Are IPOD's Allowed While Playing a Slot Machine?

I like to take notes while at the casino's so I can refer back to them when I writing a new blog or a slot machine review. Seems I always forget little details about the machines if I winning or mostly losing, other than how the game payed. So Ive been wondering about using my IPOD as a voice recording device while sitting at a slot machine to take notes.

I decided to call a couple casino's and see what kind of response I would get. Now I may not have provided enough information to the casino employees but I didn't want to scare them off.

My question was "Are you allowed to use an IPOD's while playing a Slot Machine?" I choose to not say anything about a recording device or recorder connected to an ipod because of the scare factor. You say recording device and I'm sure what answer I might get. Also most of the voice recorders for an IPOD are so small with no external wires that most people wouldn't notice, except it would just look like I was talking to myself. I asked direct for the security desk as this is where I felt was best to handle the question.

My first call was to the Isle of Capri Casino in Blackhawk Colorado. The agent said that IPOD were defiantly allowed while at a machine.

So my first call seemed to have been a success, a basic answer with no real question. Now some might think this is just silly because if you watch poker on TV, they all have IPOD's but my concern was the question of technology. It hasn't been that long since you would be yelled at by drink attendants for using you cell phones at the machines. (I know some still do but not as much as they used too)

My second call was to Spirit Mountain Casino in Grande Ronde Oregon, Ill be visiting in a few weeks.

The security agent was a little questioning, more of himself then me, but said that they were allowed. He also said that the only thing not allowed was photography on the gaming floor.

Second call a success. More so in the fact that it also clears up the question of cell phones and cameras.

I end with that call. Not the full investigative report with multiple sources some may like but I was 2 for 2, why mess with the odds.

My best guess is that IPOD's are allowed in most US situation, internationally is a whole other ball game.

Good Luck and Happy Gaming,
J

This and That

Hello all,

Not much new to report. No trips recently but lots of online activities. Here's a couple of things that have passed by my email and the local news.


Ameristar Blackhawk Colorado Casino Temporarily closes

The Ameristar Blackhawk Casino never opened Friday Aug 24th, 2007 due to damage that had occurred during construction blasting for the new Hotel and Casino expansion project. As reported by 9 news in Denver Colorado and covered in The Rocky Mountain Newspaper (Video and Newspaper article)

No update on Saturday morning as I write this but reports were that blasting for the new hotel caused the sprinkler system to flood office areas of the casino. No areas of the casino floor were effected but for safety reasons they decided not to open. Plans were to reopen by Saturday.

No one was injured, which I'm happy for but i guess the one good thing that has come from this (In my gambler mentality) is that the news report stated that the hotel and casino expansion would be completed in 2009. Ive been looking for an opening date and I guess we kind of have one now.......


Email from WMS Gaming

Yesterday I received an email from WMS Gaming about a new sweepstakes they are running in conjunction with the new MONOPOLY™ Super Money Grab® slot machines.

The Grand Prize is a trip for two to Las Vegas. Plus, there are 50 instant-winners a day.

Heres the link to the Sweepstakes Sign up. If anyone wins a prize, please feel free to email me or add a comment to the post.


Well thats all I have for now,

Good Luck and Happy Gaming,
J

Village People Party Revisited

Yet another version of WMS Gaming's "Jackpot Party" has been released, and it is now on the casino floors. To my knowledge, this makes it the 3rd version on the floors today. Colorado has Jackpot Party Classic, Super Jackpot Party, and now Village People Party.

As is the case with the first two versions, Village People Party is the same in line configuration, but symbols have been changed to reflect the members of the singing group. It also has a disco theme, with icons like platform shoes, disco balls, and fruity drinks as some of the new symbols.

Again only one bonus round is available but appears to be at a high frequency and VPP has a new bonus feature option. When you arrive in the party bonus you are instructed to pick a village person along the bottom of the play screen. There are 6 to chose from, each giving you a random credit amount and multiplier. During the game play, as you select a Record (replacing the classic wrapped gift) your given either a random credit amount, a multiplier, that darn party pooper, or the new option "select another Village person."

You are then asked to choose another Village People Character from the bottom row who gives you a random credit amount but also the Village people on each successful credit pick add more credits to each Record pick.

When you select a Pooper, unfortunately like the classic, you are done. (see bottom for more information and retractions)

There are also 3 new Village People songs that are played though out the game. They include:
"Y.M.C.A.," "In The Navy," and "Macho Man."

VPP is a very fun and interesting version of the classic. Currently I have only seen this game at Bullwhackers Black Hawk, in Blackhawk, Colorado. It was located on the first floor near the cashiers cage.

Good Lucky and Happy Gaming,
J


Retraction 8/2/07

After a recent visit, I had the opportunity to play VPP again and found that I had mis-evaluated a major feature.

During the VPP "Record Bonus Round" there are "Party Saver" options. I found one by selecting a random village person, also one as a record choice, and a pick one of three hat options after selecting a pooper.

With the first one I choose the Sailer and received 50 credits and a Party Saver appeared on the screen and was placed over a dimmed out icon on the bottom of the screen. When I selected a pooper disk, it cashed in my saver and allowed me to continue my round.

The second chance was by selecting a lucky disk that said "Party Saver." I received the VPP bonus amount granted by the amount of Village People you have selected at the bottom of the screen and the Party Saver icon at the bottom of the screen, again was illuminated.

