The time is here for another Final Four, and not only are UConn, Illinois, Michigan and Arizona here, your boys from WeMakeItRain are here as well, for another Final Four adventure! This is a Good Friday indeed!
03:50 - Pepster up and headed to the airport and OH MY GOD is it early, to paraphrase Adrian Cronauer.
06:06 - Pepster wheels up to Charlotte from PBI (and yes, that is the name for a couple of more months!)
07:44 - Tony wheels up to Cincinnati. He texts us to say he will see us
In The Annapolis!
07:49 - Pepster touches down in CLT.
07:51 - Tony complains about people, specifically the couple with 2 kids in the seats across form him that are completely blocking passengers from boarding. The mother has a nasally voice that makes his eyes bleed and the dad is wiping every crevice of the row as if he is being paid top dollar to do so.
8:28 - Sinickal arrives at DCA. In line for TSA, allows a woman to race past him to get through the scanners and gets randomly selected for additional screening. Good Friday is off to a good start.
8:32 - Sinickal meets Kev-O in the Sky Club. Bartender comes over to greet Sinickal and Kev-O shakes head realizing that he spends way too much time here.
8:38 - Sinickal and Kev-O toast bourbons to begin the trip.
09:31 - Sinickal and Kev-O are wheels up to Cincinnati from DCA.
09:40 - Having upgraded, Kev-O thinks he is about to enjoy a free perk of the upgrade when the flight attendant says to him, "Here is your drink Mr. Nichols!" [Ed. Note - Mr. Nichols is Sinickal, not Kev-O].
10:16 - Tony touches down in CVG.
10:34 - Pepster receives notification that his flight to Indy is delayed AND changed gates to a different terminal.
11:38 - Sinickal and Kev-O wheels down at CVG.
12:06 - Lots of UConn attire on this flight. Pepster wheels up to Indy.
12:10 - Pepster is sitting next to 13-year old Ethan who is going to the final four. Ethan is going to the Final Four, and his "G-Pa" is many rows back, so he is by himself in the row. They talk the entire flight, mostly about basketball and baseball.
13:00 - Ethan drops this gem, "The best part of being friends with people is making fun of them!"
13:52 - Pepster touches down in Indy.
13:56 - Sinickal, Kev-O and Tony arrive at Loughmiller's Pub. Sinickal orders a Busch Light. Tony seems confused by this.
14:17 - Two gentlemen at baggage claim wearing Duke "We want 6" shirts. Not this year pals!
1420 - Sinickal's friend Anne joins the group. She is an engineer with the Indiana DOT that Sinickal has known for years through work. She just keeps commenting that drinking with this friend group is "adding a lot of context."
14:41 - Pepster texts the group to tell them he is in his RideShare.
14:41:20 - Kev-O to Pepster, "Do you mean Uber? So help me God if you took an Indrive!"
15:00 - Pepster enters Loughmillers, and WE ARE WHOLE!!!
15:15 - Kev-O to the rest, "You can come on this trip and not love the Scorpions!
15:34 - Tony, "This story is still going on"!
16:48 - If you turn them all sideways they look like plates!
17:54 - Off to our AirBnB!
Side note - this place is nice. It is actually a duplex, and we have both sides. Standup video game machines in each on the first floor - multiple bedrooms upstairs, good location close to downtown! Good work Sinickal.
17:55 - Realize we forgot to hit the grocery store. Well, that'll have to wait until tomorrow.
19:18 - Finish watching John Oliver's
Last Week Tonight on
Viktor Orban! Pure genius!!!
20:02 - Exit Uber in downtown Indy in front of the Canterbury Le Meridian hotel and immediately see Roy Hibbert on the corner.
20:12 - Decide to head into Encanton Alebrije for some Mexican eatin! (Thanks Sir Mix-a-Lot).
20:14 - Prime seat at the bar in front of the television with the UConn-South Carolina women's game on.
20:16 - Cadillac margaritas all around!
20:33 - Pepster receives a text from Rich Samuels, a friend and participant in the NCAA Tournament Pool, checking on Indy. Frequent readers of the Final Four Chronicles might remember Rich from Houston in 2023, as his Hurricanes made the Final Four that year.
20:50 - Fajitas and Enchiladas arrive!
21:12 - Geno Auriemma is PISSED!!!
22:00 - A couple in head-to-toe Wisconsin gear sit next to Kev-O. They are in town for the Final Four.
Wisconsin fans casually mention that their first Final Four was in 2015, when Wisconsin got Duked. We all know what they mean. [It turns out they have been to each Final Four since then. We mean it when we say this is an experience. You can't beat it!]
So, as this was the second Duke dig of the day, it is definitive that Duke got crucified today, and they won't likely rise until next season.
22:04 - She casually refers to her husband as a trash panda.
22:08 - We bid our Wisconsin friends adieu and head out of Encanton Alebrije. Walk around downtown for a bit. It is busy!!!
22:22 - Enter Yardhouse. this place is packed. Standing room only in the bar area right now. UCLA-Texas on the televisions. It is definitely basketball-focused this weekend.
22:25 - Round of drinks includes a half-yard for Sinickal.
22:45 - Out of context quotation, "I was concerned about the integrity of the porcelain as a note!"
[Kev-O Editor's note: This was due to entering the bathroom as one of the largest men I have ever seen was emptying his bladder at a very concerning decibel level. I hope he finds a urologist soon.]
23:16 - Time to uber home.
23:27 - Arrive at home. Pepster immediately calls it a night. [Ed. Note, he has been done for about 45 minutes now.]
Time Unknown - Sinickal, Tony, and Kev-O call it.
