Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
PROVO -- BYU may have its hands full against third-ranked Oklahoma Saturday in Arlington, Texas. What about the guys, though, who had to haul the football team's equipment halfway across the country?
Charles Cox, standing next to a semitrailer named "Cougar Won," describes an unbelievably busy, long season of travel, packed with stories and thousands of miles.
"Ten-thousand miles a year," Cox said, in an interview with KSL Newsradio. "This year it'll be about 11,000."
Cox and two assistants take five hour shifts behind the wheel of Cougar Won, and it is not uncommon for them to drive from Provo to Texas before refueling. Cox and his crew are comforted by all the amenities truckers could want.
"We have a microwave on board, a television on board. We have DVD players on board, we have satellite radio on board," Cox said. "We have a GPS antenna on here - the same one they put on aircraft."
Perhaps the most difficult part of the season for Cox and company will be the first two games. It's a long drive to Arlington, then a longer drive the next week to New Orleans. Cougar Won returns to Provo Sunday and leaves again on Tuesday, leaving the drivers at least a little stir-crazy.
"I relate it to cabin fever or being on an airplane," Cox said. "I get off after I've driven a long trip like this and I get out of the truck. I go inside to go to bed, and the room's moving."
Cougar Won is actually the third semi in six seasons to be enlisted by BYU. Cox says he sold the first one online and the second burned down in front of his house overnight because of a mechanical problem.
Cox says his favorite city to visit is San Diego. His least favorite is Laramie. The most hostile fans, he says, are in Logan. Mostly, he enjoys seeing BYU fans in other towns.
"It's pretty neat when you're driving down the road," Cox said. "BYU fans will come by and they will honk their horn. They'll hold up a BYU hat. They'll put something out the window. They'll cheer. They'll flash their lights."
E-mail: aadams@ksl.com
