January 15, 2010
LAS CRUCES, N.M.- Mike Maldonado has seen just about everything in his 27 years as a bus driver. He has driven tours across country and taken teams to and from their games at UTEP and New Mexico State.
Maldonado picked the Bulldog women's basketball team up at the El Paso Airport and was the teams' driver during Fresno State's stay in Las Cruces where they beat New Mexico State, 77-67 on Wednesday.
This wasn't the first time Maldonado, who was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, had driven the Bulldog women's team. He has a fond memory of driving former Bulldog coach Britt King's teams around to New Mexico State. When he took the team back to El Paso after a game she said she wanted to go eat enchiladas after the team was in their rooms.
"She said give me 35-40 minutes and I will be out," Maldonado said. "She was real nice. I really remember her. She ate the hot enchiladas."
Before Maldonado got into driving buses for the El Paso-LA Limo Express he worked for the city transit for three years. He felt like a change, made it and now he is in his 27th year with the bus company. He has driven 14 tour groups across country and he says he has been to every state in the United States. The tour groups he has taken the elderly on have been fun for him because he says they are easier to manage.
His worst experience driving a sports team was when he drove the Toronto Raptors for an exhibition event several years ago.
"It was horrible," Maldonado said. "I needed to get a signature from the coach at the end of the trip and the guy in charge of the travel said you don't ask the coaching for nothing, not even tickets. All my experiences have been good but for that."
Maldonado drove the Oklahoma football team around this football season during the Sun Bowl. He says he always cheers for the team he is driving around.
Through all his travels Maldonado said there is never a dull moment.
"From driving in the snow, hot and cold, everything is fun," he said.
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