Spring Break 2010!

David R.

March 20, 2010 - 7:10 AM

This last December after a Broncos games, I sat at my computer at home, browsing orbitz.com for the most inexpensive round-trip flight to Las Vegas, Nevada. After booking a flight and a hotel to stay in, I put all spring break thoughts on hold, realizing that the winter term hadn't even started yet.

Finally, after all of the brutal rain and 10 grueling weeks of school, spring break is finally here, and I am writing this as I sit at gate C13 in the Portland International Airport waiting for my flight to Sin City.

This will be my third time to Las Vegas in my life, but my first time being of the legal drinking age. I had fun the two times I went before, probably just because I was in Las Vegas, but I slowly realized that there is really nothing to do in this city when you aren't 21. I went with the club baseball team, for a tournament last spring, and me and my friends on the team settled with cruising up and down the strip, well, because we really had nowhere else to go. The New York New York casino and hotel has en enormous roller coaster that extends off of the side which is always a great time. However, there are only so many times one can ride a roller coaster before getting sick of it, or literally becoming sick.

I am not a huge gambler and I never have been, and never plan to be. But given the season and the geographical location I will be in, I decided I might place a few wagers on the March Madness basketball games. The tournament is only one round in and already there have been some heart-stopping games. On the first day of the tournament, two-seed Villanova was taking on 15-seed Robert Morris University. Villanova held on to win...after overtime. This is the kind of thing that will drive any fan crazy. For example, it is pretty clear that Villanova is the better team, considering the team's seed in the tournament. Consequently, the majority of fans who get involved in bracket pools most likely chose Villanova to win. Watching the team who is the heavy favorite being drug into overtime is absolutely excruciating. As always, my bracket is already somewhat ruined, because of all of the upsets in the early rounds. I picked Florida to win its first-round game, and they were bounced by the stormin mormons from Provo. I picked Notre Dame to get a win over Old Dominion, but the Fighting Irish were stopped in their tracks, as Luke Harangody, the team's most prized player and one of the best in the nation, scored one basket, that came with no more then one second left in he game.

While sitting here in the airport I have realized that an airport is a great place to people watch. All kinds of people can be seen in an airport, of all sizes, nationalities, cultures etc. It looks like my flight is about to board. Lets hope I can make it home with a little money left over!