Vegas & The Aftermath - Diary

[RED-DOG]

I had to attend a funeral in Norwich At 11am on Tuesday, so to save having to make a ridiculously early start I stayed in a Travelodge on Monday night. I had a family room with extra bed/towels/tea etc, at no extra charge.

[Karabiner]

I had to attend a funeral in Norwich At 11am on Tuesday, so to save having to make a ridiculously early start I stayed in a Travelodge on Monday night. I had a family room with extra bed/towels/tea etc, at no extra charge.

Was the hotel vauxhall full that night ?

[booder]

I had to attend a funeral in Norwich At 11am on Tuesday, so to save having to make a ridiculously early start I stayed in a Travelodge on Monday night. I had a family room with extra bed/towels/tea etc, at no extra charge.

why didn't you pop round for a cuppa ?

[RED-DOG]

I had to attend a funeral in Norwich At 11am on Tuesday, so to save having to make a ridiculously early start I stayed in a Travelodge on Monday night. I had a family room with extra bed/towels/tea etc, at no extra charge.

Was the hotel vauxhall full that night ?

No, but it is rather exclusive.

[AndrewT]

One thing that amuses me is the fact that a suite in the Venetian costs less per night than a room in the crappy Premier Travel Inn down the road from me.

[The_nun]

Out Travel lodge room next,  to the Western, was a tad smelly to say the least, it had sprung a leak and by the smell of it from the loo, so the carpet was sodden. She did give me half my rate back and to be honest we were only in the room a few hours, so it didn't cause too much hassle, we just kept the windows open and listened to the lovely trundling sound of the trains flowing by.

[Miami Vic]

Before I hit the big time working for Sky Poker, I stayed in a hotel on a Greek Island where the shower was strategically placed over the toilet, next to a tiny, cracked basin. It meant you could fulfill all your bathroom requirements at once...shower, brush your teeth and s...ave a lot of time.

[tikay]

Out Travel lodge room next,  to the Western, was a tad smelly to say the least, it had sprung a leak and by the smell of it from the loo, so the carpet was sodden. She did give me half my rate back and to be honest we were only in the room a few hours, so it didn't cause too much hassle, we just kept the windows open and listened to the lovely trundling sound of the trains flowing by.

That'd be the Piccadilly Line, Uxbridge branch. The other branch goes to Heathrow, interestingly. They split at Acton Town, one of 7 Stations in Acton. (East, North, West, South, Central, Town, Green, & Main Line).

[Woodsey]

So, Vegas is done & dusted. This was only my second Vegas, & my main memories are.....

Weather (in July). Unbearably, brutally, searingly hot.

Hotels. By any standard, they are of behemoth standards. And there are lots of them. The car drop-off points, a lay-by in the UK, are eight lanes wide.....And you don't park your car, a little man does it for you.

The hotel bedrooms are superb. Lots of furniture, king-size bed, and what is advertised as a "walk-in" bathroom. (What other types of bathroom entry are there?).

Traffic - dreadful. The Strip is 10 lanes wide, & blocked with traffic 24/7.

Pretend Icons. They have a pretend Eiffel Tower - like 20 storeys high. And a pretend Statue of Liberty. And a pyramid, complete wih sphinx & Cleopatra's Needle. And a pretend Venice, with a pretend Grand Canal. And a pretend Treasure Island. And the Americans queue up to have their photos taken in front of these pretend things. Conversely, they have a Miirage. Which is real.

Hotels with place names. Rio. Monte Carlo. Paris. New York. Hollywood. Mandalay Bay. Sahara. Orleans.

The people. Well, you only really meet players, & dealers. Almost without exception, they are warm & friendly. And, oddly, real.

Clocks. They don't have clocks, or time, in Vegas. Night follows day, & you'd never know.

Exit Signs. Hotels don't have Exit Signs. You can wander around for ever seeking a way out. Clever stuff.

Water. Thanks to the Hoover Dam harnessing the Colorado, water is plentiful, & there are fountains & water displays galore, The Bellagio being simply stunning. On the sidewalk, & above outdoor eateries, they have little water spray devices, to keep punters cool. A fine "mist" of water is continously piped out - but the ground under the sprays is perfectly dry - the water evaporates before it touches the ground, a mere 8 feet below! They estimate that 70% of the water that the Belllagio Fountain Display shoots into the air evaporates before it lands! Oh, & they have a sign at McCarron Airport that says "SAVE WATER - IT'S PRESCIOUS"........

