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Stan gets another shot, or: Stan doubles down...and wins!

 
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stan_allen



Joined: 19 Dec 2005
Posts: 1129

PostPosted: Nov Mon 28, 2011 1:22 pm    Post subject: Stan gets another shot, or: Stan doubles down...and wins! Reply with quote

(post edited to remove direct photo inserts: while vivid, it kind of overwhelms the experience; for those who wish to view the actual pix, the links will do.)

Last week offered testimony to the theory that “When God closes one door, he opens another.” – how so, you may ask? Well, interestingly enough, market conditions finally required that we shut down our Reno operations completely. Business is/was dead as a doornail, with no recovery in sight – so it made sense to abandon ship, meaning that any need for Stan’s services in that region came to a bitter end, and with it my long, rich tradition of traveling to Reno for work.

But hold on: although we did shut down our efforts in that market, we actually expanded our Truckee and Tahoe presence! So there is still a need for Stan in the general area, and I don’t know about you, but if I’m going to be working in Truckee, staying in Reno is a perfectly sound strategy, as lodging in the Truckee area tends to consist of either budget motels or Super-duper ski resorts – so a fifty-dollar El Dorado room is just what the doctor ordered.

The scene: A week ago today, with clear and beautiful road conditions, which I’ve documented a bit: bear in mind that taking pictures while driving is HIGHLY NOT RECOMMENDED, and I swear I’ll never do it again – but just look at those gorgeous snow-encrusted mountains!

Coming into Verdi, the literal border town that once boasted – I’m pretty sure – more than one establishment that offered slot machines. Of particular interest this time is the series of billboards that greets drivers and, in the past, offered up-to-the-minute news on whether rooms were “available” at certain hotel-casinos. These mighty sticks of human advertisementation (yes, I just made up that word) illuminated a golden path to what had been a tourism explosion – but were now completely unused, and left either blank or with only patches of previously-lush pictures. Thus was the backdrop of what would turn out to be a rather stark Reno.

Made a smooth transition into downtown Reno and the El Dorado, the winner of the “Where-to-stay” Contest from a while back because of its free in-room coffee. Used the coffee shop for dinner – and I use the term “Coffee shop” very loosely, as we must, since the built-in nature of the hotel’s restaurant tends to result in higher prices for the consumer which, by itself isn’t too bad, but when they get into the pretense that they are some “theme” brand name, they have bit off more than their customers can chew. But hey, at least you can still order a club sandwich without great difficulty.

Here’s a view from the room; could have been higher up, but all’s good when one is settled in.

What more exciting a night to spend carousing in Reno than a Monday? It’s everyone’s favorite! And yes, that’s merely a nakedly ironic setup, because the streets of downtown Reno were about as deserted as one can really imagine, and I even managed to use the camera function in my phone to offer documentation of this claim.

Here’s a taste of the good ol' days gone by; the aura of their past glory is just barely tangible

Moving right along, I re-emerged into Cal-Neva’s warm, comforting, warming glow of industrial-strength old-school Reno, and was as delighted to find it unchanged as I was disappointed to see the ol’ Fitz building turned into a health club of some sort. I sought amusement in a five-reel slot machine that still used mechanized turning drums, as opposed to video representations of “Concept” slots, with their name-brand items like “Sex in the City 2: More of the same”, or “Batman: Complicated Gotham-themed progressive jackpot”. (Oh, I’m sorry – did I just make up those names? Well, it didn’t feel like it.) Those ol’ reels have some machinery-inspired tactile amusements still built into ‘em, I tell ya.

After a few rounds of small wins here and there, the machine gave a reasonably big win which more than doubled my money. Intrigued, I pressed on for a little while, but stopped short of giving back my wins altogether - which I’d save for later. Yeah, that kind of gives it away, doesn’t it? Well, some things never change, do they?

In any case, I fared a reasonable level of entertainment with the reels plus the “Rock Lobster” machine yet again ( which *is* what I’m going to start calling it, ‘cuz its ‘official’ name is too lame), and even tried some new-fangled machine which had a kind of 3D display built into its reels. The effect was certainly notable, but I couldn’t help thinking that it had an excellent chance of becoming too confusing for those who’ve tippled a few, and I’ll vote in their favor most of the time, thank you very much. Besides, though it called itself a “one-cent” game, the minimum you could bet was fifty cents – that seems like as good a candidate as any for false advertising, but apparently, the class-action group would tend to just be a group of drunks, so the lawsuits haven’t even been bothered with.

Drink service was good in the Cal-Neva, in that each time I sat down to play, drinks were offered within a few minutes. I tested no other casino’s drink services, although I may have been observed observing plenty of such servers in the El Dorado, which may not have amounted to more than gratuitous ogling – but they did have staff!

Heck, the Cal-Neva even offered me a drink when I played my, like, totally outrageous set of four hands of blackjack! The Cal-Neva – God bless ‘em! You can argue all you want with their, shall we say, aesthetics, but in the end, the player is the winner at Cal-Neva – and that’s the magic sentiment that the other guys haven’t quite provided. (Hm, I wonder if I can sell that as a slogan to the Cal-Neva: “The player is the winner at Cal-Neva!” Hey, you ad men, are you listening??)

