Virginia 2016 -- Recap Topic

[TheFlash]

It is a bit of a tradition to post a few thoughts about the meet. Let's hope we don't also need a lost and found topic.

I liked the virtual reality games and I was totally content with everything the entire week. No regrets, I did everything I wanted to. I may have been stung by an insect on my leg because there was a swollen spot for 3 days but that is gone now.

I may or may not do the person by person recap thing later.

[Jimbo]

Someone left a Chromebook behind, as well as a Sager laptop with many decals on top of it. Pretty nasty things for the lost and found

[Walter]

the meet was awesome yet again. it was great seeing the people from last year and meeting new people. it's always great to see how the kart and GE communities are still going strong and bringing new people in. i apologize for not getting a smash tourney set up like i said i would, i have no good excuse and was being lazy about it.

highlights:
-lake activities
-getting a kart pr
-werewolf, which even featured some village wins and duff contributions
-quiplash, one of my favorite games and it was hilarious again this year. on my boring drive home i would randomly think of ideas for prompts i didn't get like "the name of a rock band made entirely of ducks" putting "cuck cuck goose." it's not the same playing/watching online but i think we should consider streaming it and people would enjoy it.
-seeing some intense kart
-"SSSSUCK MAH BALLS"

lowlights:
-played really poorly in the kart tournament. i stopped practicing because i wasn't doing well in the rounds i was playing and i really should have kept playing more and focusing on item use/screen watching. i made some really noobish mistakes and getting knocked out feels worse when a lot of it can't be blamed on anything but your own mistakes. last year in the finals jimbo and jones both beat me but i only had one thing i really wanted to take back so i was happy with how i played. the same two people beat me in this year's semi so i'm not mad about losing to better players but i did not play as well as i could have.
-this isn't really a lowlight but jimbo losing in that fashion was painful to watch. i don't think i've ever met anyone who could handle the shit we heap on him the way he does so i give him a lot of credit for that and if he ever does win it will be very well deserved.
-really nothing bad aside from how i played in kart though, it was a great meet and i can't wait for next year

[DavidK5]

Made it home without any issues. I hope everyone else has safe travels back!

I might post some thoughts later, but if anyone has requests for stream highlights, feel free to post them here.

[toughstache]

Definitely the most fun I have ever had.  Something to look forward to all year.

Lowlight: missed the cut    busted a third lap fs pr yesterday because I was looking for item boxes 

Highlight: Poker and volleyball MVP 

Thanks to everyone for sustaining such an incredible gathering for this long and allowing newcomers to join.  I really haven't enjoyed myself that much in a very long time.

[duffjr]

Highlight:  getting to the airport on time; getting to take a shower
Lowlight:  not going in the lake this year; not playing volleyball; not watching the Olympics

gives me something to look forward to next year at least. 

[Jonesy]

Ah yes, can't wait for the 2017 Summer Olympics.

[Ngamer]

Pictures are up!

http://vameet.speedrunwiki.com/2016/pictures/



EDIT - I was also able to recover the never-before-seen 2015 pictures off the same SD card

http://vameet.speedrunwiki.com/2015/pictures/

[NathanStinson]

