Visitreno

[Mammothgambler]

OK here we go. My trip started like it usually does right after our semi-annual surf trade show in Orlando, Florida. This year, they switched it to a 4 day format instead of the usual 3, so I was definitely ready to go by the end. I caught a night flight from Orlando to Vancouver.

Part 1 - Whistler BC
This time I decided to check out the downtown area in Vancouver before getting on the shuttle bus to Whistler which is usually about 2 - 21/2 hours away. Downtown Vancouver is truly a cool place.

Right before I left I got a call from the resort where I had booked my package with some good news. For those who don't know, Whistler seems to be one of the most expensive places on earth. It's not getting there, or the lift tickets or food, but it's the accomodations...if you want to find a Motel 6, you won't be able to. The cheapest room I found both on this trip as well as my trip there last year was at the Holiday Inn Sunspree and it was around $200 USD per night. The agent notified me that I could upgrade to the Pan Pacific Mountainside next door (and 300 feet closer to the chairlifts) and save $50 per night, so that was a good upgrade - a standard room to a suite for less money.

Thanks to my jackpot in Vegas back in September, I was able to go all out this trip and went on my first helicopter backcountry snowboard tour. It was insane! It was me, about 10 other people and a guide. We were whisked up in a helicopter and went into a forest about 20 miles away that led to wide open snowy bowls, cliffs, and cornices that I've never seen anywhere else, not even in Tahoe or Colorado. There was about 12 feet of fresh powder so the conditions were epic. The package consisted of 3 runs which were about 9-10 miles long, and they gave you the option of spreading them out among multiple days. I wound up going that route in the morning and riding at the mainstream resort (Whistler Blackcomb) each afternoon. The conditions couldn't have been better, there's so much terrain out there. It was hard to leave, even though I had 4 other destinations to hit up. Then there was an annoying mishap at the airport - since I'm from the states, they insisted on putting my digital camera (with about 400 photos & video clips on the memory card!) through X-Ray. What I got in the end was a deleted memory card and no photos. Oh well, on to Vegas!

Part 2 - Vegas
All throughout November and December, I received a whopping number of comps from the different casinos I stay and play at in Vegas: the Station and Fiesta casinos, Sam's Town, Arizona Charlie's and Terrible's. I literally could have spent my entire 3 week vacation there totally comped, but I decided in the end that might have been dangerous. So, I picked through all of the offers and went with the two best ones: 3 free nights at Green Valley Ranch, and 2 at Sam's Town (plus $50 dining credit and $50 free slot play).

When I got to Vegas it was 28 degrees. No kidding. I couldn't believe it. People were saying it has even dusted snow there this winter. When I got to Green Valley Ranch I was trying to find the front desk which turned out to be on the complete other side of the property. Thrashing around in the 28 degree weather still wearing baggies and sandals from my 80-degree home in Florida was not a smart thing to do because I got hit with a nasty cold the next day, but I finally found the front desk. I got an "uh oh" from the desk clerk when I checked in and when I asked what was wrong, he said that they were overbooked with the regular rooms and that they were going to have to upgrade me to a GRAND SUITE. Oh, darn! It blew my mind, but they require a hefty $150 per night incidental deposit and a non-refundable $20 per day resort fee. I guess they can get away with it since it's one of the "classy" Station Casinos. It's a good thing I had it because not paying the deposit was not an option. But it was worth it and got it all back at check-out. My jaw dropped when I got to the suite. Full martini bar, a piano and lots of funky fur-lined furniture in the living room, a 12-foot floor to ceiling painting of a naked woman, whirlpool tub with steam shower, two widescreen TVs with a kickin' sound system, the works! I've never stayed in a place like this. I was almost scared to touch anything at first. The view was of the pool/cabana area, with the Strip in the background. Later on, it was down to the casino. I taught an older Chinese couple how to play one of the new Hee Haw multiliners and they gave me a $5 tip. I started on a losing streak for about an hour but then got $250 on a penny Uncle Sam and another $200 on one of the new Green Acres machines. Second night, nothing. Third night I wound up losing about $300 there but drove over to Arizona Charlie's and got $200 back on a $1 Triple Zesty Hot Peppers and about $45 back on a Pharoah's Fortune. It was here that I found one of the new Hot Hot Penny Machines. I actually got a 15 spin bonus on one of the Reels of Dublin machines and won about $100.

