lol, alright but if they try and put a probe somewhere strange and uncomfortable I’m going Wolverine on their arse!! 
Brilliant - VEGAS would flippin’ rock. Need some advance time - and FYI to all - early January is PACKED in Vegas (CES and Adult Film conventions first few weeks). So hotel availability are gonna be few and far between. I recommend early spring.
Who knows - maybe we can time this just right, watch the first episode together and have an honest to god Frak Party…
Let me know
Dave
If you’re going to plan for Vegas you need to plan around conventions for good rates. So here’s a site with a list that will help:
If we can get a set-in-stone air date for the first season 4 episode, and get it early enough, I’m with David…a live national frak party meet-up for the first episode would be unbelievable if we could pull it off ! Could we ?
Dave, Topgun: I just suggested the same thing in the comments for the April blog post. . . great minds think alike (or fools never differ). A frak party for the S4 premiere in Vegas would be dope.
I forgot to mention Windmill Ridge. You can find them online at http://www.wind-mill-ridge.com/. The restaurant there is very good (I have tried their food) and it is at a good jumping off point. From there you can not only go to sites in Las Vegas but can also drive past Groom Lake (a.k.a. Area 51).
It might be a little small depending upon the number of people that show up for an event but with a little logistics work (van rental between Las Vegas and Alamo?) it could be made doable, I suppose. Alamo and Ash Springs are not as subject to all the conference & convention pressures that Las Vegas is.
Since a ton of the in-bound flights to McCarran are part of night hub operations a conceivable way to go would be to have folks show up the Friday night and get shuttled off to Alamo after a drive down the strip and driving past Nellis. Saturday would be perhaps a drive past Groom Lake and then head into Las Vegas prior to returning to Alamo to crash. Sunday everybody gets on a return flight at McCarran.
As we are continuing into discussion of what to do if the writer’s strike kicks off as soon as Thursday I throw this out as a thought.
^^ bump
I know it’ll probably end up being just me and The Alpaca Herder, but hey, you gotta start somewhere. And Audra hasn’t been to Las Vegas yet – a place I think everyone needs to see at least once. So I’m serious about this. Let’s see if we can’t put together a plan, then put it on the calendar so everyone can start saving for it.
I need to do some flight/hotel research, but I think we should plan this sometime in March. This might coincide somewhat with the start of season four, or it might not. I say we don’t worry about that, because a) we’re friends anyway, regardless of when season four starts, and b) no one over at Skiffy has even come close to making up their minds when season four will start. It’ll start when it starts. Maybe.
And why Las Vegas? There’s almost always cheap air fare available, there’s lots to do outside of just hang out, and it’s a fun destination.
Other ideas that I think’ll make this easier and more fun:[ul]
[li]We should plan for one or two events together – say a first-night get together at Quarks so everyone can meet up, then a big dinner somewhere the next night. That leaves time open for everyone to do something alone with their significant other/family, do things with their newly-met (in person) friends, or pretty much do whatever the hell they want.[/li][li]These events should be in Las Vegas proper so those on a budget can get around sans car.[/li][li]We should plan a three-day weekend, third day optional.[/li][li]We should figure out all the details and get them planned by Christmas – maybe sooner – so everyone knows the deal and can plan for it. With three months or so to get ready, many people here could go out to dinner a little less and stash enough to do the trip on a budget. And if not, this’ll at least give everyone the best chance. It’s also enough time to plan ahead and blow a vacation day to make a three-day weekend in March.[/ul]Some other concerns:[ul][/li][*]Is spring break still in March? That could frak with hotel/airline prices.[/ul]That’s all I can think of right now, but I’m totally going to start putting some time in on this to get it planned out. Even if it’s just a few of us, it’ll be a great time – drinking in Quark’s bar with y’all: high on my list of to-dos-before-I-die – and hopefully even more people can make it with advance planning.
You can count two for sure, my wife and I will be there. Neither of us has been to Vegas. And while I’m Watercoolering, the wife wants to see Barry Manilow. Yes, she admitted it. But, she’s normal otherwise.
(thanks for the sig link Chuck, I feel very special this morning!) 
Hi All!
I’m actually heading down to Vegas in the beginning of December for some much needed RNR with the husband - another great bonus about Vegas is that, unbeknownst to 99% of the world, it has some of the best mountain biking ever! Great desert riding, and Bootleg Canyon up in Boulder City - 30 minutes away or less depending on traffic - has some topnotch downhilling, skills runs, and more awesome single track! Red Rock Canyon is just 13 miles away from the Strip - great hiking, a great scenic drive, with camping options close by.
At any rate, if anyone needs some place or site checked out, just let me know!
For those driving there/or who will be renting a car and want to be in Vegas but sleep somewhere quiet, I highly recommend Bonnie Springs Ranch http://www.bonniesprings.com/motel.html out near Red Rock Canyon - it’s somewhat odd, not Vegas-like at all, and not too pricey. There’s a small zoo there, and you get to wake up by the bleating of, yes, alpacas and other animals. Still all within 20 minutes of the Strip!
Anyone interested in an RV get together, let me know! We’ll be bringing our camper down and I know of some great places to camp - lush to primitive!
If you’re going to bring up Boulder City I will have to say that is a way to work in the Transformers movie into the mix. Where is the Hoover Dam after all? Hoover Dam straddles the Nevada-Arizona border and is just a brief drive from Henderson. The chance to go along the real landscape that would have been seen prior to the end battle probably would be a great addition to things.
I know I was one of the proponents for this, but I have very serious doubts I’d be able to make a national meet up in Las Vegas in March. Money’s just bleeding out of our bank account these days. 
Me too Armando. I won’t be able to go in March either. Planning on surgery to replace a hip that month. Bills are going to be outragous…but certainly not as bad as yours with the hospital and traveling back and forth.
[/li]
In March out there you have to watch out for NASCAR which is the first weekend of March and I think the middle of the month is always more expensive too.
If you plan on Quark’s you might want to head to LV Hilton’s web site and give them a call about room rate discounts on a block of rooms. Might want to put up a Poll and see how many could definitely make in March first though.
I know I won’t be able to this time…but next time…defo!
I can only do one major convention/trip a year right now. So, the crew here is heading to Atlanta in September. No Vegas for us.
Im always up for Vegas. If good ideas keep poping up here, im going to have to change my handle 
If its decided by christmas, that would work great (ill have time to put in vacation requests )
I’m up for Vegas! Keep in mind that Easter is in March next year- March 23. Most Spring Breaks are either the week before Holy Week, Holy Week itself, or right after. So I think that early March would be a safe bet to avoid all the extra Spring Break traffic at the airports. We travelled last year and it was ugly!
I love all the ideas and really believe we can pull this off.
With spring breaks and Easter travel coming up in March (let alone NASCAR action at the Speedway in North LV) might it be best to perhaps move things to February between the time where SW/TX PCA/ACA falls (February 13-16) in Albuquerque and month’s end?
I don’t know if that might help for the LV meetup, but Virgin America is having some great prices to promote its new lines over the country:
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thanks for helping us create America’s revolutionary new travel
experience.
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to our already low Main Cabin fares. And best of all, there is no
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This VA code doesn’t help me out in Texas (they don’t fly here), but I just tried a test booking for a trip in February – and holy crap, you can fly round trip for under $140. We need to pick a date.
And they apparently do fly to McCarran. I have been in Las Vegas since the beginning of the month and have seen quite a few of their flights flying overhead. Of course, then again, with the five mile separation between planes you see a plane on approach every few minutes.
Frontier has good fares as well as good service too.