With the boys on a mission, ABN and Andy got us on the road at 4.30am headed for Las Vegas via the Hoover Dam with the rest of the boys strapped into the back bed like Max Mosley at a dinner party.
Driving through the sunrise over the Kaibab National park, we arrived at the Hoover Dam early and managed to forgo a cavity search – much to Nic’s disappointment, however we did manage a photo – and had a quick poke around and unfortunately Andy came away empty handed in the touristy sh*t department.
Pulling into our suites at The Mirage early doors we decided to absorb a little American culture by heading to a firing range.
Redneck fun out of the way it was back to the suite for pre-drinks in our robes and a briefing on how to play blackjack, ergo blind leading the blind. 3/4s of a bottle of Jager later we were ready to attack the tables.
Chiselling away at the blackjack tables with mixed fortunes, Dean provided the entertainment for the evening swirling around the roulette, poker and blackjack tables aggressively losing money and chewing anyone’s ear that happened to be in the vicinity.
With Dean joining the now fully loaded Blackjack table with Andy & ABN bantering with the dealer and the rest of the table, it was time for Dean to get involved and show his gambling prowess, schooled at the Austin Powers Blackjack Academy. Being dealt 17 to the dealers 15, Dean asked for another card, much to the amusement of the table and our lady dealer, she asked, “Are you sure you want to do that?”, with $50 on the line and not a moment’s hesitation, he responded in the affirmative followed by a chorus of chuckles and gasps. BUST! Dealt a king before the dealer also busts, the table and the crowd we had attracted went absolutely bananas to one of the funniest scenes to be played out in the history of that table.
Leaving shortly after Dean’s heroics, we made our way to a few bars and clubs minus Dean who was chasing a bottle of Makers Mark. A few BLT burgers later, we returned to the now sparsely populated casino floor to find a dishevelled Dean sprawled over a poker table with a 5 finger pour of Makers Mark and down an indeterminate amount of money.
Grizzling across the states 