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JD does the Virginia City Chili Cookoff part 1 & 2
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JD



Joined: 18 Dec 2005
Posts: 956

PostPosted: May Wed 11, 2011 10:37 am    Post subject: JD does the Virginia City Chili Cookoff part 1 & 2 Reply with quote

Tuesday 5: 35 am:

Intercept the newspaper guy in person because I forgot to stop the paper.


The flight from Portland to Reno is 1 1/2 hours.
The drive is 9.
The drive is faster.
I drove.


I cannot quite remember who challenged me on driving routes, distances and travel times a few years back, but I really dialed the Portland/Reno trip in this trip for those that find themselves doing the I-5 thing.

Short version: Tigard exit # 294 to Reno Arch= 540 miles 9 hours traveling time @ 60 mph ave. (via Oakridge, Alturas & A-3 Standish/Honey Lake cut off) . The Eagle Lake/Susanville is about 12 miles shorter but more prone to getting stuck behind slow moving RVs and snow in winter.

Longer Version: 540 miles/9 hours travel time. Crescent Lake Hwy @ Hwy 58 is 180 miles from Portland and Town Pump in Klamath Falls is nearly exact half way point (gas is 30 cents/gal cheaper than in California). Between Canby and Alturas is a large ranch house on North side with Green metal roof... 180 miles to Reno.

So I have no reservations but a bunch of offers. Atlantis BOGO, Discounts @ Legacy, Eldo, P Mill and FREE THREE NIGHTS @ Cal Neva.

Now I'm thinking Cal Neva is back running the old Virginia...one of the first places I used to stay way back before man landed on the moon or so.

So I pull into the self park Call Neva garage and worry about getting towed. But I really HAD to go...RIGHT NOW ! Anyone withme as I tell about finding the facilities in the casino? There used to be a mens room near the elevators close to the skyway bar. And THERE'S the womens...NO MENS? WTF?

Not now. I REALLY GOTTA GO. I mean 275 miles & 4 1/2 HOURS go. Think anyone will tell you where the restrooms are? (I shoulda just peed in the stairway like everyone else seems to do.

Note: The nearest MEN'S Loo is past the Top Deck, right at the Keno desk.

Ah.................................................................................................................................................................................................. Whew!

Back to the skyway bar, put in my Cal Neva card, get a beer, tip a duce.

Another beer, another duce, down $ 60 (that would be $ 30 each beer). Oh well, I did use their facilities. Downstairs to get $ 30 free play on my card....HUGE mistake!

Cal Neva "free play" can only be used on a few machines...FOR A REASON ! Cal Neva also has a deal if you put 75 points on your card in one day, a comped prime rib dinner. Bigger mistake!

Short version: 4 beers at $ 100 each in a stinky room with my eyes burning. But I have 75 new points today... back downstairs for my VERY expensive $ 400 prime rib dinner.

Club desk: (In best soup nazi voice) : "Sorry sir, you've already received a free play promotion so ONE PER DAY !!!

Note to self: Read the damn fine print dummy !! Back to coupon college for you

HEY....The Siena's lights are on. With no room yet... (now 6 pm)

Next: Long Siena review. Shorter reviews for Harrah's, Silver Legacy, Eldo and a search for Prime Rib under $ 400.

Now: I need breakfast....oops...almost lunch. Wonderr how much the old Ham & eggs 99 cent Cal Neva special is now? ($ 200?)


More later.

http://www.nvshows.com/


Last edited by JD on May Thu 12, 2011 8:20 am; edited 1 time in total
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mjames1229



Joined: 23 Dec 2009
Posts: 406

PostPosted: May Wed 11, 2011 1:13 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I'm pissed, because this is hilarious and I can't write quite a fun review. I may try to steal your style as I put together my full recent trip report for my blog in a local paper.

BTW - I saw VC's chili contest banners, and I am quite the chili cooker. Too bad I live 1500 miles away or else I would ROCK that baby!
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JD



Joined: 18 Dec 2005
Posts: 956

PostPosted: May Wed 11, 2011 2:55 pm    Post subject: JD's a Chili EATER not a "cooker" Part 2 Reply with quote

Much better now...3 pm Thurs.

But I think I left off my trip report as of about 6 pm Weds. night.

So quick recap. Down $ 400 and didn't get my damn "FREE" prime rib.

I'm pissed (in more ways than one) and decide to check into The "Cal Neva Hotel" formerly Riverboat annex, formerly Onslow, and formerly Cal Neva now called "The Nevadan" I guess... maybe...who knows?

