Interview with Wings/Barrage equipment manager, Mike Fox

by Kevin Neibauer

This is the most popular interview that I have ever had the pleasure to do.

Going through the archives, I felt bad because this wasn't in here.

Originally done in April 2005, Mike Fox shows why I refer to him as the "Hardest Working Man In Philadelphia Sports."


Now that the Wings season has ended and the Barrage have not yet begun, I was wondering what do fans due to keep themselves busy in the interim?

I found a person who has no problem keeping himself occupied.

An exclusive "one on one" with Michael J. Fox

No, not that Michael J. Fox....the Fox that serves as equipment manager for
the Philadelphia Wings.

Kevin M. Neibauer got the opportunity to chat with the busiest man in
Philadelphia sports....

Wings fans recognize Mike Fox as the guy on the bench who opens the door to
the bench and comes out to offer aid to an injured Wing player.

But, there is much, much more about Fox. Most fans have no idea just what it
is that Mike does.

All his responsibilites with local teams, a full time "regular" job, a
family.....

Well let's let Mike tell us...

KMN- Mike, Describe your duties with the Wings.

MF- "Well, my title is Head Equipment Manager. So, first and foremost, my job is to have all the equipment for the team....which means either having them
outfitted or have the equipment with me in order for them to practice and play.

It sounds simple when stated that way, but it really involves much much more.

I make sure that the players and coaches have everything that they need. I keep supplies of pens. markers, toiletries, equipment,etc. so that when they
come in they can do their job without worrying about anything.

I am in charge of all ordering, maintenance and repair of equipment and
uniforms.

I try to foresee problems, carrying things like sewing kits, hot glue guns,
even lacing so that we have everything covered.

Things like having the radio in the locker room, always smiling, name plates
for the lockers, these are things that happen everyday.

I was asked once if I carried shoe polish, now, we have a kit that we
travel with.

So, as you see, taking care of equipment is just part of the task of the
equipment manager."

KMN- On Wings game day, what is a typical day like?

MF- "There are a number of factors that makes this a tough question to
answer...Is there a shoot around? Are we home or away? Are we playing the next day....things like that.

However, if we have a home game at 7:30 PM, I arrive at the arena
around 9 AM. This gives me a little time to get my stuff unloaded from my
truck. (We have no storage facility at the Wachovia Center so everything that we
need for the game has to brought in a taken away)

I then set up the radio and get the hot water ready for the Coaches's tea and
make coffee for the guys. I get the visitors stuff together for their
practice....36 balls, cups, soap, shampoo and towels for their shoot around,
everything gets placed in their locker room.

Jenn Massey, our trainer, helps by sending the coolers of water and gatorade
and, of course, the squeeze bottles.

At this point, I begin putting the name plates on the lockers for our guys so that players know where his locker is.

I proceed to set up my table with the tape, gum, stringing materials,
markers, tools, Red Bull, ticket envelopes and everything the players need to get their stuff ready.

While the Wings are doing their shoot around, I get the "game day" stuff
ready for the officials room. The 36 game balls, the towels, soap, toiletries, and
a pack of assorted drinks.

I then take the dirty towels from the visitors locker romm and leave them
their game ones . I check with the visiting manager to see if they need anything else.

For example, Toronto had 6 players bags that didn't make it in time for the
game, so I drove to our storage facility and got 6 sets of equipment, down to
socks and compression gear.

Normally, right about then our shoot around is winding down and the guys
wander in to get changed and maybe watch either game tapes or Rippy's lacrosse show (Rip Roarin' Lacrosse)

While that is going on I will put out the uniforms and clean up for the
evening's game. It is now around 1 PM and I head home until my 4:00 PM return.


When I return, I try to get there before the players so I can catch my
breath. Once the players come in I am on the go doing tasks and answering questions.

We have the DVD player set up at this point and I have set out markers in the coaches room along with paper so they can post the line-ups, keys to the game etc.

Up until we go out for pre-game, we have footage on the TV at all times.

The rest of the drinks are delivered so we have the interns ice down the game (bottled water) and post game drinks.(soda for the hoagies).

At this time I am changing heads and shafts. I don't string well, so a number of players have taken on that responsibilty. We watch the clock to get
everyone into meetings or on the floor at the right times.

I then help Dallas (Eliuk) get ready. Checking his straps and tightening up
his pads. Then I help him with his jersey.

The footage that the fans see in the pre-game of the team getting ready is
correct.

Next, we stock the bench with towels, water bottles and some bottles of
players favorites.(rehydralite, gatorade, poweraid...etc)

The ball boys then need to be checked to make sure they are all there and
doing their jobs. They gather the balls up after the last practice shot from
both teams and return them to me.

Once we get back into the locker room before intros, we are doing last
minute equipment taping, some repairs and gathering the back up sticks for the game.

We stock the table with 2 cordless drills, one with a Phillips head and one
with a drill tip. In addition, a hacksaw along with shafts and back up sticks.

During the game, I work the door on the offensive end of the bench. If there is a problem during play, Coach Chris Sanderson takes the door while I make repairs. For all injuries, I go out with Jenn Massey to give her assistance.

At halftime, I start packing some bags to get out after the game and I set out laundry bags for the uniforms. If we are playing the next day, the shorts
are put in a different bag so they can be washed.

After the game I get as much packed up as possible so the truck can get
packed while the players are showering. If we are playing away the next night, I make sure the bags are packed correctly and that I know if I need to get more tape, etc.

