In a season marked by FIFA World Cup-induced schedule quirks, the Vancouver Whitecaps are embracing the strange.
The Major League Soccer club spent more than a month at home this spring, playing five straight games at B.C. Place between March 21 and April 25.
Now, as the stadium readies to host soccer's biggest showcase, the 'Caps are becoming road warriors with eight straight away matchups.
Life on the road has its perks, said defender Tristan Blackmon.
“You can just have bonding time together," he said. "Obviously, we have a really close group anyway, but it's fun to go on trips, and especially when you're doing well. It's fun to go into other stadiums and try to take points away from the home team.”
Going from a heavy dose of sleeping in your own bed to airplanes and hotel rooms can be jarring, though.
“Having that long stretch at home and going on the road is a little bit weird," said striker Brian White. "Because everyone has their own routine, so you get stuck in your home game routine, so then you have to figure out what your away routine is again. And so it gets a little weird going back on the road, but it is what it is.”
The Whitecaps sit second in the MLS standings with an 8-1-2 record and, with 1-1 draws away at the L.A. Galaxy and San Jose Earthquakes over the past two weeks, the club is 1-0-2 away from home.
A grass playing surface is being installed at B.C. Place before it hosts seven World Cup games, starting with a matchup between Australia and Turkey on June 12. The construction meant the 'Caps had to clear out well before FIFA takes over the stadium this week.
While he prefers home games, head coach Jesper Sorensen likes road trips for how he and his staff can work with players away from the field.
"It makes it easier for us as a coaching staff, if we want to show something, we have a lot of time around the training sessions," he explained. "Players don't have to go home or anything. We can call them in for small meetings and show them stuff and videos."
"There is a lot of travel, but there's also time in the schedule to relax a little bit. And, yeah, maybe me do some little bit of fun stuff as well.”
There are many more road games to come, starting Wednesday when the squad visits FC Dallas in Frisco, Texas. The Whitecaps will then take on the Houston Dynamo on Saturday before heading back to Vancouver for recovery and training.
The team will finish off the first stretch of the season with a visit to San Diego FC on May 23.
When MLS play resumes in mid-July, the 'Caps will resume their road swing with visits to the Chicago Fire, Cincinnati FC and Minnesota United before finally returning to B.C. Place on Aug. 1 to host Los Angeles FC.
“It’s a lot of time on the road with the guys and it's always fun to have a lot of meals together, hang out, a lot of downtime together," White said. "So it's like another little preseason.”
For several years, the Whitecaps have held their pre-season camp in Marbella, Spain. There, players and staff alike spend several weeks together, focused on soccer without any of the distractions of home.
That camp is a "very important part of the year," White said.
"Everyone goes away for the off-season, so you get to see each other again, catch up, new guys get into the fold, so you get to learn about them on and off the field," he said. "It’s important to build that chemistry in preseason, and then that leads into the regular season as well.”
Last year, the Whitecaps went 8-4-5 on the road in regular-season play, and added ample extra miles en route to the Concacaf Champions Cup final and their fourth straight Canadian Championship title.
Those experiences have helped make the group stronger, Blackmon said.
“I think we've just been through a lot of moments together, and I think that builds just a belief among everybody, even with the additions of new players. I think they can feel that kind of culture when they get here," he said. "And obviously it helps when everything's going in the right way, and you're winning games and getting points every week."