The last option seems to be activated at random after selecting a pooper. On one occasion I was given the option to select one of three hats. Two included additional bonus credits and one had a party saver that took you back to the album bonus round.

Sorry for the miss information on my initial review, I guess this time around the machine just felt like revealing more of itself to me.

UPDATE

This game is everywhere now and very very popular. I would expect atleast a second edition or update very soon

Good Lucky and Happy Gaming,
J

Double Dragon Frenzy Slot Machine

Bally Gamings Double Dragon Frenzy (click link for corporate site with photos and online video)

This is a 7 reel 50 line configuration machine. The pay table was very hard to understand but it was paying so I didn't mind much not knowing why I was winning. Symbols on the reels are ying-yang symbols, coat of arms, and exploding firecrackers. Every time the firecrackers match up they light up and explode a credit amount. Fun feature at first but just like fireworks, it can get annoying after a while.

The game has an interesting feature of having a bonus line in the middle of the line configuration. The bonus line 4 has either wild symbols, auto pays, or blanks. Most slot players are used to seeing this type of configuration on line 5, as with WMS Gamings Ring Quest.

It appeared to have only one "bonus round" which is a re spin-re trigger icon that would appear in the bonus line. It gives you any win credit on the entry spin, a multiple of times. I only had it retrigger for a total of 3 times but the demo video on Bally's website has it triggered 5 times???

Other "Bonuses" that appears on line 4 were a 2x pay, 10x pay, or 100 pay. It makes for some very dynamic pay outs and also some very small ones too.

One of the other things that made this game enjoyable was the cabinet, seating, and play area. This has a large screen, easy for viewing and a very large cabinet, making for a very comfortable play area and lots of elbow room.

I found this game at The Lodge Casino, in Black Hawk Colorado. It was located at the top of the escalator from the street level.

Good Luck and Happy Gaming,
J

Q & A

Well, as you can tell from my countdown clock, I'm heading up to Blackhawk on Saturday. This is a perfect time to ask me questions.............. OK, so I want to be interactive. I want to know what people are looking for from my site. I love this site, I have enjoyed writing my blogs and reliving memories, but I don't know how you, the reader, feels about it.

Are you looking for any particular games? Maybe pictures of a casino? Looking for a good place to eat? I want to make this site usable and enjoyable for all.

For my return visitors, Thank you!!!!!! Hows the changes Ive made? I'm trying to make it easier to navigate through my stuff and adding cool widgets as I find them.

What do you think of my casino chip camera slide show? I love the thing, I still sit and watch it every time I load the page. And I have more chips to come. I still have about 40 chips that I have yet to scan in, mostly from Cripple Creek Colorado and still some more from Blackhawk.

Well that's it ,I guess. I hope I get some responses. The reason I started this page was to give out as much information as I can, about one of my favorite subjects. For years, I have searched the internet for reviews of casinos and games that didn't come directly from the source, a players view or something, someone like me who enjoys a couple hours of gaming and a whole lot of fun.

J
baldovij@gmail.com

Colorado Casinos Go Smoke Free

As of January 1st, 2008 Colorado casinos will be a smoke free environment. Currently one casino, The Wild Card, will still be able to allow guest to smoking under a provision in the law which says that if the establishment makes more than xx amount of money from tobacco, it can allow smoking.

I'm very excited as I'm a non-smoker and somewhat allergic to cigarette smoke but with this one casino being exempt, it does make me wonder what the possibilities might be. Will other casino try to ramp up tobacco sales to qualify for the exemption or will The Wild Card be the busiest, yet smokiest place in Black Hawk, Colorado

J

Colorado Gaming

Colorado Casinos and Gaming

First let me paraphrase this by saying this will start book report style and then get back to my normal witty charm and very casual writing style. I'm not the book report type...

Legalized gaming began in Colorado on October 1, 1991, as a result of a voter approved amendment to the State Constitution. This amendment allowed gaming in three mining towns, whose economy had been paralyzed after their mines began to close. The towns are Black Hawk, Central City, and Cripple Creek. Both Black Hawk and Central City are 30 minutes west of Denver, and Cripple Creek is 30 minutes southwest of Colorado Springs.

In the beginning there were just eleven casinos between the three towns. Now there are more than 40 casinos, with new projects in development. As the smaller casinos close down, they are being replaced with national chains and mega-resort style casinos.

Colorado gaming is "Limited Gaming", which according to the Colorado Department of Revenue - Division of Gaming, is defined as, "Maximum single bet of $5 on slot machines, and live Blackjack or Poker."

Gaming options include Vegas style slots, Blackjack, miscellaneous table games, and card rooms for Texas Hold 'Em. Keno is only offered at the state's 2 tribal casinos. Both casinos are in Southern Colorado - The Ute Mountain Casino near Towaoc, and the Sky Ute Casino and Lodge near Ignacio.

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Ok now that that's done... I hate book reports, but how do you present all that information without doing it book report style?

So what does all that mean to people like me, the penny player?

First off, we have three legal gambling towns with 40+ casinos in Colorado. This is awesome. In Oregon and California, I have only been able to casino-hop by driving 30 or 45 minutes away. Only in Nevada have I had the pleasure of walking between casinos when it seems my luck has ran out. Colorado is just amazing. All three towns are easy to walk around in, though some areas are a little harsh because of the altitude (sorry mom, I'll explain it to the rest of you someday). Luckily there are shuttles and local area buses that will take you from one end of town to the other, stopping at or near most casino entrances.