Some random thoughts and highlights from my thinking

* https://www.twitch.tv/theelitegaming/v/72132354   So many things go so horribly wrong. Looked like both were actively trying to give it away. So great... especially the crowd reaction.
* A ton of entertaining kart matches and ending this year. Competition was top notch all around. Very good job to all competitiors.
* Quiplash was fun this year, Lots of same answers got old after awhile, but there was still some quality to be had. (I'd be up for an online game, Jake)
* "We just call it Moore, OK"
* Austin doesn't know W's and B's apparently (from the trip home)... Wendy's
* The Emulator setup Drew is making is great. It'll be a lot of fun to compete in officially next year.
*  Mario Kart TE (Tournament Edition) rom was a great success this year. It was a lot of fun being able to use any character you'd like. Much props to Drew again (and bitalive)
* "Everyone in the semi finals has done great job... except maybe Trent" - Zoran in his finals acceptance speech.
* "Suck MY BALLS" - Trent (for DK: https://www.twitch.tv/theelitegaming/v/71682204 starting at around 1:55:25)
* "It's not a choke if you can't move!" - NGamer (for DK: https://www.twitch.tv/theelitegaming/v/71458097 at around 1:38:23. It's sort of hard to hear him though sadly. Start at 1:37:50 for context)
* Zoran comes across as a bit of a cocky bastard... but unlike Jimbo he's actually won something
* Duff's random Fedora...
* Going for a walk to the road with Jimbo, Amber, Boss, and JT was fun. First time I'd walked that route. Very lovely and shaded
* Frankie's volleyball serves (and subsequent mentions in Quiplash).
* The new guys were all great fun to meet. I enjoyed visiting and playing with them all.
* We didn't get to play a lot of VB this year due to ground conditions, but the amount we got to was a lot of fun.
* Zoran played several sick volleyball shots with his feet. Two behind the back bicycle style kicks (that I vividly recall) back over the net to save the ball as well as several other saves to teammates.
* Lots of entertaining Vive watching. Mrs. W even loved it. I think Josh Nash and Edeen will buy themselves one now
* Austin getting so angry about Mario Party 2 luck boxes.
* Mario Party 1 the first night. So much salt flying (and choice language) over chance time.
* Werewolf winning the first game as wolf.
* In Werewolf, it was particualrly funny that Jones (as moderator) had to ask who the wolves were multiple times because he couldn't see Duff
* Ping pong pools was a lot of fun.
* Meeting Amber was fun. I'm glad Jimbo has her. He seems much happier.
* Playing jungle pong with the group was fun as always.
* Late night Jeopardy with Trent and JT.
* Some random laptop gaming (Duck Game, Towerfall, Gang Beasts, Rocket League) with Scott, DK, and some others was a lot of fun.
* Watching wiff grind for Dam 53.
* We played a lot of corn hole. JT schooled a lot of us.
* We took a large group on the nice cruising boat around the lake. We went by the power plant and just enjoyed the nice day. Definitely should do this every year. Everyone getting soaked on the way back was especially memorable.
* This was my first year getting in the lake in about 4-5 years (usually just not too interested). I enjoyed that.
* One year Jimbo will (probably) win kart. Much props to how he played
* MGay's tanktop game was on point.
* The Weatherton's hospitality was the definition of top notch as always. Just like visiting dear family every year
* QB waking people up by diving on the floor during VR. Was fun to watch him
* Dennison was by far the biggest surprise at the kart tourney.  Legit could have made the finals. Good work man
* "Mate"

* Somehow leaving my stuff behind sucks, but at least Mrs. W can ship it to me!

I may think of other things later

[NathanStinson]

Austin wants to highlight some moments from their MP2 match: https://www.twitch.tv/theelitegaming/v/71458097

He already mentioned 15:17:49.
Austin, tag more here

[duffjr]

Ah yes, can't wait for the 2017 Summer Olympics.

I was too sad to say 4 years, but I'll probably watch only the track and swimming this year having to leave out the field, diving and volleyball events.

[Joshua Nash]

Really can't wait till next year! I had a great time meeting everyone. The vr was awesome and I'm already saving for one! Hope everyone made it home ok.

[toughstache]

Duff, we will swim next year.

[GoldenGreg007]

Austin wants to highlight some moments from their MP2 match: https://www.twitch.tv/theelitegaming/v/71458097

He already mentioned 15:17:49.
Austin, tag more here

Haha, that was a great clip.  I think the first two minigames were both tag-worthy.. 14:14:21 and 14:18:54.  I'm sure there were some other great moments but that was a pretty ridiculous start between those two.

[Imperfect Clark]

I was insanely close to pulling off a Friday appearance. I realized the week before I had unused "travel funds" (thought to gone), so I could now afford it (if I was healthy enough for it - to be elaborated on soon). I started compiling tons of notes on every feasible SWA departure to any airport in range (included Baltimore, even) - for context:


EDIT: This should be public... https://www.dropbox.com/s/wh9uqlrkky63fqd/Screenshot_2016-06-15-08-17-42~2.jpg?dl=0

For a variety of reasons options were falling off the table rapidly (e.g. hopes for supplementary plans with DC friends Sat-Mon dropped Wednesday). Eventually I was down to one flight that had me arriving at the house as late as 9:30pm Friday, assuming no delays of any type. I had asked earlier and was told that the kart tourney would start at 9 latest (by Ng and Mark). I agonized for 3 hrs but decided it was too risky. I had a plan B of Skyping/Twitch-Simulcasting for a nice vicarious experience. Unfortunately the frustration and disappointment overwhelmed me; my mood crashed and I turned off my computer and my phone.

