Tri-Tag Tournament: Laser Quest Potomac Mills

It was sort of a last minute decision for me to enter the Tri-Tag Weekend laser tag tournament. Although there were events for Tron and tactical competition I decided that I would only choose to participate in the Quest portion of the weekend which was to run from 11:00 PM on Saturday night through about 3 AM on Sunday morning and then I would head back home. Eight hours of driving each way was still totally worth it to have the experience playing against some actual Quest players! However, my team had a slightly different make-up. I played with a free agent team (that I affectionately refer to as the "Free Agents" of SHIELD) with Logan (a Storm player), Andrew (a Tron player), me (a Zone player) and JJ who actually is a Quest player from Hawaii. He does have 18 years of experience, so it was good to have a Quest veteran with us.

There was a great deal that I learned from this experience and I am glad that I opted to go. However, we were a far cry from being top performers here. I think the fact that most of our team had our primary experience with other systems was a big part of it. As I related after the fact, it was like if you took state titleholders from MAOT, DYW, an interview queen or even the Dairy Princess program and put them into a glitz Pro-Am competition and then wonder why the results were different. Different strengths, yet so much to gain from the process of doing. My small personal victories were that I was generally the highest placing of the non-Quest players on my team (which is a little like saying I was the second to last person off the Titanic), and in certain rounds I was pleasantly surprised by some of the company I kept on the scoreboard, but I can honestly say the learning experience came mostly from just accepting my place here and trying to pick up tips from the experienced Quest players. I was sort of heartened to see that the only other woman in this arm of the tournament ended up being the overall winner (as well as being on the top team). And I appreciated the effort that went into pulling this event off. Although it ended up going a little longer than expected (we were there until 4AM) I want to thank Dice for putting it all together and commend him on a fun and worthwhile event. And a shout out to my teammates...

Had a great time making a weekend journey to Virginia. The Tri-Tag Tournament was definitely worth the trip!

Comments or questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

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

Blog: tiviachickloveslasertag.blogspot.com

My Fifth Shadowland

As I was headed towards my hotel in Alexandria, VA I realized that I was just a short ways away from the fifth Shadowland facility, the last one I had yet to visit. I have already played in Frederick, Columbia, Gaithersburg and Chantilly. Even though I really wanted to take a nap before the tournament that was to get underway at 11:00 that evening I knew that if I played this one (Springfield/Alexandria) I'd have the chance to say I've played them all.

It was a decent game in an arena with a familiar feel. I like Darklight...I don't LOVE it, but I enjoy it as a novelty because I don't have opportunities to play close to home.

And I hoped when I saw their display that maybe I could take home a t-shirt this time since I came back empty handed from my visit to Chantilly the week before.

Alas, once again I was left pressing my face against the glass (figuratively!) as they had t-shirts on display, but again there were none for sale. Sigh...my only big complaint is that I keep being denied a souvenir when I'm at these centers. I suppose if I want the shirt that badly I can get it online. Otherwise it was a nice experience and a good warm up for the remainder of the evening.

Comments or questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

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

Blog: tiviachickloveslasertag.blogspot.com

Dickson City Laser Tag

Dickson City Laser Tag in Pennsylvania was an excellent experience and a surprisingly cool arena. It was the perfect point just off the highway for me to take a break to enjoy some Helios on my way down to the Tri-Tag Tournament in Virginia. I showed up at just the right time to play with a group of college students from Clarks Summit University.

I was glad to see that this center attracted a wide age spectrum. Honestly, when I see a center with a pirate ship theme I am pre-disposed to think it may be small or geared towards kids. Sometimes I've seen other arenas take it to a place where it gets corny or over the top...however this place did it REALLY well! There is a giant pirate ship with a maze incorporated right through it in the middle of the arena. However, the space still had really good playability and the theme did not overpower the arena, but it augmented it nicely.

I loved that there was an appropriate group to play against. And the staff was really great to accommodate my request for photos in the arena.

What a great place to visit while passing through Pennsylvania!

Comments or questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

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

Blog: tiviachickloveslasertag.blogspot.com

Playing at my 70th Laser Tag Arena

The Mill in Bethlehem, PA is officially the 70th arena where I have had the pleasure to play laser tag!

I was really excited to reach this milestone (my goal is to eventually play at least 100 arenas, but hey, 70 is A LOT!) and all the more so because I got to play my 70th with Helios.

I love that this arena runs Zone.