When I checked out the next day I drove out to Mt. Charleston to snowboard at the little resort there. It's about 45 minutes off the Strip and has a really high altitude so it was very cold up there. There were surpisingly good conditions for being in the middle of the desert, although most of the snow was machine-made. There were some bare spots and rocks here and there so I was kind of glad I only checked it out one day. Pretty wild, I saw an obviously intoxicated woman fall off the charlift. She went right through the gate and fell about 20 feet! Luckily, after a few minutes she got up and snowboarded away, refusing any kind of medical treatment.

Next up was Sam's Town. It's a nice place and one of the first casinos I ever went to in Vegas. But I have definitely noticed that their machines have gotten a LOT tighter over the past couple of years. Alot of users on Tripadvisor are saying the same thing...it's almost like a secret that got out to too many people. Didn't win a red cent and actually lost about $600 there in the long run. However, the Fresh Harvest Cafe is always good and I got my usual 2 free New York Strip dinners which lasted the whole two days. Hey, at least I didn't have to pay for food...

On the last night, I drove over to Terrible's to use some of my comps. Their Bougainvillea restaurant is really good and has some of the best Prime Rib I've ever had. I was able to use the rest of my points to get a free tank of gas for my rental car which came in handy. Use 'em or lose 'em! But wound up losing another $200 there after dinner. At that point, I was hoping Reno would be much better...I needed it!

After I checked out of Sam's Town, it was off to the airport. Unfortunately, the car Alamo rented me had a bad battery and died about three times over the course of the time I had it. Well, it decided to completely conk out in the parking lot at Sam's Town and they had to send Pop-A-Lock out there to give it a jumpstart. I wound up missing my flight and fortunately got on a later one to Reno at no additional cost. Problem was, I had about six hours of time to kill. Well, I decided to make the best of it and finally check out the Strip. I've been to Vegas 5 times and had never checked it out. So, I took a cab down to the Luxor and started there. I couldn't get over the architecture of this place...for those who don't know, it's a pyramid with an Egyptian tomb theme. My mom has been there alot and she says it gives her the creeps, it reminds her of a mausoleum or something. The elevators run up and down the sides of the Pyramid, it's pretty wild. Hands down, they have the best food court! Little Caesars, Nathans, Quiznos Subs and McDonalds. I registered to win a Hummer or $25,000 and checked the place out. I joined the MGM Mirage Players Club which covers many Strip properties but only played about $50 on the Price is Right with Plinko Bonus. I've heard their rooms are pretty economical so I might stay there next trip just for a change of scenery but will gamble elsewhere. The one thing I've heard is NOT to gamble on the Strip - the off-strip casinos seem to have much better odds and so far that's held very true. From the Luxor, I started up the Strip. I was pretty much laughing the whole time just at some of the sights and people. 2 drunk dudes from New York got arrested and handcuffed for peeing in the street right in front of, ironically, New York New York! A man on another corner was preaching about life and death. He had a sign on an easel set up along with a dummy laying in the street who had no head. He was attracting quite a crowd. Peddlers were selling reggae CDs in front of Caesars Palace and got arrested. The volcanoes erupted at the Mirage on the next block. A woman hit a Megabucks jackpot at Treasure Island, almost 6 million I think. Once I got to the Stardust, I decided to turn around and head back on the other side of the street. There was a really cool street bar at the Aladdin and a few blocks past it, I found a place that had an oxygen bar and this wild device called an Aqua Massage. It resembles a tanning bed that's filled with water and the whole thing is enclosed in something that resembles a body bag. You get inside it fully clothed, it closes up on you, and you are given a remote control that runs the hoses inside. Picture a firehose-like intensity of water massaging you with a remote that controls position, intensity, pressure, etc. It was so cool, it was like surfing in a cave or something. I wound up doing two sessions there because I was zonked out from all the snowboarding and walking over the past few days. Let's just say that at the end, I had a stack of baseball-card like "private entertainer" flyers from the canvassers up and down the strip that was 4 inches thick. Pretty funny! Back to the Luxor and off to the airport. There were some Egyptian belly dancers in the lobby putting on a show and the whole place was partying down. I'll definitely be back at the Luxor, it's a cool crowd there.

