https://www.facebook.com/BowlinsTheThing/photos/?ref=page_internal
https://www.roadsideamerica.com/story/2023
https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g31170-d1740344-Reviews-The_Thing-Benson_Arizona.html
If you are like me growing up as a kid, traveling down I- 10 you would notice the signs advertising “The Thing” for miles either side of the roadside attraction. I would secretly hope my dad would pull off the road so we could be one of the lucky ones to know what on earth “The Thing” was and sure enough we would pass the exit. Skip forward 25+ years later, when our kids were little, we lived in Las Vegas, NV for 4 years. We would make a pilgrimage back to Texas each summer to visit family. We stopped at the attraction just to see what “The Thing” was. 25+ years ago “The Thing” appeared too be a “mommy and a baby mummy” in a coffin. If you ask Kathryn, she remembers seeing it – I’m not sure about Jessica.
As in the past, the signage began MILES from the attraction both east and west! They have purchased new images that entice the driver to stop! As you know, Zoom Zoom and I are SUCKERS for this kind of stuff. The quirkier the better! When Zoom Zoom pulled off the highway the signs for truck and RV parking were VERY clear! We parked and headed in to find out the wonderment of seeing “The Thing.” We headed to the back corner of the store to pay. It is $5.00 per person. The young girl at the register asked if we have ever stopped before. I told here about growing up and passing the the signs and then when we had kids – we stopped. I told here I remember “The Thing” was a mummy back then. She told us to have fun and off we went!
The new exhibit challenges the participant to take a journey. We are to challenge history as we know it. They have developed a whole new course of our history dating back to the dinosaurs! The exhibit begins with dinosaurs and then suddenly they are wiped out! While the dinosaurs were still roaming, aliens land on the earth. The aliens’ planet was dying so scout ships were sent out. Because of the aliens’ superior intelligence they are able to enslave the dinosaurs. The dinosaurs DNA is mutated and they have telepathic powers. Now, like any good story there is a battle against good and evil. It turns out that there are two factions of aliens good (Ammattria) and evil (Mylzerath.) The Ammattria are a peaceful group and take sides with the dinosaurs. The war between the factions lasts hundreds of years which cause earthquakes and volcanos to erupt. The Mylzerath knew they were fighting a losing battle and left the planet. They aimed an asteroid at the earth hoping to destroy the planet. 75% of the earth was destroyed! 500,000 years after the asteroid hit the earth, the planet is completely recovered. Mankind is now on scene. How you ask? By ancient Cave Dwellers! The Ammattria help these Cave Dwellers they called humans. Eventually, the evil Mylzerath return! The two factions, once again, fought. During that time humanity continued to grow. The conspiracy is that the Ammattria help the U.S.A. gain its independence from Brittan. Our new nation was strong. The Mylzerath continued to cause upheaval and they start the Civil War. Again, the Ammattria were victorious! It is said that in the 1880’s, while digging for copper in AZ, that a mysterious creature was unearthed. Because it was so mysterious, these facts were kept from the public.
During the 20th Century, great technological advances were made – who is responsible? The Ammattria? Because the Mylzerath were still power hungry, they decided to turn their forces and joined the Nazi Party. The Mylzerath were so infectious they were able to get to Japan to bomb Pearl Harbor. This throws us back into a World War! Again, the Ammattria helped us win! Somehow the Mylzerath let the Nazi’s know we had the mysterious alien artifact. The Nazi’s devised a plan and stole it. Allies knew the Mylzerath stole it and the 101st Airborne got it back. As history continues to arch forward, the U.S. develops nuclear weapons. Conspiracy theory is – what if the Ammattria helped us develop the technology?
The exhibit challenges us to think differently. What if “The Thing” is the missing link between humans and aliens! What if “the Thing” is the ancient artifact dug up in the 188’s? What if the best way to hide something in plain sight? Think about how we get the knowledge to develop new technologies – what if it is from the aliens? There are many many more “What ifs” that could be asked. The biggest “What if?” What if I tell you what “The Thing” is? What if I don’t!
