For the last few days, I've felt oddly compelled to play some Halo. I think I figured out why, though.
Halo is the first console game that's getting big competitive attention. It's been a WCG tournament game for a year or two, and will be again this year when the tournament makes the US its home for the first time ever.
What does this mean? Halo 2 is going to be even bigger. With full Xbox Live support, the game is going to have a *huge* online following, and there will be a more consistent, less laggy, better organized community. This could lead to online qualifiers for national (or even international) tournaments, and this is something I want to get in on, especially considering Blanton's proximity to so many talented players.
So I'm hoping to practice just a little this summer and maybe get my skills up a little more in preparation for Halo2, when the slate gets wiped clean with new maps and weapons. Anyone up for a game?
More interestingly, I didn't know what the
Player's Run was when I saw the decals on Sunday. As I stepped closer to the car, I got a reminder: it's the national race for really rich dudes who all help each other get out of jail and things like that. Today, I did some researching, and it's really damn intriguing. Well, last year's run got a lot of attention, so this year it's turned into a safer marketing blitz sort of celebrity-status event. You have to apply with your car and explain why it's unique, and if it's interesting enough, they'll let you in with an additional driver for just under $12,000 for a weeklong journey.
Where it's been rumored that the cops were against the drivers in previous years (which led to roadblocks and drivers spending the night in jail), this year had every day starting with a "Police Escort," presumably leading them to the highways where they can tear all the ass they want. Every night is an event for rich people: photo ops, car babes, and VIP parties that culminate in nights spent in five-star hotels. So, it's not really a race so much as a traveling party tour that lets the "entrants" live the high life for a week.
If you split $12,000 and another $2,000 for food and gas, then $7,000 is a steal for a "vacation" like that (that's vacation money that can be saved up without *too* much time if you're good at penny-pinching). Then again, you realistically have to own a quarter-million-dollar car to even be considered (Porsches and M3s and even MINIs run as well, but most are tuned pretty damn well to be able to roll with the Ferraris, S7s and Lambos that are standard fare for the trip).
But let's consider the economics of it. $5,000 or more to take myself to BMW's M Driving School and the woman to a car clinic out in South Carolina, or drop another $2k to take an M3 across the country with a trusted co-driver and party like 99% of the population only imagines? I'll take out a loan for the extra money, dammit.
