Glad it'll be in Sturbridge. I really like that location, and it's exactly a two hour trip. It'll have a different feel not being Summer, but hopefully next year. I hope the hot dog stand will be open. BLT dogs are da bomb!
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4 months later
Quoted from dannunz:Raffles are not aloud in MA unless you are a non profit association.
So, just keep it quiet then.
Quoted from beelzeboob:I'll set up a kissing booth at Pintastic, but only if people request it.
$1 each. All proceeds go to the Make Rhode Islanders Happy Again Fund.
Let me know.
Free bump for a great show and cause.
Front or back?
2 weeks later
Quoted from RatShack:Great tips in that game bringer email, though the volume should probably be adjusted at the show. What seems like a good volume at home can be inaudible on a show floor.
They're usually too damn loud actually!
1 week later
Quoted from beelzeboob:My badge will have my pinside name on it so you can clear the room when you see me coming.
Make it double size. I can't see too good.
Quoted from Brewchap:Thats cool, is that added by the event coordinator, or something that you added yourself?
On your personal Pinside page, there's a box you can click on to generate a badge. Nobody ever seems to bother to wear them to shows. I meet most fellow Pinsiders by asking.
Quoted from Irishbastard:We have a local restaurant that we gave three chances, failed every time.
Sounds like Shitz Barbecue behind the Farmers Market at Allentown. Avoid that dump.
Quoted from mrboboto:I just cancelled a three night (Thur/Fri/Sat) stay at the Sturbridge Host if anyone is looking for a room there
Are you staying elsewhere? Those reviews of SHH are a bit unnerving.
Quoted from Grandnational007:I've stayed at the Host for every single Pintastic; Is it the Ritz-Carlton? No. But it's not a dump either. It's affordable, it's convenient, the management lets you bring in and partake of outside alcohol while on the grounds, good parking, easy access, good power for games, good security, and the list goes on.
Maybe I'm different than most show-goers, but I basically only go to my room to shit, shower, shave, and sleep. It serves all of those purposes more than well.
I'm guessing people just like to complain.
I totally agree with you. I've stayed there every show as well, and the rooms are adequate, but I'm thinking maybe with the new ownership and possible lack of staffing, the already tepid condition of the rooms maybe have slipped further. The reports of moldy carpeting, drapes, etc. are a little unsettling.
Quoted from Irishbastard:I booked the first year I believe, I remember the hallway stunk of bleach, room was musty and someone had punched a hole in the wall. I could feel the mold in the air (have a strong mold allergy). My buddy and I decided not to stay. Aside from that, I love the location of the show, so hopefully they start remodeling the rooms soon after they finish the outside.
I'm only staying one night, so I'm hoping the room is reasonably inhabitable. There certainly are advantages to staying on site, but the HI Express is a short walk away, and they give you breakfast.
Quoted from 1974DeltaQueen:Ironically the actual shore ie., Cape Cod or Long Island Sound is nowhere near Sturbridge, MA.
It's amazing what they can do with refrigerated trucks.
Quoted from jrpinball:Sure can't complain about my room at Sturbridge Host.
It's very nice, actually.
Nice view out on the deck this chilly morning.
[quoted image]
Missed ya' , boob.
And, I'm still trying to meet @irishbastard. I asked about four or five guys, and only two of them took a swing at me!
I met you at Vic Camp's once, so I know who you are. I must have been ziggin' while you were zaggin'.
Quoted from Wizkid93:and it didn't hit me til the day of the show, that this thing could be really abused.
Yeah, well I saw some young kid abusing the sh!t out of it. I'm surprised the plunger isn't bent.
He was yanking it so hard, he dragged the game a foot back each time. I don't like disciplining other people's kids, but I had to say something. There was no supervising adult in sight.
I won't bring a push-up EM to this show anymore after a kid abused a "Sky Line" I brought a few years ago. The ball serve assembly was damaged by the kid slamming all five balls into the shooter lane one after another.
We all want the next generation of pinballers, but we can't allow them to abuse our games.
