2011 NFBC Proposed Draft Locations

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 3:33 am

We are finalizing our NFBC home page now and should be able to unveil that soon once I have the site locations finalized. That always takes awhile, but I think we're close with most of these. While none of these are locked in stone with signed contracts, I did want to tell you how we came to finalize these sites and why we chose the locations we did.

First of all, last year was a record year for the NFBC and the live events grew thanks to the additions of the Live Double Play and the Auction Championship. Some folks have told me they are worried that the live events may be in jeopardy because Fanball is more of an online company and has expanded our online games. But nothing could be further from the truth as we continue to expand our live event offerings and in football we even expanded to more cities than ever before. In baseball last year, we expanded the number of cities we went to and expanded to two weekends, so we're trying to grow both the live events and the online events.

In many ways the two-weekend concept worked last year as folks had more flexibility to choose their draft dates and some folks even chose both weekends. There was no statistical trend that showed that different draft dates hurt the contest for the Main Event or the Double Play or even the Auction Championship. And by going to three different regions both weekends while still allowing online options I think we covered the market as best as we could.

While it would be nice to expand our available cities, we believe in this economy a return to three cities both weekends makes more sense. We love the idea of providing back-to-back weekends and giving our members a choice of draft weekends and the option to do multiple leagues in any contest.

And while we know there are some regions of the country that we're not covering and there are some cities that could probably grow our overall numbers, for now we're going to stick with the locations we had last year and try to expand from there. I'd like to try the South again down the road, whether that be Atlanta or Florida again, but for right now it's not in the plans.

Our current plan is to host live events on the weekend of March 18-20 in Atlantic City, St. Louis and Las Vegas. One new addition this year is that we will allow Online Main Events that first weekend. We did not allow that last year, but we've heard from enough folks who just can't travel both weekends and would like to compete that first weekend online. We'll add that.

The second weekend will be March 25-27 in New York, Chicago and Las Vegas. We'll have Main Events, Live Double Plays, Auction Championships, Supers, Ultimates and Diamonds that weekend. Rosters will have to be entered very quickly because the MLB season starts this year on Wednesday, March 30th. We'll still hold our first FAAB on Sunday, April 3rd, but as you can see roster turnaround is key this year and we are trying to address that right now.

The fact that we are losing that final weekend of drafts will affect the Online Championship as well. We had about 14 OC drafts from Wednesday to Saturday last year and thus I think we all need to plan accordingly for those who want Main Event and Online Double Play teams. We'll have to schedule more drafts shortly after that weekend and maybe even some during that weekend. It's going to be tough. Thanks Bud!!

Anyway, that's the current plan and I'll look at each city location shortly. It's tough to reveal each location without finished contracts but we can discuss a couple of them shortly. Thanks all and at least you have the weekends and an idea of 2011 going forward.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 3:48 am

For the first weekend we are returning to St. Louis and Atlantic City. Our goal is to return to Pujols 5 again in St. Louis, which of course is Fanball's headquarters. We have a nice setup there and a good group to work with and this just makes sense. Pujols 5 does have an additional draft room if we grow beyond 1 Main Event league and as folks who drafted there know that one room might be too small for two 15-team leagues. We'll again offer a Live Double Play on Friday and an Auction Championship and hopefully this year we can fill both. Then on Saturday at noon CT, we'll offer the Main Event. We'll provide dinner off the menu like we did last year and hopefully guys will stick around and talk baseball like they did last year. I don't believe we'll have any Sunday offerings, though, in St. Louis. I hope folks are cool with St. Louis and it's good to see that we already have a couple of guys signed up for St. Louis on the Signup List.

Atlantic City makes sense for the first weekend as well because of its location and affordability. We pursued the Borgata but it's not possible to host a draft there this March and I doubt we'll be able to pull that off anytime soon. I know even our NFFC guys ask us to host the draft there on Labor Day weekend, but you need to realize that the Borgata has very little convention space and the space they have is really for entertainment acts. That space is usually booked on all weekends. They were very nice, but nothing was available for us.

I did check other locations in Atlantic City and a few had slot tournaments or other events booked in their convention space. So right now returning to Bally's is our best option. We are still negotiating with them, but they have enough space for 3 or more Main Events and as many Live Double Plays or Auctions as we can host on Friday and Sunday. We hope this works for everyone and I hope we can grow on the numbers we had last year.

