Sarah Palin Fires Up Packed House in Troy, Ohio

Dayton, Ohio -- When I learned GOP running mate Gov. Sarah Palin was coming to Troy, Ohio, of all places, I knew that I had to take the time to grab a ticket for the event. Troy isn't the biggest place in the world and for the vice presidential candidate to take time out of her busy schedule to visit the town, it almost felt like a once-in-a-lifetime experience.

On arriving at Hobart Arena, we learned right off the bat there was no parking left in the immediate area. The closest we could find was nearly a mile away; fine for me, but not so fine for my parents and my niece. We pressed forward though, only to find a huge line stretching all the way around the building and a few protesters set up outside.

I understand protesters, and I believe that everyone has the right to their own opinion. However one of the protesters had a sign with a crude comment sketched on the back relating to Sarah Palin and rape. With the sheer amount of younger people in the crowd, I thought that was completely inappropriate.

We got to the front of the line and turned in our cell phones and cameras for inspection only to learn that they weren't taking tickets for the event. Seeing Palin was exciting for me, so exciting that I called ahead to get a ticket for the Troy appearance. Then it turned out that you didn't even need a ticket to get inside the building. That felt like a waste, more so when we discovered the packed crowd was standing room only. That was fine, except that anytime we attempted to stand or sit inside the building, someone would arrive and tell us we weren't allowed to be there.

Prior to Palin taking the stand, the crowd was treated to an unannounced concert by country music star Tracey Lawrence, who played his hit song "If the World Had a Front Porch." Lawrence later came back to sing again before Palin was introduced to the crowd. She arrived with her husband and two of her children and immediately launched into a discussion about the election.

Palin covered a number of topics. The crowd got a kick out of her comments about Joe the plumber and burst into spontaneous applause when she talked about Sen. Joe Biden's comments from last weekend. "Thanks for the warning Joe," she quipped regarding his comment that the United States would face an international incident if Obama were elected.

Palin touched on issues at the heart of the election and those important to residents of Ohio. She even took the time to acknowledge a veteran in the crowd from the Troy area. After speaking to the crowd for 30 minutes, she left with the crowd on their feet chanting and cheering for Palin and John McCain.

While I didn't have the best experience leading up to the Palin rally, I have to say that it was worth the effort. Palin has a way of stirring up a crowd and today in Troy, Ohio, was no exception.