heck the M.O.P. Award is, and what's left for them as sports fans to experience (Hint: The Super Bowl and Iditarod made the short list).

You're able to find their 2022 book, The Basketball Mavens - Marching to Madness at that link. You'll be able to follow their 2024 journey on X (formerly Twitter) @MarsMadness.

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In this episode, we're joined by Detroit Public School Basketball League historian, Bill Hoover.

Bill, a semi-retired educator and basketball coach, has spent decades researching the thousands of players who've passed through the Detroit PSL over the past century. He helped found the website detroitpslbasketball.com that is working on a refresh but still contains a plethora of content.

A teacher at Detroit's Barbour Intermediate School, that saw athletic legends such as Joe Altobelli, John Rowser, Bill Yearby, Ron LeFlore, Oliver Darden, Lindsay Hairston, and Johnny Davis pass through, Bill began to dedicate himself to ongoing research of those and many others.

His research has included plenty of conversations with former athletes, coaches, and teachers, and oodles of time with the Burton Historical Collection in Detroit's Public Library.

During our time with Bill we learn about the Detroit connection to the Harlem Globetrotters and the famed Brewster-Wheeler Recreation Center.

We also ask Bill to provide us with this all-time PSL team. Caught off-guard, Bill called us back so there's a special bonus segment at the end where Bill provides us with his all-time Detroit PSL teams (four of them!).

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We're delighted to be joined in this episode by Dick Mackey, one of the founders of the Iditarod Sled Dog Race, which pushes off this weekend in Anchorage, AK, this weekend for the 52nd time.

Mackey, who is joined in this episode by his biographer Lew Freedman (a third-time guest on Conversations), shares the story of how he and Joe Redington Sr. created the 1,000-mile race across Alaska over 50 years ago.

Mackey also recalls the finish from his 1978 Iditarod win, when his team edged Rick Swenson's on Nome's Front Street by one second, easily the closest finish in the race's history.

Along with his sons Bill, Jason, Lance, and Rick, the Mackey family has won the race six times. Jason has a team entered this year after taking a hiatus to rebuild his kennel.

In addition to the Mackey's biography, One Second to Glory, Freedman has a new Iditarod-focused book out, Adventures on the Iditarod Trail, published by Northern Light Media.

Links

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In this week's episode we're joined by David Joest, a retired Dreyer's Ice Cream employee and a big sports fan.

An Indiana native, David has plenty of tales to tell about - shockingly! - basketball of various varieties: high school and college, primarily, and even a nod to the "Hoosiers" gym in Knightstown, IN.

Growing up in northcentral Indiana, David had his pick of MLB teams and he chose the Detroit Tigers. He has fond memories of both the 1968 and 1984 World Series titles.

Among David's other passions is the Indianapolis 500 attending the race for the better part of 40 years and he provides lessons learned about where to sit if you ever make to "The Greatest Spectacle in Racing." He was there for Danny Sullivan's ⁠1985 "Spin & Win" and Al Unser Jr. split-second victory over Scott Goodyear in 1992 and

Finally, he's been to a few major golf championships, including the PGA Championship in 1986 at Inverness and 1991 at Crooked Stick.

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We're excited to be joined in this episode by Phil Pritchard who is better known to most folks as The Keeper of the Cup (in fact, that's his Twitter handle).

As a Vice-President of the Resource Center and Curator at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto, ON, one of Phil's many responsibilities is to accompany the Stanley Cup on many of its global journeys.

During our Conversation with Phil, we learn how this British-born accountant became a sports fan, an employee at the Hockey Hall of Fame, and also the white-gloved handler of the most famous trophy in sport. It all began listening to a Boston Bruins-Montreal Canadiens' radio broadcast.

Along the way, he shared two remarkable journeys he's taken the Cup on. One was its first-ever trip to Australia for a pair of exhibition games in 2023 and the other was a trip with Phillipp Grubauer to Bavaria, Germany, that ended with cows drinking beer from the Stanley Cup. We kid you not!

