Bird Droppings

In November of 1978, I attended the Oregon State at Creighton game as a Creighton student. It was much different than that game I watched from the upper reaches of Civic Auditorium six years earlier. As a student, I felt much closer to the game.

Tom Apke’s Bluejays opened the 1978-79 season with six straight victories, including a 78-61 drubbing of in-state rival Nebraska. Things changed when they went on the road and by the time Larry Bird’s #5 Indiana State Sycamores came to town in late January of 1979, the Bluejays were stumbling along at 9-6.

The Sycamores were undefeated (15-0) and on cruise control headed toward their March championship game against “Magic” Johnson’s Michigan State Spartans. The Bluejays and Omaha were nothing more than a bump in their road coming in. But the sellout crowd of just under 9,000 fans in the old Omaha Civic Arena had different ideas.

Bluejay Baptism

The first “big-time” basketball game I ever remember seeing was a game between Ohio State University and Creighton University at Omaha Civic Auditorium in Omaha on December 30, 1972. Our family was visiting my grandparents during the holiday season.

My Uncle Mel came over and said he had some tickets for the Creighton basketball game and asked who wanted to go. I was 12 years old and had never been to a college basketball game so I was in immediately!

Even though it was a mid-major Creighton team, the visiting Big 10 Ohio State raised the profile of the game considerably. Ohio State dominated the Big 10 in the 1960's. Under Fred Taylor, they won three outright conference titles, shared three others, won the the 1960 National Championship, and finished national runner-up in 1961 and 1962.

Beating Around the Bushes

The recent passing of former President George H.W. Bush reminded me of my "experience" with him and his wife Barbara. While it was not a personal experience, I was close enough to them that it felt personal.

As I have documented, I am a college basketball fan and I annually attend the game's season finale. Houston hosted the 2011 Final Four. Butler beat VCU and Connecticut beat Kentucky on Saturday's semifinal games setting up a "canine" championship match up between the Butler Bulldogs and the UConn Huskies.

Despite the seventh row listed on the tickets, we were pleasantly surprised to see our seats had no seats in front of us when we got to them about a half hour before the tip off.

After we got settled, an extended golf cart pulled up just in front of us. Sitting on the back seat of the cart were former President George H.W. Bush and his wife Barbara.

Houston was their adopted hometown and they were not going to miss one of the city's biggest sporting events. They were helped to their seats a couple rows in front of us and right in our line to the court.

The cart rolls up and unloads President George H.W. Bush and his wife Barbara

Shot at the Alamo

I've written about my Final Four adventures before. This year brought another interview. This time by Blair Kerkoff, long time Kansas City Star sportswriter, U.S. Basketball Writers Hall of Famer and author of several books.

He and Kansas City Star photojournalist, Allison Long, came to our hotel, The Crockett Hotel,, which is across the street from the Alamo, to interview our group on the Saturday of Final Four weekend.

Despite the rather awkward setting, sitting on the beds in our hotel room, we had a lot of laughs as well recalled some of our memories from the last four decades. The six of us had over 160 Final Fours attended all together.

I was reminded how lucky I am to have a wife and family that are tolerant and understanding of my love for college basketball, to have employees and businesses that allow me to be away each year. and health, despite a scare, that has allowed me to attend.

I am also lucky to have some great friends, who are as fortunate as I am, to be able to share this weekend with each year.

So here is this year's version of the gang that keeps showing up:

Thirty-seven consecutive Final Fours and counting, hoops are this group's bond

Christopher Korth of Kansas City and Doug Knust of Chamberlain, S.D., are attending their 37th consecutive Final Four. They and friends who have been going to the NCAA Tournament semifinals and finals for 15-30 years plan their trips long in advance.

Reviewing a Space City Classic

I have documented here before my tradition of attending college basketball's championship weekend. I have shared stories, tales and traditions from our group. Others have told our story as well - in several different newspapers  and on television. Even David Letterman gave us a cameo on his "Late Night" show back in 1996.

This year I attended my 35th consecutive Final Four in Houston, TX. There were six regulars and one new attendee in our group. Chris Korth, my Final Four partner on all thirty five, Emmet Kenney, attending his 25th, Calvin Rider (23rd), Bren Abbott (22nd), Matt Hesse (14th) and our new guy was Mark Wellmeyer who who attending his 2nd but his first with us. All totalled, this group had taken in 156 Final Fours.

A couple of the Houston media outlets found our three-plus decade Final Four quest to be a compelling story. On the Tuesday before the final Four, the Houston Chronicle published a story by sports reporter, Joseph Duarte, on Chris and me. He had conducted a phone interview of each of us the week before and asked for some photos of previous trips.

On Friday, just after we arrived in Houston, the local NBC affiliate, KPRC, interviewed us for their 10 PM news show. Our reporter, Laine Fritz, was on her fifth day on this job in Houston. She was a good sport as we got into the cocktails before she and her cameraman (woman), Simone Eli, arrived. When they left, we did not think we had given them much to work with. But she did a tremendous job of piecing a story together.

