Colorado arcade bus owner honors heroic good Samaritan Johnny Hurley
Boss Battle Bus
CBS
Owning and operating the "Boss Battle" arcade bus has been a dream come true for Devin McKenna, a self-proclaimed "arcader" and entertainer.
"It's a love letter to the '80s," McKenna told CBS Colorado. "There is nothing else out there like it."
The bus, formerly a Denver International Airport shuttle bus, is filled with retro nostalgia, and it's equipped with over 12,000 games. It has everything from Pac-Man, NBA Jam to Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. With the ability to host more than two dozen players at once. Meaning when it's full, there are dozens of smiling faces.
"There is nothing better in the world," McKenna said. "I could literally live in that moment forever."
The bus also carries with it an homage to one of its original creators -- Johnny Hurley. McKenna made the connection while on a test drive before he purchased it a year ago.
"I look down, and there's stickers of Johnny from his memorial, and I will go, 'Wait. Is that John Hurley?" McKenna explained. "He's like, 'Yes. That was my best friend, and that's who built the bus with me.'"
Johnny Hurley was shot and killed on June 21, 2021 after he stopped an active shooter who had killed Arvada Police Officer Gordon Beesly. Hurley was then shot by an officer who mistook him for the suspect. McKenna wanted to make sure Hurley would have a lasting legacy beyond the heroics that led to his death.
"We rebranded it to be called the "Boss Battle Bus" with the tagline, "Beat the boss, whatever the cost," because that's what Hurley did. He beat the bad guy," McKenna said. "He gave everything, and it was to have this kind of community involvement that there is. He was trying to build what we're building now, and it is the greatest honor to be able to carry that on."
McKenna joined forces with a party rental company to create Epic Party Rentals, which offers the arcade bus for rent and a plethora of other games.
The bus brings joy to people's lives. That's McKenna's full-time mission now, and he feels reassurance from someone he lost as well.
"My wife passed three months after Johnny, so I just know it was up there, them going, 'OK, you're supposed to do this, kid,'" McKenna said. "It was what I wanted to do my whole life -- bring fun and bring joy to this darkening world."
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