Part 3 - Reno
OK this part is the best. I got into Reno at about 8 pm for my much-awaited stay at the Peppermill. Something got screwed up with my reservation a few months back and when I rebooked I got bumped down from an Imperial Suite to a Spa Suite. I wasn't too bummed because it was part of a package and I basically got a free lift ticket to Northstar and about a $50 per night discount by booking it as a package. Unfortunately, there was an idiot at the front desk that was completely clueless and only had record of the original reservations which were cancelled. He kept me waiting for 45 minutes, no joke, before he FINALLY found my reservation package which was right under his hand the whole time. He didn't even apologize. Fortunately, this was the only screwball I encountered there, the staff is right on. I can't wait until I can move up a level or two in the Passport club so I can check in with VIP instead of the front desk. If anyone is looking to stay there anytime soon during ski/snowboard season, here's a tip: book it as a ski package directly on their website. You will save alot of $$ on the cost of the room vs. paying the full rate on their site. You are only required to purchase 1 lift ticket to make it a package, but you can spend $5 on a child lift ticket to Squaw Valley and just not use it. You'll still save $100 bucks or so! Also, you can maintain open dates on all the lift tickets you purchase through them which is convenient if you want to use them later on. It seems like you can get discounted tickets just about anywhere in Tahoe, but only at Sierra and Kirkwood. Heavenly, Squaw and some of the bigger ones are hard to come by discounted. But you can definitely do it here! They also give you a $5 food credit per day. Be sure to check it out, even if you don't ski or board, you can still save alot of $$ at the Pep.

They gave me a Spa Suite on the third floor. Thank God it wasn't pink, like it is in their website's photos. That was the only thing I was dreading and got a blue one instead! I was really impressed with it. The steam shower and whirlpool made it worth it. At first I was just expecting a jetted tub but those things are the real deal at the Peppermill. Later on I headed down the road and found all the fast food restaurants I was looking for. I had only been to the Pep once a couple years back on that dreaded trip where my snowboard landed in the pawn shop! Since I had lost so bad in Vegas I was wondering if I should even bother playing. But I took $100 to the casino. The decor of the whole place is a riot, I really dig it. Almost tacky, just like me. The neon (and that tripped out carpet with planets and rainbows and moons and stuff) in the casino almost provides a visual sensory overload that keeps you moving. It was lose-win-lose-win-lose the whole time but I got to check out some really cool machines I hadn't seen before. I got addicted to the "Party Spin," a 5 quarter model where the bonus round is a Wheel of Fortune type wheel. I won about $50 on a bonus round, moved to a dollar machine which was scary because it was $5 per spin, won another hundred, then made a mistake and went to those 5 mechanical reel penny Double Diamonds that never seem to hit. I don't quite understand their paylines like I do with the video multiliners too well either, so I pretty much gave up.

Next day, I had heard that the ski resorts in the Reno/Tahoe area weren't doing too well, no snow and lots of ice, so I decided to hold my lift ticket until things got better. I checked out the coffee shop. Their food is really good and it seemed to be the only reasonably priced place there, although all the restaurants looked really good. Be sure to try the California Veggie Burger (veggie burger, avocado, lettuce, tomato and sprouts), French Dip, and Country Fried Steak and Eggs (huge! it came with hash browns and a muffin). At that point, I had about $20 in comps that I spread out over 3 meals and some beer at the Gift Shop. But I was wondering if I should make one last attempt to try to win some money...

What happened over the next couple of hours is every gambler's dream...when you don't necessarily NEED to win after losing that bad, but damn, it sure would be nice...

I decided to go into the area around Oceano. I started out with a penny You Bet Your Life Machine. First time playing one. The guy in it (Groucho Marx?) took me to the "Duck Bonus Round." $125 win. Next up, I tried a Super Jackpot Party. I had never played any of them. This was a good call. About 10 spins in, I hit the party bonus. A bunch of people are sitting on the sofa, and you start picking presents that pop up on the screen. Over the next few minutes, I basically cleared most of the board and had about 400 dollars. Then, I got a 5x multiplier, followed by a 7500 credit marker, followed by a "Party Pooper". $800 off that machine! Insane! While I was waiting on a drink I moved to some of those strange penny machines with all the cherries and got about $20. I noticed a couple of the (new?) Chez Tabasco slots across the way. The Tabasco series is one of my favorites and one finally opened up. It was $3 per spin, but I had already won so really didn't care. The man next to me had been playing on it a while and I asked him what it took to get to the bonus round but I don't think he spoke English, so I just started playing. About 15 spins in, I hit the bonus round and it just went crazy. When it was over, I raked in $400. My drink still hadn't come so I got up to walk around for a minute. I noticed the man beside me kept repeatedly hitting that bonus round on his machine. After a few minutes, I said, "What the hell, I'm going back!" (something I never do, but I had a gut instinct...) Well, I went back, and about 4 more spins into it, I hit another bonus round. When all was said and done, I got another $395. By this time, the man was finally done. He apologized for not answering me earlier because he was in deep concentration. But he proudly walked away from that machine with $8000! (That's 8000, not 800). He had been there for quite a while and fortunately we both caught the brunt of that bonus round turn-on. Something I've never seen happen before on that level, not anywhere. And the drink finally came, she made it a double for keeping me waiting so long which was cool.

