Todem

2 shows this leg.

WPB and Tampa.

Next leg 3-4 for sure.

I was going to go VIP for West Palm Beach....but all I could pull up were 11th and 12th row....so I bought the 11th row seats (3 tickets)..Alex side.

This will be my son's (5 years old and a rapid Rush fan and an aspiring drummer...no shit). So I wanted to get as close as we could. Well...after buying those I went to MT and pulled 17th row dead center....I mean dead center. I have not sat dead center for Rush since the RTB tour. I have always been on either Geddy's or Alex's side. I bought those seats and canceled the VIP tickets.

If the VIP tickets would have been in the first 7-8 rows...I would have kept them. But they weren't and for 9 rows back and perfectly centered...it was a no brainer for me.

I do believe the VIP tickets are a great way for die hard Rush fans (who have the cash) to make sure they secure their tickets and not have to be at the mercy of the broker and Ticket bastard secondary market (ala Tickets now...auctions etc). And the fact that they are will call pick up makes it great so brokers never get access to these tickets.

All the swag...the guarantee of a great seat...not a bad deal overall. It did take away a bunch of seats from the MT pre-sale...so those like me who have had great luck with that (I still did this time but not as close as the last 3 tours) may not have even had a shot this tour.

It is well worth it....I don't think VIP is a bad thing for true fans (who have the coin) to get the seats they are willing to pay for.

What I would like to see for the next leg (because I will get a 2 ticket package for an out of town show next leg) is maybe some other things added to the package like:

A sound check with the band

A meet and greet and autographed poster.

I would pay $500 a ticket for that...yes I would. But that is a VIP experience.

And I would say they should give you the choice of a platinium experience like that...or a gold package like the one that is being offered for this tour.

I think that would be another win for the true long time die hard fans.

Moving Pictures opening the show...would also work really good.

I hope they play it straight through...with limted interuptions..maybe a hello after Red Barchetta...then just the songs till the end of Vital Signs before we hear another word from Geddy.

This is The Spirit of Radio.

I have sat in many different spots for Rush over the years. Front Row Geddy side, Second Row Geddy Side, 6th Row center, 13th Row Alex side etc etc.

I love being up close...the experience is just amazing. I also love sitting back 15-20 rows center for sonic reasons too. This leg that's exactly where I will be...the MT pre-sale gave me 17th dead center for WPB and 25th dead center for Tampa (although I will try to upgrade to the first 5 rows for this show...we shall see).

If you have never sat close (within the first 5 rows close)...you owe it to yourself to at least do it once.

Next leg I will be up close for at least one show.

So I prefer up close and personal.

I have been pining for Jacobs Ladder...now we are getting it (ahmen) but I would also love to hear Marathon, Middletown Dreams and The Analog Kid.

Those tunes would be great. I think Marathon has a great shot as does The Analog Kid. Middletown would be a jaw dropping shocker...like Entre Nous and Circumstances were last tour.