Question 1

What is Arkansas Escape Race?

Accepted Answer

Arkansas Escape Race is our attempt to let inquiring minds know all the cool opportunities for puzzling adventures, escape rooms in Little Rock, and team building for Arkansans and savvy travelers.  We are proud to attempt to entertain you with adventures that get your entire, family, and friends off their phones for a period of time to actually play and talk to each other.  Use of the brain has greatly declined with too many distractions that allow people to digress into oblivion without any true face to face communications.  We love to create games, puzzles, and adventures that spark the imagination and simply enjoy each others company.  We understand that you put your hard earned money in our pocket  and we are honored that you allow us to earn every penny. We love you and hope we enrich your life with pure fun.  Locally owned and operated, our money stays in the state.

We invest thousands every year to bring you the best entertainment we can. We employ 20-30 staff at any one time across multiple businesses.  This is far from a money grab.  We attempt to maintain our games and props to give you the best experience possible and train our staff to respect your money, your celebrations, and your valuable time with your friends.

Please subscribe to our mailing list to be notified when we have new offerings for you to enjoy.  I promise we will not spam you, sell our list, or send emails very often.  Honestly, we are not smart enough to spam you or even use our lists at an optimal level. We would rather spend our time writing new adventures for you.  Please share our info with your friends as we have too many kids still in college and one still at home. LOL.

Question 2

What is going on with Michael?

Accepted Answer

For those of you that know and have heard or read a few things, we thought we would just post an update here.  Please reach out if needed.  We opened Mystery Mansion Escape in 2016 and have continued to entertain most of Arkansas.

THE BIRTH OF INTRIGUE LITTLE ROCK:
2024 was a very weird year for us.  We got a once of a lifetime opportunity to bring Intrigue from Syracuse, NY to Little Rock.  This is an investment that we could have never made ourselves and opportunity that we could not pass up. We fell in love with Intrigue in the Spring of 2023 when we took our staff to NY to play for a few days.  We came home and brainstormed on how we could ever build anything so grand.  We finally decided that it was just a pipe dream of mine and had to let it go.......until, Intrigue was issued an unrealistic rent increase from their landlord.  So Intrigue was loaded up on 2 - 53ft trucks and moved to Little Rock with help from an investor.   Intrigue was delivered April 24th and it was mad rush to install in 10,000 sq feet of space at the Bass Pro Outlets in Little Rock.  After months of working 80 hour weeks, permits, painting, building, and installing, Intrigue Little Rock opened in September of 2024.  If you haven't gone, you should!

THE BEGINNING OF THE PROBLEM: We had previously booked a cruise with friends in January of 2024 for the following September which was a few weeks after the grand opening of Intrigue. A few weeks after returning home, Michael became very ill.  Severe fatigue had set in but we thought it was nothing and he would regain his energy.  We seriously thought he was still recovering from the months of work or just maybe a stomach problem.   Finally, just before Halloween, I talked him into going to the doctor and by his appointment date, he was very ill.  Under the bright lights in the doctor's office, I noticed that his eyes were slightly yellow and the doctor sent us immediately to the hospital.  Apparently on our cruise in one of the ports, he contracted Hepatitis A.  We mentally retraced our steps and in one of the ports, he ate some seafood that none of the rest of us ate.  Now 4 weeks later, he was extremely ill but Baptist Hospital assured us that Hep A, although inconvenient was not critical and takes 6-8 weeks to get out of a system. He was already several weeks in and after 3 days they sent us home.

HOME TO RECOVER: We are steadily planning our life but two weeks later, we were back at the hospital scrambling to figure out why he was so sick.  They got him stabilized 7 more days in-patient and sent us home.  I asked them what our next move was if they were wrong and they told us we had to go to UAMS next time because UAMS has a liver specialist.  Early December, we ended up at UAMS for another huge battery of tests and he was declining.  They realize his enzymes were way off and made immediate strides to solve them. He started to feel better and they sent us home again with the same diagnosis.  In the meantime, I had read every article, research paper, and book I could get my hand on trying to find a solution that would magically make him better.

SAME SONG SECOND VERSE:  Just before Christmas, he had declined to the point that I was in utter panic.  His mind wasn't functioning quite right, terribly irritable, and even more miserable than before so I took him back to UAMS. The doctors asked me why we were back and I told them.  Literally, they asked what I wanted them to do about it.  I told them again that he was not eating, drinking, and was only sleeping and if they sent us home, they were sending him home to die.  That got their attention and they admitted him again.  A few days later, they informed us that his liver was failing and he would have to have a transplant.