So, I was back on track and way ahead at that point. Almost $1800 won in less than two hours on all penny machines. Everything I had lost in Vegas was back and almost doubled up. Paid for my trip to Whistler! Truly epic...I knew I did the right thing by staying at the Pep. Sure beats that last trip I had there. I'll most definitely go back, already planning another trip next month. The only other qualm I had besides that idiot at the front desk was that I was running around like a madman looking for internet access. They had a business center but it was closed, and when I called the front desk, they wanted an additional $100 deposit just to use WebTV which is a ripoff because you can only access about 1 of every 10 sites on it so I had to pass that up. John, sorry we didn't get a chance to meet up, but I will be back next month!

Next morning, I was back at the coffee shop to get my steak & eggs, then it was off to the airport to catch the bus for Tahoe. Once again, little did I know what I was in for...

Part 4 - Tahoe and the "Montbleu Incident"
I was stressing early on that I wasn't going to get any offers or comps at any of the Stateline casinos. As some of you know, the Horizon was once my favorite but they've changed alot over the past year and you really have to put alot of money down to get offers, much less comps now. I noticed that they remodeled the front of their building. It is now brown and gold, but they left the Aspen tower in the back alone. Maybe that remodel is why they got so tight!

Between November and January, I wound up getting some really good comps from Montbleu. At first I figured it was just because they were new and I was already a member of the Horizon, their sister resort. When it was Caesars Tahoe it was never really bad but I was really curious to see what they did with it. Then it dawned on me, I was out there last year right before they started the remodel and it was still Caesars. I had hit a royal on a nickel VP machine and had about $50 of unused comps that transferred over from Caesars. By the time I left Florida at the beginning of the trip, I had a total of 7 free nights with the remaining nights being at the casino rate of $29 with their coupons. I was there 13 nights total, so this, plus $50 free slot play, was definitely a good deal. I was hoping I would get comped for the whole entire trip which eventually wound up happening...the hard way!

When I checked in with VIP I explained to them that I was paying with cash, was putting no deposit money down, didn't need room service, pay per views, a phone, etc. They made note of this and they also told me to let the front desk (who unfortunately are a bunch of idiots, the whole entire staff there is) know as well which I did. They did have a prepaid debit card number on file but after my ordeal with Harveys a couple of years back I didn't put any money on it just in case they decided to get sneaky. This helped out tremendously as you will see here shortly. I arranged to have comps applied to my stay. They gave me a premium player jacuzzi suite on the 15th floor overlooking The Face and The Gunbarrel Express, 2 of Heavenly resort's original black diamond runs. I really lucked out!

It wasn't long before I realized two things: Montbleu's machines are tight as SIN (I'm talking NOTHING) and their entire staff really needs a few lessons in customer service. I am the most laid back person in the world and generally don't care about anything, but no staff member, wherever I went, seemed to know what was going on...the front desk, the concierge, the slot attendants, EVERYBODY was completely clueless. Drink service was slow to non-existent. I had seen a mixed bag of reviews on Tripadvisor and over the course of the 2 weeks just about everything everyone had said about Montbleu turned out to be true in some way. The rooms have not been remodeled yet but were not run down and in pretty good shape. It was just funny because you walk the hallways which still have the Caesars Roman column wallpaper, and I also saw some Caesars stickers still on the safe and the wireless internet hookup. It's kind of funny in a way. I had heard that their next step will be remodeling the rooms floor by floor so I'm sure it won't be long.

I will say they really did a good job on the casino and the rest of the resort. One thing I noticed off the bat is they pump scented air into the casino and it is strong. It really helps with the smoke. All of the old restaurants are gone, including Subway (but fortunately they opened one right next door in Bill's!) I had a $50 slot play coupon which went in about 10 minutes. I didn't see any big wins from anybody anywhere the whole entire 2 weeks. The Horizon always had a reputation for being loose, so I was hoping Montbleu would be the same but in reality, both places got really tight.

