 One of my Rudies has a bunch of questions for me: What inspires you outside of casino gambling? What do you see as essential qualities in being a great friend? You see your Rudies as family. I am very impressed by that. That loyalty is ingrained in your personality. Methinks your own family was very instrumental in instilling that quality in you. As well as the kindness and acceptance that you exude. What constitutes a bad day for you? What makes it better? - Cathy Zawacki Thanks for all the questions Cathy! Outside of gambling, family is very important to me. I've always been an extremely sensitive and sentimental person (though YouTube sure has toughened me up, haha). I'm inspired a lot by my family, by seniors in general and those who fight to make our world a better place in every way. Even seeing an older person who reminds me of my grandparents gets me teary eyed. Just last week at Plaza Casino I couldn't stop staring at this old man playing poker on an old coin machine, and the joy he exuded when he hit 5 Aces! He was so proud that he pulled out his flip phone (awwww!!!) and messaged someone quickly. In comes his twenty or thirty something nephew to celebrate with him. That whole silly moment got me so emotional. So yes, inspired by family and beautiful people. I have many life-long friends back in Canada and have made more in the US. It's important to remember where you came from and to keep in touch. I'm not the best at that, but do try to see everyone when I visit family in Toronto once a year. The single most important aspect to being a good friend in my opinion would probably be listening and understanding their side. Personally, I've always had a hard time speaking my emotions in person, but it is something I'm working on. And yes, my Rudies are like family. After moving to Los Angeles, Marco and I left all of our family behind. We just have each other, our friends and our Rudies. And because the Rudies are so damned like-able, they make it easy to love them so much. I've never been a part of a group so accepting, so positive and so lucky, haha. If I had a nickel for every time they landed the grand on a 50c bet 😂. Every good quality I hold was instilled in me at a young age by my parents. They're exceptionally great role models and I always ask myself what they would do in certain circumstances in life, because they just made it all look so easy. We all have bad days. Sometimes I get in a depressed state of mind and there's nothing that can take me out of it. Marco will ask me what's wrong, and I sometimes can't put my finger on it. It could be as simple as 1 out of 100 comments being negative towards me, or the fact that my numbers are sliding, or that I just didn't get enough sleep. I don't think I'm any different from anyone else in this, and that we all get down on ourselves at one time or another. If we didn't, we wouldn't be able to really delve inside of ourselves and find out who we really are. I always question myself on how I can improve in life, or how I can bring more joy to others. If we do only really have one life to live, I may as well try and make it the best for me and those I surround myself with. The best remedy for me is time and decompression. I really think I'd benefit from meditating, but I don't think I have the patience for it, haha. Going to bed and waking up are the worst for me because my mind will never turn off! It's a blessing and a curse I suppose, haha. So yes, outside of gambling, I love my family, my friends and my life. Not everything is going to be perfect, but that's life. If everything in life were easy what would the point be? For those times when life gets you down, if you have any ideas on how I can get out of a 'funk' or sleep better, feel free to let me know on our Facebook Post for this blog, or share a photo of yourself doing it on Instagram and tagging @BCSlots. Or to see a sure way of me having a good time, check out this live video with my bestie Slot Queen as we gambled the night away at the Casino! -Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️  People often ask me what their budget should be for the casino. The simple answer is that it should be whatever you're comfortable losing! So let's say you only have $500 for a weekend or $50 for a day. What should you play?
Personally, it takes me 90 minutes to get to my 'local' casino, one way! So I won't be making that drive with a $50 budget as it would cost that much to get there in gas, haha. Regardless, let me entertain that notion. $50 Budget $50 is not a lot of money, especially when you're considering using it to gamble with and potentially lose. I have lost $50 in a single spin many times, haha. Don't get me wrong, I have friends who have played on $20 for an hour betting 8 cents a spin. If that's your prerogative, go for it! However if you have $50, then keep to those 50cent spins or under. It may sound small, but that's only 100 spins and that may not be enough to even land a bonus. Perhaps get yourself 10 $5 bills and pick out 10 games to play. After 10 spins, re-evaluate if you want to keep spinning or continue playing. Trust your instinct because if you don't, you'll hate yourself for it later and you'll get in a sour mood. Keep that smile people, you're supposed to be having FUN! $500 Weekend Budget Say you're going to Vegas for the weekend and you want your money to last the entirety of your stay. Well you better be strong willed and ensure you follow a plan. For starters, you can forget about the high limit room! It's easy to get carried away on your first night and lose it all, so bring some envelopes! Label the envelopes by date and time (because you know once midnight strikes, that next days budget could be gone in a blink of an eye!). The first day give yourself a little less than a third of your budget, say $150. That way if you lose it all, it won't hurt as much and you'll still have a positive outlook on the weekend. If you lost half right away, you may be swayed to bet higher the next day to try and re-coop your funds which is a huge no-no! Better still, give yourself 3 envelopes for the night with $50 in each for 6pm, 9pm and 11pm! Don't put $20 bills in there because you're bound to lose it all at once. Use $5 bills. The act of continuously putting money in the machine should be enough for your brain to catch on the fact that you're losing your butt. Once the first envelope is done, go and refresh in your room, grab a bite or sip on a cocktail at the bar. The whole point is to keep that positive energy going and staying active. Bad mojo can ruin it all for you, so have fun with a realistic outlook. What to Play? There are volatile machines (tough to win on, but when you do it can be huge) and there are non-volatile machines (pays out more frequently but at lower amounts). Of course they don't label that for us, so you'll have to go by memory of watching my videos. Another trick is that progressive machines (ones with large jackpots that keep progressively rising) tend to be a bit more volatile. At a low budget you'll want to keep your bets low. Even at a $3 max bet, your $50 budget can be gone in as little as 17 spins, or 1 minute. So be smart. If you're a Rudies member, you've seen dozens of Rudies win huge jackpots at 50cent or 80 cent bets, so don't think for a second you have to max bet. Keep your max to $2 or under per spin. Honestly whenever I max bet, I swear everyone sitting beside me betting 8 cents or 50cents a spin gets that bonus 3 times as often as I do. So take the pressure off, get your free drinks from the servers while betting 18 cents and and have fun! If luck is on your side and you find yourself UP $100 for example, don't take that as a sign to start upping your bets. That is a sure way to lose it twice as quickly. Keep to the same level of bets that got you the wins in the first place. It must be working! Make it FUN! Turn it into a game and give each envelope a purpose. Perhaps you want to only play one style of game, or only play until you get a bonus, or only do 20 spins per machine. One of my favorite things to do is play until you make 5 times your bet back and get off. Or cash out after you make a profit, even if it's after the first spin! Maybe you want to take some bigger chances, so allocate one of your envelopes for $3 spins on a non-volatile game. If you lose it, well you still have another 9 envelopes, so no biggie. But at least you gave in to some of that temptation. Group Pull it UP! Playing with friends? Pool your money and that $50 budget is now $100! Take turns spinning and set up some rules and follow a game plan together. It definitely helps you be more accountable when you play with friends....so long as they are as responsible as you and follow the rules! Celebrate the small wins! You're betting 50 cents a spin and you just had a $50 win when your whole budget was $50? Take that money and stash it away in your Winners Bank!! You basically just won the lottery (seriously, the machine was meant to TAKE your money, not give it away), so rejoice and take it home with you. Even if you're up $10 on a machine, take that money and run. You beat the system! Notice I've used the term "lose it all" quite a bit. That's because the odds are forever in the favor of the casino. If you lose, you really don't 'lose', because you came and had an adrenaline rush of gambling and that is an accomplishment and a win. And hey, if you went away with some of your original money, or with a profit - then amazing! I'd say I leave a casino with a winning trip on 1 out of every 5 trips. Sometimes I'll have three back to back winning trips, but that usually is followed up by a big slump. Winning money or even jackpots is never a given, it's a bonus! Go to the casino for the experience, for the excitement and with a donation in hand! Win or lose, you have accomplished your mission if you leave the casino satisfied and with a smile on your face. I'll end with something to make you think twice about splurging on higher bets. Here are my top 5 Jackpots by bet amount, win and payout percentage. Notice which one OBLITERATED the other bets by payout, it's unreal! Wheel of Fortune - $50 Bet, $10,000 Win, 200xWin Cleopatra 2 - $9 Bet, $7385 Win, 820xWin Triple, Double Red Hot Strike - $10 Bet, $11,250 Win, 1125xWin Double Easy Money - $6 Bet, $10,000 Win, 1666xWin >>Mighty Cash - $0.80 Bet, $7234 Win, 9042xWin Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️  I am proud to announce that this weeks blog is written by guest writer, and Rudies Member, Joshua O'Connell from KnowYourSlots.com. If you’ve been around slots for a bit, you might have heard the terms Class II and Class III machines. Or you might have heard about random number generators or Bingo machines. If you’re wondering what this is all about, today’s blog post is for you. Defining Class II and Class III Gaming Machines The actual terms Class II and Class III come from federal regulations of Native American gaming, specifically in the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, which became law in 1988. The terms have spread beyond those casinos, for reasons that will be clear later, but this is where they came from. In a nutshell, here are the basic ideas of each as outlaid in federal law:
So how are there Class II Slot Machines? Well, they’re not really slots, even though they look an awful lot like them. Let’s define a Class III slot machine, otherwise known as a Vegas-style slot machine, and then we’ll discuss how Class II differs. Class III: Vegas-Style Slot Machines Class III slot machines are the ones you traditionally find in Vegas. The outcome of the game is defined by random-number generators, or RNGs, that is constantly running inside the game, generating new numbers. When you hit the play (or repeat bet) button, the RNG number (or numbers; as each reel could be controlled by its own RNG on some games) active at that time is locked in. The outcome of the game is looked up and rendered in the form of the reels spinning to a stop (mechanical reels) or animated to a stop (video slot machines).  When you hear Brian talk about “It’s all about timing,” that’s what is going on here - the exact moment you press that button the random number generated at that same moment is the one that is used to generate the results you see on your screen. Hit it a split second earlier or later and you would have ended up with a different number (thus a different outcome). Since you lock in that number the moment you hit play, stopping the reels quickly will not change the outcome. The outcome was already decided when you started the reels spinning. What it would do is change the timing of your next spin. Class II: Bingo Machines A Class II machine is a device that is supposed to aid you in playing Bingo. If you’ve gone to a Bingo Hall and seen the electronic devices that some use to play the game, that’s generally the idea. Someone smarter than most of us realized that another way that Bingo could be “helped” by a device was a visual game not unlike the look and feel of a slot machine. In it, you electronically place a bet on a game, and the outcome of whether you win or lose rendered in the form of an entertaining device (slot machine-like device), but the game you were actually playing was Bingo. The machine “aids” you by kindly taking your bets and showing you if you won. (How nice of it!) Unlike Vegas-style slots, Bingo games’ outcomes are not determined inside the machine, or the moment you press a button. Yours and other wagers and bingo cards in a set of machines are pooled into a time-delineated bingo game (effectively all wagers within a tiny window of time, generally a handful of milliseconds), the balls drawn, and the outcomes returned to the machine in short order. Games generally need a certain number of players (although some systems allow as few as 2) and the game has to be completed to show everyone the outcomes; that’s why occasionally when playing a bingo machine it may take a bit longer to render the outcomes.  photo from RandomSlots Bingo games were popularized in some states by the company VGT, now owned by Aristocrat, and a lot of investments in the idea and the system were made by the Seminole tribe in Florida. You can spot them pretty clearly as a bingo card is placed on the screen and the games are rendered against the cards as the slot reels are spinning. Some players have played them enough to be able to spot winning/losing patterns on the cards faster than the reels can render. Does One Pay Better Than the Other? Paybacks on Class III machines are set machine by machine - the casino decides what they want to pay back out of a selection of a half dozen or so choices. Most casinos will select the setting closest to what they want to achieve for that denomination(s) across their gaming floor. Similarly, a tribe can set the Bingo prize levels to achieve the payback they wish to see for the game. As such, both have a level of control for the casino to decide what they want to pay. Accordingly, neither will guarantee to pay better than the other; it’s up to the casinos themselves to make that call, as long as it meets the state-mandated minimums, which are usually laughably low compared to what most casinos actually pay back. Many players will find it frustrating to learn that most tribes are not required to report their payback percentages. Some, like in Connecticut, do, because of the agreements they made with the state, but that’s an exception. If I Don’t See a Bingo Card, Does That Mean It’s a Vegas-Style Machine? Not necessarily. Some states, like New York, allow for other types of games that are also not governed by an RNG, but aren’t bingo either. Sites like the American Casino Guide give you a breakdown state by state of the games offered and by who, and can help you figure it out a bit. Some games act like virtual scratch-off cards, and some even use historical horse racing results to determine the outcome. Many of these other alternatives are set up to support horse racing facilities get around slot machine limitations and regulations through legal loopholes, just as the Class II machines were designed to get around Bingo regulations in a similar way. And like the others, usually there is no real difference in long-term play unless you get very granular, as the payback scenarios are set up over time to basically achieve the casino’s desired outcome. Conclusion While Vegas-style slots and Bingo machines take very different courses to get you to your outcome, in reality both play similarly, and many of you may not have even noticed that you’re playing a different sort of game. The next time you get a big win, if you see you’re on a Class II machine, you might find that the right reaction is to stand up and yell out BINGO! Joshua O’Connell is the founder and creator of Know Your Slots, a website that aims to educate about slots, advantage play and casino comps. He’s a slot enthusiast and a proud member of the Rudies since launch. Thank you so much Josh for that insightful blog! If you would like to be a guest writer for BCSlots.com, kindly send us an E-mail.  I have posted over 1,500 videos on YouTube, so it was hard to pick the best moments, but I'll give it a shot. Here are some of my all time favorites moments on YouTube... 10. Many of us have had hit a Jackpot before, but how many have hit it on a $2 bet?9. High Betting, High Drinking...need I say more?8. My FIRST time playing Tarzan, was my BIGGEST win ever on it!7. If ever I'm feeling blue, I'll watch this video. Then all I'm feeling is orange, and seeing green!6. The BIGGEST bonus at $9 Bet on Cleopatra, and the MOST EXCITING moment in my life that started it all...5. The BEST Group Pull EVER in terms of Payout Percentage - we KILLED it!4. I LANDED THE GRAND. If that wasn't epic enough, I did it LIVE with my Rudies Family3. Gambling in Australia!! Marco and I traveled down under whilst gambling with awesome fans!2. Brian + Marco + 1 Hour = GOLD1. Where it all began, the first video I have gambled a lot in my day, and the majority of that over the past 3 years whilst creating content for my YouTube channel. I am very good at teaching you tips and tricks, and it all stems from screwing it up first on my own, haha. So I'll try to cover a few mistakes you should learn from me.
