I attended a "Big 12 After Dark" BYU football game against Kansas State. It was BYU's first game as…read morea member of the Big 12. And, this was my first visit to Provo, Utah and to LaVell Edwards Stadium. It was an 8:30pm kickoff and this was also a "White Out" game where every BYU fan in attendance was instructed to wear white. I had the time of my life!!! Granted, I am too old to be a student, but just being a college football fan in general, LaVell Edwards Stadium had it all. Couldn't have asked for a better experience!!! There were so many memorable moments, I'm still feeling on Cloud 9 from it all! Where to start?????? - The setting!! From the home side of the stands, you have a gorgeous mountain range view hanging in the distance. It's one of the best backdrops in college football!! Maybe THE BEST!! The scenery was stunning! But in a way, no surprise. Utah's landscape never ceases to amaze. For the 8:30pm kickofff, they allowed fans inside the stadium 2 full hours ahead of time. This gave me ample opportunities to walk around and explore. I bought my ticket on TickPick (as usual). It was $53 which I think was cheap. Both BYU and Kansas State (who has a solid football reputation) were 3 - 0 heading into this game. And for a primetime showing on ESPN, $53 was well worth the price of admission, lol. Before entering, they had the "Cougar Walk" where fans greeted the players as they entered the stadium. That was exciting. I made sure to take a photo with the Cougar Statue right outside. Btw, I parked along the side street at the BYU Botany Pond, about a one mile walk from LaVell Edwards Stadium. This way I didn't have to pay for parking. LaVell Edwards Stadium has a seating capacity of 64,000 and for this game...it was a sellout. That brings me to my next point... - Crowd energy and noise! I was mighty impressed with BYU's fans and students bringing the noise and showing their passion for the Cougars. Every third down on defense had fans standing and rooting for BYU to make a stop. I also appreciated the BYU Fight Song which was playful and all the fans knew the chant. Opening introductions were fantastic with fireworks lighting off and getting things started. And...at the end of the game when BYU won convincingly, there was a terrific 5 minute fireworks display that finished the celebrations on the perfect note. I also need to mention how when ending the 3rd quarter and entering the 4th quarter, the Cougar mascot got the stadium rocking with a pounding of the drums while fans responded and clapped along. It reminded of the "Skol Chant" at US Bank Stadium for the Minnesota Vikings. Another thing to mention was my seat...I sat in Section NN and Row 36 which was the last row of the visiting side of the stands. Yet...the views of the game from this Row 36 were awesome! I could see all the action perfectly. And just glancing around at the rest of the bowl that comprised LaVell Edwards Stadium, it appeared like wherever you sat, you were able to follow every play from any vantage point. Whoever designed this place did an outstanding job, lol! In the end, for attending a BYU football game here at LaVell Edwards Stadium, it had to be one of the most electric and exciting atmospheres I have ever been to for a sporting event. I loved every moment. And this is why I live for college football! Thank you Brigham Young University for having me.

I went to BYU as a student 9 years ago, and go back every couple of years for a football game. I…read morehave mixed feelings about LaVell Edwards Stadium: THE GOOD - In terms of the stadium backdrop, it is one of (if not the best) in college football. Absolutely stunning views of the Wasatch Mountain range on the east side of the venue. - The fan fest space outside the stadium is incredible compared to what it was a decade ago -- with BYU's policy against alcohol on campus, having food trucks and activities for fans to participate in is a great way to get involved on game day. - The in-game experience (music, fireworks, 3rd quarter break) is very engaging and fun for fans. THE BAD - While there have been several updates made to the stadium (connecting the upper concourse all the way around the stadium and adding stairwells to get up), it still feels like a very old concrete heap. There are no good uses of tech in the stadium -- no heating or misters to control temperature of walkways, no escalators to move people up and down between concourses quickly, and no TVs to give fans views of the game while they're on the concourse. - The stadium has arguably the worst foot traffic flow of any venue I've ever been to. Thousands of people stack up in the concourse waiting for bathrooms and drinking fountains, even more stack up trying to exit the portals at halftime and the conclusion of the game. It's a serious evacuation hazard, and it's brutal to get anywhere before the game, during HT, and after the game. - Parking close to the stadium is also nearly impossible unless you are a season ticket holder (designated parking lot) or get to the stadium 5 hours early. Everyone else parks in the neighborhoods to get a close spot, which makes the traffic after games painfully slow. Fun place to see a game every once in a while, but this place has some major flaws holding it back from making it what could be one of the best overall venues in sports.

The various choir's are wonderful the event organized however are thus far incompetent. All…read moreadvertising said the doors would open at 6pm so that everyone could be seated for the 7pm performance with prelude at 6:30...they did not open the doors until 6:15-6:30. So here we are at 7pm withe the performance not yet started, jut the prelude. And they completely underestimated the size of the crowd that would turn out. They had blocked off two thirds of the seating with curtains; those have now been raised as people continue to enter.