Thoughts?

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:08 am

As for Chicago, I am looking for input here. We went to the Cubby Bear Wrigleyville last year and while drafting next to Wrigley Field was great the draft experience wasn't perfect. It was good, but not perfect. We've decided not to return there and will actually move further away from downtown. Some folks have asked us to host this in downtown Chicago, but I think Friday traffic would prevent any growth for those events and the $65 parking fees would scare off other members. I'm going to try to stay on the south side if possible.

We held the NFFC drafts at Arlington Park's Off-Track Betting location with mixed results. The Trackside is a really nice setup and the 6,000 square feet could easily host four Main Events. Friday and Sunday would be easy as well in that location. It's called Trackside Arlington Park and can be found here:

http://www.arlingtonpark.com/trackside/locations

Arlington Park won't be open at this time of year but the OTB section will be open for those who want to have some fun. Trackside has a very nice restaurant and NFBC members can certainly make some bets on trotters, ponies and dogs from other tracks if they'd like. It's a little something more than just a hotel location.

My only concern is that we did have some complaints after football about the food and the service. I've addressed these concerns with my contact there and she guarantees me that we'll solve those problems this time. I'm not sure how you screw up hamburgers, brats and hot dogs, or screw up cocktails paid by us, but not everything was perfect. Still, I think we can solve this and the location of Trackside right off the Interstate is ideal for those driving from Wisconsin, Illinois, Indiana and other Midwest states.

Again, this is not a done deal for the NFBC, but it's a location I like and my contacts at Trackside want to make this work and improve on our last experience. I'm looking for feedback from our Chicago participants and hopefully we can make this work. I want Chicago to grow from past years and we want to have a fun venue that is right for everyone.

Thoughts?

DOUGHBOYS · Post by **DOUGHBOYS** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:08 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

For the first weekend we are returning to St. Louis and Atlantic City. Our goal is to return to Pujols 5 again in St. Louis, which of course is Fanball's headquarters. We have a nice setup there and a good group to work with and this just makes sense. Pujols 5 does have an additional draft room if we grow beyond 1 Main Event league and as folks who drafted there know that one room might be too small for two 15-team leagues. We'll again offer a Live Double Play on Friday and an Auction Championship and hopefully this year we can fill both. Then on Saturday at noon CT, we'll offer the Main Event. We'll provide dinner off the menu like we did last year and hopefully guys will stick around and talk baseball like they did last year. I don't believe we'll have any Sunday offerings, though, in St. Louis. I hope folks are cool with St. Louis and it's good to see that we already have a couple of guys signed up for St. Louis on the Signup List.

Atlantic City makes sense for the first weekend as well because of its location and affordability. We pursued the Borgata but it's not possible to host a draft there this March and I doubt we'll be able to pull that off anytime soon. I know even our NFFC guys ask us to host the draft there on Labor Day weekend, but you need to realize that the Borgata has very little convention space and the space they have is really for entertainment acts. That space is usually booked on all weekends. They were very nice, but nothing was available for us.

I did check other locations in Atlantic City and a few had slot tournaments or other events booked in their convention space. So right now returning to Bally's is our best option. We are still negotiating with them, but they have enough space for 3 or more Main Events and as many Live Double Plays or Auctions as we can host on Friday and Sunday. We hope this works for everyone and I hope we can grow on the numbers we had last year.

Thoughts? I won't be back to St Louis this year because of logistics.

For anybody that is thinking about St Louis though, I highly reccommend the venue. The draft room is a little cramped, but it is all made worth it by dining in an intimate atmosphere afterwards with the draft still fresh in everybodys minds. I could have stayed all night chatting with folks that share the same fantasy personality disorder.

Pujols 5 is a little bit off the beaten path from the rest of St Louis, but I'm sure that Fanball will offer a good discount on the adjoining Starwood hotel.

If contemplating St. Louis, do it, you won't be sorry.

(Not Shawnshillery

)

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:13 am

Yeah, the Sheraton is right next door to Pujols 5 and that little mall area is filled with nice shops and restaurants. Dierdorf & Hart's Steakhouse is there as well. I know we got a really good rate at the Sheraton last year and we'll work on that again this year.

It's probably 10-15 minutes from the airport, away from downtown. But if you want to go to downtown St. Louis it's probably 20 or so minutes away. Easy to do what you want there and accessible for those driving.