Betting Shops they have none, but "Sports Book Halls or Lounges" they have a-plenty, in Hotels, & they are a punters dream. Big, comfy, armchair. 8 humongous plasma screens, showing several  baseball games, horse racing, football, tennis, Nascar, Golf, the lot. And a giant odds screen. A personal betting terminal. And valets, with barely enough clothes to cover their plumbing, plying you with free drinks. Ladbrokes will never seem the same again.

The Cardrooms. Stuningly good, surely the best in the world. They almost all have....

1) 15 to 20 plasma screens, showing not just the Tourney details, but baseball, boxing, football, News, anything you want.

2) With acres of room between the tables to wander around. (In the UK, one of these days a Fire Officer will wander in to a Cardroom during a Tourney & withdraw the Fire Certificate in a trice, they are so crowded during big comps, illegally so).

3) Knowledgeable, well-trained, friendly Dealers. Who understand the game so well because they are allowed to play it.

4) And, get this - they start their Tourneys, generally, smack on time. What % of UK Tourneys start on time, do you think - honestly?

5) Tourneys start every hour of the day & night, including 6am & 7 am & am - daily! It's like playing Online, there's always another Tourney waiting.

But for the weather, barren countryside, & lack of wildlife, I'd live there 6 months of the year & just play poker 24/7.

There is a tremendous Fessie at Caesars Palace in October, would cost $20k (£10k) to play the lot, & I'm aching to play it, but that's just too much money for me - unless I happened to hit a really big cash between now & then. Tempting though....

But when it comes down to it, I adore the British Tourney scene, with it's variety of characters, (nippers apart, which has got really bad lately) friendly staff, & quaint venues. If ONLY they'd learn to start on time, & do summat with the bizarre & ridiculous Prize Structures (I estimate 80% of all Tourneys end in a chop or Deal, which tells it's own story).

I must thank Sky Poker & Poker Week for paying for my Vegas sojourn. How lucky am I?

I hated the fact the dealers could sit down and play with you at the end of their shift still dressed in their dealers outfit, all too dodgy for me. There are plenty of places to play in vegas so they should not be allowed to play where they deal. They can't play the house games so why poker? Just doesn't look good

[Rod Paradise]

Catching up with the news since I arrived home, because there is no "real world" news in Vegas........

I gather Mr Tony Blair has been appointed the Peace Envoy to the Middle East. If true, how extraordinary. The most perfect example of running with the hare & hunting with the hounds I've ever seen.

I heard that described as the equivalent of asking King Herod to mind the kids for a while.

[tikay]

Catching up with the news since I arrived home, because there is no "real world" news in Vegas........

I gather Mr Tony Blair has been appointed the Peace Envoy to the Middle East. If true, how extraordinary. The most perfect example of running with the hare & hunting with the hounds I've ever seen.

I heard that described as the equivalent of asking King Herod to mind the kids for a while.

It's so bizarre that I thought it was a practical joke when I heard it. I can't recall a more ironic appointment.

It's a sort of mini-Kissinger thing. The Americans sold weapons & armoury to half the world, & when they started lobbing the stuff at each other, they'd send Henry to restore the peace which those very weapons had destroyed.

The best two "Peace Envoys" in my time were Al Haig &, remarkably, Tony Benn.

Haig, a career soldier, was magnificent in trying to appease his hapless President (Regaan) when Reagan found himself stuck between two stools in the Falklands conflict. A desire to aid his British Allies & keep commerial ties intact with Argentina (Argentina were major buyers of American-built weaponry) was a big ask, but Haig, despote idiotic briefings from Reagan, somehow remained honest to everyone, even though he must have been groaning inwardly at the ridiculous task he'd been set.  Likewise, during Watergate, he remained true & faithful to the liar Nixon, even though he knew what had gone off. No American deserves more credit.

Tony Benn did his Peace-brokering in much more subtle ways, but he was a much more influential man than many realise. Some of his Politics were pure crackpot, but no more genuine British politician ever graced our Parliament.