GET OFF THE MACHINE Oh my goodness, the hardest lesson to learn is WHEN to get off a machine. Keeping to a strict budget on a per machine basis is the best method to ensure you don't get burned like I have. After a night at the casino, I can ALWAYS remember which machines I stayed on too long for - and if I added up all the losses from those, they equate to the majority (if not all) of my losses for the night. I have literally sat at Lightning Link betting $5 a spin and lost $1,000 without a single bonus. I've done the same on Dragon Link at the $10 bet and I can remember many more instances that are ingrained in my head. My suggestion - just use a $20, $50 or $100 in every machine you play. If you lose it, walk away. You can always come back to it later. Just don't keep feeding those bills as your eyes gloss over in a matrix of sorts waiting for a non-guarantee to occur. THE BEST OFFERS ARE USUALLY THE WORST I've been lured to drive 6 hours to a casino because they offered a free BBQ only to find out, I only get the basic model IF I hit 5,000 points on my players card, but with another 15,000 points I get the deluxe version. (fooled me twice!) OR, you actually do drive 6 hours and get the BBQ, but then you have to gamble enough while there in order to keep more offers coming only ending up losing MORE money than the BBQ was worth. Would you actually pay $2000 for a BBQ you didn't really need in the first place? Or on the opposite end, did you really just drive 45 minutes to get a kitchen tool set worth $10 that you didn't even need? Read the fine print, and only spend the money at the casino you want to spend at the casino. TIER LEVELS This ties into the last point. I've gone to a casino just in order to get 20,000 points in order to keep my high tier status. If you take into account all the money you could lose in order to reach that, it may not be worth it in the end. I actually thought I was so smart once. I needed 50,000 tier points and knew the casino gave a ton of points if you bought concert tickets. So I proceeded to spend $1,000 in concert tickets in order to resell them and get the points. Well, turns out I couldn't sell all the tickets and I ended up with tickets I couldn't use and spending money for them. Chances are the next tier level perks aren't worth the extra money you may lose on the deal, so just be happy with what you have. DOUBLE DIPPING An early mistake I made in Vegas, was giving my friends my free rooms to use so we could all hang out together. I didn't realize (i was super new to Vegas) that by using a room, they expected you to play a bunch in order to 'pay' for it. So all of my awesome perks and giveaways disappeared over night, and all my cheap friends had a great experience that cost me instead of them. Only use your deals for yourself, unless you never plan to go there again. DEBIT AND CREDIT CARDS First off, bringing a credit card is the biggest mistake you can make (and I used to do it when I was new to gambling in my twenties). Aside from it being a bad idea because you're using money you don't have to gamble with, you are also immediately charged fees. So that $100 you just took out could end up costing you $130, so now you need to make 30% more on the slots just to break even. NEVER use a credit card and just leave the debit card at home while you're at it. Bring only the cash you are able to lose while keeping within your entertainment budget. THE MORE, NOT THE MERRIER I used to play at every casino I could, splitting up my bank roll amongst them all. Although I was always smart enough to use my players card, I didn't realize that I was hurting my offers in the long run. I was playing less money for shorter spurts of time at 5 casinos and getting $10 offers. When I finally figured it out, I decided to put all my eggs in one basket and my overall offers improved. Play more time at one casino and your offers (and tier level) will improve. What other mistakes have you made at the casino? Share your experiences on our Facebook Post! Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️  If only you knew the amount of questions I get asked on a daily basis, haha. I've hand selected a few recurring ones below.
Deb Fuller: "How can you identify volatile machines before playing it? Other than better percentage payouts with larger denominations is there a method you use to stay away from machines that just take all your money." Brian Christopher: Unfortunately there are no signs on machines that tell you if a machine is volatile or not. Best bet is to watch videos online to see how the pays go. It's a good idea to watch videos of people live playing, rather than those who just show their wins, as that won't give you an accurate read. If a machine does have progressives on it, it automatically will become more volatile. Especially the state-wide progressive machines are even harder to win on. And of course Cleopatra, haha. She's just plain ole rude and volatile! Joe K: "You seem to travel a lot and spend long times alone without Marco by your side. I was wondering as to how you’re both able to cope with the long periods of time away from each other and how he seems to be so cool and supportive while you do this and follow your dreams?" Brian Christopher: It has been an adjustment being on the road a lot. Luckily we try to keep my travels to two weekends per month. Marco will join on occasion, otherwise we're on our own. He's super supportive of my career and the needs of my fans. If he wasn't on board with everything, I wouldn't keep doing it. Amelia Rosales: How was Gambling introduced to you? Brian Christopher: I think I'm one of those anomalies wherein my family never went to the casino. It was kind of within me to always want to go. It started with scratch tickets, then bingo and finally casinos! My dad would go to the race track on occasion with friends, or play poker with them at times - but that was the extent of it and I never saw it. Bill Flanigin: Double header... "Which machine features you favorite "bonus in a bonus"?" and "Curious, do people smoke weed IN vegas casinos??" Brian Christopher: My favorite 'bonus in the bonus' would have to be a toss up between Mighty Cash and all the Link games (Lightning, Dragon, Ultimate Fire). And no, smoking marijuana in casinos is a no-no and you will be kicked out. Bobby Saumier: You say : its all about timing. How long between pulls or pushes should a player take. If max bet ..." Brian Christopher: The answer is, it's all about timing haha. If I knew, I'd be playing right now. #LuckOfTiming. More on that under Cynthia's question below. Janny Marose: "Using player’s card. Use it or not? Seems like I win more when not being tracked??" Brian Christopher: Always use the card. Always. The card is not synced with what the machine does or does not pay you. Its sole purpose is to track how much money you put in the machine in order to give you points (which in turn gives you comps. The casino hopes that will bring you back to continue to lose more money!). It may 'seem' like you win more with or without your card, but it's 100% not true at all. Anne Muir: "what movies have you played in?" Brian Christopher: You can see the complete list on my IMDB. I'm currently ranked 44,078 out of millions of actors! Leslie Grossman: "Which bonus games where you have to pick 3 matching symbols are pre determined and which are not?" Brian Christopher: The general rule is if they do NOT show you the other picks after matching three, then it was pre-determined. If they show you what was behind the unselected spots (Pharoahs Fortune, Quick Hit), then it was all up to you. Some states actually do not allow you pick, thus making them all pre-determined. Jodi Miller-Whitaker: "What are slot tournaments and HOW do they work? (Winning vs losing.) I always hear about them at the casino but never participate because I don't fully know about them." Brian Christopher: There are two different ways of getting into a slot tournament. You are either invited to join one, or you can pay to be in one. Basically a monkey could participate, haha. Casinos turn slot machines into "Tournament Mode", and you are given a time limit of 2-5 minutes in which you will non-stop hit the spin button. Depending on the game used, the only kind of skill needed is popping items that may come up on screen, which gives you extra points. Otherwise, just hit that spin button as fast as you can and hope that you're lucky to get good line hits. People are paid out for being in the top 100 places, or whatever they decide, with freeplay or cash. Cynthia Graff: "Let's talk about rapid fire. Do you find it productive to rapid fire bet? Do you hit more jackpots using this method? Do you use it during free game sessions? For instance, using this method to stop a second coin when you see it during Buffo Gold free game sessions." Brian Christopher: Rapid fire does nothing but speed up the inevitable. The micro-second the SPIN button is pushed, the slot machine already knows the end result. So stopping it when you think you may line it up or get that third coin, does absolutely nothing. The only thing it does is speed up the amount of spins you can do in a short while, and change the outcome of the following spin. Inside the slot machine is a Random Number Generator (RNG) that is always flickering different numbers, say between 1 and a million. We can't see what those numbers are, but each number correlates to a placement of where the reels will land. #39854 could mean you win $5 where #39855 means you win a jackpot, or nothing at all. When you press spin, the RNG stops on a number. Since the RNG is always flickering, if you rapid fire - the next time you press spin would occur at a different time, thus changing what number it stops on and the outcome. Basically if you sneezed, thus making you press the spin button 0.392 seconds later - your outcome would be different than if you didn't. That's why #ItsAllAboutTiming. Alice Spiekhout: "What exactly is a moderator? You thank them but what are you thanking them for? Can a moderator take out a comment that is negative before we see it when you’re live? How many moderators do you employ?" Brian Christopher: Moderators are people who 'moderate' the comments during a live stream. Because my channel is based on having a fun, positive and responsible time - my moderators ensure that is how the chat is run as well. If people are rude or 'misbehaving', then my moderators will either remove the comment or the person behind them. My moderators are all Proud Members of the Rudies who have been part of our family for more than a year and are 100% volunteer. I'm always so grateful to them, so let's give them a round of applause: Brian, Lucinda, Carol, Bridget, Joshua, Cameron, Gregory, Kristen and Adam! Our Rudies Members have now surpassed 1500, and are really something special. #RudieLove Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️  "How to identify when you've gone too deep into gambling! Some people don't see it but others do. Like those who spend their paychecks at the casino and can't pay the rent..." Thanks for bringing up such an important topic. I've written a previous blog entitled Responsible Gambling where I covered a lot about this. I will add more specifics below. For some people, gambling can become a form of addiction, like a drug. We have talked about the warning signs and symptoms to look for and I've touched on tricks I have used to ensure it doesn't get out of hand. First and foremost you need to recognize WHY we go gambling and WHAT we can expect from it. Ask any gambler why they're in the casino and most will say that they want to WIN A JACKPOT! Although that's fine and dandy, my presumption is that if you polled those same people leaving the casino, the majority are leaving with less money than they came with. Setting Realistic Expectations I have always tried to keep it real on my channel and have no issues telling everyone that I lose more money than I make in the casino (as it is for everyone in the long run). The casino has made it so that you literally CAN'T win. They don't leave it up to skill, and they don't leave it up to chance. They leave it up to mathematical equations that leave it up to fact that they will win more money than you do. Every. Single. Time. Sure you may win today or tomorrow. You may even go on a winning streak. But these complicated computers (aka slot machines) are designed to take your money. So set up the expectation that when you go to a casino, you will LOSE. If a normal night out on the town costs you $100, then that should be your casino budget. Why all of a sudden would you need to spend $1,000 to have a good time? You could just as easily hire a limousine to drive you around the city, with reservations at the top restaurant and hotel in the city for the same price! If you go to a casino expecting to win a jackpot, you are more likely to come out a loser. Go in there and plan to lose it, yet be happy if you win $5. Because you definitely are not winning $5 at Mama Rosetti's Fine Dining Italian Restaurant. When it becomes a problem Gambling is a form of entertainment, NOT a form of making income. If you are short on your rent, going to the casino to make the remaining $200 is the absolute worst idea. Chances are (and factually so),that you'll end up losing more. I get it, being short on funds is NOT a good place to be. I've held multiple jobs at times in my life and still struggled to pay the bills. But the casino should not be seen as a bank, but more of a money pit. Food, shelter, family and savings need to come before all else. I personally follow the financial guru, Dave Ramsey on the radio and YouTube. He gives sound advice on getting out of debt and living a safe, debt free lifestyle. Now he is not a fan of gambling, as he sees it as wasting money (and rightfully so). But, if done responsibly, with your entertainment budget - then I don't see an issue. I'd rather gamble with $200 than pay that amount to watch a screen of someone at a concert lip syncing from the nose bleed section. If you find yourself down on your luck, then you need to reach out for help to your family, friends or other outreach programs to help get you back on track. A casino can be a dark path for many people. We all read those articles of that ONE person who hit the jackpot on Wheel of Fortune, or that ONE guy who won the Grand on an 80cent bet (lucky bum). But the chances of those occurring are extremely rare and can never be counted on. What I do on YouTube is a form of entertainment for YOU. Be entertained, but do not forget that I am losing my ass while doing so. If you need it and are struggling, seek out a friend to slap you upside the head or reach out to your local gamblers anonymous. I'm always there for you if you need a good slap as well 😬. I've placed some links down below for you to check out. Meanwhile, next week I'll be answering a slew of more questions posed by you all, from people who filled out the form down below. Keep them coming!! Brian xoxo ❤️ For more information or if you think you may have a problem, I encourage you to reach out to friends and family and to visit these suggested places as outlined on HelpGuide.org : The National Council on Problem Gambling Helpline – Offers a confidential, 24-hour helpline for problem gamblers or their family members in the U.S. Call 1-800-522-4700. (NCPG) Gamblers Anonymous – Twelve-step Gamblers Anonymous program, an international support network of meetings to assist people who have a gambling problem. Gam-Anon for the problem gambler's spouse, family members, or close friends. (Gamblers Anonymous) Gamcare – Offers support, information, and advice for those with a gambling problem in the UK. Call the helpline 0845 6000 133. (Gamcare) Gambling Help Online – Provides 24-hour helpline in Australia for counseling, information, and referrals. Call 1800 858 858. (Gambling Help Online) Canadian Resources for Those Affected by Problem Gambling – Find help and information on problem gambling in your area of Canada. (Centre for Addiction and Mental Health) What Is Problem Gambling? – Learn about the gambling continuum and the key differences between recreational gambling and problem gambling. (British Columbia Responsible & Problem Gambling Program) Freedom from Problem Gambling (PDF) – Self-help workbook for compulsive gamblers, with tips on how to avoid relapse and fight gambling urges. (UCLA Gambling Studies Program and California Department of Public Health) Choosing a Treatment Facility – Learn what treatments are appropriate for problem gambling and what questions you should ask when look at facilities. (National Council on Problem Gambling) Problem Gamblers and their Finances (PDF) – In-depth guide for treatment professionals on how to help a problem gambler cope with financial problems and pressures. (National Endowment for Financial Education) Help for Family, Friends, Employers, and Co-Workers – Learn how gambling addiction affects family and friends and what you can do to address the problem. (Connecticut Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services) Personal Financial Strategies for the Loved Ones of Problem Gamblers (PDF) – Designed to help families deal with personal financial issues due to a loved one's problem gambling. (National Council on Problem Gambling)  John McDonough - "I would love to know the behind the scene stuff like who helps you with filming, editing, travelling etc. Also what it looks like when you are playing a slot machine and filming it. I always wonder what the people around you are thinking ( and how they are reacting ) when you are talking to us while filming, lol" No question, I lead an interesting life. As I often say however, it is not as interesting or as exciting as you may think. Today's blog for example is being written at 10:43pm after a long day full of meetings, interviews and work. (I also managed to squeeze in putting together a new chair for our living room and cooking an awesome meal on the grill for dinner!) Filming. Generally on a regular trip to my local, I go it alone. It's just me, my iPhone, phone charger and monopod. I leave the house between 12 and 1pm to avoid rush hour traffic which takes me about 90 minutes. In rush hour it can double! If I need to film some videos for the channel, I'll head straight there. Otherwise if I'm just going to do a live stream, I will make a stop at a coffee shop near the casino and work on my laptop for a few hours.  