So here’s the deal. I got this crazy idea last month to make a solid guide for the Montana Class C hoops tourney next year. Why? Because every dang time my nephew tries to find tournament details online, he ends up clicking through fifteen county websites looking like a lost puppy.
Step one: track down the basic stuff. First I called the Montana High School Association office directly – got put on hold for like twenty minutes listening to crappy elevator music. When somebody finally picked up, they gave me the dates: March 5-8, 2025 at that big arena in Great Falls. Wrote it down in my beat-up notebook right there.
The Wild Goose Chase Part
Then things got messy. Tried finding which teams qualified last year for some context. Big mistake. Their site’s search function works about as good as a screen door on a submarine. Wasted two whole hours clicking through broken pages before driving down to the library to dig through local newspapers on microfilm. Found out Shelby High won the boys bracket – they got pictures with cowboy hats after winning, classic Montana.
- Printed physical copies of schedules at Staples because my printer started jamming
- Called three different schools pretending to be somebody’s aunt for locker room gossip
- Drew a bracket chart on my kitchen wall with dry erase markers
The big headache was ticket info. One source said sales start January 15th, another said February 1st. Even the lady at Butte Central High sounded confused. Finally got a straight answer from an athletic director who chuckled and said “yeah our webmaster’s retiring, we’re switching platforms next week”. Made me wanna bang my head on the counter.
Putting It All Together
Sat down with all my scribbles last Tuesday. Rearranged my notes three times before it made sense – tournament dates, locations, qualifying teams from last year, where to buy tickets. Important tip: added emergency contact numbers because cell service dies in those remote gyms like somebody flips a switch. Double-checked every detail by texting my bus driver cousin who’s driven teams for fifteen years.
Ended up making this massive PDF guide with purple highlights (my favorite color) and simple maps. Felt so dang satisfied hitting save I cracked open a root beer at 10AM. Still find tournament planning more exhausting than coaching tee-ball, but now when somebody asks “when’s that Browning vs. Malta game?” I can actually answer straight.