Ranking the Organizers of Each PCTI-Part 2

PCTI 5: Denver, CO
Host: Abe Stephen

• Gym: Gym within a workout facility but had enough privacy to suffice.  Hardwood and floor length were good, as were the rims.  No working scoreboard posed an issue, fortunately no games were close.
• Grade: C.
• Refs: Showing up last minute and Abe's lack of communication had everyone wondering if they were in fact were coming, but the unit lead by the female ref did an admirable job despite the initial scare.
• Grade: B.
• Hotel/Location: Grading this one based on the organizers choice is the way this will go... Some of you might not remember Abe's initial booking as the Koala didn't last ten minutes in the room before making the wise executive decision to make a change.  Finding out later in the process Abe had not made his way to check out the hotel shows why he made the decision to put us in a business park, thus earning the horrible grade he is receiving..
• Grade: F.
• Stats: Thankfully PCTI groupie Brittany Thomson showed up to keep score so we at least had that, but Abe clearly made zero effort to try and find a score or stat keeper, thus earning the horrible grade he is receiving.
• Grade: F.
• Restaurants: A part of me wanted to look at what his itinerary showed, because there's no way in hell any of it was followed.  Seeing as how his hotel choice was 20 minutes from downtown, there clearly was no restaurants chosen, thus earning the horrible grade he is receiving.
• Grade: F.
• Nightlife: We had some good nights on the Denver party seen and have some good pics to prove it. Everything was within walking distance of the hotel the Koala chose, and nothing was in the area of the one Abe initially chose, thus earning the horrible grade he is receiving.
• Grade: F.
• Overall: The bright side of this low grade is that Abe clearly is not bothered by anything in any capacity, and he walks around with his low marks like it's a badge of honor. It's possible he bit off a little more than he could chew by choosing to host while starting up a very labor intensive and high stress dog walking business (which is now flourishing by the way), and one has to wonder if waiting another year would have yielded different results.  Denver brought everything possible to doom PCTI (two key injuries and two drop outs last minute), a sweep, and zero effort from the host, but like all good companies, has forced us to change and evolve into the heavyweight we are today.
• Grade: F.

PCTI 6: Portland, OR

Host: The Nature Boy

• Gym: Long drive from hotel and no AC lead to a couple cramps but also a lot more calories burned and some always enjoyable van time.  It was standalone but had people using before and after which although not a big deal, could be perceived as annoying.
• Grade: B.
• Refs: As always, a rivalry between one of the refs and the Actor stole the show, but overall the group was very good and very engaged.
• Grade: B.
• Hotel/Location: Small,trendy rooms but great location with access to the city and the homeless hangout on the water.  The waitress that served breakfast at the hotel the first day still goes down in my history book of the most out of left field human I've ever experienced.
• Stats: None kept, handled by Ben and Hops.
• Grade: Incomplete.
• Restaurants: Will forever hold a spot in my heart as the first time I had a breakfast sandwich from my favorite place in the US, Fried Egg I'm In Love.  Some great choices from the Koala that covered Portland's unique local flair, and who could ever forget the chair breaking on Deuce?
• Grade: A.
• Nightlife: The get together at Nature's was one of my favorite nights in the last few years.  In a rare moment of rallying, DTB came back out despite his fury at Wes trying to break his neck, and showed the PCTI Through The Years video that went a thousand times better than expected.  There weren't a lot of late nights, but a lot of good times.
• Grade: A.
• Overall: Nature stepped up and pumped life back into PCTI despite another year of a dwindled roster and lack of competitive ball.  Although it didn't fit the criteria, it's worth noting one of the best times this group has ever had was the hike through the Artic Tundra, lead by BC and Smo's wisecracks and Beas's annoying calmness.  The private tour of the Blazers facility was a nice touch, as was the trip to the Adidas facility.  The overall trip was great and everyone left with a feeling like they got the full Portland experience.
• Overall: A.