The Infamous Rivalry
Basketball season has arrived in the Nati and each family has chosen their team. With the roar of the crowd and the sound of crisp sneakers scuffing upon the glossy gym floors, every individual in attendance knows which team they are supporting on game day. Particularly for the most anticipated game of the basketball season- Elder vs St. X.
Many of us have heard the phrase “West side best side” echo in the halls of The Academy. It seems as though Cincinnatians geographically categorize the city based on two “sides”: east vs. west. “Oh your dad went to that grade school?” “You like that football team?” “You live there?” Ever since I was able to walk, my father and his father, both dedicated Elder alumni, have been telling stories about the fierce sports games and meet ups between the opposing sides of Cincinnati. Now, I am still told stories about the most infamous of rivals from friends who attend both Elder and St. X.
There's a long-running, mostly good-natured rivalry between everyone on the west side of I-75 ,like those from Delhi and Cleves .And everyone from the east side of I-75 ,neighborhoods like Hyde Park, Mount Adams, and Indian Hill, that once led Cincinnati Enquirer editorial cartoonist Jim Borgman to equate Vine Street with the Berlin Wall.
Now it’s time to see what you are. Are you more east side… or more west side?
No matter which “side” you are… West or East… you can’t go wrong. We all live in the beautiful Queen City – home to the first professional baseball team, the first man to walk in the moon, the second oldest zoo in the U.S., and the oldest orchestra in the country. And birth place of the director of "E.T.," "Jurassic Park" and "Jaws," and U.S. presidents William Howard Taft, Rutherford B. Hayes, Ulysses S. Grant, William Henry Harrison and Benjamin Harrison. No matter which side you belong to, each has a strong sense of pride in their football, high schools, food, and heritage. Besides, who doesn’t love a little rivalry?