Things To Do In Nacogdoches

A member of the Central Hockey League, the Mudbugs are led by former player and current head coach Scott Muscutt, who has manned the team's helm for the past 10 seasons. The CenturyTel Center's gold-level seats offer optimal views of the ice so you can spot swift slap shots, phenomenal glove saves, and old hidden-puck tricks. This game features a special post-game jersey auction, plus appearances from cast members of the A&E reality series Billy the Exterminator. Fans can cheer on Mudbug veteran center Travis Clayton and crafty goaltender John DeCaro with Clawed and Lil' Bugger, the team's crawfish mascots and official UN ambassadors from New Zealand.

Unaccompanied all-terrainers must be 18 or older.

Oil Bowl Lanes opens its 32 lanes of rolling glory to pin pushers every day of the week. A one-hour lane rental pits quartets of players against one another to see who can garner the highest score based on pins felled and the secret 11th frame, which is judged on the overall style of post-strike moonwalks. Eight rental shoes lend their aid to earthbound extremities, and a full pitcher of soda bubbles with between-frame refreshment or postgame head-dunk opportunities. Spheres rumble down Oil Bowl’s alleys between retro-futuristic murals and cheery checkered floors.

Since 1984, Shreveport has paid tribute to a cherished Louisiana tradition—the crawfish boil—with its annual Mudbug Madness Festival. As many as 56,000 people flock each day to what has blossomed into one of the state’s most popular Cajun festivals, where they nosh on succulent seafood and compete in crawfish-eating contests that encourage participants to test their stomach size and sabotage their opponents by sneaking lobsters into their bowls. “One year, we had a man eat 42 pounds of crawfish in 30 minutes,” marvels festival coordinator Melanie. “We’ve cut it down to 15 minutes since then.” In addition to eating crustaceans, attendees can also lure them across the stage during crawdad-calling contests. “It gets really lively,” Melanie says, describing how the sirens-in-training are allowed to do nearly anything they can think of to entice the crawfish into their reach.

Cajun, zydeco, and jazz tunes waft through the air during the festivities, emanating from three stages helmed by headliners such as Wayne Toups, Rockin’ Dopsie, Jr., Super Water Sympathy, and Windstorm. The rhythms reach the ears of shoppers browsing original artwork and handmade jewelry in the arts area, expanded after previous years' success. On Thursday, local athletes can work up an appetite in the 5K race. Children of all ages burn off energy in the kids' area, where they can somersault in the bounce house, tackle art projects, or plop down in front of a stage where magicians and storytellers keep their young minds off the uncertain fate of lollipop futures.

Centenary Fitness Center, like the university it calls home, is a self-improvement and educational facility. Just as libraries give students resources to increase their brainpower, the full-size gym boasts an indoor swimming pool, racquetball courts, and aerobic machines to help members bolster their muscular strength and endurance. Staff members, the professors of exercise, showcase the slimming powers of Zumba and spin during group exercise classes and can educate members on how to use fitness machines properly, thereby reducing injuries caused by trying to outrun a treadmill.