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Old Trip Reports

Discussion in 'Misc. Vegas Chat' started by sybgal, Mar 22, 2020.

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  1. sybgal

    sybgal VIP Whale

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    Please, please, please.....we are having severe withdrawals....could some of our great report posters please dig in your past trips & post for us to relive with you? This is serious stuff with nothing new to report about our FAV city!! Anyone??
     
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  2. vegas superfan

    vegas superfan VIP Whale

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    I am working on what may end up being the world's longest trip report, from this past December. I am about halfway through!
     
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  3. SH0CK

    SH0CK Stylin' and Profilin' Quasi Tech Admin

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    You've already read all 8231 Vegas trip reports??? :blink:

    2 words...
    Pace Yourself :wink2:
     
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  4. carolineno

    carolineno VIP Whale

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    I think I have enough pictures that were “not worthy” of my initial report in January. If there is interest i can probably do a “lowlights” report lol. I certainly have some time on my hands!
     
    Ladies getaway, somewhere on the strip with a pool :)
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  5. sybgal

    sybgal VIP Whale

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    Hahahaha....over the years....I need to read again !!
     
  6. bull0120

    bull0120 VIP Whale

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    I guess I could add a few stories from my early days... I'll type one up over lunch.
     
  7. xman30

    xman30 High-Roller

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    I wonder if I count as a "great report posters"?!?!? ;):goofy:

    xman30
     
  8. rhinoman7

    rhinoman7 A Diamond in the Ruff

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    I still haven't typed up my trip report from the first week of March. Hopefully sometime this week!
     
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  9. LB9

    LB9 PH Blackjack Degen

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    If you want to see some awesome TRs, search for that zigzagging guy who posted 2 a couple years back. By far the best ones I've ever seen here.
     
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  10. GamblingGolfer

    GamblingGolfer VIP Whale

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  11. mjames1229

    mjames1229 # of visits includes only trips w/ hotel stays

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    How desparate are you? I can write some LONG TRs.

    But have fun (note that my really old ones are links to my personal blog that no longer exists except for the dark web. If you come across one that you really want, let me know which one and I can link to it for you).

    https://www.vegasmessageboard.com/forums/index.php?members/mjames1229.19590/
     
    USBC Nationals are back in Vegas
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  12. NYNYGirl

    NYNYGirl VIP Whale

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    Some pics from our last trip at my fav hotel... IMG_3033.jpg 20180521_181334.jpg 20180520_151634.jpg
     
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  13. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    I wrote this video poker report in 2005, four years before I even joined VMB. Mind you the rebate offer and indeed the Riviera casino are long gone (also those days I did not have a camera in my cell phone so no pix). Additionally, you can see anachronisms like my using travelers checks (when my bank offered them complimentary):

    "I rode a bucking bronco doing the Riviera 5 times cash back promotion this weekend. You could also say I was lucky get out alive. In hindsight, you could also say I was stupid in staying on the mechanical bull of the high level video poker machine.

    I had heard about the Riviera’s new member promotion in Bob Dancer’s article in the Las Vegas newspaper and in an article in the October Las Vegas Advisor. The Las Vegas Advisor warned that the generous promotion was probably short-lived so I was excited about signing up and taking advantage before the promotion was cancelled.

    Mind you I have been to the Riviera years before to claim a free mug and be fooled into wasting $20 in its “$40 play for $20” offer. Unfortunately for me, I did not realize that it was not for real money but only the ability to win relatively worthless prizes when playing “special promotional” machines. Needless to say, the Riviera did not endear me with such hijinks and since in my view there was nothing special about the aging hotel or its casino facilities, I never before joined its slot club or spent much time there.

    The Bob Dancer story in the Las Vegas Advisor stated that the maximum for a new Riviera slot club member is $500 cash back at the rate of 5 times cash back. According to that article, Bob Dancer and his wife Shirley played through $20,000 to max out and even then lost money playing a $5 Jacks or Better game (with a 239 coin straight flush) in the High Roller section. It was my reading of the article and associated message boards that the basic cash back was 0.50% and when multiplied by 5 would be a huge 2.5%. Bob certainly said it was a great opportunity, but at a risk.

    Just before I left for Vegas on the last weekend of October, I saw a notice in VPfree that the $5 JOB referenced by Bob was no more. Nevertheless, I figured that I would drop by and even with a weaker game would be in a good advantage on the play. Usually I play $1 VP, with infrequent $2. I have a substantial income and it is not as if I can only afford the $1 level, it only means that it is high enough to give me an interest in gambling. But I did not have the time (about 8 hours by my calculation) to play a $1 VP game to get to the $20,000 target action. This was because I was staying in another casino with my wife downtown and could not get away for that much time given our activities. Therefore, I decided to try my luck on the promotion and bring about $2,000 (in traveler’s checks) hoping that if I play at the $5 level I would go through the $20,000 in action in about an hour and a half. I realized it was a smaller bankroll than may be wise but I did not realize how small until I was in action.

