Friday, August 14, 2009
Event #4 - Kansas City Missouri
Wed June 17th - Mon June 22
Red, White, & Booms Festival
Wednesday the 17th started with an 8am wakeup call via my cell's alarm. I got to Pal ermo's at 9am to leave. Unfortunately some maintenance douchebags left the dome light on in the truck all night. After a long jumper cable process, we were on the road at 10am. We drove for 9 hours total. On the way, we stopped at the Iowa 80 - the world's largest truck stop. 800 truck spaces. True story, it was massive. We had Wendy's. It sucked, of course. After a 7pm arrival, it was time to consult the Draft beer magazine that I covet so. We drove through the ridiculous construction that plagues the summer to Southwest Kansas City's Blanc Burgers & Bottles. It was a hipster bar with fancy burgers and a huge beer list. My kind of place, clearly. I had an Arcadia Coco Loco Stout (8.0) & a Cafe Centraal Fav La Chouffe Houblon Doublon Triple IPA (9.3). The In & Out burger - and I can't stress this enough - was the best burger I've ever had. Hands down. An onion ring, house-made ketchup, bacon, and bleu-cheese stuffed burger on a gourmet bun. Absolutely incredible. Text on a computer screen can't do it justice. Voted KC's best burger as well. Also noted in Draft mag was the a bar called the Foundry @ McCoys. A decent craft beer brewery, slightly hipsterish as well. I hit on the slightly good looking, skinny, tattoed multi-colored hair girl, aaaaand she did not like me. My line "Do you have any other tattoos?" She said yes. My next line, "Any I can see?" She said no. The boys thought that was hilarious.
Thurs June 18
Woke up to a fucking fire alarm at 9am. Thanks Fairfield Inn & Suites. It was not sweet waking up to the sound of my eardrums bursting. After getting lost a bit in the early afternoon, we finally found the disc golf course nearest to our hotel. Waterworks Park boasts the highest elevation point in Kansas City. A very difficult course sprinkled with huge hills and deadly ravines. Lost a disc - something I haven't done in 2 years. Of course, I found another, better driver disc. Kevin finds beer, I find discs. I got cut up & scraped scavenging through the woods, but thats nothing compared to Kev finding a TICK on him . . . hours later. Not cool. Our radio remote was scheduled at 3pm at the Parkville PRICE CHOPPER (say it with oomph!) with KCMO 93.3. Keith and Lindsay were awesome. Keith - way to go on the Power & Light District reference. We went. But before that - we needed BBQ. We asked locals what the best was - Jack Stacks was a big choice. We are seriously lucking out on food here. Amazing burgers last night - INSANE bbq tonight. Melted in ya mouth. I had lamb ribs & beef brisket and even bought some sauce to bring home. We could barely function it was so good. After that we drove the short distance to the Power & Light District. A huge, open-air free for all with about 15 bars converging in one space. All overlooking a courtyard nestled underneath a canopy with a live music stage. We of course drank Boulevard Wheat and made fun of dudes in Affliction shirts. Some girls wore next to nothing. It was perfect. Earlier in the day Kev received a downer phone call complaint from pizza HQ, but after the BBQ, beers, and scenery, we couldnt be touched. KC - I'm in love with you. Hopefully tomorrow we can get into Boulevard Brewery tour, but according to their website, it's booked for a solid 3 months. I don't believe it. (Believe it - they have a 3-4 month waiting list. Laaame)
Friday June 19th
I woke up at 10am feeling like I got hit by a train. And the freighter housed food. Yesterday's intake, from memory - 4 gatorades, about 6 beers, 7 slices of shitty/good frozen pizza, and the world's best bbq. 200 pounds here I come! The boys thought it would be good to eat DQ at 11:30am. Fuck me. I am against all 'hot treats' at a place called Dairy Queen. Side note - am I getting to be obsessed with food? What the hell is this blog turning into? Onward...I had a blizzard. We then ventured back to Waterworks park to finish the course and to conquer the hilly beast. Lost ANOTHER disc. Forests were nestled on...70 degree angled cliffs and ravines. Hole 17, like I said, is the highest point in Kansas City. 30mph+ winds did not help the discing. The light drizzle was nice though. After our session, we hitched up the 'za wagon and headed over to another PRICE CHOPPER (go ahead, say it with vigor!) in Liberty, MO. It was boring. I'm pretty sure I saw a pregnant 13 year old, so that was neat. And terrible. Otherwise, just gabbin with radio station dj's and staring at milfs. The 30mph winds were a lot better than the 95 degrees and sweltering heat like we had yesterday. We had packed everything up from our old hotel and drove to a new one in Bonner Springs, KS. Taking locals advice again, we went to Arthur Bryants BBA, near the Kansas Speedway. It was no jack stacks, but it was better than any Wisco stuff I've had. We took it easy that night cuz we had a big event followed by a seriously long drive the next day.