And you are right Dan, if we do find that we need a separate room for a second Main Event we can reserve it. They have two other back rooms there separate from that one in the front. We had 1+ leagues there and tried to make both work in one room, but this year we'll plan accordingly if demand exceeds our current space.

NorCalAtlFan · Post by **NorCalAtlFan** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:19 am

So, it's early and my comprehension skills are limited, but are you inferring that the first weekends live events will only have the main event? And no Supers, Auctions, etc?

If you could clarify that, that would be great.

Thanks.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:22 am

I can't address Las Vegas just yet because we're still finalizing everything. I will admit that our options are more limited in Las Vegas this year for a number of reasons, but mainly because there are several major conventions there taking up most of the space. Every third year ConExpo returns to Las Vegas and that is happening March 18-20. This is a construction expo that draws 150,000+ people. If you are coming to Las Vegas for the first weekend of March Madness, man, get your hotel rooms early. That is going to be an insane weekend because there are a couple of other big conventions there along with ConExpo. Rooms are going to be tough to find.

The weekend of March 25-27 is also going to be very busy with several major shows in town. Most hotels I've talked to in Las Vegas say that First Quarter 2011 is a major rebound for Las Vegas, which is a good sign for our economy. I'm glad to see conventions back, but it makes finding space for our event tough.

We do have a couple of options on the Strip for that weekend that I think will compare to last year and we have one option far off the Strip. More details soon, but right now I like our options and I think we'll finalize this soon. Stay tuned.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:25 am

Originally posted by NorCalAtlFan:

So, it's early and my comprehension skills are limited, but are you inferring that the first weekends live events will only have the main event? And no Supers, Auctions, etc?

If you could clarify that, that would be great.

Thanks. No, I haven't inferred that at all. First weekend events will have Live Double Plays and Auction Championships in all cities on Friday and on Sunday in LV and AC. A Super League and Ultimate League will be offered on Sunday in Las Vegas and we'll hook up via teleconference with anyone who wants to join those.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:30 am

I do have to ask the question for Las Vegas: Is it important to stay on The Strip for NFBC drafts on either weekend? I ask that because there are places like South Pointe and Red Rock that are beautiful, big hotels 15-20 minutes off The Strip. I'm not saying we are choosing one over anything else right now, but I'd love to get feedback from the group about that. We've been fortunate recently to stay at the Bellagio, Flamingo, Stardust and Rio, but I was curious if that mattered. Any input is good input on that subject.

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:48 am

I'll address New York last because this really is the toughest location to host the NFBC. It's almost a loss leader, unfortunately. As everyone knows, we hosted the NFBC in Manhattan the first six years and loved every second of it, but the expenses were absurd. We were fortunate because in 2004 the economy in New York was still struggling and we had a contact at the New York Hilton who made it work. We eventually tried the Javits Center and then the Sheraton but as the economy improved in NYC the cost of hosting it there became tougher.

We really didn't move from Manhattan last year because of cost. We liked the opportunity to draft in Citi Field and it made sense for baseball. We went back for football and that didn't work because of the U.S. Open being out there. But we liked the setup for baseball and we are leaning that way again. We would draft in the Caesar's Club again and host Live Double Plays and Auction Championships in the Promenade on Friday and Sunday again. At this point Citi Field meets all our needs.

I worked hard to return to Manhattan, but space at the Sheraton and Hilton was booked for this date. Heck, the Sheraton is booked for our football weekend as well. I still have some leads at the Marriott Marquis and another Manhattan hotel, but they have tentative holds on space with other companies, too. It's more a matter of Manhattan really reviving and us struggling to find the needed space. Tom and I and Ryan love Manhattan too and I wish we could make this work there. I think we'll do all we can to return there for football, but March for some reason is very, very tough for space.

While we know there are other East Coast locations outside of NYC, after expanding in football we'll likely stick to our tried and true formula of NYC. Sorry. Again, while there are other options out there a return to Citi Field is very possible for March 25-27.

Thoughts?

RedRyder · Post by **RedRyder** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:49 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

I do have to ask the question for Las Vegas: Is it important to stay on The Strip for NFBC drafts on either weekend? I ask that because there are places like South Pointe and Red Rock that are beautiful, big hotels 15-20 minutes off The Strip. I'm not saying we are choosing one over anything else right now, but I'd love to get feedback from the group about that. We've been fortunate recently to stay at the Bellagio, Flamingo, Stardust and Rio, but I was curious if that mattered. Any input is good input on that subject. I loved drafting at The South Point for the WCOFF a few years back. The hotel/casino were brand new back then. I haven't been back, so not sure what state they are in now.