Every Tuesday during the fall and winter months they have these great, uplifting devotionals from…read moreleaders of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They are at 11am. I was very inspired!

In the excitement of a concert, we often forget the venue. While I have no beef with the performers…read more(The 1975, who were exceptional), I can't totally say the same about the UCCU Center. Known for many moons as the David O. McKay Events Center, there have been changes in recent years to make room the growth of Utah Valley State College to Utah Valley University. The sound was good, and the importance of good sound can't be underemphasized. And, while I'm guessing that The 1975 brought most of their own show, there is something to be said about a medium-sized college arena handling well the unadulterated wattage surge of a 1000-foot video display and multi-colored lighting brought forth by this massively huge British band. I have been on campus over the years for other events such as Wolverine basketball games and the famed Michael Moore speech in 2004. For those type of events, it works decently and as it should. However bands, unless they are performing in "The Round", will find their fans making awkward angles in their chairs. While I was standing most of the time, sitting and seeing required turning myself 90 degrees left in an unswivelable and uncomfortable circa-1980s arena chair. The parking is maybe the worst I've seen at a concert. No UVU staff managing the traffic; we spent 30 minutes trying to get out, but not moving. This element I give an "F" ... hell, I'll give it a "Z-". Utterly and completely unacceptable. If you want to play with the big boys, UVU, start acting like it. In the end, the concert was great, and I'm sure there will also be great events like this in the future.

We went to the Louis Tomlinson concert on March 1st. The line to get in was really long and it…read moremoved really slow. I didn't like how there were no assigned seats. It was really hot inside. Once we sat down we were dying of water. My sister saved our seats while I went to get water. I asked an employee where the concession stands were and they only had one that was open which was clear on the other side of the building. Once I got the concession stand the was so dang long since that was the only concession stand open. They had a few vending machines around with water bottles in them that I wanted to use because I didn't want to wait in the long concession line. All the vending machines were turned off. So I had no choice but to stand in line. I waited probably about 45 minutes to 1 hour. I missed the whole opening act. They had 1 freaking person so the register!! I could t get over it. They weren't selling any water bottles, they said they are only doing cups of water. They had bottle waters in the fridge but weren't selling any. They said people throw them up on stage which I don't get because anyone could throw a big cup of water on stage too. The big cups of water were more expensive than the bottle waters too. Of course. They were $4 for each cup of water. They didn't even out ice in the water. It was the worst. Why would t you have more than one concessions open?? Why wouldn't they have their vending machines on?? Why wouldn't you have more than 1 person doing the register?? It was the worst!!

I was visiting the campus to have a rest in the courtyard. The BYU campus security said I can not…read morelay down and rest on the grass (like i've done before after getting some ice cream.) BYU won't get a cent of my money, because of how terrible the campus security treated me. They don't believe in God, just looking like they do and acting high and mighty while they take your money. "Y" would I go to your school? when I can't even lay down after a long walk on a hot day? WWJD?

I signed my daughter up for the BYU gymnastics camp for a week and I was extremely disappointed…read more The first day warm ups were at least 45 minutes and a complete waste of time. On the website when I signed up they specifically stated, "make sure your gymnast can practice for 3 hours!!" Out of the three hours my gymnast danced and jumped for 1 hour and 15 minutes, practiced for an hour, spent 30 minutes of warm up, (she practically was just sitting), then played a game and ate popsicles outside. I'm simply disappointed because the waste of money and effort I spent to get her into this camp was thrown away because of the lack of effort. This is a great camp for 6-8 year olds. Anyone older than that is going to be bored.

I've been to major league ballparks and sports arenas all over the world and this is the only place…read moreI've ever been that does not allow EMPTY water bottles to be brought in. This policy is ridiculous.

It seems that there are a lot of older reviews on here, so I wanted to take the time to write about…read moremy experience at Provo College as a recent graduate of the BSN program in the August 2023 semester. To start, the Dean, Angela Lindley, and Assistant Dean, Doran Sorenson, are great educators and people overall. They really "whipped this program into shape" to be completely blunt. They truly care about the success of the students and were always available whenever I needed study advice. They both have impressive backgrounds in the nursing field & did a great job of incorporating real-life situations into our lessons. I went through a lot of health issues during the program and they both were very supportive and helped me to not fall behind in the program. The program is tough, and they have high expectations, but they know that real-life problems occur, and they are there to work with you and support you when you need them. Lastly, the final semester Professor, Nikkie King, is absolutely incredible. She is very familiar with ATI and knows how to prep you for the NCLEX. My confidence in my nursing skills & knowledge soared significantly because of her help & support. Nursing School was one of the hardest things I have ever done, but I am beyond grateful for the supportive environment at Provo College for helping me through. Some other cool things about the program: - Live Simulation labs - Virtual Reality labs -ATI live Week - "Senior Day" - Help with job placement/great career services staff