Sat. June 20th.
Up at 10am again to take on the day. Red, White & Booms. From what the other radio stations have told us, is pure teenager shenanigan heaven. Boy were they right. Beautiful venue though, set on a hill. Think Marcus Amphitheater without the covered overhang. So what was a beautiful setting was clouded out by rain and gray skies. After we got situated around noon, we of course headed to the nearest disc golf course. Conveniently located on the same grounds! Crazy. So whereas wateworks in KC was heavily wooded and extremely hilly, Wyandote Park was very open and had very long holes. One was 789 feet of pure, open disc golf gloriousness. It was remarkably fun. Until it started to rain, then pour. We probably walked a half mile in the downpour to get back to our parked truck. We were so wet. It was terrible. Of course we consumed beverages on the course, so it wasn't as bad as it could have been. The gates for R, W & B opened at 2, so we expected a few to be there. Wrong. Thousands were already there. With or without ponchos, brassieres, or parents. Braving the elements, the youth of America dove upon free pizza like hyenas on a carcas. Event personell said they expected between 9 and 10 thousand. I believe they got it. Theres nothing like getting hit on by 12 and 13 year old girls with neon colored shirts that show their appreciation for the Veronicas. Other artists they got driven by their parents to see: The White Tie Affair (Who?), Safety Suit (Why are they there?), Matt Nathanson (didn't have anywhere else to be that day?), Kevin Rudolf (Strangely catchy, actually...fuck) and the headliner...KC's own David Cook! Yeah Woo Hah! Who cares. Highlight of the day was Matt Nathanson calling a kid "An 11 year old prick who bases his life on masturbation" and dropping F bombs like it was nobodies business. "Your life is nothing". Hahah it was fucking hilarious. I was a Matt Nathanson fan from then on. I can see the radio station and/or event promoters gasping in horror. Hilarious.
So we sampled pizza for a few hours and then jetted outta there. Thankfully our truck was parked near an exit gate stage right, so it was no big deal. Had we been somewhere else, it would have been terrible. We all wanted to go out another night and really experience Power & Light district, but we had a noon radio remote in Dubuque, Iowa the next day. Thanks Pal ermos. We immediately packed up & left. I drove from 8pm to 3am. It sucked. Iowa at dark is equally shitty as Iowa during day. We stayed at the Days Inn 1 mile from our remote. I must say that I mistook this hotel as a horror movie set at first. Had to see it to believe it. Norman Bates woulda loved this place. Creepy as hell. Took a shower & headed to bed, where I had it in my head that there were a million microscopic insect larvae rummaging through my leg hair. I'm contemplating getting tested for STDs when I get home.
Sun. June 22
I woke up Sunday morning itchy and red, with yellow boils covering my body. Kidding. I took another shower in the 'shower designed for Asian businessmen' (Nate Radue, 2009) and we trucked off to the Dubuque Hyvee. Apparently this Hyvee is the #1 seller of Pal ermos in the country. Who knew? Damn, these people went ape shit for it. Some lady who owned an orphanage bought 10 during her visit. Just drizzled a bit - nothing too substantial to ruin our afternoon though. I must say that the weather has been very nice to us so far on our Summer Tour. Here's to more of that. On a down note, I am not looking forward to weighing myself at the gym tomorrow. I am huge, I will cry. My thighs touch - they're becoming good friends. Working out will be torture. But oh well - Pal ermos is paying for the grub and the room, and me and my digicam are enjoying it so far. I have the next 2 weeks off - I'll be back working the second July in Minneapolis. Till then, we got the pizza - so go eat it!