Double Camera Set-UpNow if I need to film for my weekly series, I film it on two cameras and from two different angles. For that I'll bring double the equipment and ask my Rudies if someone is available to help. I don't like asking, but they sure love to help (and I also pay them for their time, so it's a win/win). If I'm flying out of city I will often fly out a friend to help me, ask a friend who is local or another slot channel too. I've had Slot Queen accompany me on a few trips as her and I get along awesome and she's a huge help. I'm also helping to mentor her for her channel, so it's a great opportunity for her to learn. I'm currently hiring for a full time personal assistant (as opposed to a part time one I had in the past), and they will accompany me on my trips going forward so it will no longer be a hassle to organize. When I'm filming alone and talking to myself, yes, I get a lot of looks and stares. It used to bother me more at the beginning, but not any longer. I've gained a lot more confidence over time so I think people now see me filming and they get a sense that there is a purpose to what I'm doing as opposed to some crazed guy filming a losing session haha. Editing. Once filming is complete, I'll have hours and hours of footage on two different cameras. I upload them both to my computer and start to organize them. (That said, I haven't organized my videos in 3 weeks, so I have to organize videos from Vegas, Niagara Falls, Detroit, Reno and California!!). Then I will put them into proper folders by days and then upload all of them to the cloud along with instructions for my editor. My editor's name is John and he lives in Kentucky. We've never met, but he's worked for me for the past 2 years and does an amazing job. In fact I recently moved him into full time from part-time as well! There are still times I do still edit myself - such as a HUGE surprise that will be on my channel either today or tomorrow (this is the biggest editing job of my LIFE!). I do enjoy the editing process, but it became too lengthy for me to handle alone. Traveling. I love to travel. Traveling for work is somewhat of another story since I don't really spend time out of the casino to explore the city. That's something I need to start working into my schedule. I employ a manager reaches out to casinos on my behalf to try and set everything up. His name is Scott and is relatively new, but doing a fine job. I've instructed him to set me up with 2 trips per month maximum so that I don't overwork myself and still get my quality time at home with Marco. As much as Marco would like to join me for my weekend work trips, it's not fair to expect him to spend his only time off traveling and working. As much as I'd love to go to every casino people ask of me, you would be surprised just how long it takes to gain permission from a single casino. Mohegan Sun took me 11 months! But it was darn worth it and we'll be returning for sure! Social Media. The other aspect of this world is all of the social media I have to put out there. I have a Social Media agency who helps me set up all of my posts across Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube. Every single post is approved by me before it goes out there and we work on everything in unison. The main lead at the agency is Stephen, and he's also from Toronto and a neighbor! We ended up meeting on a neighborhood site when he was looking for poker players haha. (I'm a kick ass poker player FYI...though I never won a tournament at his house!). Stephen will give me a concept, I'll approve or make any changes, then he'll send it to his team to create, then send it back to me to review and give final approvals. It is because of this whole song and dance of everything I have written above, why it takes me 2-3 months on average from the time I film something, to the time it appears on YouTube. I try and always be one month ahead on my videos and social posts. Currently I've slipped behind, but we have all videos and posts created for the next 3 weeks! CRAZY the amount of work that goes into something so silly as a little slot channel. So no, I don't just gamble non-stop every day as most people assume. I work super hard with numerous staff members and another one on the way. It is a blessing that I can am able to do what I love and also provide job security for others. I don't take any of it for granted, which is why I'm not answering to Marco's calls to come to bed at 11:38pm, haha. Actually, no, it IS time for bed as my alarm is going off at 8am for another day to start all over again! I tell you it is one thing trying to avoid all of the negativity in the world, and it is quite another trying to avoid getting eaten alive by the casinos themselves! How on earth can we as gamblers protect ourselves from getting in too deep? I'll offer some tips next week to ensure your gambling adventures don't get too far out of hand! Brian xoxo ❤️ P.S. CasinoSwag.com has a sale starting tomorrow, Thursday May 16 until Sunday, May 19 for 15% OFF Everything using Promo Code: SPRINGFLING15 in case you wanted to get that LAND THE GRAND t-shirt 😂 🐲   Becky Dalton-Taylor wants to know my “..casino bucket list”. It’s funny, when I decided to answer this question, the number one answer was to LAND THE GRAND! Now having hit that, my list has slightly changed.
What am I missing? Probably a lot, haha. Let me know what your goals are under the Facebook post for this post! There's just so much going on in my life that you guys mostly probably have no clue about. So next week, I take you behind the scenes! Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️  I asked my Rudies Fan Club what questions they wanted answered, so here are a select few: Leslie Pravda Grossman: When are the picks during a bonus game predetermined and when are they actually your choices? Slot Manufacturers don’t publicly announce it, but the general rule is that in a bonus when you must match 3 identical symbols or even just 1, if after making your selection, the slot reveals what the other options would have been had you chosen them, then it is NOT pre-determined. Such examples include bonuses from Quick Hit, Enchanted Unicorn, Cleopatra 2 and Pharaohs Fortune. Casinos in the New York State Lottery for example, do not allow real choosing. It is the only instance I’ve ever seen a pre-determined quick hit bonus. If on the other hand it does not reveal what the other options could have been had you chosen them, chances are it is indeed pre-determined. Most games involving a picking bonus for a progressive win are pre-determined including Dancing Drums, Fu Dao Le and 88 Fortunes. Carol Leonard Reynolds: (What are) The pros and cons of having a successful youtube channel. Well that’s a difficult one, haha. I’m absolutely humbled to have become successful on Youtube. I worked hard to get where I am and I have no regrets. The cons come from the negativity. Most of the negativity comes from other channels and their followers, which is quite ridiculous to say the least. As if they have nothing better to do than run their mouth about someone they have never met. I suppose it really is no different than a workplace job where there is always that one person who is always running their mouth and doesn’t know when to be quiet, lol. The hours I work is another downside. Most people assume I just gamble and then sit on my butt. Truth be told I end up working from 8am until 8pm, seven days a week. I’m even writing this blog during my flight rather than watching ‘A Star is Born’ which is on my bucket list! Marco has been most generous of his time with me. The Pros are endless which is really what keeps me going. The constant messages I receive on a daily basis from people whose lives I have changed for the better – those who have been dealt a poor hand, are disabled or are stuck in a hospital with little to do with their time. Holding my numerous events also gives me the opportunity to meet everyone which is something I absolutely love. Thanks to my channel I now have a full-time career which is rare for most entertainers. Most people don’t realize that most entertainers work paycheck to paycheck or even can’t survive on their income alone. It is reported that 70% of SAG actors make under $16,000 a year! For many years I was a bartender and lyft driver to supplement my acting income. The biggest pro of course, is my Rudies. They’ve truly become an extended family. I love hearing about their casino trips, especially when they’ve formed new relationships from within the group itself. Another great perk is the fact that I’m able to employ staff and pay them a good wage. It’s very important to me to always provide quality content while sharing the success with those who got me there. Sandra Howe-Forney: Being a You tube Slot personality; how to remain positive although you are hitting nothing! Haha, it’s funny but true. One thing I have never hid from you all, is the fact that I (everyone really) lose more than I make at the casino. It’s not possible to make money at it long term. So when I’m doing a live stream or sitting through a losing streak where I can’t seem to get a break – it’s important for me to remember that slot machines are designed to take my money. I understand how they are created and that my only goal should be in enjoying the ride. The destination is as important as the journey. It’s all about the anticipation of that big win that could come at any time. It only takes one!! Kimberly Nolen Glover: Ways to get people to move who are hogging 3 machines at once. Understanding the rules of a casino is the first step. At my local casino, San Manuel, players are not allowed to play more than one machine unless they hold a top tiered card. At that point, they can play a second machine. So if I see someone playing two or three machines, I usually just roll my eyes and keep moving. But at times when it is impossible to get on a machine and I REALLY want to get on it, I will ask them politely to let me sit down. That usually doesn’t go over well, but you can remind them that those are the rules and that if the casino wasn’t jam packed, it wouldn’t be an issue for you. Most likely they still won’t want to move, so it’s your call if you want to ask an attendant for assistance. Knowing the rules of the casino means that there is no reason at all to raise your voice or get rude. An attendant will do that for you. Hope Fletcher Lopez: When is the ideal time for you to be approached by your fans? Live-streams seem challenging especially when you are in a bonus and we all want to be extra sensitive when you are filming! Personally, any time is good while I’m on the casino floor. If I’m live, I love meeting fans. When I’m recording a video, it’s a little harder to stop recording so I may ask you to hold on for a minute til my bonus finishes or something. The only time I like my privacy is when I’m having a meal in a restaurant. That’s my quiet time to relax and separate from the casino life. I find it even more awkward when I can tell someone is over my shoulder, or worse, filming me "secretly" to say they saw me. I'd much rather you just come over and say hello. I'm harmless! Leslie-Dave Kotula: If you hit a large jackpot is it wise to take a portion in a check or get it all in cash? I think most gamblers should probably ask for a jackpot to be in the form of a check. The temptation to take that money and try to grow it into something bigger is too large. When you have $10,000 in your pocket, that high limit room is calling your name. You feel invincible! So unless you have strong will power, or hold onto 3 winners banks haha, then a check is a great idea. Three times now I have received over $10,000 in cash and it just makes you super paranoid. As a guy without a purse, I wedge it in my pocket and it barely fits and even comes out the top. Then you’re always looking over your shoulder in case someone is following you! Heck, even if I had a purse I'd be holding against me nonstop. If you’re staying at the casino hotel, then take it directly to your safe. One tip is asking for a member of security to follow you to your car or room. Another great tip is that you can request the casino to mail the W2 form to your house so that you don’t lose it in the excitement. If you’re a high roller and get multiple W2’s in a night, then this method is strongly suggested. When we walk into a casino, we all have goals and wild expectations. Learn what my bucket list includes next week! Have a Question you would like answered? Put it down below! Also, enjoy FREE SHIPPING at CasinoSwag.com Thursday May 2 to Monday May 6, 2019 with promo code: MAYFLOWERS19 Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️  Michelle Curry writes, “I love to gamble, but I go about once a month, so it always exciting when I go. Do you still find it exciting now that you go more often and for work?” One misconception is that I go to the casino EVERY day to gamble, film, edit and upload to YouTube. People will see me at the casino and ask "Will this be up tonight??" I do not do that haha. In fact it takes so long to edit and organize my videos and create posts and promotions for them that they typically won't be uploaded for 2-3 months later! On a typical month I will travel to Las Vegas for a 3 day weekend, go to my local for 3-4 days for live streams, and perhaps one extra trip to a different casino out of state for another 3 day weekend. So that would be about 6-10 days a month. Some months (like this one) I'm flying all over the place with over a dozen flights visiting half a dozen casinos. Luckily I do still get excited to go and gamble. There have been times when I’ve been traveling nonstop and am tired and would truly prefer to rest at home. In those moments, the show must go on and I will muster up the energy to do a live stream or film. It truly is exhausting talking and entertaining for hours at a time, and after I’m done, I do tend to crash and burn. I’m sure some of you have run into me at a casino after a live stream or group pulls and found a less that excited Brian, haha. It’s because I give my shows everything I got. I do tend to put my fans ahead of my health and sometimes ahead of my family. Just take last week for example when I decided to do 9 live streams and 5 group slot pulls! I feel I have to always innovate, educate and entertain my subscribers and especially my Rudies Fan Club. And believe me, I WANT to. But it’s just not always manageable. So do I still get excited? Absolutely. If it gets to the point that I’m no longer excited, then it would show in my videos and it would probably be time to end the channel. I definitely miss the ability to just be a ‘nobody’ and gamble for fun. These days I can’t go to a casino without getting recognized which is freaking awesome on one side, but also forces me to always keep up that energy. I do tell you though, I do not envy real celebrities. They can’t go anywhere or do anything without the expectation to be awesome always. At least it’s mainly all in one place for me. Imagine if Lady Gaga was only recognized in record stores, haha. I always end my blog asking you to let me know about ideas to write about. Next week I will answer many questions posted by my Rudies, that didn't require an entire blog each. If you have any further questions, please let me know! Also, BIG SALE of 20% OFF EVERYTHING at CasinoSwag.com is running between April 25 and April 26,2019 with promo code: 20APRIL19 so mark those calendars! If you ever want to know about more upcoming sales, click on the EVENTS tab and check out the calendar! Brian xoxo ❤️ 20%OFF Everything at CasinoSwag.com |
 | My first taste of fame, signing autographs at 11 years old following a performance of 'Oliver' |
The next year I booked a role at that same theatre and was paid $200, double rich! It wasn’t until after college that I switched over to film/tv. Between 11 and 19 I performed in more than 25 plays and musicals both in Canada and even Japan!
