March Madness consistently brings out the gambler deep inside of all of us  and the office and buddy pools reach an all time high.  But if you're new to the experience here are a couple of tips and how to's to make sure your pool is the best (and most fair) out there.

There are really two main styles to the March Madness Pool

The classic March Madness pick style is the standard 64 team bracket with 63 games, which means 63 chances to bring home the bacon or fail miserably in a puddle of March Madness shame and disappointment.  The catch to this style is...All 63 picks must be made before the game 1 tip-off of March Madness.  So make your picks and forever hold your peace.  This style is widely used but doesn't allow too much room for error and is better designed for the veterans and hardcore fans.

The second style is the progressive "Daily Pick'em" style that allows you to pick each game before its respective tip-off.  This means that if you chose the University of Oregon to lose in the the first round and they win, you can still pick U of O in the second round.  This is a nice way to play if you are going to be on top of every game and want a few more chances to hedge your scores.

The Scoring!

There are several different scoring methodologies that can be used and people will be arguing the best ones until the end of time.  But here are some quality methods that work well and are relative standards.

Standard round scoring:

Round 1 picks: 1

Round 2 picks: 2

Round 3 picks: 4

Round 4 picks: 8

Round 5 picks: 16

Round 6 picks: 32

This method of scoring is a pretty traditional stand-by but you'll notice its a little heavy on the final four rounds and also doesn't take into consideration any type of seeding.  For example, if you took a risk and picked a low seed team to go all the way and they do, you should be rewarded for taking the risk.  To compensate for the late round point mongering you can change the scoring to 2-3-5-8-13-21.  If you want to reward people for braving the odds and going with the underdog then you can add an additional point stipulation: Round # x Seed #

Happy Pooling

The Hallmark laden month of February is slowly coming to an end closing out the final days of  winter and swiftly rolling into the crisp sunny days of Spring.  Along with spring brings every college sports fans Holy Grail, March Madness 2009 is quickly approaching and were going to give you tips and tricks on how to get to as many games as possible.

NCAA March Madness 2009 begins with selection Sunday scheduled for March 15th where top college teams are paired off to do battle for the NCAA Championship.  And until then its pretty much anyone's guess who gets invited to the Big Dance.

Opening Round Game: March 17, 2009

First Round: March 19-20, 2009

Second Round: March 21-22, 2009

Third Round: March 26-27, 2009

Fourth Round: March 28-29, 2009

Final Four: April 4 & 6, 2009 at Ford Field in Detroit, Michigan.

Dowload your bracket now

So you've finally made it on your dream vacation to Dubai...but now what?  What do you do? Where do go?  What should you see?  What should you avoid?  Well, fret not my fellow children of the earth, we’ve put together a nice little assortment of tips and information that will give you a well-rounded Dubai experience.

The Big Bus: Quick & Easy Tours

You’re a busy person right?  So you may not have all the time in the world for extensive city tours but you still want get your feet wet with some of the sites without the debacle of riding around in a cab all day. The Big Bus!  The Big Bus Tour is safe and extremely convenient alternative to check out the city.

The tickets are valid for 24 hrs which allows you jump on and off the Tour Bus at your leisure.  And at around AED 175 (45 bucks) per ticket its not a bad price for an all day pass to go gallivanting around the city.

One ticket covers two routes.  The best route to really see the sights is the Red Route which includes the Dubai Creek, Al Fahidi Fort and Dubai Museum, the bazaars and a few shopping malls.

Desert Safari

Looking to have a Desert experience and meditate on the mass expanse of nothingness, life and fly across some serious sand dunes?  Then get your Safari on!  Arabian Adventures runs a “Sundowner” tour that is a part of a caravan experience that takes you on a one of a kind adventure through the desert.   Hopefully you don’t get car-sick because these six person 4wd vehicles will take you on some serious dunage among desert stops for photo ops and wildlife observation.  The tour ends with a sunset dinner in Bedouin tents with belly dancers and other forms desert entertainment.

Off the Beaten Path:  True Arabian Nights

So maybe the touristy desert safari isn’t really your “deal” and you want some real adventure to satisfy the vagabond in you.  Hop in a Taxi and ask for “Dubai Creel, Al Seef Stree, near the British Consulate.”

Seef street comes alive at night and throws you into the true romance Dubai has to offer.  Take a nice walk along the water and watch the Abras (water taxis) and Dhows (traditional wooden boats) and modern yachts cruise along the banks and the spectacular skyline across the shore.

Along this path lie several traditional eateries for your enjoyment, but note that these restaurants do not serve alcohol.  Be sure to check out the Kan Zaman Restaurant past the HSBC Bank near the Sheikh Saeed house.  This is a great size spot with plenty of indoor and outdoor seating.

Get Yo’ Shop on:

One of the most popular tourist attractions in Dubai is the massive expanse of shopping opportunities.  Dubai is home to some of the most infamous shopping malls that can run even the most experienced retail maverick ragged and weighed down.  With this in mind be sure to check out The Mall of the Emirates which has its own indoor snowfield.  If you’re looking for that Egyptian vibe then check out the lavish Wafi City

There are plenty of designer shops with similar prices to that of stores in London, though you certainly wont find much of the local fare in these western catering monoliths.

Most the large malls are open 7 days a week so don’t be shy, crack your wallet and check it out.