ON THE LIST:
We have no idea why his liver has suddenly failed.  Speculation on why, we have no clue.  Hep A is not suppose to do this to your liver but it was definitely the trigger.  Although he partied hard in his early 20s for a period of time, he hasn't anytime in the last 30 years.  The liver is the one organ in the body that can regenerate and heal itself.  When it gets clogged with too much stored fat and gunk, it becomes sluggish and can't function as it should.  It is the only filter our body has for the things we eat.   It throws off your sleep, your mind, your digestion, and your sugar levels.  He has lost so much weight, muscle mass, energy levels are down, gets car sick unless he is driving (and sometimes he gives himself problems), and it has caused portal hypertension and ascites which is miserable.   They listed him and we continue to wait for a call of an organ donation.  We have very mixed emotions about this as we know it will be a gift for him but the end of a life for another family.

TODAY:
Remarkably, his MELD numbers are down where he is no longer number one on the list in the state which is good because he is more comfortable but that also may mean we have to wait a lot longer for a donated liver.   Arkansas does not do "live" liver donations meaning that  a friend or family member can not donate without us leaving the state but they do regular donated livers.  In the meantime, he continues to have procedures like Paracentesis to remove abdominal fluid and EGD for Varices in this throat.  Every procedure causes a different complication that he then has to recover from.  I am working from home so if you visit Mystery Mansion you will see me a lot as I rarely get away from him.  His mind is sharp and his humor is still in tact so if you know or have met him, please reach out as he is an avid Facebook reader.

This journey has been the hardest "escape room" that I have ever participated in.  I am a real medical detective (obviously failing) but the clues to health are in front of me and if I can help anyone else to be steered on to the right track, I will.

THE TAKE AWAY:  If I could give you any advice for yourself, it would be the following:
1) If you travel at all, make sure you have all your vaccinations.  We are in our 50s and it never occurred to us that we do not have Hepatitis vaccinations (we do now). We were both fully vaccinated as children but Hepatitis A vaccine was not given to kids until 2005 so even my adult kids hadn't had it until they were entering college.  We do not have risky life styles and we had never thought of any of this.   When we travel, we are not out trekking though the jungle, literally walking through a port and eating at recommended restaurants.  It only takes one person that has poor hand washing habits touching any of your food to make you sick.  Oh, and the by the way, the entire country of Mexico is in endemic Hepatitis A status meaning they still have a problem currently!  If only we had known.
2) Have blood work tested at least once a year, which he did and had before our ill-fated cruise and it was all fantastic even his liver panel but it will also check A1C, blood pressure, and other items.  It was very good that we had very recent blood work on him as it helped the doctor's understand that he was fine until he wasn't so it got their attention faster.
3) Take as little over the counter meds and prescriptions as possible.  Acetaminophen ruins your liver and Ibuprofen hurts your kidneys.  Find other ways to combat daily, ongoing problems. Losing weight, light exercising, and getting enough sleep is a start.  The more research I do, they more I realize how lucky we were that this didn't happen sooner and could still happen in future.
5)  Eat better!  Cooking for him all the time has made me read every label.  It is horrible how much salt and sugar is in foods we eat every day. Foods that say "low sodium or reduced sodium" are crap.  The sodium content is too high.  I only buy unsalted broths now as I can control how much salt I add but can't control what is already in them.  I have switched to only Mrs. Dash seasonings but this can add a lot of magnesium so make sure you have a balance.
6) Pre-Diabetic numbers can be reversed! Trust me.  I reversed mine in just two months and lowered my blood pressure.  Watching his numbers and reading labels, my lab work drastically improved naturally since I eat the same food.
7) Get moving.  Walk.  Wear a watch or simply just carry your phone and it will count your steps and mileage.  Push yourself to do more tomorrow than you did today.  Simple phone apps with 8 min workouts are fabulous to get your heart rate up and make your joints feel better.
8)Personally, I take Turmeric with Curcumin for my joints.  I read tons of articles about its benefits and started taking it when we were building Intrigue.  I was struggling to keep up with Michael walking into the building.  After about 2 months, I realized that I was keeping up with him.  I stopped taking it and I realized that I was struggling again so I got back on it.  I take large dose of D3 daily because my doctor told me to do this.  Check with your own doctor as I am not one.
9)  If you go in the hospital or someone you love does, you or they must have an advocate that will fight for you, read charts, research the information you are told, question everything, and have a note pad to write names of people that walk in your room and what they told you.  For one, they know you are paying attention and second you may need to know who that was to ask questions.  I bet Michael has seen 40 different doctors and probably 60-100 staff while he has in the hospital.  When the chemicals in the human body are not right, neither is the brain.  Pain and toxins confuses everything.  The patient cannot fend for themselves.  
10)If you want accurate information, you must be diligent.  I will say the doctors at both hospitals were very good with me and all my questions. Only one tried to belittle me into submission...nice try dude!  Also very good to reach out to friends and family in the field for advice.  I have sent Michael's labs, MRIs, CTs, and medical reports to several people that could help me dive through it.  Also they can give you strength to ask questions when the reports don't make sense.  If you think it doesn't make sense, it probably doesn't but a friend will tell you the truth.
11) Be an organ donor when you renew your driver's license.  I promise you will not need the spare parts.  Be a blood donor if you can as hospital supplies are always low especially with seasonal flu, viruses, and other health issues.
12) Have faith that there is plan in place that none of us know! Our faith is God is big.  That does not mean, we will win this battle.  It just means we will have the strength to accept it.  I pray for a miracle everyday in whatever form that comes but I am willing to accept the plan.  PRAY BIG and ASK BOLD!  If you do not have the peace in your life that we have, please ask us how or ask someone that does.  Peace is an amazing thing.