The bacjground info:, Since early 2013 (with a major escalation this January), sets of new circumstances in my life have been interfering with my life, my health, my career, and ultimately my ability to live functionally and happily...  Some here already know a bit.  You guys are a rock in my life and I attribute much of my past but also my present happiness to the Elite. I don't know if my fading health will allow for many more chances for seeing you guys.    This would be the comeback of all cokebacks.

Ng, Jonesy, DK, et al. for compiling and executing an excellent schedule & improved tourney format + improved twitch "omni-cast". I especially liked seeing realtime scoring. It really gives me surge of vitality and optimism when I see the "old boys"  flexing their VIP reputations.

[wheatrich]

sorry to hear clark, take care of yourself first.

is that ngamer time stamp correct?

How was VR?  I'm waiting till cheaper/kinks get worked out but it seems many of you liked it at least.

[Thiradell]

when I see the "old boys"  flexing their VIP reputations.

couldn't have said it better, I agree with this. Hope you're doing well Clark, sorry to hear that things haven't been great for a few years now. I didn't go this year but if I had your presence would've been greatly missed. Always enjoy seeing you

[SGT RAGEQUIT]

I was there for maybe 10ish hours but my impressions:

Was somewhat weird knowing people by name but not by face. I watched Wiff play for like an hour  before I realized it was him. It was sweet to meet more of the Elite mates Alec/Austin/Boss/Mg/Jimbo/Trent, also cool to meet Stinson. Got my first decent controller from Edeen, now directly responsible for my Archives 54s  . Was pretty amazing to try out the the HTC Vive, courtesy of Mgay, Also had the best round of Mario Party with Austin, Alec and Jimbo: https://www.twitch.tv/austinthegamer/v/71215786


 I'll definitely rearrange my schedule next year to spend a couple days, I really didn't want to leave.

[redsrule2500]

Looks like so much fun

[TheFlash]

Was pretty amazing to try out the the HTC Vive, courtesy of Mgay

Not sure if this is a joke or just a case of mistaken identity. I never saw Mgay touch the Vive a single time.

[Rigger in Chief]

Was pretty amazing to try out the the HTC Vive, courtesy of Mgay

Not sure if this is a joke or just a case of mistaken identity. I never saw Mgay touch the Vive a single time.

Probably cuz QB was hogging it the whole time

[Ngamer]

Hang in there Clark, we'll get you back to your home away from home next year.

Dear DK, couple requests in terms of youtube videos for when you get a chance:

- could we get a short 1 minute or so version of the last lap for Thingy/Steve on Toad's Turnpike?  so from hereabouts https://www.twitch.tv/theelitegaming/v/71312790?t=1h39m and leaving time at the end for everyone's laughing and their reactions.  I think this baby's got a chance to go viral... in a big way

- for the video of the Grand Finals, could you let it run a little longer so it includes Zoran's speech and then the first minute or two where I grab the camera and zoom in on Jim/Dennison/Jones/Zoran discussing the results?


And now for RESULTS!


Kart 2016 Final Standings
1. Zoran
2. Jimbo
3. Jones
4. Nate
---
5. Dennison
6. Jake
7. Boss
8. Trent
---
9. JT
10. Frankie
11. Weatherton
12. Dan Edeen
13. Ngamer
14. Mgay
15. Trouble
16. Steve
---
17. Duff
18. wiff
--
19. Thingy
20. Austin

The MVP award obviously goes to Champion Zoran but in terms of defying expectations to be the star of the tournament I'd have to go with Dennison.  After finishing 13th place last year he went all the way from a Play In match to coming only two races short of reaching the Grand Finals in 2016, quite the accomplishment!
---


Werewolf Results

The Village did shockingly well this year in winning 2 out of 4 games.  "Uhhhh that's only average, sir" you might say, but listen here mister- last year Villa won a truly pathetic one game... in nine attempts!  2014 wasn't much better as Team V could manage only 3 wins in 10 tries, so as you can see this counts as quite the turnaround.  How did they do it?

Game One - After doing a great job of lynching Wolf Dennison on D2 with 4 out of 7 votes, the Town sadly fell apart.  Leaders Jones and Edeen were at each other's throats in the final days; the only thing they could agree on was that Nate was WAY TOO unsweaty to have drawn wolf and it was all over on D4 when Edeen fingered Jones to signal a Wolf Win for Dennison and sneaky ol' sweatless Nate.