There was a game in progress when I walked in, so I was glad to discover there was a group of players already there. I was led down a hallway to the vesting room where I took a moment to snap a few pics before going in for an enjoyable, casual game with time to check out this arena that is only about a year old. This is a small space, but definitely lots of fun. There were two structures where you could get a better view of the space. Everyone was having a blast which is always great to see. I played just hard enough to hold my position in the game, but I have to say I was pretty exhausted by this point in my journey. But I had a fantastic time and left feeling like I had achieved a pretty unique accomplishment. As I look back on the last two years I have had some amazing experiences traveling, competing in tournament events and exploring lots of arenas along the way. Because the 30th anniversary of Photon two years ago was such a benchmark in my laser tag journey it was especially wonderful to be able to end this weekend by hitting this milestone on this particular trip. Thanks to everyone at The Mill for letting me celebrate the big 70 playing in your arena. Here's to the next 70!

Comments or questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

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

Blog: tiviachickloveslasertag.blogspot.com

An Unusual Game of Laser Quest

When I walked into the Laser Quest in Wyomissing, PA my first thought was that if I could play a one on one with an employee here it might be good practice for the tri-tag tournament next week. I approached the counter and the manager Mike commented that I looked like I really wanted to play some laser tag. LOL...if he only knew! At this point I was only one location away from my 70th arena so it was true that I wanted to play, but probably not for reasons he would have guessed. :)

Game master Gabriel and I went into the briefing room. I was the only one there at that moment. He started the instructional speech. I interrupted to let him know that I was familiar with Laser Quest and all the rules. He said he had to go through it anyway, but we could just skip ahead to the pledge. yep...recited it with gusto this time around!

We went into the arena. Now, here's the thing about Quest arenas. Most of them are all pretty much the same...and they are usually decent sized. This was no exception. In tournament play the competition is often pretty much isolated to one tower area if you want to be in close proximity to the other players. That would have been a good thing to address before our one on one, but I figured it would naturally happen. Instead, Gabriel headed off in one direction and I spent the first several minutes of the game just walking around trying to figure out where he went! When we found each other I thought that would be the point where we'd start dogfighting the game. However, instead  he left again, so this was the most unusual game of Quest I have ever played because the majority of the game was spent searching instead of shooting! :) Still a great time, even though we both ended up with really silly scores as a result.

After the game I chatted with them about the competitive scene and enjoyed the conversation. I also really enjoyed the time to explore their arena. It's a great center that has plenty to offer and I hope if I pass by Wyomissing that I can stop by and play again sometime.

Comments or questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

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

Blog: tiviachickloveslasertag.blogspot.com

Lasertron at Laserdome

What a great time I had at Laserdome! They have a really personable staff and I'm so glad I had a chance to stop and play.

When you drive up to the building you can certainly understand how it got its name...

But on the inside there is more than you would expect. The arena itself is not actually located in the dome. That's where they host their dance parties. I got a chance to check out the light show and stage area and it seems like a really cool spot to hold a party. :)

Once our game was called I went in with several guys (a couple appeared to be regulars) who made for very good competition. This facility runs Lasertron LT11 equipment.

Although I'm not really that big a fan of Tron, I did enjoy a free for all game in a Tron arena that definitely didn't look like a typical Tron arena. This place had bright colorful walls and designs everywhere you look!

During the game I felt...well, like I had been traveling all weekend. I won the first game...

...but conceded that placement in the following rounds. I'd played a lot of tag in one weekend, but if Tron was on my agenda this was a great place to enjoy it. Thanks to the staff for a great time...and the tag swag! :)

Comments or questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

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

Blog: tiviachickloveslasertag.blogspot.com

The Lazer Factory

I had a really great time playing at The Lazer Factory, a family owned business in Annville, PA. The son, Riley, agreed to play a one on one and I had a feeling this would be good. After all, we were playing Zone. I asked him if he was any good and he told me that he used to play a lot, but there was never anyone competitive around to play against...enter Tiv. :)

I had a feeling this would be a good opportunity for another competitive game...and I was right!

The arena has two levels. The upstairs is accessible by one ramp.

The rest of the arena was decorated in an apocolyptic theme with a good balance of neon and structure with barrels, "brick wall" barriers creating a maze space with both flow and some decent playability.

Riley was fun to play against because he really was quite competitive. I'm not sure he expected that from me as I had not mentioned my background at that point, however he shared a bit about the business. Apparently they had previously been in another location and when they moved here and reassembled the walls the arena changed a bit. And I appreciated that he gave me suggestions for other places to visit and he went out of his way to find me some tag swag.

Thanks to the Lazer Factory for a great experience!

Comments or questions?

Contact: tivia@tiviachickloveslasertag.com

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

Blog: tiviachickloveslasertag.blogspot.com