I’m proud to say that most of my childhood friends are still my closest today including Brad, Nattalie, Julie, Jordan and my friend Erin, who has been my friend since birth! In high school our weekly Friday evenings revolved around going to McDonalds, eating, being loud and obnoxious, walking to the strip mall and buying candies from the Bulk Barn and renting a VHS from Jumbo Video. We’d then go to Nattalie’s house and listen to Alanis Morissette and goof off. We were super duper cool.
I’m proud to say that most of my childhood friends are still my closest today including Brad, Nattalie, Julie, Jordan and my friend Erin, who has been my friend since birth! In high school our weekly Friday evenings revolved around going to McDonalds, eating, being loud and obnoxious, walking to the strip mall and buying candies from the Bulk Barn and renting a VHS from Jumbo Video. We’d then go to Nattalie’s house and listen to Alanis Morissette and goof off. We were super duper cool.
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Growing up my favorite shows were Family Matters, Family Ties, Full House – basically family shows haha. And if you’re Canadian, you also watched The Racoons! I’d always rush home from swimming lessons to catch that show. My favorite film was Willy Wonka and I do recall watching Popples repeatedly! I loved playing baseball and was a great third baseman until high school when I decided to trade in my bat and glove for a job.
As far as jobs went, I was always motivated to succeed. I first would babysit. Then I created flyers to both cut my neighbors lawns and also rent out my collection of VHS tapes. I was such a nerd, but a businessman who was determined to save money for college (at 12 years old!). My first job was a paper boy. I got paid ½ a cent for each paper I delivered plus 1 cent for each flyer that I had to stuff inside each.
⬅️I once was newspaper boy of the month and won a ghetto blaster!
I later ran my high schools store and sold clothing on consignment. My real job started at 15 when I worked at McDonalds. By 16, I was a shift supervisor and stayed on until I was 18.
Outside of ‘work’, I was very active in my community. I was struggling with my sexuality in high school, so I filled my time with activities and also acted out a bit in class resulting in my grades slipping in grade 10 (I graduated with a 70 average in the end). I was the chairman of the Mayor’s committee and two others, I wrote and directed plays at my school, I was a ‘big brother’ to a young child, volunteered at an Alzheimer’s retirement home and was even named “Junior Citizen of the Year” by my city when I was 18.
Outside of ‘work’, I was very active in my community. I was struggling with my sexuality in high school, so I filled my time with activities and also acted out a bit in class resulting in my grades slipping in grade 10 (I graduated with a 70 average in the end). I was the chairman of the Mayor’s committee and two others, I wrote and directed plays at my school, I was a ‘big brother’ to a young child, volunteered at an Alzheimer’s retirement home and was even named “Junior Citizen of the Year” by my city when I was 18.
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My volunteer work also helped me get numerous small scholarships to College where I studies Theatre Performance. Going to college was the best thing for me because it pushed me to move out on my own and truly figure out who Brian really was. Only months later did I come out to my parents. I was very lucky to have them be so open minded as they had zero experience with the subject before (nor did I really). In fact all of my family and friends were super supportive. I remember emailing my aunts and uncles to tell them and was astonished with their beautiful responses.
I’ve never followed anyone else’s path but my own and have always taken chances with everything in life. I live by the ‘you only live once’ and, ‘you only succeed if you try’ approach. Not every choice I make is the right one, but damnit it IS the right one! You learn and you grow from each and every mistake and experience. And we are also shaped by our family and our upbringing. Imagine if I didn’t have supportive parents when it came to acting. Then none of my biggest successes in life would have come to fruition. I wouldn’t have acted, I wouldn’t have moved to Toronto or LA, I wouldn’t have met Marco and I definitely wouldn’t have had a YouTube channel or be writing this blog as I’m flying off to another Casino event to greet hundreds of people!
I’ve never followed anyone else’s path but my own and have always taken chances with everything in life. I live by the ‘you only live once’ and, ‘you only succeed if you try’ approach. Not every choice I make is the right one, but damnit it IS the right one! You learn and you grow from each and every mistake and experience. And we are also shaped by our family and our upbringing. Imagine if I didn’t have supportive parents when it came to acting. Then none of my biggest successes in life would have come to fruition. I wouldn’t have acted, I wouldn’t have moved to Toronto or LA, I wouldn’t have met Marco and I definitely wouldn’t have had a YouTube channel or be writing this blog as I’m flying off to another Casino event to greet hundreds of people!
So ya, I had a great childhood which led me to where I am now. I wouldn’t have got here without the love and support of others. That is why I always do my best to be supportive to others out there who may not have had it as easy as I did growing up. When I started my YouTube Channel, I had no one reach out with help or assistance and was rather treated poorly for even existing. Because of that, I’m very open and willing to help any new and upcoming channel – as long as they’re willing to put in the work and not just expect me to promote them and voila – become famous. It doesn't work that way. I've been asked numerous times by channels to promote them and offered money in compensation. I always decline and instead tell them to show me they're putting in the efforts and then I'd gladly shoot a video with them for free, using my own money.
Childhood + Drive + Lots of Work + Many Failures = Success
And you know what, it still may not bring you success. At age 18 I came to the realization that I may end up being a bartender for the rest of my life in order to support my acting career, and that was ok. As long as I was following my passion - nothing else mattered. At a young age I watched an interview with the late George Burns who said something along the lines of "I'd rather be a failure at something I love, than a success at something I don't". I've always lived by those words.
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! If the outcome is #Rude, try again to #LineItUp. #ItOnlyTakesOne after all. Don't get my sayings? Well you soon will on next weeks blog!
Childhood + Drive + Lots of Work + Many Failures = Success
And you know what, it still may not bring you success. At age 18 I came to the realization that I may end up being a bartender for the rest of my life in order to support my acting career, and that was ok. As long as I was following my passion - nothing else mattered. At a young age I watched an interview with the late George Burns who said something along the lines of "I'd rather be a failure at something I love, than a success at something I don't". I've always lived by those words.
If at first you don’t succeed, try, try again! If the outcome is #Rude, try again to #LineItUp. #ItOnlyTakesOne after all. Don't get my sayings? Well you soon will on next weeks blog!
Brian practicing his Slot Face...
HERE'S an awesome Live Stream I did with my parents last year. Did you catch the LIVE last week?
Until the next one,
Brian xoxo ❤️
Until the next one,
Brian xoxo ❤️
People are always asking me, “Brian, when will you next be in Vegas?” Or, “Brian, I’ll be in Atlantic City this weekend! Will you be there too?” Of course, I frequent these places often, but not as often as you might think, and although you may see me in today’s video in Connecticut, it most likely was filmed months prior. It’s just the nature of the beast. Still, when in doubt, the best place to look is always my Online Calendar on the Events Page. I’m updating that link often, so if you see a publicly-listed event, group pull or other casino appearance, then I would LOVE to see you there too! You can also sign up for our Bi-weekly Newsletter that will feature upcoming events. I generally only post events at most 2-3 months in advance, and some even a few weeks in advance. So no, I’m not sure if I’ll be in Vegas for Halloween in 2020 (seriously was asked haha). This comment was asked 3 months ago, in November 2018:
Kidding aside, it's actually freaking awesome that people are so excited to meet me. I just wish I was as organized as he is!
On my calendar, whenever you see something like “Thursday, June 14, 5:00 PM - LIVE STREAM from Vegas Casino,” or something of that nature, I keep it vague for a reason. If it doesn’t go in grand detail, it’s because I sometimes require privacy to shoot my videos without lots of people around. You want to be able to hear what’s going on when you watch later on YouTube, right? Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE it when people come and say hello during my lives (and keep doing it!), I just can’t have 20 people follow me around. I also need a little privacy and don't feel everyone should know my every move, haha.
So if you’re going to Niagara Falls on August 15, and you’d really like to see me there too - there is only one place to find out if I’ll be there and that’s at the Events Page at www.BCSlots.com/events. If you see that I’m there the day prior or the day after for an event – well you best get yourself to that event, haha. As much as I’d LOVE to individually meet every person at the times that work best for them, with my events and my channel becoming increasingly popular I just can’t. I do require some space and time to record. Imagine messaging Justin Bieber (and no, I’m not comparing myself to him, though we are both Canadian and #sogoodlookingithurts…), and telling him you don’t arrive til the day after the concert but wanted to join him at his studio where he’s recording to say hi. I don’t think that would go over well. And for the record, he doesn’t give out wristbands either. 1 point Brian. 😁
Finally, on a related note, an equal number of people frequently ask me, “Brian, have you ever been to Live Casino in Maryland?” or “Brian, what do you think of Mohegan Sun?” The truth is, I’ve been to so many casinos in the last couple of years (45 in 2018 to be semi-exact), that I honestly can’t remember them all of the top of my head all the time, lol! So instead, I’ve spent some time putting together this list for easy reference. Any time you’re curious, just check it out, and I’ll be sure to update it whenever I can.
Anyway, wishing safe travels to you and yours, and I’ll hope to see you at a casino event soon! I haven’t always been a gambler, so if you want to know about my childhood – stay tuned for next week!
Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️
Ps. Here’s that list I promised:
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Casinos I’ve Been To:
USA
Alabama:
- Haven’t visited yet
Arizona:
Arkansas
- Haven’t visited yet
California
Colorado
- Haven’t visited yet
Connecticut
Delaware
- Haven’t visited yet
Florida
Idaho
Illinois
- Haven’t visited yet
Indiana
Iowa
- Haven’t visited yet
Kansas
- Haven’t visited yet
Louisiana
Maine
- Haven’t visited yet
Maryland
Massachusetts
- Haven’t visited yet
Michigan
Minnesota
Mississippi
- Haven’t visited yet
Missouri
- Haven’t visited yet
Nevada:
New Jersey
New Mexico
- Haven’t visited yet
New York
North Carolina
- Haven’t visited yet
North Dakota
- Haven’t visited yet
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Rhode Island
- Haven’t visited yet
South Dakota
- Haven’t visited yet
Texas
- Haven’t visited yet
Virginia
Washington
West Virginia
- Haven’t visited yet
Wisconsin
- Haven’t visited yet
CANADA
British Columbia
Ontario
Québec
AUSTRALIA
New South Wales
Victoria
Queensland
NEW ZEALAND
Ausckland
EL SALVADOR
San Salvador
Last Updated March 16, 2022
On my calendar, whenever you see something like “Thursday, June 14, 5:00 PM - LIVE STREAM from Vegas Casino,” or something of that nature, I keep it vague for a reason. If it doesn’t go in grand detail, it’s because I sometimes require privacy to shoot my videos without lots of people around. You want to be able to hear what’s going on when you watch later on YouTube, right? Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE it when people come and say hello during my lives (and keep doing it!), I just can’t have 20 people follow me around. I also need a little privacy and don't feel everyone should know my every move, haha.
So if you’re going to Niagara Falls on August 15, and you’d really like to see me there too - there is only one place to find out if I’ll be there and that’s at the Events Page at www.BCSlots.com/events. If you see that I’m there the day prior or the day after for an event – well you best get yourself to that event, haha. As much as I’d LOVE to individually meet every person at the times that work best for them, with my events and my channel becoming increasingly popular I just can’t. I do require some space and time to record. Imagine messaging Justin Bieber (and no, I’m not comparing myself to him, though we are both Canadian and #sogoodlookingithurts…), and telling him you don’t arrive til the day after the concert but wanted to join him at his studio where he’s recording to say hi. I don’t think that would go over well. And for the record, he doesn’t give out wristbands either. 1 point Brian. 😁
Finally, on a related note, an equal number of people frequently ask me, “Brian, have you ever been to Live Casino in Maryland?” or “Brian, what do you think of Mohegan Sun?” The truth is, I’ve been to so many casinos in the last couple of years (45 in 2018 to be semi-exact), that I honestly can’t remember them all of the top of my head all the time, lol! So instead, I’ve spent some time putting together this list for easy reference. Any time you’re curious, just check it out, and I’ll be sure to update it whenever I can.
Anyway, wishing safe travels to you and yours, and I’ll hope to see you at a casino event soon! I haven’t always been a gambler, so if you want to know about my childhood – stay tuned for next week!
Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️
Ps. Here’s that list I promised:
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Casinos I’ve Been To:
USA
Alabama:
- Haven’t visited yet
Arizona:
- Gila River Casinos, Pheonix Area
- Talking Stick & Casino Arizona, Scottsdale
Arkansas
- Haven’t visited yet
California
- Agua Caliente, Palm Springs, Rancho Mirage, and Cathedral City
- Barona, San Diego
- Chumash, Santa Ynez
- Fantasy Springs, Indio
- Harrahs Rincon, Valley Center
- Jamul, San Diego
- Morongo, Cabazon
- Pala, Pala
- Pechanga, Temecula
- Redhawk, El Dorado
- San Pablo Lytton, San Pablo
- Soboba, San Jacinto
- Sycuan, San Diego
- Tachi Palace, Lemoore
- Valley View, Valley Center
- Yamaava' Casino at San Manuel, Highland
Colorado
- Haven’t visited yet
Connecticut
- Mohegan Sun, Montville
Delaware
- Haven’t visited yet
Florida
- Seminole Hard Rock, Hollywood
Idaho
- Coeur d'Alene Casino, Wordley
Illinois
- Haven’t visited yet
Indiana
- Blue Chip, Michigan City
- Four Winds, South Bend
Iowa
- Haven’t visited yet
Kansas
- Haven’t visited yet
Louisiana
- Coushatta, Kinder
- L'Auberge, Baton Rouge
- L'Auberge, Lake Charles (came just for the view!)
Maine
- Haven’t visited yet
Maryland
- Live! Casino, Hanover
- Rocky Gap, Flintstone
Massachusetts
- Haven’t visited yet
Michigan
- Four Winds, New Buffalo
- Greektown, Detroit
- MotorCity, Detroit
Minnesota
- Grand Casino, Hinckley
Mississippi
- Haven’t visited yet
Missouri
- Haven’t visited yet
Nevada:
- Aquarius, Laughlin (Rude Casino, will never return)
- Aria, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Atlantis, Reno
- Baldini's, Reno
- Ballys, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Bellagio, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Binions, Las Vegas
- Buffalo Bills, Primm
- Caesars Palace, Paradise (Rude Casino, will never return)
- California, Las Vegas
- Casino Royale, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Circa, Las Vegas
- Colorado Belle, Laughlin
- Cosmopolitan, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Edgewater, Laughlin
- El Cortez, Las Vegas
- Eldorado, Reno
- Encore, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Excalibur, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Flamingo, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Four Queens, Las Vegas
- Fremont, Las Vegas
- Gold Coast, Paradise
- Golden Gate, Las Vegas
- Golden Nugget, Las Vegas
- Grand Sierra Resort, Reno
- Harrahs, Lake Tahoe
- Harrahs, Laughlin
- Harrahs, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Harrahs, Reno
- Harveys, Lake Tahoe
- M Resort, Henderson
- Mandalay Bay, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- MGM Grand, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Montbleu, Lake Tahoe
- New York - New York, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Palace Station, Las Vegas
- Paris, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Park MGM, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Peppermill, Reno
- Pioneer, Laughlin
- Planet Hollywood, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Plaza Casino, Las Vegas
- Primm Valley Resort, Primm
- Resorts World, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Rio, Paradise
- The Cromwell, Paradise (RUDE Casino, will never return)
- The D, Las Vegas
- The Mirage, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- The Palazzo, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- The Linq, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)`
- The Strat, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- The Venetian, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Treasure Island, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Tropicana, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
- Whiskey Pete's, Primm
- Wynn, Paradise (Las Vegas Strip)
New Jersey
- The Borgata, Atlantic City
- Caesars, Atlantic City
- Golden Nugget, Atlantic City
- Resorts, Atlantic City
- Ocean Resort, Atlantic City
- Showboat, Atlantic City (closed)
- Tropicana, Atlantic City
- Hard Rock, Atlantic City
New Mexico
- Haven’t visited yet
New York
- Empire City Casino, Yonkers
- Resorts World, Queens
- Seneca Niagara, Niagara Falls
North Carolina
- Haven’t visited yet
North Dakota
- Haven’t visited yet
Ohio
- Jack, Cincinnati
Oklahoma
- Cherokee, West Siloam Springs, Roland, and Ramona
- Choctaw, Durant
- Hard Rock, Tulsa
- Winstar World, Thackerville
Oregon
- Seven Feathers, Canyonville
Pennsylvania
- Live! Casino, Pittsburgh
Rhode Island
- Haven’t visited yet
South Dakota
- Haven’t visited yet
Texas
- Haven’t visited yet
Virginia
- Rosies Gaming, Richmond
Washington
- Angel of the Winds, Arlington
West Virginia
- Haven’t visited yet
Wisconsin
- Ho Chunk, Madison
- Haven’t visited yet
CANADA
British Columbia
- Vancouver Casino (I forget which one I visited, so long ago!)
Ontario
- Fallsview, Niagara Falls
- Caesars Windsor, Windsor
- Casino Niagara, Niagara Falls
- Flamboro Downs, Dundas
- OLG Casino, Thunderbay
- Woodbine, Toronto
- Woodstock Raceway, Woodstock
- Mohawk, Campbellville
Québec
- Montreal Casino, Montreal
AUSTRALIA
New South Wales
- The Star, Sydney
Victoria
- Crown, Melbourne
Queensland
- Treasury, Brisbane
NEW ZEALAND
Ausckland
- StarCity, Auckland
EL SALVADOR
San Salvador
- Casino Colonial
Last Updated March 16, 2022
First off, there is no sure way of winning every time. Otherwise I would never leave the casino and just keep winning. But there are steps to take in order to get the best bang for your buck!
Higher Denomination Machines
In last weeks blog, What are Payout Percentages, we discovered that the higher denomination a machine, the higher the payout percentage! So if you’re going to bet $5/spin you may as well play that on a 10c denomination machine or $1 machine rather than a penny machine. In the long run, you could win more. Notice I use the word ‘could’, because of course there will be that guy who bets 88cents and wins $10,000 – but probability is against him.
Avoid Progressive Machines.
When a machine has a large progressive machine with a Grand of $10,000 or more, a large portion of each bet goes to pay out that one person. And if it’s a wide area progressive jackpot (like Wheel of Fortune or Mega Bucks with jackpots in the millions), then your odds of winning and your payout percentage drops a further 5%. There is one exception…
Must Pay By.
Some Slot Machines have progressives that must be paid by a certain amount. Don’t be fooled though, if it must be paid by $500 and it’s at $490 – it could still take another $5,000 in bets for it to actually go off (based on it going up 1 cent for every $5 bet which is not uncommon). Knowing how close it actually is and how much those amounts go up per spin may actually give you the best odds of winning if you can figure it out mathematically in your favor!
Age before Beauty.
Older Casinos have to compete with newer prettier ones, so they may up their payout percentages to attract players. Old Vegas has slightly higher odds than the strip, and outside of there on the Boulder Strip, it’s even higher. Those large fountains and chandeliers don’t just pay for themselves!
Under the same category, older machines will often have bigger payout percentages. I’ve often heard that the exact same game that is 10 years older will payout more. Why? They were manufactured back when payout percentages were higher (a rumor I’ve heard from an actual slot manufacturer).
Leave while you’re ahead.
I know, I know, easier said than done. BUT, remembering my blog last week – if a slot machine is designed to payout 89% and you’re up 110% - RUN!!! Take those winnings because you have already beaten the system. Sure, you’re only up $20 – but if you keep playing you risk losing that $20 and the rest of your ticket!
Use Cash, not Tickets.
When I get home from a casino, I ALWAYS remember the biggest losing machines and I ask myself “WHY did I keep playing??”. Often times it’s because I stuck a large ticket in the machine. It’s as if it holds a lower value than cash. If I stick in a hundred, I’ll lose a hundred. If I put in a ticket for $379.34, I’m going to lose that just the same! File those tickets away and use cash.
Better SAFE than Sorry.
When you have a collection of tickets, cash them out. Take some of the profits from the games and put them in your pocket safe, the Winners Bank! At only $26, it’s the best investment you’ll ever make, and it will pay for itself the first time you use it. (and if you follow my Affiliate Link, you’ll Save 10% with code: BrianChris
Play with Friends.
I have good friends and I have baaaaaad ones. The bad ones will encourage me to keep playing while the others (usually the ones who don’t gamble as much….Marco….) will tell me to RUN more. Best to listen to the Marco’s of the world!
READ the Payouts.
This is definitely one thing I do NOT do. However, it is important, especially if playing video poker. Side by Side poker machines may payout different! My game is Jacks or Better, and you’ll only see me sitting down if it’s set to 9/6 (9to1 payout on full house, 6to1 payout on flush). Some casinos have 9/5 or 8/5 or even worse!
Watch me Play!
Be informed. Watch from my mistakes and see what works for me and what doesn’t. I don’t have all the answers, but I sure as heck have thousands of hours of proof on my channel.
This is probably a good time to remind you to check if you are subscribed to both my
DAILY Slot Channel and my LIVE Slot Channel. Are you? Then you’re winning already! And to find out where I’ll be next…read next weeks blog!
Brian xoxo ❤️
Payout Percentage for slot machines effectively means how much money on average over the lifetime of a slot machine, it pays back to you – in percent.
For example, if a single slot machine brings in $1 Million Dollars ‘Coin In’ and pays out $900,000 ‘Coin Out’ – then it has a 90% payout percentage (or 10% goes to the casino as profit). This is designed mathematically as the probability of what may transpire.
Casinos are able to adjust the payout percentage of a game based upon how the slot manufacturer set the game up and on local laws. Most slot machines will be pre-set with the ability to adjust from 85-95% payout. If a casino would like to encourage more patrons, then they may increase how much they pay back. Some older casinos who have to compete with the newer prettier casinos, for example, will usually have a higher payback. I’ve heard from some casinos who don’t serve alcohol having to increase their percentages so that they could compete with those who did serve.
