Punk Rock Bowling, Henderson, Nevada

Henderson in Nevada, Sunset Station, Punk, Bowling, Pabst Blue Ribbon. What’s the connection? Three words. Punk Rock Bowling – a weekend of raucous and drunken activities having something to do with bowling and music.

Normally, I wouldn’t touch Las Vegas or its ilk with hand sanitizer and a latex glove, but for this I made an exception. My friends said we needed to represent San Diego in the bowling tournament. As a San Diegan I needed to do my part, and as a member of the Methlab bowling team, I made my hometown proud.

I paid $120 for the weekend music pass, getting me into the main and evening venues. So I was set. Just to make sure I was well packed for the three days, I stuffed a case of Pabst Blue Ribbon into my suitcase.

After landing at McCarren, I unpacked two cans of beer, and waited for the Henderson bus. The fare was economical, with $5 getting me a pass good for 24 hours. The best thing was that they paid no attention to the brewery in my luggage.

I unloaded my belongings at the Outpost Motel, which was clean but spartan. And at $45 a night, it was cheap. Before I headed off to the event at the Sunset Station, I dropped by the Joker’s Wild Casino, where I ate steak and lobster for $14. It wasn’t great lobster – or even good lobster – but for the price I wasn’t complaining.

I spent the rest of the weekend watching some of the top names in the punk scene and getting progressively more belligerent from the $2 PBR tall boys being hawked at Hooters. In between my main activities, I paid $20 for an all-day buffet pass offered by the casino so I could load up on prime rib.

Oh, there was also something about bowling – now if I can only recall. They may say what happens in Vegas stays in Vegas, but in Henderson, it’s only what you can remember.