It was a fun way to start the weekend and it launched us into an extended round of reminiscing about March Madness past over dinner.

As for the games, Saturday delivered a pair of snoozers. In the first national semifinal game, Villanova thumped Oklahoma 95-51 in the most lopsided Final Four game of all time. Game two provided a little more drama as North Carolina whipped Syracuse 83-66 setting up a Villanova vs. North Carolina matchup in the Monday night title tilt.

While North Carolina was a 2.5 point favorite, the computer simulators had Villanova winning 50.1% of the games, North Carolina winning 49.9%. It looked like we could be in for a good championship game.

Well no one could have predicted what a tremendous game we would have. To say that Villanova won 77-74 in an instant classic would be a severe understatement. This was a great game from tip to buzzer. The quality of basketball was very high. Rather than try to detail all of the action in the final minute and a half, you can watch it below:

UNBELIEVABLE!!

Knowing that I had been to 35 Final Fours, almost immediately, the texts and calls from friends began asking me if this was the best game I've seen. That's an interesting question and I decided to reserve judgement until we get past the immediate drama and emotion. We live in a "Now" moment...every year we hear "this is the best tournament ever" because of the upsets...that happen every year.

Let me point out that I have seen some pretty good Final Four games. Even if we limit the choices to championship games only, I have seen some dramatic finishes.

1982 - North Carolina vs. Georgetown

1983 - North Carolina State vs. Houston

1985 - Villanova vs. Georgetown

1987 - Syracuse vs. Indiana

1989 - Michigan vs. Seton Hall

2010 - Butler vs. Duke

(Note that the first five of these games occurred in my first eight trips to the Final Four. Is there any wonder why I kept going back?!)

...and this list omits two overtime games and a couple of HUGE upsets that have taken place. There have been some truly remarkable games over the past thirty five years. 

Perhaps you can appreciate why I hesitate to call Villanova's win over North Carolina best I've ever seen. It is a classic and it will always be mentioned when the list of greatest games is being discussed. Kris Jenkins will always be remembered for that shot. Had he not made it though, it would be Marcus Paige's double clutcher that we would be talking about.

Basking in the Sun

Our local paper, the Chamberlain-Oacoma Sun, as part of their "From Behind the Sidelines" series, featured a local automobile dealer in their October 14, 2015 issue. I was honored to be included with Chamberlain High School football announcer Donn DeBoer.

From the Sun:

DeBoer, Knust discuss what it's like being the 'Voice of the Cubs' 

There are voices that everyone recognizes and remembers - the voices of your mother and father, best friend, a son or daughter. For Cubs fans, there are two more that ring through clear as day: Donn DeBoer and Doug Knust. 

They've been dubbed “The Voice of the Cubs" for their game and other school function announcing, which when added together racks up over 30 years of talking, yelling and cheering. 

"It's been a longtime... I guess it’s a good thing I like to hear myself talk," joked DeBoer, who has announced Cub football games for approximately a decade. He’s also dabbled in basketball, track, the prom grand march and other school events whenever he's requested. 

All that talking has made his voice recognizable - even to strangers he doesn’t even know. 

“Sometimes it’s as if I can’t all anyone on the phone without them already knowing whoit is before I tell them,” said DeBoer. “There’s no disguising this voice." 

Knust keeps his vocal chords ready as well and calls basketball games during the winter season. He's been a Cub announcer at the Armory – the very same gym that he himself used to play in as a Chamberlain High School student while his father’s voice rang through the speakers for close to 23 years. He said  it seems like just the other day he started taking over the announcing duties from his father, Harry. It’s only when he starts doing the math that time is put into perspective. 

“I remember sitting with my dad as he was announcing games for the Cubs - probably hitting him up for a quarter for some popcorn or whatever it was I wanted," said Knust, smiling at the memory. "It's been pretty special." 

It's fitting the two men who perform the Cub announcing have voices with hear like qualities. Each has a deeper voice and one that can roar when necessary, like when there's Cub touchdown or the winning shot for the home team just went swish. Although part of the art of announcing is that announcers are supposed to show neutrality to both teams. But, diehard Cub fans like DeBoer and Knust say that rule doesn't apply to them. 

"I'm definitely a ‘homer.' I want my home team to win and get excited when we do," said Knust, who estimates he's called at least 450 basketball games for the Cubs. "Because it's those home games that are special for athletes, parents, students, and so on. The bleachers are packed. The band is playing. The fans are roaring. This all added together creates the perfect storm for announcers. They feed off that energy and get excited - especially when a win is in reach." 

"Like those Homecoming games - now those are the games you really want to win," said DeBoer. "You can't help it. Your voice gets louder and louder and more excited when home team does something good." 

