EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED

Like that nasty pitcher on the mound, life will throw you a curveball once in awhile, and being on a lengthy baseball odyssey will only enhance your chances of encountering the unexpected. Be prepared to embrace the challenges ahead, and roll with the punches.

We already mentioned the possibility of out-of-control gas prices wreaking havoc on a budget. But that is just one of many problems that can crop up when driving thousands of miles on single trip.

Foster and Many made an expensive mistake in Washington, D.C., when their car was towed, forcing them to get a $250 hotel room in the city and destroying their $500 lodging budget in one fell swoop.

Later in Chicago, Many was caught in a scalping sting while trying to sell a ticket on the street. After being threatened with jail, he was issued a citation, which he accepted coolly without letting on that Foster was filming the encounter from across the street. The end result was $240 out of Many’s pocket.

And don’t forget the havoc that weather can play.

Stejskal said he had two games rained out in the first week of his trip. The ensuing chaos meant games in Pittsburgh, Baltimore and Cincinnati — in that order, with Cincinnati a noon start — on successive days, a rough stretch of travel. “That was probably the toughest part of the trip,” he said.

Not all of the surprises from your trip need be bad. Hartman, then a student at Cal-Poly San Luis Obispo, liked the Milwaukee area so much that he ended up moving there, which he said “confounded friends back in California.”

And Stejskal said his flexible approach led to some entertaining adventures, like a 250-mile detour to New Orleans just to have dinner.

Photo courtesy of Allan Stejskal The Stejskal family (from left) Allan, Pattie, Sam and Max, didn't let rain at Yankee Stadium stop their trip in 2003.

“It was a great experience to spend the summer with no stuff. You just go where you go and don’t have to worry about much of anything.”

BONDS STRENGTHENED, OR TORN ASUNDER

Stejskal stressed his trip only brought his family closer together. Books on tape helped keep the boys occupied during the long drives, and their leisurely pace, including early arrival to many games, allowed them chances to talk and explore the ballparks together.

“We were really lucky,” he said. “Hardly anyone has the chance to spend two and a half solid months with their kids. For me, anyway, and I think it goes for the rest of my family as well, it was a really special time for us.

“Whether doing it with your family or friends, it really is about doing it with people you care about.”

Foster, however, offers words of warning for those who don’t have a family to take with them, yet may be leaving important people behind.

“Be single,” he advised. “I had a girlfriend when I left, and when I got home I was single. It fell apart, man.”

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