Well, I flew out this past weekend for the Cleveland/Chicago shows..here's a Cliffs Notes version of my trip:
Thursday Evening/Friday Morning:
My plane left San Jose for Chicago just before 11pm on Thursday night..I was hoping to sleep, but the combination of a very uncomfortable, non-reclining exit-row seat, and the two unhappy infants on the plane allowed me only about a half hour nap. Better than nothing! Landed at O'Hare a bit early, made my way to the rental car place & got my car, and headed out to Cleveland! Let me say, after having experienced Chicago traffic at its worst during previous trips through the city, driving through Chicago at 5:30am is the way to go! The drive went smoothly, no problems whatsoever. However, I was SO tired that I had to have the air conditioning on in the car to keep me awake..it was so cold I could see my breath! But it did the job, & i survived the 5+ hour drive without falling asleep at the wheel.
Friday Afternoon/Evening:
Got to Cleveland in one piece & grabbed a shower (and my second wind) before heading to the venue, & arrived as SymX was sound checking. I was happy to see that they were set up in the Theater side (the "big stage") of the Agora rather than the Ballroom side (the "small stage", a more bar-like atmosphere)..seems they were supposed to play the Ballroom, but it didn't have the power supplies that they needed, so the Theater it was! Had a chance to chat with Jim Pitulski, Bob Snyder, and Eric Corbin of Inside Out Music America, & then talk with all the guys a bit before they had to go get ready. They put on a great set, & the crowd was a respectable size despite the fact that Dio/Hammerfall/King's X were in town the same night (they guys actually went & caught the end of Dio's set after their own set, & had a chance to meet him afterwards..they were all quite glad they were able to do that).
Decided to save the partying & socializing for the next night, because I needed sleep before driving back to Chicago, so I gave hugs to the guys after their set, & took off to go get some sleep.
Saturday:
Drove back to Chicago, nice smooth drive again (no drowsiness or air conditioning this time though, thank goodness), found the venue & hopped on the tour bus with the guys while they waited for soundcheck. Saw Jason heading out to find Guitar Center so he could get some sticks, & sat & chatted with LePond & Pinella for a while, which was nice because I rarely get a chance to talk with them at length. Romeo came wandering out after a bit, & Russ soon afterwards, & we all sat & talked & laughed until we decided to go in & check out the venue & get ready for soundcheck. Had a chance to chat with Jim Pitulski backstage some more after soundcheck while the guys were getting ready, & got to meet a whole bunch of people who I wish I'd had more time to hang out with..dammit! The guys put on another awesome set, to an even more energetic crowd (the show sold out that afternoon, it seems 400 of the 1100 tickets were sold that day alone); I was lucky enough to watch the show from the mixing board & it was simply excellent.
Hung out on the bus with the guys for the rest of the night, they came out 3 different times to talk to the fans & sign autographs & were really flattered by the reaction from the fans (the bus door would open, one of them would peek their face out, & the crowd would yell loudly..it was wild). Got to talk with them (or in some cases, just listen to them talk) about everything from classical composers to movie directors, & had a chance to form more of a friendship with all of them..it was a great night, & I hated to leave. The bus was scheduled to pull out at 1am to head for the next show, so around 12:30am I finally bid the guys farewell & went on my merry way..I miss them already! Will see them again this Friday in San Francisco, & I can't wait.
Oh, and my pics will be up on the web by tonight; I picked them up earlier and just need to scan them this afternoon. I'll ppst the URL once they're up & ready for viewing.
Jax<--still recovering from such a great weekend
Thursday Evening/Friday Morning:
My plane left San Jose for Chicago just before 11pm on Thursday night..I was hoping to sleep, but the combination of a very uncomfortable, non-reclining exit-row seat, and the two unhappy infants on the plane allowed me only about a half hour nap. Better than nothing! Landed at O'Hare a bit early, made my way to the rental car place & got my car, and headed out to Cleveland! Let me say, after having experienced Chicago traffic at its worst during previous trips through the city, driving through Chicago at 5:30am is the way to go! The drive went smoothly, no problems whatsoever. However, I was SO tired that I had to have the air conditioning on in the car to keep me awake..it was so cold I could see my breath! But it did the job, & i survived the 5+ hour drive without falling asleep at the wheel.
Friday Afternoon/Evening:
Got to Cleveland in one piece & grabbed a shower (and my second wind) before heading to the venue, & arrived as SymX was sound checking. I was happy to see that they were set up in the Theater side (the "big stage") of the Agora rather than the Ballroom side (the "small stage", a more bar-like atmosphere)..seems they were supposed to play the Ballroom, but it didn't have the power supplies that they needed, so the Theater it was! Had a chance to chat with Jim Pitulski, Bob Snyder, and Eric Corbin of Inside Out Music America, & then talk with all the guys a bit before they had to go get ready. They put on a great set, & the crowd was a respectable size despite the fact that Dio/Hammerfall/King's X were in town the same night (they guys actually went & caught the end of Dio's set after their own set, & had a chance to meet him afterwards..they were all quite glad they were able to do that).
Decided to save the partying & socializing for the next night, because I needed sleep before driving back to Chicago, so I gave hugs to the guys after their set, & took off to go get some sleep.
Saturday:
Drove back to Chicago, nice smooth drive again (no drowsiness or air conditioning this time though, thank goodness), found the venue & hopped on the tour bus with the guys while they waited for soundcheck. Saw Jason heading out to find Guitar Center so he could get some sticks, & sat & chatted with LePond & Pinella for a while, which was nice because I rarely get a chance to talk with them at length. Romeo came wandering out after a bit, & Russ soon afterwards, & we all sat & talked & laughed until we decided to go in & check out the venue & get ready for soundcheck. Had a chance to chat with Jim Pitulski backstage some more after soundcheck while the guys were getting ready, & got to meet a whole bunch of people who I wish I'd had more time to hang out with..dammit! The guys put on another awesome set, to an even more energetic crowd (the show sold out that afternoon, it seems 400 of the 1100 tickets were sold that day alone); I was lucky enough to watch the show from the mixing board & it was simply excellent.
Hung out on the bus with the guys for the rest of the night, they came out 3 different times to talk to the fans & sign autographs & were really flattered by the reaction from the fans (the bus door would open, one of them would peek their face out, & the crowd would yell loudly..it was wild). Got to talk with them (or in some cases, just listen to them talk) about everything from classical composers to movie directors, & had a chance to form more of a friendship with all of them..it was a great night, & I hated to leave. The bus was scheduled to pull out at 1am to head for the next show, so around 12:30am I finally bid the guys farewell & went on my merry way..I miss them already! Will see them again this Friday in San Francisco, & I can't wait.
Oh, and my pics will be up on the web by tonight; I picked them up earlier and just need to scan them this afternoon. I'll ppst the URL once they're up & ready for viewing.
Jax<--still recovering from such a great weekend
'' let me thank you for asking Michael if they would ever be in Puerto Rico 
