Things To Do in Meridian

At Pierce Park Greens and Divotz Golf & Driving Range, an on-site all-grass driving range and short game facility offer opportunities to iron out swings, while a pro shop equips players with all the necessary gear. Pierce Park Greens also offers golfers a 9-hole par 3 courses that challenges players of all levels. Instructors lead private lessons during which they focus on golf fundamentals such as swing mechanics, putting, short game, etiquette, and how to celebrate politely after winning a golf cart drag race.

With proceeds benefiting the Boys & Girls Club and Idaho Select Player's Fund, BAM Jam incites three-on-three hoop wars between players of all ages and skill levels, with 142 teams playing on 22 courts its first year alone. Grab two buddies or half an octopus and take part as downtown Boise transforms into an eight-block, multicourt labyrinth of bracketed competitions, with divisions designed to evenly match third-grade female dribblers, men older than 40, teenagers older than 20, and elite adult and high-school players as all vie for netted glory. With a guaranteed minimum of three games per team, even ragtag Lilliputian trios can pursue quixotic competition in the city streets—all under the keen eye of the BAM Jam monitors, who keep conduct sportsmanlike and mischievous backboards from wandering off to the concession stand midgame.

At Shankz Glo-Par-Tee, larger-than-life dinosaurs, sea creatures, and volcanoes glow under black lights as guests play through 18 holes of miniature golf in the 6,000-square-foot facility. It can take about 30–40 minutes for players aged 3 and older to travel through the course’s glowing jungles, underwater worlds, and prehistoric locales, and even longer when they’re sporting Shankz’s ChromaDepth 3-D glasses, which inhibit the wearers’ ability to perceive the fourth dimension. In addition to mini golf, Shankz Glo-Par-Tee features a glowing arcade and themed party rooms where patrons can host birthday parties or private events.

Pyrrhic Paintball derives its name from an ancient Greek dance, one whose motions were intended to mimic the death struggle of two knife fighters. Like those dancers, the players on this dusty, urban-warfare field play-act modern battles, ducking out from behind particle-board barricades to get a bead on the opponents. But there's a second, better-known meaning to pyrrhic: victory achieved at great cost. Whether attempting to capture a flag, protect a VIP, or defend a base, anyone may be called to sacrifice themselves to a splattering of paint in order to ensure the completion of a team's objective.

With Alpenglow's one-day Call in Sick kayak- or stand-up-paddle-rental package, river riders traverse down the Boise River with a variety of down-river equipment, kayaks, and rafts. The package gives floaters the option of turning on a dime with any one-person flat-water kayak, stand-up paddle board, or enjoying the portability of an inflatable kayak. Although Alpenglow's rentals include paddles (for kayaks and rafts) and life vests, customers can opt to rent other equipment such as helmets, wetsuits, and repair kits for when the kayak gets a little scratch and asks for its mommy.

With a five-star rating as an instructor-development center from the Professional Association of Diving Instructors (PADI), Dive Magic’s aquanauts impart scuba prowess to aspiring underwater explorers. During a two-hour Discover Scuba session (a $50 value), fledgling flipper-kickers are introduced to the essential elements of scuba safety, equipment usage, and how to gurgle "gesundheit!" after a subaquatic sneeze, then descend into the depths of an on-site heated swimming pool. While basking in the buoyancy, a Dive Magic staff photographer will snap a photographic keepsake (a $10 value) to memorialize the immersed moment. To make the experience as comfortable as possible, Dive Magic offers a choice between male or female instructors. All equipment is provided.

A competitive shooter since he was a teenager, Mike Wirth began teaching responsible firearms operations during college. Between bouts of studying for his degree in mechanical engineering, he showed friends and classmates the firearms basics, such as marksmanship fundamentals, proper cleaning and storage, and how to smelt each bullet by hand.

Now teamed with business partner Aaron Goodfellow, Wirth continues training clients in responsible armed defense. On the outdoor ranges shared with Parma Rod and Gun Club, he and Goodfellow lead classes focused on handgun operations, teaching guests skills from swapping magazines to courteous behaviors when on the range.