Saving the Universe (One Challenge at a Time)

My cell phone rang while I was in the middle of a laser tag game. Rather than let it go to voicemail, I answered it by saying “Can’t talk, I’m saving the universe. Can I call you back?” Ok, a little over the top, but we were playing Photon emulation and I was in the zone. :) When the game is played properly it should be immersive enough to take you out of “real life” for a ten minute escape.

However, I like to stack my ten minute escapes back to back into a full night of laser tag and that’s how I prefer to complete my own laser tag 5K challenge each quarter. So this particular night I showed up ready to complete my goal and earn my Tag 4 A Cause medal. You can do it too!

I love hosting successful event nights to help fundraise for the causes I believe in, but this is a reminder that the challenge is on for a full three months. For the final quarter of 2023 Tag 4 A Cause is supporting Special Olympics New York and you can help when you accept the challenge and participate on your own in any laser tag arena, not just during a special event.

Participating in three steps is easy…

1. Donate directly to Special Olympics New York using the link on the Tag 4 A Cause webpage.
2. Pledge (on your honor) to laser tag the equivalent of 5K. It’s like participating in a road race, but inside a laser tag arena and you can do it at your own pace over the course of multiple laser tag games. I track my 5K (3.11 miles) on my Fitbit, but you can use any distance tracker on your phone.
3. Earn the medal. Just submit the form on the Tag 4 A Cause webpage and note your donation receipt number and I will send you a resin medal as my personal thanks for supporting the cause.

This challenge goes all the way through the rest of 2023. Find the full info at https://www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com/tag-4-special-olympics-ny. Ok, maybe we aren’t “saving the universe”, but I do believe this is a way we can use laser tag to make the world a better place one tag at a time!

Comments or Questions? 

Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com 

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

Tag 4 A Cause Night at Kynytyx

I want to thank all the laser tag players who made donations to support Special Olympics New York during Tag 4 A Cause night at Kynytyx! 

The event included a laser tag challenge for the golden phaser high score trophy, which was won by Edgar Osorio with his high score of 36,004 in Color Conquest.

Owners Nathan and Kim and their staff enthusiastically shared the Tag 4 A Cause challenge as customers arrived.

They handed me a megaphone to announce the special challenge games throughout the event…I want one of these at home!

Color Conquest games were held once an hour so Tag 4 A Cause participants could compete for the top laser tag honors of the event. Even the young players got involved!

It was great to see the support and participation! This event kicked off the quarter with a great start. From now until the end of December laser players can continue to participate and support Special Olympics New York through the online Tag 4 A Cause challenge. I encourage you to donate, pledge to laser tag 5K and earn the Tag 4 A Cause victory medal. More info can be found at https://www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com/tag-4-special-olympics-ny.

Thanks again to everyone the helped us Tag 4 A Cause!

Comments or Questions? 

Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com 

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

Tag Around the World

Discussing her laser tag experiences playing in multiple countries, Lucie “Lucidun” Dunovska from the Czech Republic joins me on this week’s episode of Laser Unfocused Tag Talk.

ON SPOTIFY:

https://open.spotify.com/show/0xzXT3aqGa2edIlXpcaJBS

ON APPLE PODCASTS:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/laser-unfocused-tag-talk-with-tivia/id1632442213

ON YOUTUBE:

https://youtu.be/knmXnzGxWKI?si=p4QTe81WH8rC7frO

Comments or Questions? 

Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com 

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

Lisa Lisa Loves Laser Tag!

Over the weekend I had the opportunity to meet hip-hop/pop music icon Lisa Lisa, a legendary singer who began generating hits as part of Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam in roughly the same time that laser tag was beginning back in the 80s. Our visit was delightful and enlightening because I learned that Lisa Lisa loves laser tag!

https://youtu.be/_XhDsMqUN68?si=oYUaz1QtTE39eU4U

Specifically, she told me that she loved playing laser tag with her kids and she was so sweet to record this video message prior to her performance at the Mohegan Sun in Connecticut. 

I must admit, I had myself a fangirl moment talking with Lisa Lisa, as she is truly one of my favorite recording artists of all time and this was such a nice encounter.

I appreciated her signing my sheet music to Lost in Emotion and she got a kick out of seeing this sheet music for the first time!

That song begins with the lyric “hit the beat now”, but I’m thinking that as a laser tag shout out, maybe that line should be “hit the BASE now!” :) 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=If8by9Df4wM

Comments or Questions? 

Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com 

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

Oops, I Did It Again!