Quoted from Wizkid93:Glad you enjoyed it! I'm going to see about spending some time with that plunger and fine tune it, and yeah, I absolutely love EMs.
To whoever brought the ace high for one day, I've been waiting to see that again since the second pintastic, and I was pleasantly surprised to see it Saturday, thank you, and a special thank you to EM bringers.
You can find most DMD games if you look hard enough, but those EMs are harder, cheers to you and whoever brought my favorite, grand slam.
[quoted image]
"Ace High" was brought by Pinsider @pgp. He doesn't post much. He brought it to the very first Pintastic event, and it was the one and only woodrail there.
Quoted from truemagoo102:There's a local buddy that tried bringing some old woodrails (pre-flippers) to the Saratoga show a few years back- one kid took them both out of commission within the first couple hours. I've seen kids bash EMs around at Pastime Pinball. I'm nervous, not that I don't trust the Pintastic staff, but I feel like people should go over some basic pinball etiquette before the freeplay area.
That being said, HUGE props to the Pintastic staff and crew- really smooth 4 days and it was a ton of fun. Glad it'll be back relatively soon.
I know the story. Some kid bent or broke the shooter assembly. That's another show that I won't bring any push-up game to. Well, it's kind of a moot point now.
Quoted from dannunz:June 23rd to 26th
If I'd have known, I'd have booked my room as I was checking out at this show.
6 months later
Quoted from ejacques:Off the top of my head, I can't think of any other show (in the northeast at least) that has a hotel attached to it....there is absolutely nothing requiring anyone to stay at the hotel itself other than perhaps "convenience". The show space itself is perfectly fine.
I agree. Yeah, the hotel is shaky at best, but there are other lodging options. I've stayed at the Host for every one of these shows, and luckily have not experienced any major issues with my room. The shower was only lukewarm on Saturday morning, but other than that, no major complaints.
I like the fact that once you park your vehicle, you really don't have to move all weekend. The amenities within walking distance, and the scenic lake are also pluses for this location.
I think many of the regular attendees would not go if the show moved to Boxborough.
Have to take the good with the bad, and overall, I love the location of the show where it is.
Oh, the BBQ place; got lots of food, and the ribs were huge, but they were very fatty and greasy. Similar to Grumpy's bbq near the Allentown show. Onion rings dripped grease. Brisket, pulled pork, and smoked chicken looked good from what my table mates reported.
Quoted from ThePinballCo-op:The Rush tribute band Limelight was AWESOME! I don't see many people talking about this but that's as close to Rush as I'll ever get. I took a video and posted it and people in the comments thought it was actually Rush because it was so good.
They were very good, but I've seen better. The acoustics/sound mix was terrible though. Drums were way too loud (but the drummer was awesome!) Vocals were drowned out. It was a nice touch to the show though.
The room I had last November was very nice, but it was a long walk at the far end of the hotel.
Maybe they're starting at the far end, and working their way back.
I didn't see any evidence of renovations going on, except for the former miniature golf area.
If they get all the rooms in similar condition, I don't think anyone would have a reason to complain.
Hopefully we stick with the current place, and hope they up their game in the next couple of years.
Quoted from radial_head:The only reason I can see someone wanting to stay at the hotel is so you can get fucked up beyond all recognition and not have to drive, or you like the connivence,
Something along those lines!
Quoted from Murphdom:You might be right. This was outside my window. Lol
[quoted image]
That was once the miniature golf course. Had the same view from my deck.
Quoted from Peruman:Was looking for the Best in Show winners for this year. Who won the Blue Ribbons?
Alberto
For EMs, "Queen of Hearts", "Cross Country", and "Neptune" were awarded. May have been others.
Quoted from DaveH:My sister just died, so I had more important things to do.
Like pick a fight on Pinside?
Quoted from DaveH:Pick a fight? Nah, DrDave (not a real doctor) and I are old friends. He's played pinball at my house many times, eaten my pizza, and complimented my wonderful games. He even used to help out with the Classics League I run with some good friends. He even sends me spicy emails once in a while (I'm expecting one soon). He just needs a bit of help remembering things he did sometimes.