Free three nights...no deposit, no CC info, no "RESORT FEES", no hassle...they just wanna know the name of my "guest". Embarassed to say, "none" I give them the name of a former girlfriend (now in Sweden) I haven't heard from in 20 years.

SLooooooow elevators but clean room, not so bad a view (facing Virginia), clean ok carpet, no threadbare curtains, do dead mice or human bodies....and did I say "FREE"?

Lights are on at the Siena so I mosey over and beeline to the club desk and show off my old Sienna "Charter Member" card. No one is impressed. But the club is staffed by two young college age guys in HEAVY WOOL SUITS that have to be way hot. I kinda tease them asking if they had a V.P of fabric selection....they are NOT amused.

Going over to the Contrada bar, I sit at the EXACT place I sat at when they first opened after the Holiday rebuild...maybe 12 years ago or so. Only two people at the bar and one of them is an employee going off shift.

Beer, deuce ....repeat. A couple of cutie cocktail waitresses inducted into the two dollar bill club...about one third my age, but I cannot help myself. Don sunglsses for lingering leers.

I make big points with new bartender relating the story of my "comped" bottle of JD put in my room at arrival for a regulars event....which was CHARGED to my comp account $ 95 !!!

Siena OFFICIAL Grand Opening is May 20....bartender asks, "have you ever heard of 70's band, Three Dog Night?"

I slap him about the head and explain a few things to him. "Roberto" says he'll try to get me tickets. He is well deuced for his promise. I ripp off menus for what WAS Lexies...now "Da Vincis" and the now, "Riverview" formerly "Contrada" coffee shop.

BOTH are what a reviewer might call, "FULLY PRICED"

Sample from Da Vinci:

Salmon dinner= $ 32
Rib eye steak= $ 36
Sea food Linguine= $ 34

Riverview:

3 item omlett= $ 8
Steak and eggs= $ 12
Stack of Pancakes= $ 6

I'm still pissed off at Cal Neva for NOT giving me a $ 400 prime rib, but no way am I paying $ 18 for a coffee shop rib eye (which likely is idetical to the $ 36 version served at "Da Vinci") on the other side of the same kitchen.

Siena does have a craps table (3,4,5x odds) but din't play...I'm hungry.

Walking North, I think I'll swing into Harhars... I met Bill Harrah when I was a kid, but it's not likley he rembers me...since he's dead. And if he wasn't dead, he's be pissed off. They now drop your points after only six months.

Screw them. Walk on by.

John just called ....I gotta go to an executive board meeting for Visit Reno dot com bored directors...or something like that.

More later.

Hint: I have vague memories of an "Offal Awful" eaten AT THE BAR of the Little Nugget last night.

More on Siena to follow
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LilyJDragonfly



Joined: 03 Mar 2009
Posts: 425

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 8:56 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Sweet Jesus - another $2 bill tipper! The bank always looks at me with squirrely eyes when I go in there to get 100 of them for my gambling adventures....

http://www.theonion.com/articles/nations-grandfathers-to-receive-annual-shipment-of,5989/
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stan_allen



Joined: 19 Dec 2005
Posts: 1129

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 12:41 pm    Post subject: There's no more spelling gags for "Cal-Neva"... Reply with quote

Both of you could do worse - you could be a single-Washington tipper like me.

JD, good work on analyzing the current Cal-Neva - have to admit, I had the same experience with the "Free Play" - once you start seeing the machines you can *actually use it* on, it's quite less exciting!

Keep dishing up the dirt; we've been dry for a while.


Mjames, you can write anything you want; you just have to embrace the filthy, sordid details - on this board, we let our hair down - since you're posting at other places, you may feel the urge to be a bit more formal and stuffy - so I suggest you write two different reports of the same trip; one that's suitable for publishing in a "family newspaper", and one that's appropriate for the gutter, otherwise known as the visitreno.com board.
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JD



Joined: 18 Dec 2005
Posts: 956

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 1:12 pm    Post subject: Falling behind in my reporting Reply with quote

I'm going to need a little more encouragement to keep these reports coming.


And I'm already starting to lose track of dates and times....I gotta go back to see where I left off.


Ok

I'm at Siena's Contrada Bar tUES NIGHT (now called Sports Book...which I do not see)

And "ROBERTO" and I start talking about their wine list. The "OLD" Siena had a terrific wine bar downstairs that had a fantastic cellar.