So for evening #1, I went up, and then back down to earth, and my starting place. Nothing too dramatic there, but it was all the fun I’d hoped for. I then retreated to the room to enjoy expanded basic cable, a luxury I don’t have at home, being the ultra-cheapskate I am. Anyone ever seen that “Tosh.0” show? The kids sure are into some ‘edgy’ stuff these days…never did finish my club sandwich, though.

Day #2 was crisp and clear, and I headed up to Truckee, to fulfill the *actual* obligations of the trip. New office, new deal, new start – and I’d never actually hung out in “downtown” Truckee before – ever had your car swarmed with day laborers at a parking lot? They’re aggressive down there! Oh, well, at least they’re not panhandlers!

Here’s some views of this venerable old town’s train activity.


The pizza place in Truckee’s main drag is quite good; I fully intend to go back and sample more of their fare. In any case, I completed the work portion of the trip so I could get back to the main event!

For this evening’s dinner, I ordered New York steak ‘n eggs, which was as satisfying as one could hope for, though I believe the exact cut of meat was one small step below what one gets at say, Whole Foods – but I wasn’t complaining.

After that, it was time to get back to the action.

A brief pause to document another sad sight on Virginia street, the closed pawn shop.

I headed straight for the shrine of Cal-Neva, and after fiddling with the slots for a few minutes, I decided to take an exceptionally small bankroll (six bucks) to the Blackjack table, where I would either lose it, or double it and quit. Given the incredibly short duration of the session, I can actually offer a play-by-play of what transpired:

The action:

#1: Dealer up-card ten. Checks for Dealer Blackjack. None. Stan’s cards: Ten and eight. Stan stands. Dealer’s 2nd card is a five, and he deals himself a six, Resulting in Dealer 21. Stan’s down.

#2: Dealer up-card small. Stan’s cards: Ace and eight. Stan stands. Dealer’s 2nd card is a big one, and he draws to a 22, resulting in a narrowly-achieved dealer bust. Stan’s back to starting position.

#3: Dealer up-card ten. Checks for Dealer Blackjack. None. Stan’s cards: both small. Stan hits to a 19. Stan stands. Dealer draws to 17; stan’s ahead.

#4: Dealer up-card small. Stan’s cards: Ten and a small. Stan Stands. Dealer draws to a bust of some sort, resulting in:

Stan doubling his bankroll!

Of course, with such an illustrious accomplishment, Stan felt no need to display further prowess, and quickly cashed in. And even walked away from the casino with an amazing profit level of one hundred percent!

Friends, this almost-incredible story is an illustration of how we never quite know what awaits us on a Reno trip – it could be something big, yes, and it could be something very, very small – but you can never be quite sure.

And with this foray into ever-higher levels of pomposity, we’d like to thank the city of Reno for being there, and specifically, the Cal-Neva, recipient of the Stan-tastics award for 2011, given to those Casinos which display the highest levels of low-roller hospitality. And I bet that restaurant’s a dang good value, even though I’ve never actually eaten there.

Sorry to offer such a disappointingly brief session, but even at those levels, nothing feels quite as good as a win, however small.

Walked around some more, just to take it all in – they still have the exact same collection of video games and pinball on the 2nd floor – and then retired to the room to exult in the evening’s accomplishments, and take in some more “Tosh.0” on cable (man, that guy is harsh! You should have seen the antics he indulged in on his “College Trip” episode.)

Oh, and here’s a view of the “Comm Row” thingy.

Seems like sacrilege to those of us who remember the Fitz, and both nights I was there, the thing was completely closed, which didn’t inspire a lot of confidence. While I admire the investors for trying something, I don’t envy their financial position for one minute. Peering in through the doors, one can see casino-bar-style areas that are apparently attached to the restaurants – but no gaming license, so no slots – the whole thing was rather morbid.

The following day offered more clear and smooth conditions for the return trip, which was blessedly uneventful.

To close, here’s a view of the legendary “King’s Inn” from the El Dorado parking garage.

Thus ended my latest foray, but it was a satisfying time overall, and I hope to capitalize on this latest regional strategy by returning – thanks for reading!


Last edited by stan_allen on Nov Mon 28, 2011 6:25 pm; edited 2 times in total
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JD



Joined: 18 Dec 2005
Posts: 956

PostPosted: Nov Mon 28, 2011 4:41 pm    Post subject: Stan Trips....I mean, Stan's Trip Reply with quote

Well, YOUR real trip reports aren't quite as good as Lily's made up ones...but you have pics!

I sorta forgot there was an abandoned hotel with that casino I have to walk past to get to the Sands.
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stan_allen



Joined: 19 Dec 2005
Posts: 1129

PostPosted: Nov Mon 28, 2011 5:05 pm    Post subject: No, I can't beat Lily - but I tried! Reply with quote

I probably should have added from the outset that the timing of this report is particularly poor, in the sense that NOTHING I'VE EVER DONE OR WILL DO CAN POSSIBLY MATCH WHAT LILY CAME UP WITH!

