If you’re looking for a thrill, online list will help you find it
Being in the know just got a little easier thanks to a Web site and e-mail service targeted at 20- and 30-something guys. Chicks dig it, too, so anyone looking for an edge should pay attention.
Thrill List (www.thrillist.com) tells you where to go, what to do and how to do it. The lists behind the site have been spreading the word about fun restaurants, quirky art events, cool Web sites and offbeat hot spots nationally and in cyberspace since 2005. There are city versions for New York, Los Angeles and San Francisco. The Las Vegas Thrill List makes its debut today, with a weekly briefing for the hip and wannabe hipsters.
"We share new, insider and underground things that a young man would want to know about," Thrill List co-founder Adam Rich said. "We’re a service by guys, for guys. The information is always very timely and well researched. Whether you’re a man or woman, everybody has to eat and everybody wants to know what’s fun and emerging.
"Our tone is kind of irreverent and a little bit in your face. We wrote it for ourselves and our friends. We’ve never lost sight of that voice. Some of our most active readers are girls. If they have a good sense of humor they will really enjoy our service."
Rich, 27, has a background in software testing for a dot-com company; business partner Ben Lerer, 26, previously worked for a hotel company. They live in New York City and have 14, "mostly editorial" people on staff searching out the latest and greatest spots you haven’t heard about.
Dan Michalski is editor of the Las Vegas Thrill List. Rich said Michalski will give substantive tips from across the Las Vegas area, not only from the casino scene.
"A lot of things in Vegas will always be Vegas," Rich said, "But we’re looking for a good mix of high-profile glitzy stuff on the Strip and we’ll also peel back the veil on things most guys won’t know about. Even the locals will get excited."
For example, Rich said the weekly tips could include pieces on "unmarked, off-the-books family style restaurants, stuff going on downtown, things happening in the burgeoning arts community or art installations. Our guy probably wants to end up going to that place that evening."
Signing up for the list is simple. Start on the home page and register for either the national or local version of the e-mail newsletter. More than 110,000 people have preregistered for the Las Vegas list, Rich said, with more than 270,000 getting the national tip.
"It’s like having a clued-in, impossibly savvy buddy you can count on," Rich said.
The site has a vault of past tips by topic, including: culture, food, drink, gadgets, gear, grooming, services, sports and travel.
Date night will never be the same.
Share your Internet story with me at agibes@reviewjournal.com.