By his replies to you, it sounds like he doesn't know you at all.
I know Dave from the shows, and through mutual friends, and he's all aces with me. What's your beef with him? It looked like you were breaking his balls over nothing.
My condolences on the loss of your sister.
Quoted from Playdium:Parents allowed children to have free reign showing little respect for other peoples property.
Didn't see too many unsupervised young children at the show this time. A few years back, a young boy was trying to slam all five balls into the shooter lane on my Gottlieb "Sky Line" and managed to bend the ball lift mechanism inside the game. It was balky the rest of the show, but I repaired it when I got home.
Quoted from gdonovan:I was crestfallen to see the sign on cris-cross that it had been broken only a few hours into the show.
To survive 90 years and get broke at a show is a crotch kick.
Steve had another vintage game damaged at another different show, again by an unsupervised child. I think a good rule of thumb is to avoid bringing any game earlier than 1967 or thereabouts. Not that I mean to discourage bringing older games, but bring them at your own peril. I felt like a dick having to paste labels on my game, both instructive and prohibitive, but as I mentioned before, I had a game slightly damaged a few years ago.
This time, I just didn't have anything else ready to go which I was offering for sale, so I had to bring a five ball push-up game again.
Quoted from drsfmd:It's endemic. I know a guy who owns a very high grade restoration 16 cylinder Cadillac. A couple of years ago, a father picked up his kid, plopped the kid down on a fender, and wanted to take a picture. The father couldn't understand why my friend went ballistic on him for assuming it was ok to do this to his $250,000+ car. The father's response "what's the big deal? It's just an old car". Dad is lucky he left with all of his teeth.
A guy who used to be a fixture at the PA shows told me that he once caught a woman changing her kid's diaper on his newly restored Gottlieb "Central Park"!
Quoted from MaxAsh:Yup. I did this during the fall show. I went into the public bathroom and somehow EVERY toilet seat had literal feces on it. Like... how... why? Craziness.
Another good reason to bite the bullet and stay at the Host hotel. If you really must, retreat to your room.
4 weeks later
I don't understand the hullabaloo about the hotel. If you don't like the accommodations, there are plenty of other options for lodging. The location itself is fabulous, and centrally located.
I hope it stays in Sturbridge.
Quoted from dannunz:What no one sees is the nightmare we have gone through with the hotel for the last 2 years. Only because of the great team leaders and volunteers of Pintastic are we able to over come the issues with the hotel. This year was extremely challenging and pushed us to our limits. If there is a better option we need to consider it. Stay tuned.
I understand that, and many thanks to you and the entire staff for overcoming all the challenges you had to deal with.
It's just that I'm tired of hearing so many gripes about the accommodations. No one is forcing anyone to stay at the host hotel.
Quoted from dannunz:What no one sees is the nightmare we have gone through with the hotel for the last 2 years. Only because of the
Problem is for financial reasons of the contract we need people to stay at the hotel to make the show happen. If everyone stayed elsewhere we would loose money and the show would not continue. So as you can see we are in a catch 22
Don't they supposedly sell out the rooms regardless?
I've stayed at the host hotel each year, and maybe I'm just lucky, but have never had any serious issues with my rooms. I personally know others who have had nasty conditions, but let's hope the place improves by next year.
Quoted from radial_head:There is a great breakfast spot 10 minute up the road called the Old Village Grill. Cash only. Mammoth portions. Great pancakes. Weird home fries.
You know my motto: pull yourself up by the boot straps and expect less.
Sorry to rile everybody else up again, just saying that early November is a great time for a show
Also Cracker Barrel. Friendly's is gone too, and I really miss the hot dog place, and especially the great pub restaurant which used to be where CVS is now.
I really enjoy the summertime aspect of the show though.
Not really big on the November idea.
Quoted from Irishbastard:We have eaten at Teddy G's every year (right up the street, walked one year, don't recommend).
You WALKED to Teddy G's!!! That's a decent hike!
Screenshot_2022-07-27-14-29-43 (resized).pngQuoted from CrazyLevi:The place gets worse every year, by a noticeable measure. It’s barely functioning at this point.