So there's the disclaimer, for what it's worth. Kudos to you, Lily, for upping the bar so high that most of us can't even see it.
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LilyJDragonfly



Joined: 03 Mar 2009
Posts: 425

PostPosted: Nov Mon 28, 2011 6:48 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Quote:
Stan doubling his bankroll!


Love the bold! And those vivid details with photos...

However fantastical and amazing you might think my "pre-trip" report is, please consider the immortal words contained in this video:

http://youtu.be/eEcLuVhRbkU
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mjames1229



Joined: 23 Dec 2009
Posts: 406

PostPosted: Nov Tue 29, 2011 1:08 am    Post subject: Re: Stan gets another shot, or: Stan doubles down...and wins Reply with quote

stan_allen wrote:
A brief pause to document another sad sight on Virginia street, the closed pawn shop.


Aw, nerts.

From where will I purchase my $.99 T-shirts, photo albums and 2-for-1 Lake Tahoe hats from?
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stan_allen



Joined: 19 Dec 2005
Posts: 1129

PostPosted: Nov Tue 29, 2011 2:01 pm    Post subject: Bye-bye to another local store - thanx for nothing, chamber! Reply with quote

Well, the other (two) stores along Virginia are holding on - for now - so Reno shot glasses and shirts announcing that some relative went to Reno, but all the wearer got was the lousy shirt in question, are still available.

But in future, you may have to go to ebay for that stuff.
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BC Dave
Site Admin


Joined: 18 Dec 2005
Posts: 1592

PostPosted: Nov Tue 29, 2011 7:04 pm    Post subject: We have a winner! Reply with quote

Congrats Stan! Your Cal-Neva wins are an inspiration to all us low rollers. Not to mention our admiration for your level headedness in being able to walk away with your winnings.

Your photos of downtown Reno look like they're taken in a "This was Nevada" museum. Especially that one of the CalNeva glowing brightly with no one to take in the view (except you of course). I hope the big events Reno holds - like Hot August Nights, Street Vibrations and the like are enough to pull the old girl through these lean times.

That gift shop is actually closed? My wife used to spend hours in there looking for something that Charlie and Higgins could chew on. It was a large store. Too bad.
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mjames1229



Joined: 23 Dec 2009
Posts: 406

PostPosted: Nov Tue 29, 2011 9:44 pm    Post subject: Re: We have a winner! Reply with quote

BC Dave wrote:
I hope the big events Reno holds - like Hot August Nights, Street Vibrations and the like are enough to pull the old girl through these lean times.


Don't forget us bowlers. RSCVB spent millions on landing the national bowling tournaments for the next 20 years or so, even adding a hotel tax just to update the bowling stadium to entice us to come back year after year. From March through June, bowlers are about the only ones on those sidewalks!
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JD



Joined: 18 Dec 2005
Posts: 956

PostPosted: Nov Tue 29, 2011 10:18 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

M James:

I used to see (not sure if they still do), many discount offerings if you presented some kind of a national bowlers' association card.

If you know what I'm talking about...I WANT one of those cards.

Only one problem. I STILL have no idea how the game is cored what with the spares, the strikes...the extra balls, scoring backwards to lines previously bowled....you know.'


Now HOW do I get one of those cards that LOOK like I'm there for a bowling tournament??
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john
Site Admin


Joined: 17 Dec 2005
Posts: 1181

PostPosted: Nov Wed 30, 2011 7:17 am    Post subject: scoring explained Reply with quote

Scoring for bowling is really easy JD. All you have to do is count the number of white sticks you knock down and add them all together. I don't worry about the strikes and spares, because I've never gotten one. My high score is 84. Now I need to find a way to swap my bowling and golf scores and I'd be a pro in each event.
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mjames1229



Joined: 23 Dec 2009
Posts: 406

PostPosted: Nov Wed 30, 2011 9:01 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

JD wrote:
Now HOW do I get one of those cards that LOOK like I'm there for a bowling tournament??


The short answer is that anyone can buy a membership to the United States Bowling Congress. They are $18, and you can go into any bowling center (while leagues are going on) and ask to buy a membership. I think there is a way you can contact the national HQ in Arlington TX, but since I am a league and tournament bowler, I've never needed to go that route.

However, those cards don't carry the same cache in Reno that they used to. I've got some old pics that I can post from 1995 of the Comstock with a banner "Welcome Bowlers" and offering a free gift. I was also at the Circus Circus years ago (wearing a bowling shirt) when a floor super came up to me, said that I looked like a bowler, and handed me a souviner coin with the bowling congress logo on it (I later found that Eldorado and Silver Legacy had similar coins) and all I needed to do was to flash my membership card.

Now, you have to be entered into the tournament ($150) to get any spiffs. The best ones, are for casinos. Peppermill offered a $25 blackjack matchplay. Eldorado offered 2-to-1 blackjack payout for one shoe (instead of the standard 3:2). Eldorado or Silver Legacy (forget which) also gave a free Ace for blackjcak. Harrah's offered $10 in poker chips with a $40 buy-in for a cash game, and an extra $1000 in chips for a tournament (which is a HUGE advantage).
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