For thousands of UCSB alums going back as far as the late 80’s, some of their most cherished memories took place at the Thunderdome, cheering on their men’s hoops players. So this past year, a group of us old UCSB alums who helped create the current Gaucho Locos cheering section got together and decided to create an unofficial, grassroots alumni weekend, affectionately nameed Domecoming.

The original Gaucholocos were called Gauchoholics. The university did not like the reference to boozing it up, but that won’t stop more than a few alums from sporting the original Gauchoholics T-shirts at this weekend’s big match up versus Cal Poly.

For most of you, Harder Stadium is where you have spent most of your time cheering for UCSB. I am here to tell you that back in the day, it was the T-dome that was one of the most feared and craziest college arenas in the country — if you don’t trust me, just YouTube some of the old Thunderdome games vs. UNLV back in the 90’s.

This weekend, hundreds of alums are coming back to UCSB to do the I.V. Loop, starting at 1 p.m. at Sam’s to Go, and then will be heading over to our alumni section (right next to the student section) to cheer on our Gauchos. The current ’Locos meet at Gio’s before the game, so come out to Sam’s first, get a beer with the alums, pass over your resume, do some networking, then head over to Gio’s as we do the Loop. Then we’ll all march over to the Dome to rock Cal Poly off the court!

This year’s men’s team is a very special team and has already beaten the likes of UNLV on the road and Cal here at home. So we’re hoping you, the current brilliant Gauchos, who love UCSB and love hoops, will come out and bring the “thunder” back to the dome!

Domecoming is going to be an annual event and we look forward to seeing you come back one day and do the Loop with us as alumni. But for now, do not miss out on helping us reboot one of the greatest traditions in UCSB sports history.

Reza Garajedaghi graduated in 1993 with a B.A. in history.

 

A version of this article appeared in the Thursday, January 9, 2014 print edition of the Daily Nexus.
Views expressed on the Opinion page do not necessarily reflect those of the Daily Nexus or UCSB. Opinions are submitted primarily by students.
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