Quoted from Gryszzz:My virgin VFW voyage! I'm so excited!
What day/days are you going? I will have a KBS chilled for ya first thing for breakfast before the doors open.
(Topic ID: 220435)
Clay...will there be an EM or other tourney Friday morning? They have been so much fun and was looking forward to it. How about including the Zaccaria machines in the tournament?
Milford, MI
Quoted from Gryszzz:My virgin VFW voyage! I'm so excited!
From Abracadabra to Zankor 400+ games to choose from
Quoted from swillie:Clay...will there be an EM or other tourney Friday morning? They have been so much fun and was looking forward to it. How about including the Zaccaria machines in the tournament?
https://pinside.com/pinball/forum/topic/ann-arbor-mi-vfw-pinball-show-2019#post-4764775
Just bought my ticket reservation for 2019. Fantastic show last year with some great guys providing support throughout the event. Hope at least the morning tournament happens again since it bought you an extra six hours of awesome gameplay! If it doesn’t, is there a possibility of the show opening before 4? Perhaps a VIP option?
Quoted from Jjsmooth:Local college graduation weekend..
Good luck.
Ballykid walks that weekend. Grad party is the VFW Showcase that he works. But leaves early on Saturday for the graduation.
Quoted from Jjsmooth:Local college graduation weekend..
Good luck.
Many hotels in the area are sold out or have inflated prices. The RedRoofInn I usually stay at in AA North is charging north of $250 a night when its normally $70.
I’m just glad we got a room. We had to commit to a $150 per night rate at holiday Inn. Pricey, but not terrible.
Quoted from chuckwurt:I’m just glad we got a room. We had to commit to a $150 per night rate at holiday Inn. Pricey, but not terrible.
Ditto for us. Stayed there for the Mini show. Really enjoyed the stay, very modern rooms - must be a fairly new hotel. A couple of good restaurants across the parking lot. Plus breakfast (which was very nice) included.
Quoted from mbwalker:Ditto for us. Stayed there for the Mini show. Really enjoyed the stay, very modern rooms - must be a fairly new hotel. A couple of good restaurants across the parking lot. Plus breakfast (which was very nice) included.
A Culver's just opened up a few weeks ago right next door to the Holiday Inn for the after show gut busters.
Quoted from KingBW:A Culver's just opened up a few weeks ago right next door to the Holiday Inn for the after show gut busters.
Didn't know that, thanks. We ate at the Olive Garden. I think there was a Friday's under construction at the time too.
Quoted from mbwalker:Didn't know that, thanks. We ate at the Olive Garden. I think there was a Friday's under construction at the time too.
Yes, those are still there too. Tee Bonez Tavern is down the road a piece too - reasonable prices with good food, smaller place with a bunch of TVs. Those would probably be the closest recommendations for that hotel.
there is a red roof in in Farmington MI, I guess about 45 minute drive to the VFW. Rates on line started at $55.00/night.
Excited to see the new t-shirt design this year!
Hoping for a pink or purple option.
I know you're reading this EchoVictor
Quoted from TheLaw:Tank top with cut out nipples option. For friend of course.
It's Gryszzz
I can get on board with this
University of Michigan Spring Commencement is Saturday, May 4th. It's why all the hotels are sold out. It's also my son's graduation. I've got six-figures into that piece of sheepskin. I can't miss that. Really bummed.... just not the weekend to leave the family to play pinball.
Quoted from robotron911:University of Michigan Spring Commencement is Saturday, May 4th. It's why all the hotels are sold out. It's also my son's graduation. I've got six-figures into that piece of sheepskin. I can't miss that. Really bummed.... just not the weekend to leave the family to play pinball.
Same for Ballykid as I said 17 posts before yours. At Michigan State who also has commencements that weekend for everything except Law and Medical degrees.
He's working the VFW Show for most of the weekend as part of the celebration. Then he moves to Reno to start his real career. Bally stuff. But NOT for Mr. Personality/Mr. Pinball.
We tried to do the VFW show one week earlier this year. but i talked to the Kzoo people, and they were planning for the last weekend in April. And before that easter is April 21 (which is what pushed Kzoo to the last weekend). And the weekend after may 3-5 is mothers day. so we were cornered into May 3-5, 2019.
