Loyola Discovery Trip

December 23, 2008 • 12:18 pm • POSTED BY Jon Fruman

A few weeks ago a small team of 160over90 employees went to Loyola University in Baltimore, Maryland for a discovery trip. It was a rainy day that Wednesday in Baltimore, but all that Loyola had to offer was still tops. Most notably we went to a basketball game against Coppin State and visited The Backstretch Saloon.

At the basketball game Coppin State quickly took the lead and before we knew it Loyola was down by 20 points and the game looked out of reach; however, the resilient Greyhounds never gave up and managed to battle back with 2 scoring runs of 9-0 and 7-0 in the 2nd half.

Caught in the excitement were The Dog Pound,

a local high-school marching band,

and one of 160′s creative directors, Dan Shepelavy.

Caught in conversation, Dan had no intentions of being the sole spectator not showing school spirit. With his hands full he resorted to the next best noise making device, he repetitively slammed his umbrella on the bleacher floor and he roared as Loyola pulled ahead. The last minutes of the game were super exciting as Loyola was able to take the lead with approximately 4 minutes left and hold on for the win 73-70.

After the basketball game we were in need of a place to get some dinner and take in the Baltimore nightlife. We quickly turned to Dan’s iPhone which directed us to the “Backstretch Saloon” on Old Cold Spring Lane.

The Backstretch appeared to be a spot of homeliness and friendliness, but unfortunately was vetoed. As we began to search for another eatery we quickly realized we were caught in the ultimate dilemma. Old Cold Spring Lane, a one way street, was under construction, with no signs in site that offered an alternated route of transportation. We weighed our options and decided fighting the rough terrain would be our only resolution. Our driver gunned the gas as we approached the unleveled gravel street and before we knew it the ground suddenly disappeared into a massive crater. The breaks were slammed on, the mini van swerved to the left and lucky our driver was able to maneuver around the missing land and get us out in one piece.

We ended up at The Mt. Washington Tavern where Ralphie from The Christmas Story was celebrity bartending. In the end, we had a great time, we enjoyed delicious food, we played shuffle board,

we celebrated Kelly Dorsey’s birthday with oysters and cake at midnight,

unfortunately nothing could top the crater and the excitement it offered. The only birthday wish Kelly made was to celebrate with the crater, regrettably her wish was never granted and instead we went back to the hotel.

We rose early the following day to complete our discovery trip and to our surprise, the weather was equally as rainy as the day before. We reached for our umbrellas and exited the hotel. My umbrella opened correctly, Dorsey’s opened up, Quinn’s had no issues; however, Dan’s umbrella seemed to be unpleased with the treatment it received the night before.

It quickly became clear that Dan pushed his umbrella to edge and it had enough. While it was great to see Dan finally become a fan of competitive sports, it was better to see his umbrella get the final laugh which was ultimately at me as became Dan’s umbrella chauffeur on that rainy Thursday.

We return to Loyola on January 6th for our final meetings. I can only hope the crater has yet to be repaired and the sun is shining.