The essential collection of activities and experiences for all Wildcats fanatics   Even the most die-hard Wildcats fans haven’t done everything there is to experience in and around Lexington. From ordering the infamous breadstick at Joe Bologna’s Restaurant to visiting the Joe Craft Center, this book provides ideas, recommendations, and insider tips for must-see places and can’t-miss activities near campus. But not every experience requires a trip to Lexington; long-distance Wildcats fans can cross some items off their list from the comfort of their own homes. Whether you’re attending every home game or supporting the Wildcats from afar, there’s something for every fan to do in The Kentucky Wildcat Fans’ Bucket List . Ryan Clark is an editor and an instructor at Northern Kentucky University. He is a former reporter and columnist for the Cincinnati Enquirer , and is the author or coauthor of four books about University of Kentucky athletics. He lives in Burlington, Kentucky. Joe Cox is the coauthor of three books about University of Kentucky athletics. He lives in in Logan County, Kentucky. They are the coauthors of 100 Things Wildcats Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die . The Kentucky Wildcats Fans' Bucket List By Ryan Clark, Joe Cox Triumph Books Copyright © 2015 Joe Cox and Ryan Clark All rights reserved. ISBN: 978-1-62937-115-3 Contents Foreword by Tony Delk, Acknowledgments, Introduction, Chapter 1. The Ultimate Game Day Experience, Chapter 2. See Cat City, Chapter 3. (The Rest of) My Old Kentucky Home, Chapter 4. Around the Conference, Around the Country (and Around the World), Chapter 5. Your Own UK Universe, Chapter 6. The Big Blue Beyond, CHAPTER 1 The Ultimate Game Day Experience It wouldn't be a Kentucky Wildcats bucket list without seeing a basketball game at Rupp Arena. But we're not just dumping you out and telling you "go see a game." No way. We're telling you where to go before, where to go after, what to watch for, what songs to sing, what to eat, who to talk to ... believe us, when you're done, you will have had the ultimate game day experience! Watch a Game in Rupp Arena WHERE: Downtown Lexington, Kentucky. WHEN: November until March HOW TO DO IT: Connections/Money/the Internet/Scalpers/the UK box office at certain times COST FACTOR: Solidly $$ or $$$ per person, maybe closer to $$$$ if you want a prime seat. DIFFICULTY FACTOR: Sometimes not as difficult as you would think. [??] for big games. [??] for some mediocre conference games. [??] for easy teams and preseason contests. BUCKET RANK: ***** HINTS FOR LITTLE WILDCATS/RELUCTANT WILDCATS: There are many things throughout the experience to do and see for little Wildcats fans. Bring your ball — as you will see why. Girls can dress in their little UK cheerleader uniforms. See the Lexington castle. Have some ice cream (a must for kids and adults) and burgers afterward. Some children may be put off by the noise, but in general, Rupp crowds are not known for their boisterousness. In general, the crowd is nice and kid friendly. A bucket list for University of Kentucky fans has to begin with a trip to Rupp Arena to see the Wildcats play basketball. Whether it's a top-ten matchup, a rivalry battle, or a conference game, seeing a contest in person in the home arena has to be first on anyone's list. After all, every fan — young or old — remembers watching his or her first game from the stands. Here's the story of my first game. I was lucky. Like those stories you hear from old-timers who talk about being little kids and climbing the fence to see the Red Sox or sneaking inside to see the Knicks, I also have a story about seeing my favorite team when I was young. Like I said, I was lucky. In the early 90s, when I was about 12 and my UK fandom was firmly taking hold, my aunt worked as a professional in the marketing office of the University of Kentucky's student newspaper, the Kentucky Kernel. She'd help them with promotions. Back in the day, when people actually read newspapers, sometimes the student section at Rupp Arena would hold up their newspapers and pretend to read them as the opposing team's starting five was being introduced. It was a jab at them — like, "Hey, we're not paying any attention to you." And when the starting five had all been announced, the students would normally then wad up their papers and throw them in the direction of the court. It was all in good fun. Well, someone had to pass out those newspapers — thousands of them, one for every student. My aunt recruited me and my relatives to help. So, for my first-ever game in Rupp, we showed up hours before tip-off and we passed out those newspapers. All of them. And what did we get for our effort? Media passes for the game. We didn't necessarily have seats, but we were in the building. And if you were a little kid, you could easily get accepted into the student section, which at the time was in the nosebleed section of the