The Big Easy

NOLA.

Exciting weekend y'all! Made my way down to New Orleans to party with the saints. This weekend marked the first tournament I would play with any of the local Ultimate players. We made the 6.5 hour drive (8.5 for some of us who decided to take a MegaBus) to Louisiana on Friday. Going into the weekend I knew only two people, everyone else I had only exchanged emails with. But I figured frisbee people in the south are probably like frisbee people everywhere else so I wasn't too worried.

And so it begins. Friday night 11:45PM getting on the bus with my new friends Byron.

Exchanged some pleasantries with Byron and Michelle until we all pass out. I woke up at 4AM we are half way there slightly tilted toward NO!

I fell in and out of sleep for the rest of the ride until 7:30 AM when the PA system turned on and the driver welcomed us to New Orleans. After slowly shuffling off the bus into the already humid and hot air we managed to find our teammates that had so kindly offered to pick us up and take us to the fields. Prior to getting to the fields we made a pit stop at Cafe Du Monde to get some beignets. Oh my lord (if you come to NOLA I highly recommend getting some they are sublime). Driving through the heart of New Orleans reminded me of driving down The Strip in Vegas. When we finally made it to the fields most of the team was already there, we did a quick introduction mostly going over names. As the day progressed I began the process of meeting the team. Most of the team came from Atlanta centered around one mutual friend named Bam Bam. I met a couple from North Carolina that knew a couple I know from Seattle that moved out here a year ago. Even though we ended up going 2-1 for the day the best part came soon after the end of our last game. The sun was shining and the tournament had hired a local jazz band to play music during the post tournament feast of traditional jambalaya. Adding to the trifecta I decided to go out and lizard the afternoon away. After waking up and eating some cajun food the team decided it was time to head back to our host's house and shower to get ready for the night.

As a team we set off into the night, our first stop was "Dat Dog" a gourmet hot dog establishment. The menu was incredible holstering thousands of combinations of meat and toppings. I ended up choosing an alligator sausage with avocado, onion, and crawfish etouffee. After a brief stint at the tournament party we made our way to Bourbon Street the seedy underbelly of the Big Easy. After buying several hand grenades and sharknados and sharing them amongst our team we made our way to a nightclub overrun with finance bros and sorority hoes. A couple rounds of shots and a few beers later the DJ turned up the jams and our whole team ended up staking out a plot on the dance floor and cut a rug till 5 AM. I'd like to take a moment to shout out to the team, older or younger everyone brought it and I'm very appreciative that everyone was so open and welcoming to a stranger they met less than 10 hours earlier.

Our first round at 9 AM came faster than anyone was ready for. Literally, we didn't wake up until 9 AM. We piled 7 into a car and rushed off to the fields so we could field one line until reinforcements arrived. We struggled through the game the biggest hurdle being out own hangover but managed to pull out the win 8-6. After the game we came together as a team and had a tough decision to make. Do we continue on and try and win the next game or do we forfeit and go and get breakfast... After flip flopping for 15 minutes we decided we had come this far to play why not try and win it all. We rolled through the semis and ended up tied 5-5 in the finals trying to take the half. Fueled by the alcohol still coursing through our veins we managed to pull away scoring the next 5 points in a row ending the game at 11-5. Look at use beaming with pride you would never know that this team had managed to win both the tournament and the party.

I miss you Piehole! But don't worry I've managed to make some friends in a distant land.

Allan