While the majority of Indian Casinos are not legally obligated to report their payout percentages, other casinos are required to do so and can be found in the American Casino Guide. Many people assume that Indian Casinos (or even Bingo machines for that matter) are set lower because of this, but it’s not true. If a casino has poor payouts, then people would simply not go. And this year, I am KILLING it at the Indian casinos (knock on wood). In some locations like Las Vegas, the city does not announce the percentages by casino, but rather by location. Aka Strip Casinos, Downtown Casinos etc. Some states break down the payout percentages by denomination and others as a whole for the casino or even city!
Not all Slot Machines are created equal…
Penny Machines. Oh how I love thee. They are usually the most fun games with the best bonuses, music and graphics. But don’t be fooled – they have the WORST payout percentages. Penny machines can be set to payout around 89%. A misconception is that this means that 89% of people end up winning while only 11% lose. Or if you put in $100 into a machine - that you are guaranteed to cash out with at least $89. WRONG!! Here’s an example:
If one person puts $5 in a slot machine and wins $1,000 then they have a payout percentage of 2,000%. That means that a further 224 people (or so) who also put in $5 will have a 0% payout percentage (go broke). The grand total of that? An 89% payout percentage. (Of course, you’d have to add a lot more zeroes to my example to show a true comparison of a real slot machines life, and a lot more winners at varying amounts).
Progressive Slot Machines
When you see machines with large progressive jackpots – let’s say for this example they are set to a 90% payout. That certainly does not mean that 90% of people are winners. It’s probably more like (this is completely made up by my semi-educated guess) 0.001% win a jackpot, 10% make a good profit, 20% make a small profit, 20% break even and 50% lose all their money. Because of this, progressive machines are most difficult to pull a profit because most of the money that goes into the machine goes toward paying out that 1 PERSON who takes the top prize.
Wow, what a buzz kill. So what games should we play?
One clear fact is that higher denomination machines (not bet amount, but denomination) have higher payout percentages. Pennies are the lowest, followed by 2cent, 5c, 10c, 25c, 50c, $1 and so forth up to $100 and above. When you hit the $100 bet range or more, they can have close to a 95% payout! So why wouldn’t we all just bet on $100 machines? Again, they usually have a large progressive amount or Jackpot Amount that will account for most of the winnings thus generally making you a loser.
Does this mean that the casino can ‘flip a switch’ at any time and adjust the payout percentage?
No. No. No. Everyone, including myself, LOVES to blame a casino at times saying that “Oh this section is not paying out”, or “they’re under renovations and have to pay for it” or “It’s the holidays so they’ve flipped the switch!”. It’s just not true no matter how many times you say it. Sometimes you are just darned lucky, and sometimes you are not just darned unlucky. In order for a casino to adjust a payout percentage on a slot machine, they have to open it up and make adjustments to each individual machine. This process can take up to 45 minutes to do, so by the time they are done, the holiday would be over! So no, there is no man in a booth getting ready to shut it down. There was a time when casinos were hoping to go to server based machines, but it didn't happen.
Any tips?
Play within your limits. If you normally bet $5/spin, rather than play a penny machine with an 87% payout, why not play a $1 denomination machine for the same bet amount of $5/spin with a 92% payout! That’s why when you see me playing Lightning Link, I always do the 10cent denomination for $5 a spin rather than max betting the 1 cent version. When it does come to multi-denomination machines like Lightning Link, the jury is out as to whether the payout percentages actually change or not. I have heard that it depends on the manufacturer. So in that case, I’ll play Lightning Link in the High Limit room instead with the exact same 10cent denomination at $5/spin bets (the lowest on that machine). Or better still, try your hand at Video Poker for higher paybacks (assuming you know how to play!).
So why do I play penny slots after knowing all of this?
Can you blame me? They’re too much darn fun!! Imagine if all of my videos were on single line $1 machines or me just doing 2 spins on a $100 machine. No one watches for just that! So I will take the 5% cut in payout percentage if it means I have more fun.
Don’t forget, payout percentages are not advertised by casinos nor are they on slot machines, except….LIGHTNING ZAP!! This particular game, created by Everi, is set to start as a whopping 90% payback and they often advertise that at casinos! I’ve also noticed that while playing slots at Dotty’s in Vegas, the slot machines would encourage me to ‘up’ by denominations for higher payout percentages! I think if slot manufacturers caught on to that, it would be very smart. Wouldn’t you bet $3 instead of $2 if it told you your payout would go from 87% to 90%? It sure worked on me, although I ended up losing quicker.
Here's an AMAZING HIT I got in Reno on Lightning Zap on a $2 bet with a 24,450% payback! Is that right? It sounds too high...but when winning $2 on a $2 bet is 100%, I guess it adds up quickly!
There are of course even more tricks and tips to try and make the biggest bang for your buck. More on that next week!
Brian xoxo ❤️
If you're not a Rudies Member yet, what are you waiting for?? Join the BEST Slots Community today!
I suppose I always just assumed people would figure it out by watching the videos, but turns out this is a very popular question to ask. How do Group Slot Pulls work? I’m hoping this will answer all questions I’ve seen in the comments of my past videos.
First off, I have to get permission from a casino to be able to record there. Some casinos have open filming policies, so they reap the benefits of my attendance.
Basic rules are simple:
First off, I have to get permission from a casino to be able to record there. Some casinos have open filming policies, so they reap the benefits of my attendance.
Basic rules are simple:
- You must be of legal age to play.
- There is no cost to join for Rudies Members, however I have instituted a $10 fee for non-members to deter people from signing up and then cancelling last second. It’s always a shame when I have to turn away dozens of people to then find out I would have had room for them. I always get 10% who drop out the day before and another 10% who just don’t show up. So I try to offer more tickets to compensate, but if everyone does show up (which has happened), there are too many of us! Each participant will receive 2 souvenirs from the event!
- Everyone puts in the exact same money, myself included! This means that on days when I’ve held 6 group pulls of $200 to $1000 a group, I’m putting in $2,400!
- Everyone splits the wins (or losses) equally. It fascinates me the number of people who watch my group pulls and think that I actually take all the winnings for myself, haha.
How do you choose the Games?
As far as the games we play, I usually narrow down the options to 3-5 games and have the participants vote on them. The games I choose are based off of denomination, bet amounts, as well as location in the casino. I have to ensure there will be enough space around a machine for a large group without causing an issue for other patrons or staff in the casino. I also try to make it so that each participant gets around 6-10 spins each. The minimum amount of spins I want to have on a single machine is 40. I figure that generally speaking that should be enough spins to get at least one bonus (sometimes we get multiple and other times none at all!). On occasion a casino will require that I choose the slot machines in advance so that they can inform security where we will be or even turn that machine off for us to play which is awesome. In those cases, I use my best judgement in choosing the machine for the group.
Legal Issues
Legally speaking, there are some things I do to ensure no one leaves the casino with all the money on a spin they did. I will only use my players card in the machine. Sure, I get the points from it which results in me getting maybe $10-$20 in freeplay – but I do that to safeguard the money. (And believe me, I don’t run these huge events to make an extra $20, and I play enough on my own to already be in the top tiers). More importantly, some states say whosever card is in the machine is responsible for the money and the taxes. Imagine if you’re in a group of 20 people you’ve never met and one person spins the wheel and hits $10,000. They could easily demand that it’s their money and leave with it. Some casinos are really awesome and provide me with a specific players card for the group which will equally allow us to all share in the players points. I wish they all were able to accommodate this. The other safeguards I use is making everyone sign a waiver agreeing to our terms (where they also agree to having their image in my videos online).
I live far away, can I send you money to be in included in the group pull?
It sounds like an awesome idea to include a ton of people, however sadly it is against the law to gamble with other peoples money and then split the money. The person legally must be in the casino.
Who Pays the taxes?
I agree to cover up to $5,000 worth of wins in taxes. What that means, for my group pulls, is that if the group hits $10,000 in overall wins, I will personally cover the taxes on the first $5,000, and as a group, we would split the taxes on the second half. If however we hit $6,000 in hand pays but our overall win is only $1,000, then I won’t hold back anything. In general, we do not go over $5,000 in overall wins, in fact it has only happened once. That group only had to share a couple hundred dollars in taxes among 25 people which was around $20/person.
In some States, whoever does the SPINNING is responsible for paying the taxes. In those instances, I always leave it up to the player if they want to take that chance. I also keep it to just American residents to spin so we avoid any immediate tax withholdings from those in other countries. Canadians for example have to pay taxes immediately on the spot. So if they spun a jackpot, they’d pay hundreds in taxes and end up leaving the group pull negative! To avoid that hassle and headache, in such States, I regretfully keep it to just American residents - but I'll still call them up and do the spins in their name.
Bottom line, everything I do is to safeguard each other and myself. These events are put on for the enjoyment of others to not only get a chance to gamble with myself, #priceless haha, but more importantly give people the opportunity to play high limit slots when they otherwise may not have had that chance. And also give them their 5 seconds of fame!
Do you tip on the hand pays?
Just like in my own play, we always tip the slot attendants. Rather than pay them after every single hand pay, I pay them at the end. So if a group of 20 people is left with $5086.46, rather than pay them each back $254.32, each person would get $250 and the remaining $4.32 (or $86.40) would go to the staff as a thank you.
So do you WIN or LOSE overall in your Group Pulls?
When you consider that high limit slot machines have an average payout percentage of around 92% or so, you should really expect the same from a group pull. I’d say that most of the group pulls end up in a loss of around $20 a person, with a quarter of group pulls coming away winners of around $25 a person. On occasion we’ve had the group each walk away with over $100 in profit, once over $500 each in profit, and twice, we’ve had horrible a payback where we lost most of our money. To me (and most participants), it’s about the journey, the experience and the excitement! We play for 30 minutes to an hour spinning strictly high limit slots. We cheer, we jeer, we drink and we scream!! That in itself is an awesome value for your money. And if you walk away with some profit or a small loss – it’s all worth it in the end. If you read the comments on these videos from the participants, they always say they look forward to the next one! The camaraderie is infectious. Why go to the batting cages when you can play with a team! Heck, I will lose $200 in 1 minute on my own, I’m only so happy to lose $20 in 45 minutes!
To find out about upcoming Group Pulls or Events, it’s best to visit the Events page. To be the first person to find out about them, be sure to SIGN UP for our bi-weekly newsletter!
Here’s a look at BIGGEST Payout Percentage WIN as a group aboard our Rudies Cruise in 2018, and our BIGGEST Profit as a group in Las Vegas.
Next week we will delve into the world of payout percentages and what that means to a player…
Brian xoxo ❤️
How do you choose the Games?
As far as the games we play, I usually narrow down the options to 3-5 games and have the participants vote on them. The games I choose are based off of denomination, bet amounts, as well as location in the casino. I have to ensure there will be enough space around a machine for a large group without causing an issue for other patrons or staff in the casino. I also try to make it so that each participant gets around 6-10 spins each. The minimum amount of spins I want to have on a single machine is 40. I figure that generally speaking that should be enough spins to get at least one bonus (sometimes we get multiple and other times none at all!). On occasion a casino will require that I choose the slot machines in advance so that they can inform security where we will be or even turn that machine off for us to play which is awesome. In those cases, I use my best judgement in choosing the machine for the group.
Legal Issues
Legally speaking, there are some things I do to ensure no one leaves the casino with all the money on a spin they did. I will only use my players card in the machine. Sure, I get the points from it which results in me getting maybe $10-$20 in freeplay – but I do that to safeguard the money. (And believe me, I don’t run these huge events to make an extra $20, and I play enough on my own to already be in the top tiers). More importantly, some states say whosever card is in the machine is responsible for the money and the taxes. Imagine if you’re in a group of 20 people you’ve never met and one person spins the wheel and hits $10,000. They could easily demand that it’s their money and leave with it. Some casinos are really awesome and provide me with a specific players card for the group which will equally allow us to all share in the players points. I wish they all were able to accommodate this. The other safeguards I use is making everyone sign a waiver agreeing to our terms (where they also agree to having their image in my videos online).
I live far away, can I send you money to be in included in the group pull?
It sounds like an awesome idea to include a ton of people, however sadly it is against the law to gamble with other peoples money and then split the money. The person legally must be in the casino.
Who Pays the taxes?
I agree to cover up to $5,000 worth of wins in taxes. What that means, for my group pulls, is that if the group hits $10,000 in overall wins, I will personally cover the taxes on the first $5,000, and as a group, we would split the taxes on the second half. If however we hit $6,000 in hand pays but our overall win is only $1,000, then I won’t hold back anything. In general, we do not go over $5,000 in overall wins, in fact it has only happened once. That group only had to share a couple hundred dollars in taxes among 25 people which was around $20/person.