Red, White, & Booms Festival
Wednesday the 17th started with an 8am wakeup call via my cell's alarm. I got to Pal ermo's at 9am to leave. Unfortunately some maintenance douchebags left the dome light on in the truck all night. After a long jumper cable process, we were on the road at 10am. We drove for 9 hours total. On the way, we stopped at the Iowa 80 - the world's largest truck stop. 800 truck spaces. True story, it was massive. We had Wendy's. It sucked, of course. After a 7pm arrival, it was time to consult the Draft beer magazine that I covet so. We drove through the ridiculous construction that plagues the summer to Southwest Kansas City's Blanc Burgers & Bottles. It was a hipster bar with fancy burgers and a huge beer list. My kind of place, clearly. I had an Arcadia Coco Loco Stout (8.0) & a Cafe Centraal Fav La Chouffe Houblon Doublon Triple IPA (9.3). The In & Out burger - and I can't stress this enough - was the best burger I've ever had. Hands down. An onion ring, house-made ketchup, bacon, and bleu-cheese stuffed burger on a gourmet bun. Absolutely incredible. Text on a computer screen can't do it justice. Voted KC's best burger as well. Also noted in Draft mag was the a bar called the Foundry @ McCoys. A decent craft beer brewery, slightly hipsterish as well. I hit on the slightly good looking, skinny, tattoed multi-colored hair girl, aaaaand she did not like me. My line "Do you have any other tattoos?" She said yes. My next line, "Any I can see?" She said no. The boys thought that was hilarious.
Thurs June 18
Woke up to a fucking fire alarm at 9am. Thanks Fairfield Inn & Suites. It was not sweet waking up to the sound of my eardrums bursting. After getting lost a bit in the early afternoon, we finally found the disc golf course nearest to our hotel. Waterworks Park boasts the highest elevation point in Kansas City. A very difficult course sprinkled with huge hills and deadly ravines. Lost a disc - something I haven't done in 2 years. Of course, I found another, better driver disc. Kevin finds beer, I find discs. I got cut up & scraped scavenging through the woods, but thats nothing compared to Kev finding a TICK on him . . . hours later. Not cool. Our radio remote was scheduled at 3pm at the Parkville PRICE CHOPPER (say it with oomph!) with KCMO 93.3. Keith and Lindsay were awesome. Keith - way to go on the Power & Light District reference. We went. But before that - we needed BBQ. We asked locals what the best was - Jack Stacks was a big choice. We are seriously lucking out on food here. Amazing burgers last night - INSANE bbq tonight. Melted in ya mouth. I had lamb ribs & beef brisket and even bought some sauce to bring home. We could barely function it was so good. After that we drove the short distance to the Power & Light District. A huge, open-air free for all with about 15 bars converging in one space. All overlooking a courtyard nestled underneath a canopy with a live music stage. We of course drank Boulevard Wheat and made fun of dudes in Affliction shirts. Some girls wore next to nothing. It was perfect. Earlier in the day Kev received a downer phone call complaint from pizza HQ, but after the BBQ, beers, and scenery, we couldnt be touched. KC - I'm in love with you. Hopefully tomorrow we can get into Boulevard Brewery tour, but according to their website, it's booked for a solid 3 months. I don't believe it. (Believe it - they have a 3-4 month waiting list. Laaame)
Friday June 19th
I woke up at 10am feeling like I got hit by a train. And the freighter housed food. Yesterday's intake, from memory - 4 gatorades, about 6 beers, 7 slices of shitty/good frozen pizza, and the world's best bbq. 200 pounds here I come! The boys thought it would be good to eat DQ at 11:30am. Fuck me. I am against all 'hot treats' at a place called Dairy Queen. Side note - am I getting to be obsessed with food? What the hell is this blog turning into? Onward...I had a blizzard. We then ventured back to Waterworks park to finish the course and to conquer the hilly beast. Lost ANOTHER disc. Forests were nestled on...70 degree angled cliffs and ravines. Hole 17, like I said, is the highest point in Kansas City. 30mph+ winds did not help the discing. The light drizzle was nice though. After our session, we hitched up the 'za wagon and headed over to another PRICE CHOPPER (go ahead, say it with vigor!) in Liberty, MO. It was boring. I'm pretty sure I saw a pregnant 13 year old, so that was neat. And terrible. Otherwise, just gabbin with radio station dj's and staring at milfs. The 30mph winds were a lot better than the 95 degrees and sweltering heat like we had yesterday. We had packed everything up from our old hotel and drove to a new one in Bonner Springs, KS. Taking locals advice again, we went to Arthur Bryants BBA, near the Kansas Speedway. It was no jack stacks, but it was better than any Wisco stuff I've had. We took it easy that night cuz we had a big event followed by a seriously long drive the next day.