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We made inquiries to Taylor Swift's camp for her to join us in advance of Sunday's big event, but alas ... fear not! We have the next best thing with Dr. Edward Hirt, the Director of Pedagogy at Indiana University's Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences. He's also the Director of IU's HirtLab.

Much of Dr. Hirt's interest focuses on the hows and whys of sports fandom. He's been featured by major media outlets such as ESPN, PBS, the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, and the Washington Post. He can now add Conversations to his CV.

During our time together, Dr. Hirt not only traces his roots as a fan, but also helps us understand the benefits of the human connection and shared community that is being a sports fan. Dr. Hirt touches on the research done about how our favorite team's wins and losses impact our self-esteem.

Finally, he provides his take on how sports played a role in healing the the United States following the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

This was truly a fascinating episode and should not be missed.

We're joined in this episode by Hedy Eischeid, a retired Wisconsin educator who now lives and works in the Anchorage, AK, area.

During our time with Hedy we learn how she became a sports fan (think heredity), her love of all things Super Bowl, what it's like to attend games at Green Bay's historic Lambeau Field as well as what it's like to have an ownership stake in her favorite NFL team, and some of her travels as a fan of the Wisconsin Badgers; including a visit to AT&T Stadium in Arlington, TX, to see UW play Alabama led by Derrick Henry.

We also learn about what it's like to be in downtown Anchorage for the start of the Iditarod Sled Dog Race and how she'd love to go back in time to 1967's NFL Championship at Lambeau between Green Bay and the visiting Dallas Cowboys. A game that's now known as the Ice Bowl.

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We're excited to be joined in this episode by a name that's synonymous with basketball in the city of Detroit: Sam Washington Jr. During our time with Sam he shares many a tale from his time working side-by-side with his father (Sam Sr.) at St. Cecilia's aka "The Saint" located at Livernois and Stearns on the city's west side.

The Saint served as the crucible Detroit basketball players to pass through for decades beginning in 1967. Whether it be its annual summer high school league or the star-studded Pro-Am League that regularly drew capacity crowds.

Who played at The Saint? Who didn't!?! Sam drops the following names during our time together: George Gervin, Spencer Haywood, Dave DeBusschere, Magic Johnson, Isiah Thomas, Derrick Coleman, Steve Smith, Jalen Rose, and Chris Webber to name a few.

Sam also notes some 1-time players who went on to do things of note outside basketball. Dave Bing (future Detroit Mayor), Marvin Gaye and Smokey Robinson (Motown Records' legends), Tony Dungy (Hall of Fame NFL Coach), Jerome Bettis (Pro Football Hall of Famer), and Mat Ishbia (current Phoenix Suns owner)

There are more ... so many more, including recollections of the time a team from Brooklyn, NY, came to town led by Bernard King and Vinnie Johnson, as well as his dad's refusal to let Darryl Dawkins play for wholly reasonable reasons.

In 2015 Sam Jr. founded the Sam Washington Foundation a 501c3 to help honor and preserve his father's work.

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We're joined in this episode by David McEllis, one half of the the podcasting duo (along with Matt Kuzma) who bring the world the abundantly entertaining show: 1988 Topps. McEllis and Kuzma do deep dives on one of the 792 cards from the 1988 Topps Baseball Card Set. You're able to find the show on Facebook (1988 Topps Podcast), Twitter (@Topps1988), and Instagram (@1988ToppsPodcast).

During our time with David, a Chicago-area native, we learn about his coming of age as a sports fan in the mid-1980s with a Super Bowl Shufflin' Chicago Bears, seeing Chicago White Sox games at the original Comiskey Park, and how FIFA World Cup video games hipped him to the Liverpool Football Club.

We also learn how 1988 Topps came to be, what the experience has been like, and what some of the most popular episodes have been.

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