I broke tradition this year a little and decided to get my season pass at Kirkwood instead of Heavenly. Kirkwood turned out to be much better than Heavenly but there was one big problem: Their shuttle bus kept breaking down all week! There were a few days I literally hitchhiked to Kirkwood. One day I walked all the way down to the "Y", a transit center about 7 miles down the road from the casinos. A nice Brazilian family gave me a ride that day. Later on in the week, I was super amped...I caught a ride from surfer girl who was visiting from the Gold Coast Australia. She RIPPED on a snowboard and let's just say we hit it off well and I was REALLY bummed out when she left! I decided to use my lift ticket from the Pep and went and checked out Sierra-at-Tahoe. I'll definitely be back there. Laid back place, and their shuttles run all day. Got tanked in the barbeque pit with my new friend and all her friends who were visiting and representing Australia Day at the resort. Everybody was so drunk by the afternoon, they started a huge snowball fight in the middle of the bbq pit. Those Aussies are crazy!

Now back to Montbleu. Throughout the course of the first week I kept getting repeatedly hit with an automated message from the front desk that sets off that annoying blinking red light on the phone. The message kept saying they needed a form of payment from me, and I kept repeatedly calling them and going to the front desk explaining that I had already checked in thru VIP and arranged to pay cash. It's almost like they didn't understand and I found out they have several night auditors who set off those messages by accident. No big deal but getting annoying.

Now here's where they showed their true colors!

On Sunday, I packed up and got a rental SUV to visit my friends in Mammoth Lakes. I ran down to the Rite Aid to put some money on my debit card, but when I was at Harrahs getting the rental, I was told the card was declined. Uh oh! 2 minutes later I'm on the phone with the debit card company. They informed me that Montbleu Casino Resort & Spa in Stateline NV attempted to put an authorization hold of $1900 (NINETEEN-FLIPPIN-HUNDRED) dollars on my debit card the night before!!! When the debit card company saw that, they immediately put a block on my card because I don't live in NV and any type of transaction involving a casino is not allowed with them (I think they get hit with tons of people who use their cards for online gaming and they are getting burned and must take precautions). I had a flashback of "The Harveys Incident" a couple years back and about went through the roof. But it goes to show how you can't trust people. How awful would that have been if I had actually had money on that card? Instead, it was safe in my pocket. I outsmarted 'em. You gotta. Now here's where it gets wild.

The debit card company notified me that the night auditor was the one who performed the transaction. They even had her name. I called the front desk, at this point on the verge of killing someone between this and all those annoying messages. When I got to the front desk, I was greeted by Alicia, the person who messed up my debit card. She knew I was ticked off too. She immediately admitted fault after I repeatedly explained to her that I had already arranged to pay cash thru VIP services and the situation she put me in. I explained to her that I DESPERATELY needed to get to Mammoth and couldn't until this hold was released thanks to their "mistake." I blew $30 of airtime on my cell phone trying to get all the debit card company's credentials straight. Almost an hour was spent on a three way conversation between me, her, and the debit card company. They told her she needed to fax them a letter on Montbleu letterhead stating that she charged the card by accident, that they would make no further attempts to charge the card, and that previous payment arrangements had already been made. Well, Alicia didn't even know how to type, and what I got was a typo-ridden letter on plain paper. When she faxed it, she explained that the fax machine sometimes had "trouble" and she wasn't sure if it would transmit. I got a copy of everything she faxed and waited to hear back from the debit card company once they got the fax. Tick, tick. An hour later, I heard back from them, only to find out that they didn't receive the fax. Back down to the front desk. Alicia was gone and I looked the new guy working the counter dead in the eye and belted out the whole story. I told him to re-fax it and if it didn't work I was going to check out and move over to Harvey's and use their fax machine. Ironically, this time it made it! BUT...back on the phone with the debit card company. They said they STILL couldn't release the hold because Alicia didn't send the fax on Montbleu letterhead. They were suspicious about all the typos in the letter and thought it was not written by her. Meanwhile, they tried to contact her but she had already left for the morning which made them more suspicious. I'm not a crook, but was getting treated like one thanks to old Montbleu. At that point, I asked them if it would be best to flag down the manager and do the whole thing over again and they said that would be the only way to release the hold. UNREAL!

By this time, it was 9 am (3 hours later!) and VIP services had just opened up. Let's just say, I flagged down the front desk manager, and my casino hostess, and we had a little discussion. I basically told the manager that they ruined my trip. I had already blown $85 on a lift ticket for Mammoth I didn't get to use as a result and was already running almost a day behind going to see my friends due to their screw-up. I further told them that I was expecting some type of compensation. The front desk manager shot back that they have alot of people running the show and these things sometimes happen. I played dumb for a while and acted like I bought her story until I had the letter from her in my hand which contained all the necessary information for the debit card company to release the hold so I could be on my way. Then I told her I would be in once I got back from Mammoth and it would be in their best interest to re-consider compensating me in some way. I got a blank stare, so I took the paperwork, said "I'll take this over to Harvey's and do it myself!," and left. I told them I would be back at checkout to pay for the 6 $29 nights. (YEAH, RIGHT...)