I start on the BV cabarnet...very nice. Probably a $ 30 bottle in most stores, double that in a restaurant.

----judgement declining---------

I drop about $ 100 on dbl dbl bonus but easily hit their bar for about the same...I'll call it a draw.

Oh...it appears I went back in time too far...already covered Harrah's walk thru while I place a curse on them.

Over to Little Nugget and that dive is party central. My deuces make big points (at least to my face) and I'm on a red wine binge...remeber I said my judgement was clouded?

Awful Awful is now $ 6.50 but theey let me eat that sloppy burger at the bar. That might explain the sticky buttons...it's my story and I'm stickin (in more ways than one) to the sticky buttons are why I drop another $ 50 or so. College girls by the covey and three of them would just about add up to my age.

Wine served in a tumbler filled to the top...another button sticker...I think it's box o wine, but served with gusto, appreciation and party atmosphere...ten times more people in the Little Nugget than Siena. A fun bunch...no knife fights, no shootings.


Bad hangover.

Did I mention the sloooow elevator?

Post my trip report...already forgeting details.

Weds. morning...$ 20 in at skyway bar...and start with bloody marys...maybe 3 or 4. A LOT of play outta that $ 20 and finally cash out for $ 200 (bringing down the cost of yesterday's $ 400 beers).

I ask bartenderess if it's OK to take my FREE drink to restaurant..."NO PROBLEM"

Great greasy breakfast...perfect for hangovers...shakes are nearly gone.

After breakfast, the bartendress is clearing out...
Turns out she forgot to renew her "gaming license" and cannot even finish her shift. Too bad, poured a from scratch bloody mary which C/N also has on a gun for the riff raff.

More later.

Next: Visit Reno board meeting, Siena tour, Peppermill point check, and John's royal flush...JD get's a few 4 o Kinds.

M James: Here's the local VC newspaper which currently shows a blurb on the Chili Cook off:

http://virginiacitynews.com/

LillY: Too funny...great minds think alike. But I'm no grandpa. I DO however buy my $ 2s just before Christnas when I can get brand new one. But YOU'RE a piker. If I want to order new deuces from my bank, they make me buy three "straps" at a time. Each "strap" is 100 bills @ $ 200= $ 600 minimum buy in. Maybe sometime in this trip report I'll share the story of a certain Virginia City Bartender that bitched about getting too many twos from me....it might be back in the archives...I'll look. Funny and well known story in VC.


Last edited by JD on May Thu 12, 2011 1:27 pm; edited 1 time in total
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LilyJDragonfly



Joined: 03 Mar 2009
Posts: 425

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 1:18 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Loving the on-the-fly trip report.... keep on keeping on! And don't forget Shooters!
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JD



Joined: 18 Dec 2005
Posts: 956

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 1:28 pm    Post subject: Shooter's? YOU KNOW SHOOTERS??? Reply with quote

John came up with the shooters idea last night.

But if I'm the level headed bored director, we are in big trouble.


edited to add:

This is NOT the VC bartender story BUT is on nearly the same level:

"Posted: Fri Jul 10, 2009 2:46 pm Post subject: Trip Report, revision 1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
THIS IS EMILY FROM SHOOTERS RENO NOT EMILY FROM VC

It IS true we went to shooters. And it IS true Emily is...well...not an MIT Alum. In fact, when offered a choice between a TWO dollar bill tip, and a ONE dollar bill tip, she decided she'd prefer one that fit into a slot machine.

Next up for MY trip..."Bluegrass on the Comstock"

The rest of that thread is at:


http://visitreno.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=1004&highlight=maark+twain
----------------------------------------------


Interesting...a 2006 TR I see I reviewed the Awful Awful at $ 3.50...Now $ 6.50

2006 Trip report: http://visitreno.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=97&highlight=twain


Last edited by JD on May Sun 15, 2011 8:49 pm; edited 2 times in total
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stan_allen



Joined: 19 Dec 2005
Posts: 1129

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 4:08 pm    Post subject: Keep 'em coming Reply with quote

See, this is what we live for - the open drunkenness, the unabashed ogling of girls a fraction of our age, the shamelessness of the hangover, and the pour-booze-on-top-of-it strategy!

JD, if you find yourself blanking out, try to scribble down your notes on cocktail napkins mid-action - that way, we'll have even more hilarious and sketchy material to draw on!
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mjames1229



Joined: 23 Dec 2009
Posts: 406

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 4:14 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Stan - Now I see part of the problem. I went to Las Vegas for the ogling of girls 1/3 my age (go to Cosmopolitan on a Saturday night and thank me later).