Michael and I both love what we do.  We bring families and friends together every day to have fun and laugh. We have always felt that our escape rooms have been an outreach for people that have lost their way in communicating and interacting with each other.  The immense distractions that each one of us have every day to NOT engage with humans is real.  Our spirits are injured and ability to be happy unless we are complaining about the world is wrong.  Let's get back to being kind and nice to each other and also understand that others have a right to their own opinion.  Not everything we think should we say!  GO PLAY A GAME, any game and have fun!

Question 3

PROHIBITION: What is Included with my ticket purchase?

Accepted Answer

With your ticket, you will receive a box of puzzle pieces and an instruction sheet on how to play.  You can choose to play through all the puzzles or at a designated time, we will announce the afterparty location which is solved by playing the game so that if you choose, you are welcome to attend.  You will play are games and puzzles at your own risk.

Once you are solved all puzzles, the game will reveal the final clue location and you will receive your golden ticket to find the hidden speakeasy, The Moxie.  You are not required to attend the afterparty but it will be a ton of fun and you will be able to ask any questions about the game and how to solve anything.  We will also have appetizers and a few drinks, alcoholic and non-alcoholic to quench your thirst.  We will have prizes for best dressed team and if you have large group of players that are safely competing against each other, we will have a plaque for bragging rights. More info on this in another Prohibition FAQ.

So to recap:
Game Box with puzzles
Fun Event with an opportunity to dress in character. Who doesn't love that?
Ticket to Afterparty
Food and Drink
Music
Oh, did I forget to mention additional games and puzzles just for fun!
Priceless opportunity to see Michael because he has been terribly ill since October so he rarely makes an appearance.  (Unless he has gotten his organ transplant and must stay away from people, but we know you would understand!  He wouldn't miss it otherwise.

Any questions, please call me at Mystery Mansion.

Question 4

PROHIBITION: Where is the starting registration?

Accepted Answer

We are still finalizing details for this so check back later.  It will be at a location that serves food so if you come early at 2:30pm, you can grab lunch before you leave to solve.

Question 5

PROHIBITION: What time is the event and how long will it last? How do I Win?

Accepted Answer

Prohibition will start at 4pm and game play ends at 6pm but some teams may finish early.  Each box will be time-stamped so that we know exactly when your team left registration. Any team that starts early will have two hours to solve but they are welcome to go over the allotted time.  For bragging rights, we will simply calculate total time from beginning to final location and time-stamp the box again.  You win when you solve all puzzles and make it to the final location and afterparty.  EVERYONE WINS THAT FINISHES but some teams will do it quicker.

Recap:
Registration Starts at 2:30 to sign waivers.
Game Start at 4:00pm. Game play officially ends at 6:00pm.
Afterparty doors will open at 5:30 for early arrivals and will last until 8pm or everyone is gone.

Question 6

PROHIBITION: Where can I get 1920s attire?

Accepted Answer

Google 1920s, speakeasy, Great Gatsby, for great clothing looks.  You can find pieces at Goodwill or resale shops.  Amazon has tons of inexpensive options for whole outfits.  I recommend comfortable shoes for game play so bring any cuter ones just for the party!

Question 7

PROHIBITION: Charity Fundraisers. How can my charity use this game?

Accepted Answer

If you support a favorite team, band, choir, cheerleading organization, or non-profit, call us for options.  We can run a lot of our events, in one location (where guests don't need to run around town) for a price per table and you can upsell the tickets for profit!  Sounds fun?  Think about an event  that you can concentrate on ticket sales not the event itself!  You will be able to provide your own catering and drinks, we just provide the fun!

Frequently asked questions