And then there's Blair. Essentially, a good, though self-serving, man, history will judge him by Iraq, & those elusive & indeed always non-existent WMD. I'm ambivelant on him, up to a point, but Middle East Envoy, well, I could throw up.

[Robert HM]

Out Travel lodge room next,  to the Western, was a tad smelly to say the least, it had sprung a leak and by the smell of it from the loo, so the carpet was sodden. She did give me half my rate back and to be honest we were only in the room a few hours, so it didn't cause too much hassle, we just kept the windows open and listened to the lovely trundling sound of the trains flowing by.

Keep the window closed next time please, you two kept me awake all night.

[Paullie_D]

I hated the fact the dealers could sit down and play with you at the end of their shift still dressed in their dealers outfit, all too dodgy for me. There are plenty of places to play in vegas so they should not be allowed to play where they deal. They can't play the house games so why poker? Just doesn't look good

In many trips to Vegas, I've never seen dealers playing at the tables in full "uniform" but if you have then, fair enough. Perhaps their uniform is non-specific enough to look like normal street clothes.

I agree that they shouldn't do so in uniform but I have no problem with them playing at the same table as me. I find they are, generally, of a standard no better or worse than other players, but they usually keep a great atmosphere going and are knowledgeable about the rules & etiquette to keep things moving.

I once sat at a $3/$6 game at the MGM through the night with 5 dealers and 3 other tourists and had a whale of a time. In fact, if it hadn't been for the dealers we'd have had to close the table.

As for why they can play poker and not other table games (often the attraction for them), that's easy...with Poker they aren't playing against the house! The Casino gets it's rake regardless of who wins the pot.

[MAF]

That'll teach me not to visit the forum for a while.  18 pages to catch up on.  Took me all afternoon, interlaced with a bit of work - but it was worth it! 

Good read Tikay!

[tikay]

OK, let's get caught up - Poker first. The adverse variance I expected Post-Vegas is kicking in exactly as scheduled & expected.

Sunday I did the Luton £250 Freeze, bubbled, no excuses.

After arriving in London from Vegas on Saturday, doing the Show Saturday night, going home Sunday, then back down to Luton, then back home, thence back to Feltham to do the Show again on Monday, staying over, working (Sky Auditions) Tuesday from 10am until 3pm, you'd think any sane person would go home & have a rest, but no, I became fixated by the £50 (+ 3 Rebuy) affair at Stanley Notts Tuesday night, & went & played that.

Only 27 runners I believe, nice comp, but what a weird structure. 2 x 45 minute Rebuy Levels (I only took 2 so a £150 spend), then it went to 20 minute Clock, with no McCready Levels! Was running well, & Finalled again in good shape, but only 5 paid, & I ran JJ into AQ & that left me in bad shape, & I could not recover, finishing 7th. As with Luton on Sunday (same result) as I got up, a Deal or Saver was discussed. Poo.

I was in great shape at the Break, but I had to take a lengthy & heavy business phone call, & as it's (quite reasonably) a "no mobile" Cardroom, I was obliged to sit out for 2 Levels, with Blinds at 200-400 & 300-600. If being blinded away in a 20 minute fast structure comp was not bad enough, one Gentleman, who's an old mate fom my Gala days, & with whom I still get on well, asked the Manager why I was not being "blinded" every hand! (He got his way). Thanks pal.

Poor Chris Bruce had the sickest night I can recall in a goodly while, being Rivered by 2 outers on 4 or more occasions, but taking it in good heart.

We got to 10 handed, & for some bizarre reason, they started to play hand-for hand - only 5 Prizes, & yet we were hand-for hand, with each hand taking 4 or 5 minutes! Anyway, we mutinied & got it sorted. Jim's a good lad, & is doing his best to straighten up a few anomolies there. Orlando tormented me all night, he's a helluva player, & Geoff Hill was on my Table, too, Raising with filth every other hand. These old boys can't 'arf get aggressive.

Stanley pay the Car Park Charges, which is handy & appreciated. I was in the Market Street Euro-Park, which was disqualified from the "World's Worst Designed Underground Car Park" Competition last year because it was not good enough. It's an absolute helll-hole to park in.

Home by 0130, played an hour of $5 $10 Omaha while catching up on PM's & stuff, & dropped another $400.