When I was in Reno, I bowled, played poker and went to a museum. None of those activites lend themselves to young hotties.

Sigh.
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stan_allen



Joined: 19 Dec 2005
Posts: 1129

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 4:37 pm    Post subject: JD on the rocks,though I suspect I've used that line before Reply with quote

MJames, I see your point; those places are admittedly not on the cool side of today's trendy generation Z, or whatever letter they're up to, or down to - but lecherousness takes no vacations! It's not so much that there were none, it was that you couldn't see them, because you *expected* not to!

See, there's some zen, some philosophy, and some Jedi mind tricks just waiting to foil your total fulfillment of fun quota in Reno - don't let those roadblocks hinder you!

In fairness, the professionalism needed for a bowling tournament is probably what keeps you from unlocking your innner JD...I say, let him loose!
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jerry



Joined: 11 Jan 2006
Posts: 759

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 4:58 pm    Post subject: JD is ;one amazing dude Reply with quote

Wow, JD, you actually make me miss the "biggest little".
Your ongoing TR is fantastic. Keep it ocming.

PPOOPS, if have had a few red vinos myself in what has been a tuff day.
So,tieping is not so gud.

I hsould hav cum to Reno with yu.....

Next Reno trip is actually a softball tourney. Thus very little gaming, drinking, or gambling. Gotta be in shape for my new team. I am still a "newbie" and likely "on trial".....

And, YES, JD, you are most defintiely on my Board of Directors.
You and John make a quorum so any decisions are OK by me.

Shoot me to Shooters...
(that place sucks. A real dive? Why do we keep advertising it?)

I
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jerry



Joined: 11 Jan 2006
Posts: 759

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 5:01 pm    Post subject: hey, Davo Reply with quote

Dave, I need a new logo. This one does not do justice to my hitting.
Another grand slam this week. Afterwards, they \questioned if my bat was "legal". Like Rodney Dangerfield: ======
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jerry



Joined: 11 Jan 2006
Posts: 759

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 5:02 pm    Post subject: Hey, guess what???? Reply with quote

Just checked the numbers. This is post 700. that is significant in that it is the average that I strive for in my softball wars.
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JD



Joined: 18 Dec 2005
Posts: 956

PostPosted: May Thu 12, 2011 6:15 pm    Post subject: Part....oh....about six or so Reply with quote

Note to Jerry: It's QUALITY, not QUANTITY that counts Jerry.

Or as I try to explain to the ladies...oh nevermind.




I think when we left the main characters was Weds. Evening.

John had zero luck at the P Mill and I constantly hitting various 4 of a Kinds at dbl dbl bonus.

I left P mill about even, John had nearly maxed his budget (I think)

Before leaving, we planted a seed of misinformation with an old (but younger than me) bartender now at P Mill, but formerly of Comstock and has seen me at my worst...or best depending on how you see it.

John and I off to Siena. Seperate cars, he does not care to ride with me for good reason.


Our new best friend bartender is Brian...formerly of P Mill.. (No wonder they have so many birth defects as common as incest seems to go on in this town).


JD rolls his $ 20 into about $ 200 while John is now broke. But not before our grand tour of the "new" Siena.

Decor is Alien Space Ship/Early Etruscan. Super modern lights over the pits surrounded by Roman ruins....perfect symbolismfor the Holiday/Siena 1/Siena II Tuscanny Time travel theme.

Way nice top shelf decor in what was Lexies...now Da Vinci. Eight employees....not ONE CUSTOMER. John begins his visitreno pitch....ON OUR BEHALF!!

------------------


Insert John's version here



________________________




John goes home early...I'm way too cocky and slightly buzzed.


As soon as he leaves I begin my slide.

My $ 200 credits...poof.
Bust a hunski...poof.
Bust another...poof.

Drop a total of $ 500 hunski before quiting...dumb dumb, dumb....Not even John know about this.

yet



So where to go when I know I have bad judgement?



Little Nugget where the college girls seem to hang out.


More later upon request.

Next:

"Barely Legal" birthday at Little Nugget
Invites to VC chili fest
THE NEW BEST PRIME RIB IN RENO
Terrible's card point system (recommended reading)


More only upon request.


I think we are now up to 2 am Weds....So I'll start Thursday morning next.

No...I gotta add the 21 year old girls coming to VC...THEN Thurs am..
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