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Wednesday, August 16, 1995
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UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
Kansas City casinos attract college crowd
By Dena Pisclotte Special to the Kansan
By Dena Pisclotte
A distinguished-looking man wearing a tailored Italian suit and a gold pinkie ring steps up to the cashier to exchange $50,000 in colored chips.
You wait patiently as the cashier drones on, distributing the change in $100 bills to the man.
After the man brushes past, you give the cashier a $20 bill. You clutch the four gaming chips and survey the room. Craps? Blackjack? Roulette?
Such scenes of monetary contrast are common at riverboat casinos, where loss and gain are a matter of chance. More and more, bettors are students who carry less cash than their tuxedo-clad cohorts.
"We've noticed an increase in the younger population in the last couple of months."
said Matt Palmer, executive director of Harrah's Riverbate Casino. "Our customers are generally older people and those who travel all over the country casino-hopping."
Although Kansas City's casinos are not of the same caliber as Las Vegas or Atlantic City, N.J., people still come from everywhere just to experience Missouri River gaming, Palmer said.
Most of the riverboat casinos opened in 1994 after Missouri voters chose to lift the ban on gambling.
The casinos offer a variety of games, including blackjack, craps, roulette and the Big Six Wheel. There is also an assortment of poker games — keno and slots — as well as video poker and video blackjack.
The addition of Vegas-style gaming to the Missouri River has drawn younger people who otherwise would have to make the 1,400-mile trek to Nevada's gambling hot
spot, said Sue Ellen Nichols of Argosy Casino.
"The college-age kids aren't here for serious gambling," Nichols said. "They come with $50 or $100 to use in a two-hour session, but they don't tend to stay longer than that or spend any more money. Still, there's a significant cash flow coming from the colleges."
The casinos along the Missouri River are a well-secured group among Kansans, since advertising is limited to Missouri. Nevertheless, students are making the 45-minute drive to the casinos in the Kansas City area.
"I took a date there one Saturday," said Barzin Khalilii, Olathe graduate. "I lost my money in one game of blackjack, and (my date) won about eight dollars, but we had a great time anyway."
Justin Bowles, Wichita senior, makes reg
trips to the casinos with her girlfriends.
"It's a chance for my friends and I to do some female bonding and get into debauchery without the guys," she said.
The atmosphere and happy-hour-priced drinks keep the students interested.
"It's so exciting sometimes that it's hard to believe I'm not that far from Lawrence." Bowles said. "I can see how people get hooked on this."
For those students looking for something besides the Friday night bar visit, all casinos have cocktail services offering a full bar and most have on-site restaurants. Missouri law requires that those wishing to enter the gaming rooms and bars must be 21 years old or older.
Cashiers say that they card everyone, regardless of how old they look.
"It's a change from the bar scene," Khalili said. "Mass. Street and Westport get old after a while, and you want something to do
besides sit around in a smoke-filled room drinking beer. It's something new and different."
Most Kansas City-area casinos range in cover price from $3 to $9, depending on the day and session. Sessions last anywhere from 2 to 12 hours.
The minimum bets are $5, with a maxmum $500 loss a session. With credit lines that the bigger casinos issue, some gamblers are able to amass Vegas-like cash winnings, Murray said.
"Every now and then you get your $65,000 men, but that's not as common as your smaller-time players with just a few hundred dollars or even less to gamble with," Murray said.
How much less? Like $20?
KU travel board helps students go everywhere they want to be
"Yeah, you see those, too," Murray said, laughing. "They're always either tourists or college students."
By Deborah Staine Special to the Kansan
Carrie Richwine wanted to go to Los Angeles, but she didn't want to travel alone.
So Richwine, Washington, D.C., senior, did what many KU students without transportation are doing. She used the Travel Board located on the fourth level of the Kansas Union.
"It's really easy to use," Richwine said. "You just check the board, phone the person and set up a time to meet and arrange sharing expenses."
Although the Travel Board often is overlooked by students rushing to classes, more and more people are using it.
KU's Travel Board system was started about 10 years ago. Marshall Jackson, administrative associate for the Student Assistance Center, said that it was started for reasons of both economics and convenience.
"There seemed to be a need for students to find rides over Spring Break, at
Christmas and on weekends," he said. "And KU has students from every state in the Union."
The Travel Board contains brochures which say that it is provided as a self-service information center for KU students.
The brochures also state that the Kansas Union and Student Assistance Center act as information agents only and assume no liability for travelers' safety.
The system uses tickets designed to bring prospective drivers and riders in contact with each other. Students can go to the board and look at the map to see the zone of their intended destination.
Then they can take either a white driver ticket or a blue rider ticket and fill out the requested information.
This consists of the applicant's name, address, phone number, date of the intended trip, expiration date of the request and willingness to share expenses and driving. Then they should place the ticket in the correct zone on
the Travel Board.
"I use the Travel Board once in a while," Richwine said. "Since I put up my last ticket I haven't had much luck, though."
Richwine said that she used the Travel Board whenever she made a trip out of state and her friends could not accompany her.
Use of the Travel Board has extended beyond undergraduate students.
Stephan Boettcher, New York City post-doctoral-research fellow, is experienced with different Travel Board systems from his native Germany. Boettcher', a rider, hopes to get a ride back to New York.
"I'm used to traveling this way," he said. "In Germany the system is more structured and you can even get insurance on it."
Booettcher also suggested a few hints forriders.
"Look at the car, and be concerned if it is a first time driver," he said. "Also talk to them about any reservations you might have."
Photo Illustration by Michael Schulze / KANSAN
Sara Summers, Leavenworth sophomore, fills out a driver ticket for the Travel Board in the Kansas Union. Students can use the board to either find rides or provide rides to places in the United States.
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