Walking into most high school gyms for volleyball officials is nothing out of the extraordinary until you are lucky enough to get a phone call or an email asking you to officiate a “Mixed 6” (co-ed volleyball for schools with enrollment of less than 50) or small-school volleyball match (girls volleyball for schools with enrollment less than 100). Most teams in Alaska that play Mixed 6 or small-school volleyball are schools that have less than 400 students in the total school – cumulative of elementary, middle school and high school. Most of these schools are off the road system and hundreds and sometimes thousands of miles away. Packing is much more than the usual black pants, white polo shirt and required gear. Since Mixed 6 and small-school volleyball is in the winter, you will need to pack long johns, and/or dry fit to help you stay warm – maybe.

A trip to a village is typically two or three flights. The experience is amazing, from boarding the six-passenger, twin-engine plane, to the watching your bag loaded into the wings of the plane. There is no compartment below for them to store anything. Typically, not all passengers aboard are headed to the same village as you. The milk run stops at three or four different villages and picks up and drops off passengers, mail and supplies along the way. By the way, the bush pilots are pilots, flight attendants, baggage handlers and mechanics all rolled into one.

The best part is that you don’t show your ID or go through TSA security to get on the plane. But, you do stand on a scale to weigh yourself and your bag so that they can counter balance not only the passengers, but the gear/groceries/mail with the fuel.

The transportation from the airport (or landing strip) to the school can be a truck, a snow mobile or even an old school dog sled. Depending on the village, an official can get the full village experience including no landing lights (save for the lights of cars or snow mobiles) on the landing strip, strong winds, white out conditions and even a weather delay (in the village or in another village).

Greeting the official at the village is typically many of the local residents, who have gathered to meet the plane to pick up mail, meat or other things. The official is typically housed at the school (in the home economics room, hopefully, or in the teacher lounge) or in teacher quarters, which is like a very intimate one- or two-bedroom college dorm room. Sometimes you are fortunate enough to stay with a local coach or athletic director. In a best-case scenario, the housing is located next to the school. Hopefully when packing your gear, you remembered to pack a head lamp so you can see where you are going and don’t have a close encounter with the wild life like moose, polar bears or somebody stumbling home at 8 a.m.

In many villages, volleyball is more of a stepsister to basketball. Basketball is king in the villages, and volleyball just keeps them in shape before the real sport starts. The courts are the appropriate width and length. But the walls can be very close to the court and many have tartan floors. Padding on the standards can consist of towels attached with athletic tape. If you are lucky, the stand is attached properly. In one creative instance, a stepladder was attached to a big wooden box to almost make it high enough to look up at net height (depending on the height of the official). Sometimes, uniforms consist of basketball uniforms. If they have volleyball uniforms, they may be from the early 1990’s. This can be a problem when a team makes it to the state tournament in Anchorage where NFHS rules and regulations must be followed. Officials from the villages, if certified and nominated, can officiate in the Mixed 6 or small-school state tournament at the end of the season.

Village locals can be friendly and welcoming. Call ahead and bring a treat of fresh vegetables or fruit with you. Typically, you have the good fortune of working with one or two local officials who played volleyball in high school. Most are eager to learn and do their best in spite of the year-to-year changes in rules and regulations. The official’s willingness to train and teach won’t go unnoticed.

Be prepared to be offered local flavors in the hospitality room. The villagers enjoy watching non-locals eat muktuc (whale) that can be raw, pickled or cooked, or aguadak (Eskimo ice cream) among others. The officials get the opportunity to eat the same food that the students are eating at the tournament. You will likely be eating side by side with the players, coaches and village teachers as well as locals. The teams typically stay at the schools, usually boys in one hallway and girls in the other, and they eat whatever they are served in the multipurpose/lunch room. Usually, the whole community comes out because the school is the social center of the village.

Most of the time you will be offered native crafts to purchase. From the northern region, baleen carvings are often available, and in the western region, basket-weaving products are common. For instance an official was given a pair of sealskin mittens to wear, and another official was given a fox fur hat that was made specifically for her.

If you are fortunate enough to have the opportunity to officiate Mixed Six or small-school volleyball in Alaska, be prepared for the travel and enjoy the possibilities that lay ahead of you. You may be involved in your own personal Alaskan officiating experience that you may want to write to others about.