Bowled over

Who knew it could be so difficult to plan a small birthday party in March? Our first thought was to have Aidan's tenth birthday party at an indoor sports facility, where the boys could play soccer or some other sport. Great idea, except that because it is an indoor sports facility and March is typically a month with winter weather, the facility has league games scheduled and parties can only be held during the day, weekdays only. Harumph.

Our next thought was to have it out at Beaver Lake Nature Center. Great idea, except that March is maple syrup time and the ONLY month when they don't host birthday parties. Harumph again.

We then told Aidan he could have a sleepover with several boys. Before we could finalize details and invite the boys, an incident occurred during winter break where he had a sleepover with one friend that did not go well (the inspiration for the Works in progress post) and we told Aidan that it would be a long, LONG time before that boy would spend the night at our house. Harumph, harumph, harumph. And since that boy was one of the boys whom Aidan wanted to have at his birthday sleepover, he had a choice to make: hold the sleepover without that boy, or choose another option. Aidan choose to do something else, and we finally settled on a party at the local bowling alley. Even then, the first two days/times we chose were already booked, so we had to have it this past Saturday afternoon.

It turned out to be a very fun party. Here Aidan shows his bowling skills:


They took a break from bowling to eat pizza:


We served whoopie pies from Geddes Bakery instead of cake, and Aidan was thrilled to receive a Wii game, two Legos Star Wars kits and two Nerf guns. At the end of two hours, we bagged up the trash, paid our bill and were done. No muss, no fuss, and no pack of boys rampaging through our house. Not bad for a party with fourth grade boys!

Strangers in a foreign land

I can't think of any smooth or clever introduction, so I will just blurt it out: we went to Monster Jam on Saturday night. Yes, that Monster Jam.

The local Boy Scout council offered discounted tickets and Aidan begged to go; it seems that many of his friends at school follow the "sport" and were attending. Our Scout tickets came with complimentary passes to the pit party that takes place before the event, where fans can see the trucks up close and get autographs from the drivers. So although the actual show started at 7 pm, we arrived in time to attend the pit party before it ended at 5:15.

The allure of the pit party was lost on us, since we know nothing about the trucks and personalities, but apparently it was wildly popular; there were so many people that management stopped selling the passes early in the afternoon:


We did, however, enjoy seeing the trucks up close and they really are monster sized:


James calls this photo proof that I attended the event:


After the pit was cleared, the trucks were moved into position and the various obstacles were created out of dirt and wrecked cars. It was interesting to watch the process:


And then the main event started. I had no idea what to expect but I was still surprised. It seems that there is a competition among the trucks where first they race, then they do freestyle moves using the obstacles. I should put the word competition in quotes because it was quite obvious that it was scripted and that Grave Digger was going to win everything. At one point, I turned to James and said (after he removed his earplugs), "This is professional wrestling with trucks!"

Here are two of the trucks during a race:


Despite the script and obvious outcomes, the sell-out crowd loved it. Yes, you read that correctly: the Carrier Dome was sold out, so we were attending the event with 38,000+ other people. It is the second year that Monster Jam has come to Syracuse and the second sell-out; the announcer said that they would return next year for two nights.

Not only did the number of people attending amaze us, but we were shocked at the amount of money that was being spent. All told, between tickets, parking and the modest food we bought for dinner, we spent around $100 - and we went on the cheap. We sat in the cheap seats and we bought no souvenirs and no snacks; I can't even imagine what those families with three, four and five children spent.

We told Aidan that our attendance was a one-shot experience. It is so not our thing and we found it to be laughable. But that said, it truly was a family event; there was zero profanity and nothing that was at all objectionable. The drivers played to their audience well and not only spent the entire afternoon signing autographs but were going to continue signing after the event. So kudos to them for recognizing what their fans want and giving those fans that and more. There are more high end entertainers that could learn that lesson.