Simplot Games after dark

Competition takes a night off
by Tyler Gibbons

Pocatello Idaho-The Idaho State University Pond Student Union Building (SUB) will become a cultural melting pot, literally and figuratively, on Friday, February 20.

Adidas will host their fifth annual Pasta Bar dinner at 6:30 p.m., and the Junior Civitan Club of Pocatello is sponsoring the annual Simplot Games Dance from 8 to 11 p.m., later that evening.

Tickets to attend just the pasta bar dinner are $7. To reserve tickets call (208) 235-5604 or purchase in person at Simplot Games Store in Holt Arena.

Dance tickets are $5 and can be purchased at the SUB ballroom door on the night of the event.

Olympians Ian Dobson (Beijing 2008) and Carrie Tollefson (Athens 2004) will host the 2009 elite athlete dinner.

Attendees to the night's event get a chance to scarf down some pasta and talk with current members of Team USA Track and Field in a question and answer session during the meal.

The annual dancing event has become a staple of the Games since its inception in 1988, and is especially popular with the local high school students. Last year, over 1,000 attendees, both local and visiting high school students, came to the dance.

Chaperones and musical entertainment by the Main Street Music DJ's will be provided by the Junior Civitan Club of Pocatello. Those planning on attending should be of high school age and casually dressed.

“We're excited to have both events linked together. It's a convenience we haven't had, and it grants our guests with more viable options than they’ve had in the past,” said Anderson. “Now, instead of having to choose between one or the other, the opportunity is there to attend both events.”