But announcing is more than just running a play-by-play of the court or field. Every year athletes come and go and it seems like just as they start getting a handle on the athletes' names, the students graduate and new students step-up in their place. It's a never-ending cycle. But, both Knust and DeBoer admit that, for them, it's a bit easier than it looks because both are very active in the community and other Cub events. But, there's always the visiting team that comes with its own, unfamiliar athletes and a few last names that can trip-up even the greatest speakers who can conquer anything during a battle of linguistics. 

"Sometimes you have to get out your phonetics on the tricky ones," said Knust. There's also the aspect of time. It seems to slip by so quickly and both men put in hours and hours during their respective seasons. Although Knust owns Harry K's Chevrolet in Chamberlain and Winner and DeBoer works at Sanford Chamberlain Medical Center, the two don't seem to mind putting in a second shift for the Cubs. It's that and several other traits that make them so important to the Cubs. 

"One thing that both Donn and Doug bring to the events is a great deal of enthusiasm for the Cubs. They are truly Cub Fans. This enthusiasm spills over to the crowd and helps create the atmosphere that I envision our venues having during the events," said CSD Athletic Director Todd Palmer. "The second thing that both bring to the table is knowledge of the game. They help the crowd understand what is going on during the contest by explaining to them officials signals, giving stats out at half time, etc."Palmer said they also bring professionalism to the game and always are there to help out whether it's announcing or another task. 

"They are two individuals that I can count on thus taking that specific stress off of me," said Palmer. 

Neither man does it for the recognition, nor do they do it for the money. Rather, the two fanatics of football and basketball say they do it for other reasons. 

"It keeps me young," said DeBoer. 

"And really why wouldn't I keep doing it?" said Knust. "I've got the best seat in the house."

As the article mentions, I took over for my father. He was the original Cubs basketball announcer and started in 1963. I succeeded him in 1992. That's over 52 years of Knusts at the microphone announcing Cubs games.

I've enjoyed it immensely and am grateful to Sun editor Hannah Ruhlman for her thoughtful article.

Hating on Ribbons in the Garden

As I have documented in the past, I am an avid college basketball fan. I have attended 34 consecutive Final Fours. Over the years, I have attended over twenty Big 8, Big 12 and Missouri Valley Conference tournaments. I have also attended many NCAA first and second round games and regional games.

I have followed college basketball across the country and have been fortunate to see many games in many different venues. I've had the opportunity to visit with fans from schools across the country.

Two years ago, when Creighton University joined the Big East Conference, we attended the mens basketball tournament as a family. When purchasing the tickets, we were told that the Big East used a "ribbon seating" format in Madison Square Garden. In all of my college basketball travels, I had never heard of "ribbon seating". In fact, a Google search does not reveal any results that are relevant to this definition.

When I inquired with the Creighton ticket office, I was told that rather than seating fans of different schools in a "block", where they all sit together, tickets are distributed in "ribbons" or strips of two to perhaps ten seats in a row. Fans sit with and among those from other Big East schools.

The goal of "ribbon seating" is to not have big blocks of empty seats appearing on television. But the “ribbon seating" is not fooling anyone. Madison Square Garden looks empty on Wednesday night of the tournament because it is empty. The four lowest seeds are playing. There is no seating configuration that will change that.

Treating the fans well and making their experience positive, however, will do more than anything else to resolve the issue of empty seats. There are dozens (hundreds?) of prime seats (lower level at mid-court) that were empty for the first four sessions of the tournament this year. How did "ribbon seating" fix that?

I offer a couple ideas for why the Big East Conference should consider traditional block seating for fans of the Big East tournament:

First, and most importantly, traditional block seating offers a better game experience for the fans who are paying the bills. I don't know any fans that wouldn't prefer to sit with other fans of the same team. I believe the conference would take some of the pressure off the member schools because fans are not as sensitive about their priority seating if they are seating with fans of the same school.

Secondly, if all fans from each institution sit together, they will not have to be bothered by other fans sitting in front of them who don't care about the game going on and are up and down to the rest rooms or concession areas. There is nothing more annoying when trying to watch my team's game than some fan that disrupts the entire row at the least opportune time because he doesn't care about the current game. I experienced that many times during the two Big East tournaments I have attended.

Third, you would prevent animosity between fans of different schools sitting in the same section when some fans want to stand and other want to sit. Block seating circumvents this issue because fans of the same team tend to stand as a group and sit as a group. My family has been called some very special names in the "heat of the moment" the past two years. We also had our view of the court obstructed by fans holding signs and flags in front of us. Why not avoid the conflict?

Finally, it would be nice if the conference did something that is good for the fans in the arena rather than letting television dictate their every decision. I recognize the importance of the television contract. Madison Square Garden is a unique arena in that the lighting contrast between the floor and the seating is dramatic (perhaps the most dramatic of any major venue). It is difficult to see the seats because they appear quite dark on television.

I can attest to the fact that the empty seats from losing teams will find their way into the hands of basketball fans. The experience of wading through oceans of ticket scalpers on the way in to the Garden ensures that. Those blocks of seats will fill in when a school loses. The tickets are expensive. If fans choose to go home after their team loses, they will sell their ticket prior to their departure. But when a team loses, there is a better chance fans will go to remaining tournament games if they can sit in the block of fellow supporters of their school rather than among fans of other schools.