    When I got to the Riviera on Saturday, I went up to the high roller section and saw two $5 VP multigame TITO machines. I presume this was the same machine that Bob Dancer had discussed but as described there was no longer any JOB. However, one of the games was 8-5 Bonus Poker and I decided that it was close enough particularly since the volatility was not far from 9-6 JOB.

    I then went to Riviera’s slot club, and got a card. Since I was a new member, they gave me a key chain, a gold colored metal medallion (“Riviera’s 50th Anniversary!”), a new member surprise money bonus (“just insert your card in selected machines and plug in your assigned PIN to win up to $1,000 in free play”). There was a bunch of brochures explaining the 5 times cash back promotion for the first 96 hours of play. It appears that the promo was not going to end soon given the stack of brochures all over the place. The idea as explained to me was that you can earn up to 100 in original Riviera bucks which will be multiplied once within 96 hours. After the 96 hours, the boothling told me that any cash back would be the standard rate. Also I was warned I could only claim the bonus only once so make sure to do all my playing before went back to claim the cash back.

    Armed with my newly minted slot club card, I set off to defeat the “man” and bring the Riviera to its knees. Or at least win the expect $400 in winnings suggested by the Bob Dancer article. I cashed in $500 in traveler’s checks. I then brought a note pad and sat at the $5 VP machine to play Bonus Poker. I planned to use the note pad to keep track of how many times I played the game. I estimated that I would go through $20,000 in action in about 800 deals.

    I first inserted by slot club card and tried to see if I had won my “up to $1,000” in free play. The reality was I was entitled to slightly less, otherwise known as $5.00 in free play. That amount was enough for 1/5 of a single game of my chosen VP machine but free is free. Of course I did not even get a high pair on my first deal. I fired up the machine with $200 in cash. I kept track for about 20 deals then saw that the card reader kept track of the “Riviera cash” each time I pressed the “New Deal” button. I decided that since I could multiply the cash back by 5, I only needed to stop when I hit the $100 amount on the card reader – no need to keep track of my deals after all.

    I noticed that for every 5 coin $5 deal (total of $25) the card reader gave me $.05. I did not really focus on significance of the amount since I am math challenged, after all, I only need to stop when the card reader says I maxed out of the bonus at the $100 Riviera bucks level, right? Besides I am on vacation, right? Besides, I need to concentrate on this very expensive VP game. Before I know it, the original $200 was history, then I put in another $200. I was steady for a while. Until you play at the $5 level to get the cash back, you never have been so grateful for a single high pair or (omigosh) a two pair hand! That means a $50 win! (assuming you ignore the $25 bet you made). I note that the machine does not keep credits by coin but by dollar amount.

    After about 10-20 minutes, I had to put in another $100. Then a few minutes later I put in an extra $100 bill in was carrying in my wallet (just in case). Then lo and behold, I hit four 2’s. That is a 200 coin win ($1000 dollars) I am in the money. I then slowly rose a little over the $1200 level. Do I cash out and call it a win and walk away? Are you kidding? I am at an advantage! “Ride ‘em cowboy” “He Yeah!” Slowly the credit meter dips, then bobs up, then dips. Unfortunately, it dips more than it bobs up. It reminds me of a German U-Boat movie where the U-Boat is under attack and dives deeper, deeper into the crushing depths of the Atlantic ocean.

    At each $100 level on the way down I promise myself, “if it goes down just another $100 level I will hit the TITO then walk away.” I keep breaking this promise to myself. Besides, I am in an advantage play, right? As long as I am getting 5 times cash back who really cares?

    All of a sudden, I have no credits left. I look at the card reader and I have “earned” $50 in Riviera bucks. How could that be? It should be more than that. I was playing for quite a while there, about an hour and fairly quickly.

    Why did I not stop when I had a small profit, or when I was break even? At least I had the wisdom to use traveler’s checks. I cannot stuff them into the machine. NO. I must actually walk to the cashier to turn in into money. This break gives me the opportunity to decide to regroup and head back to downtown. I may have lost a bunch of money quickly, but hey, I can do this promo for at least another day before I fly out – time to join my wife for dinner and show.

    Fast forward to the next day. I decided to play the promo but “only” using $2 VP machines, also in the high roller pit. This will take me longer to hit the max cash bonus level, but I decide that the bankroll considerations are worth it. I again play a Bonus Poker version. I slowly lose. I stuff another $100 in and slowly lose. I do this again and again putting in $500 in cash. Then I make one trip to the cashier to exchange $500 in traveler’s checks. I lose again. Now I am down to the remaining traveler’s checks in my wallet, and some misc. $20 bills. I put one $20 then another, this means only two deals per twenty (unless I get at least a pair). Then card reader slowly adds up but not as much as before at the $5 machine. Eventually, I get four Jacks (yippee!). Now I have ammunition. Then I hit the $300 level, then the $600 level. Then I get a two pair and a weird thing happens. The machine spits out a TITO in the amount of $5. I guess that machine can only keep $600 in credits. This makes no sense in a TITO to me, but when I get four 3’s I get a TITO for $400. I put the TITO in my pocket then play the $600 credit down to $300, then cash out the ticket.

