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New Vegas Toy: Sandbox for Adults

Failed construction boom makes it possible

By John Johnson,  Newser Staff

Posted Sep 2, 2011 2:30 PM CDT

(Newser) – Should you need further proof that Vegas is a playground for adults, consider the city's new toy: a sandbox for grown-ups. The new draw across from the Vegas Strip lets visitor plunk down money (as much as $750) to play with construction equipment such as excavators and bulldozers, reports AP. "I thought it would be much clunkier, and the lighter you are with the controls, the easier it worked," said a tourist in from California, who dug a trench and moved tires during her two hours behind the controls.

The "Dig This" site actually fits right in to the landscape given the number of stalled construction projects nearby. The city's casino building boom crashed in 2008 and has yet to recover.

Instructor Ruben Segura directs Daniel De La Garza of Austin, Texas, at picking up a basketball with an excavator in Vegas.
Instructor Ruben Segura directs Daniel De La Garza of Austin, Texas, at picking up a basketball with an excavator in Vegas.   (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
Grayson Cox, of Austin, Texas, works on the controls of an excavator.
Grayson Cox, of Austin, Texas, works on the controls of an excavator.   (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
Instructor Ruben Segura directs Daniel De La Garza of Austin, Texas, at picking up a basketball with an excavator.
Instructor Ruben Segura directs Daniel De La Garza of Austin, Texas, at picking up a basketball with an excavator.   (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
Daniel De La Garza dumps dirt while digging holes with an excavator in Las Vegas.
Daniel De La Garza dumps dirt while digging holes with an excavator in Las Vegas.   (AP Photo/Julie Jacobson)
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COMMENTS
Showing 3 of 8 comments
Chitrix
Sep 2, 2011 6:13 PM CDT
There was a time in my life that each weekend when I finished my duties in IT and had a weekend off I would go to a farm in the county in which I lived, an 86 year old man owned and tilled 2,000 acres of land which is a nice size farm operation for the area I lived. When they were not working the soil planting and harvesting crops the old man had his two sons working using dozers Pan Loaders, cranes and other heavy equipment. I would spend every weekend I could also working for this family, it was a great diversion from working with Network issues and other mundane crap I dealt with daily and I must say it paid me well for the time I spent having a blast. I can see where people would really enjoy working with this equipment, it gives you a real rush Glad I got paid to operate the ones I sat upon  LOL  Beats paying out $$$ to let someone sit beside you
Watching4theMODS
Sep 2, 2011 6:08 PM CDT
Yep some of the most expensive land in the nation a few years ago turned into a sandbox. A testament to the greed that ran wild in the Bush years and to it's failure. This is nothing to be proud of people
finkster
Sep 2, 2011 3:58 PM CDT
Hey Boss I have a great idea!!! Let's have regular people pay to work for us under the guise of having fun?!

 
Las Vegas • construction

 
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