Walked over to Harveys, got my SUV, and I was on my way. Man, Montbleu sucks. All the way to Mammoth I was punching the dashboard and driving really fast. Made it in record time and got to ride that afternoon. Met up with my friends, and caught 3 days of good riding conditions. It was much better there, no ice, and my friends are cool. A little too much vodka over those few days but it keeps you warm! Along the way, it turned out one of my friends was coming back to Tahoe to hang out for a few days. They all knew the situation at Montbleu so we started forming a "plan." As soon as we got back, I decided to get all my cash back from the players club (I had about $55). Then I said, "let's use up all the comps so they don't try to take 'em back!" Got dinner at 20 Four, the new coffee shop, very nice, good food. Tried the Del Soul (Mexican) the next night which was also pretty good. I had over $100 in comps that we consumed over the next couple days. Rode at Kirkwood and Squaw Valley over the next few days. Played the Sigma Derby at the Horizon and had a blast. Got just enough comps there to get a Moonlight Special (prime rib sandwich and fries with au jus, 11 PM - 3 AM, $7.99, it's good!) Unfortunately, all the once-loose, traditional coin, dollar machines at the Horizon are gone in that one corner in front of Josh's restaurant and have been replaced. Now the place is 100% Ticket In Ticket Out (except for the Sigma Derby!) I guess the old Tahoe is gone... on another note, a few other things I noticed were that Bill's casino next door has a new logo and a new look. They made their casino 100% non-smoking and there is a Subway inside there now that's open til 5 am on weekends, just like the one inside Caesars used to be. There are a couple of blocks of old roach motels behind Harvey's that have totally been leveled: The Thunderbird (or should I say "Crackhouse?") and the El Dorado got knocked down due to asbestos, the signs said. I've heard that they are remodeling the area little by little but it definitely looks like the "roach motels" are getting knocked down one by one. Maybe next, they'll get to the Knights Inn, the Travel Inn, the Alpine Inn (the three rat traps on Stateline Ave.), and those few other shady places around there! Some of them are good though. The Block Snowboard Hotel, The Ambassador Motor Lodge, The Viking and the Tropicana are still good places to stay.

So, check out day finally arrives. Keeping in mind, they ticked me off to the uttermost, they had no cash deposit, no nothing from me, no alternate credit card numbers, no unused comps, only my original coupons. There was one person ahead of me in the VIP office. It took them about an hour to check them out and then they got to me. The bill for the unpaid days came to $242. Instead of handing them cash, I handed them my room keys and said, "Thanks for the free 2 week stay!"

I spoke to my lawyer when I got back a few days ago and he told me not to worry. He looked through all my documentation from Montbleu and said they are totally in the wrong for even attempting that debit card authorization. Legally you have to sign your name on a form from them stating you are giving them permission to put an authorization on your card, which I never did. They are true idiots for not asking for payment upon check-IN instead of check-OUT. My intention was to pay them cash for my stay at check-in like I do at the Horizon and everywhere else. I've never seen this at any hotel, especially a casino hotel! Their methods and customer service are going to get them in major trouble. That factor alone is setting them up for disaster. Hopefully they'll improve but I don't think I'll ever go back to Montbleu. And fortunately I got out alive and stayed ahead, this was the best trip yet! My lawyer also stated that even if they do try to do anything, I could file a lawsuit as a result of their wrongdoing which I wouldn't bother with because I'm a non-confrontational, laid back person. So the hell with Montbleu! Except for the "Sierra Drought" and lack of snow in Reno/Tahoe, the conditions were OK and I was definitely not complaining (although just about anything will be hard to top now after that trip to Whistler!) I had some time to kill on my last day, so I went back to the airport and took the shuttle down to the Atlantis. Really cool place. I signed up for Club Paradise and got $5 in free slot play. I won $10 on one of "those strange penny machines with all the cherries." Went back to the Peppermill and used the last of my comps to get a French Dip at the coffee shop. Played Peppermillions and won a free appetizer, but couldn't use it with my comps.

So what should I do now? Montbleu and the Horizon suck, and I was anti-Harrahs. Maybe I should steer back to Harrahs and Harveys (they were the only 2 places where I could get a drink the entire 2 weeks, and I played just enough to where I'll get comps again), or maybe consider the Lakeside Inn, or better yet, just go back to the Peppermill!

