Gang Green of the Pub Quiz

I wasn’t there, but here’s what I heard…

tracirocks — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 23:46:29 +0000

Triumphant! Magnificent! Inebriated! All those words apply to your team, Gang Green, as we won it all on Tuesday night, garnering about $100 in cold hard cash, baby! Despite a weak finish, the team managed to pull out a win with strong early rounds and a better than expected showing (when compared to everyone else) in the music round. Going 12 for 12 on matching and a solid picture round made the difference, even with a 1-point deduction for having 7 players. Tensions flared a little over ‘tectonics’ versus ‘seismology’ but what can you do? We got the point and, really, isn’t that all that matters? Since we WON, you betcha! Will Gang Green be able to defend its title in two weeks? Stay tuned to find out and thank YOU for your support!

Gang Green team 8/10/10

Darin “Pocket Monster” Chong
Nora “Polydactyl” Guy
Erin “Of course I have a favorite Roman emperor” Ewart
Hamidah “Pancake with a gooey center” Salzmann
Al “Rudolph Hessky, Soviet Spy” Duncan
Jenn “Leader of cheers, jeers & beers” McAllister
Jon “Stuck on BandAid” Lehre

Three’s Company

tracirocks — Wed, 21 Jul 2010 17:31:16 +0000

Though not our usual “week on” for trivia, Gang Green assembled a skeleton crew of three and played under the epithet Conspiracy Theory. The current events round went well, but from there through the picture round, we were wedged in a solid 4^th place. Civil war questions (where’s Erin?), paint questions (well, turpentine questions, really — where’s Jon?), purple drank questions (well, I got that one, thanks to D. Chong in absentia). But then came the music round. What can you say about a music round that includes Rock Candy (my former band name), Chuck Mangione, The Hustle, and Flight of the Conchords? You can say, “it’s business time,” as our fearless team scored a solid 10 out of 10, squeaking into the lead by half a point, and leaving Johnny Ringo in the dust. The underdogs maintained that half-point lead to emerge victorious over the sinister Voldemort and new foes Post Script for an astounding come-from-behind win!

Your Gang Green team 7/20/10:

“Rockaday” Al Duncan
Jen “7 percent solution” McAllister
Traci “Feels So Good” Bocci

Tiebreaker, Schmiebreaker

tracirocks — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 17:09:23 +0000

It was a jam-packed night of on-the-edge-of-your-seat trivia on Tuesday night. With the pub filled to bursting, the All-Star Game on the TV screens and ale flowing freely, Gang Green dominated the first 5 rounds only to unexpectedly falter in the music and final trivia rounds. Despite our blunders, we managed to pull out a tie for second place with Smolt. Despite going to a shoot-out, neither team could bring it home so we agreed to call it a night and share the honor of 2^nd place. A decent finish but a disappointing end to a long night of fun, friends and frivolity. See you all in two weeks!!

Gang Green for 7/13/10

Traci “Cider makes it all better” Bocci
Erin “All roads lead to Ashland” Ewart
Darin “Pub seating relocation expert” Chong
Al “Geography is where it’s at” Duncan
Jon “Permafrosty the Snowman” Lehre
Jen “Better Late than Never” McAllister

The Loneliest Number

tracirocks — Wed, 07 Jul 2010 17:34:31 +0000

Alone. Abandoned. All by myself. With one teammate in AZ, and the rest otherwise occupied. Still, I decided to brave the forces of pub quiz gangless this week. Playing under the moniker Soylent Green, I sharpened my pencil and hoped for the best. The results were not pretty. While I managed to keep a steady point-flow in the general knowledge rounds, the brutal sports-themed matching round was my nemesis (zero points – a new record!), and the picture round didn’t help my cause, either. Despite all that (and thanks to a low turnout of competitors), I still managed to hold steady in 3^rd place (out of 4 teams!) for the duration of the night and got my two dollars back.

