Why Being "That Guy" at a Bachelorette Party Isn't Necessarily a Bad Thing

By Jason Ramsey

Las Vegas is probably the nation's number one destination for bachelor parties. From gambling to golf, nite clubs to gentleman's clubs, and live music to live animals, the real "sin city" is a 24/7/365 non-stop adventure for the groom-to-be and his band of brothers.

So when it came time to pick a location for my older brother's bachelor party, there wasn't much dissention among the ranks. There were a few shouts of "Cabo!" and "Rio!" from some of his college buddies, but while those were certainly worthy selections, they were a bit unrealistic for this crowd. I knew we'd be staying stateside, and living in Southern California, a Las Vegas trip was the most appealing. Plus, his friends from Dallas, New York, Boston and Atlanta would have an easier time getting to Vegas than trying to get through customs in Brazil with a blow-up donkey, handcuffs and two cases of Jack Daniels in their luggage.

We landed on a Friday afternoon, limousined ourselves over to the Mandalay Bay and got settled in. Our first night activities included a little pool time before the sun went down, drinks and a good dinner at the hotel, a little time at the tables and then over to the Joint at the Hard Rock to catch "Social Distortion" - my brother is an aging, wannabe punk rocker, and this gave him a chance to reminisce about his misspent youth in the "OC." Yeah, like Irvine was really punk rock back in the early 80's?

Saturday saw us split up, as my brother and one group headed off for a few rounds of golf, while the rest of us roamed around the strip, watched some bad Elvis impersonators, and saw the Lakers beat the Sixers at the sports book at Ceasar's (the best sportsbook in town, I might add). We reconvened for a great dinner at a local steak house and then it was out to Club Rain at the Palms Hotel. My brother's friend Rick suggested this place as it was "crawling with lovely ladies" on his last trip to Vegas.

The club itself is a sight to see - great lighting and special effects make it look like it's actually raining. And true to Rick's word, there were women everywhere - in fact, it was probably a ratio of three women to every guy in the place.

What we soon realized is that while we considered Las Vegas as the number one destination for bachelor parties, it was also the number one destination for "bachelorette parties." And lo and behold if they weren't all packed into Club Rain on this very Saturday night. What we didn't realize is that there is a game that women seem to have taken to for bachelorette parties, and my brother's friends and I provided a key necessary component to their entertainment - Guys.

It all started when one young lady, must have been a bridesmaid, came rushing over to Art screeching "you're Hawaiian Shirt Guy! You have to come over here and dance with Julie, she's the bride!!!" Now first of all let me clarify, Art was wearing a very stylish Tommy Bahama Hawaiian shirt. But we all figured that was just a quirky phrase this excitable young lady blurted out before she grabbed Art's arm and dragged him away to the netherworld of the dance floor. It wasn't until another young lady sauntered over to Danny, who was pegged as "Pager/Phone On Belt Guy," that we knew something was up. And yes, Dan NEVER went anywhere without that silly Blackberry strapped to his left hip.

Turns out these girls were playing something called That Guy Game - sort of a card game/scavenger hunt for guys. I was able to get Caroline, the maid-of-honor, to give me the full rundown on how the game works?

First of all, there is a deck of cards featuring descriptions of guys, that are dealt equally to the members of the bachelorette party. When the group hits the town the girls have to find real-life guys who match the cards they've been dealt, or get real-life guys to do what the cards ask. Each time they find a match, or get a guy to do what the card asks, they get to turn in that card. Whoever gets rid of all their cards first wins.

There are 38 "That Guy" cards. Each card depicts a different type of guy you might find on your night out like - Mullet Guy, Sweaty Dancer Guy, Fake Tan Guy, Wearing More Jewelry Than You Guy, Too Old To Be There Guy, and so on (Scary, but true, how we all fit in to one of these categories).

Then there are the five "Catty Cards." These cards illustrate a type of woman you might run across, such as the "Shouldn't Wear That Chick." The Catty Cards serve as sort of a wild card - if you find a match to a Catty Card you not only turn that card in, you also get rid of another card in your hand by giving it to any other girl in your group.

And the "Command Cards" are just what they say - the girl must get a guy to do what the direction on the card states, such as Make That Guy Dance With Your Friend or Make That Guy Show You His Underwear.

Now the trick of it is, in order to verify that they've completed their mission and can turn in their card, the girls have to bring the matching guy back to the group and he must kiss the bride-to-be.

Pretty soon all of us were fully entrenched in participating along with the girls from the bachelorette party. Some of the guys on the cards were very easy to spot - being that this was a Las Vegas nite club, there were several options for "Pony Tail Guy," "Tight Pants Guy" and "Vest with No Shirt Guy." We tried to help them pick out the ones that were slightly less creepy and more approachable. I believe it was "Brand Loyal Guy" - decked out head to toe in Sean John and sporting his brand spanking new Nike Air Force Ones - who got a little uptight with one of the bridesmaids about being singled out. Nothing like our crew of 8 guys (3 of which who played Football in college) to provide a little back-up on a That Guy Game night on the town.

The night ended with a lot of laughs, and those who didn't fit into one of the card categories (Andy would have been a perfect "Hollywood Hipster Guy," but I guess we have to wait for the second edition of That Guy Game to hit the market) felt like they had dodged a major bullet to their ego. Chris bragged that he should have been "The Perfect Guy," but with that kind of attitude it was no wonder why the girls skipped right over him.

And in case you're wondering, yours truly completed the "Goatee Guy" card for a very cute bridesmaid named Sarah. In fact, that reminds me, I need to call her?