Sat. June 20th.
Up at 10am again to take on the day. Red, White & Booms. From what the other radio stations have told us, is pure teenager shenanigan heaven. Boy were they right. Beautiful venue though, set on a hill. Think Marcus Amphitheater without the covered overhang. So what was a beautiful setting was clouded out by rain and gray skies. After we got situated around noon, we of course headed to the nearest disc golf course. Conveniently located on the same grounds! Crazy. So whereas wateworks in KC was heavily wooded and extremely hilly, Wyandote Park was very open and had very long holes. One was 789 feet of pure, open disc golf gloriousness. It was remarkably fun. Until it started to rain, then pour. We probably walked a half mile in the downpour to get back to our parked truck. We were so wet. It was terrible. Of course we consumed beverages on the course, so it wasn't as bad as it could have been. The gates for R, W & B opened at 2, so we expected a few to be there. Wrong. Thousands were already there. With or without ponchos, brassieres, or parents. Braving the elements, the youth of America dove upon free pizza like hyenas on a carcas. Event personell said they expected between 9 and 10 thousand. I believe they got it. Theres nothing like getting hit on by 12 and 13 year old girls with neon colored shirts that show their appreciation for the Veronicas. Other artists they got driven by their parents to see: The White Tie Affair (Who?), Safety Suit (Why are they there?), Matt Nathanson (didn't have anywhere else to be that day?), Kevin Rudolf (Strangely catchy, actually...fuck) and the headliner...KC's own David Cook! Yeah Woo Hah! Who cares. Highlight of the day was Matt Nathanson calling a kid "An 11 year old prick who bases his life on masturbation" and dropping F bombs like it was nobodies business. "Your life is nothing". Hahah it was fucking hilarious. I was a Matt Nathanson fan from then on. I can see the radio station and/or event promoters gasping in horror. Hilarious.
So we sampled pizza for a few hours and then jetted outta there. Thankfully our truck was parked near an exit gate stage right, so it was no big deal. Had we been somewhere else, it would have been terrible. We all wanted to go out another night and really experience Power & Light district, but we had a noon radio remote in Dubuque, Iowa the next day. Thanks Pal ermos. We immediately packed up & left. I drove from 8pm to 3am. It sucked. Iowa at dark is equally shitty as Iowa during day. We stayed at the Days Inn 1 mile from our remote. I must say that I mistook this hotel as a horror movie set at first. Had to see it to believe it. Norman Bates woulda loved this place. Creepy as hell. Took a shower & headed to bed, where I had it in my head that there were a million microscopic insect larvae rummaging through my leg hair. I'm contemplating getting tested for STDs when I get home.
Sun. June 22
I woke up Sunday morning itchy and red, with yellow boils covering my body. Kidding. I took another shower in the 'shower designed for Asian businessmen' (Nate Radue, 2009) and we trucked off to the Dubuque Hyvee. Apparently this Hyvee is the #1 seller of Pal ermos in the country. Who knew? Damn, these people went ape shit for it. Some lady who owned an orphanage bought 10 during her visit. Just drizzled a bit - nothing too substantial to ruin our afternoon though. I must say that the weather has been very nice to us so far on our Summer Tour. Here's to more of that. On a down note, I am not looking forward to weighing myself at the gym tomorrow. I am huge, I will cry. My thighs touch - they're becoming good friends. Working out will be torture. But oh well - Pal ermos is paying for the grub and the room, and me and my digicam are enjoying it so far. I have the next 2 weeks off - I'll be back working the second July in Minneapolis. Till then, we got the pizza - so go eat it!
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