When we stoped over to play in the laser tag arena at Kalahari Resort in Sandusky, Ohio I had no idea what to expect, but this definitely exceeded my expectations. Talk about a real gem!
First of all, just arriving at the park is an adventure in itself, full of cool surprises.
This place features massive indoor and outdoor waterparks along with all sorts of other cool attractions, but to me the Crystal Ruins were particularly memorable because I absolutely love all things related to gemstones. :)
We suited up with Laserforce Gen 7 packs and entered the arena where there was a great deal to explore.
As always, my first move was to go for all the bases. Some were embedded into interesting arena props like this serpent’s head.
Meanwhile others were in more traditional base housings like this one, named after my favorite gemstone.
This arena had a nice flow to it and the music really got us moving around, taking quick tags and trying to out-maneuver each other in a game that the attendant said was “really fun to watch”.
I don’t doubt that because it was also really fun to play! And we came across some interesting creatures throughout the experience.
I feel like this was the best game we played all day and we had such an awesome time visiting Kalahari Resort Sandusky!
The group of players who joined me for a visit to Spins Bowl Independence are my friends from the Armageddon laser tag tournament and we kept a special eye open at this site to see if it might fit our needs for a future ‘geddon visit.
So I paid particular attention to the details as we played our game of Lasertron inside this really stunning arena.
The first detail that caught my attention was the exceptional value for the dollar. At $5 a game on the weekend this was definitely the best deal we had on tag all day! Several of my questions were answered when I looked up towards the monitor above the counter.
But we wanted to get the full experience, so we prepared to go in for a game.
I can definitely appreciate a briefing room with couches!
I was pleasantly surprised to find them running LT 12.5 packs.
And the map was well balanced with a raised platform in the center and raised areas in opposite corners across from the bases.
The platforms were accessible by ramps, but I would still call it a single level with added height.
There were lots of targets positioned along the upper perimeter.
And the arena was new, bright and attractive.
We played shields up/down, so not the ideal test of how we might play in a tournament setting, but still a really fun game and a chance to experiment with the gear as we went along.
When our game was over I introduced myself to the general manager, Regan, and we had a nice talk, which answered the rest of my questions about this site before I returned to join my friends for some pizza and quesadillas from the snack bar.
This was both a fun and productive visit and I hope that the next time I visit we are doing so in competition mode!
On my recent trip to Ohio I had an opportunity to meet up with some friends who are fellow tournament players and we took the scenic route through Northern Ohio to visit a few laser tag arenas I had yet to add to my list. The first of the day was a stop over to Fun ‘N’ Stuff in Macedonia, OH. I knew Woz and Chris would be excited just to play son Tron, but my interest was focused more on checking out the unique arena. Once Shel joined us we signed up for a couple of rounds of Team Zombie vs Tram Alien tag. You can probably tell from the eerie red glow at our base that we were Team Zombie!
I love when an arena has something distinctively memorable going on inside and this place had cool surprises everywhere we looked! There were bonus targets positioned by motion sensors that brought the themed animatronics to life while you tagged for the points.
My first thought when I saw these stairs was “this can’t possibly be a playable area!”
And in fact the stairs led to a marshal’s observation deck, so that’s why refs can keep an eye on the entire space. Very clever!
On the whole, I felt this was a very striking arena.
Little details often stand out to me the most. I was loving the custom carpet that tied right back into the theme.
It’s probably no surprise that at this stop I paid more attention to the arena itself than to the game! But all in all, I did really enjoy this stop. No doubt that was in large part due to the friends I enjoyed it with!
One of these books is part of the museum collection while the other three were pulled from my personal bookshelf (where yes, they all sit right alongside all the Photon novels…and three Lazer Tag Academy novels as well). Can you guess which one is being featured today for Museum Collection Monday?
The story of the Stargate from rescue to restoration is rather epic! I recently made a visit to Ohio, looking forward to viewing the completion of a really massive undertaking. It truly took my breath away to see the Stargate brought back to working condition after well over a decade! It is now in the perfect location to be displayed for anyone who wants to see it and I want to thank George Raptis of Skyway Laser Storm for all his amazing work in restoring this original Laser Storm Stargate to its full and dazzling glory!
Take a look at the project and then we will discuss how this happened.
This Stargate was one of the many items (the largest item, for certain!) that I acquired when I took on the Laser Tag Museum Collection nearly a year ago. To be perfectly honest, I had no idea what to do with it, but it is a very significant part of laser tag history and it is also quite likely that this is the last existing one of its kind, so it had to be treated with the appropriate respect.
The backstory on this piece starts with it being a working, functional entryway at the former Skateland Family Fun Center that had been owned by the Ferraro family in Lockport, NY. In May of 2014 they were discarding many items from their arena and that included some Laser Storm packs, arena walls and decor and this Stargate. With grateful thanks to Logan Lockhart who rescued many of these items, the Stargate was saved and donated with thanks to Brian Ferraro and family with Logan being the conduit to get this massively sized item into the care of the Laser Tag Museum. My understanding is that it had been in storage right up until the time the museum collection was transferred into my care.
For about ten months this item had been kept in my storage unit as I tried to answer one big question…what exactly do you do with a Stargate?
I knew that ideally this item should be seen and be on display where people can visit and appreciate what a special piece it is. Once again, I must thank Logan for making the connections happen as he mentioned this to our mutual friend, George Raptis, who not only has the perfect location for the Stargate to be displayed at his business, but he also has the technical knowledge and was able to restore it to working order. He also had some support and guidance from Gordy Armstrong of Laser Storm, so there are lots of people who had a hand in getting it back up and running.
George and one of his devoted players, Eric, came to New York last month to pick up the Stargate…no small undertaking!
Because this piece is so massive, I wanted to document it from all sides, as only a select few see “how the sausage is made.”
Everything about this was beautifully crafted in the day to align with the images you would have seen in the original Stargate movie. This was by design through a licensing agreement Laser Storm had with various properties to utilize their name and imagery for use as licensed branding within certain arenas. Back in 1994, if you had purchased the Stargate theming for your arena you might have had Stargate themed barrier walls like this.
I must admit, I had never seen the movie until two days before George picked this item up. However, once I did I could really appreciate all the details that went into the creation of this piece!
This Stargate entryway prop is so special and I cannot even fathom how much work went into the restoration. I have no idea what any of these inner parts do.
We will learn more about the process directly from George in an upcoming podcast episode.
Now anyone who visits the Skyway Laser Storm arena can see this Stargate as it was originally intended, with lights, fog and music all working together to create an amazing experience as you walk through it to enter at the start of your laser tag game.
As I consider all that went into the journey of this Stargate, from rescuing it from being discarded over ten years ago to getting it restored and on display at Skyway Laser Storm, I am appreciative of all the people who have been involved each step of the way. This Stargate is in exactly the right place now. Storage was only a temporary place for it.
I could not be happier that it is now in a proper display home and this past weekend it was exciting to see it being enjoyed by laser tag players who got their first look at it and could certainly recognize that this Stargate is a very special piece of laser tag history!
