For those of you not on Facebook you may have missed this comprehensive write up of Saturdays great fundraising quiz night success and I didn’t want anyone to miss out, so find it copied below. Along with this chronical came the daily trivia teasers leading up to the event and all the behind the scenes efforts to make the night a triumph and I wanted to offer my personal thanks to everyone who contributed to keeping the annual RRC fundraiser a fun night not to be missed. Look out for news here on how the funds will be spent to directly benefit the members of the club.
“I lost my virginity again on Saturday night, hosting my first ever trivia night. And even before I got to the first question, we lost the answer sheets and the table round questions (quotable quotes). I swore, as I do in these situations, walked around the room a few times until Dave appeared with a ream of paper. Crisis averted.
It was a nervous start: rules were read and rehearsed jokes fell flat. The warm up served it purpose, pin pointing the location of the drinkers, and those not on facebook. It was a bit long winded and the punters were starting to get restless, they just wanted the trivia.
Round one, Arts and Entertainment. I was told the night before the questions were too easy. After only a few questions, it was obvious this may not be the case. However, by the middle of the round, most teams looked to be answering questions. I relaxed, and we started to hit the groove. That was until I read out the answers at the end of the round.
Question eight, the hecklers started; the team not on facebook (known herein as the minority) . Yes, I stuffed up, most first timers do. They questioned, I defended, they questioned back (with interest), I conceded, they offered to Google, I conceded again, they muttered words and shook heads. Question retracted. They were hear to play.
The highlight was the round was the karaoke. Three great renditions of Valarie, Throw your arms around me and Life on Mars. I was impressed, and so were the punters. Bonus points awarded to the brave.
We broke for the Auction. Derek kicked off the first round superbly, raising over $1K with the five items on offer. Things were looking up.
Round two, Melbourne. After a fairly even first round, teams would falter on their knowledge of Melbourne. If only they were tourists, trawling for background on the city they would soon visit, they would have nailed every question.
The minority skipped away with a solid round. Despite their lead, they continued to heckle and question. Yes, Archer did win the cup twice, but he won the first in 1861 not 1862. If I wanted the year the second Melbourne Cup was run, I would have asked for it.
I hand the keys over the Derek and head to the bar to buy a beer.
Derek took to the floor for round two of the auction. The prizes were bigger this round and so were the bids. The big one was the hall hire. It went for $950. The clubs jewel in the crown became the five bedroom weekender, and as the bids increased, the committee collectively smiled.
Round three, general ignorance. A not so flattering photo of Trump brought a chuckle among the crowd. Several drinks into the night, the crowd was starting to catch up with the lads at the back of the room.
The questions were bastards. The type that sit on the tip of the tongue but you can never spit them them out. What is Donald Trumps personal twitter handle? Where was the Titanic built? Right royal bastards.
The answers were read out, fists pumped and cries of anguish were heard as each way bets proved the difference between right and wrong. The elephant in the room arrived during this round on the back of the Grand Old Party. Two out of seven teams walked away with the bonus points.
The minority were at it again. Neptune is a gaseous planet not terrestrial, according to NASA, and I am guessing they know a bit about these sorts of things. And by the way, when the question asks for four planets, don’t list six to cover all options. Oh dear, the quiz master is having difficulty in adding up their scores correctly. I have always been bad with numbers.
Round three of the Auction and Derek is working the room raising more than he should on items lost on their owners. This is what the auction is all about. By the end of the round he will have raised over $4K for the club. A great nights work.
Round four, sporting glory. The final round starts with a slide of the Australian mens heavy weight four catching a massive crab mid race at Lucerne. We are all human after all.
It’s a fun round with most teams fairing well. However, some responses left me feeling that sporting knowledge is not on the agenda for some people. Perhaps they have given up, and their intention was to make me laugh. It certainly worked. There is no question that Gough Whitlem was a remarkable person, however, I am not sure he managed to kick the goal that put Australia into the 2006 World Cup.
The final answers are given, and for the first time of the night, the minority remain silent.
Dave runs the sit down game and we raise a bit more cash for the club. We complete the night by announcing the minority as the winners by a slender margin of two points. They come forth to claim their prize, winning the tiger and refusing to accept it’s birth certificate. It remains behind the bar.
It’s been a good night for the club. We have raised over $6K for new equipment which helps keep members in new boats and in the medals.
If the truth be told we were all virgins tonight. It’s was also Derek’s fist time as an auctioneer and Dave’s organising the event. Following on from the master Justin was going to be tough, but I think we did alright.
See you all next year.”
Simon Crunden
