[meteorite-list] Re: Tucson

[Notkin]

Mark posted:

> Cloud's jamboree has long been a major rock and gem show and combined 
> with the G&LW wholesale show, it provides for many vendors and buyers 
> from around the world, not to mention the tourist trade.


Dear Mark and List:

I'm not familiar with Cloud's Jamboree, but would like to be. Do you 
know the dates for that show, or is there a website? If so, please 
forward, I'd like to check it out. Does this show take place in 
Laughlin?


> Its too late I'd think to change from Tucson to Laughlin for the 
> upcoming show, but for 2007, I'd like to see some serious thought put 
> towards the move of the meteorite show.

The Gem show has been running in Tucson for 51 years. It's a huge 
moneymaker for the promoters and the city, and it's not going to move 
to another town just so visitors can maybe get cheaper hotel rooms, 
though having paid some hefty hotel bills here in the past, I do 
sympathize with you.

<rant>

Rooms in Tucson are cheap now -- you can get a nice suite next to the 
pool for $49/night. As you know, they go up drastically during the show 
due to the greed of hotel owners and promoters who squeeze every penny 
they can out of visiting dealers and buyers. Even a single at the 
crummy Super 8 on Frontage Road costs $89/night + a high occupancy tax 
during the show -- if you're lucky.

There has been a lot of unofficial grumbling about the show from 
certain dealers, and they have every right to grumble, especially this 
past year (Feb. 2005) when so many were moved to new locations, 
mistreated by promoters, and forced to set up in useless hotels with no 
walk-in traffic, miles away from the main show. In addition, vendors 
are harassed by state officials over the use of non-regulated digital 
scales and sales tax issues.

The Gem show is the biggest event of the year for us here in Tucson. 
Every hotel room in town is booked, and every decent restaurant is 
packed night after night. IMO the city should be very grateful for this 
gigantic income and do more to help visiting vendors, instead of 
hassling them. Also, it would be nice if JUST ONCE they suspended road 
work downtown for those two weeks. Another peeve of mine is the gang of 
urchins who charge $5 to park on some patch of waste ground next to the 
highway which is vacant for the rest of the year. The show promoters 
are making enough money -- they need to provide adequate free parking 
and better shuttle bus service.

</rant>

A few suggestions for show visitors looking to save money:

-  Buddy up with two or three of your pals, and get a big suite in a 
nicer hotel. It ends up being cheaper per person, plus you can throw 
some monster parties.

-  Stay at one of the motels on the outskirts of town -- off the 
highway (I-10). There are a number to choose from and they are a little 
cheaper (Motel 6 in South Tucson, which we used to call "Motel Hell," 
In-Town Suites on Ina, etc.).

-  Camp outside the city and drive in each day.

-  Find a motel in a neighboring town, like Benson, and commute to the 
show each morning by car. You have to really like driving for this to 
work.

-  Stay at one of the cheap dodgy "Bates Motel" motels on Miracle Mile 
or North Oracle. Steve Arnold IMB and I had to do that one time and we 
got a room with no bed sheets for $50 cash. I have friends who stay 
every year at the No-Tel Motel on N. Oracle and they always *do* have 
some stories to tell.

-  Crash on Blaine Reed's floor (sorry Blaine, just kidding).

-  Stay at my house like everybody else -- oops, sorry already full up 
for next year


Or . . . do what I did and just move here. Then the room prices aren't 
even an issue   : )


> With many (thousands) of rooms just in the casino hotels, nearby 
> Kingman and Needles also offer hotels and an easy commute, finding a 
> place to stay shouldn't be the problem like at Tucson

I can hardly believe there are more hotel rooms in Laughlin than 
Tucson. Greater Tucson has a population of ~1,000,000; Laughlin ~8,000.

Another reason the Tucson show is a lasting success is because people 
like coming here, especially in the winter. Tucson is a great city with 
a fascinating history and all kinds entertainment and cultural options. 
No offense to Laughlin, which is fun for a night out at the casino, but 
you can't compare it to Tucson.

Whatever you do, may I suggest that you book your rooms way in advance. 
It is always very difficult to get any kind of a room around showtime, 
and no you can't camp in my yard, sorry. We have wild bobcats and I 
don't want to have to clean up the mess in the morning  : )


Best wishes, and I hope to see you in February.

Geoff N.