I expect this to take care of itself. I cannot imagine this hotel will be open much longer. Pintastic is being very responsible trying to find an alternative option.
Yeah, but as far as the restaurants go, staffing issues due to the pandemic surely are a huge contributing factor. The renovations were probably also considerably halted due to COVID.
Last November, I had one of the renovated rooms, and it was very nice. The location is perfect for that type of hotel/ballroom/resort business, so I can't imagine that someone would not be interested in investing the cash to make it attractive.
It would be tragic if it was bulldozed to put in a Home Depot or whatever else.
Quoted from dannunz:Attendance down from last year. But I think the gas prices and surrounding hotel prices hurt us this year. To many wedding in June drove hotel rates way up.
Graduations too.
The hotel doesn't seem to be in a leverage position considering all of their shortcomings. You should really have the upper hand in negotiating with them. They should be grateful to host an event such as ours.
Quoted from jrpinball:The hotel doesn't seem to be in a leverage position considering all of their shortcomings. You should really have the upper hand in negotiating with them. They should be grateful to host an event such as ours.
Despite the greater than average percentage of degenerates among us! 
Quoted from gdonovan:Be a shame if someone dropped a dime to OSHA about mold and mildew.
Who knows what else they would find while there, rather through they are.
I don't know if OSHA would be the agency to go to, unless you were complaining on behalf of the employees of the place.
Quoted from gdonovan:5 years I have been going to Pintastic and the host hotel is looking worse than ever.
The host hotel. Is there anything wrong with the venue itself (as a venue for a pinball show)? Unless Gabe wants to reveal other issues we don't know about, I'd say the answer is no.
The lodging? Shaky at best, but as I've said numerous times, you have many options if you don't want to stay there. On site restaurants? Think of them as a bonus as well. At every other local show, we have to go off-site to eat. At least McDonald's and Burger King are within easy walking distance. We have other options as well, many within walking distance (no, not Teddy G's!).
Does the host hotel "supposedly" book all their available rooms despite the spotty deplorable conditions; yes! So what's the problem? The negatives should work in the staff's (Gabe's) favor, negotiating an acceptable arrangement, but apparently not.
Ok. So there are issues that haven't been disclosed or resolved. Hopefully they will be addressed.
Quoted from PixelsandPinball:My preference would be to move the event to NH. In MA vendors have to collect sales tax (6.25%). No sales tax in NH. I cut prices on floor models at the show but I still have to collect sales tax. That wouldn't be the case in NH.
You'd lose a lot of attendees from NY, NJ, PA if it were held in NH.
Quoted from MG7322:Isn’t NH the center of New England? Equal distance from every point. It is Pintastic NE after all.
Sure, move farther away if you want a New England only turnout.
Of course, living in NH, you'd love it!
Quoted from CrazyLevi:That’s lovely. Tons of little baby cockroaches. Probably a good thing the restaurant is never open, and the “LE” buyers who showed up too late for breakfast at 8:45 am were probably done a favor.
I admire the commitment of the “you guys are all a bunch of whiners it’s not the ritz but so what!” Crew. But seriously…that place….
Seriously, Levi? You live in Manhattan, and you're skeeved by some cockroaches? Apparently, you don't eat out much!
The biggest issue with the host hotel as with so many other businesses, is adequate staffing due to COVID.
Just go there to play pinball. You don't have to stay there, you don't have to eat there. The venue itself is fine. Whiners? Ooh... my AC is smelly.... ooh, I have a CRT TV in my room. Don't like it? Don't stay there then!!!
Quoted from CrazyLevi:unless JR and his tiny cadre of “you guys are snowflakes because you don’t like
Tiny cadre? As far as I know, they manage to sell out the host hotel every time. I don't know why you are so fixated on the condition of the accommodations when you don't even stay there! As I've said before, maybe I'm lucky, but I've stayed there for every Pintastic event, and I've never had any major issues with my accommodations. The room I had last fall was exceptionally nice. It's not luxury, but it's reasonably adequate overall for a bed and a shower.
1 month later
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