By Bobby Ellis
bobby.ellis@education.ky.gov
If you’ve ever watched “Jurassic Park” and thought that a Tyrannosaurus rex would be fun to ride on or that you might actually want to meet a 6-foot tall carnivorous lizard, then Jurassic Quest is the place for you.
Over the course of three days, dinosaurs of all kinds, shapes and sizes took over the Kentucky Convention Center during Jurassic Quest, a traveling, interactive event that takes visitors through the Triassic and Cretaceous periods with the help of animatronics and life-like dino suits worn by workers.
Along with getting to tour a prehistoric forest, visitors could dig for fossils in excavation pits, get their faces painted and break apart “dinosaur eggs” made from clay. On the outside of the event hall was a table covered with actual fossils for people to look at.
“That’s a T. rex tooth!” shouted Easton Jones of Tyner, as he pointed out a sharp fossil on the table. “Oh, I bet that’s a T. rex footprint!”
“It’s pretty cool, especially for the kids,” said Phillip Overall, as his son Parker waited to dig in one of the fossil pits. “They see those big dinosaurs and you just watch their eyes get wide like ‘Whoa, it’s a dinosaur!'”
Jada Owens of Louisville rides an animatronic Tyrannosaurus rex at the Jurassic Quest in Rupp Arena.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Easton Jones looks at fossils on a table outside of the main event hall at Jurassic Quest.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Seth Ferguson cuts out a paper dinosaur at an arts and craft table at the Jurassic Quest event.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Ethan Ross of Lexington attempts to break open a ball of clay to find fossils at the Jurassic Quest excavation site.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Marlie Conley of Georgetown pokes her head through a barricade to get a better look at a Triceratops at Jurassic Quest.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Jurassic Quest visitors take pictures of animatronic dinosaurs as they walk through a replica of a prehistoric jungle in Rupp Arena.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Ryan Shive, left, and Jase Ford are nuzzled by a dinosaur during the “Meet a Dinosaur” encounter at Jurassic Quest.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Kira Kindoll, a student at Milton Elementary School (Trimble County), gets her face painted at Jurassic Quest.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Children dig in a fossil pit during Jurassic Quest. The event, which was held in Rupp Arena, is a traveling fair that lets children ride animatronic dinosaurs, search for fossils and walk through an educational replica of an ancient forest.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
Phillip Overall looks at his son, Parker Overall, through a plastic barricade as Parker waits to dig in a fossil pit at the Jurassic Quest event.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
John Lacy of Morehead rides a motorized Brachiosaurus while attending Jurassic Quest at Rupp Arena in Lexington.
Photo by Bobby Ellis, July 6, 2018
So sorry to have missed such an exciting event. Dinosaurs is s passion for many of our youngest friends today!!!