Hootie at Harrah's

I've said it before, and I'll say it again...those guys ROCK!!! This was my 7th HBF show, and I continue to be impressed at how good of a show they put on. Their set list is always well thought-out, and they always sound great. The show at Harrah's was no exception. Every song they performed was great (although I am a bit biased).

The crowd on the other hand...UGH!!! The way Harrah's has their ticket distribution set up meant that an easy 85% of people at the show were VIP's/high rollers/etc. and were given their tickets. This meant that most everyone there didn't really know the music and were simply there to watch a show. It was, unfortunately, the only rock concert either Ashley or I have ever been to in which we had to sit almost the entire time. However, when the band broke into a cover of "You don't call me Darlin", we jumped up and sang our lungs out.

The guy working the band's soundboard noticed our enthusiasm and knowledge of the songs, and gave us a set list. That makes 2 set lists from our last 2 shows. Kinda cool.

The rest of the trip was great. We pretty much wore ourselves out, but we had a good time. The Riverfest over in Asheville was nice, but wasn't quite all it was hyped up to be. I think the city was just festivaled-out after Belle Chere the weekend prior. After hanging out there for a little while, Ashley, Taylor, Bo, Megan, Karl (their dog) and I went into downtown Asheville for lunch. We ate at Mayfel's on their outdoor patio. The food was terrific, and the people watching was as well. I had the best Muffaletta sandwich I have had in a long time.

We spent Saturday afternoon back at the house in Sylva. We all needed a nap after the day's adventures and to prepare for staying up late for the show. After a nice dinner with the folks, we took off to Cherokee. While we didn't get to spend much time with them, it was good to see them.

Now we have to slow down a little bit so that I can get more studying done for this PE exam. Oh joy.

Hanging out with "The King"

I will let Sean post about the concert (which was amazing btw), but right now I want to write about the way I spent my Tuesday morning. I headed out down 64 from Raleigh around 8 with another coworker. We were headed to Asheboro for the groundbreaking for Randolph Community College's new automotive center. The exciting part is the facility was recently named the Richard Petty Education Center. So of course guess who was at the groundbreaking but none other than "The King". I got to meet him before the presentation b/c I was one of the podium speakers and then I stood by while he and the other big shots in Randolph County talked racing. I didn't want to embarrass myself but I did know who won the race at Pocono. It was cool to see him hanging out and being so "normal". I had always heard he was a real down to earth man and I can now say that those rumors are definitely true. Then we all spoke - people clapped and we got to play in dirt with our "official" shovels. I also got his autograph and my picture taken with him. It was an exciting morning! Also he was flying out immediately following the groundbreaking to Jackson Hole - Greg and Ann keep an eye out for him.

Watch the TV clip here (make sure to click on the play button in the upper right)