THOMPSON FALLS — The Thompson Falls football team finished the regular season a perfect 8-0 record in the 8-Man West division. The Bluehawks played four road games this fall at St. Ignatius, Alberton-Superior, Arlee and Troy.
If you combine the distance traveled from those four trips, you get 291 miles. That wouldn’t get you halfway to the Bluehawks' destination in the second round of the 8-Man playoffs.
Thompson Falls is set to travel 616 miles one way this weekend for a playoff matchup with Scobey on Saturday. According to Google Maps, the journey will take 10 hours, 9 minutes.
It’s the longest journey so far in the playoffs and the second-longest possible journey remaining among all classifications. The only trip with the potential to top the distance of this game would be if Fairview and Thompson Falls met in the 8-Man final, with 655 miles separating the two towns.
Speaking of Fairview, the Warriors own the second-longest trip this weekend, traveling 560 miles and more than eight hours west to Philipsburg for a quarterfinal date with the No. 1-seed Flint Creek Titans of Drummond-Philipsburg.
The Pacific Ocean is closer to Thompson Falls than Scobey. Below is a list of other destinations closer to Thompson Falls than Scobey.
- Seattle, Washington (394 miles)
- Portland, Oregon (474)
- Vancouver, British Columbia (530)
- Edmonton, Alberta (566)
- Boise, Idaho (440)
- Ogden, Utah (590)
- Jackpot, Nevada (615)
- Buffalo, Wyoming (608)
- Chaplin, Saskatchewan (594)
This week’s shortest trip belongs to Shields Valley. The Rebels are making a quick 45-mile trip to White Sulphur Springs in the 6-Man semifinals.
Complete travel distances and times for every playoff matchup is listed below.
CLASS AA (QUARTERFINALS)
| GAME | DISTANCE | TRAVEL TIME |
| Helena Capital at Billings West | 234 mi | 3 hours, 38 mins |
| Bozeman at Helena | 98 mi | 1 hour, 52 mins |
| Great Falls at Missoula Sentinel | 167 mi | 2 hour, 51 mins |
| Glacier at Billings Senior | 452 mi | 7 hours, 1 min |
Average distance: 238 mi
Average travel time: 3 hours, 50 mins
Total distance: 951 mi
Total travel time: 15 hours, 21 minutes
CLASS A (SEMIFINALS)
| GAME | DISTANCE | TRAVEL TIME |
| Laurel at Hamilton | 354 mi | 5 hours, 33 mins |
| Miles City at Billings Central | 146 mi | 2 hours, 5 mins |
Total Distance: 500 mi
Total travel time: 3 hours, 50 mins
CLASS B
| GAME | DISTANCE | TRAVEL TIME |
| Columbus at Glasgow | 322 mi | 5 hours, 1 min |
| Malta at Manhattan | 315 mi | 4 hours, 52 mins |
| Whitehall at Fairfield | 152 mi | 2 hours, 19 mins |
| Townsend at Florence | 166 mi | 2 hours, 53 mins |
Average distance: 239 mi
Average travel time: 3 hours, 46 mins
Total distance: 955 mi
Total travel time: 15 hours, 5 minutes
8-MAN (QUARTERFINALS)
| GAME | DISTANCE | TRAVEL TIME |
| Joliet at Fort Benton | 239 mi | 3 hours, 50 min |
| Fairview at Flint Creek | 560 mi | 8 hours, 22 mins |
| Shelby at Park City | 319 mi | 4 hours, 55 mins |
| Thompson Falls at Scobey | 616 mi | 10 hours, 9 min |
Average distance: 434 mi
Average travel time: 6 hours, 43 mins
Total distance: 1734 mi
Total travel time: 26 hours, 52 minutes
6-MAN (SEMIFINALS)
| GAME | DISTANCE | TRAVEL TIME |
| Big Sandy at Froid/Med-Lake | 320 mi | 5 hours, 15 mins |
| Shields Valley at WSS | 43 mi | 0 hours, 39 mins |
Total Distance: 363 mi
Total travel time: 5 hours, 54 mins
ALL CLASSIFICATIONS
Average distance: 280 mi
Average travel time: 4 hours, 26 mins
Total distance: 4,483 mi
Total travel time: 47 hours, 51 minutes