This is not the old Big East where most schools were a short drive away. Five schools, Creighton (1,100 miles), Marquette (900 miles), DePaul (800 miles), Butler (700 miles) and Xavier (600 miles) all required air transportation to get to New York for a weekend tournament. Add the cost of four nights in the hotel and four days of meals in the city and you have a considerable investment by a fan of any of these schools to attend the tournament.

The fans in the arena are customers. Please treat us as such. Make our experience a better one. Let us sit with each other after we make that investment to support the Big East Conference.

C'mon Big East. I urge you to consider changing the seating for future Big East Men's Tournaments to a tradition block configuration. If the only reason you can give for utilizing "ribbon seating' is that "it is the way we've always done it", then it's time to re-think it.

P.S. I received a response to the letter I sent to the Big East commissioner.  "The BIG EAST Conference is always searching for ways to improve the fan experience and we are spending the summer working with MSG staff and our institutional ticket and marketing representatives to review our current ticketing practices and methods.  We will be certain to incorporate your thoughts into our discussions." It was copied and pasted very neatly into the email.

Mac Attack in The Windy City

Not what we wore to the JV BB game!

I took my wife on our very first date back on Valentine's Day, 1977. Never mind that it was a JV basketball game that we attended (I know, I know. You're thinking - what a romantic!) Hey - our options were pretty limited in a small, rural community!

Fleetwood Mac's Rumours was the soundtrack to our early courtship. We listened to a lot of music together, but it was the Rumours cassette (!!!) that kept finding it's way back into the stereo. Why not? The record has sold over 40 million copies worldwide, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time.

So when I discovered Fleetwood Mac was scheduled to play in Chicago (Rosemont Allstate Arena) on Valentine's Day, I decided that we needed to go. We made plans to spend the weekend in Chicago with our great friends Emmet and Diane from Fargo. My sister, Christy, joined us for dinner on Friday evening. She got caught up in the excitement of seeing Fleetwood Mac at dinner Friday and got online, bought a ticket and joined us for the concert Saturday night.

As fans know by now, Christine McVie rejoined Fleetwood Mac for her first tour with the group since 1999.  At the ages of 65 (Lindsey Buckingham), 66 (Stevie Nicks), 67 (Mick Fleetwood), 69 (John McVie), and 71 (Christine McVie), it is not a given that all five will ever tour together again.

Whether or not "On With the Show" will be their swansong, it is exciting that the group is intact for this tour 40 years after they came together. There are very few 70's or 80's band that are touring with their original lineup. (For that matter, very few are still together or touring at all!)

Band co-founder, Mick Fleetwood, has been a member of Fleetwood Mac for almost 50 years. He was with the band as it transformed itself several times before morphing into the current lineup in the mid-seventies. I recently read Fleetwood's book Play On: Now, Then, and Fleetwood Mac: The Autobiography. It is both his autobiography and a band documentary.

I have always loved Fleetwood's drumming style. I especially love the syncopated heartbeat of "Go Your Own Way". His "crazed-killed" eyes looking out over the band and crowd is priceless (especially when projected on the big screen behind the stage!). He introduced the band before the first encore and came out after the final encore to thank us for attending. It is safe to say that Mick Fleetwood loves what he does! I've always felt it's easier to enjoy an entertainer when they are enjoying themselves.

John McVie has played with some of the greatest blues, rock and pop artists in history. He too has almost 50 years in with this band. His stage presence suggests to me that there is only so much room on any stage for personalities, of which there has never been a shortage in this band. He seems to have a blue collar approach to his role of providing the foundation for Mac's music.

Christine McVie's return is what made this tour most appealing to me. After a 16-year hiatus, her talents were spotlighted. Probably a third of the songs the group played featured her vocals or keyboards including the final encore of the evening - "Songbird". Mick Fleetwood commented during the encores, “Having this wonderful lady share the stage, making us complete, our songbird has returned.”

Stevie Nicks' voice has matured quite gracefully. I found "Landslide" to be very moving as her rich, deep, honey-like voice crooned the story of her life crashing in around her as a young artist. She was great on “Dreams”, and “Gypsy”, and she performed “Gold Dust Woman” with a little extra flair. She seemed to really pour out her heart on "Sisters of the Moon". I loved hearing “Silver Springs”, her song about her romantic breakup with Lindsey Buckingham. The song has a very interesting history told by Ken Caillat who engineered Rumours and wrote "Making Rumours" (which I highly recommend if you are a Mac fan!).

Lindsey Buckingham's incredible talent was on full display through out the 2 1/2 hour concert. His passion and unique guitar playing style were mesmerizing. "Big Love" was spectacular! - my favorite moment of the evening. Watch the guitar work in videos below. The fit-looking Buckingham was on stage the entire concert and was just spent at the end of "I'm So Afraid". It is truly great stuff! He remains the heartbeat of Fleetwood Mac!