I normally start at the top of the hill, hit most the casinos on the way down, and then take the bus back up to the top. It works out very nice since the shuttle runs quite often. The bus is called the "Black Hawk/Central City Tramway", and schedules are available by going to www.nextbus.com. Navigate to Colorado to see maps and pickup times. I've used this website on my cell phone, and there are also signs at most stops indicating how long until the next shuttle arrives.

According to the Colorado Gaming Report, as of April 2006, the number of penny slots has increased by over one thousand machines in Black Hawk alone. Great news for penny players.

Colorado also has the $5 limit. Not a problem for me since I have a hard enough time playing machines with 30 lines, plus a 10 credit buy-in for super pay. That's 40¢ for a total bet. I think I will be ok.

This does, however, affect the Blackjack or card player. Most of the tables that I have seen only offer a $5 minimum bet, which in turn is also the max bet. There is no way to raise or lower your bet depending on game play. I have found that this almost forces the issue of splitting or doubling down. That is the only way to increase your bet, since the law deems that as a second, separate bet. I've noticed myself splitting 7's against a 6-up just to try and rake in a little extra. I don't play tables much, but a friend was in town who wanted to play.

Keno is not available in Black Hawk and Central City, which is a bummer. Keno, to me, is a way to keep gambling while having dinner or a snack in the food court.

Last, but not least, are the things that we don't have. Roulette, Craps, Money Wheel, or Off-Track betting are not available in the gambling towns. There are some private locations throughout Colorado that have live and off-track betting. Oregon has recently added most of these within the last few years. Because of this, I can see Roulette, Craps, and Money Wheel coming to Colorado someday.

As far as development goes, wow. The latest to join in the game is the national chain, Ameristar Casinos. It opened in mid 2005 as a takeover from Mountain High Casino. It has vastly transformed since it's opening in 2005, and it is about to make even more changes.

Expected by Spring of 2008, the Ameristar Black Hawk will open a 500+ room hotel. This property is rumored to have a full spa, and when completed will be the tallest structure between Denver and Salt Lake City. I can't wait for the spa to open, and I will make an appointment for the first available. This will be for my wife, of course. What a great way to get her to go up there! "Honey I got you an appointment for a massage." Hee hee, she will hit me for that one...

Also, early last year marked the opening of Colorado Central Station's new hotel. I had the pleasure of spending my birthday there, and it was great. I had a king/non-smoking room, and it was wonderful. There was plenty of room to move around, a very large TV, a nice seating area, safe in the closet, and a very large bathroom with nice size shower and tub. I definitely recommend this one.

Well that's it for now. Hope this blog helps anyone who was looking for information on Colorado gaming. Check back for reviews of the casinos and trip reports in the future and sign my guest book if you get a chance.

J

Going to the mailbox and finding a letter from a Casino

I love that feeling. You go to the mail box every day and find either junk mail or the dreaded "B" word. Occasionally, if I'm lucky, I go to the mail and find either one of my casino magazines or a letter from one of the local casino's. Its like a cereal box, I opening it hoping to find a prize.

Some are just the normal monthly flyer promoting events or new games but sometimes, owe sometimes, there's that Willy Wonka golden ticket feeling.
A $5.00 voucher!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and sometimes two, one for the first half of the month and one for the last.

Man, what feelings and emotions can be conjured by just a little slip of paper. "Come to me and Ill give you five dollars." Why do I picture a witch with an apple when I read this? Hazel and Gretel maybe...... either way.

You give me five, I give you 40. I think im doing something wrong here. I feel like that little kid playing cards with the big kids, anyone remember '52 card Pickup" fell for that once.(or twice)

If you read enough about comps and casino give aways, you know its based on time played and money spent in a casino, they don't give it way to be nice. So its also very sad when you go to the mail box and you don't get letters or vouchers. "Do you not love me anymore, (insert casino name here)? just encase, don't want to show any favoritism just yet....... "Its been a rough month" "Gas Prices suck", ""No money, no fries." (sorry childhood flashback, but it applies)

Then, finally, one day, that "Golden Ticket" reappears in the mail box. Like a beacon in the night, I can pick it out of the other stuff before its even out of the box. "I'm back on the list, baby"

OK, so no coincidence that I went and spent a few bucks in March but anyway, so I get two letters this month. One, that is always a "golden ticket" (I don't get anything from them other wise) and one that is normally one of those event planner things. I should include that this one does always has a half-off buffet coupon or such but that's about it. I give it the normal once over to see whats new. "Do my eyes deceive me" nope it now reads "half-off buffet or $5.00 cash back" Yes, "I've got a golden Ticket" (I really hope Dahl does not sue me for the use of lines from Wonka but it fits)

So that's two $5.00 dollar coupons for this trip, I'm love in it (damn, now McDonald's, what is wrong with me today, I'm never going to get enough coupons to pay my lawyer fee's)

Comps are a funny world. You can read every book, watch every show, research online as much as possible, but it all boils down to money played. Yes, you can find those vouchers in Vegas magazines for new player sign up bonuses and stuff, and they are great for the first time but wheres the love afterwords. A penny player doesn't stand a chance.

Being that my gambling life started in Oregon where your lucky to get a dollar off a buffet on your birthday, I'm happy with my casinos in Colorado. I get stuff for my birthday, (a mug, a pen, a buffet, etc) the monthly mailers, and of course, the occasional "Golden Ticket."

J

St. Maarten Casino Trip Report-May 1st 2007

Transportation: Arrived via the Disney Cruise line

Then a water taxi to Main Street in Philipsburg

Weather: Rain early, very hot and humid by 10 am

What a trip!!!!!

