11 Nights in DT Vegas with an attempt at social distancing

What a great read. Thanks so much for sharing your adventures with us!

 

Thanks so much for this report. It has been full of useful information about Las Vegas right now. A snapshot in time to look back on when things get better.

I’m so glad you took the time to post such a detailed report.

 

Interesting Latin. This isn't a wrap up. My BR strategy is pretty simple. Bring enough money. I play mostly +EV games and don't want to get shut down by bad variance. This was a shorter trip and I brought $5,500. A normal 3 week trip sees $7,000. My .50c to $1 10/6 DDB play over 6 days during my trips is a threat to my BR. Last trip, I didn't have enough BR left for a 2nd WE of .50c DDB play and dropped to the .25c 9/6 DDB progressives. I don't do envelopes or session BR's. I pull $1,000 at a time from the safe. If I lose it, I reevaluate what I'm doing.

 

Thank you. I do hope that things look better.

 

Thank you

 

I hope so too. June was beautiful here.

 

Thanks again for the classy ride.

 

It's actually just a small memo book. I track 4OAK and better hands with accumulated credit totals and point accumulation along with loses. I do bring my laptop. A smartphone would certainly be more convenient.

 

You're welcome and thanks for the compliments. A lot of good DT VP just got shutdown, so I imagine that your mulling may be a tad bit more tortured.

 

I have a smart phone but still like the process of tracking my gambling in a small notebook.

That being said for a guy like you a smart phone would be very helpful. I’m constantly looking stuff up like vpfree2.com, checking VP strategies etc. Also I play poker so have the Bravo app, calling poker rooms etc. I can’t imagine Vegas without it.

 

I have a pretty pink moleskin notebook I track my gambling in.

 

If anyone needs a covid test, all they have to do is to fly to Anchorage. They're given free at the airport. It took me 1/2 hour to get through processing and another 1/2 hour to get the nasal swab. They emailed the results 3 days later.

 

I just got my 2nd post trip covid test. The one at the airport was self administered and took about an hour all in. This one was part of a pre-op and was at one of our numerous drive up test centers. I had to make an appointment, it took almost 10 minutes to complete the test from the time I pulled in, and a lab tech did the swabbing. Her swabbing was much more thorough than mine was a few days before. Makes we wonder about how many false negatives come out of the airport. Small states like mine got a disproportionate share of Federal testing assistance money. Last I checked, Alaska was third in per-capita testing. We actually have the resources to test people flying into the state and get the results back 3 to 5 days later.
We still don't believe in masks, though. Our positive test percentages have increased from tenths of a percent to 10 times that. Our numbers are still low by national standards, but spiking. I'm truly surprised that Alaska hasn't done better considering all the advantages we've had.

 

I was drinking it in January. I don't think the turnover on the non-advertised seasonals is high normally and especially so now.

 

This virus is a major bitch especially with its ability to spread.

 

As a wrap up, I'll admit that this was a strange trip.. Never have downtown rooms been so serene. Not a bucket drummer was glimpsed. I'm normally pretty social when I play, but not this trip. I had a ton of food comps and certainly was eating better food. Still, the fun factor was substantially less. I mostly gamble here, but if you're normally a show and concert person, this Vegas probably isn't what you're looking for. I've talked a lot about a small percent of people who were aggressive in their non-social distancing. They still piss me off, but I've taken 2 covid tests since my return and seem to have survived them unscathed.

I don't think that Vegas was unscathed though. Shutting down bars is a huge deal for me. I love the DT brewpubs. I also do most of my gambling on bar tops. For me, the Vegas I left a week ago, doesn't exist right now. I played around $170,000 coin in over 11 days. All those machines are shut down now except for Binion's 8/5 BP that I ran about $40,000 through. The drinks that I order from my friendly bartender are much better than the facsimiles that a server delivers on the floor.

Downtown Vegas opened with really strong promotions that enticed me to come. GG and D were doubling their offers and Binion's and 4Q's were boosting the EV of VP by 1.25% through FP promotions. Having some of the best games shut down makes most of these much less attractive. A lot of people made money when I was there. This wasn't just due to a Royal avalanche amongst VMB members. Free Play was raining down as well. I personally played through a personal record of $2,780 worth.

I made money, but didn't have a great run. I had been letting my points accumulate and cashed $5,643 of them out. Only about $430 were earned this trip. I also "won" $1,752. The won is in quotations because it is $1000 less than the FP I burned through winning it. I hit 3 Royals, but had a tougher time with kickers while playing DDB. I got Aces several times, but they were never accompanied by a kicker.

So I had fun, but not nearly as much as usual. I won money, but less than one might expect. I did get my first limo ride with @theoldcoach, so one less bucket list item. I have doubts about returning until both the bars reopen and they take mask use seriously.

 

@wasilla thanks a lot for your report. I am not much of a concert and show person, although I will do so when the family wishes. Left to my own devices, I am focused on the video poker, beer and promotions. With the closure of bars, the most attractive video poker has disappeared -- along with the best source of drinks for me. The free play promos downtown remains attractive. But I am irritated that I have not partaken of the VMB royal avalanche when I was there July 4th weekend.

I am happy that you did not catch any COVID, even in light of the rude people you encountered. I am glad you made money, but frankly, even if you broke even (as long as you did not become ill) you should consider yourself a winner.

FAB

 

Thanks FAB. Good luck with your upcoming trip.

 

Interesting to hear first hand how Alaska handles testing. Our granddaughter here in WI was tested on Monday.....was told it could take up to a week for results! Crazy!

 

Love your trip reports, Thanks