I loved the Bellagio for baseball and football, but I did not love the price tag, especially for football (everything was just too expensive). I rather have put that $1000 I spent for room, food and airfare into another football league.

76erfan · Post by **76erfan** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 4:58 am

Citifield was fine for baseball last year...dont see a reason to change it all things being equal.

Gekko · Post by **Gekko** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 5:04 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

While we know there are other East Coast locations outside of NYC, after expanding in football we'll likely stick to our tried and true formula of NYC. Sorry. Again, while there are other options out there a return to Citi Field is very possible for March 25-27.

Thoughts? i'll draft online before returning to citi field. it's a great ballpark, their staff was great, tom was great, fanball staff was great, however it's in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do before/afterwards. i like to take the train in the city, and then it's a $40 cab ride to my hotel, then $10-$20 for a car to take me over to citi. another $20 to take me back to hotel. repeat for 2 days and then $40 to get me back to the train station. just way too much hassle for me.

i will miss talking baseball with people before and after the drafts though. that's usually a very good time.

[ November 12, 2010, 11:06 AM: Message edited by: Gekko ]

Gekko · Post by **Gekko** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 5:11 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

So right now returning to Bally's is our best option. We are still negotiating with them, but they have enough space for 3 or more Main Events and as many Live Double Plays or Auctions as we can host on Friday and Sunday. We hope this works for everyone and I hope we can grow on the numbers we had last year.

Thoughts? nothing wrong with that. i had a blast in AC. i was with the mrs and brother-in-law so it was a nice "family" trip

Greg Ambrosius · Post by **Greg Ambrosius** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 5:11 am

Originally posted by Gekko:

quote:Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

While we know there are other East Coast locations outside of NYC, after expanding in football we'll likely stick to our tried and true formula of NYC. Sorry. Again, while there are other options out there a return to Citi Field is very possible for March 25-27.

Thoughts? i'll draft online before returning to citi field. it's a great ballpark, their staff was great, tom was great, fanball staff was great, however it's in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do before/afterwards. i like to take the train in the city, and then it's a $40 cab ride to my hotel, then $10-$20 for a car to take me over to citi. another $20 to take me back to hotel. repeat for 2 days and then $40 to get me back to the train station. just way too much hassle for me.

i will miss talking baseball with people before and after the drafts though. that's usually a very good time. [/QUOTE]Wow, you'll miss all the people, the live drafts and stay away for $100 after winning $46,000??!!! Taking the No. 7 to Manhattan and staying in a hotel of your choice seems fair enough. But everyone is different and it's impossible to please everyone. Somehow, I expected this post, but again it's very tough in New York.

76erfan · Post by **76erfan** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 5:15 am

Originally posted by Gekko:

quote:Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

So right now returning to Bally's is our best option. We are still negotiating with them, but they have enough space for 3 or more Main Events and as many Live Double Plays or Auctions as we can host on Friday and Sunday. We hope this works for everyone and I hope we can grow on the numbers we had last year.

Thoughts? nothing wrong with that. i had a blast in AC. i was with the mrs and brother-in-law so it was a nice "family" trip [/QUOTE]Bally's was cool..and the weather that weekend was fantastic. It was like 70 and sunny which is abnormal for the area that time of year. Actually were lots of people on the boardwalk!

Gekko · Post by **Gekko** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 5:17 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

Wow, you'll miss all the people, the live drafts and stay away for $100 after winning $46,000??!!! Taking the No. 7 to Manhattan and staying in a hotel of your choice seems fair enough. But everyone is different and it's impossible to please everyone. Somehow, I expected this post, but again it's very tough in New York. You "expected this post"? what does that mean?

i praised tom, fanball, citifield, etc... however the logistics for me drafting at citi field stunk.

if you return to NYC, i'd be in favor of that, again simply for logistics.

btw, did you "expect my post" about Atlantic City?

Gekko · Post by **Gekko** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 5:20 am

Originally posted by 76erfan:

Bally's was cool..and the weather that weekend was fantastic. It was like 70 and sunny which is abnormal for the area that time of year. Actually were lots of people on the boardwalk! AC was easy to get to, draft rooms were great, fanball was great (talked with charlie and tom), talking with other nfbc'ers was great and watching the mrs blow money on the slot machines was great too! how can you beat it?

