Skate America 2021 Returns to Las Vegas

SidelineSkater

Well-Known Member
Messages
781
My husband has tickets for the Michael Jackson Cirque Show that day. My response to him: I am sure there will be a few MJ free dances! He is pissed!

Show times are 7:00 and 9:30 for MJ. Maybe he can swap to 9:30 if you are planning on going to the exhibition.

We saw it in 2019 and really enjoyed the show! Probably our fav CDSL show we’ve seen.
 

emilieh

Well-Known Member
Messages
682
Yes, that “scheduling conflict” would be called NBC telling USFS what time windows they had available for live broadcasts.

Well, NBC always had that window on Sunday for Grand Prix events. It's just that usually they air a taped broadcast during that window, and they must have decided that they wanted it live, because it's an Olympic year.

And instead of picking one of the disciplines where the U.S. is likely to medal at the Olympics, they picked ladies because of course they did. :p
 

Vash01

Fan of Yuzuru, T&M, P&C
Messages
55,385
Well, NBC always had that window on Sunday for Grand Prix events. It's just that usually they air a taped broadcast during that window, and they must have decided that they wanted it live, because it's an Olympic year.

And instead of picking one of the disciplines where the U.S. is likely to medal at the Olympics, they picked ladies because of course they did. :p
Win or lose, I think in the USA the ladies are watched more than any other discipline.
 

Allskate

Well-Known Member
Messages
12,804
Check the numbers. This is the height.

Las Vegas numbers are high. But they're still open. The numbers may get higher by Skate America, but I don't think they'll shut down. The economy is too dependent on casinos, shows, and tourists. I work with someone who went to Vegas recently and stayed at one of the casino hotels. She said it was extremely busy and crowded with very few precautions. Some people will love that, and some people will stay away. Las Vegas isn't my cup of tea at the best of times, but a lot of people are loving it.

It's possible that proof of vaccination would be required to attend Skate America? That's what the Las Vegas Raiders are going to do:

 

SidelineSkater

Well-Known Member
Messages
781
Las Vegas numbers are high. But they're still open. The numbers may get higher by Skate America, but I don't think they'll shut down. The economy is too dependent on casinos, shows, and tourists. I work with someone who went to Vegas recently and stayed at one of the casino hotels. She said it was extremely busy and crowded with very few precautions. Some people will love that, and some people will stay away. Las Vegas isn't my cup of tea at the best of times, but a lot of people are loving it.

It's possible that proof of vaccination would be required to attend Skate America? That's what the Las Vegas Raiders are going to do:


I’m not disagreeing the numbers are high in Vegas. just curious to what you are comparing the ‘high’ to?

However I think it’s important to have perspective. They are flatlining on a 14 day trend and definitely no where near being a hotspot.

The casinos are under a mask mandate and having read several recent trip reports, the fact is most people are following the mask guidelines. It may vary from casino to casino as per enforcement, so your coworker may have encountered a more lax mask experience. However, it’s inaccurate to paint Vegas as a hotbed Of cases at this point in time. The tourist industry is key there and I think most places want to stay open and will enforce masks and other safety protocol

Also October is more shoulder season. Less busy than summer vacation time and convention season isn’t in full swing. Plus conventions haven’t made a full comeback yet either.
 

Allskate

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Messages
12,804
I’m not disagreeing the numbers are high in Vegas. just curious to what you are comparing the ‘high’ to?

However I think it’s important to have perspective. They are flatlining on a 14 day trend and definitely no where near being a hotspot.

The casinos are under a mask mandate and having read several recent trip reports, the fact is most people are following the mask guidelines. It may vary from casino to casino as per enforcement, so your coworker may have encountered a more lax mask experience. However, it’s inaccurate to paint Vegas as a hotbed Of cases at this point in time. The tourist industry is key there and I think most places want to stay open and will enforce masks and other safety protocol

Also October is more shoulder season. Less busy than summer vacation time and convention season isn’t in full swing. Plus conventions haven’t made a full comeback yet either.

You may not consider Las Vegas to be a hotspot, but others do:

The situation isn't currently surging, but it's not good:

If you're not denying that the numbers are high, then what does it matter what the benchmark is? Is it safe if Vegas numbers aren't as high as Florida's? Is it safe just because the record numbers were higher a week or two ago? Is it safe if schools just opened and there are lots of unvaccinated kids who can spread the virus in the coming weeks? If the universities have just opened and aren't requiring vaccines? If less than half the county is fully vaccinated? If the state has more hospitalizations now than they had a year ago and when the casinos were shut down? If the test positivity rate is more than 2.5 times what the WHO recommends in order for a city to be opened up?

