Brenda and I visited the Riviera's convention floor and Registration area during our last visit to Las Vegas ... and both are awesome!! Much larger than the floor space we had at Tropicana ... maybe as much as 50% larger!

Funny; each time the club moves the convention site there seem to be those who are ready to put down the host hotel for one reason or another. I recall the first and second and third conventions at the old Aladdin. My now departed uncle, Andy Black, who was a hot-shot salesman for Allstate insurance when he was alive ... was always winning sales contests (free trips to Vegas, San Francisco and New York) on his insurance policy renewals alone ... told me that our first convention at Aladdin would never take place because they were tearing the place down.

Well we held 3 conventions at the Aladdin before we were forced to move to the Orleans. When that site was announced ... the daily message board outcries about moving the convention off the strip were commonplace. People felt very differently after they saw the Orleans facilities.

When the club moved the convention back to the strip to take advantage of the terrific deal we got at Tropicana ... there were those who said they would never put one foot on that property ... while some of those who originally stated their dislike for Orleans in preference for a strip hotel now questioned why the club was moving from The Orleans.

Now we're going to Riviera from Trop and I read similar negative comments are being posted on this bb regarding that choice of teh club's hotel convention site for 2004. "The more things change the more they stay the same."

I've got news for all of you. Riviera is going to be a fantastic place to hold our 2004 convention ... and maybe even beyond 2004!