This Spud’s For You: Tagging In Idaho

Feb 24
3 min read

Updated: Feb 25

As I continue my adventures laser tagging around the country, I found myself headed to Idaho Falls, ID to play some Zone Nexus out at Blast Off. After receiving my “taters for out of staters” welcome to Idaho before getting there (more on that later), I took my Spuddy Buddy along for the ride to experience a really unique arena!

When I arrived at Blast Off I was greeted by Robert who has owned this family-operated business with his wife Dina for nearly 30 years. This place is a real gem (which Robert also knows a thing or two about as the Cowboy Crystal Cutter).

29 years ago he was able to salvage arena pieces from another business, some of which he integrated into the 4500 square foot arena he built for their laser tag space. Originally they operated with Actual Reality equipment, but as time went by they eventually made the switch to Zone and installed the Nexus system, which has been maintained amazingly well! Game marshal Dalana led me back to the arena for an early morning game, minutes after they opened for the day.

I pulled my vest off the rack and left Spuddy Buddy to hold its spot. :)

We ventured into the single-level arena and I was immediately struck by what a unique arena this is. It has a geometrical neon design with a retro theme that still feels cool and fresh.

For me, anytime I see a space where I can’t immediately identify the designer I give it bonus points for originality. I had a great time tagging through the various windows and cutouts.

I always head for the base first.

But there were plenty of rooms to explore as well.

The plexiglass windows create an illusion in the reflection when they catch the lights off an opponent’s pack, forcing you to think twice about where the other player may actually be.

Playing Nexus again was a real treat. I don’t encounter this system as often as I once did since Zone generations have changed over the years, but they clearly do a great job with maintaining the equipment. Being able to tech the gear is so important and I was really impressed with how smoothly the game played. It really takes me back!

The laser tag is one piece of Blast Off’s 20,000 square foot indoor playground facility and I observed how busy they were with calls and customers, even on a weekday. That’s great to see and a good indicator of how they’ve been successful for close to three decades.

Robert told me that farming was his business, but he wanted to show his kids how to build another kind of enterprise. The kids were part of the reason they added laser tag in the first place. He recalled visiting a Q-Zar location in Boise with his family back in the day and all they wanted to do was play again. He took his family to fun centers and gave his kids money, watching to see what they did with it as a way to decide which attractions to include in their business. He told me they were about 3/4 of the way into a business plan when they decided that laser tag definitely had to be added.

Blast Off really was a blast to play…and Spuddy Buddy agrees!

My thanks to the team for an excellent game experience and a great reason to return to Idaho!

Now, remember I mentioned those “taters for out of staters”? One of my coolest “side quests” was having some spare time before Blast Off opened to detour over to the neighboring town of Blackfoot, ID to visit the Idaho Potato Museum!

This was an amazing bonus stop while in Idaho where I toured the exhibits, purchased a potato sack full of goodies and was given my complimentary “taters for out of staters” during my visit.

I highly recommend a visit if you get the chance! This is also where I picked up my Spuddy Buddy. On the heels of recently picking up a stuffed lobster before my arena visit in Maine, I think finding a tag-along stuffed souvenir will be my new goal as I continue to visit each state. :)