Game Two - Inexperienced new player Steve had a bit of a stumble out of the gate; his fellow Wolf Jones tried to make the best of the situation by throwing him under the bus on Day Two and it very nearly worked.  Cool moment: with 5 players left alive Duff tells the seer he should come out if he has 2 live peeks (because that would mean 3 cleared Villa so they'd have two chances to lynch the Wolf and it would guarantee the victory), but Jones laughs him off saying nope that math doesn't work out.  Since it's Duff everyone just assumes he must be crazy and Jones gets away with it.  HOWEVER on the final day Jake makes the winning play by fingering Jones instead of Duff to lead Villa to the win.

Game Three: JT is suspicious of Ngamer all game for being too vocal and leading all the discussion, after lynching Villa the first two days it looks like another will fall D3 as a bus has built for Ng.  With 10 seconds left he comes out as seer and clears JT and Jimbo, everyone switches their lynch target to Trouble instead who ends up flipping Wolf.  Even so it comes down to the final day where Jake and JT do a good job of correctly fingering 2nd Wolf Duff to give the Village its second win in a row.

Game Four: The village gets the break of a lifetime when a 5 way tie on Day 1 (all with 2 votes) results in Wolf Dennison getting lynched after the huge tiebreaker is settled.  Sadly everything fell apart the rest of the way- Edeen was lynched D2 as a result of an angleshoot, Zoran lead a brigade on Jones D3, 4 of the 5 incorrectly voted to kill their partner Jake on D4, and Nate incorrectly picked Jimbo on Must Lynch to result in another Wolf win for Dennison, this time alongside Trouble.


Player of the Week: Nate, who started out a stunning 3-0 after winning as a Wolf team with Dennison, twice as Villa, then making it all the way to the Final Three in Game Four.  Great showing!  Dennison also deserves some recognition for somehow drawing Wolf twice more (he's now up to 8 red draws in only 26 games; compare that to Jones' 3 for 27 over that same stretch) and winning them both.  ...meaning he's now 7-1 lifetime when flipping Wolf, jeez!

Speaking of which let's see the updated All Time Top 20 for VA history



Fitting that our top two players this year are now 1 and 2 on the overall charts as well; they're also the only two high-volume players to ever manage a winning record.  Of course due to Villa's incredible struggles in the two years previous, a big part of that has come down to how often you can draw Wolf.

Speaking of which, you might think it's crazy that Jimbo's won only 9 games against 21 losses but that's nothing compared to poor JT!  He had what must be the most unlucky run in the history of WW/Mafia to start his career at 3 wins in 19 attempts but as you'd expect he's won the lottery in terms of avoiding Wolf, drawing the red card only once in 23 games.  Good to see him turn things around with two solid wins this year, I'm sure luck will even out and he'll be flying up the charts soon!

Complete results and full standings: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1x3pThvzLq0GDT2XSc7ar0InPLr6qUK62GsjopXogzOw/edit?usp=sharing

[DavidK5]

The MK64 finals and semis will be on my youtube channel shortly. I highlighted all of the tournament matches and I think all the other highlights that have been requested thus far have been created. Let me know if anything has been missed or if you have any other highlight requests. I think twitch vods only last 14 days, so they will be disappearing soon.

[Rigger in Chief]

Sorry about the late reply. Here's the highlights of the trip that come to mind

• Riding Amtrak the first time in my life. Cheap way to travel lazily.
• Meeting Mgay and Stinson in OKC was great.
• First time traveling to Kansas and it was sunny
• Getting 1 3rd place finish in MK64 in Topeka
• Missouri is a shit state don't ever go there
• West Virginia is literally a third world country
• Telling fucked up jokes with wiff, mgay and Stinson at 5 AM halfway through Illinois
• Really beautiful house. Lake Anna was particularly beautiful
• Tyler doesn't look anything like someone named Ragequit
• The ultimate TWINE matchup was fun
• Mrs. Weatherton is an excellent cook. Food was absolutely delicious
• 10000 chance times on Magma Mountain. The MP1 shittalking was fun
• All the 1:11 triggers
• MP2 wasn't as nice to me. Hexagon Heat and Look Away chokes are particularly memorable
• Alecs a dick at Mario Party
• Riding on the pontoon boat was really fun. Don't know how Stinson knew what was going on he was on his phone the whole time
• Got to try a little bit of VR...pretty cool but novelty wears off for me after awhile
• Lagless GE was pretty fun
• PAL Jungle is literally cheating. Sad I didn't PR
• Wiff going for Dam 53 was great. Halfway through Mario Party 1: "Are you playing Widescreen?"
• Toads Turnpike failure. Glad to have witnessed that live
• Quiplash was absolutely amazing, despite the shitting on Jimbo getting a little old
• Frankie looks exactly like what I expect a wrestling coach to look like
• Zoran's volleyball saves were amazing
• Meeting all the eliters whom Goose has shittalked and/or called corrupt
• Meeting every eliter in general was amazing
• Mr and Mrs W were incredibly hospitable
• Kart finals was insane. Poor Jimbo got sniped by Zoran
• Return trip: could have sworn a Bojangles was a Wendy's.....poor mgay really wanted wendy's
• Arkansas smells like shit
• Total Mountain Dew intake the whole trip: 1 1L bottle on train, 3 heading through my driving shift through missouri, 4 more getting to VA, 2 total cases of 24 cans at VA, 2 leaving through VA, 3 bottles during my shift through Arkansas, and 2 1L bottles on the train back.