Pre-Arrival

I had done as much research as possible before the trip. Mapping out casino locations, reading what little information there was available, and trying to educate myself on what to expect. Didn’t help much. The hours of operation seem to change based on if there are cruise ships in port or not. Different web pages had different casinos on them, so I found a casino that I had never even read about which was a nice surprise.

While we were on the ship a rumor started buzzing about the Island closing down for a parade. Most of the information was coming from a shopping presentation on board where the narrator told everyone that most, if not all the stores, on the island would be closing at 1:00 PM for “Carnival.” This of course scared me, as I wasn’t sure how it would effect my day of gambling. This was our only stop with any casinos, so I was in panic mode.

I went to the Guest Services on the ship and asked if they knew anything or how it would effect my casino time. They didn’t know much except that it was true that most stores would close at 1 pm and there was a five-hour parade that would run from one side of the island to the other but that was it.

This through off my planning a bit, as some of the casinos that I wanted to go to were near the airport and I couldn’t find out how this parade would effect traffic flow as I’ve read of people getting stuck because of a draw bridge near the airport and missing there cruise.

Time to Play

The ship docked just after 7 am, I think. The plan was to get breakfast on the ship, do some morning shopping, and hit the casinos as they open. Some had open times of 10 and other weren’t advertised to open until 1 or 2.

When we arrived I went out on deck and saw it was raining. At this point it was just a light drizzle but still not a good start. After breakfast, it appeared that the skies were clearing and I was ready to go.

I had revised my planning to include only the downtown casinos, just didn’t want to chance getting stranded. I knew of 4 casinos in the downtown district so I figured that was enough to keep me going. By looking over the maps, I knew that I could either walk about 15 minutes to downtown and around or there was a water taxi for 5 dollars a person that would take me back and forth all day. I went with the water taxi. Lot less walking J

The water taxi was well marked and very close to where we docked. Service was fast and efficient, never waited to long and drivers were very friendly.

There are 3 stops for the water taxi, one at the cruise terminal and one on either side of downtown. We first stopped on the east side of downtown where everyone got off. I asked the driver if it was to early to go to the other side and he said it wasn’t a problem. So it was just my wife and I on the boat, it was like we had rented a private tour of the harbor or something, it was nice.

The water taxi dropped us off at a small dock on the west side of down town. As we were driving up, my wife pointed out a casino, just off the dock, very close.

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Beach Plaza Casino:

This was my surprise casino as it was not in any of my information but nice. It was rather small but had a good selection of games. Most were relatively old, they had Cash Crop, the game based on Battleship (I don’t know the name, I always thought it was called Battleship, but the gaming case had a different name on it, so I guess I was wrong), and Chicken Run.

The staff was friendly but security was hovering. (a trend which would continue) At this point there are only about 4 people playing in the casino; My wife, a lady right by the door, a local in the back by the cage, and me at the Battleship game, not very busy. This security guard must have come by about five times in as many minutes. I don’t know if he was bored or thought I was going to rob the place. I had an uneasily feeling most of the time.

I discovered something else I didn’t like about gaming in St. Maarten, “The Gamble feature”. Some may remember this but it not as common as it used to be. After you get a winning spin, no matter how big or small, you can chose to gamble with a chance to double up. It’s either a high-low game (guess if the card will be Ace-6 or 7-King thing) or Black/Red Card. I hate this feature. If you read my Florida Report, you will know I like the games to flow, this just slowed things down. After each winning spin you had to hit the take win or gamble buttons, then the repeat bet button. Just a waste of time, in my opinion.

Other than the hovering security guard, my one complaint would have to be that I actually had to wait for a hand pay of a $10 dollar win. I’m not sure if it was the machine I was on or what, but the staff guy came over with Dell palm pilot to pay me. I just laughed. He was using a wireless palm pilot to commutate with the system to verify my win. Seems like a real secure system.

After waiting for him to sync up, we left. About a half hour of playtime and left $5.00 dollars down, not a bad first stop

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As I said this was the surprise stop. I had to relocate myself on my maps to figure out my next plan of action. Also with the parade news, I had to make sure to stop at all the stores on my wife’s list in between casino stops and before 1 PM.

I found some of her stops were just east or to the left of our current location, so if we walked up a block on one side of the street we could hit two of her stores and a casino then come back on the other side of the street, hit a few more of hers and the other casino on the west end of town, and we were covered.

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Coliseum: Don’t know why it says Princess Casino. I got it at the Coliseum?

First impression, this place is just my style. Large, well lit, lots of people but still plenty of open machines, and tables

Lots of new games, Roulette the slot version (I’ve read about it but hadn’t seen it yet) and a few that are leaving the floors here in the states, Who’s That Girl and such.

Coin pay machines, I’m a complete and total backer of coin less gaming. I don’t like how dirty your hands get with all those coins and it’s heavy if you get lucky.

All and all, the gaming was not that great. Lots of options, just none that I wanted to play.

We decided to leave pretty quickly. On the way out, they have one of the oversized dollar machines, still with the giant arm. I just felt like playing it. While I was playing, my wife wanted to take my picture, so she snaps a few shots. Immediately 3 security guards surround her, I didn’t even have time to move. They are yelling at her about taking photos, saying she’s an international and she should know better. There was actually one of the guards who was being very nice just saying he needed to see her delete the photo and it would be ok, but one guy was just over the top.