    At this point I have recovered $700, entitled to about $350 in cash back so am only down $500. Do I lick my wounds and head out? I should but I hear my original $5 VP machine calling. I decide to put in only the $300 ticket and win or lose, end the promo rodeo ride. I go up and down and up and down, in a few minutes I draw 6, 5, 4, 7 in spades (plus a junk red card). I have an inside straight flush draw!. I close my eyes, put my hand on the deal button (after carefully holding the spades). I hope to hear an extended “zup, zup, zup …..” sound which means that I hit the straight flush (as opposed to just a short “zup, zup” for a flush –or no sound which means nada).

    With my eyes scrunched up I hear a subdued “thinka, boom, thinka, boom, ect….” I look up and the 3 of spades came in along with a blue flashing “Call Attendant”. The straight flush paid 250 credits and that means $1250 and a W-2 G. I never had a straight flush at this level but somehow expected a 239 coin payout (since that is how Bob Dancer had described the straight flush payoff in the $5 JOB game at the Riviera).

    I got the payoff, tipped the worker then got the hell out of Dodge City – via the club booth. The boothling asked if I was finished gambling and I said an emphatic yes. She then had a supervisor give me a cash back voucher for $405 which I cashed and ended all my gambling at this trip with a hell of a ride and bit of a win.

    Only on the plane ride home did I dwell on the amount of cash back and how it accumulated. It appears to me that the original cash back rate was only 0.20 % and times 5 was only 1%. (No warranties on my math). This is OK given the game I was playing but not the knock down advantage I was led to believe. Suffice it to say, that I was grateful to walk away from that promo on the winning side."

    FAB
     
    Last edited: Mar 24, 2020
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  14. wasilla

    wasilla High-Roller

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    Fantastic post FAB!
     
  15. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    @wasilla, coming from a former teacher and writer like you, that is high praise!
     
    Last edited: Mar 24, 2020
  16. flysrb

    flysrb Hey Now!

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    Hey Now!
    I.m just about finished a new one.....
     
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  17. zignerlv

    zignerlv VIP Whale

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    Any Riv story is fun to read about. Years earlier than this promo, the Riv was the first main casino for us. We wouldn't have been eligible for the promo since we weren't new members. I'll assume Bob Dancer was right and the cashback was (temporarily?) increased to 0.5%, but I know that for most of the years we played there, the cashback was 0.25%. Also, I have my old PDF issues of Video Poker Player, and they reported on the Riv in Oct 2001 as 0.25% cashback. So, if it wasn't for you quoting Bob Dancer, I'd say that the cashback was always 0.25% there, which is close to what you found. I also looked at the Oct 2001 LVA that you mentioned (back issues are online), but couldn't find this promo mentioned. I also did a search on their back issues and saw some Riv promos, but not this one. Would love to find where it was mentioned in the LVA.

    I'll add my promo story. In early 2000, the LVA had occasional special coupons on the mailer cover. The "best" one they ran was a 125 coin bonus on a four of a kind at Mahoney's Silver Nugget in North Las Vegas. The expected value of the profit with this coupon, if playing $1 8/5 Bonus Poker, was $107! I had never been to that rough area of town, but knew enough to go in the daytime. I'll never forget the shock when I saw the armed guard in the parking lot there. Inside I signed up for the players card and found their best $1 VP game (to maximize the promo) which was $1 Bonus Poker. I think you had to get the coupon validated before you started play, because I had spoken to a slot attendant. Well I sat down and played at a flat top $1 BP machine, and planned on leaving right after hitting a quad. Well I played, and played, and played, inserting hundred after hundred. Hard to remember exactly how long I was playing, but for sure it was close to 2 hours when the attendant saw me and uttered the dreaded words.... "you still didn't get it yet?". Can you imagine? My luck was so bad that the staff couldn't even believe that I still hadn't hit a quad yet!

    About a half hour after that, probably around the 2 hour 15 minute mark, I hit four 3's. Of course, my reaction was much more relief than happiness. I remember my eyes feeling dry, red and weary from this mini marathon in a place that I really didn't want to be. But at least I hit a bonus quad for $200, plus the $125 coupon. My "coupon run" had ended up costing me about $300!

    I haven't been back to the Silver Nugget since that day!
     
    Last edited: Mar 24, 2020
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  18. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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    E04C35E4-63E6-4F98-8B31-AD270E92E559.png
    @zignerlv I love your Silver Nugget story.

    I was referencing the October 2005 LVA newsletter. Here is the page and an expanded part regarding Bob Dancer and his then wife Shirley.

    7A15E062-A5AC-4E2C-8EEA-B3EDD7FA4CDB.png
     
    Last edited: Mar 24, 2020
  19. JRRestoule

    JRRestoule VIP Whale

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  20. FABismonte

    FABismonte Tell my wife I am "about even."

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