Enjoyed the entire trip, possibly my best vacation I've ever taken. Definitely hope to be back next year

EDIT: I'll check the Mario Party streams tonight to see if theres any worthwhile highlights

[Jimbo]

I had every intention of making a full recap post, but then got lazy. Quick thoughts:

- I really enjoy being in a role where I can be involved with all eras of the Elite. From Sterling and Ngamer, to Austin and Alec, to Stinson and Jones on the Kart side, and even the super newbies like Ragequit (Tyler) and Joshua Nash. I get along with everyone and genuinely enjoy everyone's company* at the lake house.

- I don't go into the tournaments with much prep time for Kart (same case in 2015), but end up putting up my best rounds when they matter most. Experience is huge in this tournament for sure, and for me it's like "oh cool another year where I play the maximum rounds (finals)" 2 years in a row where I've been the point leader after 12 races. That burns my ass but whatever, wouldn't be any fun if my 0-8 record in the finals suddenly had a win in there I imagine.

- I was far more stressed than I let on about bringing Amber, mostly because I wasn't sure how the Elite/twitch would treat her. (Jimbo 2.0 with all the trolling and shitting on?) With the exception of Austin calling her Rachel during volleyball (lol dude, wow), everyone was awesome and respectful I spent a lot of time outside for a change and tried to adjust my sleep schedule as a compromise for her and the stupid head cold I ended up getting Monday night. On one hand, I missed staying up til 5 AM each night playing competitive games and virtual reality and having a blast, on the other hand I'd have been glued to my phone like 2015 if I came alone. To me, there's no question she's the one, so it was great test of things to come. #relationshiplife #sappydouchebag I'm not sure what I'll do next year, but I have a feeling many others will want to bring their girls too. (Derek, Eddie, TheFlash, Liz and Hutch, etc)

- It cost $186 in gas and $91 in tolls this year to bring a V8 Dodge Charger 2000 miles over the course of 33 hours total. You'd think at $277, we'd just fly, but split amongst 3.5 people it's easily under $90 with unlimited luggage space and personal travel freedom. The same flight ticket would cost about $400 per person with limited luggage space. Second year I've taken the beast through the mountains and damn, it's fun as hell flying past trucks going uphill on an 8% grade when the Honda Civic would struggle to hold speed. Averaged just above 28 miles per gallon, which is mighty impressive for such a big car/3 people.

- With wheat, Eddie, and Derek not making it this year, we are down to a mere 5 gents who have shown up for every meet at the lake house. What do we all have in common? NO KIDS. Ngamer will surely be the last man standing someday.

- Dan Edeen and Nathan Stinson would easily be my bffs if we lived closer. Not like I didn't know that already, but man it's awesome catching up.

- There's a very good chance we'll have 40+ people interested next year, which is a huge issue with a 25-person cap. We'll cross that bridge next year.


*minus Duff, not sure why he shows up

[wishiwasfamous]

Loved VA, as usual. It was great to meet all the guys again, and to see some new faces. It was sad to see some guys not show up, especially the iron-men who are always there.