Your Soylent Green Team 07/06/10:

Traci “It’s People!” Bocci

The Return of Gang Green

tracirocks — Wed, 30 Jun 2010 18:42:50 +0000

Okay, so, the Gang itself hasn’t been away. True, our former home of trivia abandoned us in the déclassé way of closing down. Now we’re trekking out to Friar Tuck’s in Cotati. It’s not as cozy but the fish tacos are to die. And let’s face it: Guinness is Guinness everywhere (thank the Creator). Tuesday night rather, marked the return of favored scribe, Jon (hey, that’s me) back to the ranks! And what a night it was! The round itself was fairly normal with some pretty easy matching (movie quotes? Oh please.) and some extremely obscure trivia (the first name of the Geico gecko? Really?) All night we were just behind the lead team until at the very end we did just well enough to… well… stay behind and come in second. Ah well. Second place is pretty darned sweet! So, we head into Independence Day weekend with a warm glow in our hearts and a contented smile on our faces. Happy 4^th of July everyone!

Gang Green 6/29/2010

Traci “Nobody puts Bocci in a corner” Bocci
Jen “B1? I am one!” McAllister
Hamidah “Cologne by chlorine” Salzmann
Erin “Civil War groupie” Ewart
Al “Obscure Naval Trivia A Specialty” Duncan
Jon “Drunk on 7-Up” Lehre

6 More Weeks of Winner…

tracirocks — Wed, 03 Feb 2010 09:35:03 +0000

It was a full house at ye olde Black Rose, and Gang Groundhog felt a bit hobbled with one of our key players MIA. Still, the 5 members pulled ourselves up by our bootstraps and forged ahead. Although we fell short in guessing the size of Obama’s… budget, and preferred to call our noble gases inert, we managed to match 10 out of 12 universities with their college towns (‘cause, y’know, we KNOW how to party!). Still, as is our consistent M.O., we hovered just under the radar until the music round (a rare 15-song “speed round”), and came back in the final two to nab a lucrative 1^st place finish.

And we didn’t even need the tiebreaker this week (although we knew the answer, of course, was General Larry Platt)!

Your Gang Groundhog Team 02/02/10:

Erin “These Boots are Made for Trivia” Ewart
Jen “Y’all are from Mars, I’m from Venus” McAllister
Al “Green Mountain Boy” Duncan
Darin “I’ll take that as a complement!” Chong
Traci “Keep your hands to yourself” Bocci

Will you still need me when I’m 64 (points and tied for 2nd place)?

tracirocks — Wed, 20 Jan 2010 18:10:32 +0000

The Gang Green crew was in fine form on Tuesday, matching wits with the best of them, even taking a 2 point lead into the last round. But like a Klingon in a tutu, it just wasn’t meant to be. The 7th round and two tiebreakers later, Gang Green found itself at the trivia night version of the kids table at Thanksgiving – third place. After two consecutive first place finishes, Gang Green dropped too many close ones and second-guessed ourselves out of the winning circle, losing to Johnny Ringo and some other group whose name, frankly, we didn’t catch. Still, we did get our money back and could still boast of functioning rather well in the face of long odds and inebriation. So it’s back to scouring the recesses of our mind (and E Online) as we prepare for the February 2nd trivia contest with a new fire in our belly to win win win! Go Gang Green!

Gang Green 1-19-10

Traci “I am your density” Bocci
Darin “Square root of Sade” Chong
Erin “Half Blood Princess” Ewart
Al “Turn off your cell phone!” Duncan
Jen “That should be a tech stock” McAllister
Jon “I need a nibble” Lehre

Ring Out the Old, Ring In the New

tracirocks — Wed, 06 Jan 2010 17:59:49 +0000

Due to extenuating circumstances, this blog wrap-up will include results for the past two trivia sessions, featuring your Team Gang Green… playing under a couple of aliases. We’ll start with the most recent first.
_______________________

1/5/10 Trivia Nite

Happy New Year to our faithful blog readers (both of you!) and let the news ring out – Team Gang Green kicked off 2010 with a big bang and a win! Playing as “Eight is Enough” Gang Green came from behind and surprised everyone (mostly themselves) by squeaking into first place by half a point, even after the 2 point deduction for having 2 players over the allowed 6.

Led by incredible knowledge from Traci and Al and excellent nodding and supportive comments from the rest of us, Gang Green did just well enough in everything to assure victory. Although we missed our favorite waitress/pub goddess Rhonda, the presence of ales and ciders heals all sorrows.

If you’re keeping track, here’s the stats for 2010: 1 trivia night = 1 win for Gang Green. We’re batting 1.000! Should we quit while we are ahead? NO! Mark the calendars for 1/19 and get ready for another Gang Green win! (okay, did I just jinx us? sorry.)