Seeing old rock and rock bands is a hit and miss proposition. You never know if you'll see enough of the original band that it reflects their previous identity. You don't know if the energy or passion will still be there. In some ways, you don't even know if the music is relevant anymore.

Fleetwood Mac still brings it with more passion and energy you could ever expect from five senior citizens. Their music is still as relevant to me (in some ways more) as it ever was. I thoroughly enjoyed the concert and am glad my sweetheart and I made the trip.

Here is the setlist:

1. THE CHAIN

2. YOU MAKE LOVING FUN

3. DREAMS

4. SECOND HAND NEWS

5. RHIANNON

6. EVERYWHERE

7. I KNOW I'M NOT WRONG

8. TUSK

9. SISTERS OF THE MOON

10. SAY YOU LOVE ME

11. SEVEN WONDERS

12. BIG LOVE

13. LANDSLIDE

14. NEVER GOING BACK AGAIN

15. OVER MY HEAD

16. GYPSY

17. LITTLE LIES

18. GOLD DUST WOMAN

19. I'M SO AFRAID 20. GO YOUR OWN WAY 21. WORLD TURNING 22. DON'T STOP 23. SILVER SPRINGS 24. SONGBIRD

Picking Up the Pieces in New Orleans

Craig and Chris looking like Bourbon Street veterans!

As I have told in previous posts, my first Final Four was in New Orleans in 1982. Neither my Dad, Chris, Craig not I had been to the Crescent City before. We soon learned that Bourbon Street was not for the faint of heart.

Our first night there, we found a place on each end of Bourbon Street to buy a beer. Soon we had established a routine of buying a beer at one end of Bourbon and stumbling walking to the other end for a refill. It would take 45 minutes to an hour to walk from one end to the other because the street was very crowded and there was so much going on.

Fans from each of the participating Final Four schools would break into a spontaneous cheers whenever they would meet another group from their school. This would encourage fans in the area from other schools to start their own cheers and soon there were four spontaneous pep rallies going on.

Everything was done with great spirits (pun intended) and made for much fun. The cheers got louder as the evening wore on and we got caught up in the excitement.

If you've been to the French Quarter, you know not everything is good CLEAN fun. There are "Gentleman's Clubs" on Bourbon and on some of the side streets in the Quarter.

There was then (and still was the last time I was there) a "club" that had a fake pair of scantily clad legs swinging in and out of the front window of the storefront to garner the attention of "gentlemen". There was a barker hawking people to come in to the establishment.

After several "laps" on Bourbon Street, we found ourselves walking down the sidewalk in front of this enterprise with the doorman trying to separate us from our $10 (or whatever the cover charge was back then). I would like to point out that drink prices were NOT advertised outside this establishment!!

With one of their new friends!

As we were talking and observing people's antics, my Dad walked over by the front of this joint and sneeked a peek in when the door opened as someone was exiting. The "dentally impaired" marketeer who seconds earlier was inviting us to go in, bellowed at him for sneaking a peak (as if one could actually see anything in the two seconds it took for the door to open and then close).

That disrespect toward my Dad was unacceptable to Craig and he had indulged in enough "liquid courage" to tell "Mr. Doorman" just what he thought of his attitude toward Dad. Craig called him a couple of names that I've only heard in the cowboy bars of western South Dakota (usually punctuated with a stream of snus!).

Several guys associated with this fine establishment seemed to appear out of no where to let Craig know that they were going to "assert their authority". They surrounded him and tried to intimidate him.

Chris, always the peacemaker and hoping to help prevent a physical confrontation (Craig's reputation as one who sported a stellar record in college bar fights had preceded him), informed them that Craig "had a piece" (meaning that he had a gun).

Chris posing with police after the incident.

Within seconds (literally), two New Orleans cops had Craig up against the wall and were frisking him and looking for his gun. Craig was trying to explain he had no gun while Chris was telling anyone who would listen that he (Chris) was just bluffing. The immediate problem was that no one of any importance in the matter was listening.

The entire sequence of events happened so quickly that it is hard to explain. It happened as fast as or faster than it took you to read this. Meanwhile, Dad was still trying to sneak a peek and I was trying to figure out how we are going to get Craig out of jail.

Fortunately, when the police did not find a "piece" on Craig, things calmed down in a hurry. Craig received a stern warning. Chris should have received a warning but he had moved on to the next "thing" - whatever that turned out to be. (Looking at the above photo, it must have been getting the cops to pose in a photograph!) Dad never really knew anything about it until after it was over. I barely had time to get scared. I had made enough "laps" on Bourbon Street that it was funny pretty quickly!

What could have been a rather disastrous incident on first Final Four trip turns out to be one of those "must tell" stories that we re-live over and over!

Don't Look a Gift Horse in the Mouth

One of my favorite Final Four memories happened in 1985 in Lexington, Kentucky. That year, my wife, Judy, attended the event with me. This was BC (Before we had Children).