Highlights:

-Learning about the cheat stick. I bought one on the way to the airport and I got it 2 days after I got home.
-2.x cheat strats.
-Streets 1:13. No longer the guy with the "slowest 1:14 on record" (so says bcks)
-The pontoon boat ride
-Nightmare again! That was a weird version, but still fun to play. Especially nice that we won!
-Getting the bed to myself
-"Fanfare For The Common Man" with the Mgay-mobile when arriving at the lakehouse  There was talk of doing a Chariots of Fire entrance, but it flamed out, which is ok lol
-Jimbo for mailing my chargers back
-Again, it was great meeting all the new guys. Zoran, Frankie, Alec, Austin, you were so much fun to chat with.
-Watching the Copa America with JT and everyone else.
-NG's VR set. WOW!!!

Lowlights:

-Grinding for Dam 53. I have all the tips I need now, it's just getting the urn...
-Leaving early. But let's face it, I have the greatest wife (then-fiancee) ever to have let me go at all just 2 weeks from the wedding!
-I freaking sucked at Kart. I was pleased with how I did last year, but I sucked hardcore this year. I will get better, because that was downright embarrassing
-No GE tourney? Then again, it probably would have been LTK 
-Probably in the hardest ping pong group ever with Bjorn, Frankie, and Drew.

Many thanks to Austin and Alec for being so supportive with my grinding and learning 2.x. Austin, I'm sorry I kept using your cheat stick all meet!!! But thank you so much for letting me use it at all!

Congrats Zoran on winning the Kart finals!

[Mavalock]

Highlights:
- Had some great conversations with some people, particularly regarding some current pressing issues in my life
- Doing better than I expected in Kart against some intense competition (except my last round, I played like garbage)
- The pontoon ride (including getting soaked, heh)
- Going for a swim every morning
- The GE race with Trent, Austin, and Ragequit.  Races are fun, let's do more next year!
- Generally being in a much, much better mood than I was last year

Lowlights:
- Getting rekt by allergies the whole week
- Nothing against Stinson, wiff, and Austin, but 18 hours is a looooong time to be in a small vehicle with 3 other people
- Austin is apparently illiterate and can't tell the difference between B and W
- Stopping at the most backwoods place in the entire state of Arkansas at 4am and getting a crap ton of bugs in my car (also, the place smelled beyond awful)
- Losing $20 in poker in record time

After having such a bad time last year (personal issues, I'd rather not elaborate), I almost decided not to go this year, but now I'm super glad that I ended up going.  This was easily one of my favorite years.  You guys are the best!

[wheatrich]

With the exception of Austin calling her Rachel during volleyball.

- There's a very good chance we'll have 40+ people interested next year, which is a huge issue with a 25-person cap. We'll cross that bridge next year.

Would've been worth every penny just to hear that.  Also, jimbo stop comparing yourself to curry/gsw when you didn't win a single round in VA this year losing to other 4 in the top 5.

I realize this is tl;dr from a long ways off and if we're fortunate to have one again, but while I'm thinking of it maybe we should start a template for this scenario in mind.  beck/burbank are 2/3 in the world now and if that drags matthias along (who would obviously be a lock) might spur some other higher ranked players out of their caves...  I know the host weathertons would prefer based seniority but there might be 24 at least decent players just for the kart tourn itself...  *shrugs*

[Jimbo]

Fitting how this comes from someone who chokes yearly to even make the top 8. Don't think you realize it's not about winning rounds, just point farming, until the finals.

[no_control]

I returned home yesterday  .

It was great to finally go to VA and meet everyone.

The place is awesome and the hosts were amazing, i loved the food so much. As i said to Weatherton's, i will be starting a new tradition at home having an American breakfast at least once a week at home.
I enjoyed the poker tournament, i love the game but i don't have a chance to play it often. I only wish i had more money to rebuy and stay in the game longer.
Volleyball games were also a lot of fun, didn't play it in years and i like to play it so this was great.

As for kart tourney i don't think it could have been any better (except maybe 3-4 rounds). I was a bit cocky coming in, but in the end i loved the strength of the tournament. I checked the results of previous years and when i saw Dennison play i knew i will have to put up my A game to win this.

I think everyone in the top 10 were very strong including Trent  . Frankie's driving was so good in the last round, he reminded me of Matthias a bit. With some more experience in VS, he will be a force. I played some warm up rounds against Boss and i was sure he will make the finals, Jake had potential, but he looked pretty nervous this year. As i said before, Jimbo is the hardest opponent i met except Matthias in VS. Plays very smart and doesn't give up. Unfortunately for Jimbo, 10% of everything is luck and this is the only part he seams to be missing.
I will give props to Jones as well. 2nd part of his Finals were amazing and i saw before what he can do, but that beginning was just too much. Probably my only regret is that we played only 1 round together so i couldn't get a proper read on his strength. Nathan is just what i expected, he can beat everyone and lose from anyone.