If you want to believe that all those folks going to Vegas to drink and party and gamble and go to shows, bars, and restaurants are staying masked up, social distancing, etc., feel free. The fact that a business wants to stay open does not mean that they enforce masking and other preventative measures with employees and customers, especially when a lot of the preventative measures aren't even required by law. Most of us have observed that by now. Heck, Florida wants people to come there on vacation but look at what their governor is doing. Everything in Vegas is open to full capacity, including the casinos, which have removed the plexiglass dividers on the floors, etc.

By the time of Skate America, COVID numbers may be different, but I don't think that these conditions will have changed. And regardless of the numbers, I don't think they will cancel Skate America.

I think it's much easier for venues to require vaccination than to require and enforce masking, social distancing, etc. It's also much more likely to give people who care more of a sense of comfort. So, it would not surprise me if we start seeing more venues require vaccination. It also would not surprise me if venues in some locations or catering to certain types of customers don't require any prevention efforts at all.
 

AnnM

Well-Known Member
Messages
918
I just bought tickets for Lady Gaga's show in Vegas during the same time as Skate America and proof of vaccination will be required for entry. If Skate America is going to do the same, they'll need to do so fairly soon in order to notify all ticket holders and give them time to attain full vaccination.
 

Yuri

Well-Known Member
Messages
813
Today the US Open Tennis tournament, which had planned to be mask-free, test-free, and vax-free with 100% attendance, was forced by the Mayor of New York City to require at least one vax shot to enter.

With less than 72 hours notice before the first matches on Monday! Clearly, many already have airline tickets and hotels on top of VERY expensive tickets to see the tennis tournament. Apparently, no refunds will be offered to ticket holders without a shot.

New York City had been planning to require a shot for restaurants, Broadway, and many indoor events on September 13, after the US Open concluded, one of the strictest policies in the US. The US Open had just announced mask-free status earlier this week. Quite a reversal at the last minute. Hope US Figure Skating avoid a similar debacle for Skate America and Nationals.
 

SidelineSkater

Well-Known Member
Messages
781
I appreciate the response. However you aren't making the point you think you are. It's not accurate to paint Vegas as a dangerous, hotbed of activity. I think everyone here wants the situation to improve everywhere and can make their own decisions about what is best for themselves with regards to travel, Skate America and their own health. I'll be traveling there with an emergency room physician who has been on the front lines of this since the beginning and I trust her guidance way more than someone making wide generalizations and less than accurate statements on a figure skating message board.

The first article you linked was from July 26 - a few days before the city implemented an indoor mask mandate again, which includes casinos. So to use the article where health officials urge people to avoid Vegas is outdated.

My point to my first reply is that you seem to be painting Vegas in broad strokes where no one wears a mask and they’ve removed plexiglass from floors and are ignoring safety precautions. That simply is false. I'm not saying there's 100% mask compliance 100% of the time, but you're making it seem like everyone is running around maskless - which is not true.

Your flurry of questions is also a series of misleading information. In Las Vegas, there were not record numbers a few weeks ago, last week or this week. The state universities in Nevada, including UNLV, DO require students/faculty/staff to be vaccinated (by Nov.) Clark County/Las Vegas is more than half vaccinated. Casinos were not shut down a year ago, most had reopened by now - so your statement about the state having more hospitalizations now than a year ago 'before the casinos reopened'- again is not correct. You are correct when you use the positivity rate being more than 2.5 times the WHO guideline. For Las Vegas, it is heading in the right direction, but still about 2.5 times higher than the 5% benchmark.

To your post about the Raiders and AnnM's post about the Lady Gaga's Vegas show requiring proof of vaccination (which is great!), I think that other shows venues - including casinos and hotels - are taking this seriously. To say 'some venues that cater to certain kinds of customers' is pretty disparaging. Just like skating fans, casinos attract all sorts of people - not just 'certain kinds'.

Also if you want to point to the fact Nevada/LV are labeled as areas of concern by the White House, so is the vast majority of the country. You mentioned Florida & the governor. Much different approach than Nevada's governor. Again, not making the case you think you are.

To recap - it can be a scary place out there right now. Is Las Vegas the safest place? No. Is is the wild west where everyone is ignoring masking and making it a constant super-spreader event because it caters to a certain kind of crowd? No. Can we agree that we all love skating and want things to return to as normal as safely and as quickly as possible. Yes.