Now as you can tell from the site we take photos everywhere. We took all kinds of photos at Atlantis in Nassau, Bahamas; we take photos in all the casinos we go to here in the states and have never had anyone say a thing. I know that you couldn’t take photos in the old days but you used to not be able to talk on your cell phones either. We asked a few people back on the ship and at home and got different responses from everyone on this issue.

Either way, my wife was not happy and not happy with me for playing out my credits in the machine. She was not giving that casino anymore of her money and we were leaving.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------I was trying to find more of her stores to try and calm her down but the security guards had defiantly scared the heck out of her and the camera didn’t came back out of her bag for a few hours. After we got somewhat settled we moved to the next casino.

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Rouge et Noir Casino:

This was the most themed casino on our trip. It was a beautiful place with a Mardi Gras/Carnival theme. Would have loved to take some photos………….

Gaming floor was small, three rooms with limited gaming. Not many penny machines. 6 tables or so on the lower level with 5-dollar minimums, I think. We didn’t stay long. I played a Cash Crop machine, while the wife played something beside me just trying to get past her unpleasant experience.

The staff was nice and the place was great. Just don’t think the personal mood was right to enjoy it enough. Would defiantly go back on a future visit, spend more time, and ask to take photos…..

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We then walked down to the east end of the Philipsburg area. People began to come out to the main street and set up chairs and stuff for the parade. Still no information on where and when the thing was coming but at least we finally had evidence that something was really happening.

We stopped at a few stores and the Guava berry Museum. Bought some BBQ sauce that I can’t wait to try, and then made it to our next stop.

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Diamond Casino:

On the far east end of the main street near the first water taxi stop was this rather small casino, (I did see some stairs so it may have been two floors but I didn’t investigate), Found some games that I had never seen and hope to never see again. Weird line configurations almost like Aristocrat’s 50 Lions but much worse. At least 50 Lions pays.

Its tables and a large virtual horse racing game dominated this place. The thing that threw me off the most was when I went to get change, the attendant was just standing at a machine talking to someone, a friend I assumed, saw me, walked to the cage, opened the door, got me my change, (wouldn’t break down a 20 into 5’s, even when we asked), then walked back out the door and started her conversation back up with her friend. Interesting to say the least.

In and out and won’t be back. Not worth the time.

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Directly across the street, well actually around the corner a bit, was the last casino on my list for downtown.

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Jump-Up Casino: This casino is actually advertised as being themed after the “Carnival” but I didn’t see it. It was very large in size but not much inside. It seems like they have huge dances or maybe they used to have tables in it but just a bunch of unused space. I guess if you were in a wheel chair or ECV, this would be a good place with lots of room between machines, but just felt hollow to me.

Really didn’t play much in here either. I found an IC Money machine and did nothing. Saw a coin and an Island pass by once but came nowhere near matching up for me.

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This trip was fun; being that how many times do you get the chance to go to St. Maarten in the first place. I’m the type of person who just enjoys getting to go to a casino. I may complain about gaming types, selection of machines, or whatever, but in the end, if I got to go to a casino of any sort. I’m happy

Recommendations: Even though the security guards scarred the heck out of my wife, I would have to say that out of the five casinos we went too, I enjoyed the Coliseum Casino the most. It had a nice selection of games, the general staff was nice, and décor was warm and inviting.

Second place would be the Beach Plaza Casino. I can get past the hovering security guard, I’ll write it off as he must have been bored. I can look past the hand pay for a $10 win as a machine issue or something; I didn’t see anyone else getting hand pays. It was a nice place with friendly staff and enough machines to keep you busy. I’m defiantly biased due to them having one of my old favorites in Battleship but there was a nice mixture of somewhat new and old machines.

That’s it; it was an all and all-amazing couple of hours of casino time. If I were to ever visit again I would first make sure there was no parade scheduled for that time and second I would try the casinos near the airport in Maho Bay before I spent time in downtown again.

Till next time,

J

Florida Casino Information

I lived in Florida for 4 years and I must say for a casino player and more specifically a penny player like me, it was a rough period of time.

You have two options when it comes to slot play in Florida. You have either the Seminole Hard Rock Casinos in Hollywood and Tampa or your choice of casino boat cruises. This has changed some since my time in Florida with the new laws allowing slot play at race tracks in Broward County and other counties so there are now more options. For more information read this article from the Florida Casino Report website

I had the pleasure of going to both Hard Rocks but spent most of my time in Tampa. I did actually get to go when it was still the Seminole Indian Gaming Palace. All I remember about it prior to the new management was it was very smokey and had games I had never seen before. It was then I learned the little trick to Florida land-based gaming.

As some may know, Florida is a Class II machine base. Which means that the slot machines primary function is a bingo game. On the top of every player screen there is a standard 24 number bingo card. Before each spin, a number is drawn and a space is marked accordingly on your card. I'm not an expert so I wont dive deeper into the logistics of it all.

The main issue I have with this type of gaming is that there is a lag in play while you and others wait for this bingo number to be drawn. Yes, you do occasionally get a bingo and win some minuscule amount of money, but its just annoying. Always confused me how I would get odd numbers on a nickel machine, $5,27 or so.

Now after the Hard Rock joined up with the Seminole Gaming place to become the Seminole Hard Rock Casinos, the games did get more modernized with games like Little Green Men, Tex Tea, Jackpot Party, and Wheel of Fortune being added to random pull tab type machines and penny machines started to appear more and more, the bingo game is still the main function of the machines. So now you have better games with more interactive bonus rounds but even more impatience with the lag time because of the Bingo function. At least its not as smokey as it used to be.

