vpFREE2 Forums

What the ----? Ameristar update

#1

When Ameristar had several full pay machines -- 25 cent, 5-play -- a
couple years ago we played there on a regular basis. In fact Lucky
Lucy and I both reached Star Club status. After they downgraded all
the machines we greatly cut back on our gaming there. We told our
casino host why we were leaving. It goes without saying we soon lost
our Star Club status, in fact I don't even have a black card any more.
It has been more than a year since this occurred.

Imagine our surprise upon returning home after spending the winter in
the Southwest to find in the mail that Lucky Lucy had been issued a
Star Club card. What is this all about? Did they loose so many Star
Club members they had to resurrect some old members? Ploy to get us
to come back? Well it worked, we go and eat their food and drink
their beverages. :wink: OK, I'll admit, we do play a little on some of
the progressive VP machines if the RF get high enough. Like today,
one bank of machines that has 7/5 Bonus with a progressive of $6500+.

Remains to be seen if they renew her membership when it expires in July.

Rick

#2

--- In vpFREE_KC@yahoogroups.com, "Rick & Lucky Lucy"
<luckylucy39@...> wrote:

<<<<<<snip>>>>>>

Imagine our surprise upon returning home after spending the winter in
the Southwest to find in the mail that Lucky Lucy had been issued a
Star Club card.

<<<<<snip>>>>>

···

Remains to be seen if they renew her membership when it expires in July.

Rick

*******************

They didn't renew but she did get a black card so we can still get
into the good parking lot (but who wants to).

More bad news: The slant top progressive VP machines, both 25 cent
and $1 are now gone. They had 7/5 bonus that sometimes went positive.
Both Lucky Lucy and I hit progressives well over $5K each last year.
They are being replaced by penny slots. Guess that is the trend
these days, replace 98-99% machines with 86% machines.

Still more bad news: From today's KC Star Business section

**Rebecca Theim, Ameristar spokeswoman, said the 31 jobs cut in Kansas
City included hotel housekeepers as that task is outsourced, some
phone operators and the casino's staff of gaming floor "ambassadors,"
who interacted with players.**

<<<<snip>>>>>

**Kanofsky said the company last month began cutting back on its
promotional spending to lure gamblers to its casinos, and that more
cuts were planned.

"In response to the weakness in the economy, we first attempted to
drive incremental profitable revenue through increased promotional
activity in the first and second quarters, which proved unsuccessful.

"We began curtailing promotional spending in the third quarter, and we
plan to make more significant reductions beginning in the fourth
quarter," he said.**

The full article can be found at:
http://www.kansascity.com/business/story/733707.html

So looks like Ameristar is making it harder and harder for us to play
there. No decent machines and no promotions = 'go somewhere else to
play.'

Rick

#3

I thought the good parking lot was only for Star Club. Do all black cards get to use it also?
   
  Donna

          --- In vpFREE_KC@yahoogroups.com, "Rick & Lucky Lucy"
<luckylucy39@...> wrote:

<<<<<<snip>>>>>>

Imagine our surprise upon returning home after spending the winter in
the Southwest to find in the mail that Lucky Lucy had been issued a
Star Club card.

<<<<<snip>>>>>

···

Rick & Lucky Lucy <luckylucy39@earthlink.net> wrote:

Remains to be seen if they renew her membership when it expires in July.

Rick

*******************

They didn't renew but she did get a black card so we can still get
into the good parking lot (but who wants to).

More bad news: The slant top progressive VP machines, both 25 cent
and $1 are now gone. They had 7/5 bonus that sometimes went positive.
Both Lucky Lucy and I hit progressives well over $5K each last year.
They are being replaced by penny slots. Guess that is the trend
these days, replace 98-99% machines with 86% machines.

Still more bad news: From today's KC Star Business section

**Rebecca Theim, Ameristar spokeswoman, said the 31 jobs cut in Kansas
City included hotel housekeepers as that task is outsourced, some
phone operators and the casino's staff of gaming floor "ambassadors,"
who interacted with players.**

<<<<snip>>>>>

**Kanofsky said the company last month began cutting back on its
promotional spending to lure gamblers to its casinos, and that more
cuts were planned.

"In response to the weakness in the economy, we first attempted to
drive incremental profitable revenue through increased promotional
activity in the first and second quarters, which proved unsuccessful.

"We began curtailing promotional spending in the third quarter, and we
plan to make more significant reductions beginning in the fourth
quarter," he said.**

The full article can be found at:
http://www.kansascity.com/business/story/733707.html

So looks like Ameristar is making it harder and harder for us to play
there. No decent machines and no promotions = 'go somewhere else to
play.'

Rick

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

#4

The black card will get you into the outside lot but takes a Star Club
card to get in the parking garage area. We mostly parked in the
outside lot anyway.

Rick

I thought the good parking lot was only for Star Club. Do all black

cards get to use it also?

···

--- In vpFREE_KC@yahoogroups.com, K & D Puffer <kdpuffer@...> wrote:

   
  Donna

#5

I played there on Tuesday night. The .25 9/7 DB progressives are
still there and they have actually added the other bar next to the
buffet with .25 9/7 DB machines. So now it is both of the bars next
to the buffet and the one circle bar upstairs with .25 9/7 DB
progressive. Also on that side they have a group of eight game kings
that are tied in to the progressive, alas 9/6 only at the sit down tie
ins though but it makes the progressive rise much faster for us 9/7
players. Also I made an interesting discovery. There is a one line
of .25/.50/$1 MD/MG Game Kings near the upstairs cashier that has 9/6
DDB on all of those denominations. No progressive on those, but I
thought that was still a move in the right direction. Their VP
inventory has actually improved in the last couple of months for the
first time in years. Their comp policies are a joke for VP players,
and are roughly 25% of what they were when Station owned them, but at
least the games are getting better. On a side note, saw an article on
the LVA about a possible sale of the Ameristar group of casinos and a
possible buyer being Boyd. That would be the best thing that could
happen to VP players looking for a good run for their money in KC.