You may not consider Las Vegas to be a hotspot, but others do:

The situation isn't currently surging, but it's not good:

If you're not denying that the numbers are high, then what does it matter what the benchmark is? Is it safe if Vegas numbers aren't as high as Florida's? Is it safe just because the record numbers were higher a week or two ago? Is it safe if schools just opened and there are lots of unvaccinated kids who can spread the ***** in the coming weeks? If the universities have just opened and aren't requiring vaccines? If less than half the county is fully vaccinated? If the state has more hospitalizations now than they had a year ago and when the casinos were shut down? If the test positivity rate is more than 2.5 times what the WHO recommends in order for a city to be opened up?

If you want to believe that all those folks going to Vegas to drink and party and gamble and go to shows, bars, and restaurants are staying masked up, social distancing, etc., feel free. The fact that a business wants to stay open does not mean that they enforce masking and other preventative measures with employees and customers, especially when a lot of the preventative measures aren't even required by law. Most of us have observed that by now. Heck, Florida wants people to come there on vacation but look at what their governor is doing. Everything in Vegas is open to full capacity, including the casinos, which have removed the plexiglass dividers on the floors, etc.

By the time of Skate America, ********* numbers may be different, but I don't think that these conditions will have changed. And regardless of the numbers, I don't think they will cancel Skate America.

I think it's much easier for venues to require vaccination than to require and enforce masking, social distancing, etc. It's also much more likely to give people who care more of a sense of comfort. So, it would not surprise me if we start seeing more venues require vaccination. It also would not surprise me if venues in some locations or catering to certain types of customers don't require any prevention efforts at all.
 

Allskate

Well-Known Member
Messages
12,804
My point to my first reply is that you seem to be painting Vegas in broad strokes where no one wears a mask and they’ve removed plexiglass from floors and are ignoring safety precautions. That simply is false. I'm not saying there's 100% mask compliance 100% of the time, but you're making it seem like everyone is running around maskless - which is not true.

You're exaggerating and misconstruing what I said to shoot down a straw horse. They have taken down the plexiglass on the casino floors. They are at full capacity. I didn't say that everyone is running around maskless. There is no point to this kind of discussion. I've learnt that. Skating is my escape from the real world, and I have no desire to turn this thread into a discussion of COVID or in any way play into a narrative about the safety of Las Vegas.

Enjoy your trip.
 

SidelineSkater

Well-Known Member
Messages
781
You're exaggerating and misconstruing what I said to shoot down a straw horse. They have taken down the plexiglass on the casino floors. They are at full capacity. I didn't say that everyone is running around maskless. There is no point to this kind of discussion. I've learnt that. Skating is my escape from the real world, and I have no desire to turn this thread into a discussion of ********* or in any way play into a narrative about the safety of Las Vegas.

Enjoy your trip.

I'm giving you facts to correct your false narrative. There is no exaggeration or misconstruing. You are correct in that there is no point in this kind of discussion. I've learned that as well. I appreciate the discourse.

I hope you continue to enjoy skating and I hope all of us attending live will enjoy our trips too!
 

ЭPiKUilyam

Banned Member
Messages
1,333
Well, gee, sure glad I popped over here to see what was new, cause I had no idea that SkateAm changed their schedule! I have a flight back home that Sunday at noon, so.....guess it's time to see if I can change my flights and add another night to the hotel.
Yep, I was scheduled to fly back on Sunday afternoon, too, but ended up cancelling the whole trip due to CV concerns. Kinda shitty to change the schedule like that. Glad I didn't end up being affected by it.
 

Karen-W

Checking Senior Bs for TES mins...
Messages
36,134
A tentative time schedule is available since single event tickets went on sale:

Friday, October 22
6:00pm - Pairs and Men SP

Saturday, October 23
1:40pm - RD and Women SP
6:15pm - Pairs and Men FS

Sunday, October 24
11:00am - FD and Women FS
6:30pm - Exhibition
Well, I guess I don't need to take that day off of work, lol. Just can use it for one of the European GPs or NHK.
 

SpeedySucks

Well-Known Member
Messages
514
And I thought leaving Vegas at 9:30 pm would give me plenty of time to see the Gala. Stupid me.
The airport is very close to the arena, so if you have TSA precheck, you could probably still see at least half of the gala before you leave for the airport.
 

MacMadame

Doing all the things
Messages
58,289
The airport is very close to the arena, so if you have TSA precheck, you could probably still see at least half of the gala before you leave for the airport.
I applied for the more expensive option (Global something?) and then the pandemic screwed me. My husband has TSA Precheck and he never remembers to use it.
 

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