As for the casino cruises, or cruise to no where as Its been referred to, wow. The boats, at least the one I was on, are fairly large, and lots of the popular games but very, very, few penny machines.

It was interesting because its a completely different mentality of slot player. The basics of it is that when you first enter the ship all the games are off. This was the first time I have ever seen the machines not on. At the time I was used to 24 hour gaming but I have learned now that I'm in Colorado were casino are only 8 am - 2 am, that machines can be turned off. wow. I was wonder why everyone was fighting over chairs at the slot machines if they were all off.

Well once you get into international waters which is about 3o-45 minutes after you castoff, all the machines turn on. Like magic, all the chairs rotated and the coins started to drop. It was amazing. I have never felt like such a casino novice in my life. Be prepared, your on that ship for 4 hours no matter how long your bank roll lasts. Once the bank roll is gone, good luck.

Well that's about it for today, Ill be back later with specific reviews for each of these casinos but for the mean time check out the Florida Casino Report for specific information on gaming in Florida and casino reviews.

J

3 Coffee Mugs and a Stuffed Animal Later

What a title to a blog, but believe me It has a purpose. Now the date of this trip has been debated by all parties but the story is the same either way.

It was the Summer of 1998. My parents and I did a road trip from Oregon to Texas, over to Las Vegas, down to San Diego, and the home to Oregon. Lots of driving but allot of fun, until Las Vegas that is.

I was 18 at the time. As you can tell by some of my previous post, gambling is in my blood. Most, if not all, of my family gamble. My mother's side are the Slot players and my fathers side is the Black Jack and Horse racing crowd.

In Las Vegas we met up with my Aunt and Uncle from San Diego. We spend most of our time in Circus Circus so I, the 18 year old, can have something to do. By now I've done the circuit of kiddy games, Ive knocked over milk bottles to get 3 Circus Circus coffee mugs and Ive won the roller ball horse race game to get a stuffed animal, Ive wasted about 50 bucks on games, owe well at least I had fun......

We leave Vegas for San Diego, Ive got my mugs and an animal to keep me company on the 5 hour drive, yeah.

We have been at my uncles house for maybe an hour. I'm at the table playing on a laptop, when my uncle asks if we want to go to the casino. I'm sitting at the table looking at him going, I just sat in Vegas and watched you guys play why would I want to do that here too.

My uncle replies "you only have to be 18 to gamble at the Indian Casinos in California."

Wait, hold on a minute, you only have to be 18 in Cali, I'm going nuts. You couldn't have filled me in on this little detail about 3 coffee mugs and a stuffed animal ago.....

30 minutes later were sitting at the Barona Casino and I'm playing. Nervous as all heck, thinking I'm breaking the law or something, but playing.

Needless to say on future trips to Vegas, I didn't play the midway games, I didn't play the pinball machines, I just stood by, leaned against the 2nd floor rail at the Rio, and watch my parents play the machines below. Knowing that in just a few hours we would cross that magical state line that kept me from doing what I love, gamble.

J

Slots and Technology

Hey guys,

My site is all about Casino's and Slot machines but without the newest and latest technology we would still be pulling on one-armed bandits looking for cherries and bells, boring.

I try to keep up with technology as much as possible. My favorite resource has always been CNET.com. I used to watch cnet TV every Saturday back in Jr. High and High School. I just liked all the new crazy stuff that I would most likely never be able to afford.

Sometime last year CNET ran a contest to do a tech review video for a chance to win a trip to Las Vegas for the CES conference. This is the largest tech show in the world where tech companies display all the new products (except for Apple, whom runs its own show)

I wanted to enter the contest but Technology is a hobby, unlike casinos and slots which are my passion. If Casino Player or Strictly Slots were to run a competition like this, I'm in.

Anyway, the point to this blog is to bring attention to a new link on my site for www.techsmesssage.com. This site is ran by one of the winners for that CNET contest, Nate Lanxon. After winning the contest, he was hired by CNET UK and now is there MP3 & Digital Music Reviewer.

His site now has an ongoing diary of life behind the scenes at CNET, with great prospective and information on Technology and life in general.

If you are interested in technology or just want to get a different prospective on things. (I'm starting to like CNET UK more than the US version now) Check it out on my side bar.

With all that said I'm still counting down the seconds till my next trip to the casino. As Ive said before, I will be leaving for a 7 day cruise in 15 days. Cant wait. We will just have to see what kind of machines ST. Maarteen has. I hope I didnt jinx myself and its all one-armed bandits with cherries and bells.

Till next time,
J

The "Big One"

As you can tell from my chip maps, Ive been to casino's all over the US and elsewhere. Ive hit the so called "big one" once and here's my story....

Now, what is the "Big One?" Well I deem it to be the highest paid line bet allowed by a machine. Not a win in a bonus round or mystery prize but 5 lined up symbols giving x amount of credits.

My "Big One" came in 2001 at Spirit Mountain Casino in Oregon. I was playing a .05¢ Monopoly Money Grab machine. 9 lines 1 coin total bet, so .45¢ a spin, ooh. I few spins and the the machine goes nutty. Money Bag wild symbols line up, 5 on line 9 Top right to Bottom Left. I'm watching the credits roll and excited as all heck. My mother is sitting about 15 machines away from me and I'm yelling at her, shes not paying any attention, finally I scream "Debbie", her head swings my way and she can see it in my face. She cashes out immediately.

