On the Road To Super Bowl XLIV in Miami
Here you can find one college student’s travelogue form Gainesville to Miami for the Super Bowl XLIV with a few extras (let’s call them party favors). My apologies to Jack Kerouac.
My three friends and I, we’re all seniors at the University of Florida, had a serious decision to make earlier this week. Thanks to a winning bet on Bodog Sportbook (thanks to Billy Donovan and Co for covering at Tennessee on Sunday) we won some money and had a dew extra hundred bucks. Should we drive the five-and-a-half hours from Gainesville to Miami for the Super Bowl XLIV or should we drive into the other direction to a bigger party in New Orleans on Super Sunday weekend that should take place after the game, if the Saints beat the Colts.
It wasn’t an easy decision but we chose to take the ride to Miami because we passed on going only a few hours down the road last year for the big game in Tampa, and who knows when it gets back to the Sunshine State. I don’t prefer one of the teams in the game, however as a student at UF you are taught in the first weeks that you have to hate Peyton Manning even though he never beat Florida in his college career at Tennessee (take that No. 18!). Just for your interests if you want to know my roots.
This trip will probably be our last road trip in college and we’ve figured out that the weather would be much better in Miami and don’t forget the ladies. The women haven’t disappointed us, but the weather was awful. Fortunately that is supposed to change soon.
Anyway we didn’t have tickets for the fame and we didn’t have a place to stay in South Florida. In our first night we stayed in a very cheap hotel – since none of the four of us was interested in a toothless prostitute named Lafonda or in purchasing heroin, we only stayed one night in this room. The whole trip reminded me of a spring break, so it’s not like we need to sleep much. We can always hang at the Hard Rock all night if need be, and there are many showers on the beach. We searched for a safer fleabag motel somewhere later.
Some more trendy than myself people gave me some lessons to get into those hip bars and how I can crash these exclusive parties: Dress well (especially shoes, oddly enough), speak confidently, tip the doorman. But the main one which you have to keep in mind is also the most obvious one: try and convince some random group of beautiful girls to convince the bouncer that we are with them. My plan was to use phone pictures of my brother’s new puppy and tell the girls that it’s my own. My hope was that no female can turn down a puppy.
Here is my personal Miami Super Bowl Party Tip: CalvinAyre.com has a complete list of all the pre- and post-Super Bowl parties to hit, but here’s a quick sampling:
Wednesday, Feb. 3:
Passion Nightclub at the Hard Rock Ricky Williams a Tribute to Freedom Charity Event; Cameo Miami Diddy Super Bowl Party; Doubletree Surfcomber Hotel Bud Light Pool Party at the Bud Light Hotel; Mansion Nightclub Leather and Laces National Hottie Search 2010; Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino - Lingerie Bowl VII Worldwide Media Day; Eden Roc Renaissance Miami Beach Jordin Sparks Experience Miami.Thursday, Feb. 4:
Clevelander Hotel EA Sports Madden Bowl 2010; Hotel 944 Launch Party with Jimmie Johnson & Nick Lachey Charity Event; The Beach (South Beach) Pepsi Super Bowl Fan Jam with Rihanna & Justin Bieber; Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Miami Rice Celebrity Gala with Jerry Rice; Private Mansion on Pine Tree Drive House of Conjure Celebrity Poker for Charity; Passion Nightclub at the Hard Rock Jamie Foxx Celebrity Gala.Friday, Feb. 5:
American Airlines Arena Saving Ourselves: Help for Haiti Now Telethon with Diddy, Queen Latifah, Mary J. Blige & More; Hotel 944 Celebrity Poker Tournament; Passion Nightclub at the Hard Rock Kendra Wilkinsons Superstar Friday with Tropicbeauty.com Model Search; Fontainebleau - ESPN the Magazines Next Super Bowl Party; Art Deco Paris Theatre: Leather and Laces 2010 with Kim Kardashian, Doubletree Surfcomber Hotel The Official Bud Bowl Concert in Miami with Usher; Roselyn Sanchez & Holly Madison.Saturday, Feb. 6:
Sagamore Hotel Playboy Super Bowl Party; Bank of America Tower Saturday Night Spectacular with Jim Carrey & Jenny McCarthy; Whiskey Blue at the W DJ set by Fall Out Boys Pete Wentz; Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Lingerie Bowl VII; The Raleigh Hotel Maxim Super Bowl Party; Fontainebleau Axe Lounge at Liv with Jennifer Lopez and Will.i.am; Doubletree Surfcomber Hotel Foxx and Friends Super Bowl Party; Passion Nightclub at the Hard Rock Penthouse Magazine Super Bowl Party.Sunday, Feb. 7, Super Bowl:
Passion Nightclub at the Hard Rock Ludacris Super Baller After Party.It‘s really exhausting on Wednesday when the parties kick off. Unfortunately we have to get up very early in the morning, because we don’t want to miss the Lingerie Bowl VII Media Day at the Seminole Hard Rock in Hollywood. It’s the first time that this is event is free and open to the public and one fan has the honor to run drills with the team. And if that’s me, a few hundred photos could find their way onto my Facebook page and future employers or current girlfriend will be damned.
We’re going to pass on the Jordin Sparks party on Wednesday evening, because honestly we didn’t know who that was) and figure out we have no chance of getting into Ray Lewis party of Diddys shindig on South Beach, so we’re planning to go to Fort Lauderdale for the Xbox party on Wednesday night at the W Hotel, where the chances are much better! After all we’re college kids, we tend to spend a lot of time playing various video games! We are going to try and crash the Hooters Super Pool Party at the Surfcomber Hotel on South Beach on Thursday and then people watch that night either at the GQ Super Bowl Party at the Bud Light Hotel or check out Madden Bowl XVI at the Cleveland Hotel, which is supposed to have a ton of athletes.
The parties get even better on Friday, but unfortunately they also get more exclusive and expensive. Of course none of us could afford the $350 for the Leather and Laces Super Bowl Party therefore we’ll be standing outside and hoping for a peek at Holly Madison (or Kim Kardashian although I’m not a big fan). Hopefully we’ll be able to hear Usher play on Friday night even though we don’t have tickets to get in, but we’re optimistic since this is the theme of our trip.
On Saturday we probably will need to sell out blood or something to fill up our funds (just kidding, or not?). We plan to go to see the Lingerie Bowl back at the Hard Rock, which seems to be the other epicenter of action down here besides South Beach. We had luck and scored some Black Eyes Peas tickets through a friend for that night, so we’ll visit the concert in downtown Miami.
And for Sunday we have more plans: We’re going to head to the stadium and take part in tailgating at least. Beer pong anyone?
Probably we’ll get lucky with a scalper; although we don’t expect to sit together therefore four of us have agreed that we’ll split up for the game, but it would be a miracle if we get tickets for a reasonable price. My dad respects my journey to the Super Bowl and said he will refund me a bit to a certain amount if I can get a ticket! On Sunday night we’ll just enjoy around the stadium for a few hours and then head back to Gainesville soon with rotating drivers, to get back in time for the classes on Monday morning. But of course, if I win my over 56.5 total bet on NFL betting lines we may have to make an all-nighter and go back on Monday afternoon. There has been talk down here that Miami may not get another Super Bowl there have been a record 10 here if a retractable roof isn’t put on Whatever-Its-Called-Now Stadium. In the 2007 game it was the last time the Colts were here, and it poured the whole game long. Earlier this week this poor weather had made the people a little bit weepy.
If the NFL makes this decision it would a shame, because no one hosts a party like in Miami. I really hope that we’ll actually get inside “Hey over there, Saints cheerleaders, should I show you my puppy?”