In some States, whoever does the SPINNING is responsible for paying the taxes. In those instances, I always leave it up to the player if they want to take that chance. I also keep it to just American residents to spin so we avoid any immediate tax withholdings from those in other countries. Canadians for example have to pay taxes immediately on the spot. So if they spun a jackpot, they’d pay hundreds in taxes and end up leaving the group pull negative! To avoid that hassle and headache, in such States, I regretfully keep it to just American residents - but I'll still call them up and do the spins in their name.
Bottom line, everything I do is to safeguard each other and myself. These events are put on for the enjoyment of others to not only get a chance to gamble with myself, #priceless haha, but more importantly give people the opportunity to play high limit slots when they otherwise may not have had that chance. And also give them their 5 seconds of fame!
Do you tip on the hand pays?
Just like in my own play, we always tip the slot attendants. Rather than pay them after every single hand pay, I pay them at the end. So if a group of 20 people is left with $5086.46, rather than pay them each back $254.32, each person would get $250 and the remaining $4.32 (or $86.40) would go to the staff as a thank you.
So do you WIN or LOSE overall in your Group Pulls?
When you consider that high limit slot machines have an average payout percentage of around 92% or so, you should really expect the same from a group pull. I’d say that most of the group pulls end up in a loss of around $20 a person, with a quarter of group pulls coming away winners of around $25 a person. On occasion we’ve had the group each walk away with over $100 in profit, once over $500 each in profit, and twice, we’ve had horrible a payback where we lost most of our money. To me (and most participants), it’s about the journey, the experience and the excitement! We play for 30 minutes to an hour spinning strictly high limit slots. We cheer, we jeer, we drink and we scream!! That in itself is an awesome value for your money. And if you walk away with some profit or a small loss – it’s all worth it in the end. If you read the comments on these videos from the participants, they always say they look forward to the next one! The camaraderie is infectious. Why go to the batting cages when you can play with a team! Heck, I will lose $200 in 1 minute on my own, I’m only so happy to lose $20 in 45 minutes!
To find out about upcoming Group Pulls or Events, it’s best to visit the Events page. To be the first person to find out about them, be sure to SIGN UP for our bi-weekly newsletter!
Here’s a look at BIGGEST Payout Percentage WIN as a group aboard our Rudies Cruise in 2018, and our BIGGEST Profit as a group in Las Vegas.
Next week we will delve into the world of payout percentages and what that means to a player…
Brian xoxo ❤️
"Why do you do backup spins and why do you do them at the same amount instead of going down to minimum bet?” - Lynne Nuibe
For starters, I didn’t come up with the ‘back-up spin’. I heard The Big Payback use it a while back and it caught on in my own play. I know a lot of you out there tell me you hear yourselves saying 'Rude' or 'Line it UP!", just like how I catch myself saying "For the Love" or "Girls and Pearls". Now I didn’t know why TBP did them at the time, but it sounded cool and sometimes worked out.
I have a few reasons why I do it. (Also, I always play at the dollar amount I feel comfortable playing, and so lowering a bet for a backup doesn’t make sense to me.) For me, they generally follow a bonus, a big win, or a big loss! Since we all know by now that slot machines are designed to take our money, it’s a good way to force yourself to get off!
After a bonus. Most bonuses are difficult to hit and usually where the most money is hidden. So after a bonus, chances of getting another one soon is slim.
After a big win. If it’s a big win, you probably won’t have another one, let’s be honest. So leave with it!
After a big loss. You know when you’re on a machine and you are just losing and losing and you are convinced it is ‘due to hit’ (no such thing) but deep down know it probably won’t happen? Well this forces you to get off after 1-3 more spins. I use this method a lot in my live streams. And never fret, because It will always be there tomorrow!
But WHY do I really do it? I compare it to how we teach our children that it’s time to leave the park or Grandma’s house. “Ok Charlie, you can play for 5 more minutes…3 minutes left…1 minute until we leave” and then you go. It eases the pain of having to leave (just as it does to get off a slot machine). I will either say that I’ll do 1-3 more backup spins - OR - sometimes I’ll say I’ll get off when I hit a certain dollar amount (higher or lower from where I’m at), which is a very similar method.
After that final back-up spin, I may do another if I won my money back or more. It has worked out for me numerous times, and sometimes not. I have no clue if I’m up or down from them (probably down, it’s slots!), but it’s the best way I’ve found to get off a machine.
Here’s a an AWESOME Video showing a great Back Up Spin or TWO!
Of course winning by yourself is fun, but winning with a GROUP is even better! Next week I'll discuss in detail, Group Pull Events!!
Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️
For starters, I didn’t come up with the ‘back-up spin’. I heard The Big Payback use it a while back and it caught on in my own play. I know a lot of you out there tell me you hear yourselves saying 'Rude' or 'Line it UP!", just like how I catch myself saying "For the Love" or "Girls and Pearls". Now I didn’t know why TBP did them at the time, but it sounded cool and sometimes worked out.
I have a few reasons why I do it. (Also, I always play at the dollar amount I feel comfortable playing, and so lowering a bet for a backup doesn’t make sense to me.) For me, they generally follow a bonus, a big win, or a big loss! Since we all know by now that slot machines are designed to take our money, it’s a good way to force yourself to get off!
After a bonus. Most bonuses are difficult to hit and usually where the most money is hidden. So after a bonus, chances of getting another one soon is slim.
After a big win. If it’s a big win, you probably won’t have another one, let’s be honest. So leave with it!
After a big loss. You know when you’re on a machine and you are just losing and losing and you are convinced it is ‘due to hit’ (no such thing) but deep down know it probably won’t happen? Well this forces you to get off after 1-3 more spins. I use this method a lot in my live streams. And never fret, because It will always be there tomorrow!
But WHY do I really do it? I compare it to how we teach our children that it’s time to leave the park or Grandma’s house. “Ok Charlie, you can play for 5 more minutes…3 minutes left…1 minute until we leave” and then you go. It eases the pain of having to leave (just as it does to get off a slot machine). I will either say that I’ll do 1-3 more backup spins - OR - sometimes I’ll say I’ll get off when I hit a certain dollar amount (higher or lower from where I’m at), which is a very similar method.
After that final back-up spin, I may do another if I won my money back or more. It has worked out for me numerous times, and sometimes not. I have no clue if I’m up or down from them (probably down, it’s slots!), but it’s the best way I’ve found to get off a machine.
Here’s a an AWESOME Video showing a great Back Up Spin or TWO!
Of course winning by yourself is fun, but winning with a GROUP is even better! Next week I'll discuss in detail, Group Pull Events!!
Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️
Although I’m calling this my top 10 movies…it’s more like the top 10 I can think of right now Movies. If you think I missed out on some good ones, let me know on my Facebook Post!
Titanic – I LOVED this film when it came out. Saw it twice in theatres and 3 times at the Drive-In! (In high school I created a play called the S.S.Gigantic where I played Dack Jawson and pushed Rose overboard!)
Charlie (Willy Wonka) and the Chocolate Factory – probably watched it a hundred times as a kid, and it’s also my favorite slot machine. Coincidence? I think not.
The Truman Show – As silly as it sounds, this comedy had a great impact on my life. I decided not to live life as I was ‘supposed’ to and follow norms, but to discover it on my own and follow my own path.
ET – Another childhood favorite. Still an awesome film to watch. I hope Hollywood never remakes it.
Philadelphia – Probably the first film I ever cried at watching. It was super timely, well acted and sent out an awesome educational message.
Midnight in Paris – Just like Truman show, this film opened my eyes. The biggest take away is that every generation says that the previous generation had it so lucky – so to focus more on the good things in your life instead.
Goonies – I’m seeing a trend – childhood favorite – and now a slot machine!
Mambo Italiano – If you haven’t seen this Canadian film, do it! A super funny film about an Italian boy who comes out to his family. It came out around the same time as My Big Fat Greek Wedding (Mambo is better!). I loved it so much, I bought it twice so I could watch it again when I lived in Paris!
Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs – this film holds a special place in my heart. The first film I ever saw in a movie theatre and it was with my late grandmother.
The Lion King – I had the movie, I had the pillows, the comforter, the pogs and everything – even though I was probably too old for that, haha. Who else is excited about the live action film coming out!!? It looks awesome!
Mrs.Doubtfire – Instant classic for me. Robin Williams is one of my favs and he definitely kicked ass on this.
Robin Hood – I’m talking about the Disney animated feature of course. But I actually loved the Kevin Costner one too. What ever happened to him?
Big – Tom Hanks again! I loved the message in this film. I actually got to dance on the flat piano in New York when I was 15. I understand that toy store has since closed. A claim to fame I have is that I actually got to audition for the role that Tom Hanks played in BIG in front of the casting director of the film (years after it came out of course). She absolutely loved my performance and everything I brought to the character to make it my own. She said I definitely would have made it to see the producers. Born too late, haha.
I literally spent a month writing this list, and it was hard to narrow it down. I’ve never been one to have favorites of any category including slots machines (another blog I had issues writing!). That’s why in case you didn’t notice, there are 13 films listed haha. How do you choose?? If you love films like I do, check out these Movie Themed Slot Machine Videos I posted that were based around slot machines made from movies! Next week we’ll jump back into slots where I’ll explain my theory around the back up spin…
Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️
Titanic – I LOVED this film when it came out. Saw it twice in theatres and 3 times at the Drive-In! (In high school I created a play called the S.S.Gigantic where I played Dack Jawson and pushed Rose overboard!)
Charlie (Willy Wonka) and the Chocolate Factory – probably watched it a hundred times as a kid, and it’s also my favorite slot machine. Coincidence? I think not.
The Truman Show – As silly as it sounds, this comedy had a great impact on my life. I decided not to live life as I was ‘supposed’ to and follow norms, but to discover it on my own and follow my own path.
ET – Another childhood favorite. Still an awesome film to watch. I hope Hollywood never remakes it.
Philadelphia – Probably the first film I ever cried at watching. It was super timely, well acted and sent out an awesome educational message.
Midnight in Paris – Just like Truman show, this film opened my eyes. The biggest take away is that every generation says that the previous generation had it so lucky – so to focus more on the good things in your life instead.
Goonies – I’m seeing a trend – childhood favorite – and now a slot machine!
Mambo Italiano – If you haven’t seen this Canadian film, do it! A super funny film about an Italian boy who comes out to his family. It came out around the same time as My Big Fat Greek Wedding (Mambo is better!). I loved it so much, I bought it twice so I could watch it again when I lived in Paris!
Snow White and the 7 Dwarfs – this film holds a special place in my heart. The first film I ever saw in a movie theatre and it was with my late grandmother.
The Lion King – I had the movie, I had the pillows, the comforter, the pogs and everything – even though I was probably too old for that, haha. Who else is excited about the live action film coming out!!? It looks awesome!
Mrs.Doubtfire – Instant classic for me. Robin Williams is one of my favs and he definitely kicked ass on this.
Robin Hood – I’m talking about the Disney animated feature of course. But I actually loved the Kevin Costner one too. What ever happened to him?
Big – Tom Hanks again! I loved the message in this film. I actually got to dance on the flat piano in New York when I was 15. I understand that toy store has since closed. A claim to fame I have is that I actually got to audition for the role that Tom Hanks played in BIG in front of the casting director of the film (years after it came out of course). She absolutely loved my performance and everything I brought to the character to make it my own. She said I definitely would have made it to see the producers. Born too late, haha.
I literally spent a month writing this list, and it was hard to narrow it down. I’ve never been one to have favorites of any category including slots machines (another blog I had issues writing!). That’s why in case you didn’t notice, there are 13 films listed haha. How do you choose?? If you love films like I do, check out these Movie Themed Slot Machine Videos I posted that were based around slot machines made from movies! Next week we’ll jump back into slots where I’ll explain my theory around the back up spin…
Brian Christopher xoxo ❤️
People always ask where I'm from or where I've lived, so here ya go! I was born and raised in Burlington, Ontario – a small city of maybe 190,000 or so now (110,000 when I was young). Ever since my first trip to Toronto and New York City, I knew I was destined to live a big city. I always loved the hustle and bustle of big cities, the multiculturalism and its food offerings as well as the vibe. So as soon as I could, I moved to Toronto for college to pursue acting.
After college I decided it was the best time of my life to go and travel. I wanted to do that first, before I got settled into a family and a job, and just explore. I researched where to go in Europe and I found Contiki Tours! I chose a 3 week tour through Europe which I believe covered around 13 countries! On top of that, being very proud of my Maltese heritage, I wanted to live in my home country for a Summer and see how life was for my ancestors and perhaps end up moving there.