The game is still just running off credits and I'm just taking in the sounds. I'm not touching the machine for nothing. My mother has finally made her way over and is excited for me as it finished rolling at around $750 or so. Now for a bet of .45¢ I'm just ecstatic.

The thing that I remember the most of the entire event though was the people around me, they were so mad and what I deemed to be just plain rude. Of course, I'm the only one in the whole bank of machines that's not playing at max bet. And wouldn't you know it, the lady right next to me, not happy for me at all, "You would have won $122,000 if you were playing max bet, like the rest of us." Owe, well thanks, glad to know that, Ill take my $700 and you have a good day.

Its funny. I see someone win $15 bucks on a machine and I'm happy for them. I'm wishing them the best. And the only person who seemed to be happy for me was my mom. Crazy! 21 year old kid, playing on a few bucks from a crap job, trying to have a good time, tears rolling down my face as I've already spent the money in my mind,(went to Massachusetts for two weeks and had a heck of a good time) and all this lady can say to me is "you would've." Whatever.

I guess it's because of this, that I wish everyone, especially those who have never hit the "Big One" the best, no matter how big or small the winning might be.

Are there any other penny players that have felt like this? Comments?

Until next time, Good Luck,
J
Colorado, USA

The Road Less Traveled

Well not really but since the opening of the Central City Parkway, travel to and from Black Hawk and Central City, Colorado is faster and in my opinion safer than ever before.

Opening in Spring 2005, this 4 lane 8.4 mile highway from I-70 has drawn over 750,000 cars (which explains why there is a car counting cord draped across the road at its highest point) What used to take you a hour on a two line stretch of road which bordered a canyon wall and a large drop off on the other side, now takes about 40 minutes. (for me)

Though the CC Parkway may not be as picturesque as highway 6 to route 119, with the streams and mountain side areas. (once saw a mountain goat just hanging out), it makes the journey allot more pleasant. CC Parkway does have a great view of the open mountains though as its appears to be just carved out of the side of one itself.

With this passing season of record amounts of snow fall we reflect on how well traffic and safety have held up over this amazing season. As far as local media goes there was no reported accidents on CC Parkway verses 2 major accidents on the old route 6, one of which involved two elderly patrons driving off an embankment into the stream. With the extra lanes and lighting for a large section of CC Parkway, it seems to have held up better during the season.

I once rode the old route during a "minor snow storm" in a Geo Metro. As my then girlfriend (now wife, luckily) clasp my leg, yelling at me for making her go out in this weather, and her friends doing everything they could to keep the car on the road, It makes me really appreciate the new road choose to the casino towns. Less yelling from the wife and more time to spend on the machines, which then again causes yelling from the wife on time spent on the machines, um mm, guess its just a different kind of trade off.

J

Trip Report for Sunday March 25^th, 2007

Planning and the Drive

An scheduled trip up the mountain was just what the doctor ordered. The day started at 6:15 am with some computer work and finding my Players Card binder.

Bankroll for this trip was a total of $60. There wasn’t much in our reserve as we are saving like crazy for our cruise and I didn’t want to dip into my St. Maarten fund that deeply. Only 31 more days until we leave. I was only budgeting $20 apiece, until I received a generous contribution from someone because I helped them with their cell phone. I love being technologically savvy. $30 apiece for penny players should get us a few of hours of fun.

After my wife returned from church we left around 8:15am for Blackhawk, CO. It was a nice day in comparison to the day before, when it had rained all day. The sky was blue and there was a nice white dusting of snow on the Rockies, which makes the trip up I-70 very beautiful.

As you’re driving up I-70, you pass a Bison reserve (exit at Genesee). We have seen them only one time previously, when they were near the side of the road. Sunday was the first time that we had seen them and had our camera with us.

Not much traffic for a Sunday morning so the drive took about 40 minutes from Lakewood.

Casinos

We started the day at Ameristar. When we first arrived, I stopped at the Players Club Desk to see if I had any credits on my card, and also to update my address. I had a whopping 91¢ of available comps. Wow, I’m so close to that new car, I can feel it.

The action at Ameristar was slow this early in the morning. We played on a few new machines but none of them were hitting.

Next we walked over to The Lodge. I wanted to play the new Monopoly Big Event® game. I had heard from someone who had played it that it was a lot of fun. Jen and I sat next to each other and there was one other lady on the far end. The total chairs set up are for six people to play at once. Unfortunately, nothing was won by any of us. I’m still not quite sure why the actual games are not Monopoly® themed, only the bonus rounds are. I did read on WMS Gaming last week (they have since redesigned their site, and I can no longer find the link that I am referring too), that they will be releasing another version of the old Money Grab Monopoly game here soon. This was one of my favorite incarnations of the game, so I am very excited to see it back again soon.

Not much going on at The Lodge either. I did see a new AVP® (Alien vs. Predator) game, but wasn’t feeling up to playing it.

My wife loves to play at Colorado Central Station so we made the journey down the hill. There are 3 floors to CCS, and most people never make it to the basement since it is not very well marked. We like it because it is always quiet with more open machines there.

At this point I’ve got $10 bucks left and I think Jen had $15, so we know the day is almost over for us. She finds her current favorite machine, Keepin’ up with the Joneses®

I’m playing the Ring Quest® game right next to her. We are both up and down again as I go out. Down to my last $5. I move on to my old stand-by Risqué Business, its still a 9-line machine so I know it will keep me running for a little while. Didn’t last long and I was out.

