So I managed to get the cabin in Truckee for the weekend. I called the guys and quickly set up a Friday night trip. Dave and James were in, Scott was a probably, and Ange never called me back.

Friday morning I drove the Expedition to James’ house and then to Dave’s. We left Dave’s house in Discovery Bay at 2pm.

It took us 8 hours to get to Truckee.

Normally that trip would take 3 hours (with no traffic). But it was Friday. And there was a winter storm warning.

It was smooth sailing up ’til Auburn. Past that it was all stop and go until about Donner Summit. CalTrans was out in force, inspecting every vehicle. 4 wheel drive or chains were mandatory. If you didn’t have one of the other, you had to turn around and go back down the hill.

I’ve never driven in such an awful winter storm. The roads were completely white–covered in snow and ice. The snow was coming down hard and I could barely see. We had to stop periodically to get the ice off the windshield wiper blades.

So around 10pm we finally got to the cabin. Scott called to say he couldn’t make it–and I wasn’t surprised. His truck doesn’t have four wheel drive, and I doubt he’d want to drive the six hours in the snow to get up there anyway.

Once inside we cracked open the beers, poured some shots, started the charcoal, and called a taxi. By the time we were finished eating our steak dinner the cab was ready to take us to North Shore.

First stop: The Biltmore. I hate this place. I’ve only ever lost in this casino. It took me about 10 minutes to lose 40 bucks at the quarter slots. Defeated, I walked over to the table that Dave and James were playing blackjack, and watched.

Dave quickly lost $200 and James was down as well. Fuck this. Dave announces that he’s never coming to the Biltmore again. Time to walk across the street to Crystal Bay.

It felt good to get outside. It was a little after midnight. The snow was still coming down, but not as hard. It was freezing cold–the temperature on a nearby light-sign-thingy read 18 degrees. I looked up and down the street, and a weird foggy halo type glow surrounded each street light and casino sign.

Once inside Crystal Bay we just sorta stopped and looked around. I really didn’t feel like gambling any more, and I don’t think Dave and James felt like playing blackjack. Off to our left was the craps table, with only 1 guy playing.

Have you ever played craps before? Neither have I (before Friday night). I can remember walking around the casinos in Las Vegas and Reno, and every once in awhile I’d hear this uproar. I’d scan the floor to see where it ws coming from, and most of the time it was the craps table. People would be cheering and giving each other high-fives and having more fucking fun than anyone else in the casino. In comparison, if you looked around you’d see zombies with expressionless faces in front of the slots, people rubbing their temples or holding their head in their hands at the blackjack tables. But people around the craps tables? They’d seem to be having a blast.

Sometimes I’d stand next to the craps table and watch. The dealers are always very funny and personable people, whereas blackjack dealers are hit or miss. The action around the craps table is fast. Chips and dice are flying around the table. I’d try to figure out how to play by watching, but I was never able to. Craps has always been the game I wanted to play, but never got around to learning how.

So there we are, the three of us, standing by the door and all looking at that craps table. None of us knew how to play, but somehow we all knew that now was the time.

As I approached the table, the one guy that was playing alone left. Now we’ve got this craps table all to ourselves. What a perfect time to learn eh?

And we did learn. The dealers were more than happy to teach us the basics. One dealer in particular, Ron, was outstanding. He helped us out by explaining the best bets–when and why to do so. If we made a bad bet he explained to us why, and recommended a better one. Ron looked *just* like Chris Cooper, the actor (Syriana, The Bourne Identity, Seabiscuit, The Patriot, Me Myself & Irene, among others). Ron both saved us money, and made us money. A lot of money.

I think we all started with 40 bucks. A couple hours later Dave had a huge stack of green $25 chips in front of him (later Dave would tell us he had over $1000). And Dave was on fire. It was unbelievable. He made us sooo much money! He couldn’t lose. Soon, we were the ones making all that commotion and ruckus in the casino. High fives and cheers and good times were had by all.

Three hours later we all walked away with our winnings. I think Dave ended up with $600 or so. James and I are more conservative gamblers (it’s not uncommon for Dave to bet half his stack on one hand in blackjack) so we walked away with less.

So let me tell you this: I can’t think of another game I’d rather play in a casino. In fact, I can’t imagine playing anything other than craps ever again. Craps is sooooo much fun! It’s fast, it’s exciting… and when you’re hot, and making everyone around the table money, it’s the best feeling in the world. I highly recommend learning the game. Seriously. Stop throwing away your money on slots.

The three of us sat at the bar and drank for another hour, recapping the highlights of the evening. Dave says that he still likes blackjack, but craps is his new favorite game. I have to agree. I can’t wait to play again.

30 minutes and a taxi ride later we’re back at the cabin. After some more shots and a snack it was time for some sleddin’. Dave and James grabbed the snow shovels and made a little bobsled run next to the cabin. Jackass (Dave) is wearing shorts and it’s in the low teens. Minutes later he’s covered in snow and shivering. It was 6am. I couldn’t hang any longer, so after my photographer duties were fulfilled, I turned in.

Next thing I know it’s noon and my head is pounding. Dave has breakfast ready, so crack open a beer and grab some eggs. For the next four hours I cleaned and straightened up the cabin while Dave and James drank beer and played cards.

We left the cabin around 4pm and drove down town. We went to Bar of America for happy hour and El Toro Bravo for dinner. Can I just tell you that Dave and James are jackasses? At dinner, in a very cramped dining area, and in front of an “audience”, Dave and James staged a mock argument. Expletives flew around the room, as Dave and then James raised their voices and cussed one another out. One family got up and left. I suppose when you’re drunker’n Cooter Brown it’s some funny shit, but when you’re sober, like I was, it was embarassing. OK fine, I thought it was funny too. I guess I’ll never grow up.

The roads were completely clear and the weather was nice and there wasn’t any traffic. We made it back down to Sacramento quickly. Dave decides that we have to stop at Fry’s to take advantage of a sale on hard drives.

Once inside, Dave starts break dancing in the middle of the isle. He can pop and lock and do the robot, sure. But sadly, Dave can no longer flare… or backspin. His backspin barely made 180. Sad, just sad.

I walked around a blind corner and slammed into a shopping cart. I took the opportunity to feign a knee injury, so I fell to the ground and howled in pain. I rolled around on the ground, crying, clutching my knee, and yelling for help. The couple driving the shopping cart looked upon me in horror–much to Dave and James’ pleasure. But I eventually let the couple off the hook–I got up and walked away. My name is Tom Bissell, and I am 34 years old.

An hour later Dave was home, and an hour after that James was home. I finally pulled into my driveway at 11:30pm. I slept for 12 hours straight.

Click here to see pictures from our trip!!!