That TT playin deserves a special mention, i will never forget that  .

All in all very strong kart competition!

I also enjoyed Werewolf games, was kind of hoping we do more of them. I thought i can hide very well until Jones read straight through me in the last game   .

Also, would like to thank Scott for helping me find my way once i landed.

Thx for hosting this Andrew, i loved the kart talks and thx for sharing some knowledge.

A lot of great and interesting people, it was a pleasure meeting you all and i hope to come again next year. I got my Visa now for 10 years i think and the only thing that can stop me is if i have no free time.

 

[Ngamer]

Fitting how this comes from someone who chokes yearly to even make the top 8. Don't think you realize it's not about winning rounds, just point farming, until the finals.

I'm sure wheat understands the importance of farming points, he's just saying you can't compare yourself to the Warriors/'11 Packers/'07 Patriots who spent the whole regular season blasting opponents by 30 and being able to rest their starters in the 4th quarter.  Your approach is more like the 1990s Buffalo Bills, or perhaps the 2000s Philadelphia Eagles.

[Jonesy]

Some thoughts re: the kart tournament.

I knew Zoran was going to be the real deal. I watched him play in the Euro tournament and could instantly see that he was a world-class player. The only thing I was unsure of is how he would respond to playing against 3 other good players. He was only really being tested in Europe by MR (who is also very good) but the rest of the field wasn't really that giving him much issue. Zoran definitely lived up to the hype and you have to commend him for his performance. I only wish that I could have given him a little bit more of a challenge in the finals. It's a shame that we only got a chance to play each other once. With my situation, not really being able to attend the full week, I kind of liked the hype this year of finally facing off when it mattered most - in the finals. Next year, if we both come, we'll definitely have to try and get in more rounds when I'm there.

I try empathizing for Jimbo, but then he turns around and says stuff that is just utterly ridiculous (regular season MVP, comparing himself to Curry, etc.). I'll certainly be happy for him when he wins the whole thing, but dude, you have to carry yourself with some measure of class (i.e, don't make excuses when you lose and be humble when you win - and when you lose? LMAO). ROFL at wheat calling him out for going 0-4 in winning rounds. I didn't even notice that until he pointed it out. This is what you get, Jim, when you start spewing bullshit.

It was really neat to see Dennison's improvement. I know Dennison has a lot of multi experience with MK8, but his improvement this year came from practicing specifically for MK64 4p vs. Him and I are both proof that if you practice specifically for MK64 4p vs you can improve from scrub level to championship caliber. Dennison's improvement this year was eerily similar to mine in 2013. We both crushed it in casual rounds and R16 and both barely missed out on making the finals via unforced mistakes in the last few tracks of the semis. If Dennison keeps up the work, I have no doubt that he can win the whole thing in the future. For anyone else who is tired of missing the r16/semis/finals/winning etc., all you have to do is put in the work. MK64 4p vs is NOT a luck based game. If everyone plays perfectly, then yes, you can make that argument for why you lost, but no one is even close to that level yet.

As for my own performance, I was obviously a bit let down. I badly wanted to win in 2014, as I thought that might legitimately be my last shot at coming to VA (Kerry was 3 months pregnant then) and after the disappointment of 2013. Last year, I wanted to match Layne's achievements of winning 2 tournaments and also to confirm that my win in 2014 wasn't a fluke. This year, I was honestly looking forward to not having any pressure and just being able to have fun. However, when I found out that both Boss (the 2012 defending champ) and Zoran were coming, I knew that I wouldn't be able to give myself that luxury. I knew that people would use Zoran's performance in VA as a way to either raise up or tear down the US/Europe, and even though I don't really buy into that logic (which I think is completely stupid), I still felt the pressure of wanting to win on a personal level (it's nice to say that you have beat every person who has an argument for being a "top player"). I did a postmortem analysis of my own finals performance, but I still need to go back and watch it from the perspective of Zoran and Jimbo. I've definitely picked up on some things from watching Zoran and will do my best to use this as an opportunity to try and learn and improve my own game. I only wish that I had more chances to play against good competition outside of going to VA.

[Jimbo]

Busy at the moment for a long reply, but man you gotta know by now that I always just make fun of myself now days in regards to the Kart tournament. Can't take stuff like the curry thing so seriously, Jonesy.