Thanks for reading my LONG report. Everyone, don't bother with Montbleu. I've never seen so many unhappy faces checking outta there. A long line of people at the front desk were sadly realizing how ripped off they were getting the whole entire time I was there, no joke. Nobody was winning anything, everybody seemed fed up with the staff ( I Was), and a couple of people mentioned that for the non-VIP people coming in off the street, they charge a $200 per night incidental deposit and of course don't bother telling you about it until it's too late. Unreal for such a low-roller joint.

God bless the Peppermill, I'll be back in March! I have a ton of photos and video clips and am looking for a place to upload them so I will provide a link when I find it.

floridagambler

[ErininSD]

Wow, what can I say...LOL

First of all, maybe it would be better to get a credit card, instead of a debit card...but I understand why people might have a challenge with this. That being said, if you have a lawyer, I would figure you could get a credit card...but I could be wrong?

The Montbleau sounds like MontBlah.

Wow, the GVR room sounded awesome! As usual (this always happens to me!) you're by yourself. You need someone to share in the experience!

I love the Pepp, and you did right by staying there! I had a winning streak like yours a year or two ago...not quite that much, but it was still exciting! I think their coffee shop rocks!

Thanks for posting about Whistler. That's on our list of "places to visit sometime soon". I had no idea room's were so expensive, I thought we always got a discount because of the Canadian Dollar vs American dollar thing...LOL.

It was a great TR...thanks for posting!

Erin

BTW, I've never seen anyone as lucky as you getting upgrades...what's you're secret???

[CaSwede]

Man that was a long trip. It looks like at least 2 weeks? Too bad the snow was so bad (Nv. Ca.) , but you made the best of it. I look forward to seeing the pictures if you can figure it out.---especially the Aussie hottie.

There must be a reason you don't have a credit card, but that sure makes traveling a lot easier.

Glad to see you tried the snow at some places other than Heavenly- lots of choices out there.

[RenoLady]

Great trip report! I love your detail, it's like being there.

[alison]

Thanks for the trip report.
You sure have had some bad luck with those tahoe hotels havent you. Im sorry!

Sounds like you had great luck at the Pep. I wish i coudl have a run like that. I never win on the penny slots!

I am eagerly awaiting your photos from the Pep. You can upload them to something like www.tinypic.com and it will give you a URL to place in your message to view the pic if you wanted to do that? Or you can uplad the photos to webshots and you can get a link for people to go and view your photos. Just a though.

[john]

OK, FG...I was going to ban you from the board because of this trip report. Seems I got so engrossed in reading it, my Eggos overcooked. You're off the hook because after soaking them in syrup for about 30 minutes, they were soft enough to eat.

All kidding aside, that was one helluva report, and a helluva good time.

You may also consider uploading your photos to rapidshare.com. Or, if there aren't too many, send them to me and I'll build you a little page on visitreno.com where you can show 'em off.

John

[Mammothgambler]

What's up everyone, thanks so much. With the help of Adobe Photoshop I was just able to whip up a little picture website! Since Bellsouth is blind to the Macintosh world, they wouldn't tell me how to utilize my free web page space so I decided to post it on my server at work. I'll also post some video clips when I get the sizes knocked down (that's going on in the background as we speak!)


John, sorry to burn your Eggos and thanks for not banning me from here. I'll hafta take you to the Coffee Shop at the Pep next month, and sorry I missed you...please send your digits, I tried accessing visitreno.com thru my cell phone while I was there to see if I could get a #! Be proud to know that the majority of the homepage of your site is mobile-phone compatible!

Alison, yeah this is the second debit card incident! Only this time I got even and didn't get burned. I think Harrahs/Harveys may be the call in South Lake now or maybe I'll just commute from the Peppermill.

RenoLady, thanks so much for your comment. Now you can see the pictures and really be there...

CaSwede and Erin, yeah it was a long trip, about 3 3/4 weeks with our trade show. The "Aussie Hottie" is in one of the videos of the "Drunken Aussie ice and snowball fight" that i'll be uploading later. MontBLAH is right! Now I'm calling it Mont-Poo. It was definitely cool checking out some other resorts besides Heavenly too.

Well, in all honesty folks, I haven't had a credit card in 11 years or so. Back in 1995 I was a BAD victim of identity theft with Citibank. Somebody in Wyoming raked almost $10 grand off of me and it took 9 months for the situation to get fully resolved. That was 9 months of pure hell and it's something I just never want to risk happening again. It keeps you on the straight and narrow too and once that's in you it never leaves.

