RushCon 2013 and Concert in Hamilton

I had a pretty good time at RushCon 2012 so I decided to attend RushCon 2013 this summer in Toronto and go to the concert in Hamilton. www.rushcon.org

I saw Rush twice in 2012 and enjoyed both shows.  At the Montreal show I was lucky to get 10th row seats.  After that show I decided I was going to try and get the best seats I could for any shows I saw in the future.  I realized this band won't tour forever and I have been a fan since 1978 so it was an easy choice to make.

So when the Hamilton tickets went on sale I bought the "VIP" tickets which guarantees you the first 15 rows. Ticket location is based on when you purchased your tickets. I bought mine the instant they went on sale so I was hoping for some good seats.  With my train, concert, hotel and RushCon tickets all booked I waited for July to come around.

Slowly the itinerary for RushCon was published and it looked pretty good.  I was looking forward to attending.

Friday afternoon, after working all morning, I took the afternoon train from Ottawa to Toronto.  I really enjoy taking the train;  I have made that drive too many times and on the train I can truly relax.

I arrived in Toronto and took the subway to the host hotel, the Eaton Centre Marriot.  I entered the lobby and signed in to RushCon picking up my tickets and passes.  We would be meeting in the lobby for a short walk to the "mixer" at Massey Hall.

After a drink in the hotel bar with some new friends we made our way to Massey Hall.

They had some merch available so I bought a RushCon t-shirt as well as a Rush Concert t-shirt.  Next we were led to Massey Hall's very nice bar.  Snacks were provided; drinks were available, people mingled.  Next we were broken up into teams for some friendly games based on your knowledge of Rush songs.  I was on victorious team 11 which took home the gold.  Next we were taken on backstage all access tours of Massey Hall.  This was really special being on stage at Massey.  If you are wondering the Rush connection it is where their first live album "All the World's a Stage" was recorded.

The place seems really intimate from the stage, no seat seems far away.

The rest of the evening was spent in the bar where people chatted or gathered round the piano where songs were being played live.

The next day was the concert.  Before that we were bussed to Lakeside Park, yes that Lakeside Park as sung in the song Lakeside Park off the album "Caress of Steel".  Now having lived in St. Catharines for 3 years while attending Brock University I was no stranger to Lakeside Park but it must have been 20 years since my last visit.  On the bus ride down their was another content test to fill in and hand in.  It was pretty hard, again all lyric based.

At the park we had a nice meal and free time to explore.

"Drinking by the lighthouse,

Smoking on the pier"

Before boarding the buses to the show in Hamilton they announced the winners of the contest on the way down.  One person had a perfect score and another all but one.  As a prize they won a "meet and greet" with Alex and Geddy before the show.  We were all pretty happy for them.

A short bus ride and we were in Hamilton.  The organizers had managed to get us access to a few hotel rooms at the Sheraton so we could shower and change into our concert clothes before the show.  It was great to wash off the sunscreen and put on some fresh clothes.  We could then put our backpacks back on the bus.  It all worked out pretty good.  Then off to supper at the "Honest Lawyer" which really wasn't set up to handle the crowd.  The people there tried their best but really couldn't keep up.

At 6 pm I made my way to the ticket office to pick up my VIP ticket.  To reduce scalping you can only pick up your seats 1.5 hours before show time and you must have ID.  I was excited to see my seat.

Well to say I was pleased was an understatement.

I read "Row 1" and then read it again and again.  Front Row.  Yeah I was pretty pleased.  I chatted with other RushCon fans who were picking up tickets and  I think the worse I saw was 6th row which is still a pretty sweet seat.

I entered Copps Coliseum and made my way to my seat.  Here is the view before the show.

OK, so not only was I front row, but front row centre...

Went and grabbed a beer, returned to my seats and mingled with the other fans around me.  At 7:30 the show started.  I took some pictures.  I had a great time.  What a thrill to be front row.

After the show we boarded our buses.  During the trip back the worthy "meet and greet" winners shared their experience.  Upon arrival to the hotel we gathered at the bar for some swapping of stories.

The next morning I decided to go for a walk for breakfast.  After breakfast I noticed all these tents set up at Nathan Phillips Square so I decided to go check it out.  It was an outdoor art show where the artists were trying to sell their work.  Lots of really talented people had their work on display.  I really enjoyed it.

Later at RushCon was an afternoon of games and of course the charity auction.  They get some pretty good stuff if you are a Rush fan.  The signed stuff goes for a good price.

Later that afternoon, music biographer Martin Popoff gave a talk on Progressive Metal which was pretty interesting.  He also had some of his books for sale and would sign them.

Later that night we went to the "Orbit Room" on College Street which is a bar owned by Alex Lifeson.

We were entertained by the music of the Dave Barret Trio which was really good.  They even worked some Rush songs into their set list.

After a street car and subway ride I was back at the hotel.  Continued to mingle with other guest back in the lobby of the hotel.  It is really these one on one conversations with other fans that I enjoy.  Like myself, they have been fans for 30 plus years and the music has been the "soundtrack of our lives".  For whatever reason the bands music / lyrics has made a connection with us and we enjoy celebrating that with each other.

The next morning I took the train back to Ottawa with further excitement... Tonight I was seeing Rush in Ottawa at Bluesfest.  I will post about that separately.

Many thanks to the hard working people at RushCon who do such a great job.