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For Nick Holmes, the trip of a lifetime had just one drawback.
“It was really cold,” the 15-year-old said. “It was so cold and we could only wear our hoodies down on the field.”
Besides the frigid temperatures, Holmes experienced an adventure that few have in the country, let alone this area. Three weeks ago the Pleasant Ridge eighth-grader traveled to Baltimore, Md., to compete in the national championships of the National Football League’s Punt, Pass and Kick Competition.
Only 40 other participates nationwide qualified for the event, which took place before the Baltimore Ravens’ home playoff game against the Houston Texans on Jan. 14.
“It was really cool,” Holmes said. “We went there the day before with my mom, dad and cousin. When we first got there they gave us a big bag filled with stuff from the NFL.”
That wasn’t the only thing awaiting the family.
“The Chiefs gave us a call the night before we left and told us they were sending Nick a gift to the hotel,” Nick’s mom Katie Holmes said. “The package had all kinds of stuff like signed photos from players, a jacket and a football signed by all the Chiefs. It was awesome.”
After rifling through the new treasures, the group set out for a walk through the historic Baltimore Inner Harbor. The jaunt was then followed up by a banquet with all the competitors and corresponding NFL employees.
“I think my favorite part was meeting the other competitors,” Nick Holmes said. “They were just like me, but from different parts of the country. They all loved competition and played multiple sports. We became friends basically the day we met because we all have been through the same thing.”
Saturday morning the visitors were taken to the Baltimore Sports Legend Museum, which sits right next to the home of the Baltimore Orioles — Camden Yards.
The families were then let loose to enjoy the day until the afternoon’s contest. Following a midday rendezvous, the participates made their way to the Ravens’ practice facility where the competition was held.
“Nerve racking,” the younger Holmes described. “When you pull up it looks like a big castle. There is even a big super bowl trophy case in there for all the super bowls they’ve won so it was cool.”
When the competition finally began, the Lansing resident didn’t have his best performance — “It was just a bad day at the office” — and placed fourth.Yet despite the results, Nick and the rest of the participates were all treated as winners.
For Nick Holmes, the trip of a lifetime had just one drawback.
“It was really cold,” the 15-year-old said. “It was so cold and we could only wear our hoodies down on the field.”
Besides the frigid temperatures, Holmes experienced an adventure that few have in the country, let alone this area. Three weeks ago the Pleasant Ridge eighth-grader traveled to Baltimore, Md., to compete in the national championships of the National Football League’s Punt, Pass and Kick Competition.
Only 40 other participates nationwide qualified for the event, which took place before the Baltimore Ravens’ home playoff game against the Houston Texans on Jan. 14.
“It was really cool,” Holmes said. “We went there the day before with my mom, dad and cousin. When we first got there they gave us a big bag filled with stuff from the NFL.”
That wasn’t the only thing awaiting the family.
“The Chiefs gave us a call the night before we left and told us they were sending Nick a gift to the hotel,” Nick’s mom Katie Holmes said. “The package had all kinds of stuff like signed photos from players, a jacket and a football signed by all the Chiefs. It was awesome.”
After rifling through the new treasures, the group set out for a walk through the historic Baltimore Inner Harbor. The jaunt was then followed up by a banquet with all the competitors and corresponding NFL employees.
“I think my favorite part was meeting the other competitors,” Nick Holmes said. “They were just like me, but from different parts of the country. They all loved competition and played multiple sports. We became friends basically the day we met because we all have been through the same thing.”
Saturday morning the visitors were taken to the Baltimore Sports Legend Museum, which sits right next to the home of the Baltimore Orioles — Camden Yards.
The families were then let loose to enjoy the day until the afternoon’s contest. Following a midday rendezvous, the participates made their way to the Ravens’ practice facility where the competition was held.
“Nerve racking,” the younger Holmes described. “When you pull up it looks like a big castle. There is even a big super bowl trophy case in there for all the super bowls they’ve won so it was cool.”
When the competition finally began, the Lansing resident didn’t have his best performance — “It was just a bad day at the office” — and placed fourth.Yet despite the results, Nick and the rest of the participates were all treated as winners.
“It was great how professional and nice the NFL was,” Mrs. Holmes said. “Going out there, the competition really wasn’t about who won or lost because they just made everyone feel like they were winners and it was really cool.”
From the practice facility, the group headed over to the football stadium where they stood on the field for pregame introductions and the national anthem.
“I saw Ray Lewis walk out right next to me,” Nick Holmes said. “It was really cool and yeah, he was really big.”
The contestants then enjoyed the game, in what turned out to be a thrilling final minute win by the Ravens, from the stands with family and friends. Afterwards, good-byes were said and the families went their separate ways, concluding the trip of a lifetime for more than just 40 athletic youngsters.
“It truly was a once-in-a-lifetime type of experience and we enjoyed every minute of it,” Katie Holmes said. “I’m just happy and proud of Nick that he was accomplished this.”
“I’ll never forget the experience and I just think every one should try it out because it’s fun,” Nick Holmes said.
“I had no intentions of going that far and look where it took me. It was an amazing trip.”