Definitely don't recommend going to Provo college. I just got off the phone with financial aid,…read moreand honestly the lady I talked to was no help at all with my situation. It took me a while to finally get a hold of her and as I was telling her the situation about my loan she kept telling me she didn't work here at the time so she doesn't know. I attended this school about a year and a couple months ago. I told her who I was working with and she said the lady that helped me with the loan doesn't work there anymore. I mentioned that she told me over the phone the loan that I request for was going to come in AFTER I couldn't afford to pay out of pocket anymore so that's why I did what I did because she said that! Mind you she told me get the loan before I started school just so I could have it before then. I didn't think anything of it just because I thought she knew what she was doing. If I knew the loan was going to be for that time even though school didn't start yet I wouldn't have done it til I needed it. The lady that was currently trying to help me kept saying that I requested it because I couldn't afford it. Even though I did because I was paying out of pocket!! Then she mentioned when I withdrew and got that month's money back I could have paid the loan, and she kept telling what was the problem if she gave all the information she had, but she just wasn't understanding where I was coming from. It doesn't make sense to me because she can see that I was paying out of pocket the a couple months then there's the loan then I go back to paying out of pocket. It's obvious I could afford it, and it was a different amount from what I was paying month to month too. She also said it sounds to me the problem is that I have to repay the loan now. Which I obviously don't want to pay the loan because I felt blindsided like I said I WAS TOLD once I couldn't afford to pay the monthly payments the loan would cover the rest of my schooling, but I got withdrawn by then So there was no need for that loan anyway. Overall It was a lot of just going back and forth with the situation and she also said she doesn't know why the lady that doesn't work there anymore that was helping me before would say that and there's nothing she could do about it, and to go talk to my FASFA and set up a payment plan. It definitely feels like a SCAM!

The Most Colorful Morning You Will Ever Have at 6:00 AM…read moreThere are not many things worth setting an alarm for at 5:00 in the morning. This is one of them. The Provo Freedom Festival Balloon Fest is a three day annual celebration of the Fourth of July held at Fox Field on Freedom Boulevard, and it is exactly the kind of event that reminds you why summer in Utah is something special. Pilots from across the country bring their balloons to the Wasatch foothills and what unfolds over those three days is one of the most visually spectacular community events in the state. Arrive early. We mean it. Getting there around 5:30 am puts you on the field while the crews are still inflating the balloons, and watching a seven story tall colossus slowly rise against the backdrop of the Wasatch Mountains is something that does not have a good comparison. Sixty to eighty feet of color and fabric filling with air while the mountains glow in the early morning light is the kind of moment you reach for your camera and realize no photo will fully do it justice. Go anyway, take the pictures anyway. A tip for families: the crew members of each balloon are friendly and genuinely happy to talk. Ask them for their balloon card. Kids can collect a card from every balloon on the field and it turns the whole experience into an impromptu treasure hunt. Then come back for the glow event, which happens one night during the three day run and is worth rearranging your schedule for. The balloons stay grounded but are fully inflated and lit from within by their propane burners in sync with music. Watching these giants pulse and glow in the dark while the crowd gathers around them is a completely different experience from the morning flights and every bit as memorable. We grabbed a sugar waffle from the Waffle Love truck and wandered between the glowing balloons in the evening air, and it was the kind of night that sticks with you. A few practical notes before you go. This is a free event with no tickets required, which makes it even more remarkable for what it delivers. Parking is the one challenge. Neighboring businesses offer paid parking for around ten dollars, which is worth it if you want convenience. If you prefer free, arrive early and look for the field parking behind the hospital. Come late and you will be walking. Full marks. Some experiences justify every star and then some. Put it on the calendar now for next July.

The balloon festival has become a yearly tradition. It's amazing every time. It's just something we…read morenever tire of seeing. It's fun to bring friend and family that come into town to experience the beauty and magic of it all. We show up early, bring blankets and breakfast and enjoy the show. It's a must see for all ages.

Absolutely amazing experience. Came from out of town to visit friends. Huge collection of casts and…read morereal fossils from 50+ years ago to now!! Highlight of the trip was a behind the scenes tour from a current graduate student. Insane collection of historic fossils. Would recommend. Can be a little warm inside so I'd recommend bringing water!

For a free museum, we absolutely loved checking this place out. It's pretty small but the…read morecollection is quite impressive. We really enjoyed watching paleontologists work in action through windows.