The tournament was on Easter weekend that year. On Easter Sunday we spent a good part of the morning searching for a Catholic church. We finally were able to find one. It seemed as though Judy and I, Chris (my long-time Final Four partner), Tim (a friend who attended with us that year) the Catholic coaches from around the country (Ray Meyer, Digger Phelps, etc.) and their wives were the only Catholics in the state of Kentucky (or at least in Lexington that weekend).

After church, we decided to see if we could tour of one of many Thoroughbred horse farms in the area. We got on the main road heading out of Lexington. As we drove west out of town, we noticed a bus pulling in to a driveway of what was obviously a horse farm. We decided to follow the bus.

As we entered the driveway, there was a sign that said "Gainesway Farm". The driveway was lined with picket fence and bluegrass. We pulled up to the guard station at the head of the driveway. As we approached, I rolled down the window and the security guard—armed, no less—asked our name.

I replied,'"Knust, K-N-U-S-T," spelling it for him as if he was going to find it on his list.

Gainsway Farm from the highway

"I don't see that on my list, sir. Could I see you invitation?" he responded.

Seeing that we were in over our heads, I told him that we had forgotten it back at the motel and offered to go get it. Just then, from the back seat, Chris bellowed (as only Chris can bellow), "We're with the press!" Tim, Judy and I all rolled our eyes at Chris, who had judged this as a perfect opportunity to try a bullshit line.

The security guard looked in the backseat at Chris (who was dressed just like a sportswriter!) and told us we could enter, but asked us to cover for him and not to let anyone know that we didn't show our-invitation.

I replied, "No problem," and we were on our way up the 1/2 to 3/4 mile driveway.

The driveway at Gainsway Farm

At the end of the driveway, another armed security guard asked to see our invitation. I didn't even have an opportunity to speak before Chris chimed in. He obviously was not going to let this "schmuck" stop us after his success at the front gate.

Once again he explained that we were "with the press and that we had forgotten our invitation back at the motel. The security guard waved us by and we proceeded to the parking area where we parked between a pair of Mercedes and behind a BMW. (We were in my 1983 Chevrolet Malibu company car).

My 1983 Company Car Malibu

Chris absolutely took over from this point. We were there about two minutes before we learned that this was a press function. Gainsway Farm was holding an open house to promote Thoroughbred horse racing to the many sportwriters who were in the area for the Final Four. There were quite a few other people (sports writers) there who, like Chris, were wearing a T-shirt from one of their previous Final Four trips.

We were guided on an extremely interesting tour of the facility and learned all about Thoroughbred horses and the breeding process. Chris was asking questions at every opportunity. I think most of those in our tour thought that he was preparing a feature article for his publication.

Judy was nervous to start with, but became more and more nervous with each question Chris asked. We had lied to get in and she was certain that we would leave in handcuffs.

After the hour-long tour, we were led into a large open-air barn—about the size of a basketball court. In the middle of this facility were some tables with mountains of finger sandwiches, heavy hors d'oeuvres, and desserts. There was a bar at each end of the "walking barn". As we.went.through the line of food, Judy had a look of absolute terror on her face while Chris, Tim and I were thinking we might just spend the rest of the day here!

This barn was full of food and drinks!

We proceeded to the bar where we were given a betting form and card for a horse race. The Jim Beam Stakes, a Breeder's Cup race, was being held in Florence, KY (near Cincinnati) that afternoon. There were several large screen TV's scattered throughout the gazebo. They would be showing the race on closed-circuit. We were encouraged to bet on the race. One of the forms with the correct pick would be and the winner would receive a case of Jim Beam.

When Tim's form, with the Wichita Sunflower (Wichita State University newspaper) as his affiliated newspaper, was a winner—and entered into the drawing after the race, I thought Judy was going to pass out. We waited for the drawing (Tim didn't win), and left soon after for the health of my wife.

Pretty sure this is the only time Judy smiled that afternoon!

As I reflect on the events of that afternoon, I regret not administering a bit of "Kentucky tonic" to Judy. I think she might have enjoyed both the medicine and the tour! That afternoon we redefined "March Madness" in her eyes!

There is just as much horse sense as ever, but the horses have most of it.  ~Author Unknown

March Madness and My Road to the Final Four

As you may know, I am a regular attendee of college basketball's pinnacle, the Final Four. This year, my road to the Final Four at AT&T Stadium in Dallas may be a long and winding one.
I am a Creighton University alumnus and Bluejay basketball fan. I also represent South Dakota's new automobile dealers on our national association board of directors. These three interests converge over the next month to create a crazy, hectic road for me from Chamberlain, SD to Dallas, TX.
I have decided to blog daily about my road trip. It starts with a day at National Automobile Dealers Association committee meeting in Washington, DC. My family will then join me for the 4-day Big East Mens Basketball Tournament at Madison Square Garden in New York.
From there I will trek across the county to Redondo Beach, CA for three days for a National Automobile Dealers Association Retirement Trust meeting. Following the NADART meeting, I plan to hit first and second round games wherever the Creighton Bluejays play. That will be 3+ days in one of eight cities - Buffalo, Orlando, Milwaukee, St. Louis, San Antonio, Spokane, Raleigh or San Diego. I won't know until Selection Sunday which is March 19. I currently have rooms booked in each of these cities.

