Chihuahuas’ 4th of July fireworks display costs $1,000 a minute

The El Paso Chihuahuas reserve their biggest fireworks displays for the Fourth of July weekend. As the pyrotechnic displays get more complex, they tend to get more expensive.

All of the shows are synchronized to music and this weekend, fans in attendance can expect a patriotic theme.

Rod Smith, with Lone Star Fireworks has been producing the shows at Southwest University Park since its inaugural season in 2014. Lone Star Fireworks is base in Graham, Texas.

“We shoot on the outfield and that way we get that proximity effect, if you will, with the audience,” Smith said. “They like that up close and personal effect, but then we use little bit bigger effects from the top of the garage.”

Smith said they have been preparing for more than a week for this weekend’s shows at the ballpark. “The Chihuahuas put together a soundtrack and they send that over to me and then I put that into a program called Finale Fireworks, software specifically designed for pyrotechnic displays,” Smith said. “We can put that in there and we can see the waves, we can see the actual effects we are going to use.”

Smith will also be responsible for Monday’s fireworks shot at Fort Bliss.

Sunday’s show at the ballpark will be 10 minutes long and costs about $1,000 a minute. Baseball fans picking up their pre-purchased tickets at the ballpark Friday had a hard time believing it costs so much to produce a fireworks show.

‘If its worth it, you’ve got to pay for it, and if they’re willing to do it here, to treat El Paso fans, it’s a good thing,” Rick Hernandez, a Chihuahua fan, said.