How The Vikings Training Camp In Eagan Engages Fans

On Friday, I was invited to the Minnesota Vikings Training Camp in Eagan. To say I was excited is an understatement. I am acquainted with Coach Pat Hill; he is the Assistant Outside Linebackers Coach. Our paths crossed in 2015 when he was a Volunteer Assistant at James Madison University in Virginia and I was in my first year as the Radio Play-By-Play Voice for The Dukes.

We really connected earlier this year when I wrote about a charity that Coach Hill supports called the Big Man Foundation.

I had never been to Eagan, I moved to Minnesota in 2023. I left straight from work and my Google maps took me Highway 10 (because our studios are not far from 10) to 35W and to 494.

KRFO-FM logo

I was making good time; I wanted to give myself plenty of time to find parking and get my pass to get in and then find the spot where I was supposed to meet up with Coach Hill. As I’m cruising along on 494 my GPS says that I’m practically there, I can see the practice facility but not an exit.

As I’m even with the facility the somewhat pleasant voice from Google says, “You have arrived”, but there’s no exit. I can see the building, but I can’t get to it. There’s not even an exit in sight. It was another mile or so to the next exit. I left 494 there and went in the direction I knew the facility was, but Google kept wanting to get me back on 494.

I noticed a road that I guessed would get me where I needed to be and thankfully it did.

The gate that I needed to park at I could not be found on Google maps either. So, the helpful staff found me a place to park and then one by one, I was connected to folks working at the facility to help me get where I needed to be, which was the other side of the complex from where I parked.

I needed to be escorted over to the other side to get my pass, which their staff seemed glad to do. I mentioned to a few staffers that Google Maps was telling me to exit where there wasn’t an exit ramp, and they were like “oh yeah, we’ve heard that before”.