So after my 3 week tour starting in London, I landed in Scotland to visit family there for a week. Next was Malta. Malta is a country with its own language. It’s an island on the Mediterranean right next door to Sicily and Africa. It’s basically a big beautiful country built on rock full of wonderfully (short) amazing people. While there I got a job as a bartender at a Nightclub and also as a receptionist at a hotel. I sometimes would work until 6 in the morning at the club and then walk to my day job as a receptionist. I worked a ton of hours and barely made enough to survive on. Malta had just joined the EU that month, so things were changing and hopefully for the better. After 4 or 5 months in Malta, during which my grandparents came to stay for 3 months with me too which was AWESOME, as well as my parents who came to visit, it was time to fly to Paris to reunite with Marco.
Marco and I had only dated 6 months before being apart for 6 months while I traveled and lived in Europe. In Paris, Marco attended University while I found odd jobs. I first got a job as a nanny to two French children. I’d pick them up from school and walk them home, make sure they did their homework until the parents returned from work. Soon after I found a job as a bartender at a Canadian pub and the next month I was a manager at an English style pub. The plan was only to stay in Paris for 3 months, so when my boss asked me to take over the bar I was shocked! I told him I was leaving in a month and a half and he said that was fine that he knew I could do a good job. Well he was right, haha, because I built up their revenue by 30% in that short time by running fun events like a Battle of the Bands competition.
It was time for me to return to Canada, and so I did. I said goodbye to Marco so I could get a start on my acting career, post college, and he could finish his studies. Not 2 weeks later did I get a call from Paris that they wanted me to return to run their biggest, most popular, multi-million dollar bar! I declined 3 offers until they gave me ‘an offer I couldn’t refuse’ haha. I really missed Marco, so it was a no brainer. 2 years later, Marco and I left Paris to live in Canada.
In Toronto we lived for 8 years together during which time we moved to 4 different properties and my acting career took off. I held many roles in tv series, films and commercials and Marco soared in his job. My dream had always been to go to LA and finally the time had come. Marco got a transfer through work to move to San Francisco! For the year that we lived there, I would drive every week to LA (6 hour drive) to audition and take classes. I booked a few small commercials and films on my own, but nothing too crazy. After a year of living in SF, we were able to transfer once more to Los Angeles.
Once in LA, I started driving for Uber and Lyft to help support my acting career. Most actors don’t make a living, and I was ok with that. I was doing what I loved and that was all that mattered. Shortly after arriving in LA however, I started a little YouTube Channel. Well, that’s a lie. I already had a YouTube Channel that was like 5 years old and I had like 18 subscribers. It held all of my acting reels on it (they’re still there! Here's my demo reel from 2015!). So I added a few gambling videos on there for fun, but spruced them up for entertainment.
Fast forward to today, I have now lived, with Marco, in 3 countries or 4 cities. I encourage everyone to travel as much as you can. It truly opens your eyes to the world around you and makes you appreciate life and others. When I first landed in Malta, I had $1000 to my name. My family all thought I was crazy, but look at me now :p haha . My favorite saying in life is “Nothing changes, if nothing changes”. And it’s so true. When I returned to Canada after being away for many years, it astonished me how much I had grown and how much I had seen – yet many of my friends had not changed. They were still in the same jobs, at the same places, doing the same things. For me, that was not enough. I need and require change in my life. For others, they require order and repetitiveness. To each his or her own. But if your desire is there, then feed it!
If you want to go back to my very first YouTube Slot Video, enjoy it HERE where I played Lightning Link for the FIRST TIME! I used to upload 3-5 videos A DAY before I decided to squish them into a single larger video instead lol. The first day, April 19, I uploaded five videos. April 20, I uploaded six videos and April 21, I uploaded only 2 videos. I then took a 3 week break because I honestly wasn't planning to post any more videos, but since they took off - I rolled with it! I think I made a good decision haha.
I've talked about my top 10 favorite slots in the past, so next week let's change it up to my Top 10 Movies of all Time! And if you think I should visit your casino next and have a connection, let me know below!
Brian Christopher xoxo❤️
After college I decided it was the best time of my life to go and travel. I wanted to do that first, before I got settled into a family and a job, and just explore. I researched where to go in Europe and I found Contiki Tours! I chose a 3 week tour through Europe which I believe covered around 13 countries! On top of that, being very proud of my Maltese heritage, I wanted to live in my home country for a Summer and see how life was for my ancestors and perhaps end up moving there.
So after my 3 week tour starting in London, I landed in Scotland to visit family there for a week. Next was Malta. Malta is a country with its own language. It’s an island on the Mediterranean right next door to Sicily and Africa. It’s basically a big beautiful country built on rock full of wonderfully (short) amazing people. While there I got a job as a bartender at a Nightclub and also as a receptionist at a hotel. I sometimes would work until 6 in the morning at the club and then walk to my day job as a receptionist. I worked a ton of hours and barely made enough to survive on. Malta had just joined the EU that month, so things were changing and hopefully for the better. After 4 or 5 months in Malta, during which my grandparents came to stay for 3 months with me too which was AWESOME, as well as my parents who came to visit, it was time to fly to Paris to reunite with Marco.
Marco and I had only dated 6 months before being apart for 6 months while I traveled and lived in Europe. In Paris, Marco attended University while I found odd jobs. I first got a job as a nanny to two French children. I’d pick them up from school and walk them home, make sure they did their homework until the parents returned from work. Soon after I found a job as a bartender at a Canadian pub and the next month I was a manager at an English style pub. The plan was only to stay in Paris for 3 months, so when my boss asked me to take over the bar I was shocked! I told him I was leaving in a month and a half and he said that was fine that he knew I could do a good job. Well he was right, haha, because I built up their revenue by 30% in that short time by running fun events like a Battle of the Bands competition.
It was time for me to return to Canada, and so I did. I said goodbye to Marco so I could get a start on my acting career, post college, and he could finish his studies. Not 2 weeks later did I get a call from Paris that they wanted me to return to run their biggest, most popular, multi-million dollar bar! I declined 3 offers until they gave me ‘an offer I couldn’t refuse’ haha. I really missed Marco, so it was a no brainer. 2 years later, Marco and I left Paris to live in Canada.
In Toronto we lived for 8 years together during which time we moved to 4 different properties and my acting career took off. I held many roles in tv series, films and commercials and Marco soared in his job. My dream had always been to go to LA and finally the time had come. Marco got a transfer through work to move to San Francisco! For the year that we lived there, I would drive every week to LA (6 hour drive) to audition and take classes. I booked a few small commercials and films on my own, but nothing too crazy. After a year of living in SF, we were able to transfer once more to Los Angeles.
Once in LA, I started driving for Uber and Lyft to help support my acting career. Most actors don’t make a living, and I was ok with that. I was doing what I loved and that was all that mattered. Shortly after arriving in LA however, I started a little YouTube Channel. Well, that’s a lie. I already had a YouTube Channel that was like 5 years old and I had like 18 subscribers. It held all of my acting reels on it (they’re still there! Here's my demo reel from 2015!). So I added a few gambling videos on there for fun, but spruced them up for entertainment.
Fast forward to today, I have now lived, with Marco, in 3 countries or 4 cities. I encourage everyone to travel as much as you can. It truly opens your eyes to the world around you and makes you appreciate life and others. When I first landed in Malta, I had $1000 to my name. My family all thought I was crazy, but look at me now :p haha . My favorite saying in life is “Nothing changes, if nothing changes”. And it’s so true. When I returned to Canada after being away for many years, it astonished me how much I had grown and how much I had seen – yet many of my friends had not changed. They were still in the same jobs, at the same places, doing the same things. For me, that was not enough. I need and require change in my life. For others, they require order and repetitiveness. To each his or her own. But if your desire is there, then feed it!
If you want to go back to my very first YouTube Slot Video, enjoy it HERE where I played Lightning Link for the FIRST TIME! I used to upload 3-5 videos A DAY before I decided to squish them into a single larger video instead lol. The first day, April 19, I uploaded five videos. April 20, I uploaded six videos and April 21, I uploaded only 2 videos. I then took a 3 week break because I honestly wasn't planning to post any more videos, but since they took off - I rolled with it! I think I made a good decision haha.
I've talked about my top 10 favorite slots in the past, so next week let's change it up to my Top 10 Movies of all Time! And if you think I should visit your casino next and have a connection, let me know below!
Brian Christopher xoxo❤️
LA to Vegas: Should I 🚘 or ✈️?
I’ve now traveled from LA to Vegas dozens of times, so I know a thing or two about going that route.
For the first year of my channel I would only drive. Door to door would take about 4.5 hours depending on traffic. Traffic can really suck at times since there really is only one route in and out – the I-15.
The reasons I drove was a mix of ‘I like driving’ and ‘I’m saving money’. That, and door to door flying was not much quicker. The flight itself is 45 minutes only which is awesome, but add in travel time (and cost) to the airport, check in, airport security, wait times, de-boarding, getting your luggage etc. – it was close to 4 hours all in. And that’s IF there were no delays. You can easily get a flight for $60 one way, or $120 round trip plus your Lyft rides to the airport so you’re looking at maybe $150 to fly vs the cost of driving your car ($60 for my sedan). Whichever you choose, below are some of my tricks.
WHEN FLYING:
2) you can change or cancel your flight any time free of charge with no change or cancellation fees (only pay more if the new flight price is higher, or get credit if you cancel)
3) they’re just freakin’ awesome to fly. Super friendly and their boarding process is spot on. And if you fly more than 25 times a year with them (I did 30!), you get priority boarding and more!
WHEN DRIVING:
For me, the best advantage to driving is the fact that you can come and go whenever you like and you are not dependent on others for that to happen. If you have a change of plans, drive off!
And the best advantage to flying is the ease and stress free travel. Since you are reliant on others, I always choose to book my flights to arrive hours before I’m needed for a dinner or live stream because you always have some cushion to prepare for a delay.
And most certainly, never fly to the wrong airport….as I did in THIS VIDEO!
Aside from LA, I've lived in many cities and countries worldwide. More on that next week!
Brian xoxo ❤️
I’ve now traveled from LA to Vegas dozens of times, so I know a thing or two about going that route.
For the first year of my channel I would only drive. Door to door would take about 4.5 hours depending on traffic. Traffic can really suck at times since there really is only one route in and out – the I-15.
The reasons I drove was a mix of ‘I like driving’ and ‘I’m saving money’. That, and door to door flying was not much quicker. The flight itself is 45 minutes only which is awesome, but add in travel time (and cost) to the airport, check in, airport security, wait times, de-boarding, getting your luggage etc. – it was close to 4 hours all in. And that’s IF there were no delays. You can easily get a flight for $60 one way, or $120 round trip plus your Lyft rides to the airport so you’re looking at maybe $150 to fly vs the cost of driving your car ($60 for my sedan). Whichever you choose, below are some of my tricks.
WHEN FLYING:
- Book flights well in advance. I ALWAYS book Southwest for the main three reasons:
2) you can change or cancel your flight any time free of charge with no change or cancellation fees (only pay more if the new flight price is higher, or get credit if you cancel)
3) they’re just freakin’ awesome to fly. Super friendly and their boarding process is spot on. And if you fly more than 25 times a year with them (I did 30!), you get priority boarding and more!
- Booking in advance also means you can get the cheapest flights at the $59 or above level. And again, the best thing about Southwest is that if by chance the cost goes down, you can change your ticket and get credit for the difference!
- If you’re flying in for the weekend, like most people do, choose to fly up on the Thursday night or depart the Monday morning. This will always give you a much better rate. I’ve also found that most times I fly out on Fridays and Sundays that the flights are often delayed (I blame drunk Vegas people for holding up the planes haha, it has actually been the cause of two of my delays!), so if you can fly back Monday morning and go straight to work instead – then I say go for it.
WHEN DRIVING:
- Avoid driving up on Fridays after 12pm. I made that mistake twice and it can easily add an extra 1-3 hours of drive time. And if there’s an accident – good luck! The Slot Cats were stuck in traffic last month when they close the highway due to an accident. #NotFun. If you drive up a different day, I always found that leaving right after LA rush hour, so 10am, was perfect. And on the return, leaving Vegas at 10am, you’ll always miss rush hour both ways.
- Avoid driving back on Sundays after 11am. Think about it, most people check out of their hotels at 11am and then head to their cars. So if you want to avoid that traffic, aim to leave by 10am. I’ve even tried to wait it out and leave at 7pm – but it was just as busy.
- I would always do my best to drive straight through without stopping, so avoid coffee! At most, I’d stop once after driving around 60% of the way. Then the second run is quicker!
For me, the best advantage to driving is the fact that you can come and go whenever you like and you are not dependent on others for that to happen. If you have a change of plans, drive off!
And the best advantage to flying is the ease and stress free travel. Since you are reliant on others, I always choose to book my flights to arrive hours before I’m needed for a dinner or live stream because you always have some cushion to prepare for a delay.
And most certainly, never fly to the wrong airport….as I did in THIS VIDEO!
Aside from LA, I've lived in many cities and countries worldwide. More on that next week!
Brian xoxo ❤️
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Brian Christopher is a popular YouTube Star specializing in Slot Machine Gambling Videos
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