Erin, yes you all definitely should check out Whistler. In my brain I think I'm still there riding (they've been raging at me all week long at work for daydreaming!) Whether you ski/ride or not, www.whistlerblackcomb.com is the one stop shop. Booking everything thru them ensures they can call you with the best rates/sales/etc even after you purchase. It's all under 1 roof too. Regarding your question about the upgrades, sometimes I think I'm just blessed. I have the worst luck in general but the upgrades just seem to happen. I belong to all the airline and travel clubs and sometimes showing people membership cards can make it work or at least get you a discount or free upgrade. Also, I work at a surf magazine (art director/webmaster) and sometimes all it takes is, "Hi yeah I'm with the press and I'd just love to do a layout on <insert resort/hotel/casino here> for our upcoming Travel Issue." In general my media pass can cover anything in any area where any type of board can be ridden. But the easiest way I've found is to wait until really late at night to check into a place. More often than not, the mainstream rooms go first...that's what happened when I got to GVR, it was like 11:30 PM.

Thanks again everyone and I'll post the video clips real soon. It was a riot, right after I posted yesterday, a user came on right after me and posted the question, "So has anyone been to Montbleu lately?"

Talk to you all soon,
floridagambler

[BC Dave]

Hey F.G.
That was a report to end all reports! (Just kidding, keep 'em coming!)

Stan, here's some major vicarious living to be done here. Especially the Peppermill super lucky part.

Montbleu has some work to do if it wants to make it.

BC Dave

[Dave]

What the heck Florida?????Who is going to want to post a trip report after that? I think you were right in the first place boot him off the board John! That is just like in college I would always have to be the guy that had to follow the gal that gave the great speech in my communications class. Tough act to follow.
Seriously though great report and what a fun trip! Thanks for taking the time to post it. I am glad you were so lucky and had such a great time.
Dave

[stan_allen]

What's left to say? The vicarious enjoyment levels of your trip report are overwhelming...Dave, I think I'll hook this report up to an I.V. so I can have intravenous vicariousness!

Can't blame you for shunning credit cards are a result of identity theft - I'm equally paranoid of such things, but then again, a credit card is not the only way for a thief to impersonate you, so I'll take my chances - for now!

Thanks again for the report; it was just what the 'quiet board' needed!

[john]

FG, my phone number is at the bottom of every page of visitreno.com. Here it is anyhow: 775-829-8425. If any of the board members need to use it, please feel free, unless you're tyring to collect a debt or sell me something. In that case, use my special toll free number: 800-YOU-LOSE.

John

[remano]

If you're coming back next month and have any Terrible's credits left, you should check with the Sands to see if they transfer. Now that Terrible's owns the Sands you might be able to use the credits here. (If you haven't already thought of this, that is.)

Great TR, BTW.

[Ryder]

Wow, trip report with pics....your really showing us up.

Really liked your trip report. I have had some nice mini runs of can't do no wrong at the Peppermill myself, but nothing like you experienced.

I hope you left some money in those machines for me

[PEB]

FG,
Thanks for the great trip report and all of the pics too, really enjoyed it!
Wow.....GVR looked awesome!

I've never played any penny machines before but after reading your TR I might have to give them a try Made me wish I was on my way to Reno but have to wait another 8 1/2 weeks.

Thanks again!

[Mammothgambler]

hey everybody thanks again. That was my first official set of digital photos so I was kind of itching to share 'em. I have some video clips ready but they are pretty big so I'm going to upload them at work, I will keep everyone posted.

John, thanks for the number. I thought it was on the bottom of the board, but my cell phone only made it through about 10 screens, then the battery died. Now, I have it etched in stone. Remano, sorry we didn't get to meet up and thanks for the update on the Sands...I had heard I think here that they were going to buy those properties. Pretty funny, now the Sands Regency logo has Mr. Terrible or whatever his name is popping out of it. I'll have to look into their club to see if it's changed any. Ryder, yeah there's some $$ left, just hit that area around Oceano! PEB, thanks and yes definitely try the pennies, start out with the ones that are between 90-180 credits total. Look for the ones where you can win 200,000 ($2000) credits or more. Get into a habit of playing all lines and multipliers...I've missed several jackpots by not doing so. You win and lose fast but you'll notice you have more ways to win than on regular 3 reels (I still like 'em though). The bonus rounds alone can take you very far, especially if you hit a few of them (or a few hundred like that man did on the Chez Tabasco...)

So, I'm guessing that March Madness is the reason everything's booking up quick? The Peppermill appears already sold out the 13-18, I'll have to keep on trying.

floridagambler