By Daniel Holmberg (Contributor) – Email
Print Edition: November 26, 2014
Pretend fortunes came and went, with some people hustling the poker table with over $20,000 Friday at UFV’s Winter Formal. The night was hosted by several UFV clubs and associations at AfterMath and the north gym. Previously known as the Casino Royale, the Winter Formal is very much the same event, with the addition of a dance floor.
This year, the main attractions were the dance floor, the bar, two poker tables, three blackjack tables, and an unusual amount of empty space in the gym. After a while, it became rather difficult to join a game of poker, or blackjack, as the tables were mobbed by gambling enthusiasts.
Last year, there were one or two more poker tables, as well as a few more blackjack tables and two roulette wheels. There was certainly no shortage of space at the event this year, but hopefully the organizers will see how popular the event was and will better accommodate the large number of players next year.
The casino itself was fun, as always. Everyone who came was provided with $2,000 of play money to use on the game floor. I found that the money went a little too fast; the smallest denomination of chips was $100, so any and all mistakes were costly.
The dance floor was in the corner of the gym, and after the night was in full-swing, the dance floor was packed with dancers. Two attendees who were well-versed in the art of dance schooled the rest of the dancers with a few stunning tangos, and then offered to teach them some simple dance moves to do together. Unfortunately, there were a number of people who were somewhat disappointed that the night neglected to include any sort of formal dance music. But the music on the dance floor didn’t stop two students from swing-dancing, much to the amusement and bafflement of the other dancers.
AfterMath also catered the event with the usual high quality we have come to expect, but also a rather long wait time. This was understandable due to the size of the crowd, but logical explanation doesn’t do much to settle a growling stomach.
At the end of the night, raffle tickets were sold at the price of $1,000 a ticket. The prize spread was actually pretty good, with three or four Doctor Who lots, as well as Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, Adventure Time, Star Trek, Game of Thrones, gaming equipment prizes, and others. One lucky attendee won three separate prize lots with her $22,000 in winnings.
