Just prior to the recent Coronavirus Pandemic I was introduced to a unique sports game called “Rocket League” by my younger brother Waylon. Living nearly 1000 miles apart we were looking for something to play online together and as I’ve never really been a “first-person shooter” guy, Rocket League seemed like something fun to pick up and put down while we caught up from time-to-time. In short order however, what began as a way to connect quickly morphed into a new obsession as I found myself playing more and more just for the sake of playing and getting better at the game. This new found hobby was even further fueled by the pandemic era stay-at-home orders issued a few months later which limited my ability to continue my usual outdoor pursuits.

Given my highly-competitive nature, Rocket League kept me coming back for more as I worked my way up through the ranks, participated in leagues and tournaments, and became immersed in the professional scene. While traditional sporting events were put on hold, Esports continued on and even flourished with new-found audiences across the globe looking to get their competitive fix. All of this newfound focus eventually culminated in the desire to reach two goals: 1) Achieve the Rank of Grand Champion (GC; Top 1% of the Player-Base) and 2) Attend a Rocket League Championship Series (RLCS) LAN as a fan.

After just under two years of playing, in September of 2021, I finally achieved the rank of GC and a few months later it would be announced that not only would there be a nearby LAN, but that the annual RLCS World Championship would be held just down the road at Dickies Arena in Fort Worth, Texas. Within hours of the announcement I had flights and a hotel lined up for the event.

For those unfamiliar, an RLCS LAN is held over several days as professional teams from around the world compete in a massive tournament to determine an overall winner. The actual RLCS World Championship event was nearly two weeks long with some limited audiences leading up to championship weekend on August 12-14th, 2022. As a father of a newborn baby and a toddler, I didn’t want to spend too much time away from family so I only attended championship weekend.

The event itself was overall a great experience from beginning to end. I flew out of Denver in the early morning hours of Friday the 12th and was able to drop my bags off at the hotel just in time to catch the first series of the day.

WIP!