By now Jen has moved on to Texas Tea, she cashed out of Joneses up enough to give me another $5. I sat down next to her at a Used Car Lot Machine

I like this machine with the character having a heavy accent and you can change the setting to speak and display in Spanish, which I think is cool even though I wouldn’t have a clue what he’s saying.

I was up and down again but cashed out with my/her $5 and Jen is ready to go, so we made our way back to our car at Ameristar.

Now as any gambler knows that $5 is burning a hole is my pocket, walking through the casino floors with machines going off all around me. Calling me, saying sit here and you will win, Liars! But of course I’m going to spend that last $5, have too. It’s the law, isn’t it?

I’m walking around Ameristar aimlessly looking for that machine that going to hit, I finally sit down at Diamond Ridge game. Jen’s just watching as she is walking out with her $10 for Scrapbooking stuff. Spin 3, bonus round. Finally, been a slow day on the bonus rounds. There are 3 rows of Diamonds, Sapphires and something else to pick from. You pick a row and then get 3 picks from that row. You get either a number of credits or the Crazy Miner, which awards you all of the credits for that row. I got 2 crazy miners and 3 credit units from the last row. Cashed out at $15.

Stop now, I don’t think so. I cash in the $15 ticket and bribe my wife by giving her $5 for Lucky Lemmings. It works; she sits down and starts playing. I head over to Whales of Cash, just behind where she sat down. She’s winning and going to bonus rounds every spin so she’s have a good time. I’m down to my last 14 credits or so, all lines selected except for the top and bottom far corners and of course, money bag, money bag, Whale 2X, Bonus Round. I’m mad of course not having all lines but hey I’m in. 2^nd spin, money bag, money bag, money bag, more spins. Something must have matched up as the credits hit $50 bucks. I’m calling Jen and hand gesturing the amount to her and she get all excited. It finished out with $65 dollars. COLLECT

We both waste time and money on other machines but nothing else hits. We walk out the door with $70, $10 up and 3 hours of up and down playing time.

All and all a great trip with the last second come back.

Hope you enjoyed reading this as much as I enjoyed playing and recounting my steps. Lets hope my trip report from St. Maarten ends the same way, with us leaving with more money then we went in with.

J

A working map

Just as I post the link to Flickr, I find a site to post my map to this page. At the bottom of my page is a new map with direct access to my photos.

I used trippermap.com it was very easy to set up and gives you the HTML coding to post directly. This is the free map but for a small fee there is a more advance map with better markers and mapping.

To access each of my photos just click the black icon on the map and it will bring them up.

Also, you can still go to my Flickr account for a more interactive view,

Enjoy,
J

Casinos that I have been to on Flickr Map

Ive been trying to place my Flickr map on this site for two days now and its not working for me. So for the time being, here is the Link to my Flickr site. I have placed photos of all my casino chips on their geographical locations. Make sure you have the map extended out far enough to see south America as there are 7 pictures from Aruba on this map.

Enjoy,
J

Click Here For MAP

Colorado Smoking Ban

It has been almost a year since all public areas in Colorado have become non-smoking. The exception of this law has been Cigar Bars, the smoker’s lounge at Denver International Airport, and Casinos.

I won’t say I'm allergic to cigarette smoke, but I am somewhat bothered by it. I choose to avoid it if I can. For years, this has been a tradeoff issue for me. Even though casinos and bingo halls have non-smoking sections, I know that I will still come home smelling of smoke. I enjoy the games too much to let it deter me, but on the other hand a smoke free casino for my wife would be a great benefit for me.

The latest word out of the Colorado House of Representatives is they have turned away a new house bill that would make all casinos non-smoking. The language of the bill 1269 only encompasses casinos, and the members of the house voted 18-17 against it. It seems the main objection is that this bill should cover all areas previously mentioned. So it’s now back to the Senate.

Smokers will find a way to smoke, that's the truth. Some bars in Colorado Springs, CO have chosen to buck the laws and allow smoking in their restaurants and have a collection plate from patrons to help pay for any fines. The one I really like is as you exit a restaurant you now walk through a cloud of smoke as you come out the door. The original ban states that smoking must not occur within 5 feet of the entrance to an establishment. Who's going to sit there with a tape measure and enforce this regulation to the people?

On the other spectrum, places like Ameristar Casino in Black Hawk, CO was one of the first to say that their restaurants would be completely non-smoking, while still allowing patrons to smoke on the casino floors. Not a requirement by law, but management felt that if every other restaurant in CO was going to be non-smoking, they should follow suite.

Non-smoking sections in casinos are nothing new. I remember the first non-smoking room that I went to at Spirit Mountain Casino in Grand Ronde, Oregon. It was small, had some older games, and the service wasn't that great. It also seemed that the new games were just outside the non-smoking doors and were louder, as if they were trying to draw you out. Things have since changed, as the room has gotten progressively larger, there are newer games, and the service is faster. They have also placed a concession stand outside the doors of the section. So now instead of smelling smoke, you smell hot dogs.

Since this session of Congress is almost over, it appears it will be at least another year before we can address the smoking issue again. However, as more and more places explore this concept, one has to wonder how long it can go on. Will casinos ever go fully non-smoking? Will it really matter? Will it actually hurt the casino’s bottom line? As some have fought on this issue, what’s more addictive and more important to an addict, smoking or gambling?

Just a few thoughts...... J