KJ Duke · Post by **KJ Duke** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 5:50 am

I think I'd prefer an off-strip resort, especially with big conventions in town. If it's a nice resort, off-strip with decent food and better room rates ... slam dunk.

Checked room rates ... S Point a little over half the price of R Rock, so unless you can get big room discounts at RR, S Point looks to me the best option.

DOUGHBOYS · Post by **DOUGHBOYS** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 5:56 am

Does it have to be at a ballfield/hotel venue?

What about a place like UNLV?

I'm not familiar with colleges in Manhattan, but maybe the same there.

The area around me doesn't mean a scintilla to me as much as the people.

Maybe, it's just the cheap basstard in me.

Asumijet · Post by **Asumijet** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 6:03 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

I do have to ask the question for Las Vegas: Is it important to stay on The Strip for NFBC drafts on either weekend? I ask that because there are places like South Pointe and Red Rock that are beautiful, big hotels 15-20 minutes off The Strip. I'm not saying we are choosing one over anything else right now, but I'd love to get feedback from the group about that. We've been fortunate recently to stay at the Bellagio, Flamingo, Stardust and Rio, but I was curious if that mattered. Any input is good input on that subject. I would be okay with off-strip.

DOUGHBOYS · Post by **DOUGHBOYS** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 6:05 am

Neal, re-pick in the MB Mock draft. Thanks

Happenstance · Post by **Happenstance** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 6:23 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

I do have to ask the question for Las Vegas: Is it important to stay on The Strip for NFBC drafts on either weekend? I ask that because there are places like South Pointe and Red Rock that are beautiful, big hotels 15-20 minutes off The Strip. I'm not saying we are choosing one over anything else right now, but I'd love to get feedback from the group about that. We've been fortunate recently to stay at the Bellagio, Flamingo, Stardust and Rio, but I was curious if that mattered. Any input is good input on that subject. I have a strong preference for an on-strip hotel. The reason I'd draft in Vegas rather than another location would be to make a mini-vacation out of it. And for the remainder of the time I spend in Vegas outside the drafts (for me: poker rooms, sportsbooks and restaurants), I'd much rather be on the strip than off.

I understand it's an expensive time of year to stay on the strip, but there are deals to be had (for the players, not necessarily fanball as host). There's a good thread at the fatwallet forums that list promo codes for Vegas hotel rooms (http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/travel- ... #m15250209)

Of course, I can always take a cab to Red Rock/South Pointe, so it's not a dealbreaker.

Money · Post by **Money** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 7:04 am

Originally posted by Greg Ambrosius:

I do have to ask the question for Las Vegas: Is it important to stay on The Strip for NFBC drafts on either weekend? I ask that because there are places like South Pointe and Red Rock that are beautiful, big hotels 15-20 minutes off The Strip. I'm not saying we are choosing one over anything else right now, but I'd love to get feedback from the group about that. We've been fortunate recently to stay at the Bellagio, Flamingo, Stardust and Rio, but I was curious if that mattered. Any input is good input on that subject. Greg, I prefer the strip, but is certainly not a deal breaker. I'm sure it will be a first rate event no matter where the venue is in Vegas. I'll be limiting my participation to an Ultimate and/or Super offering this year. These will be NON Gekko leagues. I've decided to take a personal stand and has nothing to with the NFBC. The guy just happens to bring out the worst in me.

[ November 12, 2010, 01:05 PM: Message edited by: Fast Money ]

FFBL23 · Post by **FFBL23** » Fri Nov 12, 2010 7:57 am

Greg,

Going off the strip would be a huge disappointment and step down for Fanball in my book. I'm not a huge fancy hotel guy, but the above post says it all. People also come to Vegas to do other things along with bringing family and friends. An off the strip hotel would require a lot of people to rent a car. Money wouldn't be the issue as much as the time spent driving in that traffic trying to get to drafts. Eating choices around draft times would be limited too. I hope you don't go this route. Not a deal breaker as I'll draft in the middle of the desert in 110 degree heat if I have to. I'm a frequent visitor to Vegas so if you do go off strip I would recommned Red Rock or M Resort, they are both very nice. South Point is an absolute dump, bad smell, horrible food, and feels very cheap.

Kevin