So I will pack my bag for two weeks. It will be full of suits, dress shirts, ties and Creighton Bluejays apparel. Unfortunately, that is just a bit too long for me to travel by carry-on. I'll probably have to pack a little laundry soap as well!
I hope to update this blog at least daily and perhaps more often if events warrant it! So check back for updates.

GO JAYS!!!

Update: 10:30 AM EDT, 3/16/2014

So the trip to Washington, D.C. went fine and my meeting ended a bit early. I went to Union Station to see if I could get on a train for NYC earlier than the 5:00 PM train on which I was booked. I had read that Amtrak will allow you to move your time up and that's what happened to me.

I got on the 2:00 PM Acela Express and arrived at Penn Station in NYC shortly after 5:00 PM. After a rain soaked walk from Penn Station to my motel (about 4 blocks), I checked in, unpacked and checked on the arrival times of the rest of the family.

The South Dakota delegation was experiencing some delays but the DC group was set for an on time arrival. I call an old classmate that I knew was coming in for the games and we met up at on of the Bluejay bars.

Eventually we made our way to the Garden to watch the end of Seton Hall's victory over Butler and then saw DePaul upset Georgetown. After the games, we met up with daughter Rachel and son-in-law Andrew for a cocktail before calling it an evening.

The South Dakota delegation did not make it in on Wednesday evening and were scheduled to arrive late Thursday morning after another Delta disaster.

Thursday brought the late morning arrival of wife Judy, son Alex and daughter Sarah. After lunch at Greek Corner near our hotel, we decided to go the second afternoon game. We watch Seton Hall's upset of tournament top seed Villanova while at lunch. Providence out-battled St. John's in the second afternoon clash.

We grabbed some dinner between games and headed in to watch the Blujays' game with DePaul. The Jays took care of business and Xavier beat Marquette to set up a third Creighton/Xavier class of the year.

We did not get out of the basketball games until after midnight. Judy and Sarah we tired. Alex was ready to rally with a bunch of friends. We turned in for the evening while the night was just getting started for the rest of them.

On Friday, we played tourist. We walked up 7th Avenue to Times Square and then over to Rockefeller Center before making our way over to Brooklyn for our late afternoon dinner reservation at Peter Luger's steakhouse, which is one of my all-time favorite places.

Our group of 15 had a great meal and a wonderful time and unique dining experience. The steakhouse lived up to my very strong billing!!

It was off to the Creighton/Xavier game from there. The Jays had another strong performance and took care of the Musketeers before Providence ended the Seton Hall season. Again, Judy, Sarah and I were tired and the rest had to rally!

On Saturday morning we went to the 911 Memorial and Battery Park before making our way to Broadway to see an afternoon performance of The Book of Mormon. We all enjoyed the musical very much.

We hustled back to the Creighton team hotel (eventually taking 2 pedi-cabs) from the show to go to the Birds of Pray Creighton mass.

After mass, it was a quick dash through the pizza parlor on our way to the Garden for the championship game. Providence was in a "must win" situation to get into the NCAA tournament and they played like it. They executed a very shrewd game plan, slowed the game down and hit crucial shots.

Meanwhile, the Bluejays had tired legs and could not hit the crucial shots. The result was a disappointing 65-58 loss for the Jays.

The Creighton fans had nothing to hang their heads about though as their team played hard and in front of a staggering number of Bluejay faithful. Every other team in attendance was surprised and the number of fans who had made their way from Omaha and other points around the Midwest to follow their beloved Jays. It made it a lot of fun for all Bluejay fans.

We headed back to the motel to pack, knowing that the 6:00 AM wake up call would come too early. It did but we made it to Laguardia in plenty of time for Delta to delay our flights - mine to Minneapolis then Los Angeles and Judy, Alex and Sarah's to Minneapolis then Sioux Falls.

We all had a great time despite the championship game loss. It was great to spend time together as a family. It was fun to renew friendships with CU buddies for all of us. Especially enjoyed seeing my classmate Bryan Beam and his sister. Also had the son of another great Creighton friend join us for the weekend.

I am hoping to catch my connection to LA as I write this having sat at the LaGuardia gate for 45 minutes while mechanics were fixing the intercom.

Update 7:00 PM CDT, 3/25/2014

So I made my connection to Los Angeles in Minneapolis. I arrived in Los Angeles about 1:30 pm local time.

That gave me enough time to watch some basketball and time for a workout and before our dinner that evening.

We ate at Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes. Before dinner, we enjoyed quite a show. God was entertaining with a beautiful sunset, whales and dolphins. It was magnificent.

After a very nice dinner, we made our way back to our motel, The Portofino, in Redondo Beach. I was exhausted and ready to call it a night.