Team Eight is Enough 1/5

Traci “I am positive I’m sure!” Bocci
Darin “It’s Canadian Football, eh?” Chong
Erin “Poetry minors unite” Ewart
Al “Brother Al” Duncan
Jen “Sister Jen” McAllister
Nora “Are there any geeks here who could answer that question?” Guy
Hamidah “I get my facts from clothing” Salzmann
Jon “I really thought he was dead” Lehre
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12/22/09 Trivia Nite

’Twas a few days before Christmas and all through the pub
People were drinking and eating pub grub.
The trivia questions were really quite tough
But Team Gang Grinch was correct by enough!

After all of the answers had been finally scored,
A first place win was their holiday reward.
With whoops and with hollers they enjoyed their success,
And not surprisingly caused a big mess.

But the best part of all was the laughter and jokes,
And enjoying time spent with favorite folks.
So from Gang Green to you, we wish you much cheer,
A great holiday season and a Happy New Year!

Team Gang Grinch 12/22/09

Traci “you better watch out, you better not cry” Bocci
Darin ” and then all the reindeer loved him” Chong
Erin “visions of sugarplums” Ewart
Jen “Festivus for the rest of us” McAllister
Al “feats of strength” Duncan
Jon “on the naughty list” Lehre

Return of the Blog!

tracirocks — Wed, 25 Nov 2009 19:55:18 +0000

It’s been a long time between blogs but we’ve been diligently putting in our trivia time – with disappointing results. It’s been a time of drought for the Gang of Green with nary a top 3 finish in a couple months. Fourth place appears to be our friend with a fifth place acquaintance having an all too constant presence. Despite a brief 2nd place finish by 2 Members of GG (Traci & Jon) with help from Jon’s sister Jennifer (playing as Zoinks!!) on 11/17, the entire team, playing as Gobble Gobble Hey (in a T-Giving nod to the Ramones), fell again to fourth place on 11/24, despite breaking the vaunted 60 point mark. A crushing blow to the egos of all involved, made better only by continuous refills of beer or cider. As we head into the Thanksgiving holiday, we say our thanks for the improved music rounds (the quizmaster using an iPod instead of skippy CDs or warbly cassettes? What a concept!) and for just having each other to laugh, joke, commiserate and utter petty disparaging remarks to the teams who defeat us. Sore losers? Maybe… but amusing!

But let’s look forward! Here’s to starting off December with a win! We’ve got two weeks to forget to prepare! Go Gang Green!

Gang Green 11/24/09

Traci “Would you like a chutney Squishee?” Bocci
Erin “Cloture… yes, cloture!” Ewart
Darin “x² x z²= y… wow that looks smart” Chong
Jon “I’m the go to Bible guy? oh that’s so wrong” Lehre
Nora “Death Cab for Cutie meets Miley Cyrus” Guy
Kate “I can name that Christopher Cross song in 3 notes” Kelly

3… is a magic number…

tracirocks — Thu, 23 Jul 2009 23:30:32 +0000

Hello one and all!

After a disappointing finish last week, Gang Green roared back and locked down a coveted 3rd Place win on Tuesday night! Credit goes to Michael “Truckin’ ” Myers for keeping us alive during the matching round (match the interstate number with the city-to-city route? jiminy christmas!) and an awesome group effort during the music round where we only missed one – but as it was Miley Cyrus, is that really something to be ashamed of? Normally the most mellow of teams, Gang Green got feisty this week as Erin “Oh I will say something” Ewart gently challenged trivia master Michael on one question — she was this close to getting her point across, but no doubt the calls of support from her enthusiastic (and libation-enhanced) teammates did nothing to help her cause. Sorry about that, Erin!

Look for another thrilling installment of the Gang Green Blog in two weeks, hopefully we’ll start August off with a bang!
Team Gang Green for 7/21/09

Traci “TB knows TJ” Bocci
Erin “You can only fold it in half once… once!” Ewart
Darin “I fish with MY trent stick all the time” Chong
Hamidah “For accuracy, it’s Ham!dah” Salzmann
Michael “Breaker One-Nine, this here’s the Rubber Duck” Myers
Jon “Supporting white blues artists” Lehre