Quoted from Gryszzz:Congratulations Mr Bally and Robotron on kids finally getting their own insurance! Can't wait!
And paying their car insurance, their cell phone bill, their license plates, their clothes, their food..... it's Christmas in May!
Unfortunate that hotels are booked as I’ve had tickets for VFW for last 2 shows but work got in the way in Chicago at last second both times. My stepson goes to Western Michigan in Kalamazoo this year and he’ll be home in April so will have an emty apartment to use. Not Ann Arbor but close enough and certainly better than driving out of the western suburbs of Chicago. Will finally get to see two venues I’ve always wanted to see and smart enough this year to block out both Fridays before with vacation days.
Quoted from TheLaw:WTF Red Roof for 250?!?
Yes, today's price for May 2-5th
pasted_image (resized).pngFor those looking for best value in instead of convenience. Stay on the I-96 corridor from Novi to Howell, US-23 corridor from Brighton to Fenton, M-59 corridor from Highland to Howell or I-275 from Novi to Canton. There really is not anything west of Ann Arbor until Jackson. The first major civilization south of Ann Arbor is Dundee where Cabela’s is located.
BTW:
Personally, I'm looking forward to missing the show on Saturday. I'll be at the University of Michigan spring commencement as the proud father of a newly minted U of M Engineer.
Go Blue
Doug D
VFW Member
Quoted from Meegis:Excited to see the new t-shirt design this year!
Hoping for a pink or purple option.
I know you're reading this echovictor
*Cough*
This is more.like being welcomed into someone's home to play their personal collection tpf is an expo with vendors, new releases,seminars.....
Hamilton, ON
Quoted from Puffdanny:This is more.like being welcomed into someone's home to play their personal collection tpf is an expo with vendors, new releases,seminars.....
Or like a private version of the Pinball Hall of Fame in Vegas where all the games are on free play and the machines are working and there is an army of skilled technicians where when one machine goes down they fix it immediately. Basically heaven if all you want to do is play pinball.
(This wasn’t meant to be a shot of the Pinball Hall of Fame, that is a commercial establishment open every(?) day of the year that also depends on volunteers but can’t possibly staff as many as another place that opens a limited number of times a year.)
admittedly i'm biased... but if you want to *play* pinball, there is no show better anywhere. Texas is good, but man, lines for every machine are 5 deep. and broken stuff doesn't get addressed (as it's probably not possible given the number of people.) it's too many people, it's just a crowded nut fest. At the ann arbor show we limit the number of tickets sold. that way the game to player ratio is never out of wack. Also there's well over 400 games, which is bigger than nearly any other show (Banning and Texas probably have more, but again, you run into that "how many are working?" situation.)
Yeah I go to pinball shows to play pinball only. Tournaments are good too assuming they aren’t HERB style. All the other fluff doesn’t interest me. That’s why vfw has always had my attention. So glad i could make it work this year.
It’s nice to have both kinds though. If you want all the hoopla of the new games and custom games, etc you have Chicago and Texas. If you want to play pinball you got Lots of options there too.
Limiting attendance is key too. Luckily we didn’t have to turn anyone away at Pincinnati, but one of our main concerns is that there’s never more than a game or two wait at the most popular games.
Quoted from alexanr1:Any machines for sale at the show?
For the most part no, but some people make deals prior and during.
What are you looking for?
Our feeling is that nearly all people go to shows to play games, to play stuff they don't have access to. there are some people that like tourneys (and we have a good friday tourney!), and some people go for vendors or seminars. But our feeling is that the internet makes vendors a moot point (unless it's for used stuff, which is really diminishing over the last 5 years.) And the same for seminars... with youtube and pinball news, seminars are almost pointless. Because of that, the one thing the internet can't do is provide good clean and working games to play. Hence that's where we concentrate our efforts. at over 400 games, it's in the top 5 of all shows worldwide for unique and working games.
Quoted from cfh:There's always games for sale at the vfw. that one year 'stinky' brought games was great! i bought about 10 games from him. but it's completely variable. some years lots of games for sale, others not so much.
Man, I missed a great deal on that Swinger that was for sale a few years ago. Maybe a Gay '90's or Bowl-O this year.....
Quoted from cfh:and we have a good friday tourney!
Is the Friday EM tourney back on?
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