I had a golf game at Trump National Golf Club Los Angeles the next morning. Trump National was a spectacular course in a breathtaking setting but it probably wasn't the place to play your first golf game of the season. Every teebox had a view of the ocean (and very little view of the fairway!).

We played on a perfect day, 72 degrees and a breeze blowing off the ocean. The huge American flag can be seen from every point on the golf course. I like that. The golf course is a true gem. It is everything you would expect in a championship course overlooking the Pacific Ocean. It did kick my ass!!!

That evening brought another nice dinner and an early bedtime - which was greatly appreciated as I was still somewhere between Eastern and Central Daylight time!

Wednesday was an all-day meeting followed by dinner at Jay Leno's The Comedy and Magic Club. It's a comedy club, so the tables are small and the food is mediocre. That seems to always be the case at these places. But the entertainment was great. I laughed for two hours straight.

The next day was a meeting until noon and then more golf. This time is was historic Palos Verdes Golf Club. Built in 1924, this course had beautiful ocean and mountain vistas throughout our round of golf. It was a much more forgiving course as well and I appreciated that so early in the golf season.

My golf partners for the two days were great. I enjoy golfing with someone who loves the game but does not take themselves too seriously. Jim, Jason and Jim were just that - great partners who loved golf and played quite well.

After an informal dinner with some NADART friends who were still in town, I moved to the Hampton Inn near the airport since I had a 6:00 am flight the next morning.

My flight to San Antonio was early but went well. I made my connection in Salt Lake City and arrived in San Antonio about 1:30 CDT. I rode to our downtown hotel with cabbie Martin who turned out to be our escort for the weekend.

I knew that rides to and from the AT&T Arena were going to be a challenge so I talked to Martin about taking care of us. He did just that for our entire stay in San Antonio including a ride to the airport for Alex and then me on Monday after the basketball games.

Since Rachel and Andrew and Alex did not arrive until later that evening, I had the day to myself. After doing some laundry (a must on a two-week trip), I headed for the Riverwalk. I found a sports bar and planted myself at the bar for the evening.

While patrons would come and go, I could strike up a conversation with anyone about college basketball as I sat there watching three televisions. The cocktails were good, the food was adequate and the view of the basketball games was tremendous. I was happy!

Both of the flights made it in on time and we all met up at the Doubletree Hotel bar where we were staying. Everyone was tired but ready for some Bluejay basketball.

We got going late the next morning and took off for the arena at about 10:30 am. Nebraska and Baylor tipped at 11:45 and we wanted to watch it all.

Baylor beat Nebraska in a very ugly basketball game. Creighton took care of business against Louisiana-Lafayette to set up a matchup on Sunday against Baylor which scared me right after seeing Baylor play. They were long and athletic, just the combo to cause a matchup problem for the Bluejays.

After a break at the only sports bar for miles between sessions, Alex and made our way back for the Providence/North Carolina game. That was a great game as UNC pulled it out at the end. Iowa State took care of business against North Carolina Central setting up a UNC/ISU matchup on Sunday.

We met up with Rachel and Andrew, who went out to dinner with some friends who drove down from Austin, for a nitecap at the hotel bar. We caught the last two games of the evening on TV.

Saturday was a fun day in San Antonio. We started at the Alamo, followed by lunch at a other sports bar on the Riverwalk with some Creighton friends. Next we went to the smoke shop to get some cigars (which we never smoked) and then to Pat O'Brien's piano bar for music and mint juleps.

Then it was back to the Riverwalk to the Creighton bar for a pep rally followed by a walk to Mi Tierra, a rather famous San Antonio Mexican restaurant. By then, we had all had enough to eat and drink and we turned in for the evening.

Sunday was game day - Bluejays and Baylor. We had lunch and watch games at a great bar called The Esquire. Excellent traditional cocktails and original cocktails were their specialty. The cocktail perfectionist would appreciate the big square ice cubes that started every drink. I enjoyed watching the mixologists who only mixed cocktails - they were not distracted by taking orders from the patrons. Other servers handled that task. I highly recommend The Esquire if you get to San Antonio.

From ther, we made our wat to the AT&T Arena - the site of the masacre. Unfortunately, the Baylor Bears mauled the Bluejays. It was a tough matchup for Creighton but they did not have their "A" game that night and the final 30-point margin reflected that.

I will save my reflections of the Bluejays magical season for another post but you can find Coach McDermott's post-game talk to the team here and a good analysis of how most Bluejays fans felt after the game here.

We had a post-game meal at Mi Tierra and then back to the motel. Alex had an early 6:00 AM flight and Rachel and Andrew had a 9:00 AM flight. I did not fly out until 2:40 PM and went home by way of Atlanta. I arrived back to Sioux Falls at 9:20 PM completing my 13-day junket.

Delta had totally destroyed my bag on the NYC-LAX leg of the trip but I felt more wiped out than my bag looked. It was great to sleep in my own bed!