The truck gets packed differently too if we have a game the next day because
the bags that stay go on the bottom.

The locker room bag is the last to go, the one with the blood sprays,coffee pots, radio, toiletries and the name plates from the lockers. This normally occurs anywhere from an hour to an hour and a half after the game.

Wheter we have a game the next day or not, I need to go out with the guys for awhile. Believe it or not, I am still working at this point. Making sure
players aren't cramping. I hear their complaints about things I can control and change. I let them vent to a friendly ear.

Being the equipment manager does have a great deal of psychology associated with it. The old school guy who doesn't befriend anybody and says no to all
requests has long since gone away. There have been more than a few times when I
have stayed a couple of hours having a late dinner with the guys and gone home
to wash the uniforms for the next days game, unpacked the truck from the home
game and made sure the away stuff was all stocked up and went to the airport without getting any sleep. It is the nature of the job. You do what you have to
do.

After a normal game I have left the Wachovia Center as late as midnight and
as early as 10:45"


KMN- Beside the Wings, do you work for any other clubs?

MF-"My season runs around the year. I work in Football Operations for Temple
University from August to November. The Philadelphia Soul year round part time handling equipment (I was the head guy a year ago but stepped down), start with the Wings in November thru April and work for the Barrage from May until
August as the Head Equipment Manager.

In the past I have worked for a number of professional football clubs in
several different leagues and a couple of college football teams. I also help Navy
in the Army-Navy game the first Saturday in December."


KMN- Which team is the hardest to work for?

MF- "They all have their challenges and their joys."



KMN-How long have you been in the business?

MF- "Well, my first professional job was in 1972, so it has been 33 years. I started out as both a trainer and equipment manager for the Philadelphia Bell of the World Football League. I was never certified (as that was before the
certification standard) but I use that knowledge to help me in my positions."


KMN- On a more personal note, would you like to discuss your family?

MF-" I am married to a beautiful, understanding and loving wife, Mary. I
have 3 sons, Dan a Junior at University of the Sciences in Philadelphia who also
is 6'-9" and a left handed pitcher on their baseball team.

Michael Jr. who is the video coordinator for the Philadelphia Soul and
Barrage and 11 year old Chris who was the water boy for the Barrage last season....Did I say understanding wife too? That is an understatement!!!!"


KMN-This certainly seems like a demanding schedule....how do you find the
energy to stay at it for 33 years?

MF- "Well, I do try and use my powers for good and not evil.

You have to remember, that with a few exceptions, these positions are part
time. I am in sales for Verizon, so this presents a great diversion to the
regular "grind"

My father played professional basketball in Philadelphia in the 30's and he
taught me to have passion for sports. Maybe that's how I keep going, this is a
passion.

Before last year I was working for Temple and running several youth programs,
so that was year round too. The advantage there was my children played in the programs so I saw them.


As you can see with Mike Jr. for example I try to get my family involved with the teams so it helps minimize the time I spend away from them. Last season,
Chris had a blast travelling with me on the bus with the Barrage. The team was
great and welcomed my family.

Dan was standing ubder the goal post when Ken Hinesly kicked the 52 yard
field goal as time expired when the Soul beat Columbus. You see his head above the
crowd in the video."

KMN-"My experience in the Wings locker room is that all the guys are very nice and friendly...is it really as tight knit as it seems?

MF-"With the Wings I saw that and experienced that from Day 1. I worked the Army- Navy game then showed up for my first day of work, "late" at USTC when the Wings were scrimmaging Anaheim, I believe. The guys came up to me and
introduced themselves. They have been great ever since. The Barrage guys are the same way. Maybe its the sport, or the nature of the sport. Not many playing it so its a very close knit community.

For the Wings, Soul and Barrage I would do anything for those guys and they know it, and don't take advantage of it.

And, as I stated before, it is one thing for the guys to respect me, but they
have welcomed my family too, and that speaks volumes about their character."


KMN-The night we were chatting in the Wings locker room, we were interrupted
by a phone call from the Soul....what was that all about?

MF- "Long story short. The Sould flew out to Columbus earlier that day on
a commercial flight and USAir was concerned about the weight of the plane so they
unloaded some bags to make the plane lighter. Then, they lost the bags.

The Soul were waiting until the last flight in from Philadelphia to see if
the bags ever made it on board, the call you heard was that the bags were still
missing in action.

The Soul travels with 24 players, with 20 on the active roster. Of those 20, 11 bags were missing and not only did they have a game against Columbus, but,
it was also the NBC game for that region.

I went to their practice facilty at Tri States and duplicated as best I could
the equipment for the players who were missing stuff.

I then packed everything in 5 bags and headed out to the airport for the
early morning flight....Yes, it was another all nighter.

I travelled in my suit from after the Wings game. Found some Soul gear at the Aston complex to change into for the game.

I landed in Columbus and even had a driver waiting for me at baggage claim
just like in the Bud commercial. I won't slam the airline or go into more stupid
details but everybody on the plane knew why I was there and they helped count the bags when we landed.

I got to the arena at 10:30 for a noon kickoff and the lost bags had gotten
there at 10:15. The last part was great, I was the safety net in case USAir
lost them again. Even still I got greeted by team President, Ron Jaworski, owner Jon Bon Jovi, the coaches....

Coach Fuller even stopped his pregame interview with radio broadcaster Ari Wolfe to thank me....I flew back with the team.

For my efforts, Coach Fuller gave me a game ball."




Next up, Mike updates on his doings.....from equipment to movies.

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