Candy Bracketology

"Almond Roca over Atomic Fireballs? No way!" my husband said, in total disbelief, when he heard the news. But that's just what happened the first day of the 2009 "Candy and 'Friends' Tournament", put together by the folks at Milliman, an actuarial firm based in Seattle.

"Could sour gummy worms be this year's Cinderella? Could a powerhouse like Cracker Jacks see an early exit from the tourney? Is there any way that Bugles could make it into the Sweet Sixteen?"

"This is really out of my league," I think, as my husband tries to explain the intricacies of bracketology. But even if you've never been swept up by March Madness, like me, you can still appreciate this "sporting" event.

Milliman's first Candy Tournament was held in 2005, the brainchild of Rex Barker and Arthur Rains-McNally, Milliman actuaries and candy enthusiasts. Maybe enthusiast isn't quite the right word. Rex, I've been told, pounds candy, nonstop, all day long. Not even chocolate, but the really sweet stuff. Smarties are a favorite.

If you walk into the company kitchen on any given afternoon over the next few weeks, you'll find trays or bowls laden with two kinds of candy or "friends" (non-candy snack foods like wasabi peas or Chips Ahoy!). And if you want to taste, you'll have to vote. Those are the rules. In fact, the rules of the tourney take up a full page, (so too do the rules for the bracketology), all decided by the Candy Committee. I'm not sweet talking you. There really is one.

And in addition to creating the rules, the Candy Committee also determines just which 64 treats make it into the tournament. Toblerone? Yes. Frangos? No. Skittles, Nerds or Zotz? Yes, yes and yes. Now that is one sweet job.

--Tracy Schneider