It's that time of year when the clocks spring forward, the
tulips bloom, the Irish celebrate and the girls go to Vegas. While the latter may require much further
explanation, March Madness certainly needs no introduction.
This weekend I head to Las Vegas, Nevada with women who not
only enjoy basketball but also follow basketball. It started in 2005 with an
email chain and an idea about a girl's trip to watch the NCAA Tournament. The initial trip culminated with a high
roller suite at the Hard Rock Cafe Hotel, a few victories, a celebrity
sighting, spirited pranks and many lasting friendships. This year is our ninth annual trip.
Most people do not think of Las Vegas as city to plan a
vacation. They envision the crowds,
bright lights, debauchery, gambling (winning and losing) and money. The saying,
"What happens in Vegas stays in Vegas" obviously came from somewhere
but for me Vegas is about a rite of passage.
Each spring, I board a plane, walk down an aisle and sit
anxiously for six hours for love of sport.
For my eight comrades and me, Vegas is
basketball. It's about spending time
with talented and successful women who share a common goal - for their team to
play in the Big Dance. We arrive on
Thursday and the initial start of the tournament decked in college gear - some
of us fortunate our late 90s apparel still fits - and gather for a pre-game or
in most cases post-game weekend strategy.
Should the reader forget we are women, we do arrange dinners, shopping
and pool action but for the greater part of the time, we watch basketball. We predict scores, ooh and ahh at heroic
3-point shots, hold our breath with four-second clock time outs and rest a sigh
of relief when the clock hits 0:00 and the score is in our favor.
Where else would it be acceptable for a alumni from the University
of Michigan, Duke University, Michigan State University, UMass and University
of Virginia, to sit around the same table and cheer on their team? Let me give you a clue. There are lights - lots of them but mostly
those glowing from the LCD and HDTV screens in the sports books, there is food,
gambling, free drinks (gambling does pay) and lots and lots of men doing what
they do best on game day staring blankly at the great and powerful
scoreboard.
Las Vegas is the only place where a fan can be on sensory
overload with East vs. West and Big 10 vs. PAC 10, Big East vs. that conference
that no longer exists for 24-hours a day.
While it's true the odds are often against us, my friends and I live by
this rule of thumb:
We are only as good as the next parlay and the next round of
games. We are mothers, wives,
girlfriends and single ladies on the prowl.
In 2004, we started off the strip
and in 2013 we own the strip. There have been four marriages, eight babies,
and a few missed trips but overall there have been many more W's than L's in
the columns of life.
Good luck to all your teams and remember school pride is at
stake.
To Nicole, Jess, Em, Hills, Cousin Liz, Cristina, &
Jamie and Vegas Bill, thank you for being the best the City of Lights has to
offer. We may be short a few originals
but it's great to be back - for the weekend.