Laser tag history has been made…twice! My second time around laser tagging in all 50 states wrapped up with a finale game at the Ozone Laser Tag in Owensboro, KY. I want to thank all the players who came out and enjoyed this game with me!

This was a memorable night. If you have been following my journey, you might remember that I originally became the first person ever to play laser tag in all 50 states on Laser Tag Day in March of 2019 and nearly five years later I completed this challenge for a second time. Half the states I played this time around were actually visited in the last year.

So I wanted to finish things out in style and I reached out to the owners of Ozone Laser Tag to host. My thanks to Jason and Katie Ebelhar and their niece and nephew, Mackenzie and Brayden, for helping me to celebrate as they offered customers a free game that night during the event.

I was very excited to check out their truly unique facility!

I donned a Cyber Blast pack as I prepared to enter the arena.

Jason gave me a tour of the two-story, 4000 square foot arena that they built inside a former warehouse building. 

Talk about a unique location!

https://youtu.be/Kvm-nDnyzn4?si=6DZZYrZDXzg3thhL

By the time we were done with the tour players were starting to arrive to join me for the game that would officially mark Kentucky as my 50th state played during this journey. Everyone put on a pack and got a briefing before the game.

This was a great game! I could tell the players enjoyed trying to take me down, as I heard them call out things like “She’s here taking our base! Get her!” 

But it was seriously so much fun! This arena is a great example of one of the homegrown, locally owned sites that are so special to play and Ozone was the perfect location for this game.

And there it is…the game that made it official!

After the game it was time to celebrate with some cake!

Erik Guthrie, curator of the Laser Tag Museum, affirmed that “Laurie Jean Britton is the first person to ever play laser tag in all 50 states of the Union, not once, but twice.” I also got some nice shout outs from a couple other familiar faces as well.

https://youtu.be/xbPdqqRb-xw?si=EuZnx1AqLiTMv5ZA

Samantha Newark was in town this weekend, but was occupied with her appearance at the convention center, so we visited earlier in the day instead. Thanks Sam for being so supportive of my laser tag and becoming part of our crazy extended “family” for all these years! It was so nice to spend some time with you while we were both in Owensboro and hope to see you in Phoenix!

All in all, it was a very memorable night of laser tag and I thank everyone at the Ozone Laser Tag in Owensboro, KY for helping me to complete my goal of becoming the first person to laser tag in all 50 states…twice!

Comments or Questions? 

Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com 

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com

An Experience in Evansville

Sometimes laser tag can be intense. Sometimes it can just be light and fun. And sometimes watching the next generation experiencing it for the first time helps put a bit of perspective on the bigger picture. That was how it felt as I joined this sweet little girl, Lainey, and her Nonni for a light and completely joyful game of CyberBlast when I paid a visit to Walther’s Golf and Fun in Evansville, IN.

Lainey was fearless and having a wonderful time! Nonni was never far from the girl and, as for me? Well, I was deliberately turning my back in front of them and hoping she would catch sight of my lack so she could tag me and win the game (which I am happy to say, she did). Lainey bounced back and forth between us, one moment declaring “I’m your partner now!” Then the next moment she was back partnering with her Nonni, explaining “I don’t want her to feel bad!” It was so precious being able to not only see her confidently striding around and doing her best, but also being able to teach her what to do along the way. I would point out the targets and she would happily claim the points. This little girl left her first laser tag experience feeling very happy and victorious and it filled my heart to see it.

Our game took place in a really attractive, single-level arena located on the top floor of the fun center and decked out with a lot of cool structures.

The most memorable were the center tower and the color changing corner creation.

And of course we can’t forget snakes on a…bus?

The bus was raised ever so slightly to be a platform with a view.

And as I looked out over the arena I appreciated that there was some clear that through all these cool accents there was thought given to taking a smaller space and turning it into something special.

I was impressed with what I saw of the arena and the entire staff were very welcoming. It was well worth making the drive to experience the laser tag at Walther’s Golf and Fun.

I stopped for some mini-corn dogs at the snack bar before continuing back to Owensboro where I had started my day. 

It’s not often I have spare time on a tag trip, but as I was not expected at my next arena for a few hours I decided to return to the convention center where I had started my morning doing…well…I can’t exactly explain what I was doing. You’ll have to see this for yourself!

I’ll admit, I had no idea what an Appa was before today. I’m inclined to show my age by  just calling this creature a “luck dragon” instead! And maybe there was some luck involved in that somehow I landed exactly where I needed to be this weekend.

Comments or Questions? 

Contact: Tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com 

Websites: www.tiviachickloveslasertag.com and www.photonforever.com