5/1
It's a long time until the next Cowboys game, and serious fans of the tailgate party must be suffering. No foam rubber fingers or air horns. No drunken parties at the butt-end of an F150. Take heart, tailgaters, we have a deal for you. For $45 this Sunday, you can bring a picnic lunch and beer and tailgate at the Las Colinas Polo Club, 600 E. Royal Lane, while watching a sporting event and helping out the Family Place. What? You didn't know they had football at the polo grounds? Well, they don't. The sport is...um... polo. You know, rich guys on horses. Wait! Before you put away that beer cooler, know this: We checked, and striped vests, tweed coats and top hats are not required dress, says event coordinator Emily Santillan. "You can dress as all out as you want to get, because we do have best-dressed prizes," she says. So if you happen to own a pair of spats--you weirdo--bring 'em on. Converses are OK, too, though, and while grills aren't allowed among the tailgaters, you get a complimentary beverage and a glass of champagne, if you're willing to help replace divots kicked up by the ponies. Better still, you get to help out victims of domestic violence. And if you're lucky, some really rich guy will fall off his horse into a mound of pony poop. Call 214-443-7717 or visit www.familyplace.org. --Patrick Williams
Fighting Spirit
4/28
You'll have to forgive Joe Frazier if he looks a little bored at the Real Estate Council's Fight Night. Watching Fox 4's anchorman arm-wrestle its weatherman could seem tame to the former heavyweight champion of the world. In fact, Smokin' Joe might echo Muhammad Ali's words after their 1975 "Thrilla in Manila" bout: "Closest thing to dying that I know of." Then again, Fight Night has raised more than $9 million for charity, a championship purse indeed. It's 6 p.m. April 28 at the Wyndham Anatole Hotel, 2201 Stemmons Freeway. Call 214-692-3600. --Rick Kennedy
Later and Greater
4/30
The problem with any Dallas 5K is the start time. Always on a Saturday, always at, like, 8 a.m., it's a race best left to those sober enough to run it. Our thoughts on the matter? If the charity that the 5K helps needs some money, just as easy to mail a check. Which you can do on your time. No need, then, to throw back the bed covers. But now the organizers behind the inaugural Baylor Tom Landry Fitness Center 5K come with a different proposition. Their race starts at 5 p.m. This changes everything. The run is scheduled for Saturday, starts at the fitness center, 411 N. Washington Ave., and registration is $25. The race benefits Our Children's House at Baylor. Visit active.com to sign up online. --Paul Kix
In Step
4/30
We're quite sure that in the not-so-distant future, people will be saying that "walking more" was the cure for cancer all along. So join the trend early and take full advantage of the erect spine evolution has given us to raise money for cancer research foundations during the Dallas-Fort Worth Chapter of the Lymphoma Research Foundation's second annual LYMPHOMAthon 5K Walk at Fair Park from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday. Is it really that easy to raise money for cancer research? The answer is yes--because walking is easy. Join the revolution of meandering and help beat lymphoma. You have several registration options, including on-site registration beginning at 9 a.m. at the Tower Building in Fair Park or by calling Dallas Directory at 214-823-4370 or 1-800-235-6848 or by visiting www.lymphoma.org. --Jonathan Freeman